0:07:27
Hmmm… a fun theme, now that I notice it. For the second day in a row the puzzle skews old, with CHUBBYCHECKER (10D: Starter of the dance craze in 18-Down), NINETEENSIXTY (18D: See 10-Down), and the theme itself, which is "The Twist." It sure seems like those were simpler times, doesn't it? But lenses into the past are rarely sharp. It was just after the McCarthy Era, and just before the Cuban Missile Crisis. But let's not get bogged down in all that.
I thought this was a pretty good grid. Maybe it's 'cause I'm nearing the Big Five-O, but maybe it's because of things like MANNERISMS (17A: Behavioral quirks), ACCEDE (28A: Bow (to)), the STYX/HELL pair, TILT (62A: Pinball infraction) (hah… another oldie!), and CHICO (6D: TV's "____ and the Man"). OK, I just put that last one in because it, too, is quite old. And speaking of old words, I like ALMS and GLEAN too. Sue me.
OK, the more I look at this, the more old, stale fill it's got. BUT, I like PIKE, and I like the voting theme. It's primary day today in Massachusetts, so whether you're PRO, or one of the ANTIS, and even if you're living in the WEST (54D: Last part of the country to report election returns, usually, with "the") - Get out and vote!
- Horace
11:16
ReplyDeleteOf course, I'll be voting later on. It was great that Mr. Sessa worked in COMEONLETSTWIST twisting down the grid, and I liked the WALLSOCKET/POWERSTRIP pairing (32A & 41A Elecricity source), although both are only sources in a way, and the power strip often itself depends upon the wall socket (outlet, more commonly). Also, I alway put in "ARail" instead of AREED for 37A Thin as _____, and similar clues. FIELDTRIPS (60A Class outings) is a pleasant reminder of years past, and how about 60D Lab's coat (FUR) for a nice shorter clue/answer? SHAMU (40A Noted performing whale) and NANAS (45A Many babysitters) were good, too. I put in teenS for the latter at first.
7:27, FWOE, because I entered UNIs instead of UNIE, and didn't check the down answer to double check. Horace, thy warnings unheeded went! I liked the theme fine, although I had a hard time figuring out the first part of the twist line. I liked the longer across clues better, even though the POWERSTRIP and FIELDTRIPS were a little too similar. I too had ARail instead of AREED. Fine overall.
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