02.25.11 — Assembly

Martin Luther before Emperor Charles V at the Diet of Worms, April, 1521, painting by Anton von Werner, 1900

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Friday, February 25, 2011

Puzzle by Henry Hook, edited by Will Shortz

THE DIET OF WORMS (19A. 16th-century assembly) and IT’S FOR THE BIRDS (44A. Detractors’ comment concerning 19-Across?), along with two more cross-referenced pairs, CATCHER and PLATE (36D. Bench, for example; 41A. 36-Down’s locale) and LOUIS with FIST (21A. Winner of a famous 1938 rematch; 47D. Weapon for 21-Across) are featured in this nifty Friday crossword, essentially divided into a half-dozen small sections with an acceptable pathway between the six.

Other — CANARSIE (32A. Brooklyn neighborhood), MAGNETIC (39A. Attractive), NOTRE DAME (42A. Site of Napoleon I’s coronation), OUTERMOST (20D. As far from the heart as possible), SLAVE ANTS (22A. Colonial captives).

Mid-size — ANEMONE (14A. Pasqueflower, e.g.), “ANGELA’S Ashes“, AVOCADO, COLOSSI (55A. Enormous statues), DANNON, ESTONIA, EVACUEE, GRIEVED, MASALA (1A. Spice mix used in Indian cuisine), MODELED, NEREID (42D. Calypso, e.g.), RADICAL, RAMFIS (7D. High priest in “Aida”), REALISE, REJOICE, SHEETED, STRINGS.

Five-letter — AGITA and AKIRA (37A. 1988 animated action film set in 2019 Tokyo), ANITA and AVILA, AVOWS, CHAPS, CRANE, ERASE (26D. Indulge in character assassination?), HIKED, LAVAL (23D. Montreal suburb), MATES, PESCI and POSSE, PURIM, RIGUP, SCAMP, SPACE, VALET.

Short stuff — ADES, AMID, ANTH, ARC, BAJA, CALM, DECO, DODO, ICER, ICON, Architect IEOH Ming Pei, LOD, LONI, MAST, RCS, RUIN, SEEN, SERE, SLOE, TALE.

The trumpet of a prophecy! O Wind,
If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?
~ Percy Bysshe Shelley
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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.

Remaining clues — ACROSS: 7. “Far out!”; 16. Shade of green; 17. Conditions; 18. Proved to be quite a poser?; 27. Becomes cracked; 33. Construct; 34. Kansas City university; 35. Plot line; 38. “The Newlywed Game” contestants; 43. “Raging Bull” co-star; 53. Convert to pounds?; 54. One who’s withdrawn; 56. Say “Hallelujah!”; 57. Short-___; 58. Choice in bottled water. — DOWN: 1. Canvas holder; 2. Lit. collection; 3. Drought-stricken; 4. In; 5. 1970s pinup name; 8. Swears; 9. Dummy; 10. Champagne bucket; 11. 0 on the Beaufort scale; 12. Vitamin C providers, maybe; 13. City near Ben-Gurion Airport; 15. Member of the U.N. since 1991 and the E.U. since 2004; 22. Roguish sort; 24. Novelist Brookner; 25. Jeeves, for one; 27. Washington Irving character; 28. Followed a trail, maybe; 29. Gut reaction?; 30. Adar festival; 31. Opportunity for privacy; 40. Mourned; 43. Entourage; 45. Account; 46. Liqueur flavor; 48. North American peninsula; 49. Screen figure; 50. Bankruptcy; 51. Retro style; 52. Discovered; 53. Alternatives to Pepsis.