.png)
Literary critic Broyard / SAT 8-6-11 / Patron saint of carvers / Biblical endings / Hymn words before beyond all praising
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Constructor: Joe Krozel
Relative difficulty: Easy 
THEME: none
Word of the Day: ANATOLE Broyard (16A: Literary critic Broyard) —
Anatole Paul Broyard (July 16, 1920 – October 11, 1990) was an American writer, literary critic and editor for The New York Times. In addition to his many reviews and columns, he published short stories, essays and two books during his lifetime. His autobiographical works, Intoxicated by My Illness (1992) and Kafka Was the Rage: A Greenwich Village Memoir (1993), were published after his death.
After his death, Broyard became the center of controversy and discussions related to how he had chosen to live as an adult in New York. He was criticized for failing to acknowledge his black ancestry. (wikipedia)
Mini-write-ups continue today, as I am in NYC and too busy / having too much fun to go into detail. I enjoyed this puzzle, though I think I enjoyed it mainly because I tore through it so quickly; under 7 on a Saturday is lightning fast for me. Interlocking 15s are all pretty nice, though somehow "I CAN'T SAY AS I HAVE" (61A: "Not to my recollection") sounds more natural without the first "I." Same thing with "I GOTCHA," by the way. Don't much like the "THE" in THE SWINE FLU. Answer is SWINE FLU. Nothing in clue to indicate definite article. I don't know ... people do say "THE SWINE FLU," but people do say "THE lots of things" and yet "lots of things" appear in the grid all the time without the "THE." Yes, I think too much about these details. Some unfortunate plurals (esp. ETHS [Biblical endings] and ISTS, but also RELS and GUNNS [TV detective Peter and others], but the grid is predominantly vibrant and fairly smooth, and WHEN PIGS FLY (with PIGS running through SWINE!) makes any flaws easy to overlook (18D: Never).Puzzle was easy to get into because of the raft of gimmes up top, including I'D BE, EEL, CATS, and TAE. After that, there wasn't much to stop my steady flow through the grid. Had minor issues getting the OVER part of EAT OVER and LARA (what is it with that comic and four-letter L-names for women?!). Also had issues when I assumed 65A: "The Morning Show Murders" novelist (AL ROKER) was an actual novelist.
Bullets:
63D: Grp. in 1974 news (SLA) — I often put PLO where I want SLA.- 60D: Blue-roofed chain (IHOP) — another gimme. My favorite
- 26D: Patron saint of carvers (OLAF) — is there anything he *can't* do? (I treat all OLAFs as the same guy)
- 15A: 1977 Jacqueline Bisset movie ("THE DEEP") — now here, I *like* the definite article, mainly because it's part of the the title of the movie and without it the answer would just be "DEEP," which would, technically, be wrong. If you follow.
- 31A: It might go for big bucks (DOE) — I want a "?" here, just because of the anthropomorphization of the damn DOE. "Go for?" She's in the woods, not a singles bar.
Save And Share :
62 comments:
This was one of the fastest Saturday's I've done.
Waaaaa...It ended too quickly.
I got hung up with the flibbertigibbet clue at 40A. It sounded like something a Brit would say so I asked my husband and he told me "idiot." I left that in for a long time. finally understood IGOTCHA -41D erased idiot and put in DITSY. Good ole PETER COTTON TAIL followed.
Loved the two pigs crossing each other. I was a happy CAMPERs but sad it was over so soon.
Thank you Joe Krozel for letting me finally watch Steel Magnolia on TV.
No comments yet? Odd. Rex, in your write-up you missed the cross of when pigs fly with the swine flew (flu) but I'm with you and just like the cross with pigs and swine.
Fastest Saturday ever pour moi.
Ms Bisset looks like every diver I have ever known. I am sure I will see more like her tomorrow as we dive the kelp beds. So boring with those pouty lips, pensive stares...
Messed up on Superman's mom as I thought her name was LAR-L.
*** (3 Stars) Cause I could do it fast.
- Hey, ANATOLE, have you heard about PETER COTTON TAIL?
- I CAN’T SAY AS I HAVE!
- We were supposed to EAT OVER at the IHOP. But he was a no show. I thought he’d gone AWOL, or was just being DITSY…but I heard he has THE SWINE FLU!
(ANATOLE DOES A DOUBLE TAKE)
- O’ GOD!
- He’s getting some IN HOME nursing. They’re guarding the place like a CITADEL!
- What a MORASS! But NOEL, are you sure he’s telling the truth? He’s full of DECEITS, this one! He’s a fox AT HEART! And slimy as a CONGER EEL!
- That’s a HIT BELOW THE BELT, ANATOLE! I’m sure he’s sick. Aren’t you going to visit him?
- Um… LETS SEE… WHEN PIGS FLY?
-I GOTCHA!
Julius Caesar > Act III, scene I
DECIUS BRUTUS: Great Caesar,--
CAESAR: Doth not Brutus bootless kneel?
CASCA: Speak, hands for me!
[CASCA first, then the other Conspirators and
BRUTUS stab CAESAR]
CAESAR: Et tu, Brute! Then fall, Caesar.
[Dies]
CINNA: Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!
Run hence, proclaim, cry it about the streets.
CASSIUS: Some to the common pulpits, and cry out
'Liberty, freedom, and enfranchisement!'
BRUTUS: People and senators, be not affrighted;
Fly not; stand stiff: ambition's debt is paid.
CASCA: Go to the pulpit, Brutus.
Proof positive that a wet t-shirt can be more provocative than nudity. Also, morass is better than less.
In the midwest, we call sal soda "sal coke".
Evil
What Rex said - also, I'm not sure you 'command' a horse to trot - don't you just sort of nudge him with your heels or something? But what do I know. The few times I've sat on a horse I had very little control over what it chose to do!
ANATOLE would have been even easier a couple decades ago, when his byline generally appeared on the same page of the NYT as the puzzle!
Thanks, @foodie, a nice morning chuckle.
I was helped by the appearance in recent grids of ANATOLE France, SALSODA, and GAGLAW.
I did have a more Biblical take on Easter for a little while with PETERtheapostle, which does fit. I didn't fill it all in, as I already had some crosses in place. But I kept trying to think of a different way to refer to him.
And yes, in the interest of full disclosure, I did have to use the Check function. Had Allege, AsseRt, AFFIRM. HRE before ETO. LenA before LARA. Falks before GUNNS, thinking all the while: no, that's the actor, the clue calls for a character. And anTSY before DITSY.
Thanks for the story @foodie.
I couldn't agree more, @evil.
I also see a mini religion theme going on here, with OGOD, saint OLAF, ISAAC, the Easter cluing of PETERCOTTONTAIL, and PETER's Sunday Morning Hang-out, IHOP.
Pretty fast Saturday for me as well (tho' nowhere near 7 minutes). Had my nursing atHOME at first, and hojo's preceded IHOP, otherwise a clean fill. I may have to try some of the puzzlooza puzzles, now.
For 61A I became anamored with ICANTSAYYESORNO as an answer, and apparently I'm color blind so HOJO seemed better than IHOP, which ages me horribly, all of which conspired to slow down the solve in the south.
@jberg - There are times when you do use voice commands to horses, specifically when you're lunging (exercising on a long line) them, or when you're just frustrated and you think shouting will help, as in TROT you flea-bitten nag, TROT damn it!
I knew this would be rated easy because even I sailed through it. I enjoyed all the collequial long phrases and also was very much amused by @foodie's puzzle word conversation ... great job!
My favorite line was WHENPIGSFLY. Cincinnati has the "Flying Pig Marathon" every year.
Can't wait to see pics from the tournament ... good luck to all!
Easiest Saturday ever.I still cant get over the fact that Rex did this in the time it takes me to do a Monday.
How many of you were thinking about the fact that this was going to get an easy rating while you were solving ?
Did this in 50% of my previous-best Saturday time. Thrilling, but I knew Rex was going to remark upon its supreme easiness, and sure enough.
Still, I'll take it -- and I'm off to Lollapuzzoola now, hoping to meet some of you!
Sometimes, calling a crossword "easy" is commentary, not criticism, and this Joe Krozel puzzle is Exhibit A.Though it finished quickly, there has been no more enjoyable themeless puzzle in recent memory.
WHENPIGSFLY soars and then takes to dive-bombing to strike at the heart of that oinker who spawned THESWINEFLU, (and thinks it was really caused by a duck).
Meanwhile, King of CrossWorld goes all Clintonian on us by obsessing over "What the meaning of "the" is." Perhaps, as current usage would have it, "It is what it is" or, rather, maybe, "The is what the is".
Finally, WHENPIGSFLY should be a gimme for many New Englanders who have been treated to the artisan breads of the When Pigs Fly company, based in Maine, for the past fifteen or so years. Incredible breads in unique concoctions.
Thanks, Joe!!
The porcine theme was great, especially since one of the main Arts Section stories todat was a review of a musical whose central character is a pig!
Thanks, @foodie - that was fun - and talented!
Well, since I actually finished this with no help, I figured it would get rated easy! But it's still so satisfying to finish a Saturday. I did have write-overs - aHSO to OHSO, Misery to MORASS, AFFord to AFFIRM, and the aforementioned hojo to IHOP, but no lookups.
I did wonder about ATBAR, shouldn't there have been one of Rex's excessive "the"s in there? And it was good thing I'd seen SALSODA recently, but you've got to love a puzzle with Peter Cottontail in it!
Easy indeed. Among my fastest Saturdays ever. A few writeovers: AT HOME (9D), YULE (29A), DITZY (40A).
Got 6D (nice clue) and then checked 51A. Nope, it was 6 letters, not 5, so I couldn't say "That's a MORAY."
Thanks, Mr. Krozel. I usually am on your wavelength and today was no exception.
Whoops, I see a typo: should have been spelled "colloquial."
OMG I finished a Saturday. Just under half an hour, no less. New best time here for this rarest of events, tho Rex has gotta call it easy. The nicely interlaced 15s came noticeably easier (in a morbidly relative sort of way) than they could have a couple of years ago. Progress feels good.
Missteps: 1A DESIRES/ASPIRES, 55A HRE/ETO (what, nothing cluish about DDE?), 40A TIPSY/DITSY (all I could think of was a form of the clue word coming up in The Sound of Music, which of course makes no sense re my initial answer), and
2D ETRADER/ETAILER/SHIPPER (I blame 1A “dEsires” for that one).
Least favorite clue was 8A, though I can’t really make a case for my discontent. This is, after all, Saturday (well, Friday, but hey).
Lots of clue love for the clever indirection at 19A, especially after the thrashing Barry Silk’s clues gave me yesterday (DNF, leaving NW largely blank, with little more than THE PENTAGON having been levitated as far as FORT [nail testicles to grid here]).
Thanks for a fun Saturday solve, Mr. Krozel!
@Rex, OLAF actually can't do eveything. But anything he can't do his older brother OLAV can, so they've got it covered.
@jberg: I think TROT for "Equestrian's command" works if you think of a command to, rather than by, a rider -- e.g., at a dressage competition, where the riders are required to put the horses through various gaits (as I seem to remember from many, many years ago).
@lit,doc: Glad I wasn't sipping my coffee when I read your post or it would definitely have been a nose-spurting experience. Good one.
For some reason I had some trouble getting into this one, so I was surprised to hear how easy it was for most of you. A thoroughly enjoyable solve, however.
Couldn't get a foothold at the top, so I ended up solving from the bottom up. The reappearance of SAL SODA helped.
The 15's are great and the porcine cross in the center is special.
My first answer to 30 down was OH SO different:\ Also had the HRE/ETO-AT HOME/INHOME but finished a minute earlier than yesterday!Also had Misspelled AL ROPER which gave me ---DOUBLE TAPE! which was a poser! but I did a DOUBLE TAKE on it!
I was proud of myself for finishing this crossword over only one cup of coffee, and I was also sure Rex would call it easy. Apparently bliss, as well as misery, loves company.
The only writeover I had was ICANnotremember, which I knew was too simplistic / close to the clue for a Saturday. Didn't like the 'AS' in the middle of the answer, but liked the answer better all the same.
DOE clue was fine, with 'might' in it, I believe.
That pic of Jacqueline Bisset is to die for. Never saw the movie, but now I might just have to. Thanks, rp.
One in Germany clue illustrates just how easy this puzzle was. No trickery, a couple of cute clues, and that's it. I loved the structure of the grid, but didn't care for the clues so much.
This puzzle was so much fun. I just cruised along enjoying the twists and turns and thinking "oh, I think I'm going to actually finish a Saturday, with no googles, in a pretty decent time." And I did.
My guesses were right most of the time. Hand up for ANTSY before DITSY. I had AWRY before AWOL for 'bad way to go.' Also had I GOT YOU before a more Palinesque I GOTCHA.
@anon 7:59am: LOL pigs fly with swine "flew". I'm pretty sure that was intentional.
@evil doug -- my thoughts exactly
Rex, thanks for the pic of the gorgeous Jackie Bisset, doesn't matter that she has a snorkel mask on -- wow
The Mets played the Braves last night and the Braves left fielder's name is Jose Costanza -- just made me crack up hearing that name -- has to be George's illegitimate son ???
Anybody else see the constructor's name and wonder which of the 4 15's was ALOTONONESPLATE ???
Sorry, Joe, just busting good puzzle today
Good luck to all in NYC today. I am also in NYC today, unfortunately working, but my thoughts are with you.
Yep, easy. Only ANTSY and ATHOME slowed me down. Pleasant breezy Sat.
This was the first Saturday puzzle that I managed to complete, so, yeah, I guess that makes it an easy Saturday. Still, the feeling of triumph was sweet! Last square was the L in ALROKER. I also liked the RECESS/REESES cross.
I must have missed the recent puzzle with SALSODA and had siLentA for 66 across, which held me up a bit.
@retired_chemist -- I'm one of the few left who generally laugh at puns rather than groan, and I liked your moray one...
Maybe next year I'll have the guts to go to a crossword happenin' like so many of you are taking part in now!
I'm feeling pretty good--fastest Saturday since I've been timing myself. WAY faster than my previous fastest. The only problem is what to do with the rest of my morning?
Lots of laughs in the blog this morning--foodie's story is delightful, and evil doug and retired_chemist give me hope for puns again. Thanks for the chuckles, all of you.
Hands up for ANTSY before DITSY. Also hands up for knowing Rex would rate it easy, but not caring. It was fun.
Off to check Facebook for pictures of you lucky ones. Sad I don't live near New York.
Shockingly easy for a Saturday. I started off with THEDEEP and ANATOLE, which gave me a nice framework to start working the downs. And the answers just kept coming for me.
Once did a parody of Julius Caesar in a high school history class, so I knew without prompting that "Speak hands for me" was the lead-in to the more famous "Et tu Brute".
If you didn't get CATS from the two-eyes clue, you must have never passed through NY over the two decades the damn show played. The poster was ubiquitous.
Superman was of course always obsessed with female "L" names. In fact, double-L's were preferred: Lois Lane and Lana Lang, but also Supergirl's secret identity as a teenager was Linda Lee, and in some issues of my youth Superman had a romance with a mermaid named Lori Lemaris.
@Retiredchemist and Lewis: The parody lyrics to the Dean Martin song are 'If an eel bitres your knee
When it's under the sea
That's a moray'.
Please delete the r from bitres. sorry
Fastest Saturday ever!
Almost a shame because I'm in the office on a slow day. It almost would have been nice to have a puzzle keep me occupied for a couple hours. Oh well, I AM NOT COMPLAINING!
Now I have to find ways of fitting "flibbertigibbety" into my vocabulary.
How do you solve a problem like Maria?
How do you catch a cloud and pin it down?
How do you find a word that means Maria?
A flibbertijibbet! A will-o'-the wisp! A clown!
fargle
Wow, really easy. I've been doing pretty well with Saturdays, but it's always a bit of a slog with occasional Googling. This felt more like a Tuesday; the stuff I wasn't sure about was easily fixed by crosses. I too, am astounded by OLAF's versatility and multitasking: Norwegian kind, patron saint of carvers, guy with two "g"s in his last name -- what can't he do? Initially, given the two pig-oriented clues I thought there might be a porcine theme, but no. Finally, IHOP is also the acronym of "International House of Prayer," the outfit that's a main sponsor of Rick Perry's prayerapalooza today. I think I might feel better if the event were run by the blue-roofed IHOP instead. At least we'd all leave happy.
I CAN'T SAY FOR SURE -- but this should not have appeared on Saturday. More like a Medium Challenging Wednesday. Maybe an August concession?
I fell asleep thinking this one was as hard as Friday, but woke up and flew through. Being tired does matter.
Hope all attending Lollapuzzoola have a wonderful time. To all who think they have to be speed solvers to attend a crossword event, just go and you will see that the only requirement is that you enjoy puzzles and are willing to talk about them.
@Omniart, I remember that great feeling the first time i finished a Saturday unaided. Congrats, and here's to more.
only way i finish saturday is if rated 'easy' and so i did.
anyone have an issue with FIT OF (rage)? seems to me it should be (pique)
Lots of chuckles today. Thanks @foodie and retired_chemist. Alas, did not make it to the tournament. Struck down with a stomach flu. Will spare you TMI.
Finishing a Saturday great by me, even if considered easy. Have finished Sunday, too. Did New York mag in ink. Times to start printing out. Boo Hoo.
Have a good Sunday.
@foodie - Lots of laughs, thanks.
Ditto to what everyone else has said.
Loved it!
Stupid write over of the day, spelled FIEF like the musical instrument fife. DOH!!! Quickly fixed.
With so many 'fastest Saturday ever' comments (yup, me too), I wonder why Will posted it on a Saturday. Did he misjudge its level of difficulty or was he tossing all of us a well-deserved bone? At any rate, I would like to join in the chorus of praise to the constructor. Easy? Yes, but a very enjoyable puzzle filled with great clues and answers.
The most pristine Saturday puzzle-in-the-paper ever! And that after returning from the Lollapuzzoola!
I thought there was a distinct animal theme going on: two pigs, a rabbit, a doe, a buck or two, an ass, cats, and an eel. Oh, and a fly.
The tournament was fantastic. Great location, nice high-ceilinged, large room, very smooth organization, and lots of people you would know! Let's give it a try: Patrick Blindauer, Joon Pahk, Tony Orbach, Andrea Carla Michaels, Michael Sharp, Liz Gorski, Mike Nothnagel, Janie Smulyan, Doug Peterson, Will Shortz, Ashis, Kevin Der, PuzzleGirl Angela Halstedt, many solving heavyweights, blogfriends like Bob Kerfuffle, imsdave, JenCT, Karen from the Cape, and... see, I knew I could not remember them all.
Anyway, it was a fantastic day, and I am already looking forward to the next tournament!
Only 45 comments on an epic Saturday??
I feel like one of the only kids in class on the last day of school cause all the seniors are at some fun party. :-(
sooey! i did it, a saturday! knew it would be rated easy if i could do it. a smile is on my face.
@mac, thanks for the report! It sounds like the creme de la creme of puzzledom!
And thanks everyone for your kind words about my little story. It's dedicated to Joho who invented the genre!
This week's relative difficulty ratings. See my 7/30/2009 post for an explanation. In a nutshell, the higher the ratio, the higher this week's median solve time is relative to the average for the corresponding day of the week.
All solvers (this week's median solve time, average for day of week, ratio, percentile, rating)
Mon 6:50, 6:51, 1.00, 51%, Medium
Tue 8:37, 8:55, 0.97, 45%, Medium
Wed 9:51, 11:52, 0.83, 16%, Easy
Thu 19:29, 19:10, 1.02, 59%, Medium
Fri 25:22, 25:52, 0.98, 46%, Medium
Sat 17:12, 30:05, 0.57, 1%, Super Easy
Top 100 solvers
Mon 3:31, 3:40, 0.96, 34%, Easy-Medium
Tue 4:31, 4:35, 0.99, 50%, Medium
Wed 5:09, 5:51, 0.88, 21%, Easy-Medium
Thu 9:43, 9:19, 1.04, 66%, Medium-Challenging
Fri 12:33, 12:48, 0.98, 52%, Medium
Sat 8:59, 17:09, 0.52, 1%, Super Easy
This was such an extreme outlier for a Saturday that I'm tempted to exclude it from my spreadsheet. These median solve times are both more than two minutes faster than any of the 103 other Saturday puzzles I've recorded. It was also (by far) my own fastest Saturday on record. This is a Thursday puzzle (sans gimmick) disguised in Saturday clothing.
Easiest Saturday ever, because it was a Thursday.
I guess you saw from Deb's Wordplay column that Janie Smulyan's comments explain the important "the" in "The swine flu [flew]" as a response to "when pigs fly" (never).
So embarrassed--it was Joe Krozel's puzzle and Joe Krozel's commentary. Did both puzzles around the same time, both constructors had quotes on Deb's blog and I jumbled the two.
Ever seen pigs fly? Can't say as I have. But the swine flew, and Peter Cottontail did a double take.
Swine flu was originally a 20th century epidemic, as those of you who remember Babe Ruth pitching for the Red Sox can AFFIRM.
@long suffering mets fan 12:46 PM
Thanks for pointing out the snorkel mask. I did not even see that.
Okay, gots me some college pigskin to watch now.
THE SWINE FLU in a helicopter.
@Tobias Duncan - Hand up here for thinking as I solved this one that Rex would be rating it "easy." I finished this in fifteen minutes with no write-overs and very little hesitation; unheard of for me on a Saturday. I actually expected Rex to grouse a bit about how easy it was, but SanFranMan covered that base with his "super easy outlier" designation. Oh, well - I appreciated being thrown a bone.
What a great puzzle! @Deb - I also appreciate being "thrown a bone" and Rex's (and everyone else's) rating it as easy did nothing to diminish my joy at finishing a Saturday. No googling and only one writeover, quickly corrected, (awry for AWOL) when I realized it must be RELS and OGOD (which I first thought might be a sneaky rebus ie RGOD (OUR GOD???)
Thanks Mr. Krozel for a sweet Saturday!
Had SALSODA from the crosses but thought it was wrong til arriving here as I've never heard the expression before (despite an apparently useless undergrad degree in chemistry!). Also, in a FITOF EGO committed to ICANTSAYASIKNOW too early on which led to IKEA instead of IHOP and other misadventures. Misspelled CONGER as CONGAR then wondered why Rochester, NY (or MINN) would ever have originally been called EYRA. So, not Super Easy for me but still a fun Saturday at heart.
Hi all, first time posting from syndication land in Alaska. Puzzling off and on for 4 years, reading blog off and on for a year, (work a lot, can't always participate) but it is time to declare myself as one of the tribe, because (with the exception of a corner with a will-o'-the-wisp 7/27) I finished Sunday through Saturday for the first time ever today (9/10). For just a moment I was crestfallen to see how overwhelmingly easy folks felt it was today, but still this week ranks right up there with my first Sunday solve (about 18 months ago). I usually don't even try to solve Friday and Saturday. Thanks for all your comments, I always enjoy visiting.
AKped
Welcome, Anonymous from AK. I've been doing crossword puzzles since I was a kid, but the NYT only over the past four years or so, I think. Today's was only the second or third time I've been able to solve a Saturday puzzle with no help at all, so I wasn't even momentarily crestfallen. I know I'm not the equal of the Saturday puzzle and I accept that.
Don't be a stranger!
As smooth a solve as I ever had on a Sat. Never heard of "EATOVER" as an expression for dining at another's house. I do remember being told "Eat over your plate so you don't get anything on your nice--Oh Carl!" I agree: THEDEEP good (with t-shirted Jackie? Double-plus-good!); THESWINEFLU not so much. Never heard of SALSODA, but I think he must be one of the Soprano's buttonmen. And OGOD! Can we rest the O's ohs, and oh!oh!oh!'s for a couple days?
Those nits aside, I liked this one. Some fresh words: TWOFERS, IGOTCHA, and of course the porcine center. Starting place was ETTU>GUNNS>CONGER>the SW, etc. Never needed a Google. Clue for ELLISON was OK, but I'd like to see a shout-out to Harlan Ellison, very possibly one of the five best science-fiction authors ever to come down the ol' Hugo Pike.
v-word is uppipsh: somebody's trying to wake the hero of Great Expectations without waking anybody else.
AKped again, thanks for the welcome, I will comment again, esp. on days with Attu, Inuit, etc.
Just realized the 7/27 was last week, I took up a few of last week's puzzles when we went to Denali National Park for Labor Day (colors "at peak", gorgeous). I think that means I got them all this week, whee!
I know a Peter Gunn, and actually was at an event on Saturday with him and another avid NYT crossword fan and we told Peter that he was in the puzzle as the other one than the detective. He has spent most of his life with jokes about the detective, and he thought this was pretty funny.
Post a Comment