Day: September 27, 2015

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. “I Am Not ___” (1975 show business autobiography) : SPOCK
Leonard Nimoy played the logical Mr. Spock in the original “Star Trek” television series. Spock has to be the most popular character on the show, and he keeps popping up in “Star Trek” spin offs to this day. Nimoy first worked alongside William Shatner (Captain Kirk) in an episode of “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” (I loved that show!), with Nimoy playing a bad guy and Shatner playing an U.N.C.L.E. recruit.

12. Cassio’s jealous lover in “Othello” : BIANCA
Shakespeare’s “Othello” was first performed in 1604. The main characters in the play are:

– Othello, a general in the army of Venice
– Desdemona, Othello’s wife
– Cassio, Othello’s trusted ensign
– Iago, the villain of the piece

26. Colt, e.g. : ARM
Samuel Colt was fascinated as a young man by the science behind gunpowder and its used in weapons. He decided early on in his life, that he would respond to the challenge of the day, how to achieve the impossible, a weapon that fire more than the two times available at the time using a double-barreled rifle. He came up with the concept of the revolver while at sea, modeling his design on the spoked wheel that steered the ships on which he served. His revolver made him a very rich man in his own lifetime. By the time he died in 1862, his estate was valued at around $15 million. Can you imagine? $15 million back in 1862?

27. Ones doing a decent job in the Bible? : FIG LEAVES
The third plant named in the Bible, after the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge, was the fig tree. Adam and Eve used leaves from the fig tree to sew garments when they realized that they were naked.

29. Magical phrase in an old tale : “OPEN SESAME”
In the folk tale “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves”, the title character is a poor woodcutter who discovers the magic words “Open Sesame” that open the thieves’ den.

32. “Shoot!” : NERTS!
“Nerts” is a slang term, a corruption of “nuts!” and with the same meaning.

43. LeBron James or Kevin Durant : NBA STAR
Basketball player LeBron James seems to be in demand for the covers of magazines. James became the first African American man to adorn the front cover of “Vogue” in March 2008. That made him only the third male to make the “Vogue” cover, following Richard Gere and George Clooney.

Kevin Durant is a professional basketball player with the Oklahoma City Thunder of the NBA. You might come across Durant on the big screen as well, as he starred in the children’s film “Thunderstruck” in 2012.

50. Schwarzenegger film catchphrase : “I’LL BE BACK”
The 1984 movie “The Terminator” was directed by James Cameron. It was a relatively low budget production, costing $6.4 million. It has grossed around $80 million to date, so no wonder the Terminator “came back”.

The body-builder, actor and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger was born in Graz in Austria, the son of the local police chief. Schwarzenegger’s family name translates into the more prosaic “black plough man”. In his bodybuilding days, he was often referred to as the Austrian Oak. When he was Governor of California he was called “the Governator”, a play on his role in the “The Terminator” series of movies.

52. Amazon’s industry : ETAIL
“Etail” is the term used these days for online shopping. Etail is often compared to regular shopping in the “real world” by juxtaposing it with a “brick and mortar” store.

58. Comment after a betrayal : “ET TU, BRUTE?”
It was Shakespeare who popularized the words “Et tu, Brute?” (And you, Brutus?), in his play “Julius Caesar”, although the phrase had been around long before he penned his drama. It’s not known what Julius Caesar actually said in real life just before he was assassinated on the steps of the Senate in Rome.

64. Link between two names : AKA
Also known as (aka)

71. Where batters eventually make their way to plates? : IHOPS
The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) was founded back in 1958. IHOP was originally intended to be called IHOE, the International House of Eggs, but that name didn’t do too well in marketing tests …

74. Catchphrase for one of the Avengers : “HULK SMASH”
The comic book superhero Hulk has two catchphrases. One is “Hulk is the strongest one there is”, and the other is “HULK SMASH!”

77. Gap in a manuscript : LACUNA
A lacuna is a missing piece of text (or music) in a larger work. Usually the text has been lost due to damage of an older manuscript. Lacunae can be very controversial as experts vie with each other to suggest what words have been lost.

84. Repeated bird call? : “NEVERMORE”
“The Raven” is a narrative poem by Edgar Allan Poe that tells of a student who has lost the love of his life, Lenore. A raven enters the student’s bedchamber and perches on a bust of Pallas. The raven can talk, to the student’s surprise, but says nothing but the word “nevermore” (“quoth the raven, ‘Nevermore’”). As the student questions all aspects of his life, the raven taunts him with the same comment, “nevermore”. Finally the student decides that his soul is trapped beneath the raven’s shadow and shall be lifted “nevermore” …

89. Bygone record co. : EMI
EMI was a British music company, with the initialism originally standing for Electric and Musical Industries.

90. Site of the “crown of palaces” : AGRA
“Mahal” is the Urdu word for “palace”, as in “Taj Mahal” meaning “crown of palaces”. The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum holding the body of Mumtaz Mahal, the third wife of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. The name “Mumtaz Mahal” translates as “the chosen one of the palace”.

93. Travel over seas? : PARASAIL
Parasailing is hanging below a tethered parachute that is towed by a boat.

96. N.Y.C. museum, with “the” : MET
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (“the Met”) was founded in 1870 by a group of private citizens. The current museum is huge, with 2 million square feet of floor space.

97. Honeymooners’ site : ISLE
The concept of a honeymoon vacation only started in the early 1800s. In Britain, wealthy couples would take a “bridal tour” together after wedding, visiting those friends and relatives who could not attend the ceremony. The etymology of “honeymoon” isn’t very clear, and may even have a negative derivation as it might suggest that the sweetness (honey) of love is doomed to wane like a passing phase of the moon. The equivalent terms in some other languages are “moon of honey” (French), “honey month” (Welsh) and “tinsel week” (German).

98. GPS calculation : ETA
A Global Positioning System (GPS) provides an estimated time of arrival (ETA).

101. Author ___-René Lesage : ALAIN
Alain-René Lesage was a novelist and playwright from France. Lesage is best known for his novels “The Devil upon Two Sticks” (1707) and “Gil Blas” (1715-1735).

103. What the ring in “The Lord of the Rings” is called : “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”.

107. Nepalis live in them : HIMALAYAS
The magnificent Himalaya range of mountains in Asia takes its name from the Sanskrit for “abode of snow”. Geographically, the Himalayas separate the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau to the north.

113. Google browser : CHROME
Google’s Chrome is now the most popular web browser used in the US, with Mozilla Firefox in second place and Internet Explorer in third. I find Chrome to be much, much more user-friendly than Internet Explorer, and more featured than Firefox. Chrome also works more seamlessly with other Google products and with Android phones.

120. Beezus’s sister, in children’s literature : RAMONA
“Ramona and Beezus” is a 2010 kid’s movie based on the “Ramona” series of children’s novels by Beverly Cleary. The title characters are played by Joey King (Ramona) and Selena Gomez (Beezus).

123. Something matzo lacks : YEAST
Matzo is a unleavened bread, that is very brittle. The bread is crushed, creating Matzo meal that is then formed into balls using eggs and oil as a binder. The balls are usually served in a chicken stock.

Down
1. ___ Lanka : SRI
The name Sri Lanka translates from Sanskrit into English as “venerable island”. Before 1970, Sri Lanka was known as Ceylon, a name given to the country during British rule.

3. It works for workers, in brief : 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.

7. Leader of a procession : HEARSE
We use the term “hearse” for a vehicle used to transport a dead body to the place of burial. The original meaning, still used sometimes today, is for a framework hanging over a coffin that holds candles.

8. ___ War, “The Charge of the Light Brigade” event : CRIMEAN
The disastrous “Charge of the Light Brigade” took place in Balaclava in the Crimea on October 25th 1854 during the Crimean War. Commander of the British Army that day was Lord Raglan, and in overall command of the Calvary unit was the Earl of Lucan. Under Lucan, in command of the Light Brigade was the Earl of Cardigan. Raglan sent a Captain Nolan to Lucan with orders to attack “the guns”. When Lucan asked Nolan which guns, it appears that Nolan indicated the wrong ones. Lucan then instructed Cardigan to lead the Light Cavalry in a charge on the designated guns, which he dutifully did. As the charge started, Nolan noted the error and rode onto the field to intercept the Light Brigade, but was killed by an artillery shell. The charge continued into an overwhelming artillery battery (“into the Valley of Death” to use Tennyson’s famous words), causing the loss of over 2/3 of the mounted brigade, a loss of 400 horses and 250 men killed or wounded, for no military purpose at all. Cardigan survived, left the field of battle immediately and boarded his yacht in Balaklava Harbor and had a champagne lunch. Lucan was made a member of the Order of the Bath the following year, and Raglan was promoted to Field Marshal …

9. Swanson on “Parks and Recreation” : RON
“Parks and Recreation” is a sitcom that started airing on NBC in 2009, and it is a show that has grown on me. It stars the “Saturday Night Live” alum Amy Poehler. The creators of “Parks and Recreation” are part of the team responsible for the American version of “The Office”, so you’ll notice some similarities in the style of the two shows, and some actors that have appeared in both.

11. Material sometimes sold ripped : DENIM
Denim fabric originated in Nimes in France. The French phrase “de Nimes” (from Nimes) gives us the word “denim”. Also, the French phrase “bleu de Genes” (blue of Genoa) gives us our word “jeans”.

12. Scourge : BANE
Today we tend to use the word “bane” to mean anathema, a source of persistent annoyance. A few centuries ago, a bane was a cause of harm or death, perhaps a deadly poison.

17. @@@ : ATS
The “at symbol” (@) originated in the commercial word, as shorthand for “each at, per” and similar phrases. I suppose we see the symbol most commonly these days as part of all email addresses.

19. Paint type : TEMPERA
Tempera is a painting medium made from a colored pigment mixed with a binder such as egg yolk. Tempera painting dates back at least to Ancient Egypt, and is a medium that is very long-lasting. Tempera was the primary medium for painted works of art for centuries, until the introduction of oil paints between the 5th and 9th centuries.

21. Soda can feature : PULL TAB
The oldest method of opening a can with a device included in the can’s design is the pull-tab or ring pull, invented in Canada in 1956. The design was long-lived but it had its problems, so the world heaved a sigh of relief with the invention of the stay-on-tab in 1975. The new design led to less injuries and eliminated all those used pull-tabs that littered the streets.

30. Guessed nos. : ESTS
Estimate (est.)

33. Art critic, stereotypically : SNOOT
“Snoot” is a variant of “snout” and is a word that originated in Scotland. The idea is that someone who is “snooty”, or snouty, tends to look down his or her nose at the rest of the world.

34. Not seemly : UNMEET
Something described as “meet” is suitable, fitting.

36. “Hakuna ___” (“The Lion King” song) : MATATA
“Hakuna Matata” is a Swahili phrase, with a literal translation of “there are no worries”, or more colloquially perhaps, “no problem”. It is a hit song from “The Lion King”.

42. Site of the U.S.’s only royal palace : OAHU
The ‘Iolani Palace in downtown Honolulu is unique within this country. It is the only royal palace in the US that was used as an official residence by a reigning monarch. The Kingdom of Hawaii was overthrown in 1893 so the palace was used by successive governments even after Hawaii was awarded statehood in 1959. The palace has been a public museum since 1978.

49. Kettle’s accuser : POT
The pot sometimes calls the kettle black.

53. “Lord, is ___?” : IT I
At the Last Supper, Jesus told his apostles that one of them would betray him that day. According to the Gospel of Matthew:

And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I?

54. Wolfish : LUPINE
The term “lupine” means “wolf-like”, coming from the Latin “lupus” meaning “wolf”.

56. Teachers’ grp. : NEA
The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the country, and mainly represents public school teachers.

60. Royale carmaker of old : REO
The REO Motor Company was founded by Ransom E. Olds (hence the name REO). The company made cars, trucks and buses, and was in business from 1905 to 1975 in Lansing, Michigan. Among the company’s most famous models were the REO Royale and the REO Flying Cloud.

67. Language in Southeast Asia : LAO
The Lao people are an ethnic group found mainly in Laos, but who also have a significant presence in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

69. One seeking the philosopher’s stone : CHEMIC
Something described as “chemic” pertains to alchemy.

To an alchemist, the “philosopher’s stone” is a legendary substance with the power of turning base metals into gold. The philosopher’s stone also has the power to extend life, and is sometimes called the elixir of life.

72. Revolutionary thinker? : PTOLEMY
Claudius Ptolemy was an Egyptian of Greek ethnicity who lived in the days when Egypt was ruled by Ancient Rome. Ptolemy was, among other things, a mathematician and astronomer. He published a famous treatise on astronomy called “Almagest” which included a list of 48 constellations in a star catalogue. The Ptolemaic system described the cosmos geocentrically, with the Earth at the center and other celestial bodies orbiting.

75. L.A. institution : USC
The University of Southern California (USC) is a private school in Los Angeles. Apart from its excellent academic record, USC is known the success of its athletic program. USC athletes have won more Olympic medals than the students of any other university in the world. The USC marching band is very famous as well, and is known as the “Spirit of Troy”. The band has performed with many celebrities, and is the only college band to have two platinum records.

77. Wool source : LLAMA
The wool from a llama is much softer than that from a sheep, and it is also free from lanolin.

78. Pasta variety : ANGEL HAIR
Capellini is a pasta that is like a thin spaghetti. An even thinner version of the pasta is known as “capelli d’angelo”, which translates as “angel hair”.

80. The Wahoos of the A.C.C. : UVA
The University of Virginia sports teams are known officially as the Cavaliers. The unofficial nickname is the Wahoos.

82. Romanian currency : LEU
The currency of Romania is the leu (plural: lei), a word meaning “lion”. The leu is also the name of the currency of neighboring Moldova. Romania joined the European Union in 2007, and had planned to join the Euro zone in 2014. This implementation date is in jeopardy as Romania struggles to meet economic goals set by the EU.

85. ___ rate (tax amount per $1,000) : MILLAGE
A millage tax is a property tax. The property tax rate is often expressed as a percentage of the property’s appraised value, and this rate is sometimes called the millage rate. The term “millage” comes from the Latin word for a “thousandth”.

87. iPod model : NANO
The iPod Nano is the successor to the iPod Mini and was introduced to the market at the end of 2005. There have been seven versions of the Nano to date and the current Nano as well as playing tunes is an FM player, records voice memos, has a pedometer and can connect with external devices (like a heart monitor, maybe) using Bluetooth technology.

92. Dictation takers : STENOGS
Stenography is the process of writing in shorthand. The term comes from the Greek “steno” (narrow) and “graphe” (writing).

94. “Git!” : AMSCRAY!
Pig Latin is in effect a game. One takes the first consonant or consonant cluster of an English word and moves it to the end of the word, and then adds the letters “ay”. So the Pig Latin for the word “nix” is “ix-n-ay” … ixnay, and for “scram” is “am-scr-ay”

99. Shrewdness : ACUMEN
Acumen is such a lovely word, I think, meaning “keenness of judgment or insight”. “Acumen” is Latin, meaning “point, sting”, the idea being that someone with acumen has mental sharpness.

104. Presidential perk until 1977 : YACHT
The US has had several presidential yachts over the years the most recent being the USS Sequoia that was used by presidents from Herbert Hoover to Jimmy Carter. The Sequoia was retrofitted with an elevator for President Franklin D. Roosevelt, but President Lyndon Johnson had that removed, and replaced with a bar!

108. Muscles worked by pull-ups, briefly : LATS
The muscles known as the “lats” are the latissimi dorsi, the broadest muscles in the back. “Latissimus” is the Latin for “broadest” and “dorsum” is Latin for “back”.

111. Greek portico : STOA
A stoa was a covered walkway in Ancient Greece. A stoa usually consisted of columns lining the side of a building or buildings, with another row of columns defining the other side of the walkway. The columns supported a roof. Often stoae would surround marketplaces in large cities.

112. 1940s prez : HST
The initial “S” in the middle of the name Harry S. Truman doesn’t stand for anything. The future-president was named “Harry” in honor of his mother’s brother Harrison “Harry” Young. The initial “S” was chosen in honor of young Harry’s two grandfathers: Anderson S-hipp Truman and S-olomon Young.

114. Genetic stuff : RNA
Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) is an essential catalyst in the manufacture of proteins in the body. The genetic code in DNA determines the sequence of amino acids that make up each protein. That sequence is read in DNA by messenger RNA, and amino acids are delivered for protein manufacture in the correct sequence by what is called transfer RNA. The amino acids are then formed into proteins by ribosomal RNA.

117. Monopoly token that replaced the iron in 2013 : CAT
There are eight tokens included in the game of Monopoly as of 2013. These are the wheelbarrow, battleship, racecar, thimble, boot, Scottie dog, top hat and cat. The latest to be introduced was the cat in 2013, replacing the iron. The battleship and the cannon (aka howitzer, now retired) had been added to the Monopoly game as part of a recycling exercise. The pieces were intended for the game “Conflict” released in 1940, but when Parker Bros. pulled “Conflict” off the market due to poor sales, they added their excess battleships and cannons to Monopoly.

Return to top of page

For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. “I Am Not ___” (1975 show business autobiography) : SPOCK
6. “Shoot, shoot, shoot” : OH CRUD
12. Cassio’s jealous lover in “Othello” : BIANCA
18. Charge : RUSH AT
20. Got up again : REROSE
21. Comes to fruition : PANS OUT
22. “Psst! Come hide with me!” : IN HERE!
23. Come closer to catching : GAIN ON
24. Takes out, as some beer bottles : UNCASES
25. First in a race? : ADAM
26. Colt, e.g. : ARM
27. Ones doing a decent job in the Bible? : FIG LEAVES
29. Magical phrase in an old tale : “OPEN SESAME”
32. “Shoot!” : NERTS!
34. Takes apart : UNMAKES
37. Drink at un café : EAU
38. Amt. often measured in ozs. : NT WT
40. Drink at un café : VIN
41. Not as far from : NEARER TO
43. LeBron James or Kevin Durant : NBA STAR
46. One trillionth: Prefix : PICO-
47. Welcome site? : MAT
48. When some tasks must be done : ASAP
50. Schwarzenegger film catchphrase : “I’LL BE BACK”
52. Amazon’s industry : ETAIL
55. Person of the hour : HONOREE
57. Still : AT REST
58. Comment after a betrayal : “ET TU, BRUTE?”
61. Pen : WRITE
63. Go on foot : TRAIPSE
64. Link between two names : AKA
66. Large goblet : CHALICE
71. Where batters eventually make their way to plates? : IHOPS
74. Catchphrase for one of the Avengers : “HULK SMASH”
77. Gap in a manuscript : LACUNA
81. Like some storefronts : TO LEASE
83. Farmer, in the spring : SOWER
84. Repeated bird call? : “NEVERMORE”
86. Is unable to : CAN’T
89. Bygone record co. : EMI
90. Site of the “crown of palaces” : AGRA
91. Multicar accidents : PILEUPS
93. Travel over seas? : PARASAIL
96. N.Y.C. museum, with “the” : MET
97. Honeymooners’ site : ISLE
98. GPS calculation : ETA
100. What the ruthless show : NO MERCY
101. Author ___-René Lesage : ALAIN
103. What the ring in “The Lord of the Rings” is called : “MY PRECIOUS”
107. Nepalis live in them : HIMALAYAS
109. Hebrew letter before samekh : NUN
110. 75- and 80-Down, e.g.: Abbr. : SCHS
112. Tote : HANDBAG
113. Google browser : CHROME
115. Steamy : EROTIC
118. Place : SITUATE
119. Wrinkle preventer, of sorts : HANGER
120. Beezus’s sister, in children’s literature : RAMONA
121. Ones making an effort : TRYERS
122. Contraction with two apostrophes : ‘TWASN’T
123. Something matzo lacks : YEAST

Down
1. ___ Lanka : SRI
2. “Let us spray,” e.g. : PUN
3. It works for workers, in brief : OSHA
4. Money, in modern slang : CHEDDAR
5. Something that may have bad keys : KARAOKE
6. Church keys? : ORGAN
7. Leader of a procession : HEARSE
8. ___ War, “The Charge of the Light Brigade” event : CRIMEAN
9. Swanson on “Parks and Recreation” : RON
10. Ol’ red, white and blue’s land : US OF A
11. Material sometimes sold ripped : DENIM
12. Scourge : BANE
13. Recite : INCANT
14. “What ___!” (cry after some spectacular goalie play) : A SAVE
15. What zero bars means on a cellphone : NO SERVICE
16. Tools for people picking pockets? : CUE STICKS
17. @@@ : ATS
19. Paint type : TEMPERA
21. Soda can feature : PULL TAB
28. Like a softball interview vis-à-vis a grilling : GENTLER
30. Guessed nos. : ESTS
31. Assistant number cruncher : SUBBOOKKEEPER
33. Art critic, stereotypically : SNOOT
34. Not seemly : UNMEET
35. More nifty : NEATER
36. “Hakuna ___” (“The Lion King” song) : MATATA
39. Rings on doors : WREATHS
42. Site of the U.S.’s only royal palace : OAHU
44. Go on : AIR
45. Host : SLEW
46. Course standard : PAR
49. Kettle’s accuser : POT
51. Groups that never get started : B-TEAMS
53. “Lord, is ___?” : IT I
54. Wolfish : LUPINE
56. Teachers’ grp. : NEA
59. C equivalents : B-SHARPS
60. Royale carmaker of old : REO
62. “Gross” : ICK
65. “So you admit it!” : AHA!
67. Language in Southeast Asia : LAO
68. “Cross my heart and hope to die” : I SWEAR
69. One seeking the philosopher’s stone : CHEMIC
70. How one person might resemble another : EERILY
72. Revolutionary thinker? : PTOLEMY
73. Feeling the effects of a workout : SORE
75. L.A. institution : USC
76. Bound : LEAP
77. Wool source : LLAMA
78. Pasta variety : ANGEL HAIR
79. Conviction … or what’s almost required for a conviction : CERTAINTY
80. The Wahoos of the A.C.C. : UVA
82. Romanian currency : LEU
85. ___ rate (tax amount per $1,000) : MILLAGE
87. iPod model : NANO
88. Kind of leg : TROUSER
92. Dictation takers : STENOGS
94. “Git!” : AMSCRAY!
95. Be a gentleman to at the end of a date, say : SEE HOME
97. Where many shots are taken : IN A BAR
99. Shrewdness : ACUMEN
102. “Things are bound to go my way soon” : I’M DUE
104. Presidential perk until 1977 : YACHT
105. “That’s nothing” : PSHAW
106. Not reacting : INERT
108. Muscles worked by pull-ups, briefly : LATS
111. Greek portico : STOA
112. 1940s prez : HST
114. Genetic stuff : RNA
116. Stand-___ : INS
117. Monopoly token that replaced the iron in 2013 : CAT

Return to top of page