FRIDAY PUZZLE -- Constructors of themeless crosswords have a lot of choices when it comes to grid design, since there are no theme entries that take up precious space or cut off certain sectors because of their length. Puzzle makers do pay a price for this freedom, of course. Their challenge, in addition to finding scintillating entries that spark solvers' imaginations, is to make sure that all of the crossings in these long entries make sense and don't form junk fill. It's not as easy as it looks -- and this is before they've written any clues.
Erica Hsiung Wojcik is particularly good at salting her grid with exciting and unique entries. Maybe that's because she's recognized that there can be little variety in the names and other proper nouns used in puzzles, so she makes an effort to be more inclusive. Efforts like hers have resulted in the creation of her Expanded Crossword Name database, which is still used by many constructors and gives them a wealth of options.
But setting aside proper name variety, I like her choices for the long entries in this grid. The answers to 25A -- and particularly 44A, which makes its New York Times Crossword debut -- popped out at me, as did those for 6D, 24D, 11D and 27D. Those entries all cross each other, making what some constructors and editors call a basket-weave pattern, another feat that is difficult to pull off.
So enjoy Ms. Wojcik's chewy puzzle. You may not know everything in her grid, but you have the opportunity to learn. And that's just the cherry on this cruciverbal sundae, isn't it?
Tricky Clues
14A. Before you start singing, the clue [Fly me to the moon!] is not about the song made popular by Frank Sinatra. The answer is LUNAR PROBE, an object that is flown to the moon. OK, now you can sing.
32A. [Way out in space] sounds as if we are supposed to be thinking about the deep recesses of the universe, but the key here is the phrase "way out." It suggests a means of escape, and the answer is POD, as in the small spacecrafts attached to larger ones.
44A. If someone brags about a negative habit, such as not having eaten a single vegetable in the last 10 years, the recipient of this information can respond with "WEIRD FLEX, BUT OK," clued as ["I, personally, wouldn't brag about that"].
47A. The phrase [Bring the receipts for, as they say] means that you have evidence (the receipts) that will PROVE someone wrong.
51A. The clue [Berth place] is a pun on "birthplace." And the answer is PIER, because that's where berths, or places to moor a ship, are built.
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55A. Have you ever learned something after solving and then said to yourself, "You know what? That makes a lot of sense." That's how I felt when I realized that AUDI is derived from ["listen" in Latin] -- and that the Latin word "audire" means "to hear." The company was named for its founder, August Horch. The surname "Horch" means "hark" or "listen" in German.
56A. You can order a club sandwich in a restaurant, but that's not what the clue [Ordered clubs, for example] is about. This clue refers to playing cards that are in order; if they are all the same suit -- like clubs -- you have a ROYAL FLUSH.
63A. Today I learned that YO-YOS can't do what is sometimes called the "sleeper" trick in outer space. They can do a lot of other things, however, as demonstrated in this fascinating video by astronaut Don Pettit.
8D. Slang names for a $5 bill include [Fin] and ABE (for Abraham Lincoln, the president on the bill).
46D. In this puzzle, the [Spirited sort?] is not someone who is enthusiastic. It's a BARFLY, i.e., one who indulges in spirits.
Constructor Notes
As a college professor, I'm constantly encountering new turns of phrase that make me feel a bit 25A. So, I was delighted to pair that answer with the meme at 44A, one of my favorites from when I was still on Twitter (and when Twitter was still Twitter). It's not as commonly used these days, but I love that those four words manage to express both judgment and acceptance.
As always, thanks to all of you out there for solving!
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Work your way through our guide "How to Solve the New York Times Crossword." It contains an explanation of most of the types of clues you will see in the puzzles and a practice Mini at the end of each section.
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