0207-17 New York Times Crossword Answers 7 Feb 17, Tuesday

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Bear whose bed was too hard for Goldilocks : PAPA
The story of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” was first recorded in 1837, in England, although the narrative was around before it was actually written down. The original fairy tale was rather gruesome, but successive versions became more family-oriented. The character that eventually became Goldilocks was originally an elderly woman, and the three “nameless” bears became Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear.

17. Repeated word before “pants on fire” : LIAR
The full rhyme used by children to deride someone not telling the truth is:

Liar, liar, pants on fire,
Hang them up on the telephone wire.

The rhyme is the source of the title for the 1997 Jim Carrey comedy “Liar Liar”. “Liar Liar” is an amusing film about a lawyer who finds himself only able to tell the truth and cannot tell a lie, all because his son made a birthday wish.

22. On edge : ANTSY
The word “antsy” embodies the concept of “having ants in one’s pants”, meaning being nervous and fidgety. However, “antsy” has been used in English since the 1830s, whereas “ants in the pants” originated a century later.

23. Queens’ place : NEW YORK CITY
Queens is the largest borough in New York City. Queens is an amazingly diverse location in terms of ethnicity. There is a population of over 2 million people, with almost 50% of that population being foreign-born. Apparently there are over 130 native languages spoken in the area. Queens was named for Catherine of Braganza (from Portugal), the Queen consort of King Charles II of England.

26. Loser to the tortoise, in fable : HARE
“The Tortoise and the Hare” is perhaps the most famous fable attributed to Aesop. The cocky hare takes a nap during a race against the tortoise, and the tortoise sneaks past the finish line for the win while his speedier friend is sleeping.

28. “Let’s Get Loud” singer, affectionately : J.LO
J.Lo is the nickname of singer and actress Jennifer Lopez. “J.Lo” is also the title of her second studio album, released in 2001.

34. “The ___, the Proud, the Marines” : FEW
“The few, the proud, the Marines” is the modern-day recruiting slogan used by the US Marine Corps.

36. Queens’ place : RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE
RuPaul is a famous drag queen who has developed a diverse career beyond performing on stage. He works as an actor, model, author and a recording artist. Famously, RuPaul doesn’t mind whether one addresses him as “he” or as “she” …

You can call me he. You can call me she. You can call me Regis and Kathie Lee; I don’t care! Just as long as you call me.

He currently hosts his own reality TV show called “RuPaul’s Drag Race”, which is billed as a search for “America’s next drag superstar”.

43. Muscle toned from push-ups, informally : PEC
“Pecs” is the familiar term for the chest muscle, more correctly known as the pectoralis major muscle. “Pectus” is a the Latin word for “breast, chest”.

47. With 57-Across, Queen’s place : ROCK AND ROLL …
57. See 47-Across : … HALL OF FAME
Queen is an English rock band that was formed back in 1970. With the help of lead singer Freddie Mercury (now deceased), Queen has a long list of great hits, including “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions”. “Bohemian Rhapsody” spent a total of nine weeks at number one in the UK.

54. Snowman in “Frozen” : OLAF
“Frozen” is a 2013 animated feature from Walt Disney Studios that is based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Snow Queen”.

55. Common street name : MAIN
The most common street name in the US is “Second Street”. “First Street” comes in only at number three, and this is because many cities and towns forego the use of “First” and instead go with “Main” or something more historical in nature. “Elm Street” appears on the list at number fifteen.

59. Off-roaders, for short : ATVS
All-terrain vehicle (ATV)

60. Debonair : URBANE
We use “urbane” today to mean something courteous or refined. Back in the 1500s the term was used in the same way that we now use “urban”. Those townsfolk thought they were more sophisticated than the countryfolk, and so the usage evolved.

Someone described as “debonair” is very courteous and gracious. The term comes into English via the French “debonaire”, which itself is derived from “de bon’ aire” meaning “of good race”, a phrase that originally applied to the breeding of hawks.

64. Title for two Clue characters : MRS
They would be Mrs. Peacock and Mrs. White.

Clue is board game that we knew under a different name growing up in Ireland. Outside of North America, Clue is marketed as “Cluedo”. Cluedo was the original name of the game, introduced in 1949 by the famous British board game manufacturer Waddingtons. There are cute differences between the US and UK versions. For example, the man who is murdered is called Dr. Black (Mr. Boddy in the US), one of the suspects is the Reverend Green (Mr. Green in the US), and the suspect weapons include a dagger (a knife in the US), a lead pipe (lead piping in the US) and a spanner (a wrench in the US). I think it’s a fabulous game, a must during the holidays …

65. Annual Austin festival, for short : SXSW
South by Southwest, also known as SXSW, is an annual festival that has been taking place in Austin, Texas since 1987. SXSW is a melded event, combining a music festival, a film festival and an interactive festival.

Down
1. Animal hide : PELT
A “pelt” is the skin of a furry animal.

2. Bird-related : AVIAN
Avis is the Latin word for a bird, giving rise to our adjective “avian” meaning “relating to birds”.

7. Shake one’s booty : TWERK
Twerking is a dancing move in which a woman (usually) shakes her hips up and down causing a lot of “wobbling”. It’s possible that “twerk” is a portmanteau of “twist” and “jerk”. The term may have been coined back in the early 2000s with the song “Whistle While You Twurk” released by the Ying Yang Twins. Twerking became a real phenomenon in 2013 when Miley Cyrus posted a video of herself twerking in a unicorn suit to the 2011 song “Wop” by J. Dash. That video went viral on YouTube, amassing over 4 million views in no time at all.

8. “Masterpiece Theatre” network : PBS
PBS’s wonderful “Masterpiece Theatre” changed its name to “Masterpiece” in 2008. At the same time, three different versions of the show were introduced:

• “Masterpiece Classic” introduced by Gillian Anderson, and now Laura Linney
• “Masterpiece Mystery!” introduced by Alan Cumming
• “Masterpiece Contemporary” introduced by Matthew Goode, and now David Tennant

9. In a relaxed rhythm, musically : RUBATO
“Tempo rubato” is a musical instruction encouraging the conductor or soloist to speed up and slow the tempo at his or her own discretion. Often singers and musicians vary the tempo anyway, giving the piece of music their own “imprint”.

12. Prominent Dumbo features : EARS
The 1941 Disney animated film “Dumbo” was made a year after the feature called “Fantasia” was released. “Dumbo” was largely a commercial venture. The film was made quickly and released in theaters as soon as possible, the idea being to recoup the financial losses incurred by “Fantasia”.

13. 1993 football movie starring Sean Astin : RUDY
Sean Astin is best known for playing the title role in the 1993 film “Rudy” and the character Samwise Gamgee in the “Lord of the Rings” movies. You might also have seen him playing Lynn McGill in the 5th season of “24”. Astin is the son of actress Patty Duke.

19. World Cup sport : SOCCER
Uruguay won the soccer gold medals at both the 1924 and 1928 Olympic tournaments. When Jules Rimet, the president of soccer’s international governing body decided to start an international tournament outside of the Olympics, it was decided to give Uruguay the honor of hosting the first competition, in 1930. Sure enough, Uruguay emerged victorious as the first World Cup winners.

24. Asian river whose name is one letter away from an Ivy League college : YALU
A large section of the border between China and North Korea runs down the center of the Yalu River. Yalu is the Chinese name for the river, whereas it is known as the Amnok in Korean. The valley through which the western part of the river flows was the site of many, many dogfights during the Korean War, and was famously known as “MiG Alley”.

Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut was founded in 1701, making it the third-oldest university in the US. Originally called the Collegiate School, it was renamed to Yale University in honor of retired merchant from London called Elihu Yale, who made generous contributions to the institution. Yale University’s nickname is “Old Eli”, in a nod to the benefactor.

25. Site of the first-in-the-nation caucuses : IOWA
The Iowa caucuses have been the first major electoral event in the nominating process for President since 1972.

A “caucus” is a meeting of supporters of a particular political group. It is believed that the term was first used in the original North American colonies.

28. “The Grapes of Wrath” surname : JOAD
Tom Joad is the protagonist the John Steinbeck’s novel “The Grapes of Wrath”. The role of Joad was played by Henry Fonda in the 1940 film adaptation directed by John Ford. Ford’s movie has a place in history, as it was one of the first 25 movies selected for preservation in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

30. Cookie that’s often pulled apart : OREO
There’s a smartphone app featuring the Oreo cookie. It’s a game in which one twists Oreo cookies apart, “licks” the cream from the center and then dunks the remainder of the cookie in a glass of milk.

31. “That’s a ___!” : WRAP
When shooting of a film is concluded the movie is said to “wrap”, and everyone heads to the wrap party. There is one story that “wrap” is actually an acronym for “wind, reel and print”, a reference to the transition of the filming process into post-production. But, this explanation is disputed.

32. David ___, philosopher influenced by Locke : HUME
David Hume was a philosopher and historian from Scotland.

John Locke was the English philosopher who postulated that the mind is a blank slate (or “tabula rasa”) when we are born, and that we fill that slate with our experiences and observations.

34. Four-term prez : FDR
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was the only child of Sara Delano and James Roosevelt Sr. The Delano family history in America goes back to the pilgrim Philippe de Lannoy, an immigrant of Flemish descent who arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621. The family name “de Lannoy” was anglicized here in the US, to “Delano”. Franklin was to marry Eleanor Roosevelt, and apparently the relationship between Sara and her daughter-in-law was very “strained”.

35. 2014 Super Bowl performer : BRUNO MARS
Bruno Mars is a singer-songwriter from Honolulu who has been active in the music business since 2006.

37. Secular : LAIC
Anything described as laic (or “laical, lay”) is related to the laity, those members of the church who are not clergy. The term “laic” ultimately comes from the Greek “laikos” meaning “of the people”.

39. Teri who played Phoebe’s mother on “Friends” : GARR
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.

46. Charges for some Madison Avenue firms : AD FEES
Madison Avenue became the center of advertising in the US in the twenties, and serves as the backdrop to the great TV drama “Mad Men”. There aren’t many advertising agencies left on Madison Avenue these days though, as most have moved to other parts of New York City. The street takes its name from Madison Square, which is bounded on one side by Madison Avenue. The square in turn takes its name from James Madison, the fourth President of the United States.

49. Condom material : LATEX
Latex is a naturally occurring polymer made by some plants, that can also be made synthetically. About one in ten of the flowering plants in the world make the milky fluid called latex. It serves as a defense against insects and is exuded when a plant is injured or attacked by insects. Latex is collected commercially and is the source of natural rubber, which can be used to make things such as gloves, condoms and balloons.

50. A cat is said to have nine of them : LIVES
In the English-speaking world, the myth is that cats have nine lives. In Spanish-speaking cultures, cats are said to have seven lives. They are less fortunate in Turkish and Arabic cultures, as the number of lives is limited to six.

52. Blemish : WART
A wart is a small eruption on the skin caused by a localized viral infection. The most successful treatment is topical use of salicylic acid, with a cure rate of 75%. I think it’s best to try to avoid getting them …

53. First place where Napoleon was exiled : ELBA
Napoléon Bonaparte was a military professional from Corsica who rose to prominence after the French Revolution during the French First Republic. He took over the country in 1799 in a coup d’état and installed himself as First Consul. Soon after, he led France in the Napoleonic Wars, conflicts between the growing French Empire and a series of opposing coalitions. He was eventually defeated at the Battle of Leipzig and was forced into exile on the Italian island of Elba off the Tuscan coast. Napoleon escaped in 1815 and regained power, only to be finally defeated a few months later at the Battle of Waterloo. The British dispatched him to the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic where he lived out the last six years of his life as a prisoner.

56. Warning initials above an Internet link : NSFW
The abbreviation “NSFW” stands for “not safe/suitable for work”. It’s Internet slang used to describe online content that is best not viewed at work.

58. Interest rate setter, with “the” : FED
The Federal Reserve System is more usually known simply as “the Fed”, and is the central banking system of the US. It was introduced in 1913 in response to a number of financial panics at the beginning of the 20th century. The original role for the Fed was to act as a lender of last resort, in case there was a run on a bank. This can happen as most of the money that is deposited by customers in a bank is reinvested by that bank, so it has very little liquid cash available. If too many customers look for their money at one time, then the bank can be short of cash and this can start a “run”. The Fed’s responsibilities have broadened since those early days …

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Bear whose bed was too hard for Goldilocks : PAPA
5. With 15-Across, “Don’t delay!” : ACT …
8. First coat for a painter : PRIMER
14. At any point in history : EVER
15. See 5-Across : … NOW
16. Chest of drawers : BUREAU
17. Repeated word before “pants on fire” : LIAR
18. Queen’s place : CHESSBOARD
20. Mexican dish served in a shell : TACO
21. Villain’s vanquisher : HERO
22. On edge : ANTSY
23. Queens’ place : NEW YORK CITY
26. Loser to the tortoise, in fable : HARE
27. Lovey-dovey sound : COO
28. “Let’s Get Loud” singer, affectionately : J.LO
31. People often caution against reinventing it : WHEEL
34. “The ___, the Proud, the Marines” : FEW
35. Oafish sort : BOOR
36. Queens’ place : RUPAUL’S DRAG RACE
40. In : AMID
41. Broadcast : AIR
42. Broadcast part : AUDIO
43. Muscle toned from push-ups, informally : PEC
44. Comic strip sound from a drunkard : HIC!
45. Make bread : EARN
47. With 57-Across, Queen’s place : ROCK AND ROLL …
51. Many a Donald Trump announcement : TWEET
54. Snowman in “Frozen” : OLAF
55. Common street name : MAIN
57. See 47-Across : … HALL OF FAME
59. Off-roaders, for short : ATVS
60. Debonair : URBANE
61. Fish eggs : ROE
62. Place divers explore : REEF
63. Hung around : STAYED
64. Title for two Clue characters : MRS
65. Annual Austin festival, for short : SXSW

Down
1. Animal hide : PELT
2. Bird-related : AVIAN
3. “See ya” : PEACE
4. Pointy stone used in early Native American weaponry : ARROWHEAD
5. TV news deliverer : ANCHOR
6. Hold together : COHERE
7. Shake one’s booty : TWERK
8. “Masterpiece Theatre” network : PBS
9. In a relaxed rhythm, musically : RUBATO
10. Twisted humor : IRONY
11. Heart of the matter : MEAT
12. Prominent Dumbo features : EARS
13. 1993 football movie starring Sean Astin : RUDY
19. World Cup sport : SOCCER
24. Asian river whose name is one letter away from an Ivy League college : YALU
25. Site of the first-in-the-nation caucuses : IOWA
28. “The Grapes of Wrath” surname : JOAD
29. Central points : LOCI
30. Cookie that’s often pulled apart : OREO
31. “That’s a ___!” : WRAP
32. David ___, philosopher influenced by Locke : HUME
33. Grander than grand : EPIC
34. Four-term prez : FDR
35. 2014 Super Bowl performer : BRUNO MARS
37. Secular : LAIC
38. So done with : SICK OF
39. Teri who played Phoebe’s mother on “Friends” : GARR
44. Scorcher : HOT ONE
45. Inflame with love : ENAMOR
46. Charges for some Madison Avenue firms : AD FEES
47. Track-and-field event : RELAY
48. Bedside buzzer : ALARM
49. Condom material : LATEX
50. A cat is said to have nine of them : LIVES
51. “Ergo …” : THUS …
52. Blemish : WART
53. First place where Napoleon was exiled : ELBA
56. Warning initials above an Internet link : NSFW
58. Interest rate setter, with “the” : FED

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