0905-21 NY Times Crossword 5 Sep 21, Sunday

Constructed by: Grant Thackray
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme Go Up in Smoke

Themed answers apparently end in -ASH in the grid. However, they actually “rise from the ASHES” and finish in the up-direction:

  • 50A With 97-Across, emerge reborn … or what the ends of five Across answers in this puzzle do? : RISE FROM …
  • 97A See 50-Across : … THE ASHES
  • 31A Like gasoline nowadays : UNLEADED (and not “UNLEASH”)
  • 33A 30-year host of late-night TV : JOHNNY CARSON (and not “JOHNNY CASH”)
  • 74A Addiction treatment locale : REHAB CENTER (and not “REHASH”)
  • 111A Be completely candid : TALK STRAIGHT (and not “TALKS TRASH”)
  • 114A Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw : HOGWARTS HOUSE (and not “HOGWASH”)

Bill’s time: 26m 24s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

20 Home of the isle of Tortuga : HAITI

Tortuga is a Haitian island located off the northwest coast of Hispaniola. The island was used as a major base of operations for Caribbean pirates in the mid- to late-17th century. “Tortuga” is Spanish for “turtle”.

21 “___ often costs too much”: Emerson : MONEY

Ralph Waldo Emerson was an essayist and poet who was active in the mid-1800s. Most of the essays that Emerson wrote were composed originally as lectures and then revised for print. He is often referred to as “The Sage of Concord”, as Emerson spent much of his life in Concord, Massachusetts.

22 Word before rock or football : ARENA …

Arena rock (also “stadium rock” and “dad rock”) is rock music played in large arenas. It is a phenomenon that dates back to the British Invasion when successful bands like the Beatles played to large audiences in places such as Shea Stadium in New York.

Arena football is played indoors, on a smaller field than American (and Canadian) football. The sport was invented in 1981, and the Arena Football League (AFL) was around from 1987 till 2008. The AFL was revived in 2010, but went bankrupt in 2019.

23 Song word repeated after “Que” : … SERA

The 1956 song “Que Será, Será (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)” was first performed by Doris Day in the Hitchcock film “The Man Who Knew Too Much”. Day later used the same tune as the theme song for the sitcom “The Doris Day Show” that aired in the late sixties and early seventies.

As Doris Day told us, “que será, será” is Spanish for “whatever will be, will be”. Actually, the phrase is “pseudo-Spanish”, and isn’t grammatically correct.

26 Olympics projectiles : DISCI

There are usually four throwing events in a track and field competition:

  • hammer
  • discus
  • shot put
  • javelin

27 People in charge: Abbr. : LDRS

Leader (ldr.)

28 ___ Lingus : AER

Aer Lingus is my favorite airline! Well, the service isn’t that great, but when I get on board an Aer Lingus plane I feel like I am back in Ireland. Aer Lingus is the national airline of Ireland, with “Aer Lingus” being a phonetic spelling of the Irish “aer-loingeas” meaning “air fleet”. These days Aer Lingus can only lay claim to the title of Ireland’s oldest airline as it is no longer the biggest. That honor goes to the controversial budget airline Ryanair.

29 Lucy’s last name on “I Love Lucy” : RICARDO

In the hit television show “I Love Lucy”, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz play Lucy and Ricky Ricardo. The Ricardos’ best friends are also their landlords, Fred and Ethel Mertz. The Mertzes are played by William Frawley and Vivian Vance.

33 30-year host of late-night TV : JOHNNY CARSON (and not “JOHNNY CASH”)

Johnny Carson hosted “The Tonight Show” for thirty years, from 1962 to 1992. Although Carson was the first choice to take over the show from Jack Paar, he initially declined. Carson eventually took the job, after it had also been refused by Bob Newhart, Jackie Gleason, Groucho Marx and Joey Bishop.

I must admit that I am not a big country music fan, but who doesn’t love Johnny Cash? The man had such a unique voice, and indeed unique songs. I think that his biopic, “Walk the Line”, is very cool, as is the title song itself. Recorded back in 1956, “Walk the Line” is relatively creative for “popular” music. The basic rhythm of the song emulates the sound of a freight train, the “boom-chicka-boom” sound. Cash’s guitar has a unique tone to it as it plays this rhythm, achieved by threading a piece of paper between the guitar strings giving the rhythm a bit of a “buzz”. Above the rhythm line, each of the five verses is sung in different keys. You can actually hear Cash hum a note signifying the key change at the start of each verse. With all these modulations, the final verse is sung a full octave lower than the first. A remarkable tune …

42 Prima ballerina : ETOILE

In the world of ballet, the étoile is the leading dancer in a company (male or female). “Étoile” is the French word for “star”.

49 The “e” in Genoa? : AND

Genoa is a seaport in the very north of Italy, in the region known as Liguria. One of Genoa’s most famous sons was Christopher Columbus. Another was the violinist Niccolò Paganini.

50 With 97-Across, emerge reborn … or what the ends of five Across answers in this puzzle do? : RISE FROM …
(97A See 50-Across : … THE ASHES)

A phoenix is a fabulous bird of Greek mythology, which can also be found in the mythologies of Persia, Egypt and China. The phoenix is a fire spirit, which lives from 500 to 1000 years. At the end of its lifespan, it builds a nest for itself (a pyre) and self-ignites, burning itself and the nest, creating a pile of ashes. A young phoenix arises from the ashes and the cycle starts all over again.

52 “Gangsta Lovin'” rapper, 2002 : EVE

“Eve” is the stage name of female rapper Eve Jeffers-Cooper from Philadelphia. Eve had her own television sitcom on the UPN network called “Eve” that aired from 2003 to 2006.

55 Food packaging reassurance : NO MSG

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of a naturally-occurring,non-essential amino acid called glutamic acid. It is used widely as a flavor enhancer, particularly in many Asian cuisines. Whether or not it is harmful seems to be still under debate. I say that something produced in a test tube shouldn’t be in our food …

60 Where dominoes were invented : CHINA

White masks with black spots were commonly seen in the old Venetian Carnival. The masks were known as “domini”. The domini lent their name to the game of dominoes, due to the similarity in appearance between the mask and a domino tile.

64 Jazz guitarist Montgomery : WES

Wes Montgomery was a jazz guitarist from Indianapolis.

66 Some U.N. officers, for short : SGS

Secretary-general (S-G)

67 Super Bowl LV champ : BUC

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (the Bucs) joined the NFL in 1976, along with the Seattle Seahawks, as an expansion team. The Bucs had a tough start in the NFL, losing their first 26 games. Things went better in the early eighties, but then the team went through 14 consecutive losing seasons. Their luck changed again though, and they won the Super Bowl at the end of the 2002 season.

76 Lead-off selections? : ERASERS

I grew up with the HB method of grading pencils, from “hardness” to “blackness”. Here in the US we sometimes use a numerical grading system, with #2 being the equivalent of HB. The numerical system was introduced in the US by one John Thoreau, father of famed author and hero of mine Henry David Thoreau.

81 Volkswagen model inits. : GTI

The Volkswagen Rabbit is a small, front-wheel drive car that is sold as the Volkswagen Golf outside of North America. There is a very popular GTI version of the Golf that was introduced in 1976. The initialism “GTI” stands for Grand Tourer Injection.

83 Boring tool : AUGER

An auger is a drill, a boring tool [yawn] … just kidding …

87 Website with a Seller Handbook : ETSY

Etsy.com is an e-commerce website where you can buy and sell the kind of items that you might find at a craft fair.

92 Encrypted URL component : HTTPS

“http” are the first letters in many Internet links. “http” stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. More secure and “safer” websites (like this one!) use links starting with “https”, which stands for “http secure”).

94 Red-handed, say : MID-ACT

To be caught red-handed is to be caught in the act. The expression originated in Scotland and dates back at least to the 1400s. The red in question is blood, as in being caught with blood on one’s hands after perhaps committing a murder or an act of poaching.

99 Brand that stylizes its name with a lowercase second letter : BIC

Société Bic is a company based in Clichy in France. The first product the company produced, more than fifty years ago, was the Bic Cristal ballpoint pen that is still produced today. Bic also makes other disposable products such as lighters and razors.

104 Serenade : SING TO

A serenade is a musical performance in the open air, specifically at night. We tend to think of the term applying to a young man serenading his lover from below her window. We imported the word via French from the Italian “serenata” meaning “evening song”, influenced by the Italian “sera” meaning “evening”.

105 “___ Pal,” early episode of “The Jetsons” : ELROY’S

“The Jetsons” is an animated show from Hanna-Barbera that had its first run in 1962-1963, and then was recreated in 1985-1987. When it debuted in 1963 on ABC, “The Jetsons” was the network’s first ever color broadcast. “The Jetsons” is like a space-age version of “The Flintstones”. The four Jetson family members are George and Jane, the parents, and children Judy and Elroy. Residing with the family in Orbit City are their household robot Rosie and pet dog Astro.

109 1980 event in Washington : ERUPTION

The active volcano in Washington state called Mount St. Helens was named by explorer George Vancouver for his friend, British diplomat Lord St Helens. 57 people died when Mount St. Helens erupted in 1980, making it the deadliest eruption in the history of the US.

114 Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw : HOGWARTS HOUSE (and not “HOGWASH”)

In the “Harry Potter” series of books, the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is divided into four houses:

  • Gryffindor
  • Hufflepuff
  • Ravenclaw
  • Slytherin

Each student is assigned to a house by the Sorting Hat. The Sorting Hat initially placed young Harry into Gryffindor House.

119 Half of sei : TRE

In Italian, “metà di sei” (half of six) is “tre” (three).

120 Treat thought to be stamped with symbols of the Knights Templar : OREO

If you take a close look at the embossed design on the front and back of an Oreo cookie, you’ll spot the main elements of the Nabisco logo. Those elements are an oval with a cross on top, a cross with two bars. Usually the company name “Nabisco” is inside the oval, but for the cookie it’s the brand name “Oreo”. The current embossed design was introduced in 1952.

“Knights Templar” is a familiar name used for the Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, an organization that existed for centuries during the Middle Ages. During the Crusades, the Templar knights were very visible, both in their actions and in their dress. They wore distinctive white mantles with a red cross on the chest. The Knights Templar often get a mention in novels and movies, e.g. “Ivanhoe”, “The Da Vinci Code”, “National Treasure” and “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”.

130 Where the Volta River flows : GHANA

The country name “Ghana” translates as “warrior king” in the local language. The British established a colony they named the Gold Coast in 1874, later to become Ghana, as part of the scramble by Europeans to settle as much of Africa as they could. One of Ghana’s most famous sons was Kofi Annan, the diplomat who served as General Secretary of the UN for ten years until the beginning of 2007.

Lake Volta is the largest artificially formed lake in the world by surface area, and the fourth largest by volume. The lake has a surface area of over 3,000 square miles. Lake Volta is located almost totally in the Republic of Ghana in West Africa. It is formed by the Akosombo Dam that holds back the White Volta River and the Black Volta River.

133 Those opposite the center and guards, in N.F.L. lingo : D-LINE

Defensive line (D-line)

Down

1 Sounds at a sauna : AHS

As my Finnish-American wife will tell you, “sauna” is a Finnish word, and is pronounced more correctly as “sow-nah” (with “sow” as in the female pig).

5 Something close to a colonel’s heart? : SILENT L

The first letter L in the word “colonel” is a silent letter L.

6 “Today” competitor, for short : GMA

“Good Morning America” (GMA) is ABC’s morning show, and has been since 1975. There was even a spin-off show called “Good Afternoon America”, although that only lasted for a few months in 2012.

10 Harp-shaped constellation : LYRA

Lyra (Latin for “lyre, harp, lute”) is a constellation that includes the star Vega, one of the brightest stars in the night sky. The constellation Lyra is surrounded by the neighboring constellations of Draco, Hercules, Vulpecula and Cygnus.

12 Vacuum tube type : TRIODE

A triode is like a diode, in that it has a cathode from which electrons flow to the anode. However, there is a third terminal, called a grid, between the cathode and anode. By applying a potential to the grid, the flow of electrons can be regulated.

16 Countless : A SLEW OF

Our usage of “slew” to mean “large number” has nothing to do with the verb “to slew” meaning “to turn, skid”. The noun “slew” came into English in the early 1800s from the Irish word “sluagh” meaning “host, crowd, multitude”.

25 Jon of “Two and a Half Men” : CRYER

Actor Jon Cryer first came to public attention playing Duckie Dale in the 1986 John Hughes movie “Pretty in Pink”. Cryer’s most famous role was Alan Harper on the sitcom “Two and a Half Men”.

“Two and a Half Men” is a TV sitcom that had a remarkably successful original run despite being fraught with controversy. The eighth season had to be suspended when the show’s star Charlie Sheen went into drug rehab and made disparaging comments about the show’s producers. Sheen was fired, and his role was taken over by a new character played by Ashton Kutcher. In 2012, Angus T. Jones who plays young Jake urged fans not to watch the show as it was “filth”. Jones had recently converted to the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and the show’s themes clashed with the church’s standards. Well, I enjoy the show …

33 L.L. Bean competitor : J.CREW

J.Crew is a clothing and accessory retailer. Never been there, but I’ve seen the name turn up on credit card statements somehow …

34 Plant family that jasmine and lilac are part of : OLIVE

Jasmines are shrubs that are mainly grown for their fragrant flowers. Those flowers can be used to make jasmine tea, or to provide pleasant-smelling ingredients used in the perfume industry.

The ornamental flowering plant known as lilac is native to the Balkans, and is a member of the olive family.

36 Announcement maker of yore : CRIER

Town criers make public announcements on the streets, usually shouting “Oyez! Oyez! Oyez!” to attract attention. The term “oyez” derives from the Anglo-Norman word for “listen” and is used in this instance to me “Hear ye!”

38 In early 2001, one of its executives notoriously said “From an accounting standpoint, this will be our easiest year ever” : ENRON

After all the trials following the exposure of fraud at Enron, several of the key players ended up in jail. Andrew Fastow was the Chief Financial Officer. He plea-bargained and received ten years without parole, and became the key witness in the trials of others. Even Fastow’s wife was involved and she was sentenced to one year for helping her husband hide money. Jeffrey Skilling (ex-CEO) was sentenced to 24 years and 4 months. Kenneth Lay (CEO) died in 2006 after he had been found guilty but before he could be sentenced. The accounting firm Arthur Andersen was found guilty of obstruction of justice for shredding thousands of pertinent documents and deleting emails and files (a decision that the Supreme Court later overturned on a technicality). But still, Arthur Andersen collapsed under the weight of the scandal and 85,000 people lost their jobs (despite only a handful being directly involved with Enron).

41 ___ Minella (Muppet) : SAL

Sal Minella is a Muppet character. He is the bodyguard for fellow muppet Johnny Fiama who is modeled after Frank Sinatra.

43 Pot grower’s remark? : I RAISE

“Potiguaya” is the Mexican-Spanish word for “marijuana leaves”. The slang name “pot” comes from “potiguaya”.

45 Corrects, as text : EMENDS

The verb “to amend” means “to change for the better, put right, alter by adding”. The related verb “to emend” is used more rarely, and mainly in reference to the editing of professional writing. Both terms are derived from the Latin “emendare” meaning “to remove fault”.

48 Floor coverings that feel good on the feet : SHAG RUGS

Shag carpet is one with a deep pile, one with a “shaggy” appearance.

54 Detective Lupin : ARSENE

Arsène Lupin is a character created by the French writer Maurice Leblanc. Leblanc was writing in the days of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and his gentleman detective Lupin is as popular in the French-speaking world as Sherlock Holmes is in English.

55 Present-day saint? : NICHOLAS

Saint Nicholas of Myra is the inspiration for Santa Claus. Nicholas was the Bishop of Myra (now in modern-day Turkey) during the 4th century AD, and was known for being generous to the poor. Centuries after he died, his remains were desecrated by Italian sailors and moved to Bari in Italy. One legend has it that the relics were moved again centuries later and reburied in the grounds of Jerpoint Abbey in Co. Kilkenny in Ireland, where you can visit the grave today. I choose to believe that Santa Claus’s relics are indeed buried in Ireland …

59 Sparkling wine variety : ASTI

Asti is a sparkling white wine from the Piedmont region of Italy that is named for the town of Asti around which the wine is produced. The wine used to be called Asti Spumante, and it had a very bad reputation as a “poor man’s champagne”. The “Spumante” was dropped in a marketing attempt at rebranding associated with a reduction in the amount of residual sugar in the wine.

63 Big name in nail polish : ESSIE

Essie Cosmetics is a company that was founded by Essie Weingarten, and which is now owned by L’Oreal. Apparently, Queen Elizabeth II will only wear Essie’s Ballet Slippers color nail polish. Well, that’s what Wikipedia claims …

72 The Ikea logo shares the colors of its flag : SWEDEN

The IKEA furniture stores use the colors blue and yellow for brand recognition. Blue and yellow are the national colors of Sweden, where IKEA was founded and is headquartered.

75 Advocate for the better treatment of elves, in Harry Potter : HERMIONE

Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are the principal characters in the “Harry Potter” series of fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling. The three are the best of friends. As the stories progress, the friendship between Ron and Hermione developed to the point that they became husband and wife and had two children together.

80 Determination from Santa : NICE

Santa checks his list of those who are naughty or nice.

89 Spots for window boxes : SILLS

“Sill plate”, or simply “sill”, is an architectural term describing a bottom horizontal member to which vertical members are attached. Window sills and door sills are specific sill plates found at the bottoms of windows and door openings.

93 The St. Lawrence River’s misnamed ___ Islands : THOUSAND

The Saint Lawrence River (“Fleuve Saint-Laurent”) in French” rises as the principal outflow of Lake Ontario. It runs almost 2,000 miles before emptying into the Atlantic Ocean at the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, which is the largest estuary on the planet. The first European known to have navigated the river was Jacques Cartier, the Breton explorer who claimed what is now Canada for France. Cartier arrived in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in 1534 on the feast day of Saint Lawrence, and so gave the estuary the saint’s name.

99 Set of rules popularized by “How I Met Your Mother” : BRO CODE

“How I Met Your Mother” is a sitcom that CBS has been airing since 2005. The main character is Ted Mosby, played by Josh Radnor. Mosby is also the narrator for the show looking back from the year 2030 (the live action is set in the present). As narrator, the older Mosby character is voiced by Bob Saget.

103 Shaving brand : NORELCO

Norelco is a brand of shavers and personal care products made by Philips. The brand name was introduced as the company was barred from using “Philips” in the US in the early 1940s. The name Norelco was chosen as an acronym for “NOR-th American Philips EL-ectrical CO-mpany.

107 Lead-in to -scope : STETHO-

The word “stethoscope” comes from the Greek word for “chest examination”. The stethoscope was invented back in 1816 in France by René Laennec, although back then it looked just like an ear trumpet, a wooden tube with flared ends.

113 Former second lady Cheney : LYNNE

Lynne Cheney is the wife of former vice president Dick Cheney. Ms. Cheney was actually mentioned as a possible running mate on the George W. Bush ticket in 2000. Dick Cheney headed up the nominating committee for the VP nominee, and ended up getting the slot himself.

115 Sight from a Seattle ferry : ORCA

The taxonomic name for the killer whale is “Orcinus orca”. The use of the name “orca”, rather than “killer whale”, is becoming more and more common. The Latin word “Orcinus” means “belonging to Orcus”, with Orcus being the name for the Kingdom of the Dead.

126 With 124-Down, feature of van Gogh : ONE …
124 See 126-Down : … EAR

Vincent van Gogh was visited by fellow-artist Paul Gauguin in Arles in 1888. At one point the two argued quite violently, with van Gogh eventually threatening his friend with a razor blade. In a panic, van Gogh fled the house and made his way to a local brothel. Famously, he cut off his own left ear later that night.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Impersonate : ACT AS
6 Bump on a log : GNARL
11 Get into one’s birthday suit : STRIP
16 Fruit drinks : ADES
20 Home of the isle of Tortuga : HAITI
21 “___ often costs too much”: Emerson : MONEY
22 Word before rock or football : ARENA …
23 Song word repeated after “Que” : … SERA
24 Charming sort? : SPELLCASTER
26 Olympics projectiles : DISCI
27 People in charge: Abbr. : LDRS
28 ___ Lingus : AER
29 Lucy’s last name on “I Love Lucy” : RICARDO
31 Like gasoline nowadays : UNLEADED (and not “UNLEASH”)
33 30-year host of late-night TV : JOHNNY CARSON (and not “JOHNNY CASH”)
37 Legal field concerned with long-term care : ELDER LAW
39 Commotion : CLATTER
40 Televangelist Joel : OSTEEN
42 Prima ballerina : ETOILE
46 Some team competitions : RIVALRIES
49 The “e” in Genoa? : AND
50 With 97-Across, emerge reborn … or what the ends of five Across answers in this puzzle do? : RISE FROM …
52 “Gangsta Lovin'” rapper, 2002 : EVE
53 Yoga class instruction : EXHALE
55 Food packaging reassurance : NO MSG
56 Good “Wheel of Fortune” buy for REVERSE ENGINEER : AN E
57 Sold (for) : WENT
59 Toward the back : AREAR
60 Where dominoes were invented : CHINA
62 Rule : REIGN
64 Jazz guitarist Montgomery : WES
66 Some U.N. officers, for short : SGS
67 Super Bowl LV champ : BUC
68 Took a swing, say : GUESSED
70 Basketball box score column : ASSISTS
74 Addiction treatment locale : REHAB CENTER (and not “REHASH”)
76 Lead-off selections? : ERASERS
77 Something to file : LAWSUIT
78 French article : UNE
79 Sweet pea : HON
81 Volkswagen model inits. : GTI
82 Give wrong information : LIE TO
83 Boring tool : AUGER
85 Emmy-winning journalist Finch : ELISE
87 Website with a Seller Handbook : ETSY
91 “How ___ …” : ODD
92 Encrypted URL component : HTTPS
94 Red-handed, say : MID-ACT
96 Make haste : HIE
97 See 50-Across : … THE ASHES
99 Brand that stylizes its name with a lowercase second letter : BIC
100 What a button on an armrest may control : SEAT ANGLE
104 Serenade : SING TO
105 “___ Pal,” early episode of “The Jetsons” : ELROY’S
108 Shrinks : RECOILS
109 1980 event in Washington : ERUPTION
111 Be completely candid : TALK STRAIGHT (and not “TALKS TRASH”)
114 Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw : HOGWARTS HOUSE (and not “HOGWASH”)
117 It may be taken in by a traveler : SCENERY
119 Half of sei : TRE
120 Treat thought to be stamped with symbols of the Knights Templar : OREO
121 “We ___ please” : AIM TO
123 Within arm’s reach : AT ONE’S ELBOW
128 Something commonly left in an operating room : SCAR
129 Going by : NAMED
130 Where the Volta River flows : GHANA
131 Tea go-with : SCONE
132 Pull down : EARN
133 Those opposite the center and guards, in N.F.L. lingo : D-LINE
134 More teed off : SORER
135 Scattered : SOWED

Down

1 Sounds at a sauna : AHS
2 Limit : CAP
3 20-20, e.g. : TIE
4 Hit TV show created by Donald Glover : ATLANTA
5 Something close to a colonel’s heart? : SILENT L
6 “Today” competitor, for short : GMA
8 Those against : ANTIS
9 Come back again (again … again …) : RE-ECHO
10 Harp-shaped constellation : LYRA
11 Got ready to ride, with “up” : SADDLED …
12 Vacuum tube type : TRIODE
13 “Hi” follower : -RES
14 Rack up, as charges : INCUR
15 No-hassle : PAINLESS
16 Countless : A SLEW OF
18 Slips : ERRS
19 Holder of merit badges on a scout uniform : SASH
25 Jon of “Two and a Half Men” : CRYER
32 Gone-but-not-forgotten : LATE GREAT
33 L.L. Bean competitor : J.CREW
34 Plant family that jasmine and lilac are part of : OLIVE
35 Safe space : HAVEN
36 Announcement maker of yore : CRIER
38 In early 2001, one of its executives notoriously said “From an accounting standpoint, this will be our easiest year ever” : ENRON
41 ___ Minella (Muppet) : SAL
43 Pot grower’s remark? : I RAISE
44 What snakes grow as they age : LONGER
45 Corrects, as text : EMENDS
47 They used to be a “thing” : EXES
48 Floor coverings that feel good on the feet : SHAG RUGS
51 Politician’s concern : IMAGE
54 Detective Lupin : ARSENE
55 Present-day saint? : NICHOLAS
58 Surprise ending : TWIST
59 Sparkling wine variety : ASTI
61 Scolded, as in a library : HUSHED
63 Big name in nail polish : ESSIE
69 Drive : URGE
70 Sets aside : ALLOTS
71 Popped in for just a moment, perhaps : SAID HI
72 The Ikea logo shares the colors of its flag : SWEDEN
73 Lead-in to “of mind” or “of war” : STATE …
75 Advocate for the better treatment of elves, in Harry Potter : HERMIONE
80 Determination from Santa : NICE
84 Big tournament news : UPSET
86 Bare : STARK
89 Spots for window boxes : SILLS
90 Verbal cringe : YEESH
93 The St. Lawrence River’s misnamed ___ Islands : THOUSAND
95 Far from friendly : ICY
98 Fatigued over time : AGE WORN
99 Set of rules popularized by “How I Met Your Mother” : BRO CODE
101 Doctor’s orders, maybe : TESTS
102 Best ___ : ACTRESS
103 Shaving brand : NORELCO
106 “Let me get this out …” : LISTEN …
107 Lead-in to -scope : STETHO-
110 Small lab bottle : PHIAL
112 Loud, as a stadium : AROAR
113 Former second lady Cheney : LYNNE
114 It often has its kinks : HOSE
115 Sight from a Seattle ferry : ORCA
116 Bike ride setting : GEAR
118 Rides : NAGS
122 Millennium start : MMI
124 See 126-Down : … EAR
125 Take a ___ : BOW
126 With 124-Down, feature of van Gogh : ONE …
127 Get hitched to : WED

19 thoughts on “0905-21 NY Times Crossword 5 Sep 21, Sunday”

  1. 50:58 with an assist to understand the “rising”. At first I had JOHNNYCARSON with some rebus fills since I had only 4 slots for CARSON. So this became a struggle thru-out as I didn’t get the significance of the “-” clues until very late in the game. Also had 123A as CLOSEATHAND for quite a while, messing up the SE corner. This seemed like a tough Sunday puzzle.

  2. 21:26. Never heard of EVE and had CHATTER rather than CLATTER, so it took me an extra minute or two to get that sorted out. I was fooled by EVE because I knew there was a rapper called “Eazy E” and thought maybe it was spelled EZ-E.

  3. 44:59, no errors. I caught on to the “rising” thing early on (at the “JOHNNY CARSON” entry, actually), but somehow managed to bypass the hint added by 97-Across, so I didn’t understand until quite late that all of the theme entries ended in “ASH”. Then, I somehow kept on getting confused by the presence of the apparently-garbled “down” entries “NOSRA”, “DEDA”, “ESUOHSTRA”, and “THGIA” and I kept having to review why they were there.

    So … procedurally … an odd puzzle that played hob with my aging brain’s crossword bookkeeping skills. After doing it online, I printed a copy of the puzzle on paper and re-did it; it’s hard to be sure, but I think I would have been less confused if I had done it that way (because I would have added annotation to highlight the “rising” entries).

    In any case, a clever puzzle that I enjoyed a lot … 😜.

  4. 36:51. Had HiC instead of BiC. It made hRO CODE rather than BRO CODE, but I’ve never seen the show so I assumed it was just a show thing. HiC does the same thing albeit with a hyphen in there Hi-C.

    Got the theme same as most people when I saw JOHNNY CARSON morph to JOHNNY CASH.

    Sorry, Angus, I agree with Bill. “Two and a Half Men” is a great show. I don’t acknowledge the Ashton Kutcher episodes, however.

    I just assumed the THOUSAND Islands were named after the salad dressing….

    “Good ‘Wheel of Fortune’ buy for REVERSE ENGINEER” cluing AN E is the clue of the day.

    Back from being out of town for a week. I have 4 or 5 puzzles to catch up on.

    Best –

  5. Too cutesy, too belabored, Bill. I was disgusted from the beginning. I should write to Will Shortz

    1. Genoa is an Italian city. The Italian word “e” means “and” (as, for example, in the phrase “aglio e olio”, meaning “garlic and oil”, which you might see on a menu in an Italian restaurant).

  6. 1:03:42 Started on Sunday, finished on Tuesday. Took me quite a while(can you tell?)to get the gimmick, knew Johnny Carson was the answer, but didn’t see the rising from the ashes reference until much later(can you tell?) I try to solve Sunday puzzles without looking at the title, that may have hindered me a bit as well. Enjoyed the puzzle and clueing in any case.👍👍

  7. Over 2 hours only to wind up with one lousy error.
    Next time I see a puzzle by this setter I will know what to do👎👎
    Stay safe😀

  8. This setter and I might have come from different planets. Very discouraging, and I think I’ll give any future crosswords of his a miss. Not something I would usually do, but …

  9. DNF after 1 hour 11 minutes. Couldn’t let go of EDITORS in 76A, even though I initially entered URGE in 69D and was leaning toward GUESSED in 68A.

    1. Bill explains the gimmick up front, just underneath the grid. The entry at 74-Across would appear to be REHASH, but the clue (“Addiction treatment locale”) actually makes use of what would otherwise appear to be a scrambled 30-Down for which there is no clue (“RETNECBA”?!) to make “REHAB CENTER” (by reading across through “REH” and up through “ABCENTER”). You have to think about it for a bit … 😜.

  10. 38:13, 1 error (Natick 66A-54D). Concur with the others, another “thing that should not be” unleashed onto the world by Shortz.

  11. Took a very long time just to get started.. once I got the theme it was a pretty quick all.. yay me.
    No errors with a lot of ink on the third letter of MID ACT.. went back and forth on MIS ACT and MID ACT.. the author had some odd cluing so I wasn’t sure. I guessed right. I’m not a crossword setter but my guess is this took a llooonnnggg time to build.

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