Theme: NONE
Wow, this is the worst Ed Voile puzzle I've ever solved. What a monstrous NESS grid! Grotesque!
Look:
52D: Lock for monsters: NESS
13D: Shiny quality: GLOSSINESS
14D: Tranquility: SERENENESS
35D: Slice-and-dice quality: GORINESS
58A: Hefty state: STOUTNESS
Wait, there are more SS.
24A: Part of USTA: ASSN
40A: First of September?: ESS
43A: Leaky balloon sound: SSS
And more lazy S cluing in HEDGEHOGS, PAVANES, PIS, SAGOS, RAMS, SATIRES, ETUIS, ENTHRONES.
What's the obsession with S today? What's on your mind exactly? If you can not build a good themeless Saturday grid without abusing prefixes and suffixes, just stick to your themed puzzle then!
Ugly. I hate it. I was actually very intrigued by the unusual grid structure when I had my first glance at the puzzle. And I expected some sparkling fills for 12D, 13D and 14D. However, after I filled in SSS and ESS for 40A and 43A, I realized that 13D and 15D would both end in NESS. Then I was very annoyed. I could not believe my eyes when I came to 52D: NESS, and got completely irked when GORINESS and STOUTNESS emerged.
All in all, a bad construction work from the author and a bad editing work from Mr. Williams.
ACROSS:
1A: Sean of "The Lord of Rings": ASTIN. Have never watched the "The Lord of Rings" series. But what a stellar cast! I adore Viggo Mortensen.
5A: Porcupines' kin: HEDGEHOGS. OK, so a group of porcupines is called a "Prickle". Interesting, isn't it? The name "porcupine" comes from French "porc d'épine" which means thorny, prickled or quilled pig/pork, hence the nickname "quill pig".
15A: Sufficient room: SPACE
16A: Fair: EQUITABLE. Good one.
17A: "The Alienist" author Carr: CALEB. Unknown to me. Here is more information about him. Now, how can I remember his name CALEB? OK, CALEB is a Hebrew word meaning "Dog". His initials is C. C. too.
18A: Supported, in a way: PULLED FOR
19A: Bring upon oneself: INCUR
22A: 16th-century dances: PAVANES. I faintly remember seeing this clue before. It's a "slow, stately court dance of the 16th and 17th centuries, usually in duple meter."
24A: Part of USTA: ASSN (Association). USTA is United States Tennis Association.
25A: Greek letters: PIS
28A: Palm starches: SAGOS. Kind of like tapioca. Very popular starch thickener in Southeast Asia.
29A: Daughter of Desi Arnaz: LUCIE
30A: Genetic carrier: RNA. Never know when to put DNA, when to put RNA.
31A: Kentucky fort: KNOX. Why not try "Gelatin brand" for a change?
32A: "Valley of the Dolls" writer: SUSANN (Jacqueline). Not familiar with either the book or the author.
33A: Pharmacy abbr.: OTC (Over-the-Counter)
34A: Actress Jillian: ANN. Saw this clue before. Not familiar with her works.
35A: Plant secretion: GUM
36A: Little links item: TEE. Links Golf Course. Tough to play. You'd better be good with your iron shots.
37A: Sister of Venus: SERENA. The Williams sisters.
39A: Memento __: MORI. "A reminder of life's mortality" (Latin). Remember you are mortal, so carpe diem!
40A: First of September?: ESS (First letter of September is ESS)
41A: Across: pref.: TRANS. Transaction. Transfer, etc.
42A: Theologian Kierkegarrd: SOREN. Father of Existentialism. He wrote "Fear and Trembling". His philosophy (or later Jean-Paul Sartre) is too complicated for me. I have a simple brain. I do love his quote "Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it." So true.
44A: Butts: RAMS
45A: Swiftian works: SATIRES. Jonathan Swift.
48A: Michael of Monty Python: PALIN. Saw his name before. Then I promptly forgot.
49A: Femme fatale: SIREN. Or one of the part-woman, part-bird sea nymphs who lured seamen with their enchanting music (Greek Mythology). I love this picture The Siren. So suggestive yet sensual. She is holding a harp, isn't she?
53A: Not fully worked out: TENTATIVE. Please explain this to me. I don't get it.
55A: Glasgow's river: CLYDE. Vaguely remember "Firth of Clyde". I suppose "Bonnie & ___" would be too easy for a Saturday puzzle. Learned this morning that "CLYDE" can also mean "a stupid, inept, or boorish person".
56A: Makes a king: ENTHRONES
57A: Needle cases: ETUIS. Look, she is back! Oh my goodness, this word can also be spelled as ETWEE. Just for your information, ETUI came from old French ESTUIER meaning "to keep".
59A: Force units: DYNES. DYNE came from Greek word "dýnamis "(force, power).
DOWN:
1D: Spore sacs: ASCI. Like the alliteration of the clue. Singular is "ASCUS". It's "the sac in ascomycetes in which the sexual spores are formed."
2D: Reach across: SPAN. Need to reword the clue, "across" has already appeared in 41A.
3D: Soft mineral: TALC
4D: Freeze: ICE UP
5D: Omaha populace: NEBRASKANS. I like how it's structured against SACRAMENTO.
6D: Figure with seven sides: HEPTAGON
7D: 3/20 and 9/23 approx.: EQUINOX. My favorite clue today, though I am not fond of NOX & NOX intersection at 7D & 31A. NOX is Roman goddess of night. Its Greek counterpart is NYX. Add one letter O, you've got ONYX which has nothing to do with night.
8D: D. C. airport: DULLES
9D: Rupert of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer": GILES. Thought it was a actor name. Wrong. It's the character's name in the TV series. Complete stranger to me.
12D: Makes confusing intentionally: OBFUSCATES. Again, I like the structural balance of this word with LUMINESCED.
23D: Letter-turner White: VANNA. I forgot. "Wheel of Fortune" co-host.
24D: Eur. nation: AUS (Austria)
25D: Shows subservience: PROSTRATES
26D: Go-between: INTERAGENT
27D: California capital: SACRAMENTO
29D: Shone, as from a chemical reaction: LUMINESCED. I am not familiar with this word, but it's inferable.
32D: More reliable: SURER
38D: Letters in tennis?: ENS. TENNIS. Very nice clue.
39D: Causes: MOTIVES
42D: Sterile solution: SALINE
45D: Squelched: SAT ON
46D: Like choked deltas: SILTY. This whole puzzle feels choked to me.
48D: Piece of the whole: PART
50D: Distance runner Jim: RYUN. No idea. RYUN, interesting name, no wonder he ran. He served in the Congress from 1996-2007. Looks like he was very conservative.
51D: Falco or McClurg: EDIE. How rare! I know them both. Everything I learn, I learned from doing crossword.
54D: Wk. part: THU
C.C.
Wow, this is the worst Ed Voile puzzle I've ever solved. What a monstrous NESS grid! Grotesque!
Look:
52D: Lock for monsters: NESS
13D: Shiny quality: GLOSSINESS
14D: Tranquility: SERENENESS
35D: Slice-and-dice quality: GORINESS
58A: Hefty state: STOUTNESS
Wait, there are more SS.
24A: Part of USTA: ASSN
40A: First of September?: ESS
43A: Leaky balloon sound: SSS
And more lazy S cluing in HEDGEHOGS, PAVANES, PIS, SAGOS, RAMS, SATIRES, ETUIS, ENTHRONES.
What's the obsession with S today? What's on your mind exactly? If you can not build a good themeless Saturday grid without abusing prefixes and suffixes, just stick to your themed puzzle then!
Ugly. I hate it. I was actually very intrigued by the unusual grid structure when I had my first glance at the puzzle. And I expected some sparkling fills for 12D, 13D and 14D. However, after I filled in SSS and ESS for 40A and 43A, I realized that 13D and 15D would both end in NESS. Then I was very annoyed. I could not believe my eyes when I came to 52D: NESS, and got completely irked when GORINESS and STOUTNESS emerged.
All in all, a bad construction work from the author and a bad editing work from Mr. Williams.
ACROSS:
1A: Sean of "The Lord of Rings": ASTIN. Have never watched the "The Lord of Rings" series. But what a stellar cast! I adore Viggo Mortensen.
5A: Porcupines' kin: HEDGEHOGS. OK, so a group of porcupines is called a "Prickle". Interesting, isn't it? The name "porcupine" comes from French "porc d'épine" which means thorny, prickled or quilled pig/pork, hence the nickname "quill pig".
15A: Sufficient room: SPACE
16A: Fair: EQUITABLE. Good one.
17A: "The Alienist" author Carr: CALEB. Unknown to me. Here is more information about him. Now, how can I remember his name CALEB? OK, CALEB is a Hebrew word meaning "Dog". His initials is C. C. too.
18A: Supported, in a way: PULLED FOR
19A: Bring upon oneself: INCUR
22A: 16th-century dances: PAVANES. I faintly remember seeing this clue before. It's a "slow, stately court dance of the 16th and 17th centuries, usually in duple meter."
24A: Part of USTA: ASSN (Association). USTA is United States Tennis Association.
25A: Greek letters: PIS
28A: Palm starches: SAGOS. Kind of like tapioca. Very popular starch thickener in Southeast Asia.
29A: Daughter of Desi Arnaz: LUCIE
30A: Genetic carrier: RNA. Never know when to put DNA, when to put RNA.
31A: Kentucky fort: KNOX. Why not try "Gelatin brand" for a change?
32A: "Valley of the Dolls" writer: SUSANN (Jacqueline). Not familiar with either the book or the author.
33A: Pharmacy abbr.: OTC (Over-the-Counter)
34A: Actress Jillian: ANN. Saw this clue before. Not familiar with her works.
35A: Plant secretion: GUM
36A: Little links item: TEE. Links Golf Course. Tough to play. You'd better be good with your iron shots.
37A: Sister of Venus: SERENA. The Williams sisters.
39A: Memento __: MORI. "A reminder of life's mortality" (Latin). Remember you are mortal, so carpe diem!
40A: First of September?: ESS (First letter of September is ESS)
41A: Across: pref.: TRANS. Transaction. Transfer, etc.
42A: Theologian Kierkegarrd: SOREN. Father of Existentialism. He wrote "Fear and Trembling". His philosophy (or later Jean-Paul Sartre) is too complicated for me. I have a simple brain. I do love his quote "Most men pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it." So true.
44A: Butts: RAMS
45A: Swiftian works: SATIRES. Jonathan Swift.
48A: Michael of Monty Python: PALIN. Saw his name before. Then I promptly forgot.
49A: Femme fatale: SIREN. Or one of the part-woman, part-bird sea nymphs who lured seamen with their enchanting music (Greek Mythology). I love this picture The Siren. So suggestive yet sensual. She is holding a harp, isn't she?
53A: Not fully worked out: TENTATIVE. Please explain this to me. I don't get it.
55A: Glasgow's river: CLYDE. Vaguely remember "Firth of Clyde". I suppose "Bonnie & ___" would be too easy for a Saturday puzzle. Learned this morning that "CLYDE" can also mean "a stupid, inept, or boorish person".
56A: Makes a king: ENTHRONES
57A: Needle cases: ETUIS. Look, she is back! Oh my goodness, this word can also be spelled as ETWEE. Just for your information, ETUI came from old French ESTUIER meaning "to keep".
59A: Force units: DYNES. DYNE came from Greek word "dýnamis "(force, power).
DOWN:
1D: Spore sacs: ASCI. Like the alliteration of the clue. Singular is "ASCUS". It's "the sac in ascomycetes in which the sexual spores are formed."
2D: Reach across: SPAN. Need to reword the clue, "across" has already appeared in 41A.
3D: Soft mineral: TALC
4D: Freeze: ICE UP
5D: Omaha populace: NEBRASKANS. I like how it's structured against SACRAMENTO.
6D: Figure with seven sides: HEPTAGON
7D: 3/20 and 9/23 approx.: EQUINOX. My favorite clue today, though I am not fond of NOX & NOX intersection at 7D & 31A. NOX is Roman goddess of night. Its Greek counterpart is NYX. Add one letter O, you've got ONYX which has nothing to do with night.
8D: D. C. airport: DULLES
9D: Rupert of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer": GILES. Thought it was a actor name. Wrong. It's the character's name in the TV series. Complete stranger to me.
12D: Makes confusing intentionally: OBFUSCATES. Again, I like the structural balance of this word with LUMINESCED.
23D: Letter-turner White: VANNA. I forgot. "Wheel of Fortune" co-host.
24D: Eur. nation: AUS (Austria)
25D: Shows subservience: PROSTRATES
26D: Go-between: INTERAGENT
27D: California capital: SACRAMENTO
29D: Shone, as from a chemical reaction: LUMINESCED. I am not familiar with this word, but it's inferable.
32D: More reliable: SURER
38D: Letters in tennis?: ENS. TENNIS. Very nice clue.
39D: Causes: MOTIVES
42D: Sterile solution: SALINE
45D: Squelched: SAT ON
46D: Like choked deltas: SILTY. This whole puzzle feels choked to me.
48D: Piece of the whole: PART
50D: Distance runner Jim: RYUN. No idea. RYUN, interesting name, no wonder he ran. He served in the Congress from 1996-2007. Looks like he was very conservative.
51D: Falco or McClurg: EDIE. How rare! I know them both. Everything I learn, I learned from doing crossword.
54D: Wk. part: THU
C.C.
