1027-12 New York Times Crossword Answers 27 Oct 12, Saturday

Last Sunday’s Competition Puzzle
Anyone still looking to unravel the Sunday crossword can check out my solution, which I posted after the competition deadline ended.

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
20. “Out of Sync” autobiographer, 2007 : LANCE BASS
‘N Sync was an American boy band from Orlando, Florida that was formed in 1995. The name of the group came from a comment by the mother of band member Justin Timberlake, who said the boys voices sounded “in sync”. But, it’s also true that the letters of the name ‘N Sync are the last letters of the given names of the five band members:

– Justin Timberlake
– Chris Kirkpatrick
– Joey Fatone
– Lance “Lansten” Bass
– JC Chasez

24. First female skater to land a triple/triple jump combination in competition : ITO
Midori Ito is a Japanese figure skater. Ito was the first woman to land a triple/triple jump and a triple axel in competition. In fact, she landed her first triple jump in training, when she was only 8 years old …

25. Like some verbs: Abbr. : INTR
An intransitive verb is one that does not take a direct object. For example, “to sleep” or “to die”.

27. Iroquoian people : HURONS
The Native Americans known as the Wyandot people are also called the Huron. The Wyandot people mainly inhabit a reserve in Quebec, Canada.

30. Means to enlightenment : TAO
The Chinese character “tao” translates as “path”, but the concept of Tao signifies the true nature of the world.

33. ___ Diggory, rival of Harry Potter : CEDRIC
Cedric Diggory is a fellow student of Harry Potter at Hogwarts. Cedric is two years ahead of young Harry, and is somewhat of a rival.

35. Spinner’s spot : DJ BOOTH
The world’s first radio disk jockey was one Ray Newby of Stockton, California who made his debut broadcast in 1909, would you believe? When he was 16 years old and a student, Newby started to play his records on a primitive radio located in the Herrold College of Engineering and Wireless in San Jose. The records played back then were mostly recordings of Enrico Caruso.

38. When repeated, a Las Vegas casino : NEW YORK
New York-New York is a major casino on the Las Vegas Strip. The casino is cleverly designed with stylized replicas made of famous New York City landmarks. Although the facade of the hotel is a model of the new York City skyline, and the property was opened in 1997, there is no depiction of the World Trade Center. That’s because the design is meant to represent New York of the 1940s.

39. Five-term Mexican president : JUAREZ
Benito Juárez served five times as President of Mexico, taking office for the first time in 1858, and leaving office for the last time in 1872. A number of locations across the country, and beyond, have been named in his honor, including the city of Ciudad Juárez that sits just across the US-Mexico border from El Paso.

41. Home of Sault Ste. Marie: Abbr. : ONT
In the summer of 2010 I spent a very interesting afternoon watching ships make their way through the Soo Locks and Soo Canal between Lake Superior and the lower Great lakes. The name “Soo” comes from the US and Canadian cities on either side of the locks, both called Sault Ste. Marie.

44. Modern storage : RAM
Random-access memory (RAM) is a form of computer storage.

47. Talking car on “Knight Rider” : KITT
The 1982 crime television show called “Knight Rider” famously starred David Hasselhoff as well a very cool, artificially intelligent car called KITT. KITT (which stands for Knight Industries Two Thousand) is a heavily modified Pontiac Trans Am.

49. Patch Media owner : AOL
Patch Media (owned by AOL) is the company that operates the website Patch.com, which uses a concept the company calls “hyperlocal journalism”. Patch.com employs a network of local community news editors that manage local community news websites. There are over 500 such websites available on Patch.com today.

56. Something seen after hours? : COLON
When writing out a time, there is usually a colon used after the hour and before the minute e.g. 09:35.

57. Buyable, in a way : VENAL
Someone described as venal is open to bribery.

60. She outwitted Sherlock : IRENE
The character Irene Adler only appeared in one of the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In that story, “A Scandal in Bohemia”, Holmes expresses remarkable admiration for Adler as a woman and as a foe. As a result, derivative works in the Holmes genre often feature Adler as something of a romantic interest for Sherlock.

62. Ancient manuscript : CODEX
A codex is an old book, one in the format of a modern book as opposed to its predecessor which was a scroll. The word “codex” comes from the Latin “caudex” meaning “trunk of a tree”.

Down
1. Four-cornered chips : FRITOS
The Frito Corporation was started in 1932 by Elmer Doolin, basically in his mother’s kitchen. Doolin paid $100 for a corn chip recipe from a local restaurant and started producing Fritos at the rate of 10 pounds per day.

6. Cuatro semanas, roughly : MES
In Spanish, “cuatro semanas” (four months) roughly make up a “mes” (month).

8. Desserts not for the calorie-conscious : ECLAIRS
The name for the pastry known as an éclair is clearly French in origin. The French word for lightning is “éclair”, but no one seems to be too sure how it came to be used for the rather delicious “temptation”.

10. “___ Dinah” (1958 hit) : DE DE
“De De Dinah” was a 1958 hit for Frankie Avalon.

12. Burrito flavoring : CILANTRO
What we know here in North America as cilantro is called coriander in the UK and other parts of the world. “Cilantro” is the Spanish name for the herb.

13. British sci-fi author Reynolds : ALASTAIR
The British science fiction author Alastair Reynolds is a former research astronomer with the European Space Agency.

23. Cheek : CHUTZPAH
Our word “chutzpah” meaning “nerve, gall, impudence” is derived from the Yiddish “khutspe”, which has the same meaning.

29. Works on shifts, say : SEWS
A shift is a dress that is cut above-the-knee and has no clearly-defined waist. This style of dress originated in the 1920s when it was worn by the “flappers”, young women who defyed social norms at the time. The shift was comfortable to wear and allowed easy movement, particularly on the dance floor.

31. French horn : COR
The English Horn is also known by its French name, the Cor Anglais, and is a double-reed woodwind instrument.

35. 2011 Wimbledon champion : DJOKOVIC
Novac Djokovic is a Serbian tennis player, the world No. 2 (behind Roger Federer). Djokovic is quite the character off the court it seems and he is very popular on the talk-show circuit, all around the world. It helps that Djokovic is fluent in several languages.

36. California’s ___ Serra Peak : JUNIPERO
Junipero Serra Peak is the highest peak in Monterey County in California. It is named for the Franciscan Friar Junipero Serra, a founder of several of the California Missions.

Junípero Serra was a Spanish missionary, a founder of several missions out here in California. Among those associated with Serra is the Mission in Carmel, where Serra’s remains are buried, and Mission San Juan Capistrano, the chapel of which is believed to be the oldest standing building in the state.

40. Family of Paris : HILTONS
Paris Hilton is the great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton, the founder of Hilton Hotels.

43. One bringing a speaker onstage, maybe : ROADIE
A “roadie” is someone who loads, unloads and sets up equipment for musicians on tour, on the road.

48. Sax great, to fans : TRANE
John Coltrane was a jazz saxophonist who also went by the nickname “Trane”. John’s son Ravi Coltrane is also a noted jazz saxophonist.

51. Legend, for one : ACURA
Acura is a division of the Honda Motor Company, and is Honda’s luxury brand. Infiniti is the equivalent luxury brand for the Nissan Motor Company, and Lexus is the more luxurious version of Toyota’s models.

52. Iconic Broadway role for Cobb : LOMAN
“Death of a Salesman” is a famous play by Arthur Miller, first produced in 1949. “Death of a Salesman” won a Pulitzer and several Tony Awards over the years. The “salesman” in the play is the famous character Willy Loman. The play originally opened up on Broadway and ran for 724 performances. The lead role was played by the veteran actor Lee J. Cobb.

54. “A Clockwork Orange” protagonist : ALEX
“A Clockwork Orange” is a novella by Anthony Burgess, first published in 1962. The story is about a young teenager named Alex, who leads a small gang on violent rampages each night. The story has been adapted for the big and small screens, most famously in a 1971 film by Stanley Kubrick. It’s way too violent for me …

55. Interstate hwy. ___ : SYST
The US Interstate System is more correctly known as the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, a nod to President Eisenhower who championed the construction. The President had come to recognise the value of the German autobahn system in his experiences during WWII, and resolved to give the US a similar infrastructure. In real terms, the US Interstate construction project is said to have been the largest public works project since the building of the Pyramids of Egypt.

59. Start of many church names : OUR
A lot of Roman Catholic church names start with “Our Lady of …”

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Allies who are also rivals : FRENEMIES
10. Parking permit, sometimes : DECAL
15. It may be shown to a superior : REVERENCE
16. Send out of state? : EXILE
17. Ephemeral decorative structure : ICE CASTLE
18. Major key that uses all five black keys on a piano : D-FLAT
19. Fails utterly : TANKS
20. “Out of Sync” autobiographer, 2007 : LANCE BASS
22. “I’ll be right with you” : ONE SEC
24. First female skater to land a triple/triple jump combination in competition : ITO
25. Like some verbs: Abbr. : INTR
26. Like certain versions of the Bible: Abbr. : STD
27. Iroquoian people : HURONS
30. Means to enlightenment : TAO
31. Gets down quickly : CHUGS
33. ___ Diggory, rival of Harry Potter : CEDRIC
35. Spinner’s spot : DJ BOOTH
38. When repeated, a Las Vegas casino : NEW YORK
39. Five-term Mexican president : JUAREZ
40. Gymnastics staple : HORSE
41. Home of Sault Ste. Marie: Abbr. : ONT
42. Dash : SPRINT
44. Modern storage : RAM
47. Talking car on “Knight Rider” : KITT
49. Patch Media owner : AOL
50. Show some major respect? : SALUTE
53. Some magicians’ gear : OPERA HATS
56. Something seen after hours? : COLON
57. Buyable, in a way : VENAL
58. “Excuse me?” : DO YOU MIND?
60. She outwitted Sherlock : IRENE
61. Major museum expense : INSURANCE
62. Ancient manuscript : CODEX
63. No longer on speaking terms : ESTRANGED

Down
1. Four-cornered chips : FRITOS
2. Make an abjuration : RECANT
3. Leveled : EVENED
4. Gets to first base : NECKS
5. Clear : ERASE
6. Cuatro semanas, roughly : MES
7. Not domestic: Abbr. : INTL
8. Desserts not for the calorie-conscious : ECLAIRS
9. Taken care of : SEEN TO
10. “___ Dinah” (1958 hit) : DE DE
11. Like some private eyes : EX-FBI
12. Burrito flavoring : CILANTRO
13. British sci-fi author Reynolds : ALASTAIR
14. “It’s showtime” : LET’S ROCK
21. Big gigs : CONCERTS
23. Cheek : CHUTZPAH
28. What a stuck-out tongue may mean : UGH
29. Works on shifts, say : SEWS
31. French horn : COR
32. Plot devices? : HOES
34. Make the highlights? : DYE
35. 2011 Wimbledon champion : DJOKOVIC
36. California’s ___ Serra Peak : JUNIPERO
37. Fastened tightly, with “down” : BATTENED
38. Refusal of Paris : NON
40. Family of Paris : HILTONS
43. One bringing a speaker onstage, maybe : ROADIE
44. Case outcome : RULING
45. “And step on it!” : AT ONCE
46. Got better : MENDED
48. Sax great, to fans : TRANE
51. Legend, for one : ACURA
52. Iconic Broadway role for Cobb : LOMAN
54. “A Clockwork Orange” protagonist : ALEX
55. Interstate hwy. ___ : SYST
59. Start of many church names : OUR

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