Tuesday, February 10, 2009

Title: Coming of Age
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Wordplay theme in which AGE gets inserted to various phrases

• 17a: Beauty contests on the equator? (HOT PAGEANTS).


• 28a: Pelt with rocks in a wise manner? (SAGELY STONE). you probably know who sly stone is, but i didn't. some kind of '60s-'70s funk musician.


• 44a: Saws about infield flies? (POP-UP ADAGES). "an out in the hand is worth two in the bush."


• 60a: Psychologist Jean calls it quits? (PIAGET STOPS). swiss developmental psychologist jean piaget, you've officially made it. congratulations!

i have high expectations for a patrick blindauer theme, and this one fell somewhat short. there's nothing wrong with this theme, exactly, but other that POP-UP ADAGES, i wasn't wild about any of the four theme answers or their base phrases.

Sunny Spots:

• 51d: Chiba ___ Marines (Japanese team managed by Bobby Valentine) (LOTTE). any reference to nippon professional baseball gets an automatic sunny spot.


• 52a: 1 followed by 100 zeros (GOOGOL). this is just a cool word for a cool idea. certainly google thought so. it also reminds me of the brilliant russian author nikolai gogol.


• 18d: The earth, when viewed as a self-regulating organism (GAIA). fun factoid: the GAIA hypothesis was proposed by james lovelock, but named by his next-door neighboor, novelist william golding (of lord of the flies fame).

Sundries:

• 1a: Something to play for (KEEPS). nice clue at 1a.


• 6a: Green shoe (CLEAT). the shoe you wear on the golf green. the CLEAT itself is usually white.


• 19a: Pitch (TAR).


• 20a: Night crawlers, maybe (LIVE BAIT). eww. i'll spare you the picture.


• 33a: Lock (TRESS). it's always TRESS. but for once, this word isn't on the bottom row or rightmost column.


• 35a: Maxwell rival (REO). i'm not familiar with maxwell automobiles, which were manufactured from 1904-25. should i be?


• 40a: "Diary of a Genius" author (DALI). this is my favorite DALI: the sacrament of the last supper, from the national gallery of art in washington.


• 42a: Letter abbr. that tells the reader there's something else in the envelope (ENC). what's the record for highest clue length/answer length ratio?


• 43a: Turning points? (AXLES). this clue maybe doesn't even merit a ?.


• 59a: Up chuck? (LOB). this one does, but i wasn't wild about the clue.


• 64a: Shout when a show starts ("IT'S ON!"). i'd like to see this clued as ["You're going down!"]


• 2d: "My God," to Jesus (ELOI). now here's a clue i can get behind. seems a bit tough for a tuesday, though.


• 4d: Peck of pickled peppers picker Peter (PIPER). cute.


• 5d: Popular food fish (SEA BASS). yeah, lots of fishing words meet up here.


• 6d: Feeding a line to (CUEING). but not this one.


• 9d: Door holder's phrase ("AFTER YOU"). "i insist, my dear alphonse." "no, i insist, my dear gaston."


• 10d: Tries (TASTES). with _AS___ in place, i slapped HAS A GO down here. whoops.


• 22d: Way inappropriate for children (RATED X). like, waaaaay.


• 25d: "Sweeney Todd" prop (STROP). well, he is the demon barber of fleet street.


• 26d: Home to many works by El Greco (PRADO). spanish art having its say in this puzzle. but the DALI museum is in ... st petersburg, florida. why? i have no idea.


• 32d: Bagatelle dedicatee of the early 19th century (ELISE).

• 34d: Released (SPRUNG). i like this answer.


• 39d: Common bonds? (ANDS). nice clue for a slightly awkward answer.


• 43d: Germfree state (ASEPSIS). whoo, the vocab is getting kinda technical.


• 47d: Part of QED (ERAT). once, i saw this clue used for QUOD. someday i'd like to see it used for QUANTUM. or on a really good day, ELECTRODYNAMICS.


• 54d: Dead beat writer's piece? (OBIT). is there really a "beat" for OBIT writers?


• 55d: "Permit Me Voyage" poet (james AGEE). i didn't know he wrote poetry.

Suns of Bitches:

• 55a: City near BrasÌlia (ANAPOLIS). whoa. i'm way out of my depth here. rio, sao paolo, brasilia, recife... that's all the brazilian cities i know. the maryland home of the naval academy has two Ns.


• 8d: Progeny of Eternity and Infinity, in Marvel Comics (EON). obscure, but guessable.


• 24d: "Truth or Dare" director Keshishian (ALEK). no clue.

see you next time.

joon

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Title: Vowel Movement
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Two-part phrases where the second part mirrors the first part except that the vowels progress (A=>E, E=>I, I=>O, O=>U).

• 3d: NASA doctor’s collection? (SPACEMAN SPECIMEN).


• 5d: Glittering lymphoid mass? (TINSEL TONSIL). Ewww.


• 8d: With 51-Down, jelly thickener for "The Conference of Champions"? (PAC-TEN/PECTIN).


• 11d: Fad collection of actor Dempsey? (PATRICK'S PET ROCKS). It would be too egocentric to self-reference here, I guess. Eh, Patrick?


• 26d: Breath fresheners for a certain prayer? (MANTIS MENTOS). That's prayer as in "one who prays" -- a praying mantis.

Well, we have give a "potty humor" tag just for the title, don't we? I've seen a theme like this before, though I don't recall the exact details. I don't believe it dealt with double phrases like this one -- I think it was just phrases that were modified by the vowel progression. The 16-letter theme entries force the 15x16 design with theme clues running down. Plenty of theme fill here, and a remarkably smooth fill -- not unexpected from recent Constructor of the Year Oryx winner Patrick Blindauer.

Sunny Spots:

• 27a: Square that might have two sides? (MEAL). I'm certain I've seen this clue before, and it still caught me. Very clever, a square meal including sides. But why two? Why not three?


• 36a: "Play with us" channel (NICK JR). I love this because the CKJR letter combination seems so unplausible during the solve.


• 6d: Sparks could be seen on it in '07 (IDOL). Jordan Sparks and "American Idol". Very nice clue.

Sundries:

• 1a: Medicinal meas. (TBSP). An abbreviation at 1a is not ideal, but we'll forgive this minor indiscretion.



• 5a: Alfred directed her in "The Birds" (TIPPI Hedren).


• 10a: Tail of a Tibetan terrier? (APSO). Cryptic half-of-dog_name: Lhasa apso.


• 19a: The whole kit and caboodle (A TO Z).


• 20a: In "Penny Lane," what the banker never wears in the pouring rain (MAC). Beatles clues are always welcome here.


• 21a: Minor key? (ISLET). Cute clue.


• 22a: Bruno of "City Slickers" (KIRBY).


• 23a: Capital near the Oahe Dam (PIERRE). South Dakota.


• 25a: One with an abode in Aden (YEMENI). Usually it's ADEN in the puzzle, not the clue.


• 28a: Lie-down, to a Yank (NAP). Why to a Yank? Southerners don't nap?


• 29a: Private sleeping arrangement? (COT). Military reference.


• 38a: Australian Open champ before Steffi's three-year winning streak (HANA Mandlikova).


• 39a: Foot massager? (ODIST). Okay, that's pushing it.


• 43a: ___-Poo (character in "The Mikado") (NANKI).


• 44a: 1974 film starring Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland (SPYS). I was so certain this was going to be MASH. If TRYSTS weren't such a gimme I might have had a real problem here.


• 47a: Most in need of Beano, maybe (GASSIEST). This ices the potty humor tag.


• 50a: Torn up on the screen (RIP). Rip Torn. But you knew that. You've seen this clue before.


• 52a: It borders Sask. (MONT). Montana.


• 65a: Economize (STINT). I wanted SKIMP in the worst way here, but I couldn't make it fit. STINT, to me, means a length of time.


• 68a: Number of pesetas in un duro (CINCO). Pick a Spanish number that begins with C.


• 69a: Chain with chairs (IKEA).



• 70a: Chachi's cousin, with "the" (FONZ). From "Happy Days", of course.


• 1d: Disney mutt (TRAMP). "Lady and the Tramp" is one of my favorite Disney films.


• 2d: Religion seeking world peace (BAHAI). You'd think all religions would seek world peace, wouldn't you? If only.


• 7d: "Our Gang" dog (PETEY).


• 13d: Black Sabbath vocalist's first name (OZZY). Easy, but nice to get that double-Z in there.


• 22d: Military cap with a flat top (KEPI). This is a word I learned from crosswords.


• 34d: Mathematician Lovelace (ADA). Linda didn't fit. And counting to twelve doesn't make one a mathematician... ;)


• 37d: –1, for 180° (COSINE). Speaking of math...


• 46d: Mortarboard tosser (GRAD). That's those funky hats they make you wear.


• 48d: Jolt, e.g. (SODA). "All the sugar and twice the caffeine."



• 59d: Toque wearer (CHEF). Hey, "Hell's Kitchen" has started again. But they don't wear toques. This is the time of year when Fox dominates the airwaves... "House", "Idol", "24", "Hell's Kitchen", ...

Suns of Bitches:

• 16a: Webkinz company (GANZ). Never heard of it. I've heard of Gas-X (in puzzles), but that didn't fit.


• 56a: Subject of the song "Tell Me, Trudy, Who Is Going to Be the Lucky One?" (EDERLE). I'm too lazy to look this up. It's only vaguely familiar.

Another nice puzzle from PB2, as we've come to expect.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Title: Attention to Details
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Wordplay theme in which D is added to the end of two-word phrases

• 17a: Site of a hospital auction? (BIDDING WARD).


• 28a: Gradual curve in the road? (GENTLE BEND). my favorite of the theme answers. nice base phrase, and a good clue-answer pairing for the modified version.


• 48a: Perform some physical therapy? (MUSCLE MEND).


• 61a: Tiny greeting from Hallmark? (COMPACT CARD).


• 11d: Work for the military police? (BASE TEND).


• 38d: Group that plays during finals week? (TEST BAND).

not the world's most exciting theme, but well-executed with six rock-solid theme answers. the only thing i didn't like about it was having the two vertical entries which weren't longer than the other down answers—indeed, they're each in 3x8 stacks. the stacks are nice, but i actually had some difficulty determining that they were part of the theme, especially since the puzzle is fairly loaded with ? clues in the fill.

i was kind of expecting this puzzle to have something to do with the inauguration, but maybe that's because i expect everything to have something to do with the inauguration. i can't remember an inauguration this anticipated.

Sunny Spots:

• 34d: Plant tissue (XYLEM). i've always loved this word. i mean... it starts with X, and then goes later in the alphabet from there. good stuff. it gets much more crossword play than its counterpart, PHLOEM.

Sundries:

• 1a: What some people do to enter united states? (ELOPE). okay, that's a tortured clue. i did figure it out, and almost smiled. i think i'll give it the "clever but tortured" tag.


• 6a: Storybook elephant (BABAR). also a major particle physics experiment at SLAC.


• 14a: 2008 French Open and Wimbledon champ (NADAL). NADAL is great, but i was pretty bummed that he took out roger federer at wimbledon. but it was the greatest tennis match i've ever seen, so there's that consolation.


• 15a: Hoopster Danny (AINGE). he's now the GM of the boston celtics.


• 16a: Ex of Mickey, Artie, and Frank (AVA gardner). i don't know who any of those guys are, but i recognize this clue from having seen it in many forms before.


• 19a: Where to find a father-to-be: Abbr. (SEM). seminary. tricky clue. it seems cruel to combine misdirection with a not-very-common abbreviation on a tuesday.


• 22a: Caterpillar competitor (DEERE). i guess caterpillar makes farm equipment? or maybe lawnmowers?


• 24a: 1970 John Wayne film (RIO LOBO). there are at least three RIO ___ john wayne movies. i needed the B to figure the rest of this one out.


• 27a: ___ Beach, South Carolina (MYRTLE). i've been there, and yet i didn't get this even after i had MYR_L_. why? because i was misreading it as "southern california." duh.


• 33a: Novartis product (GAS-X). wasn't this one of the central answers in PB2's "big ten" friday puzzle from last october? i liked that one a lot.


• 35a: "Winter of Artifice" writer (anais NIN). not a work i'm familiar with, but there are only so many ways to clue NIN.


• 40a: Blah? (YADDA). in the sense that YADDA YADDA YADDA is roughly synonymous with "blah blah blah." this is a stretch, but i guess with the ? it's okay.


• 46a: Comic strip character who loves Dick (TESS). that's TESS trueheart and dick tracy, but this clue is definitely getting the "sexual innuendo" tag.


• 57a: "It's ___ real!" (BEEN). i liked this a lot: it's a fun way of cluing a boring word.


• 66a: Dry (UNWET). yuck.


• 68a: With 69-Across, Valentine's Day gift (RED/ROSES). don't get me started.


• 1d: Sportscaster with the catchphrase "Oh, my!" (dick ENBERG). i got this instantly, but is it really a catchphrase? it's so... uncatchy. ENBERG is perfectly inoffensive, but he's not exactly memorable.


• 2d: Actress Kazan (LAINIE). no relation to director elia. i think.


• 3d: Like some favorites (ODDS-ON). not sure i've ever seen this fill. it looks like ODD SON in the grid.


• 5d: Member of the Whiffenpoofs (ELI). the poofs are yale's premier all-male a cappella group. i wish i didn't know that, but i do.


• 6d: Bug planter's break-in (BAG JOB). i didn't know whether to sort this into "sunny spots" or "suns of bitches," so i split the difference. cool-looking phrase, but i've never heard of it.


• 9d: The A of A&M (AGR). yuck.


• 13d: Cross-dressing star of "The Royal Tour" on Broadway (DAME EDNA). the clue says "star," but apparently she's a fictional character. i did not know that.


• 18d: Prize that Sartre declined (NOBEL). i wonder if sartre gets jealous that his lover NIN is in crosswords so much more often than he is. i mean, she never did anything as cool as declining the NOBEL prize.


• 25d: About 9.46 trillion km (LTYR). i still hate this answer. the standard way of abbreviating "light-year" is just ly. at the very least, it should get a "Var." tag.


• 41d: Many people bank on them (ATMS). i've noticed that when the clue refers to the answer using a pronoun ("it" or "them") and contains a figure of speech, it's usually supposed to be interpreted literally rather than figuratively.


• 45d: His epitaph says "That's all folks" (mel BLANC). the guy who voiced bugs bunny, among thousands of other characters. interesting trivia.


• 52d: "Annus Mirabilis" poet (john DRYDEN). the "annus mirabilis" is 1666, the year of the great london fire. i'm not sure why they thought that year was so great.


• 62d: Gibraltar bride of 1969 (yoko ONO). i had no idea. gibraltar? really?

Suns of Bitches:

• 43a: "American ___" (Benjamin Nugent book) (NERD). i can't imagine a less helpful clue. there's probably a book called american ___ that i've never heard of for any value of ___.


• 26d: Mrs. ___ of Folgers fame (OLSON). not enough fame, if you ask me, but i've been known not to recognize characters from decades-old commercials. just ask madge, who's soaking in it.


• 39d: "___ Calling" (short-lived Fox series) (TRU). i had trouble with the T here, because the crossing 39a: Glover's specialty (TAP) wasn't doing me any favors. is that danny glover? gary glover? i'm guessing no, but i don't know who it is.

nice puzzle for a tuesday. it's not one of the PB2 outside-the-box specials, but a well-executed puzzle and an enjoyable solve nonetheless.

joon

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Title: Rear Ends
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Phrases whose first two and last two letters combine to make a synonym for "rear" (ass).

• 17a: Belmont Park statue subject (SECRETARIAT) => SEAT.


• 24a: Farm laborer (HIRED HAND) => HIND


• 29a: Melt ingredient (TUNA FISH) => TUSH.



• 44a: Takes out for use after a period of inactivity (DUSTS OFF) => DUFF.


• 50a: "Pardon My Sarong" costar (BUD ABBOTT) => BUTT.


• 62a: Endorse without question (RUBBER STAMP) => RUMP.

Thematically, this puzzle was a mixed bag for me. On the plus side, there were six theme entries (assuming I didn't miss any today) and the theme involved asses, which plays to my admittedly juvenile sense of humor. Also, it's cool not only that there are six 4-letter synonyms for REAR, but that they all can be formed as above using common names and phrases. On the minus side, the theme didn't help me at all; in fact, I had to go back afterwards to figure out what it was. And I wouldn't have noticed it at all without the title to make me look at it right. On the neutral side, the theme entries themselves were neither stellar nor duds, but were decent enough.

The Rest of the Puzzle

• 1a: See 41-Across (SALE). I'm not crazy about references to other clues at the 1a spot, especially when it's the second half.


• 15a: Like listing letters (ITALIC). Listing to the side, as in slanted.



• 16a: Words said when standing in front of a train? (I DO). A bridal train.


• 20a: Shout targets (STAINS). Shout, the detergent.


• 21a: 60 minutes: Abbr. (DEG). Degrees are made up of minutes and seconds, just like hours are.


• 23a: W.'s alma mater (YALE U). Ick. Yale is enough. Nobody says Yale U.



• 26a: Early Jacko do (FRO). Jacko = Michael Jackson.


• 34a: "The Merry Widow" composer Franz (LEHAR).


• 41a: With 1-Across, money-saving event (FIRE / SALE). See 1a.


• 42a: "Lost in Translation" setting (TOKYO). This movie got really great critical reviews, but I thought it was really slow and dull.


• 46a: It may hang from a toy (ID TAG). A toy poodle, perhaps.



• 53a: Yawl pair (MASTS). Yawls and ketches are two-masted sailboats. The yawl has the mizzen mast "yawl the way back" behind the steering.


• 58a: Jim's "Man on the Moon" role (ANDY). Jim Carrey. Andy Kaufman.


• 59a: Beyond help, in a way (DOA). Dead on Arrival. Ouch.


• 64a: Lowest honor (TEN). Bridge tag. Honors are ace, king, queen, jack, and ten.


• 2d: Queen of the Misty Isles, in the comics (ALETA). Didn't know it, but didn't see the clue either.


• 3d: Neighborhood pub, to a Brit (LOCAL). I just this morning was listening to "Slap and Tickle" by Squeeze, which includes the line "He drove off to his local; where he felt anti-social." How strange that it shows up in a puzzle that same day.




• 5d: Quarter halves (BITS). A quarter is "two bits".


• 11d: Cashew cousin (PISTACHIO). Two of my favorite nuts.


• 13d: Part of WWJD (WOULD). What would Jesus do?


• 18d: "Tuff ___" (1986 hit for the Fabulous Thunderbirds) (ENUFF). Easy enough to figure, even if you didn't know it.


• 24d: Hookah hookup (HOSE). Drug reference.


• 25d: GI bill? (DOL). Why GI, exactly? This one felt a little over-clever.


• 29d: Parlor piece, for short (TAT). Tattoo parlor.


• 30d: Spanish cardinal (UNO). Cardinal number.


• 31d: "Well, duh!" (NO KIDDING).


• 35d: Sandy bark? (ARF). Oof.


• 39d: Air force? (GUST). Went GALE first.


• 40d: Medium ability (ESP).


• 43d: Place to play the race card?: Abbr. (OTB). Okay, that's clever. In a non-PC sort of way. OTB is off-track betting.


• 48d: Peanut, in the South (GOOBER).


• 51d: Football wager (UNDER). One of the many bets one can lay is the over/under, where you bet whether the two teams' combined scores will be over or under the specified number.



• 52d: Raga drum (TABLA).


• 54d: Site of the rite stuff? (ALTAR).


• 57d: Green party VIP? (ST PAT).


• 63d: Tolkien's Legolas, e.g. (ELF). Love the Tolkein clues.

Suns of Bitches:

• 5a: Natty of literature (BUMPPO) crossing 9d: Swiss watch brand (PIAGET) was a total guess-the-letter crossing for me. And P was about my eighth choice.

The only major problem I have with this puzzle is the BUMPPO/PIAGET crossing. A minor nit is that it's a tad heavy-handed with the punny clues. Now don't get me wrong, I love a good punny clue. But after a few too many, you just start to groan.

Happy New Year, all, and thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

Ooh, too cool. Patrick Blindauer is probably my favorite crossword constructor. He is constantly pushing the boundaries of what a crossword puzzle can be, turning that familiar black and white grid into an acrostic, a chess problem, a picture of the sword in the stone, or even a game of Frogger to name just a few. Even when he plays it straight as he does with today's puzzle, I enjoy his clues and the way his mind works.

Title: 007
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme:Seven across entries have a double-O phrase in the place of the more common single-O one.

17A: Cheerleaders? (MOOD SQUAD) One white, one black, one blonde; they're cops on a soul beat. My feelings about "The Mod Squad" changed a lot during its five-year run. When it started in 1968 I was ten years I thought Pete, Linc and Julie were cool heroes but by the time it ended in 1973 I thought they were dirty turncoat traitors. I did however still have a crush on Peggy Lipton.
But these guys weren't real hipsters. Look they can't even spell "groovy."


21A: Test on which to use a number two pencil? (POOP QUIZ) I guess it reveals what a high-brow I am when I tell you that was far and away my favorite of the themed entries. Double potty humor -- number two pencil! that's funny.

30A: Pail for bailing out a single-master vessel? (SLOOP BUCKET)

36A: Trousers for Woodsy Owl (HOOT PANTS) Give a hoot, don't pollute!


48A: Midday menthol (NOON SMOKING)

55A: Entrance stairway discontinuity (STOOP GAP)

61A: Like people with hoops in their lobes (LOOP EARED) I wish PB had found another way to clue this one. HOOP and LOOP are just too close for comfort.

Sunny Spots:
I always like sexy-sounding clues and this puzzle starts and ends with them. 1A: They get laid (EGGS) and 65D: One who's coming out (DEB). Along the same lines there's 32D: Castrated cock (CAPON)

I can't remember now exactly who the Mod Squad worked for, but DEA is right under them in this puzzle (20A: Busters; abbr.) and that seems likely that they would probably turn in all their pot-smoking buddies first.

52A: Abbr. on a holey vestment (IRR) 48D: Russell of "The Wiz" (NIPSEY) He was a ubiquitous figure on 60s and 70s game shows, usually showcasing poems like this:

Sundries:
49D: Member of the WHO (ORG) That's world health organization, of course, not the guys responsible for "Behind Blue Eyes."



71A: Its logo is a crowned griffon (SAAB) I could see that griffon in my mind, but I didn't get the answer until I had S_AB.

43A: the 2s in 2 + 2 = 4 (OPERANDS) Well, damn, it looks like my fourth grade teacher Miss Overton lied to me again. She told me they were called ADDENDS.

58A: "The Premature Burial" writer (POE) Not one of his most famous stories.

Suns of Bitches:

The whole southwest corner was a bugaboo for me for a long time. I'm not big on westerns so I didn't know 40A: 1966 Howard Keel western (WACO) and I really wanted 42D: Entertainment option since the 1950s (COLOR TV) to be TV MOVIE. It was hard to let go of because all I had was that O in the fourth square so that would have worked. I also wanted 69A: Emissary (ENVOY) to be PROXY.

It's not that hard, but I initially missed 6D: Only valid three-letter Scrabble word that doesn't contain Y or any consonant (EAU). (I had IOU). By the way I don't know if it's the only three letter Scrabble word with no vowels, but NTH is a good one to remember when your rack is consonant-heavy.

Not knowing what a hackberry is, I also missed 1D: Hackberry's cousin (ELM). (I had ELK, which is embarrassing cuz I don't think berries and mammals are very closely related.

That's all I've got this time. See you next Thursday
Norrin

Friday, October 10, 2008

Title: Big Ten
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: A large 'X' (i.e., Roman numeral 10) made of black squares and Xs.

The first obvious thing to notice here is that the crossword does not follow all the standard rules we've come to know and love. Specifically, American crosswords generally are not allowed to have uncrossed letters or less-than-3-letter fills. This puzzle clearly has four uncrossed single letters in the center. Now, before you cry "foul", keep in mind that the uncrossed letter rule is there to keep the puzzle fair -- it gives the solver two chances at each letter so a single unknown answer can be worked around (this is why we get so picky about two obscure fills crossing; it offends our sense of fair play). This puzzle, however, is not unfair in this regard at all. In fact, all of the unchecked letters are the same, and they're all part of the larger, fairly obvious, theme. So in a sense, they really are checked, since you can deduce them from the theme itself. Therefore, I totally support the bending of the rules in this case.

Having said that, I can't say I'm a big fan of the theme. I think my problem with it stems from the apparent disconnect between the simplicity of the theme itself, which is very transparent and enables one to fill in 12 Xs very quickly during the puzzle's solving, and the difficulty of the remaining fill. I felt like it was an early-week concept shoe-horned into a late-week implementation.

But enough rambling, let's look at the fill. Hell, let's go numerically today.

• 1a: Artist featured in a 1979 Pulitzer-winning book (ESCHER). I love Escher's work. Very nested and mathematical.


• 2d: Johnson, e.g. (SEXPERT). Very nice.


• 5d: Nations Unies members (ETATS). French for state.


• 7a: Attempted assassin of Ford (Squeaky FROMME). I got this one right away. It was a while ago, but it's a hard name to forget.


• 7d: Making out (FARING). My first guess was FACING. I figured it was a British term for necking. Maybe it is, but it wasn't the answer.


• 8d: Cambodian currency units (RIELS).


• 9d: Suburb of Paris (ORLY). If you know the airport, and you should, then it's not much of a stretch to assume it's a suburb, too.


• 10d: Kingston Trio hit of 1959 (MTA). "Did he ever return? No, he never returned, and his fate is still unlearned." I should have gotten this one sooner, but I couldn't remember the name of the song.


• 11d: '70s TV costar of Abe Vigoda and Jack Soo (MAX GAIL). He played Wojciehowicz on "Barney Miller". Good stuff.




• 13d: Boxer Griffith and others (EMILES). Plural names are never desirable, but are often necessary to complete a fill.


• 14a: It makes short hops (AIR TAXI). This is not the kind of fill you expect to see two days running. Very coincidental.


• 15d: More sore (IRATER). 17a: Lotion that straightens curls (RELAXER). 22a: One who waits in ambush (LIER). I don't want to be a point-out-the-obviouser, because that would be unnecessaryer than just being a leave-well-enough-aloner.


• 18a: "The Bottle ___" (short story by Robert Louis Stevenson) (IMP). We just had an IMP puzzle in the NYT yesterday.


• 20d: Its members played a lot of Ms. Pac-Man as teens (GEN-X).


• 21a: Early TV offering (GMA). Wow, do I not like this clue. First of all, I had no idea what GMA meant even after I solved it. Now I see that it's short for "Good Morning America", so the clue makes sense. But TV is a very poor abbreviation indicator, since it's a more common "word" than television.


• 23d: Evil spirits? (ROTGUTS). Love this one! Rotgut booze is bottom-shelf stuff that gets one drunk, but is not at all pleasant (either during or after imbibement). Very nice clue.



• 25d: "A Raisin in the Sun" actress (RUBY DEE).


• 28a: One of the Bunker brothers (who were famous for their closeness) (ENG). Chang and Eng, the famous Siamese twins.


• 29d: Web-based service with millions of users (GMAIL).


• 32a: "Doctor Frigo" author (Eric AMBLER).


• 33a: "Pressure's off!" sloganeer (GAS-X). This is from their web page: Gas-X® understands that when you suffer from gas it can be uncomfortable. What's even more frustrating is that it can consume your mind, distracting you from what you are doing - making you feel helpless. Or, you could just let it go...




• 34a: Picture of health? (X-RAY). Cute, but really easy.


• 36d: Cleaver (MEAT AXE). MEAT AXE feels like a made-up word.


• 37d: Handyman (MR FIXIT). Excellent.


• 38d: Cyclops and others (X-MEN). With the X in place, what else could it be?


• 39a: Preachy person (DIDACT). Cool, vocabularic word.



• 40d: Amulet word used as the title of a 1970 #1 album for Santana (ABRAXAS). With "Black Magic Woman" and "Oye Como Va".


• 42d: Like some tissues (TWO-PLY). This one didn't parse easily for me when I was looking at T_OPL_.


• 43a: "Dagnabbit!" (NERTS).


• 46a: New York City Marathon founder Fred (LEBOW). No clue.


• 47a: Half-___ (Starbucks orders) (CAFS).


• 48d: Ready to be polished, perhaps (FILED). As fingernails.



• 50a: Twist pioneer many years after Chubby? (ERNO). Very tricky clue for ERNO Rubik, of cube fame (which you twist to solve).


• 52a: Easy tasks (PICNICS).


• 53d: Cutlet? (SNIP). Yeah, okay.


• 55a: Auction to recoup funds from a delinquent (TAX SALE).


• 57a: NBA point guard Nick (VAN EXEL). Nick has bounced around several NBA West teams including the Lakers, Nuggest, Mavericks, Warriors, Blazers, and Spurs.


• 60a: Crystalline overgrowth (EPITAXY). Brutal.


• 61a: Financial dot-com (E-TRADE).

Patrick Blindauer is a constructing genius. This I know. But for me, this puzzle felt a bit forced, and I'm just not seeing the payoff. The large X was readily apparent from the get-go, the remaining Xs fell almost immediately, and the remainder of the time was spent slogging through aftermath detritus that certainly held a few gems, but which overall felt a bit more like a chore. Your mileage may vary, but it wasn't one of my favorites from my friend PB2.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Friday, August 1, 2008

Title: Twenty Question Marks
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: ? (figuratively and literally)

• 24a: "No way!" alternative (IT IS?).


• 40a: A question of time (WHEN?).


• 67a: Unimpressed person's comment (SO?).


• 4d: "I didn't catch that" (WHAT?).


• 13d: Coming-to query (WHERE AM I?).


• 25d: Bit from "The Naughty Nineties" (WHO'S ON FIRST?).

So, the theme here is definitely the question mark. The first thing I noticed was the large one embedded in the grid via the black squares. The second thing I noticed was that this was a 15x16 puzzle. One thing I didn't notice until afterwards was the lack of grid symmetry, which doesn't bother me at all since it's necessary for the embedded '?'. The thing I'm not so clear on is the title, "Twenty Question Marks". The only thing I can up with is that the large question mark is made of 16 black squares, so those 16 "marks" plus the three '?'s in the puzzle, plus the large one in its entirety adds up to 20 (16 + 3 + 1). This seems like a stretch, but the theme doesn't seem to play directly to the game of 20 Questions, as that would involve more "Is it?" or "Does it?" questions. So, I'm a little fuzzy on that. The two longer theme entries are nice; the others are kind of drab, though it's probably the first time you've ever seen "SO?" in a puzzle, as two-letter words are not generally acceptable.

Update: Reader Ruy points out what I clearly missed, the 16 question marks in the clues themselves. Doh! In retrospect, I recall thinking in the back of my mind while solving that there were an awful lot of punny clues. Sometimes you don't see the forest for the trees.

Let's check out the rest of the fill.

Sunny Spots:

• 15a: Land with an autumn mist, in song (HONALEE). From "Puff, the Magic Dragon".



• 36a: Kal-El's gift (X-RAY VISION). Kal-El, of course, being the birth name of Superman.


• 47a: "The Crime Dog" (MCGRUFF). Take a bite out of crime.


• 3d: "Man of La Mancha" song (DULCINEA). Great song, great play.


• 11d: Place to get sheets for a song (WHITE SALE). I admit, I fell into the sheet music trap here. Excellent clue.


• 30d: Singer with the 1999 album "To the Teeth" (ANI DIFRANCO). Kudos for including the whole name here.



• 45d: Musician with the real name Stuart Goddard (ADAM ANT). His best known song is probably "Goody Two Shoes". Trivia: His original Adam and the Ants band members left him to form Bow Wow Wow (of "I Want Candy" fame.

Sundries:

• 1a: Signed off on (OKD). Sometimes this is OKED, too. I don't know if one is more correct than the other, but they're both easy enough.


• 4a: Novel activity? (WRITING). This brings to mind a classic Monty Python sketch.




• 11a: Dir. from Minorca to Majorca (WSW). Do you know how rare it is for this answer to involve "west"? It's almost always ENE, ESE, or NNE.


• 14a: ___ de mots (pun) (JEU). Game of words, in French.


• 17a: Short vehicle of the 1980s, for short (SNL). Martin Short, that is.


• 18a: One from Luanda (ANGOLAN).


• 19a: "Now That ___ Seen Her" ("Miss Saigon" song) (I'VE). Never saw it; never heard the song. And still it's a gimme. I mean, what else could it be?



• 22a: Clean and jerk performer (LIFTER). Timely clue, with the Olympics pending, which is about the only time I ever see weightlifting.


• 28a: Castle with many steps? (IRENE). Not fooled for a second here.


• 29a: Dead-___ float (MAN'S).


• 30a: 1877 flop by Bret Harte and Mark Twain (AH SIN). I've seen this in puzzles before.


• 32a: Polo grounds? (ASIA). Marco Polo.


• 35a: One-room schoolhouse figure (MARM). We just saw MARM recently.


• 38a: Wells made them more than a century ago (ELOI). H.G. Wells, in "The Time Machine". Standard crossword fare.


• 41a: Melted glace (EAU). Glace is French for ice.


• 44a: Bathtub liquid? (GIN). I tried GEL to start.


• 45a: Buck's tail? (AROO). Cryptic suffix.


• 49a: Lays bare (DENUDES).



• 53a: Oscar-winning role for Abraham (SALIERI). F. Murray Abraham, in "Amadeus".


• 54a: Starts to court (ASKS OUT). Easy.


• 59a: Small character in Oz? (ZEE). Cryptic letter reference.


• 60a: Subjugate (ENSLAVE).



• 68a: Child's meas. (TSP). Julia Child, the chef.


• 69a: 1989 Jack Lemmon film (DAD).


• 2d: Bush 41's Solicitor General (KEN STARR).


• 5d: Brown and Silver (RONS).


• 6d: Dutch financial services giant (ING). My wife used to work for them, so this was a gimme for me.


• 7d: Way out East? (TAO). Cute.


• 8d: Buggy? (ILL). As in, having a bug, I guess.



• 9d: Bald Globetrotters member Curly (NEAL). He and Meadowlark Lemmon were the heart and soul of that team. If you never got to see them back then, you missed something special.


• 10d: Bottled spirits? (GENII). This seems like it should be the plural of genius, doesn't it?


• 12d: Pitcher (SEVEN IRON). I have to take mild exception to this one. Chipper, sure. A chip is a low running shot near the green, and the seven iron's loft is low enough to often be a good choice. A pitch, on the other hand, is a high, lob shot that drops in and usually either stops dead or backs up. For most golfers, the club of choice for this would be a wedge or perhaps a nine iron. Maybe a choked-down eight iron. And while, yes, it's probably possible to make a shot with a seven iron that is characterized as a pitch, that doesn't make it a pitcher. I can chip with a 3-wood, that doesn't make it a chipper.


• 23d: It has a wood skeleton (FRAME HOUSE).


• 24d: Format that debuted with "Tiger Child" (IMAX).


• 27d: Wheels of fortune? (LIMO).


• 31d: Relief pitcher Robb (NEN). I knew the name instinctively, even though I can't even remember who he played for, which probably means he spent most of his career in the National League.


• 41d: Items found off-center in symmetry? (EMS). Another cryptic letter reference.


• 42d: University environment (ACADEME). I wanted ACADEMIA, but it didn't fit.


• 48d: Dead letters? (RIP). Gimme.


• 51d: Ronald Reagan's alma mater (EUREKA). I did not know that.


• 52d: Like carry-on luggage during takeoff and landing (STOWED). Maybe I've travelled too much, but this seemed way too easy for a Friday clue.


• 60d: Mother of Zephyrus (EOS). EOS is the goddess; IOS is the island. Repeat it like a mantra.



• 61d: Zener cards test it (ESP).

Suns of Bitches:

• 39a: Island home of Thomas the Tank Engine (SODOR). Is this a Sodom and Gomorrah cross?


• 40d: Grind (WONK). Is this a noun or a verb? Isn't a wonk a nerd? I really wanted WORK here, but I knew DENUDED had to be right.

Despite my mild confusion regarding the theme title, I really liked this puzzle. It had plenty of good fill and clever clues, though I must say it was considerably easier for me than yesterday's themeless. Felt more like a Wednesday/Thursday.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Title: Movin' On Up
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Three indicated clues have a ladder as a common link. This ladder is visually represented as a long column of "H"s up the center of the puzzle.

• 37a: *Backyard club locale (TREEHOUSE).


• 4d: *With 59-Down, lookout's place (CROWS / NEST).


• 10d: *With 57-Down, red vehicle (FIRE / TRUCK).


• 7d: Visual representation of an item associated with the answers to the asterisked clues in this puzzle (HHHHHHHHHHHHHHH).

Another solid mid-week theme gimmick by Patrick Blindauer. It didn't take long to figure out that the long column was going to all Hs, but the meaning of the theme did not become evident to me until after the puzzle was solved.

Sunny Spots:

Some cool clues today, notably:

• 16a: Shrink rap? (I SEE). That's a good one.


• 20a: Does some team work (PLOWS).


• 43a: Level spot? (SHOP). This one took me a second. The tool called a level is often found in a work shop.


• 66a: Rhine whine? (ACH).


• 8d: Hard wear? (ARMOR).


• 12d: Chilling, so to speak (RELAXED).


• 42d: Steered vehicles? (OX CARTS).

Sundries:

• 14a: Emblem of victory (LAUREL). Read more than you want to know about it here.


• 15a: It ended during the Napoleonic Wars: Abbr. (HRE). Holy Roman Empire.


• 21a: Perkins competitor (IHOP). Mmmm... breakfast!


• 22a: Its inaugural flight was from Geneva to Tel Aviv (EL AL). All you really needed here was "flight" and "Tel Aviv".


• 24a: Termagant (SHREW).


• 32a: Strike out (DELE). To go with yesterday's STET.


• 48a: NFL team since 2002 (TEXANS).


• 50a: Soupçon (HINT).


• 52a: Sportscasters Trautwig and Michaels (ALS). I didn't know the former, but knew the latter, which was enough.


• 53a: "Mad Men" cable channel (AMC).


• 63a: Work the mezz (USH). I've written about USH before. Not my fave.


• 67a: Charlie's last name in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" (BUCKET). It's been so long since I read this that the name did not come to mind easily.


• 68a: Furtive "Yo!" (PSST).


• 70a: Dietitian Robert (ATKINS). Of the low-carb, Atkins Diet.



• 1d: Showed up on radar (BLIPPED). Not used to seeing this as a verb, but I like it.


• 3d: Dawnlike (AURORAL).


• 9d: Strengthen, as steel (TEMPER).


• 13d: "The Bobo" star (SELLERS). One of my favorite Peter Sellers roles was as Clare Quilty in Stanley Kubrick's "Lolita", also starring James Mason and Shelley Winters. Here's a snippet.



• 33d: ___ Candy (character in "Wonder Woman") (ETTA). You could almost guess this one without any crossings. I mean, what else could it be?


• 35d: They outrank sarges (LOOIES). My first instinct is always to spell this with an OU instead of an OO.


• 38d: "What You Own" musical (RENT). Makes sense.


• 39d: It merged with the WB to form the CW (UPN). We're talking TV networks here.


• 40d: Navigational aid (STAR MAP).


• 45d: Hit the slopes after hitting the silk (PARA-SKI).


• 46d: Support group for young people (ALATEEN).


• 49d: Winnebago, e.g. (SIOUAN). Look at all those vowels together. I really wanted CAMPER here, but it already didn't fit by the time I got to it.


• 51d: Pick off, e.g. (TAG OUT). Baseball reference.


• 55d: Floria ___ (opera heroine) (TOSCA). I've heard of the opera Tosca, so it's not a far reach.

Suns of Bitches:

• 1a: She played Dr. Melfi on "The Sopranos" (BRACCO). I don't get HBO, and I haven't watched the syndicated reruns. I'm sure I've seen this name in puzzles before, but I got it from the crossings.


• 34a: "Arli$$" star Robert (WUHL).

Not much else to say. A fine Wednesday puzzle.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Title: Secondary Education
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Color rebus, where each primary color is used once across and once down. The correct answer at each of the three junctions is the secondary (combination) color made up of the two crossings. Bear with me, it'll make sense.

• 16a: Comment when recalling an embarrassing moment (WAS MY FACE RED?).


• 18d: It might have a long run on Broadway (YELLOW CAB).

But you can't put both RED and YELLOW in the same square, so you enter ORANGE there. Get it?


• 35a: 1988 Errol Morris documentary about the murder of a police officer, with "The" (THIN BLUE LINE).


• 25d: "Fever Pitch" squad (THE RED SOX).

Enter PURPLE here.


• 58a: Animated movie musical of 1968 (YELLOW SUBMARINE).


• 47d: Air travel option starting in 2000 (JETBLUE).

Enter GREEN here.

This is just the kind of cool and interesting theme that I hope to get when I see Patrick Blindauer's name. Very clever and entertaining.

Sunny Spots:

• 24a: Take the wrong way? (STEAL). Excellent clue!


• 1d: Madison Avenue worker (AD WOMAN). Nice gender twist on the more common AD MAN fill.


• 12d: Spot spot? (TEA ROOM). "Spot of tea, Bruce?"


• 38d: Fruitless (STERILE). Great clue here.

Sundries:

• 1a: Smart, e.g.: Abbr. (AGT). As in Maxwell Smart. I given Don Adams his due in previous posts, so we'll go modern with the picture today.


• 4a: Dry, in a way (WRING). Nice clue.


• 13a: Cube's "Natural Born Killaz" rap partner (DRE). Two rap clues today. This one, and 55d: Gangsta rap pioneer (ICE T). Even though they're all well-known, that's at least one rap clue too many.


• 15a: Teen spots? (ACNE). Wasn't fooled here at all.


• 23a: Code name (MORSE). As in Samuel Morse, who invented Morse Code. Well clued.


• 29a: Nightclub (BISTRO).


• 31a: "Finding Neverland" dog (NANA). This shows up periodically in puzzles, so it's good to remember.


• 32a: Serviceable? (ONE A). Fit to serve in the U.S. armed forces.


• 46a: Novel whose first sentence is "I am Ishmael" (THE HAJ). By Leon Uris.


• 48a: They do amnios (OBS). Obstetricians.


• 49a: Bantu language related to Swazi (ZULU).


• 50a: Abbr. in the want ads (EEO). This is often EOE, which is what I entered first.


• 51a: His papacy lasted less than four weeks in 1605 (LEO XI). Popes are a necessary evil for filling grids. Just know that it's probably LEO or PIUS and some Roman numeral.


• 53a: Lorelei (SIREN).


• 54a: They're not color-blind (RACISTS). I find myself cringing a bit at this one. I think it's because I prefer a clue for RACISTS to not be in any way cute.


• 57a: High-performance Camaro (IROC).


• 62a: Pro Bowl wide receiver ___ Bruce (ISAAC). The name rang a bell once I got it from the crossings. And at least it's a "normal" name.


• 63a: King who went on a world tour in the 1970s (TUT). Also, a really silly Steve Martin song.


• 66a: Covert follower? (OPS).


• 2d: Bar food? (GRANOLA). Cute, but easy.


• 6d: Russell Crowe's middle name (IRA). That's trivia I really didn't need to know.


• 8d: It's easy to get down from them (GEESE). That one was telgraphed. Too easy.


• 11d: Former car model whose name is Latin for "untouched" (INTEGRA).


• 17d: Couple incorrectly (MISMATCH). You can get some amusing visuals if you let your mind wander on this one.


• 22d: Get straight (ALIGN). I guessed REHAB to start.


• 24d: Islam's largest denomination (SUNNI).


• 30d: Less reputable (SLEAZIER).


• 33d: Cover story? (ALIBI). I had the trailing I, so this one fell easily.


• 37d: The Hartford's bus. (INS). Hartford, the insurance capital of the world.


• 39d: "Right on!" (I HEAR YA).


• 40d: Ones who have moved to the right, for short (NEOCONS).


• 43d: Enchilada alternative (BURRITO). That reminds me. I'm hungry.


• 44d: Make a killing (CLEAN UP).



• 45d: Final stages (SUNSETS).


• 52d: Davis of "School Daze" (OSSIE). Never saw the film, but I've heard the name.


• 60d: AB part (BAT). Baseball: At bats.

Suns of Bitches:

• 61a: "Flashdance" director Adrian (LYNE).


• 56d: Drummer Hakim who was a member of Weather Report (OMAR). I know Jaco Pastorius, and that's it. They're most famous, I think, for "Birdland". At least, I couldn't name another song of theirs, though there are some great solo Jaco pieces. My favorite is "The Chicken". If you like funky jazz and/or great basslines, you gotta check it out.

After yesterday, an average puzzle would have looked good. But I really think this puzzle was excellent on its own. I found the theme interesting and the fill and clues to be, on the whole, quite entertaining. Nice job.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Monday, June 30, 2008

Title: Show People
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Shows whose titles include MEN, WOMEN, GIRLS, and BOYS.

• 17a: 1981 musical with the song "One Night Only" (DREAMGIRLS).


• 61a: 2006 Best Musical (JERSEY BOYS).


• 10d: 1989 Aaron Sorkin play (A FEW GOOD MEN). I didn't realize this was a play; the movie was great.


• 25d: 2005 musical starring Sutton Foster (LITTLE WOMEN).

Quick write-up today. I'm totally fried and don't have much to say, so I'll let the pictures do most of the talking.

This is a pretty normal, nothing fancy Monday theme. Not the sort of thing you expect from Patrick Blindauer. Until you realize that the puzzle is a pangram (uses all the letters of the alphabet) and is chock-full of scrabbly, later week letters, which is not at all what you expect on a Monday. Let's have a look.

Sunny Spots:

• 26a: Captain in "The Caine Mutiny" (QUEEG). Famously played by Humphret Bogart.


• 44a: Coauthor with Friedrich Engels of "The Communist Manifesto" (KARL MARX). Nice to see his full name.


• 2d: He told the Once-ler, "Sir! You are crazy with greed. There is no one on earth who would buy that fool Thneed!" (LORAX). Dr. Seuss, of course.


• 53d: Hungarian composer Franz (LISZT). Not my favorite piano composer (I prefer Chopin), but a great name for crosswords.

I also like the following as a pair:


• 22a: Grow unchecked (RUN WILD).


• 34a: State of panic (HYSTERIA).

Sundries:

• 5a: "My Fair Lady" composer (LOEWE).


• 10a: Sitcom in which Sherman Hemsley played a deacon (AMEN).


• 15a: New York city on the Allegheny River (OLEAN). Also a fat substitute.


• 20a: Not stringent (LAX).


• 24a: Banish (EXILE).


• 27a: Son of Daedalus (ICARUS). These were the father and son that flew too close to the sun, so the wax on their wings melted. Or something like that.


• 37a: Skeleton's spot? (CLOSET). Great clue.


• 41a: "Saving Private Ryan" event (D-DAY).


• 42a: Annie ___ (free ticket) (OAKLEY). Why does this mean free ticket? What's the story here?


• 47a: "It takes a tough man to make a tender chicken" sloganeer (PERDUE).


• 48a: Cooled one's heels? (WADED).


• 57a: NYC commuting option since 1904 (IRT). This shows up a lot, so if you're not from NYC, just remember it.


• 60a: Entrance requirement, perhaps (EXAM).


• 65a: Rival of Sonicare (ORAL B).


• 68a: Capital of France's Gard department (NIMES).


• 69a: Gusto (ZEST).


• 6d: Lena of "Chocolat" (OLIN). She shows up a lot.



• 8d: Marine mammal with tusks (WALRUS).


• 11d: Seamstress in "La Bohème" (MIMI).


• 12d: "The ___ Dead" (1983 horror film) (EVIL).


• 18d: Rodents, jocularly (MEECE). I'm not always crazy about words that aren't words finding their way into puzzles, but somehow this one doesn't bother me too much.


• 26d: Made like a duck (QUACKED).


• 33d: Mythological river of the underworld (STYX).


• 45d: Full of vigor (LUSTY).


• 47d: Czar whose reign ended in MDCCXXV (PETER I).


• 49d: Mustard type (DIJON).



• 52d: Jeter's crosstown rival (Jose REYES).


• 55d: Industrial show (EXPO).


• 63d: URL ender since 2001 (BIZ).

Suns of Bitches:
A few answers that I needed the crossings to get.

• 66a: WWII correspondent ___ Robb (INEZ).


• 3d: Soccer star Lalas (ALEXI).


• 56d: ___ doble (ballroom dance) (PASO).

Overall, a nice Monday puzzle.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Title: Here Comes the Sun
Author: Patrick Blindauer
Theme: Hidden image of the sun, revealed by shading all occurrences of the letter I, as indicated by the theme hint entry:

• 38a: Advice during a solar eclipse (and a homophonic hint to uncovering this puzzle's secret image) (SHADE YOUR EYES).

This is the kind of clever theme we've come to expect from Patrick Blindauer. Well-executed, with 32 "I"s forming the sun and its rays.

Sunny Spots:

Here's the unfortunate downside of this type of theme. All those "I"s make the fill difficult. As a result, there really are no stand-out entries in my mind. Don't get me wrong, the fill isn't bad at all; there just aren't any real marquee (look Joon, I spelled it right this time) entries.

Sundries:

• 1a: Has an online chat with, perhaps (IMS). Instant Messages.


• 4a: Name before Reagan in "We Didn't Start the Fire" (BEGIN). Not my favorite Billy Joel song, but not hard to figure out with a couple of crossings.


• 9a: "Pardon me," in Italy (SCUSI).


• 14a: Marcel Marceau character (BIP). I know this from crosswords. Nice tie-back to Tuesday's MIME fill.


• 16a: Sensational (LURID). Lurid is a great word. Love it.


• 17a: Puzzling (ENIGMATIC).


• 19a: Bush appointee to the Supreme Court (ALITO), which balances (politically) 44a: Hastert's successor as Speaker of the House (PELOSI).


• 21a: Japanese floor covering (TATAMI). The first of a set of Japanese clues, including 42a: Japanese version of chess (SHOGI), and 52a: Japanese beer (KIRIN).


• 23a: Ending of many crossword clues for pluralized names (ET AL). Which goes along with 68a: Clarifying Latin phrase (ID EST).


• 24a: Offed (DID IN).


• 25a: Soft ball brand (NERF).


• 29a: Pizza topping (SALAMI). Salami is not a common pizza topping around here. Pepperoni, meatball/hamburg, sausage, and ham are pretty much the pizza meats.


• 31a: Lake that feeds the Mississippi (ITASCA).


• 33a: Suggest (IMPLY). This one pairs nicely with 46a: Surmises (INFERS), as many people mistaken use them interchangeably.


• 37a: Soul singer Thomas and food writer Rombauer (IRMAS).


• 51a: Arabian Sea gulf (ADEN).


• 56a: Character killed by Tess in "Tess of the D'Urbervilles" (ALEC).


• 57a: Maverick's rival in "Top Gun" (ICEMAN). As you might expect, I'm a fan of "Top Gun". If you don't know why, go watch the movie again. I think you'll figure it out.


• 59a: Element #41 is named after her (NIOBE). I couldn't tell you anything about niobium, but I've heard of it. So have you if you've heard this Tom Lehrer song:


• 63a: It might be sticky (SITUATION). Very nice clue.



• 1d: Wild goats of Eurasia (IBEXES).


• 3d: Back drops? (SPINAL). I assume this is referring to a spinal as in anesthesia. I'm not sure I'm crazy about this one.


• 4d: The Tide (BAMA). We just saw Bama in reference to Joe Namath, so this should have been fresh in your minds.


• 6d: "Growing Up ___" (reality show) (GOTTI). I wanted BRADY here. There was such a show, wasn't there? Or was it a book?


• 7d: Troy story (ILIAD).


• 8d: Prefix meaning "night" (NOCTI). My problem with prefixes is I never know what vowel they're going to end with. NOCTA, NOCTU, NOCTI, NOCTO - they all seem equally plausible. In fact, it seems to me that NOCT- is really the prefix.


• 10d: The ___ Institute of America (school in Hyde Park, New York) (CULINARY). Didn't know it off the top, but easy enough to figure.


• 11d: Canton whose capital is Altdorf (URI). I had an inkling that this was the answer immediately, so I must have seen this before in other puzzles.


• 18d: Arizona river (GILA).


• 22d: Boy in "The Phantom Menace" (ANI). Short for Anakin (Skywalker).


• 24d: Thin mint product? (DIME). Cute clue.


• 26d: Salinger dedicatee (ESME). Classic crossword fill.


• 32d: Marketing connection (TIE IN).


• 35d: Myrna of "The Best Years of Our Lives" (LOY).


• 36d: Ingrid's "Anastasia" costar (YUL). Once I had the leading Y, not much else fit.


• 40d: Torments (AGONIZES). This is one of those weird words, in that it can refer to the act of tormenting or (more commonly) of being tormented.


• 41d: Tlaloc's domain, to the Aztecs (RAIN). This boils down to "name some domain that would be attributed to a God".


• 42d: Where you might get steamed (SPA). Cute.



• 45d: Cold War prez (IKE).


• 47d: Tout à ___ (entirely, in French) (FAIT).


• 48d: The E of S.E. Hinton (ELOISE).


• 49d: Put back into hot water (REBOIL). I'm not crazy about RE- words, but at least you can boil something more than once (as opposed to, say, RECOOK).


• 50d: Act starter (SCENE I).


• 54d: "A Simple Plan" director Sam (RAIMI).


• 55d: "Leap ahead" sloganeer (INTEL).


• 64d: Link letters? (URL). As in an internet link. Nice clue.

Suns of Bitches:

There were a few names I didn't know in this one, including:

• 15a: "Dancing With the Stars" champ ___ Anton Ohno (APOLO).


• 20a: City near Dayton (XENIA).


• 2d: Former Secretary of Transportation Norman (MINETA).

But the killer crossing for me was the M shared by43a: Massacre site in Vietnam (MY LAI) and 34d: Arthur Gordon ___ (title character in a Poe novel) (PYM). I just couldn't come up with a letter that looked right in both directions.

All in all, not bad for a Thursday. Cool theme after the fact (i.e., it didn't help at all during the solve) that put a bit of strain on the fill, but well-constructed overall, with few real duds and one sticky square for me.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.