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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: Joel Fagliano
THEME: Take a Break … today’s grid is shaped like a pool table. It is a rebus puzzle, with the word POCKET in each square at the corners and halfway down each long side (represented by black discs in my grid). Also, the circled letters arranged in a triangle spell out the words POOL BALLS. And further, several themed answers end with items found on a pool table:
1A. One at a woman’s side? : POCKETBOOK
11A. Person who might bump into you on a subway : PICKPOCKET
62A. Item on a chain : POCKET WATCH
68A. Like some expenses : OUT-OF-POCKET
123A. Best hand in Texas hold ’em : POCKET ACES
125A. Having a ton of money to draw on : DEEP POCKET
1D. Presidential power first used by James Madison : POCKET VETO
15D. Miniature : POCKETSIZE
62D. Well-protected, nonrunning quarterback : POCKET PASSER
71D. Silver, say : POCKET CHANGE
106D. Microwaveable snack item : HOT POCKET
114D. Cause of a sudden drop in altitude : AIR POCKET23A. Spoken instruction in animal training : VERBAL CUE
35A. Bit of hopscotch equipment : SIDEWALK CHALK
51A. Philadelphia/New Jersey connector : WALT WHITMAN BRIDGE
77A. It’s often divided into sections 0, 2, 4, 6, etc. : DRESS RACK
107A. Sincere : HEARTFELT
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 25m 00s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
16. Starbucks size : VENTI
Starbucks introduced us to coffee drinks in a whole range of volumes:
– Demi … 3 fl oz
– Short … 8 fl oz
– Tall … 12 fl oz
– Grande … 16 fl oz (Italian for “large”)
– Venti … 20 fl oz (Italian for “twenty”)
– Trenta … 30 fl oz (Italian for “thirty”)
17. Model/actress Keibler : STACY
Stacy Keibler is an actress and model as well as a retired professional wrestler. Keibler became known to non-wrestling fans when she competed on the second season of TV’s “Dancing with the Stars”. She also got her name in the tabloids when she was dating actor George Clooney, from 2011 to 2013.
18. Brother of Prometheus : ATLAS
In Greek mythology, Atlas was a Titan who was tasked with holding up the celestial sphere on his shoulders. The Greeks observed the planets moving and the stars in fixed positions. They believed that the stars were on the surface of a single starry sphere, the celestial sphere that was supported by Atlas.
21. Animal with a flexible snout : COATI
A coati is a member of the raccoon family and is also known as the Brazilian aardvark, or the snookum bear. The coati is native to Central and South America, but can also be found in the southwest of the United States.
26. Best Musical of 1975, with “The” : WIZ
“The Wiz”, the 1975 musical, was written by Charlie Smalls and is an African-American adaptation of Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”. The film version of the stage show was released in 1978, starring Diana Ross as Dorothy and Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow. I haven’t seen it, though. “The Wizard of Oz” scares me, as the flying monkeys creep me out. There, I’ve admitted it in public …
29. He said the most important thing for poets to do is to write as little as possible : TS ELIOT
The author T. S. Eliot was the son of Henry Ware Eliot and Charlotte Champe Stearns, so his full name was Thomas Stearns Eliot (TSE).
33. New York Titans’ org. : AFL
Just like the New York Giants, the New York Jets are based in New Jersey, headquartered in Florham Park. The Jets and the Giants have a unique arrangement in the NFL in that the two teams share Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Jets were an AFL charter team, formed in 1959 as the Titans of New York. The Titans changed their name to the Jets in 1963.
35. Bit of hopscotch equipment : SIDEWALK CHALK
Hopscotch is a kids playground game that I used to love as a youngster. Some believe that children in Ancient Rome played a version of the game.
42. Shady spot : BOWER
Our word “bower” comes from the Old English “bur” meaning a hut or dwelling. We’ve been using “bower” to mean a “leafy arbor”, a “dwelling” defined by surrounding trees, since way back in the 1500s.
45. Bee product : QUILT
Back in 18th-century America, when neighbors would gather to work for the benefit of one of their group, such a meeting was called a “bee”. The name “bee” was an allusion to the social nature of the insect. In modern parlance, a further element of entertainment and pleasure has been introduced, for example in a “quilting bee”, or even a “spelling bee”.
48. Iowa’s ___ Colonies : AMANA
“The Amana Colonies” is the collective name given to seven villages in east-central Iowa, namely Amana, East Amana, High Amana, Middle Amana, South Amana, West Amana and Homestead. All seven villages were founded by German immigrants who called themselves the Community of True Inspiration.
49. Name that’s Hebrew for “pleasant” : NAOMI
The female given name “Naomi” translates from Hebrew as “pleasantness”. It is a Biblical name, with the original Naomi being the mother-in-law of Ruth (of the Book of Ruth).
51. Philadelphia/New Jersey connector : WALT WHITMAN BRIDGE
The Walt Whitman Bridge crosses the Delaware River and joins Philadelphia to Gloucester City, New Jersey. The bridge is named for Whitman as the poet spent the latter years of his life in nearby Camden, New Jersey.
54. Half of sechs : DREI
In German, half of six (sechs) is three (drei).
55. “Il était ___ fois” (French fairy tale start) : UNE
The French phrase “Il était une fois” translates as “once up a time”.
56. Brand name that’s an anagram of 31-Across : RCA
During WWI, the US government actively discouraged the loss of certain technologies to other countries, including allies. The developing wireless technologies were considered to be particularly important by the army and navy. The government prevented the General Electric Company from selling equipment to the British Marconi Company, and instead facilitated the purchase by GE of the American Marconi subsidiary. This purchase led to GE forming the Radio Corporation of America that we know today as RCA.
72. Pop icon? : PEPSI
The Pepsi-Cola formulation was developed by one Caleb Bradham who made the drink at home and sold it as “Brad’s Drink”. Bradham’s aim was to provide a drink that was pleasant to taste, that would aid digestion and boost energy. Included in the formula were pepsin (a digestive enzyme) and kola nuts. These two ingredients inspired the Pepsi Cola brand name that is used today.
76. Finsteraarhorn, e.g. : ALP
The Finsteraarhorn is the highest of the Alps that lies outside of the main chain, actually in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland. The Finsteraarhorn is the ninth highest peak in the whole of the Alps.
80. Country where the Blue Nile originates: Abbr. : ETH
Ethiopia holds an important position within the nations of Africa, with the capital of Addis Ababa being home to many international organizations that are focused on the continent.
The Blue Nile and the White Nile are the two major tributaries that form the River Nile.
84. A balconette is a low-cut style of one : BRA
A balconette bra is one which features low cups and wide-set straps. Apparently this style of bra was given the name as men in a theatre balcony looking down at a female performer could not see any signs of the bra. No comment …
85. Mlle., in Madrid : SRTA
Señorita (Srta.) is Spanish, and mademoiselle (Mlle.), is French for “Miss”.
89. “___ the Air” (2009 Clooney movie) : UP IN
“Up in the Air” is a really enjoyable comedy-drama from 2009, an adaptation of a novel of the same name by Walter Kirn. It’s all about life on the road and business travel, and stars George Clooney. It reminded me of my decades of business travel, something I usually enjoyed, to be honest. Clooney’s young sidekick in the movie is played very ably by Anna Kendrick.
90. Part of FEMA: Abbr. : EMER
Federal emergency management has been structured for over 200 years, but what we know today as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created in 1979 in an Executive Order issued by President Jimmy Carter.
91. Rat : STOOLIE
Stoolies, also called canaries, will sing to the cops given the right incentive. “Stoolie” is short for “stool pigeon”. A stool pigeon was a decoy bird tied to a stool so as to lure other pigeons. “Stoolies” were originally decoys for the police, rather than informers, hence the name.
101. Old Olds : CIERA
Oldsmobile made the Cutlass Ciera from 1982 to 1996. The Ciera was the Oldsmobile brand name’s most successful model.
106. Sounds from Santa : HOS
Saint Nicholas of Myra is the inspiration for Santa Claus. Nicholas was the Bishop of Myra (now in modern-day Turkey) during the 4th century AD, and was known for being generous to the poor. Centuries after he died, his remains were desecrated by Italian sailors and moved to Bari in Italy. One legend has it that the relics were moved again centuries later and reburied in the grounds of Jerpoint Abbey in Co. Kilkenny in Ireland, where you can visit the grave today. I choose to believe that Santa Claus’s relics are indeed buried in Ireland …
113. Ad Council output, briefly : PSA
Public service announcement (PSA)
115. First president with a Twitter account : OBAMA
I have never tweeted in my life, and have no plans to do so. Twitter is a microblogging service that limits any post sent to just 140 characters. In a sense, it is similar to this blog. Here I send out a post once a day containing information that I think might be useful to folks (thank you for reading!). I don’t think I could send out much of interest using just 140 characters.
117. Decoration under a dish : DOILY
There was a draper in London in the seventeenth century called Doiley, and he gave his name to the lace fabric that he sold, which in turn gave its name to the ornamental mats we call doilies. I can’t stand them!
118. 2010 earthquake site : HAITI
The capital city of Haiti is Port-au-Prince. The city was hit by a devastating earthquake in January of 2010. The official government estimate of the death toll stands at 230,000 people, with many bodies never recovered.
121. Universal ___ : DONOR
The most important grouping of blood types is the ABO system. Blood is classified as either A, B, AB or O, depending on the type of antigens on the surface of the red blood cells. A secondary designation of blood is the Rh factor, in which other antigens are labelled as either positive or negative. When a patient receives a blood transfusion, ideally the donor blood should be the same type as that of the recipient, as incompatible blood cells can be rejected. However, blood type O-neg can be accepted by recipients with all blood types, A, B, AB or O, and positive or negative. Hence someone with O-neg blood type is called a “universal donor”.
122. Blown out? : ERROR
Someone trying to make an out in baseball might blow it, and be given an “error” on the scoreboard.
123. Best hand in Texas hold ’em : POCKET ACES
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 game its explosive surge in popularity, with the size of the prize money just skyrocketing.
124. Talk face-to-face? : SKYPE
The main feature of the Skype application is that it allows voice communication to take place over the Internet (aka VoIP). Skype has other features such as video conferencing and instant messaging, but the application made its name from voice communication. Skype was founded by two Scandinavian entrepreneurs and the software necessary was developed by a team of engineers in Estonia. The development project was originally called “Sky peer-to-peer” so the first commercial name for the application was “Skyper”. This had to be shortened to “Skype” because the skyper.com domain name was already in use.
Down
1. Presidential power first used by James Madison : POCKET VETO
In the US, “pocket veto” is the term used for the legal maneuver that kills a piece of legislation when the President takes no action at all. The Constitution requires that the President sign or veto (i.e. a “regular veto”) any legislation within ten days while Congress is in session. If Congress adjourns within the 10-day period, then the bill does not become law. It is this inaction by the President when Congress is out of session that is called a “pocket veto”.
4. First National Leaguer with eight consecutive 100-R.B.I. seasons : OTT
At 5′ 9″, Mel Ott weighed just 170 lb (I don’t think he took steroids!) and yet he was the first National League player to hit over 500 home runs. Sadly, Ott died in a car accident in New Orleans in 1958 when he was only 49 years old.
5. Chicken ___ : KIEV
Chicken Kiev may indeed be a Ukrainian dish, named for the capital city of Kiev. It is a boneless chicken breast rolled around garlic, herbs and butter, breaded and deep fried. It was my Dad’s favorite …
6. Michael and Peter : TSARS
Tsar Michael I reigned from 1613 to 1645, and was the first Russian leader from the House of Romanov.
Peter the Great was perhaps the most successful of the Romanov tsars, famous for modernizing Russia and expanding the country’s sphere of influence, creating the Russian Empire. He ruled from 1682 until his death in 1725.
9. Reason for a food recall : E COLI
Escherichia coli (E. coli) are usually harmless bacteria found in the human gut, working away quite happily. However, there are some strains that can produce lethal toxins. These strains can make their way into the food chain from animal fecal matter that comes into contact with food designated for human consumption.
10. Big name in food service : SYSCO
It’s hard to drive down any highway in the US without coming across a Sysco truck. It really is a huge company, the largest food service enterprise in the country. “Sysco” is an abbreviation for Systems and Services Company.
12. 1989 world champion figure skater : 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 …
14. Talk show starting in 2012 : KATIE
Katie Couric left NBC’s “The Today Show” in 2006 and took over as news anchor for “CBS Evening News”. In so doing she became the first solo female anchor of a broadcast network evening news program. Couric also has the honor of being the only person to guest-host on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”. In fact she “swapped jobs” on that particular day, and Leno filled in for Couric on “The Today Show”. Since 2012, Couric has a hosted a daytime talk show called “Katie”, which is scheduled to wind down in 2014.
24. To be, to Béatrice : ETRE
The French for “to be” is “être”.
25. Jazz quintet’s home : UTAH
The Utah Jazz professional basketball team moved to their current home in Salt Lake City in 1979. As one might guess from the name, the team originated in New Orleans, but only played there for five seasons. New Orleans was a tough place to be based because venues were hard to come by, and Mardi Gras forced the team to play on the road for a whole month.
28. Half of the Nobel Prize winners, typically : SCIENTISTS
The Peace Prize is the most famous of the five prizes bequeathed by Alfred Nobel. The others are for Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature. There is also a Nobel Prize in Economics that is awarded along with the original five, but it is funded separately and is awarded “in memory of Alfred Nobel”. Four of the prizes are awarded by Swedish organizations (Alfred Nobel was a Swede) and so the award ceremonies take place in Stockholm. The Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and that award is presented in Oslo.
30. Secret society in Dan Brown’s “Angels & Demons” : ILLUMINATI
“The Da Vinci Code” is an excellent yarn (although much panned), written by Dan Brown. Brown’s first book to feature the character Robert Langdon was even better in my opinion, “Angels & Demons”.
34. Muslim ascetic : FAQIR
A fakir (also faqir) is an ascetic in the Muslim tradition. The term “fakir” is derived from “faqr”, an Arabic word for “poverty”.
35. Low, moist area : SWALE
A swale is a narrow tract of low-lying land that is usually wet or marshy. It can be naturally occurring or man-made. One might create a swale to help manage drainage of adjacent land.
39. Harold’s partner in comedies : KUMAR
“Harold & Kumar” is a trilogy of comedy films about two potheads played by John Cho (Harold) and Kal Penn (Kumar). Not my cup of tea …
42. Madam : BAWD
A madam is the female equivalent of a pimp, someone who lives off the earnings of prostitutes. Usually a madam is associated with a brothel.
43. “The Wire” antihero : OMAR
The character Omar Little is played by Michael K. Williams on the HBO series called “The Wire”. I didn’t watch “The Wire” when it first aired but we ending up buying all five series on DVD and we watched the whole thing a couple of years ago. It’s is a great drama series, and I thoroughly recommend it. Personally, I think that HBO produces some of the best dramas on American television.
46. Downhill sport : LUGE
A luge is a small sled used by one or two people, on which one lies face up and feet first. The luge can be compared to the skeleton, a sled for only one person and on which the rider lies face down and goes down the hill head first.
47. Tight ends? : TEES
The letter T (tee) can be found at both ends of the word “tight”.
53. Scott of “Happy Days” : BAIO
Scott Baio is the actor who played Chachi Arcola in the great sitcom “Happy Days” and in the not so great spin-off “Joanie Loves Chachi”. Baio also played the title role in a later sitcom called “Charles in Charge”. Earlier in his career, he played another title role, in the 1976 movie “Bugsy Malone”, appearing opposite a young Jodie Foster.
59. You’ll trip if you drop it : ACID
LSD (colloquially known as “acid”) is short for lysergic acid diethylamide. A Swiss chemist called Albert Hofmann first synthesized LSD in 1938 in a research project looking for medically efficacious ergot alkaloids. It wasn’t until some five years later when Hofmann ingested some of the drug accidentally that its psychedelic properties were discovered. Trippy, man …
64. Duds : APPAREL
“Duds” is an informal word for clothing, coming from the word “dudde” that was used around 1300 as the name for a cloak.
69. Unlike eagles : OVER PAR
The use of the word “eagle” to signify a 2-under-par score on a hole in golf, simply builds on the established use of “birdie” for 1-under-par. An eagle is just a “bigger” bird, and 2-under par is “bigger” and better than 1-under.
73. Next-to-last #1 Beatles hit : LET IT BE
“Let It Be” was the last album that the Beatles released as an active group playing together. The title song “Let It Be” was written by Paul McCartney, and it is clearly one of his own favorites. McCartney says that he was inspired to write the song after having had a dream about his mother (who had died some years earlier from cancer). In fact he refers to her (Mary McCartney) in the line “Mother Mary comes to me”. Paul’s second wife, Linda, is singing backing vocals on the song, the only time she is known to have done so in a Beatles recording. 18 years after that 1970 recording was made, Paul, George and Ringo sang “Let It Be” at a memorial service for Linda, who was also lost to cancer. Sad stuff, but a lovely song …
85. Subject of a 2009 national tournament cheating scandal : SUDOKU
Number puzzles similar to our modern-day Sudoku first appeared in French newspapers in the late 1800s. The format that we use today was created by Howard Garns, a 74-year-old freelance puzzle constructor from Connersville, Indiana and first published in 1979. The format was introduced in Japan in 1984 and given the title of “Sūji wa dokushin ni kagiru”, which translates to “the digits are limited to one occurrence”. The rather elaborate Japanese title was eventually shortened to Sudoku. No doubt many of you are fans of Sudoku puzzles. I know I am …
Allegations of cheating were made against a mysterious competitor called “Eugene Varshavsky” who was placed third in the 2009 Sudoku National Championships. Apparently a man with the same name was accused of cheating at the 2006 World Open Chess Tournament. I think this remains an unsolved mystery, and Mr. Eugene Varshavsky has disappeared into thin air …
88. “Meet the Press” guest, for short : POL
Politician (pol.)
NBC’s news/interview show “Meet the Press” was first aired in 1947. That’s a long time ago, and so “Meet the Press” is the longest-running television series in US broadcasting history.
100. Apiece, at Wimbledon : ALL
The Wimbledon Championships of tennis are held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club located in Wimbledon, a district of London. The Wimbledon Championships started in 1877, and are still played on grass.
101. Army attack helicopter : COBRA
The Bell AH-1 Cobra attack helicopter was the mainstay of the US Army’s helicopter fleet, until it was replaced by the AH-64 Apache.
102. ___ Pitman, developer of shorthand : ISAAC
Pitman shorthand is a system developed by Sir Isaac Pitman that he started to promote in 1837. Pitman shorthand is the most popular shorthand system in the UK. Here in North America, Pitman is the second most popular system, having been displaced by Gregg shorthand.
104. Freedom Tower feature : SPIRE
One World Trade Center is the legal name for the tallest building in the US that is known colloquially as Freedom Tower”. The building stands at the symbolic height of 1776 feet.
105. Bar at the bar : ESTOP
The term “estop” means to block or stop by using some legal device. The word “estop” comes from Old French, in which “estopper” means “to stop up” or “to impede”.
106. Microwaveable snack item : HOT POCKET
Hot Pockets were introduced in the seventies by brothers David and Paul Merage. Hot Pockets are microwaveable turnovers filled with cheese, meat or vegetables.
109. Corner piece : ROOK
The corner piece in the game of chess is a called a rook, a word coming from the Persian word “rokh” meaning a “chariot”. The rook has also been called, perhaps incorrectly, the castle, tower, marquess and rector.
112. Jane who becomes Mrs. Rochester : EYRE
“Jane Eyre” is of course the novel written by Charlotte Brontë, under the pen name Currer Bell. Over the years, I’ve shared here on my blogs that the “Jane Eyre” story line is a little too dark and Gothic for my taste, but a very persuasive blog reader convinced me to look more at the romantic side of the story and give it a second chance. I watched a wonderful 4-hour television adaptation of the novel made by the BBC a while back and I have to say that because I was focused on the relationship between Jane and Rochester, I was able to push past the Gothic influences (that depress me) so I really enjoyed the story. I thoroughly recommend the 2006 BBC adaptation to fans of the novel.
116. Marie Curie, e.g.: Abbr. : MME
Madame (Mme.)
Marie Curie lived a life of firsts. She was the first female professor at the University of Paris, the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, and indeed was the first person to win two Nobel prizes (in 1903 and 1911). Most of Curie’s work was in the field of radioactivity, and was carried out in the days when the impact of excessive radiation on the human body was not understood. She died from aplastic anemia, caused by high exposure to radiation. To this day, Curie’s personal papers are kept preserved in lead-lined boxes as they are highly radioactive, even her personal cookbook.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. One at a woman’s side? : POCKETBOOK
6. Fixes keys : TUNES
11. Person who might bump into you on a subway : PICKPOCKET
16. Starbucks size : VENTI
17. Model/actress Keibler : STACY
18. Brother of Prometheus : ATLAS
19. Choice : ELITE
20. Road runners : AUTOS
21. Animal with a flexible snout : COATI
22. Unduly : TOO
23. Spoken instruction in animal training : VERBAL CUE
26. Best Musical of 1975, with “The” : WIZ
27. Completely dominates : OWNS
29. He said the most important thing for poets to do is to write as little as possible : TS ELIOT
30. “Oh, hmm …” : I SEE
31. Elevator ___ : CAR
33. New York Titans’ org. : AFL
35. Bit of hopscotch equipment : SIDEWALK CHALK
42. Shady spot : BOWER
44. In a state of conflict : AFOUL
45. Bee product : QUILT
48. Iowa’s ___ Colonies : AMANA
49. Name that’s Hebrew for “pleasant” : NAOMI
50. “Something ought to finally go my way” : I’M DUE
51. Philadelphia/New Jersey connector : WALT WHITMAN BRIDGE
54. Half of sechs : DREI
55. “Il était ___ fois” (French fairy tale start) : UNE
56. Brand name that’s an anagram of 31-Across : RCA
57. Rejections : NOES
58. Acted like a rat : SANG
60. “Howdy” : HIYA
62. Item on a chain : POCKET WATCH
65. Center of activity : HUB
68. Like some expenses : OUT-OF-POCKET
72. Pop icon? : PEPSI
73. Wash against, as the shore : LAP AT
75. Like some duties : CIVIC
76. Finsteraarhorn, e.g. : ALP
77. It’s often divided into sections 0, 2, 4, 6, etc. : DRESS RACK
80. Country where the Blue Nile originates: Abbr. : ETH
81. Part of the healing process : SCAB
83. ___ distance : AT A
84. A balconette is a low-cut style of one : BRA
85. Mlle., in Madrid : SRTA
86. Like a Monday morning quarterback? : SORE
87. Symbols of dirtiness : PIGPENS
89. “___ the Air” (2009 Clooney movie) : UP IN
90. Part of FEMA: Abbr. : EMER
91. Rat : STOOLIE
92. “Shoot!” : DANG!
93. Pass again on the track : RELAP
95. Big dos : BALLS
96. Fake : FORGE
97. Precept : TENET
99. Dangerous person to play against for money : SHARK
101. Old Olds : CIERA
103. No-goodnik : LOUSE
106. Sounds from Santa : HOS
107. Sincere : HEARTFELT
113. Ad Council output, briefly : PSA
115. First president with a Twitter account : OBAMA
117. Decoration under a dish : DOILY
118. 2010 earthquake site : HAITI
120. Walk heavily : TRAMP
121. Universal ___ : DONOR
122. Blown out? : ERROR
123. Best hand in Texas hold ’em : POCKET ACES
124. Talk face-to-face? : SKYPE
125. Having a ton of money to draw on : DEEP POCKET
Down
1. Presidential power first used by James Madison : POCKET VETO
2. Not on deck, say : BELOW
3. Sometimes-caramelized item : ONION
4. First National Leaguer with eight consecutive 100-R.B.I. seasons : OTT
5. Chicken ___ : KIEV
6. Michael and Peter : TSARS
7. Lab item that sounds like a popular website : U-TUBE
8. Birth-related : NATAL
9. Reason for a food recall : E COLI
10. Big name in food service : SYSCO
11. Show anxiety, in a way : PACE
12. 1989 world champion figure skater : ITO
13. Bear necessities? : CLAWS
14. Talk show starting in 2012 : KATIE
15. Miniature : POCKETSIZE
24. To be, to Béatrice : ETRE
25. Jazz quintet’s home : UTAH
28. Half of the Nobel Prize winners, typically : SCIENTISTS
30. Secret society in Dan Brown’s “Angels & Demons” : ILLUMINATI
32. “Let’s call it ___” : A DRAW
34. Muslim ascetic : FAQIR
35. Low, moist area : SWALE
36. On the way out : WANING
37. ___ worse than death : A FATE
38. Hang (over) : LOOM
39. Harold’s partner in comedies : KUMAR
40. Ice : CLINCH
41. Friendly term of address : KIDDO
42. Madam : BAWD
43. “The Wire” antihero : OMAR
46. Downhill sport : LUGE
47. Tight ends? : TEES
52. “Come again?” : HUNH?
53. Scott of “Happy Days” : BAIO
59. You’ll trip if you drop it : ACID
61. “Gross!” : YUCK!
62. Well-protected, nonrunning quarterback : POCKET PASSER
63. Sign word often translated into multiple languages : WELCOME
64. Duds : APPAREL
65. Tries : HAS A GO AT
66. Emotional peaks : UPS
67. Pressing needs? : BARBELLS
69. Unlike eagles : OVER PAR
70. Appropriate : FITTING
71. Silver, say : POCKET CHANGE
73. Next-to-last #1 Beatles hit : LET IT BE
74. Sully : TARNISH
78. Spits rhymes : RAPS
79. Beer buy : CASE
82. Tongue-lash : BERATE
85. Subject of a 2009 national tournament cheating scandal : SUDOKU
88. “Meet the Press” guest, for short : POL
94. Possibly : PERHAPS
96. Formed rising bubbles : FROTHED
98. It’s “not” in Scotland : NAE
100. Apiece, at Wimbledon : ALL
101. Army attack helicopter : COBRA
102. ___ Pitman, developer of shorthand : ISAAC
104. Freedom Tower feature : SPIRE
105. Bar at the bar : ESTOP
106. Microwaveable snack item : HOT POCKET
108. States further : ADDS
109. Corner piece : ROOK
110. Miniature : TINY
111. Dud : FLOP
112. Jane who becomes Mrs. Rochester : EYRE
114. Cause of a sudden drop in altitude : AIR POCKET
116. Marie Curie, e.g.: Abbr. : MME
119. Word often shortened to one letter in text messages : ARE
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It seems to me this pooltable format appeared several years ago. I'm wondering if it's the same puzzle. Lyn, N.J.
Hi there, Lyn.
It turns out that you are right, and there was indeed a puzzle with the same theme some years ago. It wasn't the same crossword though.
You've a great memory!