Jeffrey Wechsler is pretty sharp. He was here last month with a CORNY puzzle, but this one has more of an edge to it. CUTTING CORNERS is never a good idea, but in this case, I'll make an exception!
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| Always hire licensed contractors (like me)! |
40A. With 42-Across, risky business practice, or what can be found in this puzzle's circles?: CUTTING CORNERS. Wrapping each of the grid's CORNERS are types of CUTTING implements: KNIFE, SNIPS, SWORD and BLADE. Circles made them easy to find.
I like that the corners are read clockwise around the grid, and that each cutter comes to a sharp point at the corner. No long themers; the grid is broken up and nothing is longer than seven letters. Very breezy for a Thursday.
And now, I'll go through the rest with a scalpel.
Across:
1. Positive reply to "How's your health?": I FEEL OK. This doesn't sound very positive, or even the proper response to this odd question. Most people would ask, "How do you feel?" but that would spoil the answer so I guess he was stuck.
8. Carrot relative: PARSNIP.
15. Reminiscent of an almond's flavor, say: NUTLIKE. If you look up NUTLIKE in the dictionary, you'll see a picture of me!
16. Guises for gamers: AVATARS. Maybe I should change my AVATAR to an almond.
17. Activity of a rogue: KNAVERY. Trickery or deceit from a Knave, originally a servant boy, the lowest rank in a royal court. In the 19th century, American card decks switched this to Jack, because Kn and K (for "King") were confused when fanning out hands. "Jack" was colloquialism for a common man, one also at the bottom of the pecking order. Originally a domain of royalty, the King was the highest card until mass production let even commoners play, and they elevated the lowly Ace during the French Revolution to reflect their rise to the top.
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| This a Swedish deck: Kn = Knekt (Knave), K = Kung (King), D = Dam (Queen), E = Ess (Ace). |
18. Voids: NEGATES.
19. Dazed and confused: IN A SPIN. I don't use this phrase, but the Google says it's popular in Britain.
21. Superlative suffix: EST. This is the averagest 21A clue ever!
22. Outfits: RIGS.
25. Sharp: ACUTE.
28. "Sorry, but it's __ from me": A NO. Simon Cowell's catchphrase on the Idol and Talent TV shows.
29. Shea successor: CITI. Shea Stadium was the iconic, multipurpose home of the New York Mets from 1964 until it closed in 2008. It was demolished in 2009 and replaced by CITI Field, a modern baseball stadium built on the former site's parking lots.
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| Citi (left) and Shea (right) briefly coexisted. |
32. Tax cheat: EVADER.
36. Hush-hush doc: NDA. A Non-Disclosure Agreement protects information that's on a need-to-know basis...and you don't need to know!
37. Carmichael who plays Lady Edith on "Downton Abbey": LAURA. Laura Carmichael is an English actress, most widely known for her performance as Lady Edith Crawley. Since I've never seen this show, I now know how others feel when a clue is about Game of Thrones.
39. Land of the Minotaur: CRETE. The Minotaur is a mythical creature (I hope) from Greece with the body of a man and the head of a bull.
40. [theme pt1]
42. [theme pt2]
44. "Will all great Neptune's __ wash this blood / Clean from my hand?": Macbeth: OCEAN. Your daily dose of Shakespeare.
45. "__ bleu!": SACRE. This French exclamation originated from "Sacré Dieu" (Holy God). But because Christians feared taking the Lord's name in vain, they substituted the rhyming word "bleu" (blue) for "Dieu" (God) to avoid blasphemy.
47. Actress Whitman: MAE. MAE was a childhood actor who has appeared in numerous films and TV shows. I've somehow missed most of them, but liked her in Good Girls, a crime/comedy drama about three suburban mothers who resort to robbery.
48. Bring out the blue pencil again: REEDIT. First you REED IT, then you RE-EDIT it.
50. Slow-cooked dish: STEW.
51. Mass. summer hrs.: EDT. Massachusetts summer hours are in Eastern Daylight Time.
52. Sings like Ella Fitzgerald: SCATS. Doo-be-doo-bah!
54. Laudatory lines: ODES.
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| Not laundry lines... |
55. "Captain's __, stardate ... ": LOG. Famous opening line from Star Trek.
58. Cause of a blank photo: LENS CAP. We had a very small wedding, and my future brother-in-law told us he had the photography covered...by the LENS CAP. That's right, we have no pictures from the big day. 46 years later we look back and laugh.
62. Really gets to: ENRAGES. While a screw-up like that ENRAGES some brides, RightBrain took it all in stride. That's when I knew I had married the right girl.
65. Backless tops: HALTERS.
69. Makes softer, as sound: DEADENS.
70. Electric current units: AMPERES.
71. Montana neighbor: ALBERTA.
72. First name of the 28th U.S. president: WOODROW. WOODROW Wilson. In Hollywood, FL, where the longer streets are named sequentially after presidents, Wilson Street follows the much busier Taft Street. I guess Taft was more popular!
Down:
1. Calligraphy supply: INK. It takes a lot of INK to spell "calligraphy."
2. Merriment: FUN. Are we having merriment, yet?
3. Fig. texted en route: ETA. Estimated Time of Arrival.
4. "Jailhouse Rock" star: ELVIS. Here he is dancing away, right out of jail!
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| Hey! Someone left the door open! |
5. Property claim: LIEN. This lean will lead to a property claim.
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6. Gumbo vegetable: OKRA.
7. Things on rings: KEYS. Things on rings: GEMS. Well, that's half right.
8. Lose it under pressure: PANIC.
9. Path: AVENUE.
10. Old cloth: RAG. Linen made from flax fibers was used in Egypt thousands of years ago, but the cloth he's referring to is probably not that old.
11. RR stop: STA. A RailRoad STAtion.
12. "The Greatest Average American" host Bargatze: NATE. I haven't seen his new game show, but I really like his stand-up specials. He is a "clean comedian" who pokes fun at everyday life.
13. Really gets to: IRES. This really gets us to a clecho of 62A.
14. Furtive call: PSST.
20. Impetus for a bluff, perhaps: PAIR. Two Knaves, perhaps?
22. Animosity: RANCOR.
23. Bring about: INDUCE.
24. Vandyke kin: GOATEE. "Van Dyke" is usually two words, just like the facial hair is in two parts.
26. Team working off camera: TV CREW. When a TV reporter comes upon a bunch of rubbernecks at a crime scene, the accompanying team is all business, lest they become CREW necks.
27. Come by honestly: EARN.
29. Care center: CLINIC.
30. Actor McKellen: IAN. 87 year-old Sir IAN McKellen has won a Tony Award, a Golden Globe, and seven Laurence Olivier Awards, and has been nominated for two Academy Awards and five Emmys. In spite of all that, he is perhaps best known for his role as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings.
31. Helpers in harbors: TUGS.
33. Thought to be: DEEMED.
34. Online NYSE choice: E*TRADE. E*TRADE is a digital investment brokerage that allows people to lose money on the New York Stock Exchange.
35. Puts back to zero: RESETS.
38. Bank holding: Abbr.: ACCT. Please enter your bank account number in the space provided: __________ I will keep this data strictly confidential. Trust me.
41. Small amounts: TADS. This is what's in my ACCT right now.
43. Bauxite, e.g.: ORE. Bauxite is the primary ORE for aluminum.
46. Org.: ASSN. An Organization can be an Association.
49. __ scout: TALENT. Have I been discovered yet?
53. Thompson of "Selma": TESSA. TESSA has appeared in numerous TV shows and movies over her 20+ year career including as civil rights activist Diane Nash in the 2014 historical film Selma.
54. Chose: OPTED.
55. Helen of Troy's mother: LEDA. According to the most legends, Zeus, the king of the gods, transformed into a swan and seduced (or assaulted) LEDA, the Queen of Sparta. As a result, LEDA laid an egg from which Helen hatched. I'm not sure I buy this.
56. Scott Turow work: ONE L. ONE L is an autobiographical book by Turow that chronicles his grueling first year at Harvard Law School. It is the only one of his 14 novels that is of interest to crossword constructors.
57. Seize: GRAB.
59. "Saint Joan" playwright: SHAW. George Bernard SHAW's play about the 15th-century French military figure Joan of Arc.
60. Mil. print: CAMO. Military print is CAMOuflage.
61. Blue Buffalo rival: ALPO. Here's Buster as a pup getting ready for dinner.
63. Beverage suffix: ADE.
64. Austrian lang.: GER. The official language of Austria is GERman.
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| Wait, that's not right. |
66. Do the wrong thing: ERR. Jim Carrey meant Australia.
67. __ Speedwagon: REO. Here REO again!
68. NNE U-turn: SSW. Making a wide U-turn in a Speedwagon was like navigating a boat. It definitely wasn't a Sportwagon.
Happy Birthday, Mom! Wish you were around to see how I turned Dad's corny jokes into even cornier blog posts. The apple didn't fall far from the tree! I miss you both.
Be good. RB
I saw all the “cutters,”
ReplyDeleteeventually, in another fairly “tough” puzzle. In fact, it’s been a fairly tough week, but I guess that’s part of what makes solving them fun.
Anyway, FIR, so I’m happy.
Good morning!
ReplyDeleteDidn't notice JW's byline until Rusty mentioned it. I've always like his puzzles, and this was no exception. Just right for a Thursday. Thanx, Jeffery and RustyBrain.
FIR, but not->A NO.
ReplyDeleteBlogger got weirder today, at least on my laptop. Comments are on the same page as Rusty Brain's blog entry, not on a second page as they were yesterday. I even switched from Edge to Firefox, with no effect. That probably means that replies won't be embedded. At least the characters are darker.
Thanks to JeffWesh for another terrific puzzle. My favorite was HALTERS, which brought to my mind the tank top that was the object of Dierks Bentley in his country hit What Was I Thinking. And thanks to Rusty Brain for the fine tour.
Jinx, I did notice that I had to go through a couple of “extra steps “ to leave comments today, including this one. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I don’t think I like it.
ReplyDeleteEven after finishing the grid and seeing the reveal, I had a tough time sussing the answers. The puzzle itself was not overly difficult.
ReplyDeleteFIR. As usual I ignored the circles. After all this isn't a Jumble! The solve went smoothly enough without them.
ReplyDeleteFor once this week we have a puzzle appropriate to the day. Definitely a Thursday presentation.
But all things considered this was an enjoyable puzzle.
Took 7:40 today to slash my way through this one.
ReplyDeletePlenty of Actresses of the Day (Tessa, Mae, & Laura), but I only knew "Tessa." Pretty obscure pick for "Laura."
It's weird having the comments immediately following RB's usual great review (with a tinge of sadness). Happy Birthday to RB's mother.
Oh joy, circles!
Good Morning:
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice treat to see JW’s byline once again. As usual, the theme and reveal were clever and well-executed. Laura and Mae were unknown but fair perps solved those easily enough. I didn’t care for Tads, but fill such as Knavery, Woodrow, Alberta, Rancor, Lens Cap, etc., made up for it.
Thanks, Jeffrey W., and thanks, RB, for a particularly informative and pleasant review and commentary. I enjoy your easy-going and self-deprecating style. Buster put a smile on my face, as always. What a cutie he is!
Have a great day.
President Wilson's first name was Thomas, even if it wasn't used often.
ReplyDeleteGreat Puzzle
ReplyDeleteAnother fine offering from the best constructor in the business.
ReplyDeleteAnon @ 9:08. I must say that David Bywaters gives Jeffrey a run for his money. Both are great constructors in my estimation.
DeleteAs others have said, comments after the review, like on the phone, I had to sign in or I would have been anonymous, the font is darker but tiny, tiny. SACRÉ BLEU.
ReplyDeleteTh puzzle was great. The theme was quite clever and fun.I had difficulty with the NW, but I finally saw the KNIFE, so the rest fell into place. I’m afraid I knew none of the actresses nor that fellow, NATE. ALPO was WAG.
I don’t think I’ve ever eaten PARSNIPS, but I’ve eaten plenty of OKRA.
Thank you RB for á fine review. Buster looks ready to eat his ALPO.
Musings
ReplyDelete-Our good friend Jeffrey never disappoints. My sometimes too linear mind had to get the reveal to see the oh-so clever around-the-corner gimmick! Doh!
-“How ya doin” has become a standard greeting where no real response is actually being requested.
-My vote every year NEGATES my neighbor’s who is of a completely different political opinion but is a good guy.
-A great Johnny Mercer Lyric: In a SPIN, lovin the SPIN that I'm in, Under that old black magic called love
-There are many companies like this to help EVADERS
-A Jeffrey puzzle sans a Shakespeare reference is unheard of
-I really don’t like DST this time of year where igniting fireworks starts so late
-Teddy Roosevelt’s ill-fated Bullmoose party’s challenge to Taft gave us WOODROW Wilson
-I really like using KEY fobs instead of KEYS
-My favorite adaptation of a SHAW work
-Nice write-up RB, and I also enjoyed the What Was I Thinkin'"? I think we all know what he was thinkin'!
I can't remember a Jeffrey Wechsler puzzle that disappointed, and today's is no exception. It was an invigorating workout, and fun and informative at the same time. Jeffrey always has the best interests of the solver in mind. That doesn't mean he won't throw us a curve, like a 7-letter neighbor of Montana. Well, duh, Wyoming of course. Nope; Jeffrey went north and crossed the border to Alberta.
ReplyDeleteI'm a teacher and director of Shakespeare, and when son Jim and I are constructing a crossword, I'll often come up with a Shakespeare quote, Jim's response is no, we already have two Shakespeare clues in the puzzle. I think maybe Jeffrey and I see eye-to-eye there, and his Shakespeare clue today was perfect (as well as being the longest clue of the puzzle).
Thanks, Jeffrey and RB, for partnering to provide us such a fresh and invigorating Thursday morning.
I immediately perked up and poured myself a fresh cup of coffee when I saw that Jeffrey Wechsler was today’s constructor.
ReplyDeleteA clean grid and fresh clues such as knavery, lens cap, and Alberta.
Alberta is home to the Calgary Stampede a magnificent rodeo event held every July.
It’s close to the scenic Rocky Mountains.
Thanks R.B. for the informative recap.
Very nice CW, loads of fun clues, and I even got the theme! 16 names, DNK 7, but they perped in pretty nicely. I considered MEG for MAE, but perps insisted it is MAE. FIR in 15, very good Thursday time for me.
ReplyDeleteI don't think of an AVENUE as a path though. Also, I DNK ONEL and looked at it and scratched my head. Tnanx RB for the V-8 can moment.
HALTERS: that's a pretty good name for them.
I've always thought SCAT referring to music came from Ella performing and forgetting some of the lyrics, so she threw some scat (by the other definition) in there, just making up syllables until she got to the part she remembered. This isn't based on anything but my opinion, however.
Thanx JW, this is a fine CW that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Thanx too to RB for the terrific write-up, it is obvious you spent a lot of time putting it together. If your BIL had used an SLR he would have known when the lens cap was on. Good thing your DW has a good sense of humor.
The obvious theme made this easy. Had a problem with PAIR as a bluff but then it hit me (ouch).
ReplyDeleteIRES always really “RANCORS me
Inkover: seemed/DEEMED
The story of Helen of Troy hatching from and egg sounds like some kind of “yolk” 🤭🫢🙄🙈
RB: LENSCAP…my wife had a friend whose husband wanted to start a videography enterprise. Filmed my daughter’s wedding with …. no sound.
Waiting for my cardio annual appointment. “How’s my health”? “I feel OK”😊
Well, I guess you're going to have to FEEL OK if you're going to have some NUT LIKE food like PARSNIPS for breakfast. But this might put you IN A SPIN right away by having AVATARS act as if they were ready for KNAVERY, and that might NEGATE the healthy feeling we're supposed to have in these morning puzzles. So I think I'd best just head off to the CLINIC and see if they can give me something to make me FEEL OK again.
ReplyDeleteHave a healthy and happy day, everybody.
Have a good healthy and cheerful day, everybody.
Have a good and healthy day, everybody.