FRIDAY, Apr. 2, 2010 — Don Gagliardo

THEME: Something about misreading negative-sounding prefixes, I think...


So I'm supposed to interpret DE-, ANTI-, UN-, and DIS- as having a negative meaning in words where they don't, in fact, have that meaning? But the "UN-" in "UNRELATED" does, in fact, have a negative significance, i.e. "NOT related." I get that you have clued it to have a different negative significance, but ... the whole concept just seems muddled and confusing. DISPOSITION and DENOMINATOR appear to be part of one puzzle (one that could easily have been a "Brooklyn speech" theme, i.e. DIS for "this," DE for "the"...), but ANTIPHONY and UNRELATED seem like lost dogs. As for the rest of the grid — nothing to write home about. OJIBWA looks pretty cool (22D: Algonquin kin), but is offset by the dreadful crosswordesey DORATI (33D: Budapest-born conductor Antal) ... which reminds me: this is an astonishingly musical puzzle. Too bad the whole thing comes across, in the end, as at least slightly OFF KEY (29D: Sharp or flat).

Theme answers:

• 20A: Caucus member changing his mind about a candidate? (DE-NOMINATOR)
• 30A: For the real thing? (ANTI-PHONY)
• 49A: Took back one's story? (UN-RELATED)
• 58A: Downsizing result? (DIS-POSITION) — ???

Also, GLOP is "food?" It's an insult you might hurl at food, I suppose. But it's not food. Definitions I'm seeing are all about its being gummy, gooey, shapeless, and repulsive. Had SLOP and GOOP before GLOP. Almost all the search returns I get for [glop food] involve cat food, which, yes, would be unappetizing. To me. Also unappetizing to me: most reality shows. I don't know how anyone tolerates a show called "Wife Swap." I would, however, be tempted to watch a show called "FROG SWAP" (colorful central line of the puzzle), but only if it was about French foreign exchange students.

Crosswordese 101: SERT (70A: League of Nations muralist) — I often confuse him with ERTE, for numerous, understandable reasons. SERT is a letter short of a mattress. Also a letter short of a horned helmet-wearing cartoon dog. Josep Lluís SERT (yes, that's his real, awesome name) was a Spanish architect and friend of all your big modern artists of the 20th century. Your Picassos, your Míros, your Calders, your Kinkades. OK, probably not that last one, but definitely the others.

What else?

• 26A: Timberlake with six Grammys (JUSTIN) — expect to see BIEBER in the puzzle in the near future. And a lot. He is the new JUSTIN of tween idoldom. Timberlake is still hot (and far more talented than I initially gave him credit for), but now pushing the ripe old age of 30. All hail the Age of BIEBER.

• 65A: Scary words from the boss (SEE ME) — Jeez. Paranoid much. Relax. Maybe you're getting a raise.
• 48D: Ruling (REGNANT) — if a student used that in a paper, I would write "SEE ME" in the margin and then advise him or her to put the SYNONYM-generator away and just use "ruling."

See you Monday,

~RP

[Follow Rex Parker on Twitter]

Everything Else — 1A: Cotton unit (BALE); 5A: "__ is life!" (SUCH); 9A: Earns a fink moniker (BLABS); 14A: Seine sights (ILES); 15A: Circular cookie (OREO); 16A: "__ Breath You Take": Police hit (EVERY); 17A: Unappetizing food (GLOP); 18A: Like some summer days (LAZY); 19A: Bach's "__ the G String" (AIR ON); 20A: Caucus member changing his mind about a candidate? (DENOMINATOR); 23A: Latin 101 verb (AMO); 24A: Freudian subject (EGO); 25A: Asgard ruler (ODIN); 26A: Timberlake with six Grammys (JUSTIN); 28A: Pointer (ARROW); 30A: For the real thing? (ANTIPHONY); 32A: Took it slow (LOAFED); 34A: Flow partner (EBB); 35A: City NW of Provo (OREM); 36A: Dan'l Webster, in a Twain story (FROG); 38A: Barter (SWAP); 40A: Take to the cleaners (SOAK); 43A: Remote abbr. (REW); 45A: Key of Chopin's "Military Polonaise" (A MAJOR); 49A: Took back one's story? (UNRELATED); 52A: Carry __ (A TUNE); 53A: "Gimme a minute!" ("NOT YET!"); 54A: Babysitter's bane (BRAT); 56A: Bug like a dog? (BEG); 57A: Cos. with ampersands, often (RRS); 58A: Downsizing result? (DISPOSITION); 61A: Choosing from a lineup, briefly (ID'ING); 63A: Smurf elder (PAPA); 64A: Thomas __ Edison (ALVA); 65A: Scary words from the boss (SEE ME); 66A: Not fer (AGIN'); 67A: Hammer part (PEEN); 68A: "To __ human ..." (ERR IS); 69A: Actress Sofer (RENA); 70A: League of Nations muralist (SERT); 1D: "So what?!" ("BIG DEAL!"); 2D: Swiftly, to Solti (ALLEGRO); 3D: Name associated with three Beethoven overtures (LEONORA); 4D: Hockey Hall of Fame nickname (ESPO); 5D: Reliable, as a citizen (SOLID); 6D: Muse holding a globe (URANIA); 7D: Matisse reportedly called him "the father of us all" (CEZANNE); 8D: Axton of country (HOYT); 9D: Endure (BEAR UP); 10D: VII x VIII (LVI); 11D: Oxygenating tool (AERATOR); 12D: Fire retardant chemical (BROMINE); 13D: Case, for instance? (SYNONYM); 21D: Yard machine (MOWER); 22D: Algonquin kin (OJIBWA); 27D: Patronize (SHOP AT); 29D: Sharp or flat (OFF KEY); 31D: "Superstation" letters (TBS); 33D: Budapest-born conductor Antal (DORATI); 37D: Hear clearly (GET); 39D: Early violin maker Andrea (AMATI); 40D: Common photo subject (SUNRISE); 41D: Due in soon (ON ORDER); 42D: Like a more pretentious museum patron (ARTSIER); 44D: Online resource (WEB PAGE); 46D: Golden __: 50th anniversary (JUBILEE); 47D: Like a bogey, to a golfer (ONE OVER); 48D: Ruling (REGNANT); 50D: Cliff features (LEDGES); 51D: Visit unexpectedly (DROP IN); 55D: Yoga posture (ASANA); 59D: Trade punches (SPAR); 60D: Last melody? (TAPS); 62D: Application form abbr. (NMI).