0:12:17
Another side-by-side solve, and man, doing that makes a puzzle just fly by! (Especially a Wednesday.)
At first we were a little annoyed by all the "quote" clues, but once Frannie got the revealer (with very few crosses!) we enjoyed using the BETWEENYOUANDME (34A: "Let this be our little secret" ... with a hint to 18-, 23-, 50-, or 54-Across) theme to our advantage. All of the phrases are perfectly natural (once you add the first and last words), and I like the nod to Travis Bickle with (You)TALKINTO(ME) (50A: Wanna start somethin?). It would have been even better, mind you, if it had been clued with other, actual dialogue from that scene, but I guess you can't really clue it with "Faster than you, $#%@ son of a $%#$! ... Saw you coming you #$%#! ... #@!!#" And, of course, maybe Mr. McDermott wasn't thinking about Travis at all...
The fill is pretty clean. There's an occasional ARIE (24D: Indy racer Luyendyk) or EROO (39D: Suffix with switch), but overall, not too shabby. Oh, and we'd never heard of MOSSO (6D: Rapid, in music). I've heard "presto," "allegro," agitato," but never "mosso." So we've learned that now. We also learned the term 27A: Gives a stemwinder (ORATES). (?)
Frannie enjoyed seeing NANTES (40A: Edict locale of 1598), because she loves all things "Henri IV." The edict allowed religious freedom in France, but was revoked by his grandson, "Le Roi Soleil" (Louis XIV) several years later. Jerk.
Lastly, I didn't realize that the CAMARO was a 46A: 1966 Answer to the Mustang. Hah. Nice try, Chevy.
- Horace
23:17
ReplyDeleteI'd never heard of MOSSO either, nor had I heard of ARIE. The CAMARO always seemed like a less solid car than a Mustang to me. And TALKINTO...it looks like "talk into," as in a microphone, until one adds the first and last words, then it all makes sense! Aren't we about sick of seeing EROO in puzzles, though? And I wouldn't have known 35D Most holes in one (EAGLES) without crosses. Should I start playing golf?