Friday July 5, 2024, Erik Agard

 Theme:  I've been framed! 

Puzzling thoughts:  

There aren't a lot of crossword puzzle constructors with their own Wikipedia page but Erik Agard is one.  Erik provides us today with a very clever combination of entries (and their clues) that delivers big time when the reveal appears

How, you ask?  Let's explore ...

19-across. Athlete making a living in alleys: PRO BOWLER.  A game of bowling consists of 10 FRAMES.  

From [elite sporting guide dot com] "A frame in bowling refers to a turn or opportunity for a bowler to throw the ball down the lane and attempt to knock down the pins. It consists of two throws, except for the tenth frame, which can have up to three throws under certain conditions. The objective of each frame is to score as many points as possible by knocking down pins, with strikes and spares playing a significant role in determining the final score" 

A "perfect score" is 300 (12 strikes in a row).  Our dear blogger, Boomer, was a BOWLER - a good one at that - who had multiple 300 games throughout his lifetime.  Boomer would likely take umbrage of Erik's clue as he detested the word "alley" to describe the bowling surface.  He preferred the word "lane".  But in this case, I give Erik the benefit of the doubt as the play-on-wording of the clue better fits the answer

Here is a typical bowling scorecard that shows all of the "frames":

 

24-across. Professional who calls the shots: MOVIE DIRECTOR.  Another use of play-on-wording for the clue.  In this case a "shot" is one in a series of FRAMES that make up a movie

Film FRAME (defined)

The MOVIE DIRECTOR is the professional on set who sets the action for filming FRAMES.  Here is a clip from one of my favorite ad lib shows:

40-across. Professional whose website might have a contact page?: OPTICIAN.  Two things about this entry:

    1)  this is my favorite clue/entry of the quartet

 

    2)  this entry - 8 letters in length and placed dead center in the grid - explains why Erik needed a 16x15 pattern for the puzzle

If it didn't make sense to you as you filled in the letters (I had something else penciled in before OPTICIAN) I understand.  It wasn't until I saw the play-on-wording of the previous two entries that I realized that the word "contact" referred to contact lenses.  In addition to dispensing contact lenses, an OPTICIAN also fits you for eyeglasses, which of course consists of a pair of lenses and FRAMES.  I think I may have used this image before ... 

52-across. Met someone?: MUSEUM CURATOR.  My second most favorite clue/entry.  In this case, the word "Met" is a proper name abbreviation for the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  The word "someone" refers to a person @ the Met, in this case the museum curator

While a museum curator's job does involve the organizing of the artwork, I doubt that they have much to do with choosing the FRAME that surrounds each piece.  Despite the cleverness of the clue and entry, this one was a bit of a stretch.  But hey, when you have the renown of Erik Agard I'm sure that Patti did not question this 

And of course, the reveal:

59-across. Basic structure, or what a 19-, 24-, 40-, and 52-Across do?: FRAMEWORK.  All of these professions involve working in or with FRAMES

All-in-all a very good and clever effort.  I'd expect nothing less!  It took me a bit longer than usual for a Friday solve, and I had a couple of spots where I had incorrect letters which slowed me down

Today, I've placed the grid at the end of the blog.  Here is how the rest of the clues/entries contributed to today's fun:  

Across:
1. Split apart: SUNDER.  In the words of desper-otto, "have I ever told you how not having the correct entry in 1-across ...?"  Well, hand up for trying "TEAR UP" as my first choice.  The NW corner was my last section to fill as a couple of Naticks appeared and I had to look up one of the answers.  From a grammar standpoint, the more familiar asunder is either an adjective or adverb; sunder is a transitive verb

7. Spit take sound: PFFT.  If some of you (my hand is up) had trouble understanding the clue, here is a definition of "spit take": "(especially as a comic technique) an act of suddenly spitting out liquid one is drinking in response to something funny or surprising" - meh 

11. PC accessories: MICE.  Moe-ku #1:

Logitech rejects
Are sold in triple packets
And called "Three Blind MICE"

15. Disquietude: UNEASE.  It's clues and fill like this that makes me ask the Thesaurussaurus if he's ok with it:

Moe, uneasiness and UNEASE are pretty similar

16. Atmosphere: AURA.  I threw this at the pigeons to see what they had to say:

17. Stench: ODOR.  I'm actually happy to see this clued as "stench".  Too often, lately, odor has been clued as aroma.  An odor stinks. Period

18. Some notes: SHARPS.  Neither MEMOS nor FLATS would fit ... this clue refers to musical notes, not Post-it notes

21. Do some character-building?: WRITE.  Either Erik or Patti was really into the play-on-words cluing today.  And that's just fine with me.  In this case, the "character" would refer to a person within a novel perhaps

23. Is stunned: REELS.  Did anyone try TASED, at first?

30. Stores up: AMASSES.  Moe-ku #2 (with apology to my RC friends):

Whenever the Pope
Presides at the Eucharist
They're called "A" MASSES

31. Kung __ chicken: PAO.  If this were an Incredibles character, it would be Kung POW Chicken ... OK, maybe that's a stretch!

32. Screen type: LCD.  Since when is the Lowest Common Denominator called a type of screen?

35. Some WNBA fouls: TECHS.  Meh; I call "foul" on this one.  I've been a fan of basketball for 6+ decades and have NEVER heard a technical foul called a tech 

36. Coffee Meets Bagel alternative: HINGE.  Solved by perps.  Turns out they are both dating apps. Had I known that I probably would've tried inserting ZOOSK first, as I actually once had an account with them

38. "I knew it!": AHA.  Yes, I did.  I didn't fall for OHO

39. __ mode: ALA.  I think a good Friday puzzle should have fewer than 7 clues that are "gimmies"

43. Leslie's love on "Parks and Rec": BEN.  Solved by perps.  I never watched "Parks and Rec"

44. Vietnamese New Year: TET.  This would be an example of a "gimmie" clue/answer

45. Robs of hobnobbing: SHUNS.  I never hobnobbed very well

46. Had the guts: DARED.  Moe-'lick #1:

At the nudist beach, someone was scared
To allow their whole bod to be bared.
So they felt like a newb
Only baring their boob;
But that's truly the most that they DARED

48. Polished off: ATE.  My "reward" as a kid was to get dessert if I polished off my plate of dinner

49. Tabletop game with campaigns, for short: D N D. I spread out the letters in the solve to reveal that this is an abbreviation for Dungeons and Dragons

50. Overpraise: ADULATE.  I'm not going to give plaudits to Erik or Patti for this clue/solve😉

55. Post-workout afflictions: ACHES.  Nothing that 3 Advil won't cure, for me  

58. "Allahu __": AKBAR.  Aka, Takbir

63. Silenced: ON MUTE.  

This image made me think of an old Moe-'lick:

                   One of my early childhood joys?

                   Watching mimes do their act with such poise.

                   After one of them died

                   We all cried, as we tried

                   To give him a brief moment of noise

67. Part: ROLE.  My role every other Friday is to regale you with my recaps at the Corner

68. Cut covered with a Bluey bandage, e.g.: OWIE.  This clue must've taken some time to research

69. Tool for cutting spearing holes: ICE SAW.  Here is a link to someone to call if you need it for the next time you go ICE fishing

70. Nocturnal hunters: OWLS.  BATS fit too, if you consider seeking out insects to eat as "hunting"

71. Spidey's traps: WEBS.

 

72. Calm: SEDATE.  My demeanor (as I write my blog) whenever a puzzle fits my "wheelhouse".  I am quite sedate today; thanks Erik! 

Down:
1. Questionable, for short: SUS.  Oops - I now recall that I wasn't too sedate when I had the crossing of sunder and sus.  I can only guess that sus is an abbr. for suspect or maybe suspicious

2. Granite State sch.: UNH.  University of New Hampshire

3. Largest U.S. union: NEA.  All you need to know about this union for educators

4. Poet Mahmoud who wrote the Palestinian Declaration of Independence: DARWISH.  No clue on this.  There are crossword puzzle solving moments when I feel totally ignorant.  This was one of them

5. Hot shots?: ESPRESSOS.  Another play-on-word clue.  Espresso is normally served hot, and as a "shot".  Want to know more (from a barista's point of view)? Click here

6. Dwell: RESIDE.  It's where you live 

7. Post production: PAPER.  Recent examples of the clue, "post production"

8. Husky's hair: FUR.  We have a few huskies in our neighborhood

I can't imagine how they take the 110+ degree summer temps with all of that fur

9. To opposite: FRO.  As in the expression, "to and fro"???  

10. Letters before Q?: TAB.  Look at your keyboard on your laptop or desktop ... just to the left (before) the letter Q is the tab key.  The letters t a b are before the letter Q.  This certainly wasn't a "gimmie"

11. Shed occupant: MOWER.  Many homeowners keep their lawn mower in an outdoor shed

12. Inactive: IDLE.  What I tried to be for a few days after clearing out mom's apartment

13. "I May Destroy You" star Michaela: COEL.  No clue on this.  There are crossword puzzle solving moments when I feel totally ignorant.  This was another one of them

14. Goofs: ERRS.  I had a few of them today.  When you get to the image of the completed grid my errors will show as a black triangle in the corner of the letter's square

20. Gold, in Spanish: ORO.  "Gimmie"

22. Poetic contraction: TIS.  Moe-ku #3:

Tis tis tis tis tis
Tis tis tis tis tis tis tis
Tis tis tis it's TIS

24. Half a "Lion King" phrase: MATATA. It was either Hakuna or Matata

25. Denver dish: OMELET.  I don't think that an omelet is found only in the capital of Colorado.  In this case, it refers to the recipe for a Denver (style) OMELET

26. Leave empty: VACATE.  I left a few pieces of furniture and a couple of small appliances behind, so I didn't completely vacate my mom's apartment ... the retirement village said that they would repurpose all of it within their facility 

27. Big-budget flicks: EPICS.  Here are a few of the more recent "EPICS"

28. "My turn next?": CAN I.  Whatever happened to our manners??  Shouldn't this be may I

29. Praetor's wrap: TOGA.  

They're all wearing togae [sic]

32. Rodent in a study: LAB RAT.  "Gimmie"

33. Orange puff: CHEETO.  My error here (see grid pic) was to use the word CHEESE/Cheeto

34. Common allergen: DANDER.  Moe-ku #4:

North Pole reindeer's name
Changes when pollen's present:
Donder's now DANDER 

36. Member of the third-largest religious group: HINDU. I had HINDI/HINDU; I somehow thought that a member's name was the same as the language ...

37. Marathon need: ENDURANCE. GAS PUMPS did not fit

41. Advanced degs.: PhDS. Gimmie

42. Use a fork, say: TUNE. Not sure what I was thinking when I used the word TINE/tune. Maybe I thought that you could tine a piece of food (referring to one of the spears on a fork). I never said I was the sharpest knife in the drawer

47. Taken aback: ALARMED.  The clue brought back a memory of one of my earliest Moe-'licks.  I had one of my fellow "limerick and haiku" email members put this into a cartoon image:

50. "Cathy" cry: ACK.  I had EEK/ACK.  Then, as the perps appeared, I realized that the cartoon character "Cathy" said:

51. W.E.B. who wrote "The Souls of Black Folk": Du BOIS.  This gentleman

52. Group chat fodder: MEMES.  This?

53. Employ: USE. "Gimmie"

54. Has as a salary: MAKES.  Did anyone try EARNS first?

55. Prefix with pessimist or Panamanian: AFRO.  Friday clue for sure

56. Bird that can make tools: CROW.  As in a crowbar, perhaps??  Can I crow about this discovery??!

57. College building: HALL.  As an undergrad @ the University of Pittsburgh, we had many named HALLs

60. "Impressive!": WOW.  What y'all must've been saying over-and-over again as you read the blog today!😀

61. "You __ me!": OWE.  Not any more; all my debts and debtors have been paid

62. Tease: RIB.  Kind of a "gimmie"

64. Powerhouse of women's soccer: USA.  Seemed like a "gimmie".  Here is a bit of info about their prowess

65. Bit of ink: TAT.  This clue and answer are quickly becoming crossword-ese 

66. One who might have a ram beau: EWE.  And we end with another play-on-word clue that employs a homophone.  Are you fond of this Rambeau??

On a personal note, my "biography" here (what's contained behind the blue "Chairman Moe") says that I started posting July 2014.  One decade down; another one begun

Here is the grid. Hope you all are having a great 4th of July Holiday weekend!

I've been framed!