Saturday Themeless by Freddie Cheng
Today Freddie Cheng joins our Saturday themeless parade and, as you will see in his comments, it may be a while until we see another one. This was a real workout for me following my usual Saturday pattern of establishing a base camp and working from there. Nicely done, Freddie!
Hi Gary!
I’m originally from the UK, with a background in electrical engineering with a PhD in telecoms. Have been working in finance in NYC, where I have lived for the last few decades.
This is only my second published themeless, and my first attempt at a 66-worder. I guess I still have a lot to learn, since I must admit I found the whole construction process to be a real slog!
It's been about two years since I first started this puzzle, so with fresh eyes, I can see that 16A is going to be tough going for most people. Probably a necessary evil at the time though, to enable those nice verticals in that NE corner. I believe the puzzle was seeded with the 7D grid-spanner, as I remember playing around with SCREENED IN PATIO also, to try to get to a flashy enough SE corner.
I see that about half the clues were changed/improved. Luckily my personal favorite [for 35D] made it through intact.
Although I do have another 66-worder slated for publication in a NY Times Saturday, it’ll will probably be a very long time before I’ll attempt another one of these!
Cheers,
Freddie
1. 153-year-old group that became unisex nationally in 1995: ELKS - A group of ELKS at Gouverneur Elks Lodge No. 2035 in Gouverneur, NY in 2019
8. Get some air: INHALE.
14. Assuring word on a cleaning product label: NON-TOXIC
17. "The Sound of Music" song opener: DOE A DEER - Am I the only one who put THE HILLS for "The Hills Are Alive With The Sound Of Music" which is the first line of the song that actually opens the movie?
18. Stronger-than-steel material: KEVLAR - I think of bullet-proof vests when I hear KEVLAR
19. Like protozoans: ONE CELLED.
21. Prefix with motor: SERVO - New to me. Here a SERVOMOTOR from a hobby shop moves the airplane with feedback from the handheld controller.
25. Cruise stop: PIER - PORT crossing 13. Slips: ERRORS ERRATA looked right
26. Salt sources: SEAS - We watched our neighbors house for a few days and she brought us a gift of chocolates topped with SEA salt. Interesting!
27. Quirks: MANNERISMS
30. Second sight, say, briefly: ESP
31. Perfectly executed: DONE TO A TEE - Origin
32. "All peachy!": JUST DANDY.
33. Targets of some blocking software: ADULT SITES.
35. Adobe file format: PDF - Our agent in Branson, MO sent us this PDF for our "escape from Covid captivity"!
39. Jazzman Saunders: MERL - I'm much more familiar with MERL(E) Haggard
40. Instruction unit: STEP - Gotta love Ikea's visual directions
42. Salt's companion: MATEY - I'm thinking Spitzboov and our other sailors at our site would have rarely used this word
43. Drink with a 2021 Peeps variety: PEPSI.
45. 2019 pop biopic: ROCKET MAN - Considered having this Elton John song played at my funeral but...
50. As it happens: REAL TIME - The internet is full of REAL TIME video
51. Cause to lose it: ENRAGE.
53. Seat of Ohio's Montgomery County: DAYTON - Home of our good friend and constructor Mary Lou Guizzo
54. Growth chart nos.: HTS.
Down:
2. Canadian coins: LOONIES
 |
| A LOON is on the reverse and the Queen is on the Obverse |
3. Shinbone neighbor: KNEECAP - Shinbone was also the town where this movie bad guy died.
8. "Gross!": ICK.
9. Vetoes: NOES - Not NAES
11. Apt slogan on merchandise featuring MLB slugger Aaron Judge: ALL RISE - "Here come da Judge"
12. "I need solitude": LEAVE ME
24. African currency whose singular form is part of its country's name: LEONES - $1 = 10,230 SLL. This bill would be worth about a nickel.
28. Less likely to chillax: ANTSIER - Chillax is a portmanteau of "CHILL out" and "reLAX." Okay, I'll admit my shame at putting TYPE AER first!😟
29. Roentgen cousins: RADS - Radiation units. Google if you must
31. Noted starter?: DULY
35. Loved cheese lovers?: PET MICE - MICE are "cheese lovers" and if they are a PET, I suppose they are loved
36. Visualize: DREAM UP.
37. Bug stoppers: FLY NETS - $46 to get one for Dobbin
39. Have some impact: MATTER
44. Shakespearean standard-bearer: IAGO.
47. Foe of CONTROL on "Get Smart": KAOS.
*Kevin played REN in Footloose.