This was a fun one! Frannie started it out, and when I first looked at it she had a good amount of the perimeter done, but in the center - well, the lower center - was the single word "NAIFS." No backup, she just put that right in for 33A: Innocents. Sure, it could have been right, but who puts in a thing like that without crosses? I'll tell you who - someone who's "en fuego." She put in a lot of others without much corroborative evidence, like BAKES for 22A: Sunbathes, informally, and FERMI for 44A: Element #100 is named for him, and they all held up. Ah... except "naifs."
Nice to see Roger EBERT (19A: Late critic featured on the Hollywood Walk of Fame) given a tribute so soon, and MAD Magazine makes it in again (they still have very few, if any, ads). Frannie's favorite (once Naifs fell) was LONER (40D: Company boycotter?), and, of course, any mention of Brent SPINER (38D: Brent of "Star Trek: T.N.G.") is ok with her. My favorites were 15A: Key chain (ARCHIPELAGO), and 1D: Dry mounts? (CAMELS). I know some crossword reviewers don't like the question mark clues, but they are favorites with these two solvers, and there were some good ones today. (40A: Country singers?)
Very few groanable answers. Sure, MANOLETE (29D: Celebrated matador during Franco's reign) and LORELEI (33D: Title maiden in a Heinrich Heine poem) are not, perhaps, household names, but they are interesting, and we had no trouble getting them with crosses.
Overall, another enjoyable Friday.
- Horace
47:33
ReplyDeleteWow! You two had a great time. I didn't have any trouble with this, despite not knowing MANOLETE at all. Once I figured out CATSPAW and SLOPSOVER, everything down in that section fell into place. Seeing "Tool" and having the end of "AW" made me want to put an "S" there, but having already come up with the "CAT" I could think of no saw related to a cat.
I, of course, got SPINER immediately and JOREL is always nice to see. I was not aware of CAESARSALAD as a finger food. Maybe I'll try that next time.
Your father should try these puzzles and comment. (Telegram: 18:02. They get somewhat more difficult as the week progresses.)
Thought this was way too easy for a Friday. Fun, yes, and many nice clues and answers, but on Friday and Saturday I like to be challenged quite a bit more.
ReplyDeleteYeah, this one might have been a little on the easy side, but at least it was fun! Tomorrow's, for you, is tougher, and wasn't at all in our wheelhouse. Coincidentally, it's by the same constructor who did the non-syndicated puzzle today, Martin Ashwood-Smith. (And I liked the May 18 puzzle better than the April 13, for what it's worth).
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