1116-15 New York Times Crossword Answers 16 Nov 15, Monday

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
5. When a flight is due in, for short : ETA
Estimated time of arrival (ETA)

13. “___ You Babe” (Sonny & Cher hit) : I GOT
“I Got You Babe” is a duet that was released in 1965 by Sonny & Cher. The lyrics and music for the song were written by Sonny Bono himself. In 1993, Sonny and Cher did a version of the song with the animated characters Beavis and Butt-head. One has to ask, “Why …?”

14. Bond girl Adams : MAUD
Maud Adams played two Bond girls, in “The Man with the Golden Gun” and “Octopussy”, both times opposite Roger Moore as James Bond. Also, Adams was visiting her friend Roger Moore while he was shooting “A View to a Kill” and can be seen in the background in in one scene. So actually, Adams was in three Bond movies.

15. Edward ___, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” playwright : ALBEE
Playwright Edward Albee’s most famous play is “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” Albee won three Pulitzer Prizes for Drama:

-1967: “A Delicate Balance”
-1975: “Seascape”
-1994: “Three Tall Women”

Albee also won three Tony Awards:

-1963: “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” (Best Play)
-2002: “The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?”
-2005: Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement

16. One of the two flavors in Sprite : LIME
Sprite is Coca-Cola’s answer to the very successful soft drink called 7 Up. Sprite was introduced in 1961, and Coca-Cola used its muscle to topple 7 Up from its dominant position in the market. Sprite has been the number-one selling lemon soda since 1978.

17. The good dinosaur in Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur” : ARLO
“The Good Dinosaur” is a Pixar movie that premiered in Paris on November 14th, 2015 under the title “Le Voyage d’Arlo”.

19. *Carrier to Amsterdam : KLM AIRLINES
The initialism KLM stands for “Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij”, which translates from Dutch as “Royal Aviation Company”. KLM is the flag carrier for the Netherlands, and is the oldest airline in the world still operating with its original name. It was founded in 1919. KLM merged with Air France in 2004.

28. Candle holders : SCONCES
A sconce is a light fixture that today uses electric bulbs, but in the past used candles and torches. The defining feature of a sconce is that it is supported by a wall and does not have a base that stands on the ground. Usually the light is indirect, projected upwards towards the ceiling.

31. Calif.’s largest airport : LAX
Los Angeles International Airport is the sixth busiest airport in the world in terms of passenger traffic, and the busiest here on the West Coast of the US. The airport was opened in 1930 as Mines Field and was renamed to Los Angeles Airport in 1941. On the airport property is the iconic white structure that resembles a flying saucer. This is called the Theme Building and I believe it is mainly used as a restaurant and observation deck for the public. The airport used to be identified by the letters “LA”, but when the aviation industry went to a three-letter standard for airport identification, this was changed to “LAX”. Apparently the “X” has no significant meaning.

36. “O Canada,” for one : ANTHEM
The word “anthem” used to describe a sacred song, especially one with words taken from the Scriptures. The British national anthem (“God Save the Queen/King”) technically is a hymn, and so it came to be described as the “national hymn” and eventually “national anthem”. The use of the word “anthem” extended from there to describe any patriotic song.

Canada’s national anthem “O Canada” was commissioned in 1880 by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, so the original words are in French. The first English translation was made in 1906. The current English lyrics have been revised a few times, but the French version remains the same as it did back in 1880.

38. Old Russian rulers : TSARS
The term czar (also tsar) is a Slavic word that was first used as a title by Simeon I of Bulgaria in 913 AD. “Czar” is derived from the word “Caesar”, which was synonymous with “emperor” at that time.

41. Place to buy a Persian rug : BAZAAR
Our word “bazaar” meaning “market” comes from the Persian “bazar”, meaning the same thing.

49. 6/6/1944 : D-DAY
The most famous D-Day in history was June 6, 1944, the date of the Normandy landings in WWII. The term “D-Day” is used by the military to designate the day on which a combat operations are to be launched, especially when the actual date has yet to be determined. What D stands for seems to have been lost in the mists of time although the tradition is that D just stands for “Day”. In fact, the French have a similar term, “Jour J” (Day J), with a similar meaning. We also use H-Hour to denote the hour the attack is to commence.

59. Tic-tac-toe win … or hint to the starts of the answers to the starred clues : THREE IN A ROW
When I was growing up in Ireland we played “noughts and crosses” … our name for the game tic-tac-toe.

63. Adorable “Sesame Street” monster : ELMO
The man behind/under the character Elmo on “Sesame Street” is Kevin Clash. If you want to learn more about Elmo and Clash, you can watch the 2011 documentary “Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey”.

64. Dish that may be “sticky” : RICE
Sticky rice is actually a type of rice, and not a means of preparation. Sticky rice is more usually called “glutinous rice”, even though it does not contain dietary gluten.

65. German camera brand : LEICA
Leica is a German optics company, famous for production of lenses and cameras. The 1913 Leica was the first practical camera that could use 35mm film, a size chosen because it was already the standard for film used in motion pictures.

67. Org. overseeing the Big Ten and Big 12 : NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) dates back to the Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt. When his son broke his nose playing football at Harvard, President Roosevelt turned his attention to the number of serious injuries and even deaths occurring in college sports. He instigated meetings between the major educational institutions leading to the formation of the Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the United States (IAAUS) in 1906, which was given the remit of regulating college sports. The IAAUS became the NCAA in 1910.

69. Title bear in a 2012 Seth MacFarlane 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.

Down
3. Middle of 100,000? : COMMA
Our word “comma” comes into English via Latin from the Greek “komma” meaning “clause in a sentence”.

6. Dutch bloom : TULIP
We usually associate the cultivation of tulips with the Netherlands, but they were first grown commercially in the Ottoman Empire. The name “tulip” ultimately derives from the Ottoman Turkish word “tulbend” which means “muslin, gauze”.

7. Good-looking guy : ADONIS
In Greek mythology, Adonis is a beautiful young god loved by Aphrodite. Adonis dies in a hunting accident (gored by a boar), but not before he gives Aphrodite a child. Adonis was originally a Phoenician god “absorbed” into Greek lore (Phoenicia is modern day Lebanon). The child born of Adonis to Aphrodite was called Beroe, after which is named Beirut, the capital city of Lebanon. We also use the term “adonis” to mean “beautiful male”.

9. Inventor Whitney : ELI
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.

10. *David Muir … or Peter Jennings, once : ABC ANCHOR
Journalist and TV anchor David Muir hosts the show “ABC World News Tonight with David Muir”. Apparently, Muir’s reporting received more airtime than any other American journalist in 2012 and 2013. Muir also made it onto “People” magazine’s list of Sexiest Men Alive in 2014.

11. Soda pop brand : NEHI
“Nehi Corporation” was the nickname for the Chero-Cola/Union Bottle Works that introduced the Nehi drink in 1924. Years later the company developed a new brand, Royal Crown Cola (also known as RC Cola). By 1955, RC Cola was the company’s flagship product, so the “Nehi Corporation” became the “Royal Crown Company”. In 1954, RC Cola became the first company to sell soft drinks in cans.

25. Toronto’s prov. : ONT
Beautiful Toronto is the largest city in Canada, and the fourth largest city in North America (after New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston).

30. Captain Hook’s henchman : SMEE
In J. M. Barrie’s play and novel about Peter Pan, Smee is one of Captain Hook’s pirates and is Hook’s right-hand man. Smee is described by Barrie as being “Irish” and “a man who stabbed without offence”. Nice guy! Captain Hook and Smee sail on the pirate ship called the Jolly Roger.

33. *Diplomatic contretemps during John Adams’s administration : XYZ AFFAIR
During the administration of President John Adams, there was a drawn-out exchange between three American and three French diplomats in an attempt to avoid war between the two countries. The French diplomats made demands that were considered insulting by the US. Documents released by the Adams administration denoted the three French diplomats as simply X, Y and Z. There was public outcry when the documents were released and the demands disclosed, and the whole incident became known as the XYZ Affair. The end result was an undeclared war between the US and France with American ships capturing 80 vessels that flew the French flag.

52. Confederate genl.’s signature : RE LEE
Robert E. Lee is renowned as a southern officer in the Civil War. Lee was a somewhat reluctant participant in the war in that he opposed the secession of his home state of Virginia from the Union. At the beginning of the war, President Lincoln invited Lee to take command of the whole Union Army but he declined, choosing instead to stay loyal to his home state. During the Civil War, Lee’s men referred to him affectionately as “Marse Robert”, with “marse” being slang for “master”.

54. Jong who wrote “Fear of Flying” : ERICA
The author Erica Jong’s most famous work is her first: “Fear of Flying”, a novel published in 1973. Over twenty years later she wrote “Fear of Fifty: a midlife memoir”, published in 1994.

55. Kind of call that didn’t used to need an area code : LOCAL
Area codes were introduced in the 1940s. Back then the “clicks” one heard when dialling a number led to mechanical wear on various pieces of equipment. In order to minimize overall mechanical wear, areas with high call volumes were given the most efficient area codes (lowest number of clicks). That led to New York getting the area code 212, Los Angeles 213 and Chicago 313.

56. What you do in a sauna : SWEAT
As my Finnish-American wife will tell you, “sauna” is a Finnish word, and is correctly pronounced “sow-nah” (with “sow” as in the female pig).

62. Horned Frogs of the Big 12 Conf. : TCU
The athletic teams of Texas Christian University (TCU) are known as the TCU Horned Frogs. The Texas horned lizard is known colloquially as the “horned frog”.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Alternatives to PCs : MACS
5. When a flight is due in, for short : ETA
8. Intended : MEANT
13. “___ You Babe” (Sonny & Cher hit) : I GOT
14. Bond girl Adams : MAUD
15. Edward ___, “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” playwright : ALBEE
16. One of the two flavors in Sprite : LIME
17. The good dinosaur in Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur” : ARLO
18. Specialized market : NICHE
19. *Carrier to Amsterdam : KLM AIRLINES
22. Order between “ready” and “fire” : AIM
23. Lines of stitching : SEAMS
24. Court rendering : OPINION
26. Remainder of a used ticket : STUB
28. Candle holders : SCONCES
31. Calif.’s largest airport : LAX
34. Many bills in tips : ONES
36. “O Canada,” for one : ANTHEM
37. “___ day now” (“I’m waiting”) : ANY
38. Old Russian rulers : TSARS
40. Bullfight cheer : OLE!
41. Place to buy a Persian rug : BAZAAR
44. Ownership document : DEED
46. Ham on ___ : RYE
47. Doesn’t go to bed : STAYS UP
49. 6/6/1944 : D-DAY
51. Full-length movie : FEATURE
53. What old movies came on : REELS
57. Not working : OFF
59. Tic-tac-toe win … or hint to the starts of the answers to the starred clues : THREE IN A ROW
61. Furious : IRATE
63. Adorable “Sesame Street” monster : ELMO
64. Dish that may be “sticky” : RICE
65. German camera brand : LEICA
66. Observed : SEEN
67. Org. overseeing the Big Ten and Big 12 : NCAA
68. Play a guitar casually : STRUM
69. Title bear in a 2012 Seth MacFarlane comedy : TED
70. Pepper’s counterpart : SALT

Down
1. Uses for all it’s worth : MILKS
2. Light on one’s feet : AGILE
3. Middle of 100,000? : COMMA
4. Makes furious : STEAMS
5. Places to put diamond studs : EARLOBES
6. Dutch bloom : TULIP
7. Good-looking guy : ADONIS
8. Millionaire’s home, say : MANSION
9. Inventor Whitney : ELI
10. *David Muir … or Peter Jennings, once : ABC ANCHOR
11. Soda pop brand : NEHI
12. Overflow (with) : TEEM
14. Deface : MAR
20. “It ___ die for!” (“Yum!”) : IS TO
21. Completely covered : ENCASED
25. Toronto’s prov. : ONT
27. Lie : UNTRUTH
29. Slippery as a fish : EELY
30. Captain Hook’s henchman : SMEE
31. Experiment sites : LABS
32. Med school subj. : ANAT
33. *Diplomatic contretemps during John Adams’s administration : XYZ AFFAIR
35. What this means: 🙁 : SAD
39. Turned in for cash : REDEEMED
42. Vote in favor : AYE
43. Together, like workers : AS A TEAM
45. Mend, as socks : DARN
48. Most unsullied : PUREST
50. Is filled with longing : YEARNS
52. Confederate genl.’s signature : RE LEE
54. Jong who wrote “Fear of Flying” : ERICA
55. Kind of call that didn’t used to need an area code : LOCAL
56. What you do in a sauna : SWEAT
57. Classical paintings : OILS
58. Worry : FRET
60. Charged particle : ION
62. Horned Frogs of the Big 12 Conf. : TCU

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