Saturday, March 26, 2022, Carly Schuna and Will Nediger

 Saturday Themeless by Carly Schuna and Will Nediger

Of all the amazing constructors I have met in my years of blogging, Carly and her profession have to fall into the category of  "very unique". She lives in Madison, Wisconsin and gave us this lovely and generous note on this puzzle and her unique career: 

Hi, Gary,

First of all, even though Will generously calls this puzzle a collaboration, it was almost 100% him! I reached out to Will as a very beginning constructor to ask him to test solve a themeless puzzle I had made, and he kindly invited me to make a themeless puzzle with him. I provided the seed entry (INSPECTOR GADGET), and he did the rest, walking me through each step of the process with extreme patience. I then contributed most of the clues, as that was the least I could do after Will made the entire puzzle! That was about a year and a half ago, and since then, I've had about 10 puzzles published or accepted by various outlets, so in case there was ever any doubt, Will is an excellent mentor! Everything you've probably heard about him is true: In addition to being one of the world's best constructors and speed solvers, he is knowledgeable, open-minded, and generous with his time. I truly lucked out on getting him as a mentor. 

There are so many entries in this puzzle in Will's signature vice that I love: NEW CAR SMELL, I'LL GET IT, AM I WRONG, YOU DID WHAT, and (my personal favorite) NOPED OUT, which cracks me up every time. These colorful phrase make the puzzle so much more fun and I hope solvers enjoy them!

Will is, of course, a full-time crossword constructor and editor. When I am not making crosswords, I am a circus performer and coach specializing in German wheel (see picture). I also teach static trapeze, flying trapeze, juggling, teeterboard, and more. If anyone is ever near Madison, WI and wants to learn some circus, check out Madison Circus Space, the organization I co-founded where I teach, and we can do some circus together!

Best,

Carly

Will Nediger

Madison Circus Space

  

 Across:

1. Scholarly titles, briefly: DRS.

4. Certain cephalopods: OCTOPI - Cephalo (head) Pods (feet) - Head connected to feet/arms

10. Spaghetti strap top: CAMI.

CAMISOLE

14. "Please tell me that didn't happen!": YOU DID WHAT?

16. Rights activist Clooney: AMAL - Amal Clooney (née Alamuddin)

17. Banishing acts: EXPULSIONS.

18. Choice: WILL - Our favorite scat singer addresses this issue

19. Strategically placed whoopee cushion, say: JAPE - It's in here with some of its related words

20. Waters down: THINS.

22. Canine greeting: WAG.

23. About half the weight of an average car: ONE-TON - My Chevy Colorado weighs about 4,000 lbs or two tons

26. Request for a distraction: COVER ME - "COVER ME, I'm goin' in!"

28. Flower plot: BED.

29. Vulgar: LEWD - Vulgar missed this family portrait. Wednesday's puzzle had some of these. 

32. Hightail it: BUG OUT.

33. King nicknamed "Longshanks": EDWARD I - He was 6'2" in the year 1300 and is the 19th great-grandfather to QEII

35. Pro fighter: ANTI.

36. Cyborg detective of TV and film: INSPECTOR GADGET - Carly's seed entry  

Rotten Tomatoes Review Of The Film Version

40. Formal denial: NOT I.

41. Email attention-getters: AT SIGNS - @

42. Shim, for example: SPACER.

44. Slant: SPIN - It's an election year

45. Saw from behind?: WAS - An emordnilap is a word that spells a different word backwards. (Did you notice what emordnilap spelled backwards is?)

48. Most charged: TENSEST people in this atmosphere should 50. "Take a chill pill": EASE UP.

52. Include: ADD.

53. Popular tech service: G-MAIL.

56. Goddess credited in a Milky Way origin account: HERA.

57. Stat in standings: LOSS.

59. Smallest Central American country: EL SALVADOR - #4 EL SALVADOR is 8% smaller than #1 Belize below

62. Job under the hood: LUBE - Modern cars usually do not require this anymore 

63. Ones who see what you mean: LIP READERS - Fun clue. 

An attempt to stop this practice

64. "Come Sail Away" rock band: STYX.

65. Applies, as flattery: LAYS ON.

66. Nanjiani's "The Lovebirds" co-star: RAE - Can you see Issa's name in the graphic? Norma RAE was in the Monday's "D.C." puzzle.

Down:

1. Going platinum, maybe: DYE JOB - No records here, just a salon task

2. "Hunger" memoirist __ Gay: ROXANE.

3. Ate dinner: SUPPED.

4. Massage therapist's supply: OIL.

5. Vinyl successors: CDS.

6. Buffoon: TWIT.

7. Cry from one who knows the answer: OH OH and 8. Near-the-deadline response, at times: PANIC and 27. "My heavens!": EGADS. - Emotions for me after ten seconds on Carly's German Wheel

9. "Whatevs": IT'S NO BIGGIE.

10. Farm country avian cry: CAW.

11. "You don't doubt me, do you?": AM I WRONG.

12. Husky cousin: MALAMUTE.

13. Doorbell response: I'LL GET IT.

15. Song one can't perform?: DUET.

21. Dept. in a "Law & Order" spin-off: SVU.

24. Shoppe name word: OLDE.

25. It can be faked with air freshener: NEW CAR SMELL.

30. Power measure: WATT - KiloWATTs produced during a recent 5-day stretch here in our town's solar farm (red line shows wattage for clear blue sky). St. Patrick's Day was very cloudy!

31. Refuse: DROSS - Zinc DROSS left over from galvanizing 

33. "Paradise Lost" et al.: EPICS.

34. __ coffee: DRIP.

36. Puts on the hard drive: INSTALLS.

37. Left in disgust or fear, slangily: NOPED OUT.

38. Is ready to act: STANDS BY.

39. Oscar winner Paquin: ANNA - One of Canadian constructors, Brian Paquin, believes Winnipeg-born ANNA is a distant relative

43. Brain scan inits.: EEG.

45. Garden tool: WEEDER.

46. Northern sky sight: AURORA.

47. Minimalist: SPARSE.

49. Shire of "Rocky": TALIA.

51. Herring type: SHAD.

54. Road game: I SPY - with my little eye

55. Metallica drummer Ulrich: LARS - A guy whose name I never knew until I started puzzling

58. Census checkbox: SEX - Can you ask this any more?

60. Cancer follower: LEO - LEO does look somewhat like a lion. I told my kids to lo0k for the big backwards question mark in the spring and summer south sky.

61. Soccer mom's usual ride: VAN - I'm going to venture a guess that Carly's German Wheel ride is far from usual!