QuickLinks:
Solution to today’s crossword in the New York Times
Solution to today’s SYNDICATED New York Times crossword in all other publications
Solution to today’s New York Times crossword found online at the Seattle Times website
Jump to a complete list of today’s clues and answers
CROSSWORD SETTER: Tom McCoy
THEME: Colorful Characters … several of today’s themed answers are terms that start with a color that isn’t included in the answer, but is assumed (and so I’ve added the appropriate color to my grid). The colored answers FORM the shapes of four LETTERS, one at each corner, namely a “black I”, a “yellow C”, a “green T” and a “blue J”. These “colorful characters” sound like four answers elsewhere in the grid:
102A. Impersonal notes … or what four groups of this puzzle’s answers do (totaling 11 words) : FORM LETTERS
85A. Injury found in this grid’s upper-left corner : BLACK EYE (black I)
1A. Extremely attractive bodies : (BLACK) HOLES
40A. “That old” stuff of song : (BLACK) MAGIC
3D. Banning from future work : (BLACK)LISTING57A. Body of water found in this grid’s upper-right corner : YELLOW SEA (yellow C)
13A. Building material in Oz : (YELLOW) BRICK
46A. World’s first national park : (YELLOW)STONE
13D. Lily-livered sorts : (YELLOW)BELLIES80A. Beverage found in this grid’s lower-left corner : GREEN TEA (green T)
91A. Give the go-ahead : (GREEN-)LIGHT
93D. Anne’s home, in literature : (GREEN) GABLES6A. Bird found in this grid’s lower-right corner : BLUE JAY (blue J)
97A. Common muffin flavor : (BLUE)BERRY
123A. Super-rare occurrence : (BLUE) MOON
98D. Top prize : (BLUE) RIBBON
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 18m 50s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Extremely attractive bodies : (BLACK) HOLES
A black hole in space is a region that is extremely dense and one that has an enormous gravitational field. The force of gravity is so great that not even light can escape, so all that can be observed is “blackness”, which gives the phenomenon the name of “black hole”. It is believed that black holes form when large stars reach the end of their lives and collapse in upon themselves.
6. Bird found in this grid’s lower-right corner : BLUE JAY (blue J)
The bird known as a “jay” is sometimes called a “magpie”, although the terms are not completely interchangeable.
13. Building material in Oz : (YELLOW) BRICK
When Dorothy was on the Yellow Brick Road in “The Wizard of Oz”, she wasn’t in Kansas anymore.
18. Female surfer : WAHINE
“Wahine” is the word for “woman”, in both Hawaiian and Maori.
In Hawaii, one might see a wahine on a surfboard.
19. Words from a Latin lover : YO TE AMO
In Spanish, one might say “I love you” (you te amo) with flowers (con flores).
20. Byproduct of petroleum refining : ETHANE
Ethane is the second largest component of natural gas, after methane. Ethane’s main use is in the production of ethylene, a compound that is widely used in the chemical industry.
22. 1996 Olympic tennis gold medalist : AGASSI
Renowned tennis professional Andre Agassi wrote an autobiography called “Open”, published in 2009. An amazing revelation in the book is that Agassi’s famous head of hair was actually a wig for much of his playing career. Can you imagine how hard it must have been to play tennis at his level with a rug stuck on?
24. U.S.S.R.’s Brezhnev : LEONID
Alexei Kosygin was a Soviet statesman during the Cold War. When Nikita Khrushchev was ousted from the posts of First Secretary and Chairman in 1964, Leonid Brezhnev replaced Khrushchev as First Secretary, and Kosygin replaced him as Chairman. Brezhnev and Kosygin then became the most powerful members of a collective leadership that lasted until Kosygin resigned in 1980, with Brezhnev dying two years later in 1982. Although Brezhnev and Kosygin started out as leaders with equal footing, over time Brezhnev took more and more control. As a result, the period of Soviet history from 1964 to 1982 is now referred to as the Brezhnev Era.
34. Facetious unit defined as the amount of beauty needed to launch one ship : MILLIHELEN
According to Greek mythology, Helen was the daughter of Zeus and Leda. When Helen reached the age of marriage, she had many suitors as she was considered the most beautiful woman in the world. Menelaus was chosen as her husband, and he took her back to his home of Sparta. Paris, a Trojan prince, seduced Helen, as she eloped with him and travelled to Troy. This event sparked the Trojan War that waged between the city of Troy and Greece. Because of this war, Helen was said to have “the face that launched a thousand ships”. And because of this phrase, it has been suggested, probably by author Isaac Asimov, that the amount of beauty needed launch a single ship is one “millihelen”.
36. Young musician? : NEIL
Neil Young is a singer and songwriter from Toronto, Ontario. Young is known for his solo work, as well as his earlier recordings with Buffalo Springfield and as the fourth member of Crosby, Stills & Nash. Young is also a successful movie director, although he uses the pseudonym “Bernard Shakey” for his movie work. Included in his filmography are “Human Highway” and “Greendale”.
39. Birds Eye bagful : PEAS
Birds Eye is a brand of frozen foods.
40. “That old” stuff of song : (BLACK) MAGIC
“That Old Black Magic” is a song written by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Johnny Mercer. The song has been recorded by many artists over the decades, but was first released by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra in 1942.
42. Sodium ___ (potato chip flavoring) : ACETATE
Sodium acetate is chemical with many uses. In the world of food, it is often used to give a salt and vinegar flavor to potato chips.
46. World’s first national park : (YELLOW)STONE
Yellowstone National Park was the first National Park to be established in the world, when it was designated as such by President Grant in 1872. What a great tradition it started! The American National Parks truly are a treasure.
52. Whitney who went to Yale, appropriately : ELI
Eli is the nickname for a graduate of Yale University, a term used in honor of the Yale benefactor Elihu Yale.
The inventor Eli Whitney is a best known for inventing the cotton gin. Whitney also came up with the important concept of “interchangeable parts”. Parts that are interchangeable can be swapped out of equipment or perhaps used in related designs.
54. Quaking ___ : ASPEN
The “quaking” aspen tree is so called because the structure of the leaves causes them to move easily in the wind, to “tremble, quake”.
57. Body of water found in this grid’s upper-right corner : YELLOW SEA (yellow C)
The Yellow Sea is located between China and the west side of the Korean Peninsula and is the northern part of the East China Sea. There are four seas named for colors in English: the Yellow Sea, the Black Sea, the Red Sea and the White Sea.
63. Vitamin used to fight Alzheimer’s : B-TWELVE
Vitamin B12 is a water soluble vitamin that plays a role in the function of the brain and the nervous system. Folks like me who don’t eat any animal foods have to watch out for vitamin B12 as it is the one food substance that isn’t readily available from plant sources. Vitamin B12 is produced by bacteria readily found in “dirt” so it is readily ingested by animals and passed onto humans via diary products or meat. As we have to be so careful about washing our vegetables because of the use of pesticides, humans aren’t readily exposed to vitamin B12 when eating vegetables, so vegans often take supplements. Personally, as a potato-eating Irishman who always eats the skins of the potato, and doesn’t wash them too much when they come in from the garden, I’ve always had loads of B12 in my blood when it has been tested, without any supplements. I guess the message is “eat dirt” …
Alzheimer’s disease is a form of dementia, the most common form of the condition. The disease is named for German psychiatrist and neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer who first described it in 1906.
65. X contributor : MOTHER
In most mammalian species, including man, females have two identical sex chromosomes (XX), and males two distinct sex chromosomes (XY). As a result it is the males who determine the sex of the offspring. However, in birds it’s the opposite, so females determine the sex of the chicks.
69. “Methinks,” in forums : IMO
In my opinion (IMO)
70. Instruments in the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood” and “Within You Without You” : SITARS
The sitar has been around since the Middle Ages. The sitar is a stringed instrument that is played by plucking, and is used most often in Hindustani classical music. In the West we have been exposed to the instrument largely through the performances of Ravi Shankar and some music by George Harrison of the Beatles, a onetime student of Shankar.
72. Hawaiian verandas : LANAIS
A lanai is a type of veranda, a design that originated in Hawaii. A kind blog reader tells me that the etymology of “lanai” seems unclear, but that the island name of “Lana’i” is not related.
74. Prey for a cheetah : GNU
A gnu is also known as a wildebeest, an antelope native to Africa. “Wildebeest” is actually the Dutch word for “wild beast”.
82. Ending with may : -HAP
“Mayhap” is an adverb meaning “perhaps”. The term comes from the phrase “it may hap”.
88. Placeholder? : ATLAS
The famous Flemish geographer Gerardus Mercator published his first collection of maps in 1578. Mercator’s collection contained a frontispiece with an image of Atlas the Titan from Greek mythology holding up the world on his shoulders. That image gave us our term “atlas”.
90. Prey of the Morlocks : ELOI
In the 1895 novel by H. G. Wells called “The Time Machine”, there are two races that the hero encounter in his travels into the future. The Eloi are the “beautiful people” who live on the planet’s surface. The Morlocks are a race of cannibals living underground who use the Eloi as food.
94. Relative of a panpipe : HARMONICA
The harmonica is a reed instrument. A harmonica contains a number of reeds that are usually made from metal, all arranged on a reed plate.
101. Jai ___ : ALAI
Even though jai alai is often said to be the fastest sport in the world because of the speed of the ball, in fact golf balls usually get going at a greater clip. Although, as a blog reader once pointed out to me, you don’t have to catch a golf ball …
104. “Mon ___!” : DIEU
“Mon Dieu” is French for “my God”.
106. ___ 6 : MOTEL
The ubiquitous Motel 6 is the largest owned and operated hotel chain in North America. The chain was founded in Santa Barbara, California in 1962 by two building contractors. Their idea was to offer budget accommodation for just $6 per night, hence the name Motel 6.
109. Unit named for a telephone pioneer : BEL
In the world of acoustics, one bel is equal to ten decibels. The bel is named in honor of the inventor of the telephone, Alexander Graham Bell.
112. Substance in some signs : NEON GAS
The basic design of neon lighting was first demonstrated at the Paris Motor Show in 1910. Such lighting is made up of glass tubes containing a vacuum into which has been introduced a small amount of neon gas. When a voltage is applied between two electrodes inside the tube, the neon gas “glows” and gives off the familiar light.
118. Eponymous Bloomer : AMELIA
Amelia Bloomer was a 19th-century women’s right advocate. Bloomer proposed a change in the dress standards for women so they would be less restricted in movement. In particular, she advocated the use of loose trousers gathered at the ankles, worn under a short skirt. The outfit became known as “the Bloomer Costume” and the pants were termed “Bloomers”, a word we use to this day.
121. Owner of Columbia Pictures : SONY
Sony was founded by Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka. The two partners met in the Japanese Navy during WWII.
122. Baby bird? : STORK
In German and Dutch society, storks resting on the roof of a house were considered a sign of good luck. This tradition led to nursery stories that babies were brought to families by storks.
123. Super-rare occurrence : (BLUE) MOON
As there is a full moon once every four weeks, approximately monthly, there are usually twelve full moons in any given year. However, every 2-3 years, depending on the phase of the moon at the beginning of the calendar year, there may be a thirteenth full moon. The “extra” full moon is called a “blue moon”, although no one seems to really know why the term “blue” is used, as far as I can tell. Which of the thirteen full moons that is designated as the blue moon varies depending on tradition. My favorite definition is from the Farmer’s Almanac. It states that as each of the seasons normally has three full moons (twelve divided by the four seasons), then the season with four full moons is designated as “special”, then the THIRD (and not the fourth) full moon in that “special” season is the blue moon. Complicated, huh?
Down
1. Helga’s “horrible” husband : HAGAR
“Hagar the Horrible” is a comic strip that was created by the late Dik Browne and is now drawn by his son, Chris Browne. “Hagar the Terrible” (not “Horrible”) was the nickname given to Dik by his sons.
2. Butler’s maiden name? : O’HARA
In Margaret Mitchell’s novel “Gone with the Wind”, when Rhett Butler finally walks out on Scarlett O’Hara he utters the words “My dear, I don’t give a damn”. Most of us are more familiar with the slightly different words spoken by Clark Gable in the film adaption of the story: “Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”
4. Nitrogen symbols : ENS
The symbols for the element nitrogen is the letter N (en).
5. Earth-shattering, maybe : SEISMIC
Anything “seismic” is related to an earthquake. “Seismos” is the Greek for “earthquake”.
7. Lerner’s partner on Broadway : LOEWE
Frederick Loewe was a composer best known for his collaborations with the lyricist Alan Jay Lerner, the most famous of which were “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot”.
8. Beehive Stater : UTE
The Runnin’ Utes are the basketball team of the University of Utah. The team was given the nickname the Runnin’ Redskins back when Jack Gardner was the head coach from 1953 to 1971. The “Runnin'” part of the name was chosen because Gardner was famous for playing quick offenses. The “Redskins” name was later dropped in favor of the less controversial “Utes”.
When Mormon pioneers were settling what is today the state of Utah, they referred to the area as Deseret, a word that means “beehive” according to the Book of Mormon. Today Utah is known as the Beehive State and there is a beehive symbol on the Utah state flag.
11. Centuries-old instrument : AMATI
The first of the Amati family to make violins was Andrea Amati, who lived in the 14th century. He was succeeded by his sons, Antonio and Girolamo. In turn, they were succeeded by Girolamo’s son, Nicolo. Nicolo had a few students who achieved fame making musical instruments as well. One was his own son, Girolamo, and another was the famed Antonio Stradivari.
13. Lily-livered sorts : (YELLOW)BELLIES
Someone who is described as “lily-livered” is cowardly or timid. The term may have originated in “Macbeth” , where Shakespeare used it as an insult, with “lily” meaning pale or bloodless, and referring to the liver, the supposed seat of love and passion. So, an anemic liver might belong to a person lacking passion and courage.
14. Course: Abbr. : RTE
Route (rte.)
16. Illusory sight on Mars : CANAL
Back in 1877, Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli reported observing a network of long straight lines on the surface of the planet Mars. Schiaparelli called the phenomena “canali”, which was translated into English as “canals”, although the meaning “channels, gullies” is also accurate. In the following decades, other astronomers confirmed the sighting, whereas others disagreed that such lines could be seen. Some observers even suggested that the lines were irrigation canals built by an intelligent civilization that resided on the planet. It turns out that the “canals” were actually illusions caused by the chance alignment of craters and other natural features on the planet’s surface, illusions that were only observed at the limit of the resolution available in telescopes of the day.
17. Robotic dog on “Doctor Who” : K-NINE
The iconic science-fiction television show “Doctor Who” was first aired in 1963, and relaunched in 2005 by the BBC. The relaunched series is produced in-house by the BBC in Cardiff in Wales, the location that is the setting of the successful “Doctor Who” spin-off called “Torchwood”. The new show is about the Cardiff branch of the Torchwood Institute which investigates incidents involving extraterrestrials (ETs).
18. Bit of power : WATT
James Watt was a Scottish inventor, a man who figured prominently in the Industrial Revolution in Britain largely due to the improvements he made to the fledgling steam engine. The SI unit of power is called the watt, named in his honor.
21. Paradise lost in “Paradise Lost” : EDEN
“Paradise Lost” is an epic poem written by Englishman John Milton. It is indeed an epic work, published originally in ten volumes with over ten thousand lines of verse. The “paradise” that is “lost” is the Garden of Eden, from which Adam and Eve were expelled by God in the “Fall of Man”.
In the Christian tradition, the “fall of man” took place in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve succumbed to the temptation of eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, against the bidding of God. As a result, Adam and Eve were banished from Eden to prevent them becoming immortal by eating from the tree of life. The first humans had transitioned from a state of innocent obedience to a state of guilty disobedience.
27. Rapper ___ Wayne : LIL
Lil Wayne’s real name is … Dwayne Carter, Jr.
29. View from Neuchâtel : ALP
Lake Neuchâtel is the largest lake that lies entirely within Switzerland’s borders.
32. What you might bow your head to receive : LEI
“Lei” is the Hawaiian word for “garland, wreath”, although in more general terms a “lei” is any series of objects strung together as an adornment for the body.
38. Idle : OTIOSE
Otiose means “lazy, indolent”, and comes from the Latin word “otium” meaning “leisure”.
40. “Koala bear,” e.g. : MISNOMER
The koala bear really does look like a little bear, but it’s not even closely related. The koala is an arboreal marsupial and a herbivore, native to the east and south coasts of Australia. Koalas aren’t primates, and are one of the few mammals other than primates who have fingerprints. In fact, it can be very difficult to tell human fingerprints from koala fingerprints, even under an electron microscope. I’m a little jealous of the koala, as it sleeps up to 20 hours a day …
43. Who said “I can’t prove it, but I can say it” : COLBERT
Stephen Colbert is a political satirist who hosts his own show on Comedy Central, “The Colbert Report”. Colbert’s first love was theater, and so he studied to become an actor. He then moved into comedy, and ended up on the “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”. He left “The Daily Show” in 2005 to set up his own spin-off, “The Colbert Report”. In his own inimitable way, Colbert likes to use a “French” pronunciation for the name of his show, so “The Colbert Report” comes out as “The Col-bear Rep-oar”. Colbert will be taking over the “Late Show” when David Letterman retires.
47. Honeymoon attire : NEGLIGEE
Our word “negligee” is borrowed from the French. In France, the word “négligée” described a simple loose gown worn by women. The term came from the French for “neglect”, reflecting the “neglected” look of the simple gown compared to the elaborate clothing worn by society women.
48. 110, to Bilbo Baggins : ELEVENTY
Bilbo Baggins is the main character in J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel “The Hobbit”, and a supporting character his “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.
49. Sports star with size 18 shoes : YAO MING
Yao Ming is a retired professional basketball player from Shanghai who played for the Houston Rockets. At 7’6″, Yao was the tallest man playing in the NBA, and as of 2014, he is the 31st tallest man alive.
50. “Ginger ___” (1952 Newbery winner) : PYE
Eleanor Estes started writing children’s books when she was bedridden, recovering from tuberculosis. By the time she died in 1988, she had written 20 books, including one novel for adults. Her most lauded title is “Ginger Pye” published in 1951.
59. Director Guillermo ___ Toro : DEL
Guillermo del Toro is film director from Guadalajara in Mexico who has had a of success directing and producing American films. His best-known works are probably action movies like “Blade II” (2002) and “Hellboy” (2004).
61. Swindles : GRIFTS
“Grift” is money made dishonestly, especially as the result of a swindle. The term perhaps is an alteration of the the word “graft”, which can have a similar meaning.
66. Tabula ___ : RASA
Tabula rasa (plural: tabulae rasae) is the idea that people are born with a “blank slate”, and that knowledge comes from experience and perception.
76. Home of India’s Red Fort : DELHI
The magnificent Red Fort is a fortified palace in the center of Delhi, India that is made from red sandstone, hence the name. The Red Fort was built in 1648 and was maintained as the residence of the Mughal emperor of India for almost two hundred years.
82. Web file format, for short : HTML
HTML is HyperText Markup Language, the language used to write most Internet web pages (including this one).
86. Frosty’s pipe : COB
“Frosty the Snowman” is a song that was recorded first by Gene Autry, in 1950. The song was specifically written in the hope that it would become a follow-up hit to Autry’s “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” that topped the charts the previous year.
89. Chillax, say : SIT BACK
“Chillax” is a slang term meaning “chill and relax”. Who’da thunk it …?
91. Future imago : LARVA
The larva is an intermediate stage in the development of an insect. All four stages are embryo, larva, pupa and imago.
92. Alternative name for Troy : ILIUM
“Iliad” is an epic poem by the Greek poet Homer, which tells the story of the siege of Ilium (also known as Troy) during the Trojan war.
93. Anne’s home, in literature : (GREEN) GABLES
“Anne of Green Gables” is a 1908 novel by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Montgomery wrote several sequels to “Anne”, with them all being set on Prince Edward Island, from where the author hailed.
100. December celebrations : YULES
“Yule” celebrations coincide with Christmas, and the words “Christmas” and “Yule” have become synonymous in much of the world. However, Yule was originally a pagan festival celebrated by Germanic peoples. The name “Yule” comes from the Old Norse word “jol” that was used to describe the festival.
103. Beaver State capital : SALEM
Salem is the state capital of Oregon. It is thought that the city takes its name from the older city of Salem, Massachusetts.
108. Long ride : LIMO
The word “limousine” actually derives from the French city of Limoges. The area around Limoges is called the Limousin, and it gave its name to a cloak hood worn by local shepherds. In early motor cars, a driver would sit outside in the weather while the passengers would sit in the covered compartment. The driver would often wear a limousin-style protective hood, giving rise to that type of transportation being called a “limousine”. Well, that’s how the story goes anyway …
111. Day-___ : GLO
“Dayglo” is a registered trademark used for an ink or paint that glows when exposed to a black light in a darkened room. When Dayglo paint is viewed in daylight the colors can look particularly vivid because they respond to the UV light that is present in sunlight.
115. Long, narrow fish : GAR
The fish known as a gar is very unusual in that it is often found in very brackish water. What is interesting about gar is that their swim bladders are vascularized so that they can actually function as lungs. Many species of gar can actually be seen coming to the surface and taking a gulp of air. This adaptation makes it possible for them to live in conditions highly unsuitable for other fish that rely on their gills to get oxygen out of the water. Indeed, quite interesting …
117. Blood type system : ABO
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”.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Extremely attractive bodies : (BLACK) HOLES
6. Bird found in this grid’s lower-right corner : BLUE JAY (blue J)
13. Building material in Oz : (YELLOW) BRICK
18. Female surfer : WAHINE
19. Words from a Latin lover : YO TE AMO
20. Byproduct of petroleum refining : ETHANE
22. 1996 Olympic tennis gold medalist : AGASSI
23. Suffer remorse : FEEL BAD
24. U.S.S.R.’s Brezhnev : LEONID
25. Sharp : TART
26. Side of a diner : SLAW
28. Background color of a $100 bill : TEAL
30. It might be stained : PANE
31. Hikers’ snacks : TRAIL MIXES
34. Facetious unit defined as the amount of beauty needed to launch one ship : MILLIHELEN
36. Young musician? : NEIL
37. Nail holder : TOE
39. Birds Eye bagful : PEAS
40. “That old” stuff of song : (BLACK) MAGIC
42. Sodium ___ (potato chip flavoring) : ACETATE
46. World’s first national park : (YELLOW)STONE
49. Dog’s plaint : YIP
50. Leading : PROMINENT
52. Whitney who went to Yale, appropriately : ELI
54. Quaking ___ : ASPEN
57. Body of water found in this grid’s upper-right corner : YELLOW SEA (yellow C)
58. Lawn tool : EDGER
60. Performing, say : ON STAGE
62. Plagued : BESET
63. Vitamin used to fight Alzheimer’s : B-TWELVE
65. X contributor : MOTHER
66. Puts on eBay, say : RESELLS
68. “What a ___!” : RELIEF
69. “Methinks,” in forums : IMO
70. Instruments in the Beatles’ “Norwegian Wood” and “Within You Without You” : SITARS
72. Hawaiian verandas : LANAIS
74. Prey for a cheetah : GNU
75. With 77-Across, when combined into one word, national trivia championship, e.g. : NERD
77. See 75-Across : FEST
78. Hardware store or nursery purchase : BULB
79. Gels : SETS
80. Beverage found in this grid’s lower-left corner : GREEN TEA (green T)
82. Ending with may : -HAP
85. Injury found in this grid’s upper-left corner : BLACK EYE (black I)
87. Bereavement : LOSS
88. Placeholder? : ATLAS
90. Prey of the Morlocks : ELOI
91. Give the go-ahead : (GREEN-)LIGHT
94. Relative of a panpipe : HARMONICA
97. Common muffin flavor : (BLUE)BERRY
101. Jai ___ : ALAI
102. Impersonal notes … or what four groups of this puzzle’s answers do (totaling 11 words) : FORM LETTERS
104. “Mon ___!” : DIEU
105. Josh : RIB
106. ___ 6 : MOTEL
107. Fundamental : BASAL
109. Unit named for a telephone pioneer : BEL
110. Crass : VULGAR
112. Substance in some signs : NEON GAS
116. Inclined (to) : LIABLE
118. Eponymous Bloomer : AMELIA
119. Tranquil : AT PEACE
120. Print up? : EMBOSS
121. Owner of Columbia Pictures : SONY
122. Baby bird? : STORK
123. Super-rare occurrence : (BLUE) MOON
Down
1. Helga’s “horrible” husband : HAGAR
2. Butler’s maiden name? : O’HARA
3. Banning from future work : (BLACK)LISTING
4. Nitrogen symbols : ENS
5. Earth-shattering, maybe : SEISMIC
6. Quaint way of sending documents : BY FAX
7. Lerner’s partner on Broadway : LOEWE
8. Beehive Stater : UTE
9. Long, narrow fish : EEL
10. Insult : JAB
11. Centuries-old instrument : AMATI
12. Peak performance? : YODEL
13. Lily-livered sorts : (YELLOW)BELLIES
14. Course: Abbr. : RTE
15. “Fingers crossed!” : I HOPE SO!
16. Illusory sight on Mars : CANAL
17. Robotic dog on “Doctor Who” : K-NINE
18. Bit of power : WATT
21. Paradise lost in “Paradise Lost” : EDEN
27. Rapper ___ Wayne : LIL
29. View from Neuchâtel : ALP
32. What you might bow your head to receive : LEI
33. Like some wine glasses : STEMLESS
34. Have good intentions : MEAN WELL
35. Sunburn preventer, maybe : HAT
38. Idle : OTIOSE
40. “Koala bear,” e.g. : MISNOMER
41. Modern purveyor of Scrabble and Monopoly : APP STORE
42. “___ we done here?” : ARE
43. Who said “I can’t prove it, but I can say it” : COLBERT
44. Trial site : TEST LAB
45. Pittsburgh-to-Wilkes-Barre dir. : ENE
47. Honeymoon attire : NEGLIGEE
48. 110, to Bilbo Baggins : ELEVENTY
49. Sports star with size 18 shoes : YAO MING
50. “Ginger ___” (1952 Newbery winner) : PYE
51. Bill : TAB
53. “NO!” : I REFUSE!
55. End of the Bible? : -ETH
56. Scottish negatives : NAES
58. Some ovines : EWES
59. Director Guillermo ___ Toro : DEL
61. Swindles : GRIFTS
64. Like some councils : TRIBAL
66. Tabula ___ : RASA
67. Ignore : SNUB
71. Start of a round : TEE SHOT
73. Rapt : ALL EARS
76. Home of India’s Red Fort : DELHI
79. Went down a slippery slope : SKIED
81. “… just kidding!” : … NOT!
82. Web file format, for short : HTML
83. Burn alleviator : ALOE
84. Be winded : PANT
86. Frosty’s pipe : COB
88. Decorative bands : ARMLETS
89. Chillax, say : SIT BACK
91. Future imago : LARVA
92. Alternative name for Troy : ILIUM
93. Anne’s home, in literature : (GREEN) GABLES
95. Court locale : ARENA
96. Desist : CEASE
98. Top prize : (BLUE) RIBBON
99. Film archive : REELS
100. December celebrations : YULES
102. Incursion : FORAY
103. Beaver State capital : SALEM
106. Chief : MAIN
108. Long ride : LIMO
111. Day-___ : GLO
113. Go (for) : OPT
114. Modern beginning? : NEO-
115. Long, narrow fish : GAR
117. Blood type system : ABO
The Best of the New York Times Crossword Collections
Amazon.com Widgets
I love your site. It is so nice to see explanations of difficult clues and I love the bits of history, etymology and trivia you include. For instance I found it extremely interesting that both the Hawaiian and Maori word for woman was wahine. It implies a really long paddle in an outrigger canoe-or a lot of island hopping over generations.
However, this puzzle has me puzzled. I don't know if the clue was changed after my edition of the paper (not actually the NYT, but they publish the NYT Sunday puzzle) or what, but my 39A was 'A Libby's bagful", not a Birdseye bagful. The answer is the same, only the vegetable packer is different. Perhaps the change was made in a later edition, since Libby's primarily (or perhaps exclusively) cans veggies as opposed to Clarence Birdseye's revolutionary accomplishment of freezing food in boxes and now bags.
Thanks again for my apres-puzzle information and amusement.
Hi there, Andrea.
Thanks for the kind words about the blog.
I can't explain the change from Birdseye to Libby's. Maybe it was a change made in your local paper, to reflect the more prevalent supplier of frozen vegetables in your area?
Thanks, finished this puzzle without understanding it, more satisfying to be in the know.
I agree with E.B. Gilligan. Also, in my paper, the clue for 39A was Libby's, not Birdseye, just as in Andrea's.
Love your blog, and loved the puzzle, but I got totally off the rails with SCARLETT O'Hara and GREEN peas! — Lela
4637