Matthew Stock combines two things he is very fond of.
WEDNESDAY PUZZLE — Sometimes it’s nice to get a totally different point of view, so today we have a special guest columnist. Peter Biddlecombe, who has solved for us before, is the editor of the Sunday Times crossword in London, among other pursuits, and he was kind enough to sit in to talk about Matthew Stock’s puzzle.
He has continued to solve the New York Times Crossword and, at this point, he has sharpened his American-style crossword solving skills to the point where he is undoubtedly ready to take on the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament champion, Dan Feyer — no pressure, Mr. Biddlecombe.
Let’s see what he had to say about Matthew Stock’s puzzle.
This was an enjoyable and relatively easy puzzle, completed about 20 percent faster than my Wednesday average, according to the iPad app’s records (time estimated, as the real duration included recording facts for this column).
As you’ll see below, the theme included knowledge I didn’t have, but that’s part of the deal in solving crosswords from another culture.
Tricky Clues
That’s tricky from my trans-Atlantic and otherwise personal point of view. The hardest part of the puzzle for me was the “three o’clock” area.
34A. RDA: I should really have seen that the clue’s apparent complexity was caused by needing a new clue for a well-used answer.
40A. UNCLE seems to be a U.S. informal clued by another U.S. informal (“I give!”), so that was tough for me.
29A. PAC was a bit of definite Americana. 43A’s STAKES was penciled in first.
29D. I’d managed to convince myself that PRINK made sense as the answer. It can mean “make minor adjustments to one’s appearance” but “pierce slightly” is an overspecific interpretation, and PRICK makes far more sense, of course.
30D. The fairly common answer ADELE had to emerge from checkers, as I’m also pretty hopeless on pop music (and even more so, present-day pop).
31D. CAFES needed similar help — there must be quite a few things you might see on that street.
Other late entries:
The 42A/36D EGOS/LIGER crossing — partly as my brain managed to combine the right answer with TIGON and generate “LIGON” as a hybrid of hybrids, which fairly soon was rejected. 42A was tricky but fair. As far as I know, there are no three-letter cymbals, and amateur trombone playing, along with a few friends in professional music, has given me a few stories about egos.
18D. HIT THE WEIGHTS was another late one, as knowing the U.S. informal word “swole” was the key to what was being hit.
The top third or so of the grid went in pretty easily, so 20A’s THE KING’S SPEECH was filled in quite soon from checking letters.
Of the big four U.S. team sports, I have some knowledge of football and baseball, both of which have had coverage on terrestrial channels, though the baseball ended quite a few years ago. For basketball and hockey, I know just a few players’ and teams’ names, so I had to deduce the Sacramento Kings as a team, and I thought that film titles might be the other element in the theme but also wondered whether other playing cards or chess pieces might be found in teams’ names.
Next theme answer seen was 46A’s THE GREEN HORNETS, after deciding that APPS couldn’t be the answer for 49D, with APP used elsewhere (27D). This answer suggested that all three might start with “the,” but the team name was another unknown and, this time, so was the film.
35A’s THE PELICAN BRIEF should really have been easier, though part of the delay might have been from waiting to make the RNA/DNA choice at 37D (filed in my mind as being on the same level with “Mauna ___”), as a source of one definite letter, compared with the two here. I knew of the book, and a film version seemed pretty well guaranteed — and although I had never been to the Big Easy, the pelican connection seemed the one most connected with reality in the three teams’ names.
Today’s Theme
Movie titles are reimagined as wacky puns on things that selected N.B.A. teams might do. For example, at 46A, the answer to the clue “Charlotte N.B.A. player in charge of recycling?” is THE GREEN HORNET, from the Charlotte Hornets and the fact that recycling is a green activity.
Constructor Notes
Very surprised and excited to be back in The Times so soon! This puzzle was my first New York Times Crossword acceptance, which came in March 2020. I love basketball and movies, so it was really fun for me to hit on a theme that combined the two. I’m happy to see the finished product out in the world!
When narrowing down a consistent set of theme entries, I decided to rule out any nonplural team name (Magic, Thunder, etc.) so that the clues could all be smoothly worded with a singular-player-focused play on words. I also enjoyed the added constraint of the “The ___ ___” pattern, which ruled out some options I had seen before, like “Raging Bull.” If I were making this puzzle today, I’d definitely have wanted to feature at least one W.N.B.A. team in the mix as well, though I’m still pleased with how this early constructing effort turned out.
Many, many thanks go to Sid Sivakumar, who helped me lay out the lower word count grid with the two snazzy 13s running through all three theme entries, and to members of the editing team for their thoughtful clue changes throughout (16-Across, 42-Across and 46-Down are my favorite additions). Hope you enjoyed!
If you’re interested in making puzzles and want help getting started (or you’re a crossword veteran who wants help getting connected with mentees), please get in touch! You can find me on Twitter (@1Matthew Stock) or on my blog.
The Tipping Point
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Warning: There be spoilers ahead, but subscribers can take a peek at the answer key.
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