Theme: Shoe Store - The end of each theme phrase is a type of shoes. And each four-square corner has a box of S H O E (arranged in counterclockwise pattern and the rotation is changed one space at a time). I've circled the four SHOE BOX in the answer grid.
17A. Kitchen backups: SINK CLOGS. Clogs have thick wood or rubber soles.
31A. North Carolina team: TAR HEELS. Heels over 3.5 inches are considered high-heeled.
40A. Container for the end of 17-, 31-, 47 or 64-Across; there's a literal one in each four-square puzzle corner: SHOE BOX. Brilliant tie-in answer and great shoe box design.
47A. Octane rating sites: GAS PUMPS. Pumps are low-cut heeled shoes without fastenings.
64A. Bonneville Speedway feature: SALT FLATS. Flats have no heels.
And our big shoe buddy E E E E in each corner. Impressive grid, isn't it?
Below are some notes kindly provided by today's constructor Don "Hard G" Gagliardo on the inspiration of the puzzle. Let's have a Q & A Session with Don today. If you have any question regarding today's puzzle, or crossword construction as a whole (I am sure my interviews with different constructors did not fully cover what you've been curious about crossword puzzles), or you'd like Don to know what kind of theme/fill excite or rankle you, please click the Comments at the end of this blog post. Write down your name and your questions/comments. I'll publish a post with Don's answers tomorrow.
I'll start with mine: 1) How to pronounce Gagliardo? Is the second G hard? 2) What kind of music do you listen while constructing crossword? Or do you prefer total silence? 3) Is it wrong to say "I like some of the long Down fills (rather than fill) today"? I noticed constructors use singular "fill" when they refer several or the whole non-theme entries.
Notes from Don:
“Shoe Box” was inspired by Barbara, my wife. She just loves shoes, so I wanted to do something with them. My first idea was to have the entry SHOETREE come down the middle of the puzzle with different kinds of shoes “hanging” off of it. That didn’t work. The next idea was to find phrases with different kinds of shoes that appear in different connotations. To tie it together, I thought that since shoes come in a shoe box, SHOEBOX could appear in the center across answer. Then to take it even one more step, I realized that a shoe box could be a group of letters in the shape of a box composed of the letters S H O E. Perhaps I could stick them in the corners away from everything else where I might get lucky and work them into the puzzle. This is always asking for trouble, trying to get more theme into the puzzle grid. I figured the payoff was high enough that it would compensate for a fill that could be much better. When my first version was not up to snuff, Rich suggested that I make the SHOE box in the corner readable clockwise or counterclockwise. Rich also helped me decide on a different theme answer that would work better in the grid. I went with the counterclockwise pattern for S H O E, and by pure luck I was able to get four different versions of the S H O E box being in different arrangements, and changing rotation one space at a time as one views in a counterclockwise direction.
Across:
1. Dawn goddess: EOS. The Greek goddess. Aurara for the Romans.
4. Starbucks flavor: MOCHA. My husband loves Crème brûlée flavored coffee.
9. Bring about: CAUSE
14. "__ 'nuff!": SHO. Sho'nuff is a slang for "sure enough". Unknown to me.
15. Saint associated with the Russian alphabet: CYRIL. Hence Cyrillic.
16. Weed B Gon maker: ORTHO. No chemical spray in our garden.
19. Took to jail: RAN IN
20. Alley Oop's girl: OOOLA. I misremembered as OOONA.
23. Minnesota twins?: ENS. Two letter N's in Minnesota.
24. Snootiness: AIRS. Wrote down BIAS first.
26. Great server: ACER. Tennis. Crosswordese.
28. Island big shot: KAHUNA (kuh-HOO-nuh). A native medicine man or priest in Hawaii. Have vaguely heard of it.
35. Grassy tracts: LEAS. Sounds so idyllic.
36. Illustrator Silverstein: SHEL. He wrote and illustrated "The Giving Tree"
38. Rub the wrong away: ERASE. Did you misread the clue as "Rub the wrong way" also?
42. Veep before Al: DAN (Quayle). "For NASA, space is still a high priority." So many funny quotes from him.
43. Put into law: ENACT
45. Bridge expert Sharif: OMAR. He does not play bridge any more.
46. Clears after taxes: NETS
49. Widely separated: SPARSE
51. Opposite of away: HOME. 'OME in Cockney.
52. Part of a yard: FOOT. Such a straightforward clue.
53. Prefix with meter: ODO. And another prefix SONO (3D. Prefix with gram).
55. Astronomer Tycho __: BRAHE (Brah). His name escape me. I did recognize his mustache when I googled.
58. Western border lake: TAHOE
62. Demolish: TOTAL
66. Chicago hub: OHARE. Named after WWII flying ace Butch O'Hare.
67. Tours ta-ta: ADIEU. And MER (48D. Sea, to Sartre). Noticed the alliterations in both clues?
68. ALers who don't play the field: DHS (Designated Hitters)
69. Adlai's running mate: ESTES (Kefauver). Given name in the clue, given name in the answer.
70. Computer image dot: PIXEL
71. Manager Torre: JOE. Current manager for the LA Dodgers. He's probably very happy that Yankees lost last night.
Down:
1. Gas sign north of the border: ESSO. It's only replaced by Exxon in the US.
2. Columbus's home: OHIO. I wonder how many cities in the US are named Columbus.
4. Obama's opponent: MCCAIN. I like this "opponent" rather than "Loser to Obama" clue.
5. Skinny Olive: OYL
6. Interbreed: CROSS
7. Word with five or noon: HIGH. "High Noon" is Bill Clinton's favorite movie.
9. General Mills cereal: CORN CHEX. It's not gluten-free. RICE CHEX is.
10. Heavenly altar: ARA (EY-ruh). Latin for "altar".
11. Eclectic bimonthly digest: UTNE READER. Nice to see the full name.
12. __ guard: bit of catchers' gear: SHIN
13. Tons of time: EONS
18. Actor Kinski: KLAUS. Completely unknown to me. German actor. He looks so cold.
25. Itch source: RASH
27. Musket end?: EER. Musketeer. Would be a great clue for TEE too, isn't it? The last letter of musket is T.
28. __ light: filmmaking arc lamp: KLIEG
29. WellPoint rival: AETNA. Named after the volcano ETNA.
30. Is in the running for: HAS A SHOT AT. Did the answer come to you immediately?
32. Jessica of "Dark Angel": ALBA. Wardrobe malfunction? By the way, have you tried ALBA coca butter lotion? It smells so good.
33. Exams for future litigators, briefly: LSATS (Law School Admission Tests)
40. Trips: STUMBLES. Verb.
41. Thereabouts: OR SO
44. USN noncom: CPO (Chief Petty Officer). Not a familiar abbreviation to me.
50. Amount of soup on the stove: POTFUL
52. Cartoon cat: FELIX. Felix the Cat.
53. Oklahoma tribe: OTOE. UTE too.
54. Outbursts from Homer: D'OHS
56. "Stat!" cousin: ASAP
57. "__ only known!": HAD I
59. Meccan pilgrimage: HADJ. Or HAJJ. Mecca pilgrimage hajj. And the person who has been to Mecca is called HADJI or HAJJI.
60. First century Roman emperor: OTHO. He was emperor for only three months.
61. Latin being: ESSE
65. Top with a slogan: TEE. Saw similar clue before. Still loved the clue.
Answer grid.
C.C.
17A. Kitchen backups: SINK CLOGS. Clogs have thick wood or rubber soles.
31A. North Carolina team: TAR HEELS. Heels over 3.5 inches are considered high-heeled.
40A. Container for the end of 17-, 31-, 47 or 64-Across; there's a literal one in each four-square puzzle corner: SHOE BOX. Brilliant tie-in answer and great shoe box design.
47A. Octane rating sites: GAS PUMPS. Pumps are low-cut heeled shoes without fastenings.
64A. Bonneville Speedway feature: SALT FLATS. Flats have no heels.
And our big shoe buddy E E E E in each corner. Impressive grid, isn't it?
Below are some notes kindly provided by today's constructor Don "Hard G" Gagliardo on the inspiration of the puzzle. Let's have a Q & A Session with Don today. If you have any question regarding today's puzzle, or crossword construction as a whole (I am sure my interviews with different constructors did not fully cover what you've been curious about crossword puzzles), or you'd like Don to know what kind of theme/fill excite or rankle you, please click the Comments at the end of this blog post. Write down your name and your questions/comments. I'll publish a post with Don's answers tomorrow.
I'll start with mine: 1) How to pronounce Gagliardo? Is the second G hard? 2) What kind of music do you listen while constructing crossword? Or do you prefer total silence? 3) Is it wrong to say "I like some of the long Down fills (rather than fill) today"? I noticed constructors use singular "fill" when they refer several or the whole non-theme entries.
Notes from Don:
“Shoe Box” was inspired by Barbara, my wife. She just loves shoes, so I wanted to do something with them. My first idea was to have the entry SHOETREE come down the middle of the puzzle with different kinds of shoes “hanging” off of it. That didn’t work. The next idea was to find phrases with different kinds of shoes that appear in different connotations. To tie it together, I thought that since shoes come in a shoe box, SHOEBOX could appear in the center across answer. Then to take it even one more step, I realized that a shoe box could be a group of letters in the shape of a box composed of the letters S H O E. Perhaps I could stick them in the corners away from everything else where I might get lucky and work them into the puzzle. This is always asking for trouble, trying to get more theme into the puzzle grid. I figured the payoff was high enough that it would compensate for a fill that could be much better. When my first version was not up to snuff, Rich suggested that I make the SHOE box in the corner readable clockwise or counterclockwise. Rich also helped me decide on a different theme answer that would work better in the grid. I went with the counterclockwise pattern for S H O E, and by pure luck I was able to get four different versions of the S H O E box being in different arrangements, and changing rotation one space at a time as one views in a counterclockwise direction.
Across:
1. Dawn goddess: EOS. The Greek goddess. Aurara for the Romans.
4. Starbucks flavor: MOCHA. My husband loves Crème brûlée flavored coffee.
9. Bring about: CAUSE
14. "__ 'nuff!": SHO. Sho'nuff is a slang for "sure enough". Unknown to me.
15. Saint associated with the Russian alphabet: CYRIL. Hence Cyrillic.
16. Weed B Gon maker: ORTHO. No chemical spray in our garden.
19. Took to jail: RAN IN
20. Alley Oop's girl: OOOLA. I misremembered as OOONA.
23. Minnesota twins?: ENS. Two letter N's in Minnesota.
24. Snootiness: AIRS. Wrote down BIAS first.
26. Great server: ACER. Tennis. Crosswordese.
28. Island big shot: KAHUNA (kuh-HOO-nuh). A native medicine man or priest in Hawaii. Have vaguely heard of it.
35. Grassy tracts: LEAS. Sounds so idyllic.
36. Illustrator Silverstein: SHEL. He wrote and illustrated "The Giving Tree"
38. Rub the wrong away: ERASE. Did you misread the clue as "Rub the wrong way" also?
42. Veep before Al: DAN (Quayle). "For NASA, space is still a high priority." So many funny quotes from him.
43. Put into law: ENACT
45. Bridge expert Sharif: OMAR. He does not play bridge any more.
46. Clears after taxes: NETS
49. Widely separated: SPARSE
51. Opposite of away: HOME. 'OME in Cockney.
52. Part of a yard: FOOT. Such a straightforward clue.
53. Prefix with meter: ODO. And another prefix SONO (3D. Prefix with gram).
55. Astronomer Tycho __: BRAHE (Brah). His name escape me. I did recognize his mustache when I googled.
58. Western border lake: TAHOE
62. Demolish: TOTAL
66. Chicago hub: OHARE. Named after WWII flying ace Butch O'Hare.
67. Tours ta-ta: ADIEU. And MER (48D. Sea, to Sartre). Noticed the alliterations in both clues?
68. ALers who don't play the field: DHS (Designated Hitters)
69. Adlai's running mate: ESTES (Kefauver). Given name in the clue, given name in the answer.
70. Computer image dot: PIXEL
71. Manager Torre: JOE. Current manager for the LA Dodgers. He's probably very happy that Yankees lost last night.
Down:
1. Gas sign north of the border: ESSO. It's only replaced by Exxon in the US.
2. Columbus's home: OHIO. I wonder how many cities in the US are named Columbus.
4. Obama's opponent: MCCAIN. I like this "opponent" rather than "Loser to Obama" clue.
5. Skinny Olive: OYL
6. Interbreed: CROSS
7. Word with five or noon: HIGH. "High Noon" is Bill Clinton's favorite movie.
9. General Mills cereal: CORN CHEX. It's not gluten-free. RICE CHEX is.
10. Heavenly altar: ARA (EY-ruh). Latin for "altar".
11. Eclectic bimonthly digest: UTNE READER. Nice to see the full name.
12. __ guard: bit of catchers' gear: SHIN
13. Tons of time: EONS
18. Actor Kinski: KLAUS. Completely unknown to me. German actor. He looks so cold.
25. Itch source: RASH
27. Musket end?: EER. Musketeer. Would be a great clue for TEE too, isn't it? The last letter of musket is T.
28. __ light: filmmaking arc lamp: KLIEG
29. WellPoint rival: AETNA. Named after the volcano ETNA.
30. Is in the running for: HAS A SHOT AT. Did the answer come to you immediately?
32. Jessica of "Dark Angel": ALBA. Wardrobe malfunction? By the way, have you tried ALBA coca butter lotion? It smells so good.
33. Exams for future litigators, briefly: LSATS (Law School Admission Tests)
40. Trips: STUMBLES. Verb.
41. Thereabouts: OR SO
44. USN noncom: CPO (Chief Petty Officer). Not a familiar abbreviation to me.
50. Amount of soup on the stove: POTFUL
52. Cartoon cat: FELIX. Felix the Cat.
53. Oklahoma tribe: OTOE. UTE too.
54. Outbursts from Homer: D'OHS
56. "Stat!" cousin: ASAP
57. "__ only known!": HAD I
59. Meccan pilgrimage: HADJ. Or HAJJ. Mecca pilgrimage hajj. And the person who has been to Mecca is called HADJI or HAJJI.
60. First century Roman emperor: OTHO. He was emperor for only three months.
61. Latin being: ESSE
65. Top with a slogan: TEE. Saw similar clue before. Still loved the clue.
Answer grid.
C.C.
