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İçerik Tablosu
WEDNESDAY PUZZLE — Some grammarians balk at the use of intensifiers to describe extremes of emotion. Of particular contention, for example, is the use of the word “literally” — you’re “literally dead” in response to something funny, Sam? Really?
I often think of an article by Chi Luu, a linguist, that explained the emergence of new intensifiers in everyday speech as follows: “Familiarity breeds contempt.”
In other words, we get bored with the intensifiers we already have (such as “very”) as overuse renders them less emphatic, so we go foraging for new ones. Thus, “literally,” “dead” — and yes, eventually “literally dead.”
Today’s Theme
As you might have predicted, my choice of words above was hinting at the inner workings of Mr. Hrynick’s theme. It’s cleverly crafted, and comes crashing into focus in the best way possible.
Our three themed entries at 25-, 40- and 51-Across seem to be songs by different musical artists — but solving them appears to rely on an earlier clue at 18-Across, “Runaway best seller.” I’ll give you this one: It’s a SMASH HIT.
Now we’re looking for something that makes our entry at 25-Across, for example, qualify as a SMASH HIT “by Miley Cyrus, in two ways.” The answer may have come easily to anyone who remembers the artist’s music video for the song in question — WRECKING BALL. Another two-way banger hits in the form of Peter Gabriel’s SLEDGEHAMMER (51A).
Mr. Hrynick brings his theme home with one last pun at 64-Across: “What 25-, 40- and 51-Across might originally have appeared on, appropriately?”
That would be a DEMO TAPE, short for demonstration — or in this case, demolition.
Tricky Clues
16A. Depending on your choice of machinery or software, you might refer to this “Printing specification” as something else. Here, it’s TYPE SIZE (and woe to those who spent too long with “font” in their boxes).
44A. Another word for a “Newbie” is a TYRO. I’m amazed to discover that this word appears somewhat frequently in puzzles, since this is the first I’m hearing of it — though I suppose I now qualify as a tyro in my use of the term. How do you like that?
46A. Whenever I see the word DUPE, which is a “Replica, informally,” I hear it in a TikTok timbre.
69A. The “Industry term for action-ready film locales” is HOT SETS. Not only had I never heard this phrase, but I also got stuck on a sneaky misdirect with the crossing Down clue — a “Durham” that isn’t in North Carolina! — that nearly Naticked my lower-left corner.
13D. “How much it’s gonna cost” comes off a little slangy, cuing us to its corresponding figure of speech — THE DAMAGE.
34D. I’ve heard of a trapeze artist, but a TRAPEZIST feels a little flighty. The term for a “Cirque du Soleil performer” hasn’t swung into a Times grid since 1955.
49D. “Soupçon” is a word borrowed from French that we use to mean SMIDGE. Its definition in French is “suspicion,” which is perhaps the metaphorical intention in our English version, too: an amount so small that one can only suspect its presence.
60D. It’s rare to see a clue that tells a story, but “‘Pierce film with fork’ might be the first one” felt like a work of flash fiction. The clue describes a STEP, presumably from the instructions for a frozen dinner. Who’s eating it, I wonder? A single meal for a lonely heart?
Constructor Notes
I’m a professional crossword solver and occasional physical laborer in my hometown, Winnipeg, Manitoba. (If my bosses are reading this, I should stress that this last sentence is what we in the crossword industry call a “joke.”) The idea for this puzzle came through a kind of “music league” I’m in. We had to come up with songs with great intros. A certain Peter Gabriel banger won, and when I realized that I had half a theme set with a certain other Miley Cyrus banger, I was on my way. I would like to thank Christina Iverson, along with the other Times editors; the columnists; my friends; my family; and everyone else who helps out new constructors! I would also like to apologize in advance to every crossword editor — I might just send you puzzles for the rest of my life.
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