0502-14 New York Times Crossword Answers 2 May 14, Friday

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Modern traffic director? CLICK BAIT
“Click bait” is trickery used by website designers to entice a reader to click on a particular link. That link may be a disguised ad, so that the website owner gets some income from the advertiser.

15. London’s ___ Barnett School HENRIETTA
The Henrietta Barnett School is a London grammar school for girls that was founded in 1911.

16. News anchor O’Donnell NORAH
Norah O’Donnell is the chief Washington correspondent for MSNBC. Along with her husband, restaurateur Geoff Tracy, O’Donnell published what sounds like an interesting cookbook in 2010, namely “Baby Love: Healthy, Easy, Delicious Meals for Your Baby and Toddler”.

19. T-Pain and Ice-T output RAPS
T-Pain the stage name of rap artist Faheem Rasheed Najm. T-Pain is from Tallahassee, Florida.

Rapper Ice-T must be sick of having his name come up as an answer in crossword puzzles. Maybe he should have stuck to his real name, Tracy Marrow? Then again, maybe not … Ice-T has been interested in acting for decades and made his film debut in the 1984 movie about break-dancing called “Breakin’”. He has also played Detective Fin Tutuola in the TV show “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” since the year 2000.

20. Time’s 1963 Man of the Year, informally MLK JR
Martin Luther King Jr’s father was born Michael King. On a trip to Germany in 1934, Michael came to admire Protestant leader Martin Luther and changed his name to Martin Luther King on his return the United States. Famously, he passed on his new name to his son, the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

23. John or James APOSTLE
John the Apostle was one of the twelve followers of Jesus who were called the Apostles. John lived longer than all of the other Apostles and was the only one who did not die a martyr. John wrote the Gospel of John in the New Testament, as well as three Epistles of John and the Book of Revelation.

James, son of Zebedee was one the Twelve Apostles of Jesus. James was the brother of fellow Apostle John. James was the only Apostle whose martyrdom was recorded in the New Testament, so it is generally believed that he was the first Apostle to die a martyr to his faith.

26. Fashion designer Marshall LEANNE
Leanne Marshall was a winner on the reality TV show “Project Runway” and now works as a fashion designer in Portland, Oregon.

31. Ship captained by Vicente Yáñez Pinzón NINA
The ship used by Christopher Columbus that we know as the Niña was actually the nickname of a ship actually called the Santa Clara. The nickname “Niña” probably came from the name of her owner, Juan Niña of Moguer.

The Pinzón brothers were three Spanish navigators who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his first voyage of discovery. Two of the brothers sailed on the Pinta, with Martin Pinzón serving as the captain and Francisco as the first mate. Vicente Pinzón captained the Nina.

32. West of Nashville DOTTIE
Dottie West was a country music singer, a friend and fellow-recording artist of Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn.

34. “Martin Chuzzlewit” villain JONAS
Young Martin Chuzzlewit is the protagonist and title character of the Charles Dickens novel. Other characters in the book are Old Martin, Anthony and Jonas Chuzzlewit, as well as Seth Pecksniff and his daughters Charity and Mercy Pecksniff. You’ve got to love the names that Dickens chose for his characters …

35. Silver screen name? FIVETHIRTYEIGHT
FiveThirtyEight is a website that publishes compiled polling date during election cycles. The site takes its name from from the total number of electors in the US electoral college. FiveThirtyEight was established in 2008, by Nate Silver.

39. “___ Pleasure” (Charlie Chaplin movie) A DAY’S
“A Day’s Pleasure” is a 1919 film starring Charlie Chaplin.

Charlie Chaplin earned the nickname “The Tramp” from the much-loved character that he frequently played on the screen. Chaplin was much-respected as a performer. The great George Bernard Shaw referred to him as “the only genius to come out of the movie industry”.

47. Writes a Dear John letter, say ENDS IT
Apparently the term “Dear John letter” originated in WWII among American troops who were serving abroad. The servicemen highly valued letters from girlfriends and wives back home, and almost invariably those missives started out with “Dearest”, or “My Darling” or some other expression of affection. A curt, “Dear John” set the tone for a letter which was likely to contain news of a new love interest in the life of the girlfriend or wife.

49. Novelist Isabel ALLENDE
Isabel Allende is a Chilean writer, apparently the world’s most widely-read, Spanish-language author. Isabel is related to Salvador Allende, the ex-President of Chile.

50. Where one might take a bullet: Abbr. STA
One catches a bullet train at a station (sta.).

51. Some seaweeds KELPS
Kelps are large seaweeds that grow in kelp forests underwater. Kelps can grow to over 250 feet in length, and do so very quickly. Some kelps can grow at the rate of 1-2 feet per day.

54. Actor Franco of “Now You See Me” DAVE
Dave Franco is an actor from Palo Alto, California. Dave is the younger brother of actor James Franco.

55. Skateboard trick named after its originator OLLIE
An “ollie” is a skateboarding trick invented in 1976 by Alan “Ollie” Gelfand. Apparently it’s a way of lifting the board off the ground, while standing on it, without touching the board with one’s hands. Yeah, I could do that …

60. Female lead in “Brigadoon” FIONA
“Brigadoon” is a Lerner and Loewe stage musical about a Scottish village that only appears for one day every one hundred years. “Brigadoon” was made into a movie in 1954, starring Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse.

Down
1. President beginning in 1995 CHIRAC
Jacques Chirac served as French President from 1995 to 2007. He also served twice as Prime Minister of France, and as the Mayor of Paris. At the end of 2011, Chirac was found guilty of embezzling public funds and was given a 2-year suspended sentence.

2. Delaware Valley Indians LENAPE
The Lenape Native American people lived along the Delaware River when Europeans first landed in the Americas. As a result of the enforcement of the Indian Removal Act 1830, most Lenape now live in Oklahoma, with significant numbers also in Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada.

4. Strabismus CROSSED EYES
“Strabismus” is the condition known also by the informal term “crossed-eyes”. Apparently, about 4% of children are born with the condition.

5. 1901 Kipling book KIM
“Kim” is a novel by Rudyard Kipling that was first published in serial form, from 1900 to 1901. The title character is the orphaned son of an Irish soldier who lives like a vagabond in India during the days of the British Raj. The boy grows up to become a spy working for the British.

6. Big ___ BEN
Big Ben is the name commonly used for the large bell in the Clock Tower of the Palace of Westminster (aka the Houses of Parliament). Big Ben’s official name is the Great Bell, and there is some debate about the origins of the nickname. It may be named after Sir Benjamin Hall who oversaw the bell’s installation, or perhaps the English heavyweight champion of the day Benjamin Caunt.

7. Words before “to be born” and “to die” in Ecclesiastes A TIME
According to the Book Ecclesiastes in the Bible:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

8. Not this type?: Abbr. ITAL
Italic type leans to the right. The style is known as “italic” because the stylized calligraphic form of writing originated in Italy, probably in the Vatican.

9. Change course at sea TACK
“To tack” is a sailing term, meaning to veer into and through the wind in order change course, resulting in the wind coming over the opposite side of the vessel after the tack is completed.

10. Physicist ___-Marie Ampère ANDRE
The unit of electric current is the ampere, abbreviated correctly to “A” rather than “amp”. It is named after French physicist André-Marie Ampère, one of the main scientists responsible for the discovery of electromagnetism.

13. Southern city that’s the setting for “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” SAVANNAH
“Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” is a 1994 book by John Berendt that was on “The New York Times” Bestseller List for 216 weeks. Although classified as non-fiction, the book reads like a novel with real events rearranged in time. “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” was made into a 199y movie of the same name that was directed by Clint Eastwood.

21. Celeb who got the 2,500th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013 J.LO
J.Lo is the nickname of singer and actress Jennifer Lopez. “J.Lo” is also the title of her second studio album, released in 2001.

30. Groks GETS
“To grok” is to understand, a slang word really only used in “techie” circles. “Grok” is the creation of science fiction author Robert Heinlein, who coined the term in his 1961 novel “Stranger in a Strange Land”.

37. “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” writer/star VARDALOS
Not only is the delightful Nia Vardalos the star of the 2002 hit movie “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”, she also wrote the screenplay. The film never made it to number one at the box office, but it still pulled in more money than any other movie in history that didn’t make it to number one. That record I think reflects the fact that the film wasn’t a blockbuster but rather a so-called “sleeper hit”, a movie that people went to see based on referrals from friends. The big fat mistake came when a spin-off TV show was launched, “My Big Fat Greek Life”. It ran for only 7 episodes.

42. GPS line: Abbr. RTE
A Global Positioning System (GPS) might show you a route (rte.).

48. U.S. chain stores since 1985 IKEAS
The IKEA furniture stores use the colors blue and yellow for brand recognition. Blue and yellow are the national colors of Sweden, where IKEA was founded and is headquartered.

49. Cartoon dog ASTRO
Astro is the pet dog on the animated television show “The Jetsons”.

“The Jetsons” is an animated show from Hanna-Barbera that had its first run in 1962-1963, and then was recreated in 1985-1987. When it was debuted in 1963 by ABC, “The Jetsons” was the network’s first ever color broadcast.

56. Football stat: Abbr. INT
Interception (Int.)

59. Mark on a card PIP
A pip is a dot on a die or a domino, or a mark on a playing card.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Modern traffic director? CLICK BAIT
10. Punk theme ANGST
15. London’s ___ Barnett School HENRIETTA
16. News anchor O’Donnell NORAH
17. One who’s not out all night? INSOMNIAC
18. Steer DRIVE
19. T-Pain and Ice-T output RAPS
20. Time’s 1963 Man of the Year, informally MLK JR
22. Pick up NAB
23. John or James APOSTLE
26. Fashion designer Marshall LEANNE
28. Et ___ CETERA
29. Back AGO
31. Ship captained by Vicente Yáñez Pinzón NINA
32. West of Nashville DOTTIE
34. “Martin Chuzzlewit” villain JONAS
35. Silver screen name? FIVETHIRTYEIGHT
39. “___ Pleasure” (Charlie Chaplin movie) A DAY’S
40. Fixed, as lining RESEWN
41. Abdominal and lower-back muscles, collectively CORE
42. Embarrassed RED
43. Unleashes on LETS AT
47. Writes a Dear John letter, say ENDS IT
49. Novelist Isabel ALLENDE
50. Where one might take a bullet: Abbr. STA
51. Some seaweeds KELPS
54. Actor Franco of “Now You See Me” DAVE
55. Skateboard trick named after its originator OLLIE
57. Not reserved OUTSPOKEN
60. Female lead in “Brigadoon” FIONA
61. They’ll never hold water STRAINERS
62. Big celebrations FESTS
63. Paid a visit STOPPED BY

Down
1. President beginning in 1995 CHIRAC
2. Delaware Valley Indians LENAPE
3. Hip place IN SPOT
4. Strabismus CROSSED EYES
5. 1901 Kipling book KIM
6. Big ___ BEN
7. Words before “to be born” and “to die” in Ecclesiastes A TIME
8. Not this type?: Abbr. ITAL
9. Change course at sea TACK
10. Physicist ___-Marie Ampère ANDRE
11. Common conjunction NOR
12. Looking sheepish, say GRINNING
13. Southern city that’s the setting for “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” SAVANNAH
14. Beauty’s partner THE BEAST
21. Celeb who got the 2,500th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2013 J.LO
24. Easy runs TROTS
25. Trellis strip LATH
27. Messiah ANOINTED ONE
29. Hung out to dry AIRED
30. Groks GETS
33. Kind of pump TIRE
34. Beauty JEWEL
35. Goes head to head FACES OFF
36. “Trust me” I DON’T LIE
37. “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” writer/star VARDALOS
38. “Go, team, go!,” e.g. YELL
42. GPS line: Abbr. RTE
44. Wove (through) SNAKED
45. Sooner or later ADVERB
46. Wee TEENSY
48. U.S. chain stores since 1985 IKEAS
49. Cartoon dog ASTRO
52. Setback LOSS
53. It’s by no means a long shot PUTT
56. Football stat: Abbr. INT
58. Scammer’s target SAP
59. Mark on a card PIP

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