Venerable monk of Middle Ages / MON 7-15-19 / Magical powder in Peter Pan / Style of collarless shirt / Aquarium accessory

Constructor: Ed Sessa

Relative difficulty: Easy (2:45)

THEME: SHORT CUTS (61A: Timesavers ... or the starts of 17-, 26-, 36- and 51-Across?)— first words are short haircuts, each of which can precede the word "cut" (even BOB, apparently...)

Theme answers:

• BUZZ WORDS (17A: Trendy terms)
• BOB SAGET (26A: First host of "America's Funniest Home Videos")
• PIXIE DUST (36A: Magical powder in "Peter Pan")
• CREW NECK (51A: Style of collarless shirt)

Word of the Day: India.ARIE (14A: Singer India.___) —

India Arie Simpson (born October 3, 1975), also known as India.Arie (sometimes styled as india.arie), is an American singer and songwriter. She has sold over 3.3 million records in the US and 10 million worldwide. She has won four Grammy Awards from her 21 nominations, including Best R&B Album. [...] Arie released her debut album Acoustic Soul on March 27, 2001. The album was met with positive reviews and commercial success. "Acoustic Soul" debuted at number ten on the U.S. Billboard 200 and number three on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Within months, without the concentrated radio airplay that typically powers pop and rap albums, Acoustic Soul was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America(RIAA), selling 2,180,000 copies in the U.S. and 3,000,000 copies worldwide. The album was also certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry and platinum by Music Canada. The album was promoted with the release of the lead single "Video". "Video" attained commercial success peaking at forty seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and becoming her highest charting song in the region to date. The album's second single "Brown Skin" failed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, but it became her highest charting single in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 29. (wikipedia)

I finished this very quickly, then went back and looked at what was going on: crew CUT, pixie CUT, bob ... CUT??? That's where I balked a bit. You wear your hair in a bob (well, probably not *you* you, but one, one does ... at least one of you ... does). I'm used to the hairstyle being called simply a "bob," not a "bob cut"—unlike all the other words in this theme set, which actually *require* the word "cut" in order to be recognized as haircuts at all. I guess you could say "I got a BUZZ," which ... I'm not sure how different that is from a CREW (cut), but anyway, "bob" feels like the odd man out today. I will say, though, that I googled it (!) and "bob cut" googles just fine, so even though I think it feels off, it's clearly not Wildly off, if it's off at all. The other things that felt off were the bits affixed to the beginnings of BEDE and MAGI. I have a Ph.D. in English literature—medieval English literature, to be specific—and while I heard BEDE referred to frequently as "the Venerable Bede," I never Ever heard "the Venerable ST. BEDE." I mean, he is ST. BEDE, but using "Venerable" there is deceptive. Moreover, absolutely nothing about the clue suggests there will be an abbr. in the answer, which is pretty messed up, esp. on a Monday. As for *THE* MAGI ... the THE feels pretty showy, and also midly off. Like, they're the MAGI. If you wanna get all formal, they're "the three MAGI" or "three wise men." Maybe if you're doing the O. Henry story "The Gift of THE MAGI," you can sneak THE in there, but then it's a partial, and yuck. The definite article feels wobbly to me (whereas in, say, THE MOB, or THE FED, it doesn't).


But overall I thought the theme held up pretty well, and the grid was certainly adequate. It's chock-a-block with names from the Crosswordese Pantheon—everyone from India.ARIE to OPIE is there, including both parts of ANG LEE's name. But with only a stray FUM or ABU mucking things up, I didn't really mind the ELSA ELIE REA onslaught. I got slowed down by 4D: Some Moroccan headwear, as I had FEZ and then wanted ... FEZHAT (!?). Also got thrown by the clue on LIZARDS (3D: Chameleons, e.g.), as I was thinking more ... metaphorically, I guess. Went looking for things / people that change appearance, blend in, etc. I never know which [Atlanta-based channel] the puzzle is going to want. I think today I went with TNT? TNN? I forget. Not TBS, at any rate. And I always have trouble between "A" and "L" at the end of YENT_ (21A: Busybody, from the Yiddish). I really should only go with YENTL when the clue specifically refers to the play or movie. Maybe I learned something today. Probably not, but ... maybe.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

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