Largest steel producer in U.S. / FRI 12-20-19 / Early illustrator of Uncle Sam / X Men film spinoff starring Hugh Jackman

Constructor: Zhouqin Burnikel

Relative difficulty: Maybe on the hard side ... I solved it on a clipboard, on my couch, half-watching "Christmas at Dollywood" on the Hallmark Channel ... the grid is oversized, at any rate (16x15)

THEME: none

Word of the Day: FURMAN University (51A: University near the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains) —

Furman University is a private liberal arts university in Greenville, South Carolina. Founded in 1826 and named for the clergyman Richard Furman, Furman University is the oldest private institution of higher learning in South Carolina. It became a secular university in 1992, while keeping Christo et Doctrinae (For Christ and Learning) as its motto. It enrolls approximately 2,700 undergraduate students and 200 graduate students, representing 46 states and 53 foreign countries, on its 750-acre (304 ha) campus. (wikipedia)

C.C. (Zhouqin on her NYTXW bylines) is one of my favorite constructors. She had an APPLETURNOVER puzzle in the Universal Crossword (ed. David Steinberg) earlier this week that I thought was a near-perfect early-week gem: vertical themers inside of each of which was hidden the name of a variety of apple, running upward (i.e. so, literally turned over). She is prolific and has gotten demonstrably better over the past decade or however long she's been constructing. Glad to see her name on a themeless puzzle (Fri/Sat puzzles tend to be dominated by men even more than the themed stuff). This one played way off my wavelength—though distracted solving may have had something to do with that. Usually when I solve, I can't have any distractions. This time I was curled up on the couch w/ my clipboard and a cup of tea, just letting the Hallmark Christmas universe bathe me in its tepid festive glow. So I never really picked up any momentum with this one. Lots of trouble right away, not knowing SONYA, and thinking the [Alternative to white] was RED (it's RYE). Wanted ICY GLARE not STARE. Thought SHAHs were exclusively Persian and so had no idea about this Jahan guy at 20A. The real wall, though, was NUCOR, which I am literally seeing for the first time today. Never heard of it, never seen it. Hilarious (to me) that this can be true when it's the [Largest steel producer in the U.S.]. It's never been in the NYTXW before today, which seems bizarre if it's so major. But if it's the largest, then it's worthy. It's just ... it was five random letters to me. Also new to me, FURMAN, a name I know only from the OJ trial. But that's OK, sometimes you don't know stuff. Things were a little smoother for me in the eastern half of the grid, with "ABOUT THAT..." being the highlight for me. There weren't that many real highlights, and it was a bit trivia/name-heavy, but most of this was lively and solid. I will take it.
I got LASER PEEL pretty easily, though I have next to no idea what it entails (27A: Treatment that reduces wrinkles). I'm guessing they don't just shoot lasers at your face and then peel your face off to reveal a different (better?) face underneath. Stunned that they didn't do that cutesy linked-clue thing with AUSTIN (home of University of Texas) and LONGHORNS (the Texas mascot/team name). Seems like a missed opportunity. Not like any of the clues they're using are so great. Lotta lotta lotta names today. I won't list them all, but I'm guessing that at least some of these gave a bunch of solvers trouble: NUCOR, FURMAN, LOGAN, LAMAR, NAST, NANTZ, SONYA ... interesting that the names are more concentrated in the middle and western parts of the grid (which were also the parts where I was slower). The DEMI MOORE clue would've been great if DEMI MOORE had annnnything to do with singing. But she doesn't. So it's just weird. (18A: Actress whose full name can be made from the letters of DO RE MI)

Beyond my struggles with the proper nouns I didn't know, there weren't that many real holdups. Had SENATE RUN instead of SENATE BID (47A: Congressional campaign). Biggest comprehension problem came at 33D: "Really, now? Really!?" ("CAN YOU NOT!?"), largely because those don't seem equivalent at all, to me. Or, rather, the clue seems like it might be uttered in any number of contexts, in any number of tones, while the answer has a very narrow range of meaning, i.e. "Stop it!" I actually had "CAN YOU, NOW?" written in the grid for a bit, which continues my weird habit this week of writing in answer that contain clue words, i.e. that are obviously incorrect. This error led to trouble with 61A: Tricks (GETS), which I had as GEWS, which led me to seriously consider that this was some slangy term (like GEWGAWS?) that had somehow managed to elude me lo these 50 years. Then I had trouble with MPG, which I thought might be MPH ... (???) ... I've never been in an electric car, so I don't know what MPG is being ... converted ... to (55D: No. that's converted for electric cars). This miniature train wreck in the far SW was probably the most significant slow-down for me (outside of NUCOR). I think the main lesson today is, don't Hallmark and solve, kids. Turn the TV off. "Christmas at Dollywood" will still be there for you when the puzzle's over.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

P.S. NAST is Thomas NAST, an enormously important political cartoonist who used to appear in the crossword more often (52D: Early illustrator of Uncle Sam). His cartoons are responsible for popularizing the donkey and elephant as symbols of our two major political parties.

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