Alex

@Tom Therefore, it would be the best picture of 1958, as the awards held in 1959, as in any other year, were to honor the films of the previous year. The clue is phrased "Best Picture OF 1958" so it is entirely correct.

@Your puzzle is dumb This was hardly a difficult gimmick and the vast majority of this puzzle solves like a mid-difficulty conventional crossword. You could almost complete it without even noticing the gimmick. You certainly don't need to read a single word of any introduction. And please tell me where do you get your data that a "significant percentage" of people are as greatly offended by a minor gimmick as you? I can cite the same source as you in saying that the majority of puzzlers are quite fond of these, mostly very clever and interesting puzzles.

@Brunsworks "sharpen" is literally the first definition of "hone" in the Miriam Webster and Oxford dictionaries so I'm not sure what your issue is there. It's also in the sense of "honing your skills" that the word "sharpen" is synonymous

@Josh Finkelstein Pi is the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter, while tau the ratio of a circle's circumference to its radius