1004-14 New York Times Crossword Answers 4 Oct 14, Saturday

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Julian Lim
THEME: None
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 29m 49s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 3 … ANNE RICE (Anne Rake), ROID (road!!), EKCO (Ekko)

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

1. Two-man band? BROMANCE
A “bromance” is the name given these days to a close relationship between two straight males.

18. “Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy” philosopher LAO-TZU
Lao Tse (also Lao-Tzu) was a central figure in the development of the religion/philosophy of Taoism.

21. Sonnet extender? -EER
A sonnet is a short poem with varying rhyming schemes but always with 14 lines. The sonnet form has been around at least since the 13th century. The Shakespearean sonnet is composed of three quatrains (4 lines) and a final couplet (2 lines).

23. Mount ___, Charley Weaver’s hometown IDY
Mount Idy is a fictional town featured in the TV show “Charley Weaver’s Hobby Lobby” starring Cliff Arquette. The show ran from September 1959 to March 1960.

27. Partner of many VARIED
Many and varied …

30. Lambs, to Lucius AGNI
“Agnus” is Latin for “lamb”, as in “Agnus Dei”, which translates as “Lamb of God”.

31. One being strung along? MARIONETTE
A marionette is a type of puppet, one that is controlled from above by a series of strings or wires. The term “marionette” is French for “little, little Mary” and is probably a reference to one of the first such puppets, which depicted the Virgin Mary.

35. Decline dramatically GO TO RACK AND RUIN
The phrase “rack and ruin”, meaning “complete destruction”, is a derivative of “wreck and ruin”.

38. Title subject of a search in a 2003 film NEMO
“Finding Nemo” is a 2003 animated blockbuster from Pixar. The film was the winner of the Oscar that year for Best Animated Feature. Believe it or not, “Finding Nemo” is the best-selling DVD of all time and, until 2010’s “Toy Story 3”, it was the highest-grossing, G-rated movie at the box office.

39. “Twilight,” e.g. SERIES
The reference, is to the “Twilight” series of books by Stephenie Meyer. “The Twilight Saga” is a series of films based on the books. I don’t do vampires …

45. Storm designation SHE
Hurricanes are given names primarily to help the public keep track dangerous systems. The names are decided ahead of the hurricane season, with the first system given a name beginning with A, the second, B etc. The names are alternated between male and female names throughout the season. Also, if the first storm of the season is male, then the following year a female name is chosen. For hurricanes in the North Atlantic, names are assigned for every letter, except Q, U, X, Y and Z.

46. To whom Charles Darwin dedicated “Different Forms of Flowers” ASA GRAY
Asa Gray was an important American botanist in the nineteenth century. He was a lifelong friend of Charles Darwin, albeit mainly through correspondence. Darwin’s book “Forms of Flowers”, was dedicated to Gray.

Englishman Charles Darwin studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland but neglected his studies largely due to his interest in nature and natural history. In the early 1830s, a friend put forward Darwin’s name as a candidate for the post of “collector” on the voyage of HMS Beagle. The Beagle was intending to spend two years at sea primarily charting the coast of South America. The voyage ended up taking five years, during which time Darwin sent back copious letters describing his findings. Back in Britain these letters were published as pamphlets by a friend and so when Darwin eventually returned home in 1836, he had already gained some celebrity in scientific circles. It was while on the Beagle that Darwin developed his initial ideas on the concept of natural selection. It wasn’t until over twenty years later that he formulated his theories into a scientific paper and in 1859 published his famous book “On the Origin of the Species”. This original publication never even mentioned the word “evolution” which was controversial even back then. It was in 1871 that Darwin addressed head-on the concept that man was an animal species, in his book “The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex”.

54. Mixer for losers? DIET COKE
Diet Coke is a sugar-free version of Coca Cola that was introduced back in 1982. If you drink Diet Coke around the world, you’ll receive a slightly different drink depending on where you are. Various artificial sweeteners are banned as health risks in various countries, so Coke varies its formulation to comply with local laws.

55. Pioneer in literary realism BALZAC
Honoré de Balzac was a French novelist and playwright from the 19th century. Balzac wrote a huge collection of related novels called “La Comédie humaine”.

56. “Servant of the Bones” author ANNE RICE
Anne Rice is an American author of erotic and Gothic novels. She was born Howard Allen O’Brien (no wonder she changed her name!). Her famous series of novels “The Vampire Chronicles” centers on her character Lestat de Lioncourt, a French nobleman who was turned into a vampire in the 18th century. One of the stories, “Interview with the Vampire”, was adapted for the big screen in 1994 and features Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and others in a star-studded cast. Not my kind of movie though, as I don’t do vampires …

Down
3. Org. that, when spelled backward, is an old-timey exclamation OSHA
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was created in 1970 during the Nixon administration. OSHA regulates workplaces in the private sector and regulates just one government agency, namely the US Postal Service.

4. What Gollum calls the Ring in “The Lord of the Rings” MY PRECIOUS
The words “Bless us and splash us, my precioussss!” are spoken by Gollum, in J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel “The Hobbit”. Gollum is a Hobbit with a split personality, which he developed under the influence of “the Ring”.

5. Nadir’s opposite APOGEE
I’m not sure that this answer is strictly correct …

In the celestial world, an apsis is a point in an orbit when the orbiting body is at its greatest, or least, distance from it’s center of orbit. The farthest and closest points of orbit are known as the apogee and perigee, when talking about bodies orbiting the Earth. The farthest and closest points for bodies orbiting the sun are known as the aphelion and perihelion.

The nadir is the direction pointing immediately below a particular location (through to the other side of the Earth for example). The opposite direction, that pointing immediately above, is called the zenith.

6. Dove’s dream NO WAR
The dove is a symbol of peace, and a hawk is a symbol of war.

11. Musical component BOOK
A libretto can be the book that contains the text of a dramatic musical work, with the text also being called a libretto.

12. Last part of “Waiting for Godot” ACT II
An Irishman I may be, but I have sat through so many Samuel Beckett plays (the Irish dramatist) and I have yet to come away feeling satisfied that I spent my time well. Of course I am in the minority, as Beckett’s play “Waiting for Godot” was once voted the most significant English language play of the 20th century. Maybe I will try again one day …

14. ___ Lane, London theater locale DRURY
The most famous theatre in Drury Lane, London is the Theatre Royal.

The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London, is actually the oldest theater in the city. The building itself has been replaced three times in its long history dating back to 1663 (1663! Can you imagine?). Today, the theater is owned by the great composer, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and he makes sure that it is used to stage musical theater. If you are heading over to London anytime soon, you can see the current production of “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory!”.

20. Southeast Asian fruits with large, thick spines DURIANS
Durian is a very popular fruit in southeast Asia, despite the fact that it has a very strong odor. Some say that smell is similar to rotten onions or raw sewage. In fact, the durian is forbidden in some hotels and public transportation systems.

22. Burgundy or claret DARK RED
Burgundy and claret are both dark red colors, with the names deriving from the red wines.

24. “Twilight,” e.g. SAGA
I don’t do vampires. The reference, is to a character in “The Twilight” series of books by Stephenie Meyer. “The Twilight Saga” is a series of films based on the books.

25. Oodles A GOB
“Gobs” is an informal term meaning “a large amount”.

It’s thought that the term “oodles”, meaning “a lot”, comes from “the whole kit and caboodle”.

26. “Adventure most ___ itself”: Emily Dickinson UNTO

This Consciousness that is aware
Of Neighbors and the Sun
Will be the one aware of Death
And that itself alone

Is traversing the interval
Experience between
And most profound experiment
Appointed unto Men —

How adequate unto itself
Its properties shall be
Itself unto itself and none
Shall make discovery.

Adventure most unto itself
The soul condemned to be —
Attended by a single Hound
Its own identity.

On a roadtrip around the country a few years ago, my wife and I had a very disappointing stop in Amherst, Massachusetts intending to visit the old home of Emily Dickinson. We hadn’t done our homework and failed to note that the home was only open for tours on certain days of the week, and not the day we were there (so be warned!). Emily Dickinson wrote nearly 1800 poems in her lifetime, with less than a dozen published before she died in 1886. Emily’s younger sister discovered the enormous collection, and it was published in batches over the coming decades.

27. Empty-headedness VACUITY
“Vacuous” and “inane” both mean “silly, empty-headed”. “Vacuous” comes from the Latin word “vacuus” meaning “empty”. “Inane” comes from the Latin “inanitis” meaning “empty space”.

29. Newest fashion DERNIER CRI
The French phrase “dernier cri” translates literally as “the latest cry or scream”, but is used to denote the latest fashion.

32. It’s named for a Scand. god of battle TUES
The name “Tuesday” comes from an Old English word that translates as “Tiw’s Day”. In turn, “Tiw” was the Old English name for the Norse god “Týr”. Týr was the Norse god of single combat, victory and heroic glory.

34. Nonhuman Earth orbiter of 1961 ENOS
Enos was a chimpanzee who was launched into Earth orbit in 1961 by NASA on a Mercury Atlas 4 rocket. Enos’s flight was a rehearsal for the first orbital flight made by an American, astronaut John Glenn. Enos returned from his mission safely, but died the following year from dysentery.

41. Fanatically militant sort RAMBO
A “rambo” is very violent and militant person. The term is relatively recent one, coming from the character John Rambo played by Sylvester Stallone in the “Rambo” series of movies. The first Rambo film made was “First Blood” in 1982. The film in turn is based on the 1972 novel of the same name by David Morrell.

42. “Veep” actor ___ Whitlock Jr. ISIAH
The actor Isiah Whitlock, Jr. is perhaps best known for playing corrupt state senator Clay Davis on the HBO crime drama “The Wire”. Whitlock now appears on the HBO comedy series “Veep”, playing General George Maddox.

“Veep” is a political satire sitcom on HBO that is a remake of the British show “The Thick of It”. “Veep” is set in the office of a fictional Vice President of the United States played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

45. Widening agent in medicine STENT
In the world of medicine and surgery, a stent is an artificial tube inserted inside a vessel in the body, say an artery, so that it reduces the effects of a local restriction in the body’s conduit.

48. Gold-certifying grp. RIAA
The Recording Industry of America (RIAA) represents music distributors. It is the RIAA that certifies records that have gone gold and platinum i.e. reached fixed sales thresholds. It’s also the RIAA that goes after individuals who share music illegally online.

49. 0.5, for 30 degrees SINE
As we all recall from school (!), for an angle in a right-angled triangle, the sine is the length of the side opposite the angle divided by the length of the hypotenuse (the longest side). The cosine is the length of the adjacent side divided by the length of the hypotenuse.

50. ___ rage (result of juicing) ROID
Steroids are found commonly in nature, with familiar examples being cholesterol and testosterone. The controversial class of drugs called anabolic steroids (known informally as “roids” or simply “steroids”) are artificially produced chemicals designed to mimic the effect of the male sex hormone, testosterone. They are termed “anabolic” as they build up cellular tissue (particularly muscle) in a process called anabolism. Taking anabolic steroids can be termed “juicing”, and the aggressive behavior that can be a side-effect is known as “roid rage”.

51. Sister brand of CorningWare EKCO
The EKCO name dates back to 1888 when Edward Katzinger founded his company in Chicago, to make baking pans. The acronym EKCO stands for “Edward Katzinger Co”.

54. The U.N.’s ___ Hammarskjöld DAG
Dag Hammarskjold was the second secretary-general of the United Nations, right up until his death in a plane crash in Rhodesia in 1961. The crash was considered suspicious at the time as the bodyguards were found to have bullet wounds when they died, but this was put down to bullets exploding in the fire after the crash.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Two-man band? BROMANCE
9. Blush-inducing RIBALD
15. Anti-spill, say EASY-POUR
16. Green machine ECOCAR
17. Exponential unknown NTH POWER
18. “Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy” philosopher LAO-TZU
19. Cause of a stinging breakup? TEAR GAS
20. Less significant DINKIER
21. Sonnet extender? -EER
22. Enjoyed muchly DUG
23. Mount ___, Charley Weaver’s hometown IDY
24. See 41-Across SAUCE
27. Partner of many VARIED
30. Lambs, to Lucius AGNI
31. One being strung along? MARIONETTE
35. Decline dramatically GO TO RACK AND RUIN
37. 180s ABOUT TURNS
38. Title subject of a search in a 2003 film NEMO
39. “Twilight,” e.g. SERIES
40. Gets a clue, with “up” WISES
41. With 24-Across, barbecue finger stainer RIB
44. “___ really help” IT’D
45. Storm designation SHE
46. To whom Charles Darwin dedicated “Different Forms of Flowers” ASA GRAY
49. Bartending tool STIRRER
53. In-flight MID-AIR
54. Mixer for losers? DIET COKE
55. Pioneer in literary realism BALZAC
56. “Servant of the Bones” author ANNE RICE
57. “Really?” OH YEAH?
58. Ditch GET RID OF

Down
1. Like some straws BENT
2. Have prestige RATE
3. Org. that, when spelled backward, is an old-timey exclamation OSHA
4. What Gollum calls the Ring in “The Lord of the Rings” MY PRECIOUS
5. Nadir’s opposite APOGEE
6. Dove’s dream NO WAR
7. Aids after blanking out CUES
8. Slip ERR
9. Service providers? RELIGIONS
10. Statement of confidence I CAN
11. Musical component BOOK
12. Last part of “Waiting for Godot” ACT II
13. Was a slug LAZED
14. ___ Lane, London theater locale DRURY
20. Southeast Asian fruits with large, thick spines DURIANS
22. Burgundy or claret DARK RED
24. “Twilight,” e.g. SAGA
25. Oodles A GOB
26. “Adventure most ___ itself”: Emily Dickinson UNTO
27. Empty-headedness VACUITY
28. Word with deep or dead END
29. Newest fashion DERNIER CRI
31. Mother superior? MATRIARCH
32. It’s named for a Scand. god of battle TUES
33. “Pencils down!” TIME!
34. Nonhuman Earth orbiter of 1961 ENOS
36. Trip planner’s option: Abbr. RTE
40. More like a sheet? WHITER
41. Fanatically militant sort RAMBO
42. “Veep” actor ___ Whitlock Jr. ISIAH
43. Very much BADLY
45. Widening agent in medicine STENT
47. Goggle GAZE
48. Gold-certifying grp. RIAA
49. 0.5, for 30 degrees SINE
50. ___ rage (result of juicing) ROID
51. Sister brand of CorningWare EKCO
52. Shipping hazard REEF
54. The U.N.’s ___ Hammarskjöld DAG

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