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GRID IRON

New York Times, Sunday, April 15, 2012

Author:
Kevin G. Der
Editor:
Will Shortz
Blog:
126-Down : Polo competitor
TotalDebutLatestCollabs
423/12/20077/9/20223
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
1221241110
RebusCircleScrabDebutFresh
861.6538284%
Kevin G. Der
Titanic

This puzzle:

Rows: 17, Columns: 31 Words: 178, Blocks: 109 Grid has up-down mirror symmetry. Puzzle has duplicate clues. This is puzzle # 26 for Mr. Der. Sunday freshness: 51%
Notepad: When this puzzle is finished, 12 special squares, along with the shaded squares, will create an image of 56-Down. The 12 squares corresponding to the "reflection" of the special squares, when read clockwise from top left, will spell an alternative name for 56-Down.
Jim Horne notes:

I've highlighted the "reflection" squares. They spell out SHIP OF DREAMS. This titanic puzzle stretches several conventions. It's the first Shortz-era grid with up-down mirror symmetry. It is by far the widest. It's even bigger than Kevin's previous huge rectangle. It's not a size record, though, falling nearly 100 squares short of the seven 25x25 Millennium puzzles from 1999. (Here's one.)

I claim this is the world's first cubist crossword. There's the profile view of the ship and its reflection you have to draw yourself and, just maybe, if you squint at the arrangement of black squares, a top view of a ship sailing west. Do you see it? Also, GRID IRON is a great title for a puzzle that looks like a football field but isn't. The constructor tells the story of how he made this puzzle here on Quora.

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© 2012, The New York Times4/15/12 ( No. 22,804 )
Across
1
Plushlike : SOFT
5
Anjou relatives : BOSCS
10
"Love Train" singers, with "the" : OJAYS
15
Brit. decorations : DSOS
19
Low men? : BASSI
24
Peace Nobelist Root : ELIHU
26
Without problems : ALLOK
27
Holiday decoration : MENORAH
29
Where 56-Down embarked : SOUTHAMPTON
31
Stress reliever : EASER
32
Actress Téa : LEONI
33
Iconic line shouted in "56-Down" : IMTHEKINGOFTHEWORLD
35
With 37-Across, #1 song from "56-Down" : MYHEART
37
See 35-Across : WILLGOON
39
Martini go-with? : ROSSI
40
Bit of chiding : TSK
41
Shiva's wife : KALI
42
Cat genus : FELIS
43
Italian holiday : FESTA
45
Sinn ___ : FEIN
47
Easter ___ : EGG
50
Forest specimens : FERNS
52
"Be my guest" : FEELFREE
56
Silence indicator : TACET
59
"Cool" amount : MIL
62
In ___ place : ASAFE
64
Rafael, to friends : RAFE
66
Trims, say : EDITS
68
Jefferson or Madison : DEIST
69
Rest on : SITATOP
71
High clouds : CIRRI
73
Mess of a mess : SNAFU
75
Auto-___ : DAFE
76
Footstool : POUFFE
78
Georgia O'Keeffe Museum site : SANTAFE
80
Slowpokes' fines : LATEFEES
82
Filled, as an office : STAFFED
83
Coup d'___ : ETAT
84
Builder of a 2x2 vessel? : NOAH
85
Blue Ribbon maker : PABST
86
Hosp. scan : EEG
87
Winner of a 1970s-'80s war : VHS
90
Singer Jones : NORAH
92
Literally, "my Lord" : ADONAI
94
Amount before overtime : BASEPAY
96
Shake : TREMOR
100
Tried to win : WOOED
102
Major operation? : DRILL
104
To this moment : TILLNOW
106
Fads : RAGES
108
Run together, in a way : ELOPE
109
Tater : SPUD
110
Toddlers' coddlers : MOMMIES
112
Third string : CTEAM
113
Once more: Abbr. : AGN
114
It's not basic : ACID
116
Dict. info : DEF
117
Tabula ___ : RASA
119
Yorkshire river : AIRE
121
Flags : EBBS
123
Clear (of) : RID
124
Triumphant end? : QED
125
"56-Down" co-star : WINSLET
128
"56-Down" co-star : DICAPRIO
132
"King Lear" role : REGAN
136
Pittance : SOU
138
Protection around the world? : OZONE
139
Some buggy drivers : AMISH
141
Record-tying achievement for "56-Down" : ELEVENACADEMYAWARDS
149
Said yea or nay : VOTED
150
Bank support? : LEVEE
151
Spirit : ESSENCE
152
56-Down, e.g. : LUXURYLINER
153
Pulitzer-winning critic Richard : EDER
154
It's hard to get across : CHASM
155
Palm products : TREOS
156
Flight data: Abbr. : ETDS
157
Some salads : SLAWS
Down
1
Look : SEEM
2
Oil producer : OLAY
3
Implement with a spatulalike blade : FISHKNIFE
4
Where dawn arises : THEEAST
5
Latvian, e.g. : BALT
6
Cry to a matador : OLE
7
Brake : SLOW
8
They carry needles : CONIFERS
9
Omelet holders : SKILLETS
10
Aware of : ONTO
11
Dear person? : JOHN
12
Exist : ARE
13
Jabber : YAK
14
Stuffed ___ : SHIRT
15
Ski-___ : DOOS
16
Muslim mystic : SUFI
17
Slugger Mel : OTT
18
"Zip it!" : SHH
19
Autobahn sights : BMWS
20
Pig in ___ : APOKE
21
Orchestra grp. : STR
22
Roman sun god : SOL
23
Like Beethoven's Second : IND
25
Caspian feeder : URAL
27
"Top Gun" jets : MIGS
28
Funnyman Philips : EMO
29
Ban Ki-moon and others: Abbr. : SGS
30
Insurance giant : AETNA
34
Professor Chomsky : NOAM
36
Widespread : RIFE
38
Invention : LIE
43
Parts of yards : FEET
44
Small-runway aircraft, briefly : STOL
45
Is alarmed : FEARS
46
"It ___" (answer to "Who's there?") : ISI
48
Tennis's Steffi : GRAF
49
Bad slip : GAFFE
50
Stable supply : FEED
51
Nutritional stat : RDA
53
Saverin who co-founded Facebook : EDUARDO
54
Shield bearer, typically : LEFTARM
55
Small flute : FIFE
56
[See blurb] : TITANIC
57
Frozen : ATAHALT
58
Many a Wi-Fi hotspot : CAFE
60
Cause of 56-Down's demise : ICEBERG
61
About a month, for a fruit fly : LIFESPAN
63
Rotted : FESTERED
65
Bad blood : FEUD
67
Devote : SPEND
69
Supercilious one : SNOOT
70
Wild banana : PAPAW
72
Mark up, say : RETAG
74
Conrad ___, early matinee idol : NAGEL
77
Chiwere speaker : OTO
79
Furthermore : AND
81
Prof's helpers : TAS
82
Harden : SET
87
Golfs, e.g., briefly : VWS
88
Emulate a frog : HOP
89
Unpleasant thing to hit : SOURNOTE
91
Rival suitor's expletive : HIM
92
"Shalom ___" (Hebrew greeting) : ALEICHEM
93
Martinique, e.g. : ILE
94
One with a terrible opening : BOMB
95
Oenologist's concern : YEAR
97
How it's done : MODE
98
Slanted column? : OPED
99
Interference detector? : REF
101
Voice of Carl in Pixar's "Up" : EDASNER
103
Acts the middleman : LIAISES
105
Dundee denial : NAE
107
Discovery Channel subj. : SCI
110
Ginnie ___ : MAE
111
Mrs., abroad : SRA
113
"Gimme ___" : ASEC
115
"In my view ..." : IDSAY
118
Zero-emissions vehicle : SLED
120
Athlete's pointer? : EPEE
122
Scottish hillsides : BRAES
124
Cower : QUAIL
125
Didn't go straight : WOVE
126
Polo competitor : IZOD
127
Bottled mineral : TALC
128
Palais Garnier star : DIVA
129
"Kidnapped" inits. : RLS
130
Suffix with luck : IEST
131
"Now you speak" : OVER
133
Hoedown attendee : GAL
134
Together, in music : ADUE
135
Cashier's cry : NEXT
137
Late-night fliers : OWLS
140
Word of indifference : MEH
142
Suffix with alk- : ENE
143
Barracks V.I.P. : NCO
144
Setting for some wrestling : MUD
145
"___ truly" (abbreviated sign-off) : YRS
146
Biological chain : RNA
147
It appears overnight : DEW
148
Grads-to-be: Abbr. : SRS

Answer summary:
8 unique to this puzzle, 6 debuted here and reused later, 3 unique to Modern Era but used previously.

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