09.21.07 -- The Long and the Shortz of It

Times Square - New Year's Eve 1938 -- MAKEARESOLUTION (38A Determine)

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Friday, September 21, 2007

Click here for LARGE PRINT
Puzzle by Paula Gamache, edited by Will Shortz
ASBADASBADCANBE (1A Just the pits);
THEREYOUGOAGAIN (16A Classic line of debate?);
LITTLEORNOTHING (17A Just a bit, if that);
OVERANDDONEWITH (30A Sewn up);
AIRAMERICARADIO (37A "The Randi Rhodes Show" network);
MAKEARESOLUTION (38A Determine);
LIBERALDEMOCRAT (53A Left-of-center party member);
ANYPORTINASTORM (57A "I'll take whatever help I can get"); and
SEATTLESEAHAWKS (58A Pro team whose mascot is a blue bird named Blitz)
The above are the main entries and fairly well the entire body of this frisky Friday crossword puzzle.
The remainder of the puzzle exists to serve the nine 15-square across entries.
The three triple-stacked entries across (in sets of three) are divided by two "passageway" triple-stacks with the requisite black squares, allowing only two letters each for entry between the three 15-square across triple-stacked entries.
MAST (18A Flag holder); TRIM (19A In shape); AVGS (20A Means: Abbr.); CYS (21A Songwriter Coleman and others); FAJITA (23A Food whose name means "little sash"); and PIC (28A Many an e-mail attachment).
LSD (39A It'll change you mind); INTONE (40A Drone); PLIE (41A Dance move); EKE (44A Scratch); BAIN (46A Winner of three consecutive Emmys for "Mission: Impossible"); KANE (47A Batman creator Bob); and Woody Guthrie's "Tom JOAD" (49A).
The clues for the down entries which are, in the main, happenstance fill to serve the accomplishment of nine full-across entries are:
1. Thrashers home in the N.H.L.: Abbr.; 2. One just filling up space; 3. Second of 24; 4. See 52-Down; 5. Arm raiser, informally; 6. Vote for; 7. In need of a sweep; 8. Ragged edges, in metalworking; 9. Lambs: Lat. 10. Destiny; 11. String player?; 12. Ottoman officers; 13. Simple; 14. Toot; 15. Some specialize in elec.; 21. They may give you a seat; 22. Spring river phenomenon; 23. Soundproofing material; 24. Converse alternative; 25. Yo-yo; 26. Requiem title word; 27. Alternative to a 23-Across; 28. Somewhat, in music; 29. Embarrassing way to be caught; 31. 1856 antislavery novel; 32. Insult, on the street; 33. Volt-ampere; 34. Peculiar: Prefix; 35. Relative of -ance; 36. Perfect; 41. He wrote that government "is but a necessary evil" 42. Gulf of Sidra setting; 43. Like the Keystone Kops; 44. "The ENDIS near!"; 45. New Hampshire's KEENE State College; 46. Longfellow's "The Bells of San BLAS"; 47. Rove in politics; 48. Old man, in Mannheim; 49. Rib; 50. Prefix with -hedron; 51. In ranks; 52. With 4-Down, black magic; 54. Raise a stink?; 55. Billy's call; 56. Logos and the like: Abbr.
As is obvious, the cluing for the down entries is in many cases convoluted and/or a stretch -- necessarily so, due to the droppings left from the blitz of long acrosses.
That said, the six 15-across "conversational" entries are, to crossword puzzles, original; and the remaining three -- "Air America Radio", "Liberal Democrat", and "Seattle Seahawks" can certainly count this crossword as their last full-length appearance for a while, at least.
All in all, a very satisfying and fun T.G.I. Friday solve!
Times Square, New Year's Eve -- OVERNADDONEWITH (30A)
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The New York Times Crossword Puzzle solution above is by the author of this blog and does not guarantee accuracy. If you find errors or omissions, you are more than welcome to make note of same in the Comments section of this post -- any corrections found necessary will be executed promptly upon verification.
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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Times certainly have changed. We are now a prolific society adorned in technological advances and vast wealth. Since 1938 we've discovered how to build nuclear weapons, the computer was invented, music has evolved, and society no longer aims to put merely put food on the table, but society selfishly attaches itself to personal capital--ornate jewlery and excessive luxuries--to feel a complete sense of satisfaction.

DONALD said...

danny wong

You comment could be placed with the photograph of Times Square today -- certainly a contrast with 1938, eh?

Anonymous said...

I must say though, there is an antediluvian appeal from the Times Sq of 1938. And it is natural of course that this modern capitalist society has revolutionized.

The pictures definitely express the contrasts of the times past to the times present.

DONALD said...

Antediluvian? 80 years is 20 short of a century, and a far remove from the Biblical Flood -- of course, its all relative as to one's age!

The Times building is still there, it was stripped bare in the early 60's, refaced with marble and renamed the Allied Chemical Bldg. -- no one liked it, it went away, at least the sign did. The marble remained and is now covered with neon and etc. -- the building is now little more than a pylon for advertising -- when it was built, it was one of the tallest and most impressive buildings in the City, standing alone in Longacre Square (subsequently renamed Times Square) like a little Tower of Babel.

Carry on!

Anonymous said...

by antediluvian I was using the other sense of the term: out-of-date, or old fashioned. But wow, I did not notice that the buildings were the same structures with different faces resembling the currents times, respectively.