Constructor: Jennifer Lee and Victor Galson
Relative difficulty: Easy
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THEME: a handful of poetic ... punchlines? ... by OGDEN Nash (39A: Poet Nash, who wrote the lines in 17-, 24-, 47- and 58-Across) — that's it:
Theme answers:
I don't really know what to do with this. I don't see how it qualifies as a theme. You just ... thumb through a book of OGDEN Nash poems and find some of his presumably infinite "joke" phrases that you can turn into a set of symmetrical answers and ... tada? I see that all the "jokes" are about animals. I don't know why. So can I put THEY FEELS in the grid because of![]()
I'll admit OGDEN Nash is clever, but I'm just not sure punchline parts make the best fill. Also, I don't know why today is OGDEN Nash day. Is it his birthday? Did he redie? Nope, wikipedia tells me neither of those surmises is true. Wikipedia also tells me that he wrote "over 500" pieces of light verse, so you know, if this theme somehow tickled you, there's a *ton* more fodder there. Go to town, I guess. More things I don't get: why the revealer is a *first* name. That's not bad, but it is weird. It's not like he's known simply as OGDEN. He's not Oprah. Also, OGDEN (we're on a first-name basis now) is like AMAHL to me in that I know of him *exclusively* from crosswords (shout-out to all the enthusiastic AMAHL fans I heard from yesterday). I think I learned about OGDEN's existence from the whole ONE-L lama two-L llama three-L lllama (i.e. "three-alarmer," as in a type of fire) "joke" which used to feature frequently in clues for ONEL, along with the Scott Turow book of the same name, which I've also never seen in the wild (ONEL is hardcore crosswordese and doesn't come around so much these days). Anyway, the grid is filled with random phrases that mean nothing on their own. When I look at the grid, THE OTHER MILK is just sitting there staring at me as if daring me to guess what THE OTHER MILK is. It's like the back half of some industry slogan, à la "Pork: The Other White Meat." E.g. "PILLS: THE OTHER MILK." Something like that. Anyway, if you like light verse, well, here you go, I guess. I don't think it's much of a basis for a theme, esp. since finding symmetrical phrases in a book doesn't seem particularly thoughtful or clever, but I guess if you think OGDEN is thoughtful or clever, then that's good enough.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
Relative difficulty: Easy
THEME: a handful of poetic ... punchlines? ... by OGDEN Nash (39A: Poet Nash, who wrote the lines in 17-, 24-, 47- and 58-Across) — that's it:
Theme answers:
- "... TO TELL US WHY" (17A: "God in his wisdom made the fly / And then forgot ...")
- "... OR IS THEY LEGS?" (24A: ""Tell me, O Octopus, I begs, / Is those things arms ...?")
- "... THE OTHER MILK" (47A: "The cow is of the bovine ilk; / One end is moo, ...")
- "... BECOMES A CAT" (58A: "The trouble with a kitten is that / Eventually it ...")
Roti (also known as chapati) is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent made from stoneground whole wheat flour, traditionally known as gehu ka atta, and water that is combined into a dough. Roti is consumed in many countries worldwide. Its defining characteristic is that it is unleavened. Naan from the Indian subcontinent, by contrast, is a yeast-leavened bread, as is kulcha. Like breads around the world, roti is a staple accompaniment to other foods. (wikipedia)
• • •
I don't mind eelsExcept as meals.And the way ___
How about BEEN PEPPERED? Is that ... good?
The panther is like a leopardExcept it hasn't ___
The longer fill is pretty lively, which I appreciate. I genuinely perked up at MOCKTAIL, and "STEP ON IT!,"NEW RELEASE, and "NOW SEE HERE!" are all strong entries. "IT" gets repeated in FACE IT, but I only noticed that just now, so it (!) hardly matters. The only answers I'd send back to the crossword scrap heap are EWW DOO and EDUCE, who together make up the barbershop quartet that greets you in hell (in hell, quartets are trios, and no one bothers to explain). That's all, I think. If remembering OGDEN is your thing, you're in luck. Otherwise, less so. Good day.
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
P.S. cats are better than kittens, so I don't know what OGDEN's problem is there
Edifying footnote:
