Monday, 1/22

CS 3:48
NYS 3:25
LAT 2:48
NYT 2:43

(post updated a wee bit at 8:50 a.m. Monday)

Adam Cohen's Sun puzzle, "Names of the Past," is a sheer delight. At least, it's wonderful if you're one of those solvers who like having plenty of people's names in the grid (I am), especially when it's supplemented by still more pop culture (huzzah!). Extra bonus points for crossing CHARLIE ROSE with I'M IN LOVE—a dear friend of mine adores CR. Favorite clues/entries: all five theme entries (people whose last names are past-tense verbs), [Ice cream extra] for MIX-IN (I like to add Heath Bar mix-ins to chocolate ice cream), [Shout at 11:59:59 P.M. on December 31] for ONE, WORMHOLE, [Friend of Dorothée] for AMIE. And I'm so glad there was an NYT clue last week for an XFL player, which inspired people to reminisce about the player who replaced his name with HE HATE ME on his jersey, because I would not have known the answer (XFL) for the related clue here.

C.W. Stewart's NYT has an accessible theme (for drivers, at least) of six road signs. Having a COP in the bottom right corner is a nice touch, though what are the odds of seeing a cop [in your rearview mirror if you ignore the above signs] if the sign says NO PARKING? I think cops prefer to lie in wait until you've left the car so they can plunk a ticket on your windshield.

Updated:

I encountered an unfamiliar word in Mel Rosen's CrosSynergy puzzle, "Bug-Free"—the answer to [Mayor with judicial powers] is ALCALDE, a Spanish title taken from the Arabic. Up until California became a U.S. state in the mid-1800s, the title was used for the elected official in charge of San Francisco—after statehood, he was the mayor.