1:11:18
This was a toughie, but we would have been done twenty minutes earlier had I not misspelled OTTAWAS (39D: Pontiac and others). I think I was conflating them with the Otoes, another tribe seen frequently 'round these parts, but, really, I have no excuse for putting an O where the first A goes. And, sadly, TAMA (54A: Author Janowitz) was absolutely no help. I spent tons of time trying all the different tackles at 3D: Some N.F.L.'ers (RTS), and a little time thinking about whether the 40D: "Star Trek" extra (YEOMAN) could be anything else. Everything else seemed right. And, of course, it was. Oh well... so close!
Nice that ALBEIT (7D: Even though) and SOBEIT (43D: "That's that") are set up symmetrically in the grid, but I didn't think that having both RESTYLE (37D: Give a makeover) and RETYPE (46D: Fix a key problem?) was so hot. Nor did I particularly love ARFARF (36D: Pair of boxers?). And I only know LATHS (15D: Foundation for some roofing) as the foundation for some walls, but I'm no carpenter, so I defer to the editors on that one.
It was slow going in the beginning, but by the time we got to the bottom of the grid, we were able to put in FLASHINTHEPAN (59A: One-hit wonder) right away. (Not to be confused with the band "Flash and the Pan" whose big hit "Hey, St. Peter" might not even have been that much of a "wonder"... but anyway, we liked it.) And ESTATESALES (60A: Events for some antiquers) came pretty easily with a few crosses. That's often the way the long-stack puzzles go. You get nothing the first time through, then everything tumbles in all at once.
Frannie didn't love it. I thought it was ok.
- Horace
Untimed.
ReplyDeleteTough, but doable. I can always put the "IN" in right away with clues like 21A Like Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 6 or 22 (INF), but need a few crosses for that pesky key. ET59 must not have liked 14A "Why such a fuss?" (WHATSTHEBIGDEAL). I didn't star anything on this puzzle. I didn't find anything to be outstanding or notable.