Day: April 26, 2015

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Rye, N.Y., or Fort Lee, N.J. : SUBURB
Rye, New York and For Lee, New Jersey are both suburbs of New York City.

20. Viola’s love in “Twelfth Night” : ORSINO
Viola is the main character in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night”. Viola is shipwrecked at the beginning of the play in a land ruled by the Duke Orsino. Viola disguises herself as a boy and works for Orsino as a page, and complications ensue …

26. Forestall, with “off” : STAVE
The word “stave” was originally the plural of “staff”, a wooden rod. To “stave off” originated with the concept of holding off with a staff. In the world of barrel-making, a stave is a narrow strip of wood that forms part of a barrel’s sides.

28. Mauna ___ : LOA
Mauna Loa on the “big island” of Hawaii is the largest volcano on the planet (in terms of volume). The name “Mauna Loa” is Hawaiian for “Long Mountain”.

41. Include surreptitiously, in a way : BCC
A blind carbon copy (bcc) is a copy of a document or message that is sent to someone without other recipients of the message knowing about that extra copy.

46. H of antiquity : ETA
Eta is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, and is a forerunner of our Latin character “H”. Originally denoting a consonant, eta was used as a long vowel in Ancient Greek.

47. Cybertrade : E-TAIL
“E-tail” is the term used these days for online shopping, a play on “retail”. E-tail is often compared to regular shopping in the “real world” by juxtaposing it with a “brick and mortar” store.

55. Org. of concern to Edward Snowden : NSA
Edward Snowden is a former NSA contractor who leaked several top secret NSA documents to the media beginning in June 2013. After disclosing his name as the source of the leaks, Snowden tried to seek asylum in Ecuador. While travelling to Ecuador he had a layover in Moscow. While in Moscow, the US government revoked his passport, which effectively left him stranded in the transit area of Moscow Airport. The Russian government eventually granted him annually renewable temporary asylum.

57. ___ bone (U-shaped bone above the larynx) : HYOID
The hyoid bone is located in the neck that aids in the movement of the tongue and in swallowing. The hyoid is unusual in that it does not articulate closely with any other bone. The name “hyoid” comes from the Greek “hyoeides” meaning “upsilon-shaped”. The Greek letter upsilon is shaped like a “U”, as is the hyoid bone.

58. Big small screen : PLASMA TV
Plasma televisions are so called because the screen is made up tiny cells containing electrically charged ionized gases (plasmas). Each of the cells is effectively a tiny fluorescent lamp.

61. Pac-12 team : UTES
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”.

63. Modest hacienda : RANCHO
A “hacienda” is a large estate, in Spanish.

“Rancho” is Spanish for “ranch, farm”.

68. Dojo Mart, e.g.? : KARATE SHOP (from “karate chop”)
The Japanese word “dojo” literally means “place of the way”. Originally the term applied to training halls that were found in or beside temples. The teaching in a dojo was not limited to the martial arts, but in the Western world we use the dojo as the name for a training facility for judo, karate and the like.

72. Hunting milieu : FOREST
We use the French word “milieu” to mean an environment, surroundings. In French, “milieu” is the word for “middle”.

74. Audiophile’s preference, maybe : HI-FI
Hi-fi systems were introduced in the late forties, and is audio equipment designed to give a much higher quality reproduction of sound than cheaper systems available up to that point. “Hi-fi” stands for “high fidelity”.

80. Rendezvoused : MET UP
A rendezvous is a meeting, from the French “rendez vous” meaning “present yourselves”.

89. Toothpaste brand : AIM
The Aim brand of toothpaste was introduced in 1975 by Unilever. The brand was purchased by Church & Dwight in 2003.

91. 2012 Mark Wahlberg comedy : TED
“Ted” is a movie written, directed, produced and starring Seth MacFarlane. In the story, MacFarlane voices a teddy bear who is the best friend of a character played by Mark Wahlberg.

92. Swamp fever? : MARSH MADNESS (from “March Madness”)
March Madness is the name given to the NCAA Men’s Division 1 Basketball Championship, held in spring each year.

99. Oxford institution : OLE MISS
Ole Miss is the nickname for the University of Mississippi located in Oxford, Mississippi. The name “Ole Miss” dates back to 1897, the first year a student yearbook was published. The graduating class held a competition to name the yearbook and “Ole Miss” emerged as the winner. The name stuck to the yearbook, and also as a nickname for the school itself.

109. Face value, in blackjack : TEN
The game of “twenty-one” was first referred to in a book by Cervantes, the author famous for writing “Don Quixote”. He called the game “ventiuna” (Spanish for “twenty-one”). Cervantes wrote his story just after the year 1600, so the game has been around at least since then. Twenty-one came to the US but it wasn’t all that popular so bonus payments were introduced to create more interest. One of the more attractive bonuses was a ten-to-one payout to a player who was dealt an ace of spades and a black jack. This bonus led to the game adopting the moniker “Blackjack”.

110. Relative of cerulean : AZURE
The word “azure” came into English from Persian via Old French. The French word “l’azur” was taken from the Persian name for a place in northeastern Afghanistan called “Lazhward” which was the main source of the semi-precious stone lapis lazuli. The stone has a vivid blue color, and “azure” has been describing this color since the 14th century.

Cerulean is a blue color, with the name probably coming from the Latin “caeruleus” meaning “blue”.

119. Chow : VITTLES
“Victuals” is a term for food that is fit for consumption. We tend to pronounce “victuals” as “vittles”, and we use the term “vittles” and “victuals” interchangeably.

121. Vic with the 1949 #1 hit “You’re Breaking My Heart” : DAMONE
Vic Damone is a singer from Brooklyn, New York. As a young man Damone started taking voice lessons, inspired by his favorite singer, Frank Sinatra. Decades later, Sinatra said that Damone had “the best pipes in the business”.

Down
1. “Sons of Anarchy” actress Katey : SAGAL
Katey Sagal played Peggy Bundy on “Married … with Children”. Later she took over as star of the show “8 Simple Rules” in the middle of its run, when John Ritter passed away unexpectedly in 2003. More recently, Sagal has been appearing on the FX drama “Sons of Anarchy”. In 2004, she married Kurt Sutter who created the “Sons of Anarchy” series.

2. It’s down in the mouth : UVULA
The uvula is that conical fleshy projection hanging down at the back of the soft palate. The uvula plays an important role in human speech, particularly in the making of “guttural” sounds. The Latin word for “grape” is “uva”, so “uvula” is a “little grape”.

7. Green energy option : SOLAR
Solar panels make use of what’s known as the photovoltaic effect. We all learned about the photoelectric effect in school, in which electrons were ejected from the surface of some materials when it was exposed to light or other forms of radiation. The photovoltaic effect is related but different. Instead of being electrons ejected from the surface, in the photovoltaic effect electrons move around in the material creating a difference in voltage.

14. W.W. II “Dambusters,” for short : RAF
The Royal Air Force’s (RAF’s) No. 617 Squadron earned the nickname “Dam Busters” after they used “bouncing bombs” in an audacious attack on several dams in Germany during WWII. The raid was codenamed Operation Chastise, and resulted in the catastrophic flooding of the Ruhr Valley with about 1,600 people drowned.

15. About to be read the riot act : IN FOR IT
The Riot Act was a British law that was in force from 1715 to 1967. According to the Riot Act, government entities could declare any gathering of twelve or more people “unlawful”. Our expression “read the Riot Act” is derived from the requirement for the authorities to read out the Riot Act proclamation to an unlawful assembly before the Act could be enforced.

16. New Look pioneer : DIOR
Christian Dior was a French fashion designer. As WWII approached, Dior was called up by the French military, imposing a temporary halt to his career in fashion. He left the army in 1942 and for the duration of the war designed clothes for wives of Nazi officers and French collaborators. After the war his designs became so popular that he helped reestablish Paris as the fashion center of the world.

17. Raison d’___ : ETRE
“Raison d’être” is a French phrase meaning “reason for existence”.

27. “… the Lord ___ away” : TAKETH
According to the Book of Job:

… Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.

33. Mother of Levi and Judah : LEAH
In the Torah, the Israelites are traced back to Jacob, the grandson of Abraham. Jacob had twelve sons, six with each of his concurrent wives Leah and Rachel. The sons became the ancestors of the Twelve Tribes of Israel. The sons were:

– Reuben
– Simeon
– Levi
– Judah
– Dan
– Naphtali
– Gad
– Asher
– Issachar
– Zebulun
– Joseph
– Benjamin

37. Flip response? : HEADS
Heads or tails?

38. ___ Del Rey, singer with the 2014 #1 album “Ultraviolence” : LANA
Lana Del Rey is the stage name of singer/songwriter Elizabeth Grant. Del Rey calls herself a “self-styled gangsta Nancy Sinatra”. Nice …

40. Pole, e.g. : SLAV
The Slavic peoples are in the majority in communities covering over half of Europe. This large ethnic group is traditionally broken down into three smaller groups:

– the West Slavic (including Czechs and Poles)
– the East Slavic (including Russians and Ukrainians)
– the South Slavic (including Bulgarians and Serbs)

42. Raccoonlike animal : 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.

52. Painter of illusions : OP ARTIST
Op art is also known as optical art, and puts optical illusions to great effect.

53. Arm twister’s need? : ULNA
The radius and ulna are bones in the forearm. If you hold the palm of your hand up in front of you, the radius is the bone on the “thumb-side” of the arm, and the ulna is the bone on the “pinkie-side”.

60. Dancer in a pit : MOSHER
Moshing (also “slam dancing”) is the pushing and shoving that takes place in the audience at a concert (usually a punk or heavy metal concert). The area directly in front of the stage is known as the mosh pit. When a performer does a “stage dive” it is into (or I suppose “onto”) the mosh pit. It doesn’t sound like fun to me. Injuries are commonplace in the mosh pit, and deaths are not unknown.

67. Preprandial reading : MENU
Something described as “preprandial” takes place before a meal (with “postprandial” coming after the meal). The term derives from “prandium”, the Latin for “luncheon”.

68. Supermodel Heidi : KLUM
German-born Heidi Klum was married to the successful English singer, Seal. Klum is a talented lady and has built a multi-faceted career based on her early success as a model. She is the force behind the Bravo reality show called “Project Runway” that has been on the air since 2004. Klum has been nominated 4-5 times for an Emmy for her association with the show. Klum was also signed up as the official ambassador for Barbie in 2009, the 50th anniversary of the Barbie Doll, and for her service that year a Heidi Klum Barbie was produced. She has a added a touch of class to the judging panel on the show “America’s Got Talent” since 2013.

76. “Young Frankenstein” character : INGA
The lovely Teri Garr had a whole host of minor roles in her youth, including appearances in nine Elvis movies. Garr’s big break came with the role of Inga in “Young Frankenstein”, and her supporting role in “Tootsie” earned Garr an Academy Award nomination. Sadly, Teri Garr suffers from multiple sclerosis. She is a National Ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

77. ___ East : NEAR
In geographical terms there are three “easts”. The Near East and Middle East are terms that are often considered synonymous, although “Near East” tends to be used when discussing ancient history and “Middle East” when referring to the present day. The Near/Middle East encompasses most of Western Asia and Egypt. The term “Far East” describes East Asia (including the Russian Far East), Southeast Asia and South Asia.

79. Permanent thing : CURLER
“Perm” is the name given to a permanent wave, a chemical or thermal treatment of hair to produce waves or curls. I don’t worry about such things, as it’s a number-one all over for me …

80. Some digital videos, briefly : MPEGS
The Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG) was established in 1988 to set standards for audio and video compression. The standards they’ve come up with use the acronym MPEG.

83. Franz’s partner in old “S.N.L.” sketches : HANS
“Pumping up with Hans & Franz” was a popular sketch on “Saturday Night Live”. The title characters were played by Dana Carvey and Kevin Nealon.

84. Rackful in a closet : TIES
In old French a “clos” was an enclosure, with the diminutive form “closet” describing a small enclosure or private room. Over time this evolved into our modern usage, to describe a cabinet or cupboard.

88. Org. of the Jets and the Flyers : NHL
The Jets are the professional hockey team based in Winnipeg. The Flyers are the professional hockey team based in Philadelphia.

93. Occupation : METIER
One’s métier is one’s area of expertise, one’s profession. “Métier” is the French for “trade, profession”.

101. UV light blocker : OZONE
Ozone gets its name from the Greek word ozein, meaning “to smell”. It was given this name as ozone’s formation during lightning storms was detected by the gas’s distinctive smell. Famously, there is a relatively high concentration of the gas in the “ozone layer” in the Earth’s stratosphere. This ozone layer provides a vital function for animal life on the planet as it absorbs most of the sun’s UV radiation. A molecule of ozone is made up of three oxygen atoms, whereas a “normal” oxygen has just two atoms.

102. Residents of a certain -stan : KURDS
Most of the Kurdish people live in a region known as Kurdistan, which stretches into parts of Iran, Syria, Turkey as well as northern Iraq.

106. Be a polite invitee : RSVP
RSVP stands for “répondez, s’il vous plaît”, which is French for “please, answer”.

107. Mississippi River’s largest tributary : OHIO
The Ohio River is formed in Pittsburgh where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers meet. It empties into the Mississippi near the city of Cairo, Illinois.

114. Die spot : PIP
A pip is a dot on a die or a domino, or a mark on a playing card.

115. ___ oil (Australian folk medicine) : EMU
“Emu oil” is an oil that comes from the adipose tissue of some emus. Emu oil is touted as a dietary supplement, but apparently all claims of health benefits are fraudulent.

116. E.M.S. technique : CPR
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has for decades involved the simultaneous compression of the chest to pump blood using the heart, and artificial respiration by blowing air into the lungs. Nowadays emergency services are placing more emphasis on heart compressions, and less on artificial respiration.

Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Rye, N.Y., or Fort Lee, N.J. : SUBURB
7. Like some photographs and cliffs : SCALED
13. Bouquet tossers : BRIDES
19. Means of access : AVENUE
20. Viola’s love in “Twelfth Night” : ORSINO
21. Tombstone material : GRANITE
22. Wordlessly indicated “uh-oh” : GULPED
23. Valiant attempt to finish off a seven-course meal? : LAST-DISH EFFORT (from “last-ditch effort”)
25. ___ gel : ALOE
26. Forestall, with “off” : STAVE
28. Mauna ___ : LOA
29. Minerals to be processed : ORES
30. What an investor in golf courses might buy? : LAWN SHARES (from “lawn chairs”)
32. Beat soundly : PLASTER
35. Look for : SEEK
36. Grazing in a meadow and jumping fences, for two? : SHEEP THRILLS (from “cheap thrills”)
41. Include surreptitiously, in a way : BCC
44. Vacation unit, often : WEEK
46. H of antiquity : ETA
47. Cybertrade : E-TAIL
48. “Be sure to lose!”? : YOU BETTER WASH OUT (from “you better watch out”)
55. Org. of concern to Edward Snowden : NSA
56. Like some communities : GATED
57. ___ bone (U-shaped bone above the larynx) : HYOID
58. Big small screen : PLASMA TV
61. Pac-12 team : UTES
62. Jazzmen : CATS
63. Modest hacienda : RANCHO
64. Two blender settings? : MIX AND MASH (from “mix and match”)
68. Dojo Mart, e.g.? : KARATE SHOP (from “karate chop”)
72. Hunting milieu : FOREST
73. Dismounted : ALIT
74. Audiophile’s preference, maybe : HI-FI
75. Hone : FINE-TUNE
78. Caesar’s dressing? : TUNIC
80. Rendezvoused : MET UP
81. Acting as a group : ONE
82. What I unexpectedly had for breakfast? : MUSH, TO MY SURPRISE (from “much to my surprise”)
86. Another time : AGAIN
89. Toothpaste brand : AIM
90. Obstacle for a golfer : TREE
91. 2012 Mark Wahlberg comedy : TED
92. Swamp fever? : MARSH MADNESS (from “March Madness”)
97. Doesn’t keep up : LAGS
99. Oxford institution : OLE MISS
100. Floating casinos? : POKER SHIPS (from “poker chips”)
106. See 108-Down : … ROLL
109. Face value, in blackjack : TEN
110. Relative of cerulean : AZURE
111. Deep South delicacy : OKRA
112. Reviewer of the paperwork? : SHEAF INSPECTOR (from “chief inspector”)
117. “Don’t get yourself worked up” : NOW NOW
119. Chow : VITTLES
120. Be in the offing : IMPEND
121. Vic with the 1949 #1 hit “You’re Breaking My Heart” : DAMONE
122. Fraud : POSEUR
123. Compact containers : PURSES
124. Like cherry-picked data : SKEWED

Down
1. “Sons of Anarchy” actress Katey : SAGAL
2. It’s down in the mouth : UVULA
3. Not on deck, say : BELOW
4. Releases : UNPENS
5. Repentant feeling : RUE
6. Sleep on it : BEDSHEET
7. Green energy option : SOLAR
8. Fancy : CRAVE
9. Size up : ASSESS
10. English ___ : LIT
11. Discontinue : END
12. “How ___ look?” : DO I
13. What runners may run out of : BREATH
14. W.W. II “Dambusters,” for short : RAF
15. About to be read the riot act : IN FOR IT
16. New Look pioneer : DIOR
17. Raison d’___ : ETRE
18. Match makers? : SETS
21. Dead man walking? : GHOST
24. Indicator of freshness? : SLAP
27. “… the Lord ___ away” : TAKETH
31. Did some surgical work : SEWED
32. They rarely have surnames : PETS
33. Mother of Levi and Judah : LEAH
34. Poetic preposition : ERE
37. Flip response? : HEADS
38. ___ Del Rey, singer with the 2014 #1 album “Ultraviolence” : LANA
39. Errand-running aid : LIST
40. Pole, e.g. : SLAV
41. “Dagnabbit!” : BY GUM!
42. Raccoonlike animal : COATI
43. Nail-care brand : CUTEX
45. Ring alternatives : KEY CASES
49. Worrier’s farewell : BE SAFE
50. Mock tribute : ROAST
51. ___ honors : WITH
52. Painter of illusions : OP ARTIST
53. Arm twister’s need? : ULNA
54. Boor’s lack : TACT
59. ___-devil : SHE
60. Dancer in a pit : MOSHER
63. Unfair? : RAINY
65. “___ fair!” : NOT
66. One to beat : DRUM
67. Preprandial reading : MENU
68. Supermodel Heidi : KLUM
69. Bandleader’s shout : HIT IT!
70. Good to have around : OF USE
71. Added after a silence, with “up” : PIPED
73. They make up everything : ATOMS
75. Fire extinguisher output : FOAM
76. “Young Frankenstein” character : INGA
77. ___ East : NEAR
79. Permanent thing : CURLER
80. Some digital videos, briefly : MPEGS
83. Franz’s partner in old “S.N.L.” sketches : HANS
84. Rackful in a closet : TIES
85. Hits back? : REAR-ENDS
87. Single out : ISOLATE
88. Org. of the Jets and the Flyers : NHL
93. Occupation : METIER
94. Church chorus : AMENS
95. Roars : DINS
96. Outpourings : SPATES
98. “Prove it!” : SHOW ME!
101. UV light blocker : OZONE
102. Residents of a certain -stan : KURDS
103. “You already said that!” : I KNOW!
104. Lying flat : PRONE
105. Cut : SAWED
106. Be a polite invitee : RSVP
107. Mississippi River’s largest tributary : OHIO
108. With 106-Across, “It’s time to do this thing” : LETS …
113. Kind of season : FLU
114. Die spot : PIP
115. ___ oil (Australian folk medicine) : EMU
116. E.M.S. technique : CPR
118. Wine barrel wood : OAK

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