0211-15 New York Times Crossword Answers 11 Feb 15, Wednesday

Important Note!
For some reason, the print version of today’s puzzle is a little different than that available online. I do the online version of the puzzle, so my grid and some clues may be different than yours. 4-5 answers in a cluster at the west of the grid have been changed.

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Will Treece
THEME: Corrected Musicians… each of today’s themed answers is the name of a musical act, but the act’s name has been “edited” to give the “correct” spelling, as opposed to the musicians’ “funky” spelling. The clue includes the name of a number-one album released by the act:

47A. Chart position reached by all the albums seen in the starred clues in this puzzle : ONE

18A. *”Rubber Soul” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : THE BEETLES (instead of “The Beatles”)
23A. *”Chicken-n-Beer” rapper, to an overzealous copy editor? : LUDICROUS (instead of “Ludacris”)
53A. *”Evolution” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : BOYS TO MEN (instead of “Boyz II Men”)
60A. *”Dr. Feelgood” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : MOTLEY CREW (instead of “Mötley Crüe”)
3D. *”Hysteria” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : DEAF LEOPARD (instead of “Def Leppard”)
26D. *”Meteora” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : LINCOLN PARK (instead of “Linkin Park”)

BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 17m 05s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

1. Chuck of “Meet the Press” : TODD
Chuck Todd is a television journalist. Todd is the Chief White House Correspondent for NBC.

NBC’s news and 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.

5. Suffragist Carrie Chapman ___ : CATT
Carrie Chapman Catt founded the League of Women Voters and the International Alliance of Women. Catt was also very close to Susan B. Anthony and succeeded Anthony as head of the National American Woman Suffrage Association.

9. Philanthropist’s focus : CAUSE
Philanthropy is a concern for human welfare, and the act of donating to persons or groups who support such concerns. The term derives from the Greek “phil-” meaning “loving”, and “anthropos” meaning “mankind”.

14. Word with gray or Bay : AREA
I think that the most famous “Bay Area” is the San Francisco Bay Area. Included in the Bay Area are the major cities of San Francisco, Oakland and San Jose.

18. *”Rubber Soul” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : THE BEETLES (instead of “The Beatles”)
In effect, the Beatles went through quite an evolution of names and band members. The evolution of band names is the Blackjacks, the Quarrymen, Johnny and the Moondogs, Beatals, the Silver Beetles, the Silver Beatles and finally the Beatles.

“Rubber Soul” is a 1965 Beatles album, the sixth one the band released. “Rubber Soul” was listed by “Rolling Stone” magazine as the fifth greatest album in music history.

20. Politician’s misstep : GAFFE
Our word “gaffe” , meaning a social blunder, comes from the French word “gaffe” meaning “clumsy remark”, although it originally was the word for “boat hook”. The exact connection between a boat hook and a blunder seems to be unclear.

22. Western arena attraction : RODEO
“Rodeo” is a Spanish word, which is usually translated as “round up”.

23. *”Chicken-n-Beer” rapper, to an overzealous copy editor? : LUDICROUS (instead of “Ludacris”)
“Ludacris” is the stage name of rapper Christopher Bridges from Champaign, Illinois.

31. Singing Dion : CELINE
French-Canadienne singer Céline Dion first came to international attention when she won the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest, in which she represented Switzerland in the competition that was hosted in Dublin, Ireland.

33. Chinese “way” : TAO
The Chinese character “tao” translates as “path”, but the concept of Tao signifies the true nature of the world.

40. Caged talker : MACAW
Macaws are beautifully colored birds of native to Central and South America, and are actually a type of parrot. Most species of macaw are now endangered, with several having become extinct in recent decades. The main threats are deforestation and illegal trapping and trafficking of exotic birds.

42. Duncan or Banquo : SCOT
In William Shakespeare’s play “Macbeth”, King Duncan is the good king of Scotland whom Macbeth murders in the pursuit of power.

Banquo is a character in William Shakespeare’s “Macbeth”. Banquo is the thane of the Scottish province of Lochaber. Macbeth has him murdered, only to have Banquo’s ghost return and haunt him.

53. *”Evolution” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : BOYS TO MEN (instead of “BOYZ II Men”)
BOYZ II Men are an R&B vocal trio from Philadelphia who started out in 1988. The original BOYZ II Men lineup included a fourth member, Michael McCary. McCary left the group in 2003 due to chronic back pain. The BOYZ II Men 1992 hit “End of the Road” stayed at number-one in the Billboard charts for an amazing thirteen weeks, shattering the 11-week record that had been held by Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog” since 1956.

60. *”Dr. Feelgood” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : MOTLEY CREW (instead of “Mötley Crüe”)
Mötley Crüe is an American rock band, from Los Angeles. They’ve been around since 1981, co-founded by the famous drummer Tommy Lee. Tommy Lee is also known for his two celebrated marriages, the first with Heather Locklear and the second with Pamela Anderson. The name “Mötley Crüe” was chosen as someone once described the band members as a “motley looking crew”. The spelling was made to look a little more exotic, with the umlauts added over the “o” and “u” one day, as the band were drinking bottles of “Löwenbräu” beer!

65. Delhi order? : SARI
I guess one might order a sari in a store in Delhi.

The item of clothing called a “sari” (also “saree”) is a strip of cloth, as one might imagine, unusual perhaps in that is unstitched along the whole of its length. The strip of cloth can range from four to nine meters long (that’s a lot of material!). The sari is usually wrapped around the waist, then draped over the shoulder leaving the midriff bare. I must say, it can be a beautiful item of clothing.

New Delhi is the capital city of India. New Delhi resides within the National Capital Territory of Delhi (otherwise known as the metropolis of Delhi). New Delhi and Delhi, therefore, are two different things.

67. Cry in “The Farmer in the Dell” : HI-HO
“The Farmer in the Dell” is a nursery rhyme and singing game that probably originated in Germany.

The farmer in the dell
The farmer in the dell
Hi-ho, the derry-o
The farmer in the dell

70. Zap, in a way : TASE
Victor Appleton wrote a novel for young adults called “Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle”. The company that developed the TASER electroshock weapon named its product as a homage to the novel. The acronym TASER stands for “Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle”.

Down
1. Kool-Aid alternative : TANG
Tang is a fruity drink that is sold in powdered form. The sales of Tang “took off” when John Glenn took Tang on his Mercury flight. However, it is a common misconception that Tang was invented for the space program. That’s not true, although it was included in the payload of many missions.

Kool-Aid is a fruity drink mix that was invented by Edwin Perkins in his mother’s kitchen. The initial product was a liquid concentrate called Fruit Smack. In 1927, Perkins came up with a dehydrated version of Fruit Smack in order to reduce shipping costs, and he called this product Kool-Aid.

2. Sea carnivore : ORCA
The taxonomic name for the killer whale is Orcinus orca. The use of the name “orca”, rather than “killer whale”, is becoming more and more common. The Latin word “Orcinus” means “belonging to Orcus”, with Orcus being the name for the Kingdom of the Dead.

3. *”Hysteria” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : DEAF LEOPARD (instead of “Def Leppard”)
Def Leppard is a hard rock band from Sheffield in England. Drummer Rick Allen lost his arm in a car crash, severed by an incorrectly-worn seat belt. With the encouragement of the band, he returned to the lineup by using a specially designed electronic drum set. Amazing indeed …

4. Region next to Chad : DARFUR
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. In response to a 2003 rebellion in Darfur, the Sudanese government embarked on a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the non-Arab population in the area. Hundreds of thousands of civilian deaths ensued, and eventually Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir was indicted for crimes against humanity by the International Criminal Court. al Bashir is still in office.

The landlocked African country called Chad takes its name from the second largest wetland on the continent: Lake Chad.

5. 100 lbs. : CWT
In America, a hundredweight is 100 pounds, whereas in the UK, a hundredweight is 112 pounds. The hundredweight is also called a centum weight, which explains the abbreviation used: cwt.

6. Sound at a spa : AHH
The word “spa” migrated into English from Belgium, as Spa is the name of a municipality in the east of the country that is famous for its healing hot springs. The name “Spa” comes from the Walloon word “espa” meaning “spring, fountain”.

7. It is human, per a saying : TO ERR
Alexander Pope’s 1709 poem “An Essay on Criticism” is the source of at least three well-known quotations:

– A little learning is a dangerous thing; Drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring.
– To err is human, to forgive divine.
– For fools rush in where angels fear to tread.

8. Verboten : TABOO
The word “taboo” was introduced into English by Captain Cook in his book “A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean”. Cook described “tabu” (likely imitative of a Tongan word that he had heard) as something that was both consecrated and forbidden.

“Verboten” is the German word for “forbidden”, a word that we have imported into English.

11. Site address : URL
Internet addresses (like NYTCrossword.com and LAXCrossword.com) are more correctly called Uniform Resource Locators (URLs).

12. Sault ___ Marie : STE
Sault Ste. Marie is the name of two cities on either side of the Canada-US border, one in Ontario and the other in Michigan. The two cities were originally one settlement in the 17th century, established by Jesuit Missionaries. The missionaries gave the settlement the name “Sault Sainte Marie”, which can be translated as “Saint Mary’s Falls”. The city was one community until 1817, when a US-UK Joint Boundary Commission set the border along the St. Mary’s River.

19. P.T.A. interest: Abbr. : EDUC
Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)

21. Gouda cousin : EDAM
Edam cheese takes its name from the Dutch town of Edam in North Holland. The cheese is famous for its coating of red paraffin wax, a layer of protection that helps Edam travel well and prevents spoiling. You might occasionally come across an Edam cheese that is coated in black wax. The black color indicates that the underlying cheese has been aged for a minimum of 17 weeks.

Gouda is a cheese that originated in the Dutch city of the same name, although today Gouda is produced all over the world and very little of it comes from the Netherlands. Gouda is often smoke-cured, given it a yellowish-brown outer skin and that characteristic smoky taste.

24. Part of an agenda : ITEM
“Agenda” is a Latin word that translates as “things to be done”, coming from the verb “agere” meaning “to do”.

25. Fragrant evergreen : CEDAR
Cedar is used for the manufacture of some wardrobes and chests as it has long been believed that the fragrant oil in the wood is a moth-repellent. However, whether or not cedar oil is actually effective at keeping moths away seems to be in doubt.

26. *”Meteora” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : LINCOLN PARK (instead of “Linkin Park”)
Linkin Park is a rock band that formed in 1996 in Agoura Hills, a suburb of Los Angeles. The band’s eventual name was chosen as a homage to Santa Monica’s Lincoln Park.

28. “By the power ___ in me …” : VESTED
“By the power vested in me by …” is a line from a traditional wedding ceremony.

29. Ivy League city : ITHACA
Ezra Cornell was an associate of Samuel Morse and made his money in the telegraph business. After Ezra retired he co-founded Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. He provided a generous endowment and donated his farm as a site for the school, and was then rewarded by having the institute named after him.

30. Land north of the Philippines : TAIWAN
The island of Taiwan is separated from the coast of mainland China by the Taiwan Strait. The East China Sea lies to the north, the Philippine Sea to the east, the Luzon Strait to the south and the South China Sea to the southwest.

The Philippines were claimed for Spain by the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan when he discovered the islands in 1521, and were named for King Philip II of Spain. The Philippines remained in Spanish hands until the Spanish-American War of 1898 reached the Philippines. The Philippine revolutionary leader, took advantage of the War and declared independence, but when the Treaty of Paris was signed ending the conflict, the US “bought” the Philippines for $20 million. Understandably, the Philippine rebels didn’t like this idea, starting the Philippine-American War which ended with the US forcibly taking control and ruling until the Japanese invasion in WWII.

32. What Vegas doesn’t have? : LAS
Back in the 1800s, the Las Vegas Valley was given its name from the extensive meadows (“las vegas” is Spanish for “the meadows”) present in the area courtesy of the artesian wells drilled by local farmers. Las Vegas was incorporated as a city in 1905, in the days when it was a stopping-off point for pioneers travelling west. It eventually became a railroad town, although with the coming of the railroad growth halted as travelers began to bypass Las Vegas. The city’s tourism industry took off in 1935 with the completion of the nearby Hoover Dam, which is still a popular attraction. Then gambling was legalized, and things really started to move. Vegas was picked, largely by celebrated figures in “the mob”, as a convenient location across the California/Nevada state line that could service the vast population of Los Angeles. As a result, Las Vegas is the most populous US city founded in the 20th century (Chicago is the most populous city founded in the 19th century, just in case you were wondering).

35. Much of the Arctic : ICE
Antarctica is a continent, one covered with a permanent ice shelf. The Arctic, on the other hand, is in effect an ocean that is covered with year-round ice caps.

39. Former barrier breaker : SST
The most famous supersonic transport (SST) is the retired Concorde. Famously, the Concorde routinely broke the sound barrier, and cruised at about twice the speed of sound. Above Mach 2, frictional heat would cause the plane’s aluminum airframe to soften, so airspeed was limited.

49. Traditional fishing boat : DORY
A dory is a small boat, around 20 feet long with a shallow draft, a flat bottom and a sharp bow. Dories are commonly used for fishing.

54. Competitor for the Jules Verne Trophy : YACHT
The famous novel by Jules Verne called “Around the World in Eighty Days” is the inspiration for the Jules Verne Trophy, a prize that was awarded to the first yacht to circumnavigate the globe in less than 80 days. Since that first presentation, the award is given to yachts that make the fastest circumnavigation.

55. Half of the United Arab Republic : SYRIA
The United Arab Republic (UAR) was a union between Egypt and Syria made in 1958 and dissolved in 1961 when Syria pulled out of the arrangement.

61. Rio “hello” : OLA
Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in Brazil (after São Paulo). “Rio de Janeiro” translates as “January River”. The name reflects the discovery of the bay on which Rio sits, on New Years Day in 1502.

62. “Sister Wives” network : TLC
“Sister Wives” is a reality show about the life of a polygamist family. The patriarch was legally married to only one woman, and had three more “wives” by virtue of spiritual unions.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Chuck of “Meet the Press” : TODD
5. Suffragist Carrie Chapman ___ : CATT
9. Philanthropist’s focus : CAUSE
14. Word with gray or Bay : AREA
15. “You just blew my mind!” : WHOA!
16. Pains : HURTS
17. Tenn. neighbor : N CAR
18. *”Rubber Soul” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : THE BEETLES (instead of “The Beatles”)
20. Politician’s misstep : GAFFE
22. Western arena attraction : RODEO
23. *”Chicken-n-Beer” rapper, to an overzealous copy editor? : LUDICROUS (instead of “Ludacris”)
26. Pet name in Britain : LUV
29. Go over again : ITERATE
31. Singing Dion : CELINE
33. Chinese “way” : TAO
34. Army doc : MEDIC
37. Smooths, in a way : SANDS
38. They move around a lot at a square dance : HIPS
40. Caged talker : MACAW
42. Duncan or Banquo : SCOT
43. Flooded : AWASH
45. Overhauled : REDID
47. Chart position reached by all the albums seen in the starred clues in this puzzle : ONE
48. Hauled (away) : CARTED
50. Made operational : ENABLED
52. Moreover : AND
53. *”Evolution” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : BOYS TO MEN (instead of “BOYZ II Men”)
56. Impressive display : ARRAY
57. Too sentimental : SAPPY
60. *”Dr. Feelgood” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : MOTLEY CREW (instead of “Mötley Crüe”)
65. Delhi order? : SARI
66. Let by : ALLOW
67. Cry in “The Farmer in the Dell” : HI-HO
68. Sting operation : TRAP
69. Count in a duel : PACES
70. Zap, in a way : TASE
71. “The ___ the limit!” : SKY’S

Down
1. Kool-Aid alternative : TANG
2. Sea carnivore : ORCA
3. *”Hysteria” group, to an overzealous copy editor? : DEAF LEOPARD (instead of “Def Leppard”)
4. Region next to Chad : DARFUR
5. 100 lbs. : CWT
6. Sound at a spa : AHH
7. It is human, per a saying : TO ERR
8. Verboten : TABOO
9. Assortment on a party platter : CHEESES
10. Lead-in to correct : AUTO-
11. Site address : URL
12. Sault ___ Marie : STE
13. Suffix with lion or steward : -ESS
19. P.T.A. interest: Abbr. : EDUC
21. Gouda cousin : EDAM
24. Part of an agenda : ITEM
25. Fragrant evergreen : CEDAR
26. *”Meteora” band, to an overzealous copy editor? : LINCOLN PARK (instead of “Linkin Park”)
27. Ruined : UNDONE
28. “By the power ___ in me …” : VESTED
29. Ivy League city : ITHACA
30. Land north of the Philippines : TAIWAN
32. What Vegas doesn’t have? : LAS
35. Much of the Arctic : ICE
36. Student in a uniform : CADET
39. Former barrier breaker : SST
41. Grape nut? : WINO
44. Book before James : HEBREWS
46. Challenges for salmon : DAMS
49. Traditional fishing boat : DORY
51. Wild things : BEASTS
54. Competitor for the Jules Verne Trophy : YACHT
55. Half of the United Arab Republic : SYRIA
56. Lotion additive : ALOE
58. Supplicate : PRAY
59. Puppy sounds : YIPS
60. Common almanac feature : MAP
61. Rio “hello” : OLA
62. “Sister Wives” network : TLC
63. Canadian interjections : EHS
64. Tribulation : WOE

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