This web browser is not supported. Use Chrome, Edge, Safari, or Firefox for best results.

New York Times, Monday, September 7, 2009

Author:
Andrea Carla Michaels and Ashish Vengsarkar
Editor:
Will Shortz
Blog:
53-Down : Birds in many birdhouses
TotalDebutLatestCollabs
866/12/20007/8/202455
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
762122300
RebusCircleScrabDebutFresh
241.6430623%
Andrea Carla Michaels
TotalDebutLatestCollabs
193/5/20064/14/20225
SunMonTueWedThuFriSat
8102512
CircleScrabDebutFresh
21.6013659%
Ashish Vengsarkar

This puzzle:

Rows: 15, Columns: 15 Words: 78, Blocks: 38 Missing: {JQVX} Spans: 1 This is puzzle # 17 for Ms. Michaels. This is puzzle # 12 for Mr. Vengsarkar. Monday freshness: 60%
Constructor notes:

ANDREA:

Now that there were blogs, and I had attended the ACPT two years in a row, I now had lots of friends in the crossworld. One of them is Ashish Vengsarkar. We decided to collaborate on an idea I had of lots of fishing terms that were used as metaphors in other situations. Ashish constructed the grid and added MARINEGREEN and UNDERTHESEA as long downs. We disagreed about that. I like all the themes to be horizontal (I don't think I've ever had theme answers running down and I didn't want ones that were sort of like the theme but not really). Ashish hung tight and as it was a collaboration, I eventually deferred to him. He proved right in that folks loved the extra "atmospheric" entries.

Even tho solvers love long answers, I think if they are as long as the theme answers, that is really confusing. But I do like having bonus and atmospheric words in the grid to add to the overall feel.

1
G
2
O
3
F
4
I
5
S
6
H
7
R
8
B
9
I
10
S
11
M
12
I
13
Z
14
P
U
E
B
L
O
15
A
L
D
A
16
A
C
E
17
S
I
M
E
O
N
18
P
A
L
M
19
T
R
E
E
20
T
A
K
21
E
T
H
E
B
A
I
T
22
A
23
P
24
U
25
N
E
D
26
A
N
N
27
L
E
N
28
D
29
D
U
30
M
31
P
32
S
33
S
E
34
T
35
H
36
M
O
D
E
37
L
38
C
A
R
P
39
S
40
G
I
A
41
O
P
E
N
A
42
C
A
N
O
F
W
43
O
R
M
S
44
S
L
R
45
M
O
T
E
T
46
F
R
E
E
S
47
T
E
T
48
E
49
R
E
S
E
50
T
51
B
E
L
L
52
H
A
53
W
54
G
U
55
S
56
N
Y
E
57
G
E
T
R
58
E
59
E
60
L
E
D
I
61
N
62
C
A
S
S
E
T
T
E
63
O
N
E
64
T
65
W
66
O
67
A
G
E
68
N
O
U
N
69
R
A
I
S
E
R
70
B
A
A
71
S
N
I
T
72
S
I
N
K
E
R
© 2009, The New York Times9/7/9 ( No. 21,853 )
Across
1
Card game in which a player might ask "Got any 8's?" : GOFISH
7
Sluggers' stats : RBIS
11
B'way's "Les ___" : MIZ
14
Southwest Indian home : PUEBLO
15
Alan of "M*A*S*H" : ALDA
16
Useful item accompanying a face card in blackjack : ACE
17
San ___ (Hearst castle) : SIMEON
18
Coconut source : PALMTREE
20
Fall for it : TAKETHEBAIT
22
"The Simpsons" clerk : APU
25
"The Simpsons" neighbor : NED
26
Raggedy ___ : ANN
27
Give away temporarily : LEND
29
Jilts : DUMPS
33
Brother of Cain and Abel : SETH
36
Walk the runway at a fashion show : MODEL
38
Complains : CARPS
40
Actress Scala : GIA
41
Start something that one shouldn't start : OPENACANOFWORMS
44
Certain camera, for short : SLR
45
Sacred song : MOTET
46
Liberates : FREES
47
Head: Fr. : TETE
49
Bowler's button : RESET
51
Steeple contents : BELL
52
Hem's partner : HAW
54
Astronaut Grissom : GUS
56
Bill the Science Guy : NYE
57
Be a sucker : GETREELEDIN
62
Insert in a tape recorder : CASSETTE
63
Boxing combo : ONETWO
67
What the rings signify on a tree : AGE
68
Verb go-with : NOUN
69
Hell-___ (rowdy sort) : RAISER
70
Call to a shepherd : BAA
71
State when one's nose is out of joint : SNIT
72
Hook, line and ___ : SINKER
Down
1
Navigational gizmo : GPS
2
Yes, in Québec : OUI
3
Masc. alternative : FEM
4
"Yeah, sure" : IBET
5
M.I.T.'s ___ School of Management : SLOAN
6
Gave a toot : HONKED
7
Transfixed : RAPT
8
Unexciting : BLAH
9
Twiddling one's thumbs : IDLE
10
Latin ballroom dance : SAMBA
11
Algae color : MARINEGREEN
12
Rapper turned actor : ICET
13
New York's Tappan ___ Bridge : ZEE
19
Bronzes at the beach : TANS
21
Instill with the three R's : EDUCATE
22
"Close but no cigar" : ALMOST
23
Us Weekly rival : PEOPLE
24
Disney lyric repeated before "Darling it's better / Down where it's wetter" : UNDERTHESEA
28
Lion's lair : DEN
30
Lions' hair : MANES
31
Tutee : PROTEGE
32
Letters on a Coppertone bottle : SPF
34
Opportune : TIMELY
35
Big inconvenience : HASSLE
37
Escapee's run : LAM
39
Abbr. in personals : SWF
42
Where streets meet: Abbr. : COR
43
Globe : ORB
48
Grabs dinner : EATS
50
English monarchs from Henry VII through Elizabeth I : TUDORS
53
Birds in many birdhouses : WRENS
55
Egyptian desert : SINAI
57
Daffy : GAGA
58
School for princes William and Harry : ETON
59
Decorative needle case : ETUI
60
Period of fasting : LENT
61
No, in Nuremberg : NEIN
62
Taxi : CAB
64
"Tut-tut" : TSK
65
Itsy-bitsy : WEE
66
Hockey's Bobby : ORR

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

Found bugs or have suggestions? Please let us know.

Like this puzzle? Please share this page on social media to help spread the word about XWord Info. Thanks!

XWord Info Home
XWord Info © 2007-2024, Jim Horne
80 ms