Universum – Camille Flammarion
-----------------
Monday, June 2, 2008
Puzzle by Barry Boone, edited Will Shortz
THEFOURELEMENTS (7D. What the starts of 22-, 36-, 41- and 50-Across comprise) -- FIREARM (22A Heater or repeater); EARTHORBIT (36A. Revolutionary pattern of the moon); WATERCOLOR (41A. Non-oil painting method); AIRDATE (50A. TV Guide info) are the inter-related entries of this Monday, back-to-work crossword puzzle.
The remaining long entries of the puzzle are as minimally inter-related as one can image -- unless one can imagine that ROYROGERS (37D. Trigger man?) and DANRATHER (9D. Predecessor of Katie Couric) STRODE (31D. Walked with a purpose) together on an ESCALATOR (36D. Lazy person’s stairs?) pursuing a LOSTCAUSE (4D. The Civil War, for the Confederacy) lead by a RAGTAG (53A. Shabby) SEXTON (20A. Church bell ringer) with an armful of IDAHOS (25A. Some potatoes).
Five-letter across entries: 5. Group of eight, OCTAD; 15. Conductor Zubin, MEHTA; 18. Keep an EYEON; 24. Japanese maker of watches and calculators, CASIO; 27. Weight of diamonds, CARAT; 30. Runs a cloth across furniture, DUSTS; 39. Sex research Hite, SHERE; 45. Soothed or smoothed, EASED; 46. Treaty of BREST-Litovsk; 48. “Ditto!”, METOO; 58. Lone Ranger‘s companion, TONTO; 62. Available from a keg, ONTAP; 65. View again, RESEE.
Five-letters down: 5. Portents, OMENS; 10. Telly Savalas role, KOJAK; 27. Talons, CLAWS; 28. Hearing-related, AURAL; 29. Dilapidated, RATTY; 32. Upon, ABOVE; 33. Assesses, as a situation, with “up”, SIZES; 34. “This is only ATEST”; 47. Search with the hands, GROPE; 49. Figure of speech, TROPE. All those five-letter entries remind me that there is a fifth element, AETHER -- but quintessence is not in the works today.
More apt to today’s puzzle is any entry with four letters: AGER, ALEX, ARLO, ARTE, ARTS, ATOI, ATOP, AUTO, EARL, ERIE, ESSO, GLAD, IDOL, JEEZ, JUDO, KAOS, LUAU, MOLE, OGRE, OOZE, OREM, READ, RITA, SLED, TAIL, TIES, TONE, VATS, VEAL, YVES -- leaving those with three letters: ASA, ASK, BOA, CEY, GAL, JAM, OAT, SEZ, SLY and TAE as ye olde functional fill -- every crossword has it’s share!
Aw! That Fifth Element is just pure science fiction!
-----------------
For today’s cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated.
