Good Morning Cruciverbalists, Malodorous Manatee here with the lowdown on a Friday puzzle by Wendy L. Brandes. Not unlike the puzzle we solved two weeks ago, our constructor (and editor) have elected to go with a bit of "letter play". In this instance, as is often the case, the key to figuring out what is going on lies within the reveal. Today, that is located at:
52 Across: Cheer heard in the Bronx, or a phonetic hint for making the starred clues match their answers: LET'S GO YANKEES.
Well, that's crystal clear. Not! First, this solver, a lifelong Dodgers fan and son of a Brooklyn-born mother had to get past the fact that the answer is something that would never, ever pass my lips. Second, it seems to mean absolutely nothing. Of course that is never the case with these things. Okay, then, what does it mean? After a bit of head scratching the light bulb began to glow, albeit dimly. The first step was to notice the EA letter combination in each clue. Perhaps the key was there. While the EA thing did prove to be something of a dead end it at least set this solver's feet on the right path. It's the E! Get rid of the E. YANK the EES! Or, if you prefer, Let's Go Yank EES. Without the Es in the clues, the relationship between the clues and the answers does make sense. Here are the three places where this bit of legerdemain is employed:
20 Across. *Bean poles: STRIKE LEADERS. Bean Poles morphs into Ban Pols when we YANK (delete) the E's. Ban Politicans is roughly equivalent to Strike (as is delete) your Leaders. Bob Dylan said it best.
27. *Beat poet: WITCHES CAULDRON. Beat Poet morphs into Bat Pot when we yank the E's. Witches reportedly use bats (not in the baseball sense), or parts thereof, as ingredients when concocting their brews in their caldrons (large pots).
43. *Came clean: PHOTOGRAPHY CLUB. Came Clean morphs into Cam Clan. In this case a Clan (group) of Camera enthusiasts.
This how it all appears in the grid:
And, here, now, the rest of the story:
1. Like dumping someone via text: COLD. A bit of slang to start. Neil will explain. It should not require an Astrophysicist to explain the first clue/answer but, hey, resources are resources.
16. Biblical preposition: UNTO. And lo, an angel appeared UNTO the prophet Isaiah, and said:
17. Feature of the "Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas" sign: NEON.
18. Green energy option: SOLAR. Green as in eco-freindly.
19. Not superficial: DEEP.
25. Drink suffix: ADE. As in lemonaADE or GatorADE or PowerADE.
32. Zones: AREAS.
33. Word on Rhode Island's flag: HOPE.
34. 525,600 minutes: YEAR. Anyone bother to check the math?
35. Starts bubbling, maybe: BOILS.
37. Slumps: DIPS. Hand up for first thinling SAGS.
41. "It's __ real": BEEN.
42. Greeting on a name tag: HELLO, my name is....
50. Assistance: AID.
51. G7 member: USA. The Pols change, the countries remain the same.
57. "Holidays Symphony" composer Charles: IVES.
58. "Inferno" poet: DANTE.
59. Pride constituent: LION. Not a reference to sexual preference. Here, kitty, kitty.
62. Actress Spelling: TORI.
63. __ Hebrides: INNER. See also 49 Across. The southernmost of the INNER Hebrides is Islay, famous for its peated whisky.
64. Movie concessions purchase: SODA. Popcorn was far too long to fit.
65. Latin infinitive: ESSE.
66. "Yikes!": EGADS. Something that someone might say. Thanks, perps.
67. Concludes: ENDS.
11. In __ and out ...: ONE EAR.
12. Omelet bar burner: STERNO.
13. Boards: HOPS ON. As in she HOPS ON the bus. Another one . . .
21. Fan sounds: RAHS. E.G. sports fans. Not something to cool the room.
22. Qualified: ABLE.
23. On vacation: AWAY. Okay, but next Yuletide are we going to sing "On vacation in a manger..."?
24. Medium of many a Calder mobile: WIRE.
28. Mustang, for one: CAR. Not a (direct) horse reference.
29. Home of the Terracotta Army: CHINA. This solver first thought of XIAN but it was too short so settled for the less specific answer.
30. Email pioneer: AOL. Remember all of those free floppy discs?
31. FedEx rival: UPS.
35. Plead: BEG. As a youngster, my daughter BEGged me to play as a horse. I begrudgingly agreed...I didn't really want to be a neigh sayer.
54. Yin and __: YANG.