Monday, February 23, 2015 Kurt Krauss

Theme: National Groceries - Foodstuffs and the states that are famous for them.

20A. They're juiced in Jacksonville : FLORIDA ORANGES

33A. They're baked in Boise : IDAHO POTATOES

42A. They're boiled in Bangor : MAINE LOBSTERS

57A. They're shelled in Savannah : GEORGIA PEANUTS

Argyle here. A near pangram. No reveal necessary. Cute alliteration with the cities and preparation methods. A tad tough for any visiting tyros. Fine fun for a Monday.

Across:

1. Thom __: shoe brand : McAN

5. Greek Zs : ZETAs

10. This, in Spain : ESTO. (este (masculine), esta (feminine), esto (neuter))

14. Poi source : TARO

15. Motionless : INERT

16. Like spider webs : SPUN

17. __ the Impaler: model for "Dracula" : VLAD

18. One of a 1492 trio : PINTA

19. Ritual flammable stack : PYRE

23. Anteater's sound in the comic "B.C." : [ZOT!]

24. Mobster's gal : MOLL

25. Hawaiian wreath : LEI

26. Flood-control project : DAM

29. Garbage barge puller : TUG

31. Odorless gas : ETHANE

37. Disaster relief org. : FEMA. (Federal Emergency Management Agency)O(for when the dam fails)

38. Put the kibosh on : NIX

39. Exec's "By yesterday!" : ASAP. (As Soon As Possible)

47. Sets aside for future use : LAYS BY. Are you familiar with this phrase?

49. __ and improved : NEW

50. Barnyard home : STY

51. Suffix with transit : ORY. Transitory - not permanent.

52. "Green __ and Ham" : EGGS

55. Knock sharply : RAP

62. One-liner, e.g. : JOKE

63. Make __: get rich : A MINT

64. Dining table expansion piece : LEAF

66. Degree recipient : ALUM

67. Guts : NERVE

68. Year-end clearance event : SALE

69. Office note : MEMO

70. Deuce toppers : TREYS

71. One-named Art Deco artist : ERTÉ. Two initials. The French pronunciation of the initials of Romain de Tirtoff.

Down:

1. Network that once employed VJs : MTV

2. Muscle prone to cramps : CALF

3. Devastated Asian sea : ARAL

4. Caffeinated pill : NO-DOZ

5. "Be quiet!" : "ZIP IT UP!". [snicker}

6. Oklahoma city : ENID

7. Early brunch hr. : TEN AM

8. "Star Wars" droid, familiarly : AR-TOO

9. Hollywood hopeful : STARLET

10. "College Football Playoff" network : ESPN

11. Crow's-nest telescopes : SPYGLASSES

12. Deep serving bowl : TUREEN

13. Infant's bodysuit : ONESIE

1. __-Rooter : ROTO

22. Voice above tenor : ALTO

26. "What's the __?": "So what?" : DIF

27. Fruity cooler : ADE

28. "Li'l Abner" matriarch : MAMMY YOKUM. You didn't mess with Mammy!

30. Departed : GONE

32. Furnace output : HEAT. Working overtime this winter.

34. Lukas of "Witness" : HAAS. He was the Amish boy. Google pics

35. "Shop __ you drop" : TIL

36. Neural impulse conductor : AXON

40. Museum collection : ART

41. Would-be social worker's maj. : PSY. (Psychology)

43. "__ your pardon" : I BEG

44. NFLer who plays at the Meadowlands--in NJ, ironically : N.Y. GIANT

45. Scolds but good : BERATES

46. Ugly duckling, as it turned out : SWAN

47. Lumber mill blockage : LOGJAM. Out in the river.

                                    A big one.

48. Bump from which cactus spines grow : AREOLE. Oh?

53. Xbox enthusiast : GAMER

54. Cathedral topper : SPIRE

56. Throb : PULSE

58. San __, Italy : REMO

59. Jealous feeling : ENVY

60. Rip : TEAR

61. Word after sea or before Lake : SALT

65. Doctor's charge : FEE

Argyle

Note from C.C.:

Happy 76th Birthday to Keith Fowler!  I'll just copy & paste & make slight changes to what he said last year: 

"My branch of the family is not known for longevity, so it will be an enormous leap for me to reach 76 this coming Sunday--Feb 23 at 7:19 pm PST!  At that day/time I will be three years older than any recorded Fowler (of the Shryvenham to London to NY to CT to TN to CA tribe of Fowlers) ever got to be.

My mom (actually a Hocking) reached 73, and my dad's grandfather hit that number too.  while a great many folk live much longer, it just feels mighty strange to me, like teetering on a very high pole, or maybe soloing for the first time, and very slowly."

 

Keith Fowler!

Interview with Alex Vratsanos

This is our first encounter with constructor Alex Vratsanos, who has had 10 puzzles published by the New York Times alone. Alex hit for the cycle (his puzzles appeared in every day of the week) with his 8th puzzle last June. That's a record!

Alex was also published by the Chronicle of Higher Education (a collaboration with George Barany),  and in Twenty Under Thirty, and he has several additional puzzles that have been accepted by the LAT.

XWord Info Picture

How did this theme come to you and what were the other theme answers you also considered but discarded?

 
This concept of using a decade to indicate a letter count came to me in early summer 2014, though in the form of the '80s. Finding nothing usable with eight E's, I ran through the remaining possibilities and found that '60s was the only one that had a chance of working. I guess I got very lucky to find six theme entries that were the right lengths and could intersect.

  

I don't think I could make a 6-themer work for a 21*21. I would not be so imaginative & daring to start the first theme entry at Row 6 and stack two pairs the way you did. Can you tell us a bit about your grid designing process? What were the trouble spots during the filling?

With the six theme entries in place, I started the fill at those words that crossed three of them. After finding ones that worked, I turned to the areas between TAKIN' IT TO THE STREETS and the other Across theme entries, leaving the areas at the top and bottom of the grid for last. I am very pleased with the changes Rich made, the biggest one being shortening the title (from "Puzzle of the '60s") and in adding the asterisk to it and the theme clues. I also must thank my friend Ned White for the support he gave to this puzzle during its development.

What's your background? And how did you get into crossword construction?

I constructed my first crossword in August 2006, while still in middle school. Over the next few years, I learned the language and rules of crosswords and submitted my first one in February 2009, but it wasn't until June 2011 that I received my first acceptance and publication. I have since had about 20 puzzles accepted by the major outlets, but this is my LA Times debut. Outside of Crossworld, I am currently completing an A.A. in Business Administration at Lehigh Carbon Community College, and plan to begin pursuing a B.S. in Accounting at Kutztown University this fall.

What kind of theme & fill fascinate you and what kind do you try to avoid in your grids?

Being a Scrabble fan, I try to include entries with the less common letters where I can. On the other hand, I try very hard to avoid partials and dupes of short words like IN and ON.

Which part do you enjoy the most in the construction process: theme development, filling or cluing?

Of those three, filling is my favorite and cluing is my least favorite.

What kind of reference tools do you use for crossword construction & cluing?

I use Crossword Compiler for constructing, and I take advantage of all the online and print resources that most constructors use. Once I have a puzzle pretty far along, I run it by George Barany and his team, and they in turn make incisive suggestions on how to improve it.

Besides crosswords, what are your other hobbies?

My other hobbies include chess, a variety of sports and other games, and staying up to date on the stock market. I guess that may not sound like much, but my academic studies and job at Walmart #2145 take up a lot of my time. I am very glad to have had time to answer these questions, though. :-)