Words: 72 (pangram~!)
Blocks: 27
I can't believe I finished the whole thing - OK, I looked up two proper
names - but I'm claiming victory, considering the clever and
vague cluing. I did not see Mr. Duncan Dekker's name in the blog list,
so I have to assume this is his first publication for the LA Times; he
maybe a regular for the NYT, but I wouldn't know - I am lucky to have
had the time to work last Sunday's crossword in my local paper, Newsday (
BTW, Gail Grabowski). Anyway, this grid started off very white, with
big chunky corners and a staircase of answers up the middle. Some of
the longer fill;
17a. Tiny cylindrical structure : NANOTUBE - I had nanoDUCT, which was not working with my ideas for the crossings
12d. Scaly reproductive organ : PINE CONE - phew~! glad we're not talking about such an organ in the animalia taxonomy
53a. Title I of the Agricultural Act of 1956 : SOIL BANK - The Wiki
31d. Seat of Peru's Constitutional Court : AREQUIPA - Cheat #2 - I punched in "major cities of Peru" and this came up after Lima - and it meshed with my perps
31d. Seat of Peru's Constitutional Court : AREQUIPA - Cheat #2 - I punched in "major cities of Peru" and this came up after Lima - and it meshed with my perps
Adelante~!
ACROSS:
1. Staples Center team : L.A. LAKERS
- good start, as I know the LA Kings play there - but not this
spring~!! The Stanley Cup champions are out this year; the NY Rangers take the President's Trophy for the best record in the NHL; usually not a good sign for winning the whole thing
9. Not flat : SLOPED - SHARP was not long enough
15. Minor issue? : AGE LIMIT
16. Brazilian ballroom dance : MAXIXE - new word/dance for me; two "X"s, nice - I got them via the perps
18. Without a key : ATONAL
19. B's 5 and C's 6 : At. NoS - dah - got me this time - I did not think of Atomic Numbers when I read this clue; B = Boron, C = Carbon
9. Not flat : SLOPED - SHARP was not long enough
15. Minor issue? : AGE LIMIT
16. Brazilian ballroom dance : MAXIXE - new word/dance for me; two "X"s, nice - I got them via the perps
18. Without a key : ATONAL
19. B's 5 and C's 6 : At. NoS - dah - got me this time - I did not think of Atomic Numbers when I read this clue; B = Boron, C = Carbon
20. Home entertainment option : CABLE - I was thinking SONOS
23. Links acronym : IHOP - ah - not a golf links reference, but a sausage links one - International House of Pancakes
24. Crawford of the NBA's Clippers : JAMAL - looked him up; don't know from basketball - makes this clue a "fun sponge"
25. 40% of DX : CCIV - bust out Husker Gary's Roman calculator; 510 * .4 = 204
26. Common doo-wop soloist : SAX - ah, the instrument, not the player
27. Radar screen blip : BOGEY - yeah, PLANE seemed too easy
28. It has a ring to it : PHONE - BA dum tisss~!
30. Clubby type : JOINER - dictionary.com says a "clubby" person joins in with members, but not so much outsiders; sounds a bit like me....
31. Works up : AROUSES
34. Places to see arrows : QUIVERS
35. Sat for a bit : RESTED - a WAG that lasted
36. Semblance : GUISE
37. Kitchen additions? : ETTES - kitchenETTEs
38. Prepare for winter flight, in a way : DE-ICE
39. Energy Reorg. Act of 1974 creation : NRC - Nuclear Regulatory Commission
42. Pounds : QUID - Oh, I am so disappointed with myself - parents born and raised in England, regular viewer of Top Gear, and I forgot about this definition of pounds - the colloquial name for the currency in Great Britain ( and elsewhere )
43. Elegant : RITZY
44. Krombacher output : BIER - sounded German, WAGed 'beer'
45. Keats' "Sylvan historian" : URN - "Ode on a Grecian" to be exact
46. Farm deliveries : FOALS - I had GRAIN at first - this is the birthing kind of delivery
47. "Taxi" actor : DANZA - Tony, who played Tony
48. "Soon" : IN A FEW
50. "You've got to be kidding me!" : "OH COME ON~!"
52. Debussy's "__ Suite" : PETITE
54. Dug : ADORED
55. Betrays : TWO-TIMES
DOWN:
1. Outdoor sitting areas : LANAIs - Bam~! right off the "L" in 1a.
2. Dame of mystery : AGATHA - Bam~! right off the "A" in 1a.
3. Former heavyweight champ __ Lewis : LENNOX - BAM~! That's a powerful punch
4. Knock for __ : A LOOP - like, say, being in the ring with Lennox
5. Little beavers : KITS - had kiDs, which slowed me down
6. Cassowary cousin : EMU
7. Trunk structures : RIB CAGES - had it, took it out, put it back in, took it out....do the hokey-pokey....and a semi-clecho with the next;
8. __ trunk : STEAMER - argh~! I tried STORAGE
9. Insignificant : SMALL
10. How some busy people run : LATE
11. Maker of SteeL kitchen products : OXO - three-letters and kitchen utensils~? Try OXO
13. Free West Coast daily : EXAMINER - pondered a Spanish named paper - but couldn't think of one
14. Gets the job done : DELIVERS
21. Pound sound : BAY - this time, it's the "dog" type of pound
24. Wasn't serious : JOKED
25. Leek relative : CHIVE
27. Sacks of diamonds? : BASES - har-har
28. Presence : POISE
29. Soft : MUTED
30. Risqué : JUICY - minis, yes, Lemonade, fishnets, no - I am strictly pantyhose - but thanks for the images~!
33. Repeated musical pattern : OSTINATO - the Wiki
34. 1994 film about a scandal : QUIZ SHOW - IMDb
36. Demand to split : "GET LOST" - not D-I-V-O-R-C-E
38. Calendario entry : DIA - I took a Wild-Ass Adivinar
39. Time to flip the sign, perhaps : NINE A.M. - I went with "P.M.", but that was close enough
40. Change in boundaries : RE-ZONE
41. Stimulates, with "up" : CRANKS
43. Like many boats on lakes : ROWED
44. Tale of a whitetail : BAMBI - original way to phrase it
46. Big affair : FÊTE
47. Birdbrain : DOLT - ooops, not DODO, but 50% correct
49. Douglas __ : FIR
51. Labor gp. that initially supported FDR : CIO
Splynter
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