Friday, August 8, 2008

Title: Weekend Warrior
Author: Barry C. Silk
Theme: None

Sunny Spots:

• 17a: Familiar name of a Virginia sculpture based on a Pulitzer-winning picture taken by Joe Rosenthal (IWO JIMA MEMORIAL).


• 23a: Repeated action in a mathematician's random walk (COIN TOSS).


• 33a: Aloof person (COLD FISH). Great phrase.


• 56a: Batter-fried snack (MOZZARELLA STICK). Mmmmmm.

Sundries:

• 8a: Chihuahua timeouts (SIESTAS). See, we need siestas in the United States. A nice nap in the afternoon would make the workday so much more pleasant.


• 15a: Developer noted for its drive-through kiosks (FOTOMAT). Nowadays, every corner pharmacy does 1-hour photos, but I remember when this was a pretty novel concept.


• 19a: Car that is often black and rarely green (LIMO).


• 20a: Bolshoi bends (PLIÉS).


• 21a: She's buried in Kenya's Meru National Park (ELSA). The lion from "Born Free".


• 22a: Inning threesome (ENS). Cryptic letter clue. But since OUTS didn't fit, what else could it be?


• 26a: "Hamlet" courtier (OSRIC).


• 30a: ___ game (first matchup of March Madness) (PLAY IN). The final two teams selected play each other for the 64th spot in the tourney.


• 36a: Emulate running mates? (ELOPE). It has long been my belief that ELOPE is the word with the most really clever clues. This is certainly one of them.



• 38a: Cruise part? (ROLE). Tom Cruise, that is. Who, by the way, played Lt. Pete Mitchell in "Top Gun".


• 39a: Gave up the ghost (CASHED IN).


• 41a: One holding up a sign at the airport, e.g. (MEETER). This is one of those -ER words that just feels forced to me.


• 43a: They're cobbled together (SHOES). Nice clue.


• 44a: Sternmost member of a crew team (STROKE). I'd seen this before, fairly recently, and I still couldn't remember it without a couple of crossings.


• 55a: The Jalón flows into it (EBRO). You gotta know your four-letter rivers. As soon as I got the B, I knew which one it was.


• 62a: March honoree, informally (ST PADDY).


• 4d: Austin Powers's power (MOJO).




• 6d: Sent up (LAMPOONED). I started with LAMBASTED.


• 7d: Political leader from Georgia (STALIN). Anytime you see Georgia in a clue, you should be on alert. It's a common ruse.



• 8d: Another name for the sugar apple (SWEETSOP). I've never tasted this, but I've heard of it before. Not sure where.


• 11d: Laid-back (STRESS FREE).


• 14d: "Sisters" costar of Swoosie (SELA). That's Swoosie Kurtz and SELA Ward. And no, I didn't know it from the clue.


• 18d: Social psychology topic (MIND CONTROL).


• 24d: Roll-your-own grass? (SOD). The daily drug inference.


• 25d: In large quantities (BY THE DOZEN). Is a dozen a large quantity? I guess it depends on what you're measuring. My first thought was BY THE TRUCKLOAD, which of course didn't fit.


• 29d: Her first solo recording ("Ringo, I Love You") was released under the pseudonym Bonnie Jo Mason (CHER). The list of one-named singers was pretty easily narrowed to an era down by the Ringo reference.


• 34d: Tangy treat (LEMON TART). Mmmmm.


• 37d: Dragging (LISTLESS). This is a great word, and now I'm curious about its derivation. Can you be listful? It's definitely hard to grocery shop when you're listless, that's for sure.


• 47d: Secretary of the Pointy-Haired Boss, in "Dilbert" (CAROL). Love the Dilbert clues. Wally, Alice, Asok, Carol,... bring 'em on!


• 49d: Flew like a fly (ARCED). Like a fly ball in baseball, not like a housefly.


• 51d: Siberian city (OMSK). I love the name OMSK. It just sounds good.


• 55d: Place in a Robert Redford movie (ETTA). Etta Place was in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid". Nice misdirection on the clue.

Suns of Bitches:

• 48a: Drawn back thing, for short (TAT). I don't get it. I had TA_, crossing the first letter of 50d: Hungarian wine (TOKAY), which I've never heard of. I just started guessing letters until I hit T. Someone out there will have to explain this one.


• 28d: "The Door to ___ Gorée" (second number in "Bring In 'da Noise, Bring In 'da Funk") (ISLE). Never heard of it. Got it from crossings.


• 53d: '90s Israeli president Weizman (EZER).

Except for the guess-the-letter crossing, this puzzle wasn't too hard for a WW. I came in under 15 minutes, which is a good time for me for a late-week puzzle. Some snazzy fill, too. Nice job.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Thursday, August 07, 2008

Title: "Gevalt!"
Author: Patrick Blindauer and Tony Orbach
Theme: Adding "OY" to phrases.

• Cling wrap => CLOYING WRAP (17a: Sappy boa?).


• Ann Landers => ANNOY LANDERS (28a: Bother some space vehicles?).



• Tomb raider => TOMBOY RAIDER (45a: Peppermint Patty's panty thief?). As much as I've never thought of Peppermint Patty and panties at the same time, this clue really cracked me up. And I love that tomb raider is the base phrase.


• Bus driver => BUOYS DRIVER (61a: Lifts actress Minnie's spirits?).

Despite the fact that I had no idea what "Gevalt" meant, I really liked this theme. In fact, I think TOMBOY RAIDER is one of my favorite clue entries in a long while. Very nice. Let's see if the rest of the puzzle can keep up.

Sunny Spots:

• 50a: Fanta rival (SUNKIST). I'm more of an Orangina guy myself, but I like the fill.


• 57a: "Romeo and Juliet" : Paris :: "West Side Story" : ___ (CHINO). Paris here is a character in the play, not a location. "West Side Story", of course, is a modern adaptation of the story. Great clue.

Sundries:

• 1a: Eddying (ASWIRL). My first instinct was actually SWIRLY, which wasn't so far off for having no letters in the right place.


• 11a: Brightness measures (IQS). I know I've seen this clue before. I don't know why I didn't know the answer right away. Guess I'm not that bright.


• 14a: Cocoon spinners (LARVAE).


• 15a: Miami University setting (OHIO). Easy for anyone familiar with NCAA basketball.



• 19a: Band with the 1988 album "Blow My Fuse" (KIX). I've never heard of this band. Are they named after the cereal?


• 20a: Sister publication of The Advocate (OUT). Both of these LGBT magazines were new to me, but it certainly makes sense.


• 22a: Like Harvey Fierstein's voice (RASPY).


• 24a: Painting place (ATELIER). An art studio.


• 26a: Parsons of music (ALAN). I haven't listened to much Alan Parsons since college. Here's a flashback for you.


• 33a: Sharp offerings (HDTVS). I've seen this type of clue enough to not be fooled this time.



• 37a: Cry heard after a doughnut is dropped, perhaps (DOH). Homer Simpson reference, naturally.


• 41a: Jump for joie? (JETÉ). This is a jump in ballet, which actually means "throw" in French.


• 44a: Well over 100 million people could, in theory, join it (MENSA). Don't feel so special now, do ya?


• 54a: Binding (FINAL). Tough clue for an easy word, clued as an adjective. I assume this is like a final/binding contract, even though they don't exactly feel like synonyms to me. Part of the nasty SW corner.


• 64a: Word with snow or day (JOB). This contributed to a nasty little SW corner. The last section to fall for me.


• 65a: "The power to make it better" sloganeer (AARP).


• 67a: Fingers, briefly (IDS). Finger is a much more interesting verb than it is a noun, don't you think?


• 2d: Port-___ (mild cheese) (SALUT). You know what clip I'm going to include here, don't you?




• 4d: Penn, e.g. (IVY).


• 5d: Ice cream mix-in (RAISINS). I wanted this to be JIMMIES or COOKIES.


• 6d: Spare (LENTEN). Relating to the season of Lent.


• 7d: Cheek by ___ (JOWL). A great phrase meaning in close proximity.


• 8d: "Yeah?" (OH REALLY).


• 9d: 1998 Angelina Jolie TV movie (GIA). This is one of those crosswordy clues it would behoove you to remember.



• 10d: Kind of sax played by Kenny G (SOPRANO). There aren't that many kinds of sax. Tenor, alto, soprano, baritone.


• 11d: Gets to (IRKS). I had IRES here to start.


• 13d: "(She's) ___ + 17" (1983 Stray Cats hit) (SEXY). Don't recall the song, but it wasn't hard to figure. Here's the video.


• 18d: Sandwich that might be served with a Greek salad (GYRO). I shouldn't blog hungry.


• 25d: It pours over the rocks (LAVA). Were you thinking this was going to be an alcoholic beverage? I was, except I couldn't think of any that were four-letters long.


• 27d: Takes a powder (LAMS). Flees.


• 30d: First place (EDEN). Excellent clue.


• 34d: 1962 film directed by Terence Young (DR NO). Classic James Bond.




• 41d: Weightlifting maneuver (JERK).


• 43d: Jeep safety feature (ROLLBAR). Easy.


• 44d: It's used in the months of Kislev and Tevet (MENORAH). It was a logical guess. I suppose it could have been MATZOHS.


• 47d: Mother of Horus (ISIS). Another crossword staple.


• 51d: Dallas wide receiver Michael who won three Super Bowls with Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith (IRVIN). I'm not a fan of Dallas, but I know these guys.


• 52d: Mount with vigor (STEED). I like the clue misdirection, which makes mount sound like a verb.


• 53d: Earth, in Italian (TERRA).


• 54d: Apple variety (FUJI). I've heard of this, but I needed the J to figure it out.


• 55d: Men's fragrance brand (IZOD). I guess you can't be a serious clothes company without having a fragrance line as well. Is there an LL BEAN cologne, too?


• 56d: Bills (NIBS). Part of that tough SW corner. Reference is to the mouth of a bird (like a duck), not to anything monetary.


• 62d: Fed. whose 18-letter full name alternates vowels and consonants (UAE). United Arab Emirates. Interesting trivia.

Suns of Bitches:

• 36a: "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" singer Shropshire (ELMO). That's a pretty obscure clue. Luckily the crossings weren't hard.


• 69a: "The Secret" author Byrne (RHONDA). The only Rhonda I know is the one from the Beach Boys tune.


• 48d: ___ Mifflin (company in "The Office") (DUNDER). I'm one of the few who hasn't watched this show. My son even has it on DVD, but I've somehow managed to avoid seeing even a single episode.



• 39d: Actor Diggs (TAYE). Here you go, ladies. See, I try to play fair.

I found this to be a pleasantly challenging Thursday, with an entertaining theme. A few tough fills with fair crossings, and one section that was a little tougher than the rest to break open. But overall, it was quite fair. Nice job.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Title: They're in the Money
Author: Mark Feldman
Theme: Last names that are also world currency.

• 17a: "The Face of the Ruling Class" artist (GEORGE GROSZ). I'm going to complain about this one on two fronts. First, who? Second, even if you happen to know that the Polish zloty is broken down into groszy, you're going to use a variant spelling to boot? Whatever.


• 22a: Dancer with lots of fans at her performances? (SALLY RAND). The rand is from South Africa. Sally Rand was an actress/burlesque dancer from the 20s and 30s.



• 36a: 2001 World series co-MVP (CURT SCHILLING). The schilling was once a unit of currency from Austria, as opposed to SHILLING, which was British. Curt has almost undoubtedly pitched his last for Boston, but the "bloody sock" game against the Yankees was a classic and he was instrumental in breaking the "curse" of the Red Sox.


• 56a: "The Cantos" poet (EZRA POUND). You know what a pound is.


• 61a: "The Italian Stallion" (ROCKY BALBOA). The balboa is from Panama, but what's a fictional character doing here with all the other real people? I guess I'll pretend George Grosz doesn't really exist... there, that's much better.

Cute idea, with some decent theme fill. But I think GEORGE GROSZ is a bit too obscure for a theme entry. SALLY RAND is borderline.

Sunny Spots:

This is the section where I write about the really cool non-theme fill and the standout clues that just make you smile.

Sundries:

• 14a: Ring master (ALI). Sauron didn't fit.


• 15a: "Starpeace" composer (ONO). I don't know why, but I was on totally the wrong wavelength here. I think I was trying to come up with ORFF, which of course wouldn't have fit, but since I couldn't come up with it I didn't realize I was off base.


• 28a: Ancient follower of Mosaic law (ESSENE). I have no idea why I know this.



• 29a: Babka morsel (RAISIN).


• 31a: Cartoon character who says "Swiper, no swiping!" (DORA). The explorer, I assume. Never watched it.


• 35a: Pickup game team (SKINS). Yeah, but only when it's all guys.


• 43a: Spinoza book (ETHICS).


• 45a: More meshuga (DAFTER).


• 52a: (CCVI x V) + (VII x III) (MLI). Ok, Gordon, these are getting out of hand... :)


• 55a: Caterer's heater (STERNO).


• 60a: Band with the 2008 album "Accelerate" (REM).


• 67a: Alternative to shrooms (LSD). More drug references by the New York Sun. Though shrooms seems a touch slangier to me than LSD.


• 2d: Some tannery output (SUEDES).


• 3d: Unemotional sorts (STOICS).


• 4d: Eden costar (HAGMAN). They've both been in dozens of things besides "I Dream of Jeannie". Some roles follow you forever, right Neil Patrick Harris?



• 5d: Sierra Nevada product (ALE). This one is a staple in my refrigerator.


• 23d: Healing technique that's Japanese for "universal life energy" (REIKI).


• 25d: Some M&M's (REDS). I guess one drug reference per puzzle is the limit.


• 30d: Nonverbal way to communicate: Abbr. (ASL). American Sign Language.


• 32d: Mo. of the Head of the Charles (OCT). I'm not even interested enough in what the Head of the Charles is to go look it up. If I had to guess, I'd say it had something to do with the Charles River in Boston. But I could be way off.


• 36d: Nationals (CITIZENS).


• 38d: Mrs. Gorbachev (RAISA).


• 39d: "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" trio (TLC). I was going to link in the video to this, but it's so bad that I just can't bring myself to do it.


• 40d: Tupperware pieces (LIDS). I guess one drug reference per puzzle is still the limit. You know, we must have at least fifty Tupperware (and variant) containers and at least that many lids, yet I swear only about a dozen actually match up. How does that happen?


• 44d: Satiny (SMOOTH). The first two times I looked at this clue, I thought it said Sanity. My dyslexia is worse than I thought. Anyway, "Smooth" is also a great Santana song (with Rob Thomas, of Matchbox Twenty).




• 48d: "High Rollers" host of the 1970s (TREBEK). Sure, he comes across as all smart and sophisticated on Jeopardy, but he's still a game show host, and they're not all highbrow.


• 53d: Susan who filled in for vacationing Bernadette Peters in "Annie Get Your Gun" (LUCCI). Easy enough to guess with a couple of crossings..


• 62d: "To Kill a Mockingbird" character Radley (BOO). Great book. Great movie. Kind of dull clue.

Suns of Bitches:

• 16a: Penna. neighbor (WVA). Penna.? WTF?


• 42a: "___ & Dean" (Oxygen reality show) (TORI). Never heard of it. Torvill and Dean? Sure. Tori Amos? Absolutely. Plural of TORUS? No problem.


• 8d: V-Day creator Eve (ENSLER). Huh?


• 9d: Exuding moisture (OOZY). Oozy? Yuck.

This section just killed me. Ok, granted, I should have figured out ONO sooner, and that would have helped, but this little area at the end of GROSZ was, well, gross.

What can I say? The theme was just okay, I'm not crazy about puzzles that start and end with multiple rows of three-letter words, and the non-theme fill had no real sparkle. Throw in that SOB section in and around 8d and you end up with kind of a clunker. Didn't care for it.

Thanks for listening.

- Pete M.