NYT Crossword, 0921

This was a hard puzzle, made so in part because of a few quirks of the puzzle. It seemed that there was an inordinate amount of proper names in this puzzle and some really tricky, as in 'trick', clues. I'm also just not a fan of 'common phrasal' answers of which there were several (like 'on a tear', 'end it', 'cash in', 'CD rates', 'true to' etc. OK, I didn't even get close to finishing this on my own.

The thematic answers are particularly educational this time, so I'll got through them. The theme was 'It's a Mystery', and 109-Across provided a helpful clue: Ones in charge of a case . . . or a literal hint to the eight other longest answers in this puzzle = LEAD DETECTIVES:

• School in Madison, NJ = DREW UNIVERSITY (reference = Nancy Drew. Family inside joke: "...A horrible Gorilla face!")
• "The Divine Comedy." for Dante = MAGNUM OPUS (reference = Magnum PI. We used to watch this pretty faithfully when I was a kid.)
• Don't believe it = FISH STORY (reference = Detective Phil Fish. From Barney Miller, played by Abe Vigoda. Got his own spin-off show for a while.)
  
• Track-and-field event = HAMMER THROW (reference = Mike Hammer. Crime novels by Mickey Spillane - I think I saw a TV version once, with Stacey Keach.)
• Dropped off = FELL ASLEEP (reference = Dr. Gideon Fell. Crime novels by John Dickson Carr. The name 'Dr. Fell' sounds familiar, but it's not ringing any concrete bells.)
• Pantry array = MASON JARS (reference = Perry Mason. This may have started out as novels, but I'm sure what most people remember is the TV show. Raymond Burry goodness.)
• Beloved figure in England = QUEEN MOTHER (reference = Ellery Queen. Eveyone who likes mystery stories has heard of him, but have they read him?)
• Card game played to 61 = SPADE CASINO (reference = Sam Spade. I'm sure everyone who reads or hears this name thinks Humphrey Bogart, not Dashiell Hammett.)

Other goodies in the puzzle:

• Poet whose last words were "Of course [God] will forgive me; that's his business." = HEINE
• ____ rancheros = HUEVOS (I know Latin and French, but not Spanish. And I don't eat breakfast at Mexican restaurants.)
• Classic theater name = RIALTO (I'm assuming it is referring to the one in L.A. But there is also one in Tucson.)
• Turned right = GEED (Say what? I noticed that the dictionary says this is of uncertain origin. Comforting.)
• "On Language" columnist = SAFIRE (How appropriate for the NYT crossword. This looks pretty interesting. Maybe I'll have to start reading this column.)
• City with the world's first telehone directory (1878) = NEW HAVEN (Useful to know for trivia games I guess.)
• The shakes = DTS (Now I know why I didn't know this.)
• Novelist who wrote "The Gravedigger's Daughter" = OATES
• Italy's Reggia di ___ (royal palace) = CASERTA (Ok, my Italian's not so good either. And I kept wanting something like 'palacio'. But in the end was rather historical, so I should have known it.)
• Quaint letter opener = TOSIR (Get it? 'To Sir.' I didn't. What kind of idiot opens a letter this way? I was looking for something akin to a pen knife.)
• Extremely pleasing, in slang = FABU (Who actually says this? That is just dumb!)
• Yemeni money = RIAL (I suppose every country has to have theirs. And dollar or pound was already used. Of course, this is just a version of the old Spanish real, I believe. And it is also used in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Brazil, and Cambodia. The Brazil I can understand.)
• Loose overcoat = RAGLAN (The coat is described by the particular style of its sleeve. I found some pictures.)
• Letters on a brandy bottle = VSO (Means 'very superior old')
• Stewpots = OLLAS

Lastly, there is a fine line between clever and stupid. I'll let you be the judge (I have my own opinion about each - some clever, some stupid). Are these clever clues or stupid? Can you guess which one(s) I found stupid?

• Had work looming? = WOVE
• French subjects? = TENSES
• Cover many subjects? = REIGN

And a P.S. nod to:

The Mormons, initially = LDS