0529-11: New York Times Crossword Answers 29 May 11, Sunday

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Herbert Hoover and Richard Nixon, e.g. : QUAKERS
The Religious Society of Friends is a name used by a number of different organizations that have roots in the Christian church in 17th-century England and Wales. A common name for one of these organizations is of course the Quakers.

17. Cop squad in “Monk”: Abbr. : SFPD
“Monk” is a police drama set in San Francisco, starring Tony Shalhoub in the title role of Adrian Monk. Although the setting for the show is the San Francisco Bay Area, these days it is actually shot in Los Angeles.

22. “Dies ___” : IRAE
Dies Irae is Latin for “Day of Wrath”. It is the name of a famous melody in Gregorian Chant, and is often used as part of the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass.

30. Demander of special treatment : DIVA
“Diva” comes to us from Latin, via Italian. “Diva” is the feminine form of “divus” meaning “divine one”. It is used in Italy to mean goddess, or fine lady, and especially is applied to the prima donna in an opera. We often use the term to describe a singer with a big ego.

40. Singer Redding : OTIS
Otis Redding is often referred to as the “King of Soul”, and what a voice he had. Like so many of the greats in the world of popular music it seems, Redding was killed in a plane crash, in 1967 when he was just 26 years old. Just three days earlier he had recorded what was to be his biggest hit, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”.

41. Is for you? : ARE
“It is” or “you are”.

46. Back on the ranch? : -ERO
A ranchero is one employed on a ranch, a word with Spanish roots.

48. Drag wrap : BOA
The etymology of the term “drag”, as used in the transvestite world, seems to be unclear. It perhaps relates to the tendency of a transvestite’s skirts to drag along the ground in days of old (although why they just didn’t hitch up their skirts is beyond me!).

49. Elands, to lions : PREY
A eland is a large African antelope, in fact the largest on the continent.

50. Muse for Whitman : ERATO
Walt Whitman is considered to be one of the greatest American poets, born in 1819 on Long Island, and living through the American Civil War. He was a controversial character, even during his own lifetime. One view held by him was that the works attributed to William Shakespeare were not actually written by Shakespeare, but rather by someone else, or perhaps a group of people.

In Greek mythology, the muses are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. The number of muses is a subject of debate at times, but the most popular view is that there are nine:

– Calliope (epic poetry)
– Clio (history)
– Erato (lyric poetry)
– Euterpe (music)
– Melpomene (tragedy)
– Polyhymnia (choral poetry)
– Terpsichore (dance)
– Thalia (comedy)
– Urania (astronomy)

51. Sen. McCain’s alma mater : USNA
John McCain went into the US Naval Academy in 1958, following a family tradition as his father and grandfather were both four-star admirals. The younger McCain did not achieve the same rank, retiring from the Navy as a captain in 1981, but his career development was interrupted by almost six years spent as a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.

56. “Hells Bells” band : AC/DC
Heavy Metal band AC/DC was formed by two brothers in Australia. The group is usually called “Acca Dacca” down under.

64. W.W. II beach craft : LST
LST stands for Landing Ship, Tank. LSTs were the large vessels used mainly in WWII that had doors at either ends, from which tanks and other vehicles could roll off and onto beaches. The design concept persists to this day in the huge fleet of commercial roll-on/roll-off ferries, all inspired by the LST.

65. ___-Magnon : CRO
Remains of early man, dating back to 35,000 years ago, were found in Abri de Cro-Magnon in southwest France, giving the name to those early humans. Cro-Magnon remains are the oldest human remains that have been discovered in Europe.

66. Author R. L. ___ : STINE
The author R. L. Stine is sometimes referred to as the Stephen King of children’s literature as he writes horror stories for young people.

73. Shrub used in dyeing : ANIL
Anil is another name for the indigo plant, as well as the name for the blue indigo dye that is obtained from it. And that blue is relatively close to “navy” blue.

93. Nothin’ : NADA
“Nada” is the Spanish word for “nothing”. “De nada” translates literally from the Spanish as “of nothing”, and is used to mean “you’re welcome” or “don’t mention it”. The French have the same expression “de rien”, also translating to “of nothing” and used the same way.

102. Java : JOE
It seems that no one really knows why we refer to coffee as “joe”, but we’ve been doing so since early in WWII.

Back in 1850, the name “java” was given to a type of coffee grown on the island of Java.

103. Mine blower : TNT
TNT is an abbreviation for trinitrotoluene. The explosive chemical was first produced by the German chemist Joseph Wilbrand in 1863, who developed it for use as a yellow dye. TNT is relatively difficult to detonate, so it was on the market as a dye for some years before its more explosive properties were discovered.

104. Creator of Genesis : SEGA
The Genesis is a video game console sold in the US by the Japanese company Sega. In the rest of the world, the console is sold as the Mega Drive, as Sega couldn’t get the rights to the Mega Drive name in the US.

105. Surfeit : CLOY
“To cloy” is to give too much of something rich or sweet, enough to cause disgust or displeasure.

106. Secretary of state under Carter : VANCE
Cyrus Vance was the Secretary of State in the Carter administration. Vance opposed President Carter’s plan to rescue the Iran hostages (Operation Eagle Claw), and resigned his position even before the raid was shown to be an embarrassing failure.

107. One of TV’s Clampetts : JED
Jed Clampett was played by Buddy Ebsen in “The Beverly Hillbillies”.

108. Suffix with senior : -ITIS
Senioritis is the colloquial name given to the tendency of some senior students to lose motivation to study as they come near to the end of perhaps high school or college careers.

111. Moolah : KALE
Moolah and kale are slang terms for money.

121. Rice pad : DORM
William Marsh Rice University is a private school in Houston, Texas. Rice had made a will endowing the funds for the establishment of the school at the time of his death. When he was found dead one morning in his bed, his lawyer announced that his will had been changed, with the bulk of Rice’s estate actually going to the lawyer making the announcement. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the lawyer had paid Rice’s valet to murder his employer using chloroform and a fake will was written. Eventually the original will was deemed valid, and the funds were disbursed so that the school could be built.

125. Linear, for short : ONE-D
The dimension of an object is defined as the minimum number of coordinates needed to specify each point in the object. A line, therefore, is one-dimensional as you only need an x-coordinate to specify a particular point on the line. A surface is two-dimensional, as you need both an x-coordinate and a y-coordinate to locate a point on the surface. The inside of a solid object is then three-dimensional, needing an x-, y- and z-coordinate to specify a point, say within a cube.

126. I love, to Luis : AMO
“Te amo” is the Spanish for “I love you”.

128. Funny Caroline : RHEA
Caroline Rhea is a stand-up comedian from Canada, and the original host of the TV show “The Biggest Loser”. She also replaced Rosie O’Donnell as host of her syndicated talk show.

136. Conductor in a white turtleneck : OZAWA
Seiji Ozawa is most famous for his work as music director of the Boston symphony Orchestra, although he is also the principal conductor of the Vienna State Opera. He is renowned for wearing a white turtleneck under his dress suit when he conducts, rather than the traditional starched shirt and white tie.

141. Burrowing arthropods : TRAP(DOOR) SPIDERS
The trapdoor spider is so called because it often digs into a burrow and builds a small “trapdoor” using silk and debris behind which it hides, waiting for its prey.

142. Classic Alfa Romeo roadsters : SPIDERS
The Spider is a roadster that was manufactured by the Italian auto company, Alfa Romeo. It was in production from 1966 to 1993, and is considered a design classic.

147. Chair toted on poles : SEDAN
A sedan chair is a litter that was used in England. Being a litter means that it had no wheels and was powered by humans. Most sedan chairs were built for one passenger, with two men providing the “lift”. Henry VIII had a sedan chair, but towards the end of his opulent life he needed four strong men to carry it.

Down
1. Argument ender : QED
Q.E.D. is used at the end of a mathematical proof or a philosophical argument. The acronym stands for the Latin “quod erat demonstrandum” meaning “that which was to be demonstrated”.

2. A, in Amiens : UNE
Amiens is a city in the north of France, in the region known as Picardy.

3. Actress Gardner : AVA
Ava Gardner is noted for her association with some big movies, but also for her association with some big names when it came to the men in her life. In the world of film, she appeared in the likes of “Mogambo” (1953), “On the Beach” (1959), “The Night of the Iguana” (1964) and “Earthquake” (1974). The men in her life included husbands Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw and Frank Sinatra. After her marriages had failed (and perhaps before!) she had long term relationships with Howard Hughes and bullfighter Luis Miguel Dominguin whom she met through her friend Ernest Hemingway.

4. “The original sneaker” sloganeer : KEDS
Keds is a brand name of athletic shoe first introduced in 1916 by US Rubber. The shoe was marketed as a rubber-soled, canvas-topped sneaker.

5. Carrier to Ben-Gurion : EL AL
El Al (Hebrew for “to the skies”) does not fly on the Sabbath, although this has been subject of some controversy at times since the airline was founded in 1948.

6. Parks in a bus : ROSA
Rosa Parks was one of a few brave women in days gone by who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white woman. It was the stand taken by Rosa Parks on December 1, 1955 that sparked the Montgomery, Alabama Bus Boycott. President Clinton presented Ms. Parks with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996. When she died in 2005, Rosa Parks became the first ever woman to have her body lie in honor in the US Capital Rotunda.

8. Brie exterior : RIND
Brie is a soft cheese, named after the French province of Brie where it originated.

9. Hold ’em declaration : I RAISE
The official birthplace of the incredibly popular poker game of Texas Hold ‘Em is Robstown, Texas, where the game dates back to the early 1900s. The game was introduced into Las Vegas in 1967 by a group of Texan enthusiasts, including Doyle Brunson, a champion often seen playing on TV today. Doyle Brunson published a poker strategy guide in 1978, and this really helped increase the popularity of the game. But it was the inclusion of Texas Hold ‘Em in the television line-up that really gave the it an explosive surge in popularity, with the size of the prize money just sky-rocketing.

11. Treat in Torino : GELATO
Gelato is the Italian version of American ice cream, differing in that it has a lower butterfat content than its US counterpart.

13. Musician Brian : ENO
Brian Eno started out his musical career with Roxy Music. However, his most oft played composition (by far!) is Microsoft’s “start-up jingle”, the 6-second sound you hear when the Windows operating system is booting up.

16. Photog’s choice : SLR
SLR stands for Single Lens Reflex. Usually cameras with changeable lenses are the SLR type. The main feature of an SLR is that a mirror reflects the image seen through the lens out through the viewfinder, so that the photographer sees exactly what the lens sees. The mirror moves out of the way as the picture is taken, and the image that comes through the lens falls onto unexposed film, or nowadays onto a digital sensor.

17. Fifth-century pope : ST LEO
The first pope named Leo is now known as Pope Saint Leo the Great. He is famous for having met with the feared Attila the Hun and persuading him to turn back his invading force that was threatening to overrun Western Europe.

19. Emilio of fashion : PUCCI
Emilio Pucci was an Italian fashion designer from Florence.

20. Hockey fake-outs : DEKES
A deke, also known as a dangle, is a technique used to get past an opponent in ice hockey. “Deke” is a colloquial shortening of the word “decoy”.

33. Italian appetizer, literally “little toasts” : CROSTINI
Crostini are Italian appetizers (literally “little toasts”) made up of pieces of toasted bread with a topping.

37. Literary duelist : ARAMIS
The “Three Musketeers” were Athos, Porthos and Aramis, and their young protégé was D’Artagnan. A musketeer was an infantry soldier who was equipped with a musket. Paradoxically, Alexander Dumas’ “Three Musketeers” really didn’t use their muskets, and were better known for their prowess with their swords.

42. UV index monitor : EPA
The Environmental Protection Agency was set up during the Nixon administration, and began operation at the end of 1970.

54. Author Tan and others : AMYS
Amy Tan lives not too far from here in Sausalito, just north of San Francisco. She is an American writer of Chinese descent whose most successful work is “The Joy Luck Club”, a novel that was made into a movie produced by Oliver Stone in 1993. The book’s story is about four Chinese-American immigrant families in San Francisco who start the Joy Luck Club, playing Mahjong for money and eating delicious food.

57. Noel starter : O COME
The lovely hymn “Adeste Fideles” (aka “O Come All Ye Faithful”) was written by one John Francis Wade in the 13th century. Well, he wrote the original four verses, with four more verses being added over time.

58. ___ Minor : URSA
Ursa Minor sits right beside the constellation Draco (Latin for “dragon”). Once Ursa Minor was considered to be the wing of Draco, and so was called “Dragon’s Wing”.

63. Actress Ward : SELA
Sela Ward turns up in crosswords a lot. She played Teddy Reed in the TV show “Sisters” in the nineties, and was in “Once and Again” from 1999-2002. I don’t know either show, but I do know her from the medical drama “House” in which she played the hospital’s lawyer, and Greg House’s ex-partner. That was a fun role, I thought. Now she has turned up on “CSI: NY”, a very welcome and much-needed addition to the cast …

70. Gossipy Smith : LIZ
Liz Smith is a gossip columnist, with the nickname “The Grand Dame of Dish”.

86. Muslim trek : HAJJ
A Haji is the term used for someone who has made a pilgrimage to Mecca, and it is sometimes also used as a form of address for such a person. The journey itself goes by the name “haj” or “hajj”.

87. Missouri River native : OTOE
The Otoe (also Oto) Native American tribe originated in the Great Lakes region as part of the Winnebago or Siouan tribes. The group that would become the Otoe broke away from the Winnebago and migrated southwestwards ending up in the Great Plains. In the plains the Otoe adopted a semi-nomadic lifestyle dependent on the horse, with the American bison becoming central to their diet.

90. Pueblo vessel : OLLA
An olla is a traditional clay pot used for the making of stews.

93. Bygone missile with a tribal name : NAVAHO
North American Aviation was a major aerospace player, especially after WWII and during the Cold War. The company worked on the experimental Navaho intercontinental cruise missile from 1946 to 1958, a development based on Germany’s V-2 rocket from WWII. All North American Aviation project names started with the letters “NA”, hence the name “Navaho”.

94. Literary paradise : AVALON
Avalon is a legendary island featured in the Arthurian legends. The name Avalon probably comes from the word “afal”, the Welsh word for “apple”, reflecting the fact that the island was noted for its beautiful apples. Avalon is where King Arthur’s famous sword (Excalibur) was forged, and supposedly where Arthur was buried.

101. Blue-green : TEAL
The beautiful color of teal takes it name from the duck called a “teal”, which has dark, greenish-blue (teal) markings on its head and wings.

116. Daily talk show beginning in 2005 : MARTHA
“Martha” is a weekday talk show hosted by Martha Stewart. If you want to see it, it’s on the Hallmark Channel.

124. Niño producer : MADRE
In Spanish a madre’s (mother’s) boy is a niño.

131. Tennis’s Arthur : ASHE
Arthur Ashe was a professional tennis player from Richmond, Virginia. In his youth he found himself having to travel great distances to play against Caucasian opponents due to the segregation that still existed in his home state. He was rewarded for his dedication by being selected for the 1963 US Davis Cup team, the first African America player to be so honored. He continued to run into trouble because of his ethnicity though, and in 1968 was denied entry into South Africa to play in the South African Open. In 1979 Ashe suffered a heart attack and had bypass surgery, with follow-up surgery four years later during which he contracted HIV from blood transfusions. Ashe passed away in 1993, due to complications from AIDS. Shortly afterwards, Ashe was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton.

132. Filtered stuff : SPAM
I think that the oft-quoted story may be true that the term SPAM, used for unwanted email, is taken from a “Monty Python” sketch. In the famous sketch the dialog is taken over by the word SPAM, a play on the glut of canned meat in the markets in Britain after WWII. So SPAM is used for the glut of emails that takes over online communication. I can just imagine nerdy Internet types adopting something from a “Monty Python” sketch to describe an online phenomenon …

133. Home to the sport of hurling : EIRE
Hurling is the national sport of my homeland, Ireland. It’s played with a stick called a hurley and a ball called a sliotar. It’s thought to be the fastest team sport in the world, and certainly has to be the oldest as it predates Christianity and was brought to Ireland by the Celts.

136. Pre-C.I.A. grp. : OSS
The Office of Strategic Services was formed during WWII in order to carry out espionage behind enemy lines. A few years after the end of the war the OSS functions were taken up by a new group, the Central Intelligence Agency, chartered by the National Security Act of 1947.

137. Capital of Zaire? : ZEE
The African nation once called Zaire is a neighbor of Rwanda. The genocide and war in Rwanda spilled over into Zaire in 1996, with the conflict escalating into what is now called the First Congo War. As part of the war’s fallout, there was a regime change, and in 1997 Zaire became the Democratic Republic of Congo.

140. Santa ___ : ANA
Santa Ana is the county seat of Orange County, California, taking its name from the Santa Ana River that runs through the city. The Santa Ana winds are the very dry air currents that sweep offshore late in the year in Southern California. Because they are so dry, they are noted for their influence over forest fires in the area, especially in the heat of the fall. The winds arise from a buildup of air pressure in the Great Basin that lies between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. Under the right conditions, that air spills over the peaks of the Sierra Nevada, and basically “falls” down the side of the Sierra range, heading for the ocean. As the air falls, it becomes drier and heats up, so that relative humidity can fall to below 10% by the time it hits the coast.

144. Hit 2011 animated film : RIO
The 2011 animated movie “Rio” takes its name from the setting of the story, Rio de Janeiro.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:

Across
1. Herbert Hoover and Richard Nixon, e.g. : QUAKERS
8. Go canvassing, say : RING (DOOR)BELLS
12. Partner of whistles : BELLS
17. Cop squad in “Monk”: Abbr. : SFPD
21. Surround : ENVELOP
22. “Dies ___” : IRAE
23. How olives may be packed : IN OIL
24. “Can’t argue there” : TRUE
25. Done for, finito, kaput : DEAD AS A (DOOR)NAIL
26. Execute perfectly : NAIL
27. Auto security feature : POWER (DOOR)LOCK
28. Canal part : LOCK
29. Knock off : SLAY
30. Demander of special treatment : DIVA
31. Suffix with exist : -ENCE
32. Univ., e.g. : SCH
35. Firmed up : SET
36. Course after trig : CALC
40. Singer Redding : OTIS
41. Is for you? : ARE
42. Pull in : EARN
46. Back on the ranch? : -ERO
47. Backwoods : RURAL
48. Drag wrap : BOA
49. Elands, to lions : PREY
50. Muse for Whitman : ERATO
51. Sen. McCain’s alma mater : USNA
55. Superlative suffix : -EST
56. “Hells Bells” band : AC/DC
57. Some fun in the sun : OUT(DOOR) GAMES
60. Petty manipulations : GAMES
61. Spring (from) : STEM
62. Parade paths: Abbr. : RTES
64. W.W. II beach craft : LST
65. ___-Magnon : CRO
66. Author R. L. ___ : STINE
67. Hot : SEXY
68. Mashed, e.g. : SIDE
69. Dazed and confused : AT A LOSS
71. Cornerstone abbr. : ESTD
72. What sgts. turn in at HQ’s : RPTS
73. Shrub used in dyeing : ANIL
74. Some Nissan cars : MAXIMAS
75. Teaser on party fliers : WIN A (DOOR) PRIZE
76. Cherish : PRIZE
77. Light reflector : PRISM
82. Diminish : WANE
86. Show a bit of courtesy (for) : HOLD THE (DOOR) OPEN
88. Unwrap : OPEN
89. Runs (around), informally : BOPS
93. Nothin’ : NADA
97. Under debate : AT ISSUE
98. Quite a tale : EPIC
99. Bajillions : A LOT
100. Turn away : AVERT
102. Java : JOE
103. Mine blower : TNT
104. Creator of Genesis : SEGA
105. Surfeit : CLOY
106. Secretary of state under Carter : VANCE
107. One of TV’s Clampetts : JED
108. Suffix with senior : -ITIS
110. Pre-sneeze sounds : AHS
111. Moolah : KALE
112. Parting of the Pacific? : ALOHA
113. It may be touch-screen : MENU
114. Diamond stat : RBI
115. Hilton or Westin welcomer : HOTEL (DOOR)MAN
116. “Holy mackerel!” : MAN
119. Cusp : EDGE
120. Bajillion : TON
121. Rice pad : DORM
125. Linear, for short : ONE-D
126. I love, to Luis : AMO
127. Assn. : ORG
128. Funny Caroline : RHEA
129. Sticks up : ROBS
131. Off the shore : ASEA
135. Opening letters : ABCD
136. Conductor in a white turtleneck : OZAWA
141. Burrowing arthropods : TRAP(DOOR) SPIDERS
142. Classic Alfa Romeo roadsters : SPIDERS
146. Chrysler 300, e.g. : FOUR-(DOOR) SEDAN
147. Chair toted on poles : SEDAN
148. It rarely has more than one part : HAIR
149. Walloped : HARD-HIT
150. It rolls on a Rolls : TYRE
151. “I’m outta here!” : SEE YA
152. Compatriot : ALLY
153. [See blurb] : EMERSON

Down
Down
1. Argument ender : QED
2. A, in Amiens : UNE
3. Actress Gardner : AVA
4. “The original sneaker” sloganeer : KEDS
5. Carrier to Ben-Gurion : EL AL
6. Parks in a bus : ROSA
7. Neuter : SPAY
8. Brie exterior : RIND
9. Hold ’em declaration : I RAISE
10. Less sophisticated : NAIVER
11. Treat in Torino : GELATO
12. Repeating heart monitor sound : BIP
13. Musician Brian : ENO
14. Fan setting : LOW
15. Rewrite history, in a way : LIE
16. Photog’s choice : SLR
17. Fifth-century pope : ST LEO
18. UPS drop-off site, often : FRONT (DOOR)STEP
19. Emilio of fashion : PUCCI
20. Hockey fake-outs : DEKES
32. Portable cutter : SABER SAW
33. Italian appetizer, literally “little toasts” : CROSTINI
34. All-weather resort amenity : HEATED IN(DOOR) POOL
36. Run, as an exhibit : CURATE
37. Literary duelist : ARAMIS
38. Unexpressed : LATENT
39. Hush-hush powwow : CLOSED-(DOOR) MEETING
42. UV index monitor : EPA
43. Light in a floodlight : ARC LAMP
44. Macy’s logo feature : RED STAR
45. One in a line at J.F.K. or La Guardia : NYC TAXI
47. Rules, quickly : REGS
51. Country that disappeared in ’91 : USSR
52. How-to unit : STEP
53. Seinfeld vis-à-vis Kramer : NEXT (DOOR) NEIGHBOR
54. Author Tan and others : AMYS
57. Noel starter : O COME
58. ___ Minor : URSA
59. Cast : TOSS
63. Actress Ward : SELA
70. Gossipy Smith : LIZ
77. Practiced actively : PLIED
78. Some of them are turnoffs: Abbr. : RDS
79. “We’ve waited long enough!” : IT’S TIME
80. Pushed (aside) : SHUNTED
81. Satisfying : MEETING
82. Headaches : WOES
83. Do, by all accounts : APPEAR TO
84. Touch : NEIGHBOR
85. Keeping under glass, e.g. : ENCASING
86. Muslim trek : HAJJ
87. Missouri River native : OTOE
89. Involuntary extension of troop tours : BACK (DOOR) DRAFT
90. Pueblo vessel : OLLA
91. Its winner beats the loser with a stick : POOL
92. Lid problem : STYE
93. Bygone missile with a tribal name : NAVAHO
94. Literary paradise : AVALON
95. Mark : DENOTE
96. Colosseum entrance, e.g. : ARCHED (DOOR)WAY
101. Blue-green : TEAL
109. Go after : SUE
116. Daily talk show beginning in 2005 : MARTHA
117. Unprincipled : AMORAL
118. Harsh pronouncement from a judge : NO BAIL
121. Pub order : DRAFT
122. “Whoopee!” : OH BOY
123. Happen again : RECUR
124. Niño producer : MADRE
130. Nimble : SPRY
131. Tennis’s Arthur : ASHE
132. Filtered stuff : SPAM
133. Home to the sport of hurling : EIRE
134. P.O. box, e.g. : ADDR
136. Pre-C.I.A. grp. : OSS
137. Capital of Zaire? : ZEE
138. Suffix on fruit names : ADE
139. Exceptionally : WAY
140. Santa ___ : ANA
143. Apathetic reactions : EHS
144. Hit 2011 animated film : RIO
145. Place to buy tkts. : STN
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