Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium. Avery- 6:29. Sammy- 6:47.
THEME: Things That Strike— All theme clues use the word strike in a different way.
- BOWLING BALL (16A: What might be rolled for a strike)
- MIDNIGHT (25A: What a clock might strike)
- LIGHTNING (37A: What might strike during a storm)
- EMPLOYEE (52A: Who might go on strike)
- INSPIRATION (62A: What might strike you during this puzzle)
Edward James Olmos (born February 24, 1947) is an American actor, director, producer, and activist.[2] He is best known for his roles as Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo inMiami Vice (1984–1989), actor in and director ofAmerican Me (1992),William Adama in the re-imaginedBattlestar Galactica (2004–2009), teacherJaime Escalante inStand and Deliver (1988), and DetectiveGaff inBlade Runner (1982) and its sequelBlade Runner 2049 (2017). In 2018, he played the father of two members of an outlaw motorcycle club in theFX seriesMayans MC. (Wikipedia)
• • •Good morning! For those experiencing unseasonable snows, our hearts are with you. For those without power or clear roads, you are in the same boat as our regular crossword king. So we are writing about the crossword today! Our names are Avery and Sammy, housemates and good pals. We’re about to graduate from Rex’s alma mater; today is, in fact, our last day of undergrad. Doing the crossword together/competing for speed-solve champion is a longstanding tradition for us two amateur solvers and novice bloggers. Here we go!
The rest of the grid put up little resistance, and the theme made it almost…slippery. With all the single black squares peppered throughout the center, there were no crafty, satisfying downs to offset the somewhat lackluster themers.
Some highlights:
VELOUR is an excellent imagistic word. My (Sammy) favorite answer in the grid. Everyone looks good in a velour tracksuit and if you don’t think so, try one on.
TRYNA shows that the NYT doesn’t get modern slang wrong all of the time (only much of it). This is, to my ear, a correct use of the word TRYNA. I imagine this answer might be a sticking point for some, but the acrosses should be easy enough to get it done.
If it wasn’t Passover, I (Sammy) might make baked ZITI for dinner. And the STANZA cross was nice.
The NCAA makes more than 85% of its revenue from March Madness. Presumably, the other 15% comes from crossword royalties given how frequently it’s mentioned.
I (Avery) had an embarrassing stumble at 35D (Name on Woody’s shoe in Toy Story). I wrote ALAN. I solve my crosswords alone in my room, usually first thing in the morning, which today was a good thing. No one was around to see the shame of forgetting the iconic ANDY across Woody’s shoe. Luckily the crosses were easy-peasy and I corrected myself quickly.