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New York Times, Monday, November 26, 2007

Author:
Andrea Carla Michaels
Editor:
Will Shortz
54-Across : Bucharest's land
TotalDebutLatestCollabs
866/12/20007/8/202455
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
762122300
RebusCircleScrabDebutFresh
241.6430623%
Andrea Carla Michaels

This puzzle:

Rows: 15, Columns: 15 Words: 78, Blocks: 36 Missing: {JQVXZ} This is puzzle # 7 for Ms. Michaels. Monday freshness: 92%
Andrea Carla Michaels notes:

This was my first attempt at what is now known as a "vowel run," a dismissive phrase I dislike. I like to think of them as a fun tone-poem. It's really fun to say HACK, HECK, HICK, HOCK, HUCK. Plus it's nigh impossible to get them in the right order while having the A match the U, the E match the O and the I to be odd-numbered, fun and straight across the middle.

And despite the fact I had made the Gilligan's Island puzzle with five themes (Tu 9/21/2004) I felt ill-equipped to construct this, thus my first collaboration! I had met Michael Blake at a constructors lunch I had organized after having met some constructors at Martin Herbach's lovely Los Gatos home the year before. Michael came as someone else's guest and we hit it off and became friends. He is very technically coordinated and offered to help lay out the grid as a favor. I felt I could not have done it without him and wanted to share credit/money which he demurred on.

We would often help each other with feedback and even a theme answer here and there but would submit as individuals. When he helped me again on PACK PECK PICK POCK PUCK (Mon 8/25/2008) I insisted we share everything. Although he felt it was my idea, fill, etc. I could NOT at that time, Luddite that I was, have ever figured out how to lay out the five themed answers. We've had at least a half dozen since then. He forced me to learn to use a computer so I could be more independent. The iron is, I enjoyed him so much that now when we collaborate, we merge our sensibilities which are quite different, and you can not parse out who did what.

I believe out of 40 published NYT puzzles (as of my writing this in November 2013) they have been almost evenly split between solos and collaborations.

1
G
2
A
3
R
4
B
5
B
6
R
7
O
8
W
9
A
10
P
11
P
12
L
13
E
14
O
R
E
O
15
O
E
N
O
16
F
R
I
E
S
17
H
A
C
K
18
Y
S
A
C
K
19
L
A
P
S
E
20
O
B
E
21
A
C
R
E
22
L
A
N
E
S
23
M
I
S
24
S
Y
O
U
25
H
E
C
K
L
E
26
R
27
E
A
S
Y
28
P
29
L
U
G
30
S
I
N
K
31
N
32
A
33
G
34
A
B
U
35
T
36
N
E
O
37
H
38
I
C
K
O
39
R
Y
S
M
O
40
K
E
D
41
R
O
D
42
A
L
O
T
43
E
G
O
44
A
L
E
45
S
46
D
R
O
47
P
48
L
49
A
50
W
51
S
52
H
O
C
K
53
N
E
Y
54
R
55
O
56
M
A
N
I
A
57
G
L
E
A
N
58
R
I
S
E
59
G
P
S
60
B
R
A
I
N
61
H
U
C
K
A
62
B
E
E
S
63
E
A
R
N
A
64
A
S
E
A
65
B
L
U
E
66
A
M
E
S
S
67
T
E
R
R
68
S
A
P
S
© 2007, The New York Times11/26/7 ( No. 21,202 )
Across
1
Clothing : GARB
5
It's arched above the eye : BROW
9
iPhone maker : APPLE
14
Creme-filled cookie : OREO
15
Wine: Prefix : OENO
16
Burger side order : FRIES
17
Bean-filled bag moved with the foot : HACKYSACK
19
Expire, as a subscription : LAPSE
20
Honor bestowed by Queen Eliz. : OBE
21
Farm unit : ACRE
22
Bowling alley divisions : LANES
23
Postcard sentiment : MISSYOU
25
Comedy club razzer : HECKLER
27
Simple : EASY
28
Electric cord's end : PLUG
30
Where dirty dishes pile up : SINK
31
Say "Do this," "Do that" ... blah, blah, blah : NAG
34
Border on : ABUT
36
Prefix with classical : NEO
37
Like some hams : HICKORYSMOKED
41
Fishing pole : ROD
42
Loads : ALOT
43
Id's counterpart : EGO
44
Beverages in barrels : ALES
46
Fall : DROP
48
Statutes : LAWS
52
Pop artist David : HOCKNEY
54
Bucharest's land : ROMANIA
57
Gather, as information : GLEAN
58
Opposite of fall : RISE
59
Auto gizmo that talks, for short : GPS
60
Scarecrow's wish in "The Wizard of Oz" : BRAIN
61
2004 film "I Heart ___" : HUCKABEES
63
___ living : EARNA
64
On the briny : ASEA
65
Like a first-place ribbon : BLUE
66
"What ___!" ("It's so dirty!") : AMESS
67
Dakota ___ (old geog. designation) : TERR
68
Depletes, as strength : SAPS
Down
1
"Get out of here!" : GOHOME
2
Where Saudis live : ARABIA
3
Nook : RECESS
4
___ choy (Chinese green) : BOK
5
Chocolate syrup brand : BOSCO
6
Stand on the hind legs, as a horse : REARUP
7
"___ upon a time ..." : ONCE
8
Chinese cooking vessel : WOK
9
Insurance co. with a "spokesduck" : AFLAC
10
Throwing cream pies and such : PRANKS
11
Oil conveyor : PIPELINE
12
Abated : LESSENED
13
180 degrees from WNW : ESE
18
"That's great news!" : YAY
22
Peanut, e.g. : LEGUME
24
Out of ___ (not harmonizing) : SYNC
25
Parts of cars with caps : HUBS
26
Early MGM rival : RKO
29
___ rest (bury) : LAYTO
32
Letters before an alias : AKA
33
Flax-colored : GOLDEN
35
Dress (up) : TOG
37
3-D picture : HOLOGRAM
38
"You don't say!," after "Well" : IDECLARE
39
Actor Calhoun : RORY
40
Kind of nut : KOLA
41
Stadium cry : RAH
45
Balls of yarn : SKEINS
47
Person comparing costs : PRICER
49
Actress Lansbury : ANGELA
50
Use a paper towel : WIPEUP
51
Gives some lip : SASSES
53
Grandmas : NANAS
55
Schindler of "Schindler's List" : OSKAR
56
___ culpa : MEA
58
Subterfuge : RUSE
60
Actress Arthur : BEA
61
Sombrero, e.g. : HAT
62
Kids' ammo : BBS

Answer summary:
2 unique to this puzzle, 2 debuted here and reused later.

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