The Letter T, from The Alphabet Series by Erté
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Sunday, January 17, 2010
Puzzle by Cathy Allis, edited by Will Shortz
In this Sunday crossword, the letter T is singled out, with the first T in the final word in each of nine phrases missing, e.g., a phrase containing two consecutive words that end and start with T have lost the second T. In any case, the result is the changing of fairly common phrases into unfamiliar ones, which are question-mark clued to the somewhat amusing new phrases, needing but a subtle change in PARSING (25A. Grammar class exercise), as follows:
GOD’S HONEST RUTH (23A. Dr. Westheimer telling it like it is?); RIGHT URN ONLY (31A. All you need to brew a lot of coffee?); TOILET RAINING (49A. Result of a plumbing disaster in the apartment above?); THE BOOK OF LOST ALES (65A. Tome that makes a pub owner feel nostalgic?); ON THE FAST RACK (84A. Where to find a best-selling CD?); THE PARENT RAP (99A. Something kids might very well tune out?); DON’T RUST ANYONE (112A. Advise to Tin Man costume designers?); WAR AGAINST ERROR (19D. Debugger’s mission?); SOFT ISSUE INJURY (40D. Damage to a paperback edition?).
PROOFREAD (46D. Scan for slips) is the sole nine-letter entry and there are but two of eight letters -- GOLIATHS (36A. Huge opponents) and SCRANTON (96A. “The Office” city). Seven-letter -- ANIMATO (20A. Spiritedly, in scores); CENTURY (81A. Longtime Buick model); EARFULS (109A. Scoldings); INNARDS (55A. Viscera); REWIRES (4A. Updates electrically); ROOF RAT (92D. Attic scurrier); ROTATES (89D. Pivots); SESSION (1D. Recording period); SPRAYER (13D. Exterminator, often); SUCCESS (122A. Good outcome); UPENDED (119A. Topsy-turvy).
Six-letter -- ARROWS, BANTUS, CANAPE, CLOROX, CRANES, DWAYNE, ENOUGH, ERASER, ESPANA, GRATIS, INNEED, MISSAL, NESSIE and NORRIS, ONEILL, ROWENA, SONANT, THROWN, WIDTHS.
Five -- AESOP, AFACT, ANITA, ASSET, BRONX, DOBIE, ELUDE, FRAME, IMSET, LARGE, LAYLA, MESON, MINOS, MONTH, NORSE, NSYNC, OWLET, POSSE, PSYCH, RAPID, SEWER, SLAMS, TAROT, TONOF, TOOTH, TORTS.
Short stuff -- ABET, ADIN, AGO and ANO, ALIA, ALEE and ALER, ALIA, ANDA, ANT and ANTE, APES and APU, ASHE, AYR, BARN and BRAN, BLIP, ECON, EDS, EGOS, EMI, ERIK, ERST, ESP, ETO, FAR, FATE, FLY, HOJO, IBET, INNS, IPOD, IST, ITAL, LAHR, LEI and LEN, LONE, NAIL, NEC, OLIN, OMIT, OORT, ORAN, PEP, PITH, PTA, RAH, REI and REP and RET, RITE, RON and ROO, SAUL, SOB, SRA, SSE, TEC, TREE, TYPE, UTE, UVEA, VATS.
Puzzle available on the internet at
THE NEW YORK TIMES -- Crossword Puzzles and Games.
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Remaining clues -- ACROSS: 1. Blubber; 11. Liturgical reference; 27. Chief Ouray’s tribe; 28. Fourth word in the “Star Wars” opening crawl; 29. Angel, e.g., for short; 30. Something an office worker might file; 38. Aging vessels?; 39. Whence the phrase “sour grapes”; 43. Healthful husks; 45. Educ. Group; 46. Kind of talk; 47. Male symbol components; 48. What you might bow your head to get; 54. Pitcher plant victim; 57. Playmate of Piglet; 58. ___ Gillis of 1960s TV; 59. Spade, e.g., for short; 60. Rapper’s retinue; 61. Father of Ariadne; 63. Abbr. after many a capt.’s name; 64. Essence; 70. “Hard ___!”; 72. Pol Paul; 73. Cel; 74. Great trait; 77. Eight or ninth word in the “Star Wars” opening crawl; 78. Law school course; 80. 1977 Sex Pistols song … or their first record label; 83. Scottish seaport; 87. “Ghost Whisperer” skill; 88. Bleach brand; 90. Cabbage batch?; 91. Julio to Julio; 92. Sacrament, e.g.; 93. Tea leaves alternative; 4. Help, wrongly; 102. Orange-roofed establishment, in brief; 104. Inter ___; 107. Author Deighton; 108. Married jujer: Abbr.; 118. Strapped; 117. “Good Guys Wear Black” star, 1979; 120. Hickman who played 58-Across; 121. Subject of a Scottish mystery, informally; 122. Carpenter ___. DOWN: 2. “Anna Christie” playwright; 3. Web site for Charlotte; 4. Paper that dishes dirt; 5. “Knock it off!”; 6. Lumber dimensions; 7. “No more, thanks”; 8. Shout at a bowl; 9. W.W. II command area; 10. Voiced, in phonetics; 11. Quark/antiquary particle; 12. Suffix with cruciverbal; 14. Handel oratorio king; 15. Starting stake; 16. Bert who was a Leo, aptly; 17. Name on the street; 18. Algerian port; 24. Starts can have big ones; 26. Free; 32. Romance lang.; 33. Eye layer; 34. Galloping; 35. Living ___; 37. Touch, e.g.; 41. Nocturnal fledgling; 42. College course, briefly; 43. Radar image; 44. City near old silver mines; 47. “West Side Story” girl; 49. ___ of Souls, Na’vi temple in “Avatar”; 50. Composer Satie; 51. Like a ___ bricks; 52. Language from which “sky” and “egg” are derived; 53. Skeptical rejoinder; 56. Arthur with a racket; 61. Shevat or Sivan; 62. Poetry contests; 64. Exterminator’s target; 66. ___ Zoo; 67. ___ cloud (solar system outlier); 68. Cross out; 69. Opposite of stout; 70. “Is that ___?”; 71. Eric Clapton love song; 75. Once, formerly; 76. Variety; 78. Its crown is in your head; 79. Waste line; 81. Cocktail party serving; 82. College course, briefly; 85. Karma; 86. ___ avis; 94. Galoots; 95. Ethnic group including Zulus; 96. Walked boldly; 97. Port sights; 98. Nonplussed; 100. Duck; 101. “This I Promise You” band, 2000; 103. Ken of “thirty something”; 104. Good situation for a server; 105. Unattended; 106. Imarets, e.g.; 110. “___ partridge in …”; 111. V.I.-to-Trinidad dir.; 113. King, in Portuguese; 114. Toon for which Hank Azaria won a 1998 Emmy; 115. Japanese I.T. giant; 116. Mag. Team.
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