Crossword Nation : 2018-10-16 : Week 385 : TAKING A KNEE

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Time: 8:56

As always, Liz Gorski’s Tuesday crossword was a far more enjoyable solve than The NY Times Tuesday. The “Taking a Knee” theme definitely included some references that went over my head, but I had a general sense of what was going on. Add the “knee” sound to some answers to match the wacky clues:


  • “Musical category created by Knute & the Sex Pistols?” PUNK ROCKNE. This one made very little sense to me, because I’ve never heard of Knute Rockne, Norte Dame football coach of the early 20th century. I don’t feel too bad about not knowing this one. 
  • “Top designed by a wireless wizard?” MARCONI POLO. Yup, this was the first one to make sense to me.
  • “Megaphones for sideshow barkers?” CARNY HORNS. No proper nouns here, so it’s probably the easiest to parse.
  • “Rubble v. Fife boxing match?” BARNEY FIGHT. I didn’t know Barney Fife from The Andy Griffith Show, so this one mostly elicited a “Huh?” I would have preferred a Rubble v Gumble fight. My money is on Barney Gumble, after seeing him take down Wade Boggs. 
I liked “Hitchcock’s ‘DIAL M for Murder,’” but as long as we’re talking about the Simpsons, why not McClure’s “Dial M for Murderessness?”

PECAN PIE and YAMS? Sounds like Liz was in a Thanksgiving mood this week. 

Tonight I’ll be taking the four hour bus ride from Ruwais to Dubai. Just four weeks until my flight to O’HARE. 

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