Constructor: Derrick Niederman
Relative difficulty: Easy
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THEME:"Opposites Attract" — theme answers contain letter strings composed of two "opposite" words:
Theme answers:
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I thought this was a perfectly decent Sunday puzzle. It's got a consistent and clever theme that delivers lively theme answers. The concept was pretty transparent, and that transparency made the puzzle much easier to solve. The only themer I can imagine giving anyone any trouble is KARLA BONOFF, which was easily my favorite themer since, for once, I Knew The Obscure Trivia Clue! Ding Ding Ding! Jackpot! I knew my number had to come up some day, and today was the day. I stumbled on KARLA BONOFF when I was deep into an early '80s pop music phase (one which I am arguable still in). I started listening to the Top 40 charts, including (and especially) those songs that I'd never heard of, and KARLA BONOFF's"Personally" (see video, above) was one of those minor hits. I remember reading that she had gone on to have greater success as a songwriter than as a performer, but since that day I read about her, I haven't thought much about her at all ... until today! I had the "ONOFF" part and thought, "ONOFF ... BONOFF ... is this ... it can't be KARLA BONOFF ... [checks crosses] ... omg yessssss it is!" Ok so I spelled it CARLA at first but whatever, I knew her! Please allow me to enjoy my feeling of pop culture trivia dominance for one moment .... OK, that's enough, thank you.
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HEART OF ROMAINE was probably the toughest themer for me to come up with, since I just would've said a Caesar salad has Romaine (lettuce) in it. Had HEART OF and thought "HEART OF ... ARTICHOKE? What is even happening here?" But HEART OF ROMAINE is a real enough thing (though they're possibly more often called "Romaine hearts"). The only time I balked at the theme was when I got to PANDORA; I just don't know if "AND" is really the "opposite" of "OR." I think "NOR" is the opposite of "OR." AND and OR certainly go together, all the time, but on a strictly technical level I wonder if "opposite" is, uh, apposite. Most folks are probably not going to blink at the pairing, and at worst it's a minor glitch. The fill on this one is quite solid. I just wish I hadn't ended on BEGEM! Such bad luck to wrap things up with the cringiest word in the whole grid. Everyone knows that [Deck out with spangles] is BEDAZZLE. I can't imagine BEGEM in a sentence. I'd've torn that whole corner out just to be rid of BEGEM, which my brain is resisting so hard it's decided to parse it BEG 'EM, i.e. "I'm gonna BEG 'EM not to put BEGEM in any puzzles ever again!"
Bullets:
Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld
Relative difficulty: Easy
Theme answers:
- ALFRED NOYES (24A: English poet who wrote "The Highwayman") (them & us)
- POOR RICHARD (30A: Early American pseudonym) (poor & rich)
- FACE THE MUSIC (37A: Accept imminent punishment) (them & us)
- HEART OF ROMAINE (68A: Caesar salad ingredient) (to & from)
- FIX BREAKFAST (98A: Scramble some eggs, say) (fix & break)
- ENDODONTICS (107A: Branch of dentistry that specializes in root canals) (do & don't)
- KARLA BONOFF (114A: Noted songwriter behind Wynonna Judd's "Tell Me Why" and Linda Ronstadt's "All My Life") (on & off)
- ROUTINE (46D: Same old, same old) (out & in)
- PANDORA (55D: Her name is Greek for "all-gifted") (and & or)
Karla Bonoff (born December 27, 1951) is an American singer-songwriter. While Bonoff has released a number of albums, she is primarily known for her songwriting. Bonoff's songs include "Home," covered by Bonnie Raitt, "Tell Me Why" by Wynonna Judd, and "Isn't It Always Love" by Lynn Anderson.
Most notably, Linda Ronstadt recorded several Bonoff songs, including three tracks on the 1976 album Hasten Down the Wind ("Someone To Lay Down Beside Me", "Lose Again" and "If He's Ever Near"), which introduced Bonoff to a mass audience, and "All My Life", a 1989 duet with Ronstadt and Aaron Neville. (wikipedia)
["I got something to give you / That the mailman / Can't deliver..."]
• • •
The other moment where I felt my specific specialized knowledge was a kind of superpower today was a moment many of you probably shared as well—it was the moment my crosswordese knowledge finally paid off in a big way with ALFRED NOYES! Does anyone outside of inveterate crossword solvers know that guy? Not sure, but knowing old whatshisname sure helped today. I somehow got FACETHEMUSIC first, and couldn't do anything with "THEMUS," but then ALFRED NOYES went in and I remembered that Sunday puzzles have titles and ... that was that. Theme sorted, right ... here:
- 28A: Persian ___ (rugmaker's deliberate mistake) (FLAW) — so ... just [Mistake], then? (such a weird clue—see also 75A: Flying ___ (martial arts strike) (KNEE))
- 89D: Meeting with a dead line? (SEANCE) — is "line" supposed to have genealogical significance? Like bloodline? Because in a SEANCE you're communicating with your relatives? Or is the "line" like a "telephone line," i.e. you use it to talk (to the "dead")? Probably the latter.
- 70D: One who gave us all a lift? (OTIS) — in that he gave us (i.e. the world) the elevator, sure
- 47D: He set a Guinness World Record in 2014, reporting for 34 consecutive hours (AL ROKER) — well that's pre-Katrina so I cannot conceive of why Al would be on air for that long ... oh, looks like it was some kind of fund-raising dealie for the USO.
- 118A: ___ Martell, "Game of Thrones" princess (ELIA)— you can "GOT" the clue all you want, but it's still crosswordese to me
- 90A: Norman or English king? (LEAR)— So Good! My fav clue of the day! I teach literature from the period of British history that contains both Norman and English kings ... but here the "Norman" is famed sitcom creator and producer Norman LEAR. "All in the Family"! "Sanford & Son!" And then there's "Maude!"
- 52A: Bird associated with bats (ORIOLE) — because of the Major League Baseball team the Baltimore Orioles, I assume
- 72A: It's over here (END) — definitely the answer I spent the most time staring at confusedly. Couldn't make sense of it. I think if "the" had been in front of END I would've understood it sooner (when you come to the END of something ... "it's over")
Speaking of the END: see you tomorrow.
P.S. about 49D: Northernmost N.B.A. city, on scoreboards (TOR)—POR and MIN would like a word ...
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]
Fun fact, despite the whole “we the north” mantra and the latest #nytxw, the Toronto Raptors aren’t actually the most north NBA team @NytReview@rexparkerhttps://t.co/879EHekVPK
— Luke Scholefield (@lukescholefield) September 11, 2022
[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter and Facebook]