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CROSSWORD SETTER: John R. O’Brien
THEME: Hidden Gem
The circled letters in today’s themed answers spell out the names of HIDDEN words, with each word being a type of GEM:
58A. Masterpiece waiting to be found … or a hint to the words in the circled letters : HIDDEN GEM
17A. Place to pay the going rate? : TOLL PLAZA (hiding “topaz”)
25A. Put at risk : JEOPARDIZE (hiding “jade”)
35A. Something that might be thrown behind a teacher’s back : PAPER AIRPLANE (hiding “pearl”)
49A. In all probability : PRESUMABLY (hiding “ruby”)
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 8m 27s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Harley-Davidson bike, in slang : HOG
The Harley-Davidson motorcycle company was started up in the very early 1900s by two childhood friends, William Harley and Arthur Davidson, . Their first design was in effect an engine hooked up to a pedal bicycle, but the 116 cc cylinder capacity simply couldn’t generate enough power to get up the hills of their native city of Milwaukee. The pair came up with a redesigned model that had a cylinder capacity of 405 cc, which the partners built in a shed at the back of Davidson’s house. In 1906, the partners built their first factory, located where the company’s headquarters is to this day, on Juneau Avenue in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Famously, Harley motorcycles are nicknamed “hogs”.
9. Like Vatican affairs : PAPAL
Vatican City is a sovereign city-state that is walled off within the city of Rome. Vatican City is about 110 acres in area, and so is the smallest independent state in the world. With about 800 residents, it is also the smallest state in terms of population. Although the Holy See dates back to early Christianity, Vatican City only came into being in 1929. At that time, Prime Minister Benito Mussolini signed a treaty with the Holy See on behalf of the Kingdom of Italy that established the city-state.
14. Plains tribe name : OTO
The Otoe (also Oto) Native American tribe originated in the Great Lakes region as part of the Winnebago or Siouan tribes. The group that would become the Otoe broke away from the Winnebago and migrated southwestwards ending up in the Great Plains. In the plains the Otoe adopted a semi-nomadic lifestyle dependent on the horse, with the American bison becoming central to their diet.
15. Emulate Picasso or Pollock : PAINT
The artist Pablo Picasso’s full name was Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso, a name he was given right from birth. Got that?
Jackson Pollock was an abstract expressionist painter who famously used a “drip painting” style. Pollock was married to Lee Krasner, herself an influential abstract expressionist.
17. Place to pay the going rate? : TOLL PLAZA (hiding “topaz”)
Topaz is a semiprecious stone made from silicate containing aluminum and fluorine. Topaz is the state gemstone of Utah, and the rare blue topaz is the state gemstone of Texas.
20. Dummies : DODOS
The dodo was a direct relative of the pigeon and dove, although the fully-grown dodo was usually three feet tall. One of the reasons the dodo comes to mind when we think of extinction of a species, is that it disappeared not too long ago (last recorded alive in 1681) and humans were the reason for its demise. The dodo lived exclusively on the island of Mauritius and when man arrived, we cut back the forests that were its home. We also introduced domestic animals, such as dogs and pigs, that ransacked the dodo’s nests. The dodo was deemed to be an awkward flightless bird and so the term “dodo” has come to mean a dull-witted person.
21. Dennis the Menace, for one : IMP
“Dennis the Menace” is a comic strip that first appeared in 1951, originally drawn by Hank Ketcham. The strip made the jump over the years from the newspaper to television and the silver screen. Dennis’s full name is Dennis Mitchell, and his parents are Henry and Alice (Johnson) Mitchell. Dennis’s nemesis is his neighbor, Mister George Everett Wilson. Hank Ketcham drew his inspiration for the story from his real life. When he introduced the strip he had a 4-year-old son called Dennis, and a wife named Alice.
23. Former G.M. compact : GEO
Geos were small vehicles manufactured by General Motors mainly in the nineties. Geos were designed to compete head-to-head with the small imports that were gaining market share at the time in the US. Some Geo models that you might remember are the Metro, the Prizm and the Storm. The cars were actually built as joint-ventures with Japanese manufacturers. The Prizm was a GM/Toyota project, the Metro was GM/Suzuki, and the Storm was GM/Isuzu.
25. Put at risk : JEOPARDIZE (hiding “jade”)
Jade is actually the name given to two different mineral rocks, both of which are used to make gemstones. The first is nephrite, a mineral with a varying degree of iron content, the more iron the greener the color. The second is jadeite, a sodium and aluminum-rich pyroxene. As well as being used for gemstones, both jade minerals can be carved into decorative pieces.
32. Former Nevada senator Harry : REID
Democrat Harry Reid was the Senate Majority leader from 2007 until 2015. Reid had a big day in the Senate from a Democratic perspective with the successful passage of the so-called ObamaCare Bill. Paradoxically, Harry Reid’s wife was in hospital at the time, having broken her back in a car accident. Reid took over as Senate Majority leader from Republican Bill Frist who retired from politics in 2007. Reid was replaced in 2015 by Republican Mitch McConnell.
34. How Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic : ALONE
Charles Lindbergh was the American pilot who made the first solo, non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean, a distance of nearly 3,600 miles. He won the accolades of a whole country for that feat, and was awarded the Medal of Honor (for which Lindbergh was eligible, as an Army Reserve officer). His new-found fame brought tragedy to his door, however, when a kidnapper took his infant son from his home in East Amwell, New Jersey. A ransom was paid in part, but the child was never returned, and was found dead a few weeks later. It was as a result of this case that Congress made kidnapping a federal offence should there be any aspect of the crime that crosses a state line.
35. Something that might be thrown behind a teacher’s back : PAPER AIRPLANE (hiding “pearl”)
Anyone wanting to check whether or not a pearl is real or fake can do so by rubbing the bead against the biting edge of a tooth. A real pearl has a slightly rough texture, caused by imperfections in the outer layers of nacre.
41. Input for fivethirtyeight.com : POLL
Nate Silver is a statistician who first gained notoriety by developing a forecasting system that predicted the future performance of baseball players. He then made a name for himself in the world of politics by predicting the outcome of the 2008 US presidential race. Silver successfully predicted the outcome of the election in 49 of the 50 states, missing out on Indiana, which Barack Obama won by less than 1% of the vote. Silver publishes his polling data at the website FiveThirtyEight.com.
42. Like Baroque architecture : ORNATE
Something described as “baroque” is extremely ornate and convoluted. The term comes from the Baroque Period, in which many of the arts focused on great detail and elaborate design.
49. In all probability : PRESUMABLY (hiding “ruby”)
Ruby is a precious stone made from the mineral corundum, also called aluminium oxide. The corundum includes some of the element chromium, which results in the red or pink color.
52. Add punch to, as the punch : LACE
To lace a drink, is to spike it, by adding perhaps some alcohol or other strong substance.
53. ___ pro nobis : ORA
“Ora pro nobis” translates from Latin as “pray for us”. It is a common phrase used in the Roman Catholic tradition and is often shortened to “OPN”.
54. Cardinal’s insignia : STL
The St. Louis Cardinals were originally called the “Brown Stockings”, changing their name to the “Perfectos” in 1899. That obviously didn’t go down well with the locals, as the owners changed it one year later to the Cardinals.
55. Florida senator Rubio : MARCO
Marco Rubio became the junior US Senator for Florida in 2011. Famously, Rubio ran for the Republican nomination for president in the 2016 race, losing out to Donald Trump.
56. “O death, where is thy ___?”: I Corinthians : STING
The seventh and eighth books of the New Testament are the First and Second Epistles to the Corinthians.
61. Right-hand page of an open book : RECTO
The left and right pages of a book or magazine are known in publishing circles as verso and recto. Recto comes from the Latin for “right”, and verso comes from the Latin word for “turned”. The idea is that the left side of the page is “turned” and is the reverse of the recto/right side.
63. Work of Horace : ODE
One of Ancient Rome’s leading lyric poets was Quintus Horatius Flaccus, or “Horace” as we tend to know him. One of Horace’s most famous works is his collection of Latin lyric poems titled “Carmina” (Latin for “Odes).
64. Namely, in Latin : ID EST
“Id est” is Latin for “that is”, and is often abbreviated to “i.e.” when used in English.
65. “Toodles” : SEE YA
The term “toodles” meaning “goodbye”, is a short form of “toodle-oo”, which in turn comes from the French “à tout à l’heure” which translates as “see you later”.
Down
2. Peter with eight Academy Award nominations (and, sadly, zero wins) : O’TOOLE
Irish actor Peter O’Toole got his big break in movies when he played the title role in the 1962 epic film “Lawrence of Arabia”. But my favorite of O’Toole’s movies is much lighter fare, namely “How to Steal a Million” in which he stars opposite Audrey Hepburn.
3. ___ Globes : GOLDEN
The first Golden Globe Awards ceremony was held in 1944 to honor the best in filmmaking. The award was created by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which had been formed the year before by a group of writers in Los Angeles. One of the most famous of the Golden Globes is the Cecil B. DeMille Award.
4. iPad downloads : APPS
The groundbreaking iPad was introduced by Apple in 2010. The iOS-based iPads dominated the market for tablet computers until 2013, when Android-based tablets (manufactured by several companies) took over the number-one spot.
5. “Silent” prez : CAL
President Calvin Coolidge, the only US President to have been born on July 4th, was known as a man of few words. It was while he was serving as Vice-President to in the administration of Warren G. Harding, that Coolidge earned the nickname “Silent Cal”. There is a famous story told about Coolidge’s reticence that I would love to think is true, attributed to the poet Dorothy Parker. Sitting beside him at dinner, she remarked to him, “Mr. Coolidge, I’ve made a bet against a fellow who said it was impossible to get more than two words out of you.” His famous reply: “You lose.”
6. ___ Maria : TIA
Tia Maria is a coffee liqueur that was invented just after WWII in Jamaica, using Jamaican coffee beans, Jamaican rum, vanilla and sugar. The drink’s name translates to “Aunt Maria”.
7. W.W. II Allied landing site in Italy : ANZIO
The WWII Battle of Anzio is famous for being one of the most terrible blunders in military history. Operation Shingle was a surprise amphibious landing at Anzio, 35 miles south of Rome, designed to outflank the Germans and press home an attack on the Italian capital. The element of surprise allowed a safe landing at Anzio, and the allies were able to drive jeeps right into the outskirts of Rome unchallenged. But that element of surprise was lost when Allied commander General John Lucas decided to delay the march on Rome until he had consolidated his position on the beaches, a position that was surrounded by high ground. The Germans used the delay to throw everything they had into the high ground and the allies were pinned down in a bloody battle. As a result, it took four months for the allies to fight their way inland.
8. Philatelist’s buy : STAMP
“Philately” is the more formal name given to the practice of collecting postage stamps. The term “philately” was coined (in French, as “philatélie) in 1864 by French collector Georges Herpin. He came up with it from the Greek “phil-” meaning “loving” and “ateleia” meaning “exemption from tax”. Apparently “exemption from tax” was the closest thing Herpin could find to “postage stamp”.
11. Neptune’s Greek counterpart : POSEIDON
Poseidon was the god of the sea in Greek mythology as well as the “Earth-Shaker”, the god responsible for earthquakes.
12. Big name in car parts : AUTOZONE
AutoZone is the second-largest retailer of aftermarket automotive parts in the US (after Advance Auto Parts).
18. Booty : LOOT
“Loot” is the name given to anything taken by dishonesty or force, particularly during war. The term came into English from the Hindi “lut” meaning “goods taken from an enemy”.
“Booty”, meaning plunder or profit, is derived from the Old French word “butin” which has the same meaning.
26. “On the Waterfront” director Kazan : ELIA
Elia Kazan won Oscars for best director in 1948 for “Gentleman’s Agreement” and in 1955 for “On The Waterfront”. In 1999 Kazan was given an Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. He also directed “East of Eden”, which introduced James Dean to movie audiences, and “Splendor in the Grass” that included Warren Beatty in his debut role.
The 1954 drama “On the Waterfront”, starring Marlon Brando, told a story of violence and corruption among longshoremen. The movie was based on a series of 24 articles written by investigative journalist Malcolm Johnston and published in “The New York Sun”. The original news stories uncovered mob infiltration on the New York City Waterfront, but the location for the film was chosen as Hoboken, New Jersey.
30. 1974 top 10 foreign-language hit : ERES TU
We have a big event across Europe every year called the Eurovision Song Contest. Each nation enters one song in competition with each other, and then voters across the whole continent decide on the winner. That’s how ABBA got their big break when they won in 1974 with “Waterloo”. In 1973, Spain’s entry was “Eres tú” (the Spanish for “You Are”) sung by the band Mocedades. “Eres tu” came second in the competition, but should have won in my humble opinion.
36. “The Vampire Chronicles” author : ANNE RICE
Anne Rice is an American author of erotic and Gothic novels. Rice was born Howard Allen O’Brien (no wonder she changed her name!). Her famous series of novels “The Vampire Chronicles” centers on her character Lestat de Lioncourt, a French nobleman who was turned into a vampire in the 18th century. One of the stories, “Interview with the Vampire”, was adapted for the big screen in 1994 and features Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt and others in a star-studded cast. Not my kind of movie though, as I don’t do vampires …
43. Letters on many ambulances : EMS
Emergency Medical Services (EMS)
45. King of comedy : ALAN
Alan King was a comedian and satirist, famous for joking about his Jewish culture. He was also an actor, and starred in many movies over a 50-year period, including “I, the Jury (1982), “Author! Author!” (1982), “Casino” (1995) and “Rush Hour 2” (2001).
46. Mars, for example : WAR GOD
Mars was the god of war in Ancient Rome. Mars was viewed as the father of the Roman people, and the father of Romulus and Remus, the twin brothers who founded Rome according to Roman mythology..
48. Guards at Buckingham Palace : YEOMEN
The Yeoman of the Guard are the oldest military corps still existing in the UK. The role of the Yeoman of the Guard is to provide bodyguard protection for the British Monarch, although in modern times this role is purely ceremonial. One of the more famous duties of the Yeomen is a ceremonial search of the cellars of the Houses of Parliament prior to the State Opening of Parliament. The search commemorates the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 in which Guy Fawkes attempted to blow up the Parliament building.
Buckingham Palace is a stately home that has been the official residence of the British monarch since the days of Queen Victoria. Buckingham Palace was originally a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703, hence the name.
50. One of the Three Musketeers : ATHOS
Alexandre Dumas’ “Three Musketeers” are Athos, Porthos and Aramis, although the hero of the novel is their young protégé is D’Artagnan. A musketeer was an infantry soldier who was equipped with a musket. Funnily enough, the three “musketeers” really don’t use their muskets, and are better known for prowess with their swords.
51. Singer Mary J. ___ : BLIGE
Mary J. Blige is a singer-songwriter from the the Bronx, New York. Her best known album is probably “My Life”, released in 1994. Blige is also making a name for herself as an actress and is slated to play jazz singer Nina Simone in the upcoming biopic “Nina”.
55. ___ Verde National Park : MESA
Mesa Verde National Park is in Colorado. Mesa Verde is home to ancient cliff dwellings built by the Puebloan people, also know as the Anasazi.
56. Guru’s title : SRI
“Sri” is a title of respect for a male in India.
“Guru” is a Hindi word meaning “teacher” or “priest”.
59. “Dr.” who co-founded Beats Electronics : DRE
Beats Electronics is a company that was co-founded by rapper Dr. Dre. Apple bought Beats for $3 billion in 2014, which is the largest acquisition by far in Apple’s history.
60. Actress Susan : DEY
The actress Susan Dey first appeared on “The Partridge Family” when she was 17-years-old when she had no acting experience. Years later, Dey won a Golden Globe for playing the leading role of Grace Van Owen in “L. A. Law”.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Harley-Davidson bike, in slang : HOG
4. Assume the role of : ACT AS
9. Like Vatican affairs : PAPAL
14. Plains tribe name : OTO
15. Emulate Picasso or Pollock : PAINT
16. “Too rich for my blood” : I’M OUT
17. Place to pay the going rate? : TOLL PLAZA
19. Skin abnormalities : CYSTS
20. Dummies : DODOS
21. Dennis the Menace, for one : IMP
23. Former G.M. compact : GEO
24. Margarine : OLEO
25. Put at risk : JEOPARDIZE
29. Affectedly polite : GENTEEL
31. Exactly right : DEAD ON
32. Former Nevada senator Harry : REID
34. How Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic : ALONE
35. Something that might be thrown behind a teacher’s back : PAPER AIRPLANE
40. Bowling venue : LANES
41. Input for fivethirtyeight.com : POLL
42. Like Baroque architecture : ORNATE
44. Purchase payment plan : LAYAWAY
49. In all probability : PRESUMABLY
52. Add punch to, as the punch : LACE
53. ___ pro nobis : ORA
54. Cardinal’s insignia : STL
55. Florida senator Rubio : MARCO
56. “O death, where is thy ___?”: I Corinthians : STING
58. Masterpiece waiting to be found … or a hint to the words in the circled letters : HIDDEN GEM
61. Right-hand page of an open book : RECTO
62. People eaters, maybe : OGRES
63. Work of Horace : ODE
64. Namely, in Latin : ID EST
65. “Toodles” : SEE YA
66. Room with an easy chair : DEN
Down
1. “Oh, goody!” : HOT DOG!
2. Peter with eight Academy Award nominations (and, sadly, zero wins) : O’TOOLE
3. ___ Globes : GOLDEN
4. iPad downloads : APPS
5. “Silent” prez : CAL
6. ___ Maria : TIA
7. W.W. II Allied landing site in Italy : ANZIO
8. Philatelist’s buy : STAMP
9. Polaroid, e.g. : PIC
10. Part of the brain believed to control emotion : AMYGDALA
11. Neptune’s Greek counterpart : POSEIDON
12. Big name in car parts : AUTOZONE
13. Capts.’ inferiors : LTS
18. Booty : LOOT
22. Rocket launch site : PAD
25. Taunt : JEER
26. “On the Waterfront” director Kazan : ELIA
27. “I’m not kidding!” : REALLY!
28. Cincinnati-to-Philadelphia dir. : ENE
30. 1974 top 10 foreign-language hit : ERES TU
33. Double-___ recession : DIP
35. Repeated word for word : PARROTED
36. “The Vampire Chronicles” author : ANNE RICE
37. The “them” in “Let them eat cake” : PEASANTS
38. Restaurant freebie : ROLL
39. The “thing,” to Hamlet : PLAY
40. Cut (off) : LOP
43. Letters on many ambulances : EMS
45. King of comedy : ALAN
46. Mars, for example : WAR GOD
47. Give in (to) : ACCEDE
48. Guards at Buckingham Palace : YEOMEN
50. One of the Three Musketeers : ATHOS
51. Singer Mary J. ___ : BLIGE
55. ___ Verde National Park : MESA
56. Guru’s title : SRI
57. Tricked but good : GOT
59. “Dr.” who co-founded Beats Electronics : DRE
60. Actress Susan : DEY