St. Eligius in his goldsmith workshop, Petrus Christus, 1449 ----------------- Sunday, December 14, 2008 NAME THAT PHRASE, Puzzle by Trip Payne, edited by Will Shortz Acronyms of twelve phrases are the wan feature of this Sunday plodder -- RITA, VIC, LES, MAE, THOM, ALAN, PETE, CAL, TED, OTIS, LIAM and NAN for, respectively -- ROLLING IN THE AISLES (25A. Like Rudner’s audiences after a good joke?); VANILLA ICE CREAM (33A. Treat for Damone); LOWER EAST SIDE (52A. Where Paul stays when performing in New York?); MAKES AN ENTRANCE (69A. Comes in dramatically, like West?); THE HOUSE OF MIRTH (95A. McAn’s favorite novel?); AS LIKELY AS NOT (106A. Odds of Alda winning an Oscar?); PLACING END TO END (129A. Putting in a row, like Sampras’s rackets?); CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT (139A. Court case where Ripken is one of many plaintiffs?); THE EVIL DEAD (3D. Horror film enjoyed by Turner?); OF THEE I SING (12D. Musical that inspired Redding?); LOVE IN A MIST (87D. Flower typically given to Neeson?); NECK AND NECK (92D. How Goldin and her rivals finish in photography competition?). Of virtually no use to the solver, the gimmick is merely an overwrought afterthought to the puzzle -- something The Times crossword authors have been hawking a lot of lately. The result is an empty so-what at the end of the solve, and the gimmick just gets in the way of solving. Not once throughout the entire puzzle was I able to recognize the inclusion of initialism (or alphabetism) in the construction -- the clues seem ludicrous and unrelated. Of course, at the end, one does look back and see that they make sense -- but to what end? The plodding clues continue throughout the puzzle, especially in the lower third from ELOI (115A. Patron saint of goldsmiths) to the bitter finish, with the majority of the entries throughout the puzzle being particularly small and numerous, resulting in exhausting fragmentation and mind-numbing tedium. As St. Eligius (aka Eloi) might remark -- "Pure pyrite!" ----------------- For today’s cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated. For the complete post, go HERE.
12.14.08
Name That Phrase...
St. Eligius in his goldsmith workshop, Petrus Christus, 1449 ----------------- Sunday, December 14, 2008 NAME THAT PHRASE, Puzzle by Trip Payne, edited by Will Shortz Acronyms of twelve phrases are the wan feature of this Sunday plodder -- RITA, VIC, LES, MAE, THOM, ALAN, PETE, CAL, TED, OTIS, LIAM and NAN for, respectively -- ROLLING IN THE AISLES (25A. Like Rudner’s audiences after a good joke?); VANILLA ICE CREAM (33A. Treat for Damone); LOWER EAST SIDE (52A. Where Paul stays when performing in New York?); MAKES AN ENTRANCE (69A. Comes in dramatically, like West?); THE HOUSE OF MIRTH (95A. McAn’s favorite novel?); AS LIKELY AS NOT (106A. Odds of Alda winning an Oscar?); PLACING END TO END (129A. Putting in a row, like Sampras’s rackets?); CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT (139A. Court case where Ripken is one of many plaintiffs?); THE EVIL DEAD (3D. Horror film enjoyed by Turner?); OF THEE I SING (12D. Musical that inspired Redding?); LOVE IN A MIST (87D. Flower typically given to Neeson?); NECK AND NECK (92D. How Goldin and her rivals finish in photography competition?). Of virtually no use to the solver, the gimmick is merely an overwrought afterthought to the puzzle -- something The Times crossword authors have been hawking a lot of lately. The result is an empty so-what at the end of the solve, and the gimmick just gets in the way of solving. Not once throughout the entire puzzle was I able to recognize the inclusion of initialism (or alphabetism) in the construction -- the clues seem ludicrous and unrelated. Of course, at the end, one does look back and see that they make sense -- but to what end? The plodding clues continue throughout the puzzle, especially in the lower third from ELOI (115A. Patron saint of goldsmiths) to the bitter finish, with the majority of the entries throughout the puzzle being particularly small and numerous, resulting in exhausting fragmentation and mind-numbing tedium. As St. Eligius (aka Eloi) might remark -- "Pure pyrite!" ----------------- For today’s cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated. For the complete post, go HERE.
St. Eligius in his goldsmith workshop, Petrus Christus, 1449 ----------------- Sunday, December 14, 2008 NAME THAT PHRASE, Puzzle by Trip Payne, edited by Will Shortz Acronyms of twelve phrases are the wan feature of this Sunday plodder -- RITA, VIC, LES, MAE, THOM, ALAN, PETE, CAL, TED, OTIS, LIAM and NAN for, respectively -- ROLLING IN THE AISLES (25A. Like Rudner’s audiences after a good joke?); VANILLA ICE CREAM (33A. Treat for Damone); LOWER EAST SIDE (52A. Where Paul stays when performing in New York?); MAKES AN ENTRANCE (69A. Comes in dramatically, like West?); THE HOUSE OF MIRTH (95A. McAn’s favorite novel?); AS LIKELY AS NOT (106A. Odds of Alda winning an Oscar?); PLACING END TO END (129A. Putting in a row, like Sampras’s rackets?); CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT (139A. Court case where Ripken is one of many plaintiffs?); THE EVIL DEAD (3D. Horror film enjoyed by Turner?); OF THEE I SING (12D. Musical that inspired Redding?); LOVE IN A MIST (87D. Flower typically given to Neeson?); NECK AND NECK (92D. How Goldin and her rivals finish in photography competition?). Of virtually no use to the solver, the gimmick is merely an overwrought afterthought to the puzzle -- something The Times crossword authors have been hawking a lot of lately. The result is an empty so-what at the end of the solve, and the gimmick just gets in the way of solving. Not once throughout the entire puzzle was I able to recognize the inclusion of initialism (or alphabetism) in the construction -- the clues seem ludicrous and unrelated. Of course, at the end, one does look back and see that they make sense -- but to what end? The plodding clues continue throughout the puzzle, especially in the lower third from ELOI (115A. Patron saint of goldsmiths) to the bitter finish, with the majority of the entries throughout the puzzle being particularly small and numerous, resulting in exhausting fragmentation and mind-numbing tedium. As St. Eligius (aka Eloi) might remark -- "Pure pyrite!" ----------------- For today’s cartoon, go to The Crossword Puzzle Illustrated. For the complete post, go HERE.
