Ryan and Brian Do Crosswords

We here at the BeMoreSmarter headquarters officially don’t like the Philadelphia Phillies, even if we here in Brian’s head don’t actually care. It’s solidarity, and if Ryan hates the Phillies, then so do I.

Sadly, do you know what goes along with hating the Phillies? Hating fans of the Phillies. And today, that specifically means Barry C. Silk, Friend and Confidante of Doug Peterson, Crossword Gentleman and Man About Town. Barry has chosen a Friday on which to provide us with a Saturday Stumper, even though that’s Newsday’s thing and this is the New York Times. Clearly, there has been a mix-up. Did you get stuck with an unsolvable puzzle like we did? Let’s look.

Gaping Chasms of Ignorance:

• 10D. ___ Heights (GOLAN) and 21A. Mythical Hun king (ATLI). I don’t think Joon Pahk can get on my case for this one. Maybe he’ll argue that I should know ATLI, but I will argue back that he forgets I have a music degree. As for the crossing, we’ve got two proper names, neither of which actually exists. [NOTE: Upon further examination, it seems that Atli is a variant on Attila. We thought Attila the Hun was real. Someone – Joon – please explain.]
• 15D. 2001-05 Pontiac made in Mexico (AZTEK) and 28A. Converted from coal via distillation (COKED). What the hell? All I could tell was that it wasn’t AZTEC, because I had C—ED, and C-CED didn’t make any sense any which way. The crossing here is the K, but we’ve never heard of coking. Coke is for drinking (if you’re Ryan). Coke Zero is also for drinking (if you’re Brian).
• 34D. They help with dating (TREE RINGS), 31A. 1980s El Salvadoran president (DUARTE) and 48A. Sacrifice site, in Siena (ARA). I broke through this southeast corner with great pride when I came up with this entry for 34D: GREETINGS. Absolutely, when you’re beginning to date someone, the beginning of each date is crucial – the way you say hello, be it with flowers, a kiss, a wave from the hired limo, whatever. GREETINGS are pretty important. And since ATA seemed as likely a place in Siena as ARA… and DUARGE might as well be someone from El Salvador… why not?

[NOTE: Here’s why not – 54D. Representation of 34-Down: Abbr. is YRS, which doesn’t make any sense with GREETINGS. Although now that I read it, “Representation of tree rings: Abbr.” sure seems clunky…]

Entries Which I Don’t Know (Or Think Need To Be Challenged):

• 16A. Spendthrift’s antithesis : STINTER. My favorite online definition of STINTER is “an economizer who stints someone with something.” Thank you, Free Online Dictionary.
• 23A. National park with the Pink Cliffs : BRYCE CANYON
• 25D. Fancy to a fault : ADULATE. I don’t understand. “To praise excessively.” What is faulty about this?
• 37A. They won’t cover your back : HALTERS. Stupid me, I had HATTERS in here for a while, and kept thinking it was pretty random.
• 38A. Hand over : RENDER. I had TENDER in here for a very long time, making 1D a complete mystery to me.
• 39D. Below C level? : POOR. What does this mean?
• 41D. 18 or 21, typically : OF AGE. This seems weird. I understand that “He is of age” and “He is 18” means it passes the substitution test. But it still seems weird.
• 52A. Acronym for a kind of PC video screen display : WYSIWYG. This stands for What You See Is What You Get. I have never ever heard this used in reference to a “PC video screen display.” In my experience, it refers to the reliability of a printed product to resemble its on-screen counterpart. This clue suggests that the acronym refers to the screen, not the image on the screen. Very misleading. [NOTE: I got this one anyway.]
• 59A. They don’t move quickly : LARGOS. I don’t like the use of “largo” as a noun.

Gimmes, the Few and Far Between:

• 3D. TIgers’ place : PRINCETON. My first guess was AL CENTRAL, but this was second.
• 29A. Tibia neighbors : PATELLAS. Other than “does it end with an S or an E?” this was easy. I may know nothing about mythology, but bones are a specialty.
• 30D. Fine with the Stooges : LARRY. The effort to play on the word Fine did not do anything to trick me.
• 33D. Take another good look at : RE-EXAMINE
• 37D. Hobby with call signs : HAM RADIO
• 43A. Washington locale : VALLEY FORGE. I don’t know why I knew this, but I did.

So there it was. Barry C. Silk has double-trumped us here with the Phillies and the Friday. Good luck in the World Series, Barry. I have put a hex on Chase Utley and Ryan Howard. What you see is not what you get. Muahahahaha!