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Solution to today’s crossword in the New York Times
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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: Yaakov Bendavid
THEME: Message to Buyers … each of today’s themed answers is a message that we might find on an item that we buy in a store. However, the message has been given a new meaning:
23A. Notice regarding voting in a state legislature? : ASSEMBLY REQUIRED
34A. Sign on the N.S.A.’s entrance? : INTEL INSIDE
56A. Audition caution for a movie with a cast of thousands? : CONTAINS SMALL PARTS
78A. Note on a watered-down assault indictment? : BATTERY NOT INCLUDED
97A. Offer of free pillow fill? : NO-MONEY DOWN
113A. Desert supermarket? : STORE IN A DRY PLACE
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 22m 53s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 2 … OCTA- (octi-), RANGO (Ringo)
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
10. ___ Bay, former U.S. base on Luzon : SUBIC
Subic Bay is in the Philippines, about 100 miles north of the capital Manila. Subic Bay was the famous site of a US Naval base until it was closed in 1992. I lived in the Philippines for a couple of years, and spent most weekends SCUBA diving. Subic Bay is a mecca for divers as there are many shipwrecks on the bottom of the bay that date back to the Spanish-American War of 1898, and to WWII.
Luzon is the largest of the Philippine Islands, home to the capital city of Manila.
19. Pope John X’s successor : LEO VI
Pope Leo VI was in office for just 9 months, spanning the years 928 and 929. Leo VI apparently wasn’t his own man, and fell under the control of a wealthy Roman noblewoman called Marozia. Marozia had allegedly been the mistress of Pope Sergius III, had ordered the imprisonment and death of Pope John X, then making Leo VI head of the Roman Catholic church.
20. Latin 101 verb : AMAT
“Amo, amas, amat: … “I love, you love, he/she/it loves”, in Latin.
21. Italian fashion label : PRADA
Prada was started in 1913 as a leathergoods shop in Milan, by the two Prada brothers. One of the brothers, Mario Prada, prevented the female members of his family participating in the company as he didn’t believe women should be involved in business (!). When the sexist brother died, his son had no interest in the business so it was his daughter who took over and ran the company for about twenty years, handing it over to her own daughter. I’d say the devil loved that …
26. In ___ land : LA-LA
La-la land is a euphemism for a state of unconsciousness.
28. Prurient material : SMUT
“Smut” means “dirt, smudge” and more recently “pornographic material”. The term comes from the Yiddish “schmutz”, which is a slang word used in English for dirt, as in “dirt on one’s face”.
Someone described as “prurient” has an extreme interest in sexual matters. Back in the 1600s, “prurient” meant “to have an itch”. Today the meaning is exclusively limited to “to have an itching desire”.
30. Pride : lions :: mob : ___ : EMUS
A group of lions is known as a “pride” of lions. It’s possible that the term “pride” in this context derives from the Latin “”praeda” meaning “prey”.
31. Some G.I. duties : KPS
KP is a US military slang term, and stands for either “kitchen police” or “kitchen patrol”.
32. Suited to serve : ONE-A
The US government maintains information on all males who are potentially subject to military conscription, using what is called the Selective Service System(SS). In the event that a draft was held, men registered would be classified into groups to determine eligibility for service. Class 1-A registrants are those available for unrestricted military service. Other classes are 1-A-O (conscientious objector available for noncombatant service), 4-A (registrant who has completed military service) and 4-D (Minister of religion).
34. Sign on the N.S.A.’s entrance? : INTEL INSIDE
Intel is the world’s largest manufacturer of semiconductor chips. The company was founded in 1968, and the name “Intel” is a derived from the term “int(egrated) el(ectronics)”. Recognition of the Intel brand has been greatly helped by the success of the “Intel Inside” campaign that started back in 1991.
The National Security Agency (NSA) was set up in 1952 by President Truman, a replacement for the Armed Forces Security Agency that had existed in the Department of Defense since 1949. The NSA has always been clouded in secrecy and even the 1952 letter from President Truman that established the agency was kept under wraps from the public for over a generation. I really like the organization’s nickname … “No Such Agency”.
37. Something to chew on : CUD
Animals that “chew the cud” are called ruminants. Ruminants eat vegetable matter but cannot extract any nutritional value from cellulose without the help of microbes in the gut. Ruminants collect roughage in the first part of the alimentary canal, allowing microbes to work on it. The partially digested material (the cud) is regurgitated into the mouth so that the ruminant can chew the food more completely exposing more surface area for microbes to do their work.
41. Person of interest to the I.R.S. : EARNER
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was set up during the Civil War to raise money to cover war expenses. Prior to the introduction of income tax in 1862, the government was funded by levies on trade and property.
42. Explorer for England who mistook Canada for Asia : CABOT
Giovanni Caboto (known in English as “John Cabot”) was an Italian explorer. Departing from Bristol in England, Cabot is believed to have been the first European to visit North America since the Vikings landed here in the 11th century. Many say that he landed in Newfoundland in 1497.
45. Deg. for a teacher-to-be : BSED
Bachelor of Science in Education (BSEd)
50. Biblical prophet : AMOS
Amos is one of the twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew Bible.
51. Spanish royalty : REINAS
In Spanish, a “reina” (queen) often lives in “un palacio” (a palace).
53. Nomadic northerner : LAPP
Lapland is a geographic region in northern Scandinavia, largely found within the Arctic Circle. Parts of Lapland are in Norway, Sweden and Finland. The people who are native to the region are called the Sami people. The Sami don’t like to be referred to as “Lapps” and they regard the term as insulting.
60. One side in “The Terminator” : HUMANS
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 said “I’ll be back”.
61. Mexican cigar brand : TE-AMO
The Te-Amo brand of cigars have been made in the San Andres Valley in the state of Veracruz, Mexico since 1963.
72. It ends in Nov. : DST
On the other side of the Atlantic, Daylight Saving Time (DST) is known as “summer time”. The idea behind summer/daylight-savings is to move clocks forward an hour in spring (i.e. “spring forward”) and backwards in the fall (i.e. “fall back”) so that afternoons have more daylight.
73. Sporty car roof : T-TOP
A T-top is a car roof that has removable panels on either side of a rigid bar that runs down the center of the vehicle above the driver.
75. Pickled garnish : CAPER
The seasoning we know as “capers” are the edible flower buds of the caper bush, also known as Flinders rose. By the time we get them in a jar, the buds have been pickled and salted. I’m not a huge fan of capers …
77. “Seinfeld” role : ELAINE
The character called Elaine Benes, unlike the other lead characters (Jerry, Kramer and George), did not appear in the pilot episode of “Seinfeld”. NBC executives specified the addition of a female lead when they picked up the show citing that the situation was too “male-centric”.
78. Note on a watered-down assault indictment? : BATTERY NOT INCLUDED
“Battery” is intentional contact with another person that is deemed to be either harmful or offensive. The related “assault” is the act of creating apprehension that such harmful or offensive contact is imminent.
85. Screen meas. : DIAG
The size of a TV screen is usually classified by the length of a diagonal.
86. 1914 battle locale : MARNE
The River Marne runs roughly northwestward for over 300 miles, running into the River Seine just outside Paris. The Marne was the site of two major battles in WWI, one fought in 1914, and one in 1918.
90. Some safari camping gear : NETS
“Safari” is a Swahili word, meaning “journey” or “expedition”.
94. Feature of the Devil : GOATEE
A goatee is a beard formed by hair on just a man’s chin. The name probably comes from the tuft of hair seen on an adult goat.
96. ___ Hots : RED
Red Hots are cinnamon-flavored candy pieces. I just found out that Red Hots are sometimes used in apple sauce …
97. Offer of free pillow fill? : NO-MONEY DOWN
Down feathers are the very fine feathers found under the tougher exterior feathers of a bird. There is fossil evidence that some non-avian dinosaurs had down-like feathers.
100. Second-largest moon of Saturn : RHEA
Rhea is the second-largest of Saturn’s moons, and the ninth-largest of all the moons in our solar system. The moon is named after the Titan Rhea from Greek mythology. Unlike our moon, Rhea might have an atmosphere of sorts, and even rings.
105. Many a bush plane, in brief : STOL
STOL is an abbreviation standing for “short take-off and landing”
In Australia, the land outside of urban area is referred to as “the outback” or “the bush”. Although, I think that “outback” can also be used for the more remote parts of the bush.
106. Thrice, in prescriptions : TER
“Ter” is the Latin word for “three”, commonly used in the medical world on prescriptions as part of the expression “ter in die”. “Ter in die” is Latin for “three times a day”, abbreviated to “TID”. “Bis in die” (BID) would be twice a day, and “quater in die” (QID) would be four times a day.
107. Center of a Scrabble board : STAR
The game of Scrabble has been produced in many international versions, and each of these editions has its own tile distribution to suit the local language. For example, in English we have two tiles worth ten points: one “Q” and one “Z”. If you play the game in French then there are five tiles worth ten points: one “K”, one “W”, one “X”, one “Y” and one “Z”.
112. Chum : MATE
A “chum” is a friend. The term originated in the late 1600s as an alternative spelling for “cham”. In turn “cham” was a shortened form of “chambermate”, a roommate at university.
118. Ex-Yankee Martinez : TINO
First baseman Tino Martinez has retired from Major League Baseball. Martinez played for a number of teams including the Mariners, Yankees, Cardinals and Devil Rays. Martinez was born and raised in Tampa, Florida and as a boy he worked in his father’s cigar factory.
120. During whose reign Peter was crucified : NERO
Nero was Emperor of Rome from 54 to 68 CE. Nero had quite the family life. When he was just 16-years-old he married his step-sister Claudia Octavia. He also had his mother and step-brother executed.
According to the Christian tradition, Saint Peter was crucified on the orders of Emperor Nero in Rome. Many hold that he requested to be crucified upside down as he felt that he was unworthy to have the same fate as Jesus Christ.
122. Panache : ELAN
Our word “élan” was imported from French, in which language the word has a similar meaning to ours, i.e “style” or “flair”.
Someone exhibiting panache is showing dash and verve, and perhaps has a swagger. “Panache” is a French word used for a plume of feathers, especially in a hat.
Down
2. “The Old Lion” storyteller : AESOP
In Aesop’s fable “The Old Lion”, an old lion lay dying in the mouth of a cave, when the animals he had hunted drew around him. A boar, bull and ass attacked the lion, as they felt free from danger. The moral illustrated by the fable is that it is cowardly to attack the defenseless, even though they may be the enemy.
6. Berry that’s much sought after? : HALLE
The beautiful and talented actress Halle Berry was the first African American woman to win a Best Actress Oscar, which she received for her performance in the 2001 movie “Monster’s Ball”. Berry also won a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress in 2005 for playing the title role in “Catwoman”, and she very graciously accepted that award in person. Good for her!
7. Musical documentary/biopic of 2015 : AMY
“Amy” is a documentary about the life and death of English singer Amy Winehouse. Released in 2015, “Amy” is a highest-grossing British documentary of all time.
Amy Winehouse was a much-ridiculed singer from the UK whose life was fraught with very public bouts of drug and alcohol abuse. Winehouse’s lifestyle caught up with her in 2011 when she was found dead from alcohol poisoning. The unfortunate singer was only 27 years old when she died, which means she is now viewed as a member of the “27 Club”. This “club” is made up of famous musicians who all died at the age of 27, including Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison of the Doors, and Kurt Cobain of Nirvana.
10. News sensation of 10/4/1957 : SPUTNIK
The Soviet Union launched the Sputnik satellite towards the end of 1957, a development that shocked the establishment in the US. Within months, President Eisenhower created the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA, now DARPA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Space Race had begun …
11. Ocean State sch. : URI
The University of Rhode Island (URI) was first chartered as an agricultural school, back in 1888. URI’s main campus today is located in the village of Kingston.
Rhode Island is the smallest state in the union, but is the second most densely populated. (after New Jersey). Rhode Island is known as the Ocean State, largely because about 14% of the state’s area is made up of ocean bays and inlets. Exactly how Rhode Island got its name is a little unclear. What is known is that way back in 1524, long before the Pilgrims came to New England, the Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano likened an island in the area to the Island of Rhodes in the Mediterranean. There were subsequent references to “Rhode Island” in English publications, before the colonists arrived.
12. Ballet dancer’s support : BARRE
A “barre” is a handrail used by ballet dancers for warm-up exercises and to provide support when practicing certain moves.
14. Bag carrier : CADDIE
“Caddie” is a Scottish word, as one might expect given the history of the game of golf. “Caddie” is a local word derived from the French “cadet”, meaning a younger son or brother, and also a student officer in the military.
16. Bay Area newspaper : EXAMINER
“The San Francisco Examiner” is a newspaper that is distributed for free around the Bay Area. The paper was launched in 1863 as the “Democratic Press”, which was opposed to the positions held by President Abraham Lincoln. Two years later, the newspaper’s offices were destroyed by a mob on hearing of the president’s assassination. The paper started up publication again a few month’s later as the “Daily Examiner”.
35. Infection fighter : T CELL
T cells are a group of white blood cells that are essential components of the body’s immune system. T cells are so called because they mature in the thymus, a specialized organ found in the chest.
36. “Forrest Gump” setting, for short : NAM
The epic 1994 movie “Forrest Gump” is based on a 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. Groom said that he had envisioned John Goodman playing the title role, and not Tom Hanks.
37. Longtime Olympics TV host : COSTAS
Bob Costas has been a sportscaster for NBC since the early eighties. Costas has a son called Keith. Just before his son was born, Costas made (as a joke) a bet with Minnesota Twins center fielder Kirby Puckett that if he was batting over .350 by the time the child was born, he would name the baby “Kirkby”. Well, Puckett won the bet, but the actual name chosen was Keith Michael Costas. When Puckett reminded Costas of the agreement, the birth certificate was changed to Keith Michael Kirkby Costas. My wife would have killed me …
40. Mulishness : ADAMANCY
The words “adamant” and “adamantine” can mean hard like rock or stony, in the literal sense. In the more figurative sense, someone who is adamantine is stubborn or inflexible, like a mule, mulish.
42. Squirreled away : CACHED
A “cache” is a secret supply. We imported the term into English from French Canadian trappers in the 17th century. Back then, “cache” was as slang term for a “hiding place for stores”, derived from the French verb “cacher” meaning “to hide”.
43. Trysters : AMOURS
In its most general sense, a tryst is a meeting at an agreed time and place. More usually we consider a tryst to be a prearranged meeting between lovers. The term comes from the Old French “triste”, a waiting place designated when hunting.
44. Witticism : BON MOT
“Bon mot” translates from French as “good word”. We use “bon mot” (and sometimes just “mot”) to mean a quip, a witticism.
45. With 70-Across, member of Hollywood’s Frat Pack : BEN
(70A. See 45-Down : STILLER)
Ben Stiller is the son of actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Ben is perhaps as well-known as a director as he is an actor. He made his debut as a director in the film “Reality Bites” in 1994.
48. Old-timey footwear accessory : SPATS
Spats are footwear accessories that cover the ankle and instep. Spats were primarily worn by men, and originally had the purpose of protecting shoes and socks from mud or rain. Eventually, spats became a feature in stylish dress. The term “spats” is a contraction of “spatterdashes”.
51. Dish that’s stirred constantly when being made : RISOTTO
Risotto is an Italian rice dish that is usually served as a first course in Italy, but as a main course here in North America.
52. Neighbors of Fijians : SAMOANS
The official name for the South Pacific country formerly known as Western Samoa is the Independent State of Samoa. “Samoa” is the western part of the island group, with American Samoa lying to the southeast. The whole group of islands used to be known as Navigators Island, a name given by European explorers in recognition of the seafaring skills of the native Samoans.
57. Soul singer Baker : ANITA
Anita Baker is an R&B and soul singer who was raised in Detroit, Michigan. Baker’s most successful song is the Grammy-winning “Sweet Love” released in 1986.
58. Nadir : LOW POINT
The nadir is the direction pointing immediately below a particular location (through to the other side of the Earth for example). The opposite direction, that pointing immediately above, is called the zenith.
59. Herringbone, for example : TWILL
The verb “to twill” means to weave a cloth (called a twill) that has a pattern of diagonal parallel ribs.
63. Tried to avoid a tag, say : SLID IN
That would be in baseball …
64. Defender of Troy : AENEAS
In Roman and Greek mythology, Aeneas was a Trojan warrior. According to ancient Roman lore, Aeneas traveled to Italy and became the ancestor Romulus and Remus, and thus the ancestor of all Romans. Aeneas’s story is told in Virgil’s epic poem “The Aeneid”.
69. Parlor piece : SETTEE
“Settee” is another word for a couch. The term come from the Old English “setl”, which was a long bench with a high back and arms.
74. Super Bowl-winning coach Carroll : PETE
Pete Carroll is a former head coach for the New York Jets and the New England Patriots, and now has the same position with the Seattle Seahawks. Carroll is also a “Deadhead”, an avid fan of the Grateful Dead.
76. Target of a curfew, maybe : RIOTER
Our word “curfew” comes from an Old French word meaning “cover fire”. In medieval days a bell would be ring in the evenings as a signal to bank the hearths in preparation for sleeping. The intent was to prevent uncontrolled fires starting from fireplaces that were not tended during the night.
78. Old Southwest outlaw : BANDOLERO
“Bandelero” is a Spanish word for “bandit”.
79. Title chameleon of a 2011 animated film : RANGO
“Rango” is a 2011 animated feature film starring the voice of Johnny Depp. The anti-smoking organization known as Breathe California labelled “Rango” as a public health hazard because of 60 instances of smoking in the movie.
80. Fraternity letters : NUS
The Latin equivalent of the Greek letter “nu” is “N”. An uppercase nu looks just like the Latin capital N, however, the lowercase nu looks like our lowercase “v”. Very confusing …
81. Throw a monkey wrench into : SABOTAGE
There is a story that disgruntled textile workers would kick their wooden shoes, called sabots, into the looms in order to disable them so that they didn’t have to work. This act of vandalism was named for the shoe, an act of … sabotage.
89. Low-quality material, in a saying : SOW’S EAR
The old proverb “you can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear” was apparently coined by English clergyman Stephen Gross in his 1579 story “Ephemerides”. Gosson wrote therein “Seekinge too make a silke purse of a Sowes eare.”
91. Unsmilingly : DEADPAN
The term “deadpan”, slang for an impassive expression, comes from dead (expressionless) and pan (slang for “face”).
99. Impurity : DROSS
When metals are smelted, there is a scum made up of impurities that floats on the surface of the molten metal. This scum is called “dross” and is drawn off and discarded. The term “dross” then came to mean any waste or impure matter.
103. 1961 Charlton Heston title role : EL CID
“El Cid” is an epic film released in 1961 that tells the story of the Castilian knight who was known as El Cid. The two big names at the top of the cast were Charlton Heston and Sophia Loren, but just who was the biggest star? When Loren discovered that a huge billboard promoting the movie in Times Square showed that her name was below Heston’s, she sued the movie’s producers.
104. Fort ___, Fla. : MYERS
Fort Myers is a city on the Gulf Coast of Florida. The city was built on the site of the old Fort Myers, a fort built by the US Army as a base of operations against the Seminole Native Americans.
108. Penny ___ : ANTE
Penny Ante poker is a game in which bets are limited to a penny, or some other small, friendly sum. The expression “penny-ante” has come to describe any business transaction that is on a small scale.
109. Commuter option : RAIL
Our verb “to commute”, meaning “to go back and forth to work”, ultimately derives from the Latin “commutare”, meaning “to often change”. Back in the late 1800s, a “commutation ticket” was a season pass, so named because it allowed one to “change” one kind of payment into another. Quite interesting …
114. Big name in camping gear : REI
REI is a sporting goods store, the initialism standing for Recreational Equipment Inc. REI was founded in Seattle by Lloyd and Mary Anderson in 1938 as a cooperative that supplies quality climbing gear to outdoor enthusiasts. The first full-time employee hired by the Andersons was Jim Whittaker, who was the American to climb Mount Everest.
115. Strands in a lab : DNA
Famously, James Watson and Francis Crick worked out that the structure of DNA is a double helix. Well, it turns out that some strands of DNA can twist into different shapes. For example, the DNA at the ends of our chromosomes can form a rectangular structure called a triplex or quadruplex.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Aspect : FACET
6. They’re not tipped very much nowadays : HATS
10. ___ Bay, former U.S. base on Luzon : SUBIC
15. County center : SEAT
19. Pope John X’s successor : LEO VI
20. Latin 101 verb : AMAT
21. Italian fashion label : PRADA
22. Weigh station unit : AXLE
23. Notice regarding voting in a state legislature? : ASSEMBLY REQUIRED
26. In ___ land : LA-LA
27. Fake : NOT REAL
28. Prurient material : SMUT
29. Cool, once : RAD
30. Pride : lions :: mob : ___ : EMUS
31. Some G.I. duties : KPS
32. Suited to serve : ONE-A
34. Sign on the N.S.A.’s entrance? : INTEL INSIDE
37. Something to chew on : CUD
38. Unchanging : STATIC
41. Person of interest to the I.R.S. : EARNER
42. Explorer for England who mistook Canada for Asia : CABOT
45. Deg. for a teacher-to-be : BSED
46. Command and Control : KEYS
49. Runs into : MEETS
50. Biblical prophet : AMOS
51. Spanish royalty : REINAS
53. Nomadic northerner : LAPP
55. Ace : PRO
56. Audition caution for a movie with a cast of thousands? : CONTAINS SMALL PARTS
60. One side in “The Terminator” : HUMANS
61. Mexican cigar brand : TE-AMO
62. Squirrel away : STOW
63. Blue : SAD
66. Shoreline problem : EROSION
68. Brings good news to skiers, say : SNOWS
70. See 45-Down : STILLER
72. It ends in Nov. : DST
73. Sporty car roof : T-TOP
75. Pickled garnish : CAPER
77. “Seinfeld” role : ELAINE
78. Note on a watered-down assault indictment? : BATTERY NOT INCLUDED
81. Where to get a mud wrap : SPA
83. Numerical prefix : OCTA-
84. Abstain : SIT OUT
85. Screen meas. : DIAG
86. 1914 battle locale : MARNE
88. Chick magnets? : HENS
90. Some safari camping gear : NETS
91. Unable to get it, say : DENSE
92. Houses : ABODES
94. Feature of the Devil : GOATEE
96. ___ Hots : RED
97. Offer of free pillow fill? : NO-MONEY DOWN
100. Second-largest moon of Saturn : RHEA
102. Beauty : GEM
105. Many a bush plane, in brief : STOL
106. Thrice, in prescriptions : TER
107. Center of a Scrabble board : STAR
110. Typically active voting group, with “the” : ELDERLY
112. Chum : MATE
113. Desert supermarket? : STORE IN A DRY PLACE
116. Stress, it’s said : AGER
117. Bewildered : AT SEA
118. Ex-Yankee Martinez : TINO
119. Buzzing : ASTIR
120. During whose reign Peter was crucified : NERO
121. Formal letter opener : TO SIR
122. Panache : ELAN
123. Cell towers for cellphones, for example : NEEDS
Down
1. Steak cut : FLANK
2. “The Old Lion” storyteller : AESOP
3. Overhead items : COSTS
4. Always : EVER
5. Break : TIME OUT
6. Berry that’s much sought after? : HALLE
7. Musical documentary/biopic of 2015 : AMY
8. Smears : TARS
9. Stick in the ground? : STEM
10. News sensation of 10/4/1957 : SPUTNIK
11. Ocean State sch. : URI
12. Ballet dancer’s support : BARRE
13. 10, say : IDEAL
14. Bag carrier : CADDIE
15. Ones doing demos, maybe : SALES REPS
16. Bay Area newspaper : EXAMINER
17. Suggest : ALLUDE TO
18. Promos : TEASERS
24. Wedding expense : BAND
25. Computer command : QUIT
33. Court stat : ASSIST
35. Infection fighter : T CELL
36. “Forrest Gump” setting, for short : NAM
37. Longtime Olympics TV host : COSTAS
39. Conjugation factors : TENSES
40. Mulishness : ADAMANCY
42. Squirreled away : CACHED
43. Trysters : AMOURS
44. Witticism : BON MOT
45. With 70-Across, member of Hollywood’s Frat Pack : BEN
47. Blathers : YAPS
48. Old-timey footwear accessory : SPATS
51. Dish that’s stirred constantly when being made : RISOTTO
52. Neighbors of Fijians : SAMOANS
54. Guard : PROTECT
57. Soul singer Baker : ANITA
58. Nadir : LOW POINT
59. Herringbone, for example : TWILL
63. Tried to avoid a tag, say : SLID IN
64. Defender of Troy : AENEAS
65. Clear, as a channel : DREDGE
67. Belt mark : NOTCH
69. Parlor piece : SETTEE
71. Held in high esteem : LAUDED
74. Super Bowl-winning coach Carroll : PETE
76. Target of a curfew, maybe : RIOTER
78. Old Southwest outlaw : BANDOLERO
79. Title chameleon of a 2011 animated film : RANGO
80. Fraternity letters : NUS
81. Throw a monkey wrench into : SABOTAGE
82. Concert V.I.P. : PROMOTER
86. Masculine icon : MAN’S MAN
87. Poetic twilight : E’EN
89. Low-quality material, in a saying : SOW’S EAR
91. Unsmilingly : DEADPAN
93. Attacks : SETS AT
95. Opposing voice : ANTI
96. Count (on) : RELY
98. “The best is ___ come” : YET TO
99. Impurity : DROSS
101. Graceful bird : HERON
102. Hazard for high heels : GRATE
103. 1961 Charlton Heston title role : EL CID
104. Fort ___, Fla. : MYERS
108. Penny ___ : ANTE
109. Commuter option : RAIL
111. Alternatively : ELSE
114. Big name in camping gear : REI
115. Strands in a lab : DNA
The Apple keyboard has both a control and command key.
Nice, difficult puzzle with very few arcane answers, e.g. who directed a movie that few people saw. We, too, missed OCTA, RANGO. We guessed OCTO, RONGO. Sheesh! At least there weren't any rebuses. 😉
Had exact same two errors… goes to show it's a pretty poor set of answers.
Otherwise, easiest Sunday in recent memory.
34:22, and the aforementioned 2 boo-boos.
36:48, 2 errors. It took me 14 more minutes to make the same 2 errors as Bill. This is one of those puzzles that I look back at, after completion, and think "Why did it take so long? This wasn't that hard."
Rango was easy for me. . . But I have kids.
28:38, no errors (but my final action was to timidly change RINGO to RANGO, based on a very fragmentary memory of the movie – otherwise I'd have had the same two errors as others).
"Anonymous" has already pointed out that Apple keyboards have both command and control keys.
Loved the story about the etymology of "sabotage"; can't help but wonder if it's actually true.
Same final comment as BruceB: This puzzle seemed easier in retrospect than in the actual doing.
I understand that the use of colons in "Pride : lions :: Mob : emus" roughly means, for a single colon (:), "is to," and, for a double colon (::), "as," (at least in my mind) but I can't find any rules on its usage.
The closet thing I can find, especially in the case of the double colon, is that it's used by some computer programming languages. Is its usage confined to the domain of crossword puzzles, or does it have other, more conventional uses?
I also have some questions about, what seems to me, the unique use, in crosswords, of quotation marks and brackets, but I can't think of any good examples right now. I'm hoping that the answers will make me a better solver.
Keep chuggin' away, Bill. You're always appreciated by this reader 🙂