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Solution to today’s crossword in the New York Times
Solution to today’s SYNDICATED New York Times crossword in all other publications
CROSSWORD SETTER: Joon Pahk
THEME: None
COMPLETION TIME: Didn’t finish …
ANSWERS I MISSED: Too many … all in the northeast!
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) is the organization that gives the annual Academy Awards also known as the “Oscars”. The root of the name “Oscar” is hotly debated, but what is agreed is that the award was officially named “Oscar” in 1939.
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Truman Capote grew up in Monroeville, Alabama. There he met, and became lifelong friends with fellow novelist, Harper Lee. Capote was the inspiration for the character “Dill” in Lee’s celebrated work “To Kill a Mocking Bird”. In turn, Harper Lee was the inspiration behind the character “Idabel” in Capote’s “Other Voices, Other Rooms”.
17. Crazy, in rap slang : ILLIN
In the world of contemporary slang (that has left me behind some years ago) “illin” is the opposite of “chillin” apparently. Illin is uncool, not relaxed, a bit crazy perhaps.
26. Follower of Mao : -IST
Mao Zedong was born on December 16, 1893 in the Hunan Province of China. As he was the son of a peasant farmer, his prospects for education were limited. Indeed he left school at age 13 to work on the family farm but did eventually get to secondary school in Changsa, the provincial capital. In the years following he continued his education in Beijing, and actually turned down an opportunity to study in France.
28. King of Tartary in “Turandot” : TIMUR
Puccini never actually finished his celebrated opera “Turandot”. When he died, it was completed by composer and pianist Franco Alfano, making “Turandot” the work with which Alfano is most associated.
32. Bathing resort on the Lahn River : BAD EMS
Bad is the German word for “bath”, and is found in the names of many spa towns such as Bad Ems, Bad Nauheim and Baden-Baden.
33. Issachar’s uncle : ESAU
Esau was the twin brother of Jacob, the founder of the Israelites. When their mother, Rebekah, gave birth to the twins “the first emerged red and hairy all over (Esau), with his heel grasped by the hand of the second to come out (Jacob)”. As Esau was the first born, he was entitled to inherit his father’s wealth (it was his “birthright”). Instead, Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for the price of a “mess of pottage” (a meal of lentils).
34. Rosencrantz or Guildenstern : DANE
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are a pair of courtiers in Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”. They also appear in the most famous play by British playwright Tom Stoppard, “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead” (which I saw years ago, and slept through!).
An étude is a small instrumental composition that is usually quite hard to play and is intended to help the performer master a particular technique. Étude is the French word for “study”. Études are commonly performed on the piano, hence the reference to “pedaling” in the clue.
43. Nickname for a Manhattan jail, with “the” : TOMBS
The Manhattan Detention Complex is a jail in Lower Manhattan, known colloquially as “The Tombs”. The nickname has applied to a succession of buildings, starting with the first purpose-built jail on the site, built in 1838. That first structure was designed by one John Haviland who based his design on an ancient Egyptian mausoleum, hence the moniker “The Tombs”.
44. Kind of virus : RNA
A virus is a small, infectious agent, made up of either two or three parts:
– Genetic material, either DNA or RNA
– A protein coat to protect the genetic material
– Possibly a lipid envelope that surrounds the structure while outside the infected cell
Spirea, also known as Meadowsweet, is too woody to be considered as a food plant, although it has long been used by Native Americans as a herbal tea. Spirea is chock full of salicylates, chemicals that have properties similar to aspirin.
51. Stance of impatience : ARMS AKIMBO
We’re all familiar with the expression “arms akimbo”. Akimbo is such a lovely word, I think, so just I had to look up its etymology. The research failed to dig up anything too exciting though. It seems to stem from Middle English, “in kekbowe” or “on kenbow” meaning “bend in a curve”.
56. Aroma : REDOLENCE
Something that is redolent is aromatic, emits a fragrance. Redolent is an Old French word.
Drew Brees is a quarterback for the New Orleans Saints. On top of his success in the NFL, when he was a youth Brees was an excellent tennis player. In one competition he actually beat a young Andy Roddick who later became the world’s number one.
59. Chemistry Nobelist Hoffmann : ROALD
Roald Hoffmann is a theoretical chemist at Cornell. He was born in Poland and named “Roald” after the Norwegian explorer, Roald Amundsen. Hoffmann is Jewish, and he and his mother were the only members of his family to survive the Holocaust, thanks to the help of neighbors. Hoffmann won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1981.
Down
The Battle of the Nations was fought in Leipzig in 1813 between Napoleon Bonaparte and the armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden. The allied forces defeated Napoleon, forcing him to withdraw to France where he suffered further defeat by invading forces the following year resulting in his abdication and exile to Elba. The Battle in Leipzig involved more than 600,000 soldiers making it the largest battle ever fought in Europe prior to WWI.
Axl Rose is the lead vocalist of the American rock band, Guns N’ Roses.
Guns N’ Roses is a hard rock band founded in 1985 that is still going strong. The group was pulled together by Axl Rose, the lead vocalist. The lead-guitar player back then was Tracii Guns, and it was the combination of Axl and Tracii’s “family” names that led to the band being called Guns N’ Roses.
Stephen Colbert is a political satirist who hosts his own show on Comedy Central, “The Colbert Report”. Colbert’s first love was theater, and so he studied to become an actor. He then moved into comedy, and ended up on the “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”. He left “The Daily Show” in 2005 to set up his own spin-off, “The Colbert Report”. In his own inimitable way, Colbert likes to use a “French” pronunciation for the name of his show, so “The Colbert Report” comes out as “The Col-bear Rep-oar”.
4. Drop in speech : ELIDE
To elide is to pass over, omit or slur a syllable when speaking.
5. Painter of the “Crucifixion of St. Peter” in the Vatican : RENI
Guido Reni was an Italian painter, from Bologna. His “Crucifixion of St. Peter” is an altarpiece commissioned in the early 1600s, now on display in the Vatican.
A samisen is a traditional Japanese instrument, with three strings, vaguely like a banjo. It is played with a plectrum that is called a bachi.
The cravat originated in Croatia, an accessory used with a military uniform. Cravats were introduced to the fashion-conscious French by Croatian mercenaries enlisted into a regiment of the French army. The English placed a lot of emphasis on the knot used for the cravat, and in the period after the Battle of Waterloo the cravat came to be known as a “tie”. What we now call a tie is still called a “cravate” in French.
9. Marquand title character : APLEY
“The Late George Apley” is a 1937 novel by John Phillips Marquand. It was regarded as Marquand’s first “serious” work, as prior to its publication he was famous for his series of “Mr. Moto” spy novels.
10. Sects’ appeal?: Abbr. : REL
“Sects” are associated with “religions”.
11. City next to Fullerton : BREA
Brea is a city in Orange County, California. Fullerton borders Brea to the southwest.
12. Poem set “in the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir” : ULALUME
“Ulalume” is a poem written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1847. The poem’s line “in the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir” is quoted in another respected work, Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire”. Blanche Dubois says that her sister, Stella, lives “in the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir”, a nod to “Ulalume”.
13. Like games without win-win outcomes : ZERO-SUM
A zero-sum game is one in which the gains of the winner are exactly offset by the losses of the loser. There is no net gain. So, a “win-win” situation by definition cannot be arrived at in a zero-sum game.
20. Court baskets : CESTAS
A cesta is the wicker scoop strapped to the wrist that is used for catching and throwing the ball in jai alai.
Even though jai alai is often said to be the fastest sport in the world (because of the speed of the ball), in fact golf balls often get going at a greater clip.
27. Places for runners : AISLES
A runner is a long, narrow carpet.
29. Yearly dozen : IDES
There were three important days in each month of the old, Roman calendar. These days originally depended on cycles of the moon, but were eventually “fixed” by law. Kalendae were the first days of each month, originally the days of the new moon. Nonae were originally the days of the half moon. And idus (the ides) was originally the day of the full moon, eventually fixed as the 15th day of the month. Well, actually the ides were the 15th day of March, May, July and October. For all other months, the ides fell on the 13th. Go figure …
34. Lands around mansions : DEMESNES
“Desmesne” is an Anglo-French word in origin, meaning land around a manor reserved for the private use of a feudal lord. It comes from the Latin “dominicus”, meaning “belonging to a lord”.
Apple introduced the Mac OS X Operating System in 2000. Each version of this operating system has had a code name, and that code name is always a type of big cat. The versions and code names are:
– 10.0: Cheetah
– 10.1: Puma
– 10.2: Jaguar
– 10.3: Panther
– 10.4: Tiger
– 10.5: Leopard
– 10.6: Snow Leopard
Interestingly, the earlier beta version was called Kodiak, after the bear.
Lee Atwater was a Republican strategist, an advisor to Presidents Reagan and George H. W. Bush, and also a Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Atwater collapsed at a fundraiser for Senator Phil Gramm in 1990, and soon after was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He died a year later, at just 40 years of age.
TrimSpa is a dietary supplement touted as a weight loss aid. Its active ingredients are stimulants (like caffeine). It became quite famous when the manufacturers hired Anna Nicole Smith as spokesperson for the product.
40. It’s solid yellow : ONE-BALL
The more correct name for the game of pool is pocket billiards. The name “pool” came after pocket billiards became a common feature in “pool halls”, places where gamblers “pooled” their money to bet on horse races.
41. Like many ex-cons : PAROLED
The term “parole” is a French word that we use in English, with the French “parole” meaning “word, speech”. Of particular interest is the French phrase “parole d’honneur” which translates as “word of honor”. In the early 1600s we started using “parole” to mean a promise by a prisoner of war not to escape, as in the prisoner giving his “word of honor” not to run off. Over time, parole has come to mean conditional release of a prisoner before he or she has served the full term of a sentence.
43. Capital whose central plaza is Skanderbeg Square : TIRANE
Tirane is the capital city of Albania. Tirane was made the capital in 1920. The city was seized by the Nazis in WWII, but was liberated in 1944, at which point the Communists seized power. The Communists were ousted in the elections of 1992 leaving a void that led to much bloodshed, and an eventual EU military mission, led by Italy, to stabilize the capital and the rest of the country. Today things have become so calm that Albania is a member of NATO.
48. Words from un innamorato : TI AMO
In Italian, “one who is in love” (un innamorato) might say “I love you” (ti amo).
52. Lumber feature : KNAR
“Knar” is another word for a knot or burl on a tree or in wood.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Kind of beam : LASER
6. It’s generated for high-quality pictures : OSCAR BUZZ
15. What many are forced to live in : EXILE
16. Lifelong friend of Truman Capote : HARPER LEE
17. Crazy, in rap slang : ILLIN
18. “Lay it on me” : I’M ALL EARS
19. Like signs : PREDICTIVE
21. All the time : A LOT
22. Court area : ZONE
23. Some extended arguments : ESSAYS
25. It may be extended : USE
26. Follower of Mao : -IST
27. Still : AS YET
28. King of Tartary in “Turandot” : TIMUR
30. Begins brawling : GETS IT ON
32. Bathing resort on the Lahn River : BAD EMS
33. Issachar’s uncle : ESAU
34. Rosencrantz or Guildenstern : DANE
35. Tags : LABELS
38. Brake-slamming result : DEAD STOP
42. Exercise done while pedaling : ETUDE
43. Nickname for a Manhattan jail, with “the” : TOMBS
44. Kind of virus : RNA
45. Results of big hits? : OWS
46. Meadowsweet : SPIREA
48. Hierarchy part : TIER
49. Scorecard data : PARS
51. Stance of impatience : ARMS AKIMBO
53. Stirring up more trouble : AT IT AGAIN
55. Like some blocked passages : NASAL
56. Aroma : REDOLENCE
57. Bounteous : AMPLE
58. Sports Illustrated’s 2010 Sportsman of the Year : DREW BREES
59. Chemistry Nobelist Hoffmann : ROALD
Down
1. Battle of the Nations site, 1813 : LEIPZIG
2. Frontman on the 2008 rock album “Chinese Democracy” : AXL ROSE
3. “The Colbert Report” ends with one : SILENT T
4. Drop in speech : ELIDE
5. Painter of the “Crucifixion of St. Peter” in the Vatican : RENI
6. Words of recognition : OH, IT’S YOU
7. Its three strings are plucked with a bachi : SAMISEN
8. Accessory popularized by Louis XIV : CRAVAT
9. Marquand title character : APLEY
10. Sects’ appeal?: Abbr. : REL
11. City next to Fullerton : BREA
12. Poem set “in the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir” : ULALUME
13. Like games without win-win outcomes : ZERO-SUM
14. They only scrape the surface : ZESTERS
20. Court baskets : CESTAS
24. Cheering section : STANDS
27. Places for runners : AISLES
29. Yearly dozen : IDES
31. Progeny : SEED
32. Kid’s repetitive plea? : BAA BAA
34. Lands around mansions : DEMESNES
35. Tiger’s successor, computerwise : LEOPARD
36. Lee who advised Reagan and Bush : ATWATER
37. Reason to hire a coach : BUS RIDE
38. Small, furry-tailed hibernators : DORMICE
39. Big name in weight-loss supplements : TRIMSPA
40. It’s solid yellow : ONE-BALL
41. Like many ex-cons : PAROLED
43. Capital whose central plaza is Skanderbeg Square : TIRANE
47. One going off on somebody? : PAGER
48. Words from un innamorato : TI AMO
50. Throw below, say : STOW
52. Lumber feature : KNAR
54. 43-Down’s place: Abbr. : ALB
Where was the fun ???
Hi there, Jan.
I have to agree that working hard on a puzzle and then not getting that final "aha", and solving it, is not the ideal outcome. Personally I love the Saturday puzzles, welcoming the challenge, but there's no question that the goal is to work away at it for an extended period with the answers eventually coming.
When I look back on this puzzle though, the answers that I personally missed I wouldn't consider "unfair", the clues were "gettable", just not my be me on the day!
Thanks for stopping by, Jan.