dannmann's NYT crossword puzzle ramblings

friday, november 9, 2007
henry hook / will shortz
ny times online premium crossword puzzle

difficulty factor: holy unusual clues and answers, batman!

theme: none


well, i sure can't say i'm 3D UNIMPRESSED with this one, there were some doozies in here...
some 17A UNIQUELY clued answers... but there were a few wild stretches as well... and more than a few re-visits from the past few days as well! i NARROWLY avoided the use of a fifth band-aid just by finishing this gem.

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in the "not necessarily explained just by the answer" category

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1A concerned query YOU OK?

15A it's a cinch CORSELET (or corslet, or corselette... an undergarment that is a combination light corset and a bra... holy cow! look at those... look at those... prices... prices
you pig!)

16. pretentious LA DI DA (an expression used to express disdain for something viewed as pretentious, so wouldn't "expression of disdain" be a better clue?! i've always spelled laH di daH)

21A mccartney, to fans SIR PAUL (sir? now, t' THAT i say, "laH di daH"!)

24A horror film that starts in a filthy lavatory SAW (how many different promo posters does a movie need?!)

29A monotheistic syrian DRUSE (the druZe are a religious offshoot of Islam, but they add a combination of other philosophies and consider themselves theologically as islamic reformers)

35A top-rated, in a way ONE-A (i fought for/with A-ONE for too damn long)

38A about 40 degrees, for n.y.c. N LAT (north latitude)

40A wore out RAN RAGGED

46A a.a. discussion topic DT'S (delirium tremens are hallucinatory episodes that occur during withdrawal from chronic alcohol abuse that are usually preceded by disturbed sleep and

irritability, and generally takes several days to develop... or so i've heard...)

49A roast pig side dish POI (cooked taro that is mashed, mixed with water and fermented is considered a sacred, life-giving food sustaining living beneficial organisms that transform the
inherent nutrients in the kalo plant into a higher form of energy to nourish the human body, heart and soul)

56A afro-caribbean religion SANTERIA (also known as "la regla lucumi" and "the rule of osha" orginated in cuba as a combination of western african beliefs and spanish catholicism by those brought to the caribbean islands as slaves. it began as way for practitioners to continue their native religion in the new world while still appearing to please their slave-masters, because santeria uses catholic saints and personages as fronts for their own god and orishas [spiritual
emissaries]. so that when a slave prayed to an orisha, it looked as if they were praying to a saint)

58A toeless creature in an edward lear verse POBBLE

61A one with a second helping DUELER (ah! duel revisited! [see yesterday's diatribe] it seems there are sevearl key elements i didn't fully address yesterday... first of all, the duel usually developed out of the desire of the challenger to redress a perceived insult to his honor. the goal of the duel was not so much to kill the opponent as to to restore one's honor by demonstrating a willingness to risk his life for it. secondly, only "gentlemen" were considered to have honor, and therefore qualified to duel. [if a gentleman was insulted by a person of lower class, he would not duel him but would smite him with anything handy, such as his cane, riding crop, or whip.] and last, but not least, the dueler was usually accompanied by a "second", a trusted representative and official assistant. after all who was gonna cart the loser off to the doctor... or undertaker?! [oh, and while it was considered bad form, the second would sometimes become engaged in the fray... tsk tsk... it all sounds pretty gentlemanly t' me...)

62A super bowl xx champs THE BEARS (go bears!)

7D product whose ads featured twins TONI (from the late 1940's and into the 60's, there were several different home permanent brands to choose from, but there was a name that stood out above all the rest-- that name was "toni" and the print ads featured identical twins [in the lower right corner] - one who had her hair treated in a profession salon, and one with a toni home permanent... "which girl has the toni?" was the question posed... the idea being that you

couldn't figure out which one... and what followed, of course, was the undeniable urge t' dash

out t' the store and do it youself at home!

9D lee marvin tv oldie M SQUAD (from september of 1957 through june 1960, marvin played tough as nails, no-nonsense chicago police lieutenant frank ballinger through 117 30 minute black and white "noire-ish" intense and comparitively violent episodes)

12D ward of "once and again" SELA

13D deep river? STYX (in greek mythology, there are five rivers that separate the underworld of the dead, hades, from the world of the living, they are 1] acheron - the river of woe; 2] cocytus - the river of lamentation; 3] phlegethon - the river of fire; 4] lethe - the river of forgetfulness; and 5] styx - the river of hate [from the greek word stugein which means hate] and is said to wind around hades nine times... yes... this WILL be on the test - and YES... spelling counts, mr. walsh!)

19D some nissans ALTIMAS

22D "_____ for alibi" A IS (a sue grafton who-done-it novel)

23D _____ pendragon, king arthur's father UTHER (in english: uther pendragon, in french: uter pendragon, in welsh: wthyr bendragon, or uthr bendragon, or uthyr pendraeg... don't say i didn't warn ya!)

27D west african currency LEONE and... 10. moldovan money

28D ponch player in 1970s-80s tv ESTRADA

30D too awful even to fix up, as an apartment UNLETTABLE (i've seen much worse, but i'm in a hurry!)

31D octopus, e.g. SEA DWELLER

36D marcel marceau character BIP

41D bush league? GOP (not gonna touch that one!)

43D city connected to the 4.1-mile long sunshine skyway br. ST. PETE (spanning florida's tampa bay, connecting st. petersburg and terra ceia [just north of bradenton], is the world's longest bridge with a cable-stayed main span, with a length of 29,040 feet [according to wiki and pbs's wonders of the world databank - and that's 5.5 miles or 8.85 km give or take.] and in the "another country heard from category: according to the the columbia gazetteer of north america quoted in bartlby it spans 11 mi/18 km... c'mon folks are we usin' the same tape measure?! would someone who drives it daily care to weigh in here, please?)

45D kitchen appliance brand OSTER

47D in a sense SORTA (that's my kinda word!)

51D on INRE (TSSsssssssssss.... [that was the sound of this on whizzin' right by me] i thought

inre meant 'in regards to' or 'concerning'... i guess i have to elasticize that a bit t' mean "on" [whatever] subject?)

53D pricey gown DIOR

54D mcshane and mckellen IANS (i never heard of either on of 'em...)

58D sharable computer file, for short PDF (portable document format ia a proprietary structure for exchanging files [with or without graphics] in a fixed-layout, independent of system or software incompatibilities, created by adobe systems in 1993)

59D overseas agreement OUI (ooh la la... french! 'yes')

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in the "your mileage may vary" category:
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best clueS of the day: 61A one with a second helping... and 11D he or i, but not you: abbr.... both very sneaky, clever
best answer of the day: 25D WRONG NUMBER... i dunno why, it just struck me...
worst clue of the day: EAT... "take the cake" means "win the prize for" in a back-handed way right?
worst answerS of the day: 48A DEPUTES... ew!... and... 62A THE BEARS... "the"? THE?! in the windy city it's "DA bears" ain't it?!

keep on keepin' on...

dann
all elements of the puzzle (grid layout, clues, and answers), NYT, NY Times, and The New York Times logo are ©2007 The New York Times
1. concerned query 6. without a leg to stand on? 14. vermont senator sanders 15. it's a cinch 16. pretentious 17. without a match 18. "pardon me" 19. closing bid? 20. peak 21. mccartney, to fans 24. horror film that starts in a filthy lavatory 26. weaken, in a way 29. monotheistic syrian 33. most in need of toning 35. top-rated, in away 36. slant 37. get all histrionic 38. about 40 degrees, for n.y.c. 39. hostel environments 40. wore out 42. some lap dogs 44. result of a new tv series' renewal 46. a.a. discussion topic 48. appoints as an agent 49. roast pig side dish 52. stands 55. brew choice 56. afro-caribbean religion 58. toeless creature in an edward lear verse 60. engine manufacturer briggs & _____ 61. one with a second helping 62. super bowl xx champs 63. personnel director, at times 1. hoped-for reply to 1-across 2. payment is often sent with one 3. apt to say "so?" 4. relative of -ish 5. mauna _____ 6. missile with a mobile launcher 7. product whose ads featured twins 8. iroquois'foes 9. lee marvin tv oldie 10. moldovan money 11. he or i, but not you: abbr. 12. ward of "once and again" 13. deep river? 14. sighing a lot, maybe 19. some nissans 22. "_____ for alibi" 23. _____ pendragon, king arthur's father 25. call slip? 27. west african currency 28. ponch player in 1970s-sos tv 30. too awful even to fix up, as an apartment 31. octopus, e.g. 32. take the cake? 34. twit 36. marcel marceau character 41. bush league? 43. city connected to the 4.1-mile long sunshine skyway br. 45. kitchen appliance brand 47. in a sense 49. "over here" 50. four-letter word, aptly 51. on 53. pricey gown 54. mcshane and mckellen 57. bill 58. sharable computer file, for short 59. overseas agreement