Title: Themeless Thursday
Author: Tony Orbach
Theme: NA
Here it is, the penultimate Sun puzzle, and a typically excellent one. But the sun (the real sun) is out and I want to go outside and play, so comments will be sparse and brief.
1a: Cruel inquisitor (TORQUEMADA).
11a: Posse members (PALS). I grew up watching western movies with my dad. Posse to me will always involve horses and cowboys.15a: Did a 180 (ABOUTFACED).
16a: Davis-drawn dog (ODIE). That's Jim Davis of Garfield fame, of course.
17a: Hide (CAMOUFLAGE).
18a: Bubkes (NONE).
19a: Piece of praise (ODE).
20a: Ways (ROADS).
21a: Turkic tongue (UZBEK).
22a: How ham might be ordered (ONRYE).
23a: Electrolyte particles (ANIONS). How might ham be ordered by a physicist? With anions.
24a: Dominatrix, for example (SADIST).27a: Many pound inhabitants (MUTTS).29a: Robbie's dad (EVEL).30a: Sufi beliefs, e.g. (MYSTICISM).34a: Social goodie (TEACAKE).37a: Ghost costume cutout (EYEHOLE).38a: It's made without yeast (SODABREAD). It's made without soda too.
40a: Brésil division (ETAT).
41a: Small recesses (NOOKS).
42a: Adds streets to, say (REMAPS).
44a: Vanilla, e.g. (ORCHID).
47a: French river (SAONE).
49a: Scrupulous (MORAL).
50a: "Fuego del Ande" singer (SUMAC).
51a: Brand of energy drink (AMP).
54a: Continuously (EVER).
55a: "Synkronized" band (JAMIROQUAI). Never heard of them. Very Scrabbly.
57a: Get ready, with "up" (GEAR).
58a: "Theodora Goes Wild" star (IRENEDUNNE).
59a: Throng (ARMY).
60a: Done wrong (MISTREATED).
1d: Soft shell grab? (TACO).
2d: One-chapter O.T. book (OBAD).
3d: Where "Tosca" takes place (ROME).
4d: Status follower (QUO).
5d: One-way street no-nos (UTURNS).
6d: Endeavor (EFFORT).
7d: Language of Singapore (MALAY).
8d: Part of AMPAS (ACADEMY). The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences awarded the Oscar to the only one of the five best picture nominees I saw "Slumdog Millionaire." Great movie.
9d: There are nine in F. for every five in C. (DEGS).
10d: Orange additive? (ADE).
11d: Bernard Madoff offering (PONZISCHEME).
12d: Spicy Mexican marinade (ADOBO).
13d: It often stays in the closet (LINEN).
14d: Personal ad word (SEEKS).
21d: Loose (UNTIE).
22d: "Mighty Mouse" villain (OILCANHARRY). I vaguely remember this meanie, although if you'd asked me to name somebody named Oil Can I'd've gone with Boston Red Sox pitcher Oil Can Boyd.23d: Case worker: Abbr. (ATTY).
24d: Prepares for a spike (SETS).
25d: Subcompact from Chevrolet (AVEO).
26d: Word with heat or meat (DEAD).
28d: Put into service (USED).
30d: Pigeon-hearted (MEEK).
31d: Grain (IOTA).
32d: Rough the passer? (SLAP).
33d: "Kiner's Korner" interviewees (METS).
35d: In a tumultuous state (ABOIL).
36d: Nickname of Mariano Rivera's crosstown rival (KROD). If you wonder how Francisco Rodriguez got the nickname K-Rod and not F-Rod, you should know that in baseball notation a strikeout is symbolized by the letter K. Rodriguez strikes out a lot of batters.
39d: Postulates (ASSUMES).
42d: Lion, at times (ROARER).
43d: Protect from the enemy, in a way (ENCODE).
44d: "The ___ Man" (1971 Charlton Heston film) (OMEGA). One of my favorites, recently redone with Will Smith and a new title (which escapes me.)
45d: Name on a bone-shaped ID tag, perhaps (ROVER).
46d: Beat by a lot (CREAM).
48d: Make ___ (strike it rich) (AMINT).
50d: Draped dress (SARI).
51d: Jessica Simpson, to Bronx Mowgli Wentz (AUNT).
52d: Locks in a paddock? (MANE).
53d: Foot, in French (PIED).
55d: "Broken Flowers" director Jarmusch (JIM).
56d: As (QUA).Good luck at the ACPT.
Norrin
1 comment:
Hey Pete,
I feel compelled to say something, being that it's the penultimate Sun and my last one. Peter has been great to work with. Trying to find fresh clues to fit his standards has really helped me get better at approaching clues in general. Avoiding partials has also become second nature thanks to their being anathema to him.
I also think back to the first puzzle of mine he accepted, which a CONE rebus: I knew Peter was a math man and I thought that might break through with him (of course, if I'd known about his penchant for baseball I'd have been all over that angle, and probably with quicker reulsts!). I tried to have the formula for finding the volume of a cone - Peter wouldn't allow the squared sign (2) because technically it's a superscript, so it was a bit of a slog to get the thing done. I persevered and Peter hung in there with me through plenty of versions before the final grid came together - other editors would probably have told me to take a hike. I thank him again for all that help and the entertaining back and forth along the way, with plenty of discussions of odd names and senses of words that are part and parcel of what we all love, whether there's a puzzle in the offing or not.
Last but not least, thank you for joining the blogging fray and doing such a nice job of covering the Sun! I've said it before, but I would check out your blog no matter what just to get my dose of a good Simpsons still as illustration of fill words.
See you in Brooklyn!
Tony
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