My time: 17:13, two and half minutes slower than average. I knew there was probably a rebus but I didn't catch on to it very quickly, and I found several clues to be confoundingly vague. Everything just went against me AB OVO (from the start).
Theme: SMALL BUSINESSES — that is, four answers contain letter strings that represent business (CO, INC, LTD, and LLC) and these go in one square, rebus style, so they are "small."
"NBA stat" is PPG, or Points Per Game. The all-time leader is Michael Jordan with 30.12.
I had a hard time remembering MC REN of N.W.A. fame. His moniker is derived from the middle letters in his first name (Lorenzo).
"Broker's request for funds" left me stumped, because I know virtually nothing about the finance world. It's MARG[IN C]ALL. A margin call occurs when the value of an investor's margin account falls below the broker's required amount. An investor's margin account contains securities bought with borrowed money (typically a combination of the investor's own money and money borrowed from the investor's broker). A margin call refers specifically to a broker's demand that an investor deposit additional money or securities into the account so that it is brought up to the minimum value, known as the maintenance margin.
James Merritt IVES is a pioneer in American lithography. He oversaw the business and financial side of the firm, Currier and Ives, which he co-managed with his business partner, Nathaniel Currier. The firm called itself "the Grand Central Depot for Cheap and Popular Prints" and advertised its lithographs as "colored engravings for the people."
The clue "literally, 'way of the gods'" made me thinking Latin like via deo or something. Nope, it's SHINTO.
The capital of Apulia, Italy, is BARI. Apulia is famed for its historical villages, coastline, and ancient fortress. BARI is known for its coastline, beaches, and orecchiette (ear-shaped pasta).
"Game with sets a runs" is GIN RUMMY and, sadly, not cribbage. At least it wasn't melds this time.
Did you know a LITER is about seven glasses of wine (or, I guess, any liquid)? Start guzzling.
"Winner of a record 26 Oscars" is WA[LT D]ISNEY. Wikipedia lists his total as 22, plus three honorary awards.
An Olympic site with three letters is RIO, but swimmer Katie Ledecky (who won four golds there) was in the puzzle on March 5, 2018.
SUVA, the capital of Fiji, last came up on July 1.
Clever clues: "Highlighter of tihs clue?" is SPE[LLC]HECK. "Faces of the digital age?" is EMOTI[CO]NS. "Legal limits?' is ELS. "A one-hit Wonder he's not" is STEVIE.
This was a tough one for me, but not because it was a poorly constructed crossword. I'm just a bit slow lately, and couldn't parse the clues correctly. Just for one example, I kept thinking of a word for a specific costume for "certain tailored suit" when it wanted a brand, ARMANI. Except for the atrocious IN E clue about some stupid symphony, it was a well-done puzzle.
Happy new year!
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