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Solution to today’s crossword in the New York Times
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CROSSWORD CONSTRUCTOR: Alan Arbesfeld
THEME: New England Chatter
Each of today’s themed answers is a well-known phrase written as though spoken with a NEW ENGLAND accent:
22A. Commercials for a “Star Trek” movie? : SPOCK PLUGS (from “spark plugs”)
24A. Yoga teacher’s invitation? : A CALL TO OMS (from “a call to arms”)
36A. Weather forecaster in Phoenix? : HOT SPECIALIST (from “heart specialist”)
51A. Most in-shape person at a cosmetics company? : THE BOD OF AVON (from “the Bard of Avon”)
69A. Ridicule shouted out of a moving car? : PASSING MOCK (“passing mark”)
87A. Quickly added bit of punctuation? : INSTANT COMMA (from “Instant Karma”)
100A. What allowed one physician to get through flu season? : A SHOT IN THE DOC (from “a shot in the dark”)
116A. Regimen with limited intake of corn? : LOW-COB DIET (from “low-carb diet”)
119A. Toddler’s cry upon entering the bathroom? : IT’S MY POTTY! (from “It’s My Party”)
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 23m 35s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
5. Child’s play : A SNAP
It’s child’s play, it’s a snap.
15. Attachment letters : PDF
Portable Document Format (PDF) is a file format introduced by Adobe Systems in 1993. PDF documents can be shared between users and read using many different applications, making them more universally accessible than documents saved by one particular program.
19. Star of CBS’s “Madam Secretary” : LEONI
Téa Leoni is an American actress. One of Leoni’s early parts was in the great film “A League of Their Own” (a minor role, Racine at first base). She also played the fiancée of Sam Malone from “Cheers” on the spinoff sitcom “Frasier”. A leading role on the big screen was opposite Adam Sandler in “Spanglish”. My favorite of her more prominent movie roles was as Jane in “Fun with Dick and Jane”. Leoni is now playing the title role in the drama series “Madam Secretary”, a show that I really enjoy …
“Madam Secretary” is TV show that first aired in 2014. It is about an ex-CIA analyst who is appointed as US Secretary of State. Téa Leoni plays the title role, ably supported by a favorite actress of mine, Bebe Neuwirth. I like this show …
21. Munich missus : FRAU
Munich is the capital of the German state of Bavaria, and is the third largest city in the country (after Berlin and Hamburg). The city is called “München” in German, a term that derives from the Old German word for “by the monks’ place”, which is a reference to the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city in 1158.
22. Commercials for a “Star Trek” movie? : SPOCK PLUGS (from “spark plugs”)
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.
There are two main types of internal combustion engine. Most cars in the US use spark injection engines (gasoline engines) in which a spark plug sparks in order to ignite the fuel-air mixture. A diesel engine, on the other hand, has no spark plug per se, and uses the heat generated by compressing the air-fuel mixture to cause ignition.
24. Yoga teacher’s invitation? : A CALL TO OMS (from “a call to arms”)
“Om” is a sacred mystic word from the Hindu tradition. “Om” is sometimes used as a mantra, a focus for the mind in meditation.
26. Head bands? : HALOES
The Greek word “halos” is the name given to the ring of light around the sun or moon, which gives us our word “halo”, used for a radiant light depicted above the head of a saintly person.
33. Flower arrangement : RACEME
A raceme is a long stalk with flowers placed at equal distances from each along its length. It just keeps growing, and new flowers appear at the tip.
36. Weather forecaster in Phoenix? : HOT SPECIALIST (from “heart specialist”)
The city of Phoenix is the capital of the state of Arizona. Home to almost 1.5 million people, Phoenix is the most populous state capital in the country.
44. Where Einstein was born : ULM
Ulm is in the south of Germany and sits on the River Danube. Ulm is famous as home to the tallest church in the world, Ulm Minster, a Gothic building with a steeple that is 530 feet tall, with 768 steps to climb. Ulm is also the birthplace of Albert Einstein, and is where the entire Austrian army surrendered to Napoleon after the Battle of Ulm in 1805.
45. Gorsuch replaced him : SCALIA
Antonin Scalia was appointed to the Supreme Court by President Reagan in 1986, and was the longest serving member of the court on the occasion of his passing in 2016. Justice Scalia’s minority opinions were known for the scathing language that he used to criticize the Court’s majority.
51. Most in-shape person at a cosmetics company? : THE BOD OF AVON (from “the Bard of Avon”)
In 1886, a young man called David McConnell was selling books door-to-door. To enhance his sales numbers he was giving out free perfume to the ladies of the houses that he visited. Seeing as his perfume was more popular than his books, he founded the California Perfume Company in New York City and started manufacturing and selling across the country. The company name was changed to Avon in 1939, and the famous “Avon Calling” marketing campaign was launched in 1954.
The original “bards” were storytellers, poets and composers of music in medieval Britain and Ireland, with the term coming from the Old Celtic word “bardos” that described a poet or singer. I guess the most famous bard was William Shakespeare, the “Bard of Avon”.
54. Strict Sabbath observer of old : ESSENE
The Essenes were a Jewish religious group, most noted these days perhaps as the writers of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
73. Short-lived things : EPHEMERA
“Ephemera” was originally a medical term, used to describe a fever that only lasted a day. The use of the term was expanded in the 17th century to include insects that were short-lived, and by end of the 18th century ephemera were any things of transitory existence.
75. 1998 Sarah McLachlan hit : ADIA
Sarah McLachlan is singer/songwriter from Halifax, Nova Scotia who lives in Vancouver. In 1997, McLachlan married Ashwin Sood, the drummer in her band. The 1998 hit song “Adia”, which she co-wrote and recorded, was intended as an apology to her best friend … for stealing her ex-boyfriend and then marrying him!
76. Casino draw : KENO
The name “Keno” has French or Latin roots, with the French “quine” being a term for five winning numbers, and the Latin “quini” meaning “five each”. The game originated in China and was introduced into the West by Chinese immigrants who were working on the first Transcontinental Railroad in the 1800s.
78. Progressive alternative : GEICO
GEICO was founded in 1936 with a very specific mission, to provide auto insurance for employees of the federal government and their families, hence the name Government Employees Insurance Company (GEICO). GEICO is a private company, despite the word “government” in its name. The founders’ idea was to focus on government employees as they believed such a group represented a lower risk profile than the rest of the population. Nowadays any qualifying person can take out a policy with GEICO.
Progressive is a popular auto insurance company, the one that uses the perky character named “Flo” as a spokeswoman. Flo is played by comedian and actress Stephanie Courtney.
81. Pan Am rival : TWA
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a big carrier in the US, but was perhaps even more recognized for its extensive presence in Europe and the Middle East. For many years, especially after the collapse of Pan Am, TWA was considered the unofficial flag carrier for the US. The company started in 1930, the product of a forced merger of Transcontinental Air Transport and Western Air Express. The Transcontinental and Western Air that resulted (the original meaning of the initialism “TWA”) was what the Postmaster General wanted, a bigger airline to which the Postal Service could award airmail contracts.
83. Gulf War allies : SAUDIS
The Gulf War was a response to Iraq’s invasion and annexation of Kuwait. The first major ground engagement of the conflict was the Battle Khafji. Saddam Hussein ordered his troops to invade Saudi Arabia from Kuwait, resulting in a brief Iraqi occupation of the Saudi city of Khafji. Coalition air and ground forces regained control of the city after just one night.
87. Quickly added bit of punctuation? : INSTANT COMMA (from “Instant Karma”)
Our word “comma” comes into English via Latin from the Greek “komma” meaning “clause in a sentence”.
“Instant Karma!” is a John Lennon song that he released in 1970. The song contains a line starting with “We all shine on …”, which Stephen King used as inspiration for the title of his 1977 novel “The Shining”.
93. Suffix with beat : -NIK
The term “beatnik” was coined by journalist Herb Caen in 1958 when he used it to describe the stereotypical young person of the “beat generation” that was oft associated with the writer Jack Kerouac.
94. “Gangsta’s Paradise” rapper : COOLIO
Coolio is the stage name of rapper Artis Leon Ivey, Jr. In 2009, Coolio joined fellow-American Le Toya Jackson as one of the house guests in “Celebrity Big Brother” (UK version) and apparently he created quite a stir on the show with some outrageous comments. But Coolio also showed a softer side with a spontaneous and emotional reaction to the election of Barack Obama to the office of US President as he watched the election results coming in live in the Big Brother house.
95. Egyptian ___ (spotted cat breed) : MAU
The Egyptian Mau is an ancient breed of cat. Illustrations of Egyptian Mau cats have been found in artwork that is over 3,000 years old. Maus can run at over 36 mph, making them the fastest breed of domestic cat.
108. Two-time U.S. Open champ : ELS
Ernie Els is a South African golfer. Els a big guy but he has an easy fluid golf swing that has earned him the nickname “The Big Easy”. He is a former World No. 1 and has won four majors: the US Open (1994 & 1997) and the British Open (2002 & 2012).
113. J.Crew competitor : LLBEAN
L.L.Bean (note the lack of spaces in the company name) was founded back in 1912 in Freeport, Maine as a company selling its own line of waterproof boots. The founder, Leon Leonwood Bean, gave his name to the enterprise. Right from the start, L.L.Bean focused on mail-order and sold from a circular he distributed and then from a catalog. Defects in the initial design led to 90% of the first boots sold being returned, and the company made good on its guarantee to replace them or give back the money paid.
119. Toddler’s cry upon entering the bathroom? : IT’S MY POTTY! (from “It’s My Party”)
“It’s My Party” is a great song from the sixties that was released by Lesley Gore in 1963 when she was just 16 years of age. “It’s My Party” tells the story of a teenage girl whose boyfriend hooks up with another girl at her own birthday party. The song struck such a chord with the listening audience that Gore recorded a sequel called “Judy’s Turn to Cry” in which the teenage girl gets her revenge, and her boyfriend returns to her.
124. Where “ho” and “hoina” mean “yes” and “no” : NEPAL
Nepal lies to the northeast of India. Today, the state is known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal. In 2008, the Communist Party of Nepal won the country’s general election. Soon after, the Assembly voted to change the form of government, moving away from a monarchy and creating a secular republic.
126. Spanish chess piece : REY
“El rey” is Spanish for “the king”.
127. Chrissie in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame : HYNDE
Chrissie Hynde is the lead singer and guitarist of the rock band the Pretenders. Hynde formed the Pretenders in the late seventies, and despite changes in the band’s lineup, Hynde kept the Pretenders going right through the early nineties. Hynde is an enthusiastic vegan and supporter of the animal rights group PETA. If you’re in Hynde’s home town of Akron, Ohio you can eat at her vegan restaurant, “The VegiTerranean”.
Down
2. Gifford’s successor on TV : RIPA
When Kelly Ripa secured the co-host spot on morning television with Regis Philbin, she was still acting in “All My Children” in a role she had been playing for over ten years. After a year of holding down two jobs, she eventually gave up the acting gig. Ripa has acted as spokeswoman for several brands over the years, most recently for Electrolux and Rykä.
Kathie Lee Gifford is most famous for working alongside Regis Philbin on the talk show “Live with Regis and Kathie Lee”, a stint that lasted for about 15 years.
3. Violators of the Second Commandment : IDOLATERS
In the Christian tradition, the second commandment prohibits the worship of “any graven image”. Usually this means that graven images can be created, but not worshipped.
6. Condiment for pommes frites : SEL
In French, one might put “sel” (salt) on “pommes frites” (French fries).
11. First daughter of the 1960s : LUCI
Luci Baines Johnson is the youngest daughter of President Lyndon Johnson. Luci married Patrick Nugent in Washington, D.C. in 1966, while her father was still in the White House. The Nugents had their marriage annulled by the Catholic Church in 1979 and Luci remarried in 1984, to Ian J. Turpin.
13. A quarter of M : CCL
In Roman numerals, M (1,000) is a quarter of CCL (250).
14. Kenan’s former Nickelodeon pal : KEL
“Kenan & Kel” is a sitcom that aired on Nickelodeon from 1996 to 2000. It starred Kenan Thompson (now of “Saturday Night Live”), and Kel Mitchell.
16. Title for Helen Mirren : DAME
Helen Mirren, one of my favorite English actresses, has played three different queens on film and television. She played Queen Elizabeth II on the 2006 film “The Queen”, the title role in the TV drama “Elizabeth I”, and Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the wife of the title character in the 1994 film “The Madness of King George”. Mirren won the “Triple Crown of Acting” for playing:
- Queen Elizabeth II in “The Queen” (winning Best Actress Oscar)
- Queen Elizabeth II in “The Audience” (winning Best Actress in a Play Tony)
- Detective Jane Tennison in “Prime Suspect” (winning Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy)
25. Mother of Helios : THEA
In Greek mythology, Theia (also “Thea” and “Thia”)) is a goddess of the moon. Theia’s brother and consort is Hyperion, the god of the sun. Theia and Hyperion are the parents of Helios (the Sun), Selene (the Moon) and Eos (the Dawn).
31. Scopes Trial org. : ACLU
In 1925, Tennessee passed the Butler Act which made it unlawful for a public school teacher to teach the theory of evolution over the Biblical account of the origin of man. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sought to challenge this law and found a test case of a Tennessee high school teacher named John Scopes, who was charged with violating the law by presenting to his students ideas put forth by Charles Darwin. Celebrity lawyers descended on the small town of Dayton, Tennessee to argue the case. At the end of a high-profile trial, teacher John Scopes was found guilty as charged and was ordered to pay a fine.
34. Music genre for Steppenwolf and Iron Butterfly : ACID ROCK
Acid rock is a musical genre, a subset of psychedelic rock. The term comes from the influence of the drug LSD (acid) on some compositions in the early days.
35. Elaine ___, cabinet member for both Bush and Trump : CHAO
When President George W. Bush appointed Elaine Chao as Secretary of Labor, he made a bit of history as Chao then became the first Chinese American in history to hold a cabinet post. It turned out that Chao became the only cabinet member to hold her post for President Bush’s full eight years in office. In 1993, Chao married Mitch McConnell, the Republican Leader of the US Senate.
36. Shere who wrote “Women and Love” : HITE
Shere Hite is a German sex educator, although she was born in the US. Hite’s work focuses on sexual experience and what meaning it holds for an individual.
38. Sister of Erato : EUTERPE
In Greek mythology, the muses are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. The number of muses is a subject of debate at times, but the most popular view is that there are nine:
- Calliope (epic poetry)
- Clio (history)
- Erato (lyric poetry)
- Euterpe (music)
- Melpomene (tragedy)
- Polyhymnia (choral poetry)
- Terpsichore (dance)
- Thalia (comedy)
- Urania (astronomy)
39. Things that allow for jumping ahead in line? : TABS
Like most features on our computer keyboards, the tab key is a hangover from the days of typewriters. When using a typewriter, making entries into a table was very tedious, involving lots of tapping on the spacebar and backspace key. So, a lever was added to typewriters that allowed the operator to “jump” across the page to positions that could be set by hand. Later this was simplified to a tab key which could be depressed, causing the carriage to jump to the next tab stop in much the same way that the modern tab key works on a computer.
46. Game with drawings : LOTTO
Originally, Lotto was a type of card game, with “lotto” being the Italian for “a lot”. We’ve used “lotto” to mean a gambling game since the late 1700s.
51. Shire of “Rocky” : TALIA
The actress Talia Shire is best-known for playing Rocky’s wife Adrian in the “Rocky” series of movies. She also played Connie, the daughter of Don Corleone, in “The Godfather” films. Shire is the sister of movie director Francis Ford Coppola and the aunt of actor Nicolas Cage. Her son is the actor Jason Schwartzman.
56. Buffet centerpiece? : EFS
There are two letters F (efs) in the center of the word “buffet”.
Our word “buffet” comes from the French “bufet” meaning “bench, sideboard”. So, a buffet is a meal served from a “bufet”.
60. Sinatra, for one : BARITONE
Frank Sinatra was the only child of Italian immigrants living in Hoboken, New Jersey. Like so many of our heroes, Sinatra had a rough upbringing. His mother was arrested several times and convicted of running an illegal abortion business in the family home. Sinatra never finished high school, as he was expelled for rowdy conduct. He was later arrested as a youth on a morals charge for carrying on with a married woman, which was an offence back then. But Sinatra straightened himself out by the time he was twenty and started singing professionally.
63. Aggravation : AGITA
Agita is another name for acid indigestion, and more generally can mean “agitation, anxiety”.
70. 1920s anarchist in a prominent trial : SACCO
Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were two anarchists, Italian immigrants accused of committing murder during an armed robbery in 1920. Sacco and Vanzetti were arrested the day after the crime. There followed two controversial trials, guilty verdicts and several appeals that went all the way to the US Supreme Court. Despite mounting evidence that the pair was innocent, the guilty verdicts were repeatedly upheld. A lot of the public accepted that Sacco and Vanzetti were not guilty, and many protests were staged. Regardless, the two were executed in the electric chair in 1927.
74. Extinct cousin of the kiwi : MOA
Moas were flightless birds native to New Zealand that are now extinct. The fate of the Moa is a great example of the detrimental effect that humans can have on animal populations. The Maoris arrived in New Zealand about 1300 AD, upsetting the balance of the ecosystem. The Moa were hunted to extinction within 200 years, which had the knock-on effect of killing off the Haast’s Eagle, the Moa’s only predator prior to the arrival of man. Moas were huge creatures, measuring up to 12 feet tall with their necks stretched upwards.
The kiwi is an unusual bird in that it has a highly developed sense of smell and is the only one of our feathered friends with nostrils located at the tip of its long beak.
80. Caffeine source : KOLA
The nut of the kola tree has a bitter taste, and is loaded with caffeine. Despite the taste, the nut is habitually chewed in some cultures, especially in West Africa where the tree is commonly found in the rainforest. Here in the US we best know the kola nut as a flavoring used in cola drinks.
85. “I hate the Moor” speaker : IAGO
Iago is the schemer in Shakespeare’s “Othello”. He is a soldier who fought alongside Othello and feels hard done by, missing out on promotion. Iago hatches a plot designed to discredit his rival Cassio by insinuating that Cassio is having an affair with Desdemona, Othello’s wife.
The most famous Moor in literature has to be Othello, the title character in William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Othello, the Moor of Venice”. The word “Moor” describes various peoples of North Africa, usually of the Muslim faith. At the height of their geographic influence the Moors occupied much of the Iberian peninsula, calling it Al Andalus (from which modern Andalusia gets its name).
86. Quick and detached, musically: Abbr. : STAC
Staccato is a musical direction signifying that notes should be played in a disconnected form. The opposite of staccato would be legato, long and continuous notes played very smoothly.
88. Special Agent Gibbs’s beat : NCIS
NCIS is the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The service gives its name to the CBS TV show “NCIS”, a spin-off drama from “JAG” in which the main “NCIS” characters were first introduced. The big star in “NCIS” is the actor Mark Harmon. “NCIS” is now a franchise, with spinoff shows “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “NCIS: New Orleans”.
90. Bris official : MOHEL
A mohel is a man who has been trained in the practice of brit milah (circumcision). Brit milah is known as “bris” in Yiddish. The brit milah ceremony is performed on male infants when they are 8-days old.
99. Activity in a dohyo : SUMO
Sumo is a sport that is practiced professionally only in Japan, the country of its origin. There is an international federation of sumo wrestling now, and one of the organization’s aims is to have the sport accepted as an Olympic event.
102. Certain Consumer Reports employee : TESTER
“Consumer Reports” is a monthly magazine that has been published by Consumers Union since 1936. Consumers Union was established as a non-profit organization with the mission to “test products, inform the public, and protect customers.”
103. Beatles song, album or movie : HELP!
“Help!” is a 1965 movie, the second film released by the Beatles. The film’s soundtrack was released under the same title. Personally, I prefered the Beatles’ first movie, “A Hard Day’s Night” …
113. Yankee Sparky who wrote “The Bronx Zoo” : LYLE
Sparky Lyle is a retired MLB relief pitcher who played from 1967 to 1982, winning the Cy Young Award in 1977.
114. Abruzzi bell town : ATRI
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote “The Sicilian’s Tale; The Bell of Atri”, a narrative poem set in the small town of Atri in the Abruzzo region of Italy.
115. Da’s opposite : NYET
“Nyet” is Russian for “no”, and “da” is Russian for “yes”.
121. “No ___!” : MAS
“No mas!” translates from Spanish as “no more!”.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Part of a crossword : GRID
5. Child’s play : A SNAP
10. Measure, as a runner : CLOCK
15. Attachment letters : PDF
18. Number two : AIDE
19. Star of CBS’s “Madam Secretary” : LEONI
20. Eighth of a cup : OUNCE
21. Munich missus : FRAU
22. Commercials for a “Star Trek” movie? : SPOCK PLUGS (from “spark plugs”)
24. Yoga teacher’s invitation? : A CALL TO OMS (from “a call to arms”)
26. Head bands? : HALOES
27. Roster shortener : ET ALII
29. Can’t stand : HATES
30. Naval agreement : AYE
31. Inclined : ASLOPE
33. Flower arrangement : RACEME
36. Weather forecaster in Phoenix? : HOT SPECIALIST (from “heart specialist”)
40. Auto frame : CHASSIS
43. Serpent’s tail? : -INE
44. Where Einstein was born : ULM
45. Gorsuch replaced him : SCALIA
47. Prefix with -partite : TRI-
48. “Louder!” : TURN IT UP!
51. Most in-shape person at a cosmetics company? : THE BOD OF AVON (from “the Bard of Avon”)
54. Strict Sabbath observer of old : ESSENE
55. Word before green or after deep blue : SEA
57. Narrow passage: Abbr. : STR
58. ___ friends : AMONG
59. Worn things : GARB
61. Back biter, maybe : FLEA
64. Standing directly in front of one another : TOE-TO-TOE
66. Big game : BOWL
69. Ridicule shouted out of a moving car? : PASSING MOCK (“passing mark”)
72. Tear apart : REND
73. Short-lived things : EPHEMERA
75. 1998 Sarah McLachlan hit : ADIA
76. Casino draw : KENO
78. Progressive alternative : GEICO
79. “Eww!” : ICK!
81. Pan Am rival : TWA
83. Gulf War allies : SAUDIS
87. Quickly added bit of punctuation? : INSTANT COMMA (from “Instant Karma”)
91. Space saver in a taxi or bus : DROP SEAT
93. Suffix with beat : -NIK
94. “Gangsta’s Paradise” rapper : COOLIO
95. Egyptian ___ (spotted cat breed) : MAU
96. Turkish honorific : AGA
97. Tries to mediate : STEPS IN
100. What allowed one physician to get through flu season? : A SHOT IN THE DOC (from “a shot in the dark”)
105. Puts out : DOUSES
107. Articles of faith : TENETS
108. Two-time U.S. Open champ : ELS
109. Unctuous flattery : SMARM
111. Hangs loose : CHILLS
113. J.Crew competitor : LLBEAN
116. Regimen with limited intake of corn? : LOW-COB DIET (from “low-carb diet”)
119. Toddler’s cry upon entering the bathroom? : IT’S MY POTTY! (from “It’s My Party”)
122. Where I-15 meets I-70 : UTAH
123. Cookin’, after “on” : … A ROLL
124. Where “ho” and “hoina” mean “yes” and “no” : NEPAL
125. Tired (out) : WORE
126. Spanish chess piece : REY
127. Chrissie in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame : HYNDE
128. Backspace over : ERASE
129. Cross condition : SNIT
Down
1. Nasty cut : GASH
2. Gifford’s successor on TV : RIPA
3. Violators of the Second Commandment : IDOLATERS
4. They can throw you off : DECOYS
5. High points of a European vacation? : ALPS
6. Condiment for pommes frites : SEL
7. ___-turn : NO U
8. Cartwright who played one of the von Trapp children in “The Sound of Music” : ANGELA
9. Energetic one : PISTOL
10. Come together : COALESCE
11. First daughter of the 1960s : LUCI
12. Studio warning : ON AIR
13. A quarter of M : CCL
14. Kenan’s former Nickelodeon pal : KEL
15. Support for a fringe candidate, maybe : PROTEST VOTE
16. Title for Helen Mirren : DAME
17. Something “kicked up” : FUSS
21. Heads for a bar? : FOAMS
23. Remain fresh : KEEP
25. Mother of Helios : THEA
28. Imitative : APISH
31. Scopes Trial org. : ACLU
32. Nitwits : SIMPS
34. Music genre for Steppenwolf and Iron Butterfly : ACID ROCK
35. Elaine ___, cabinet member for both Bush and Trump : CHAO
36. Shere who wrote “Women and Love” : HITE
37. Cross to bear : ONUS
38. Sister of Erato : EUTERPE
39. Things that allow for jumping ahead in line? : TABS
41. Like some transfers : IRON-ON
42. Burned a bit : SINGED
46. Game with drawings : LOTTO
49. Slight : NEGLECT
50. ___ moment : IN A
51. Shire of “Rocky” : TALIA
52. Kind of chance : FAT
53. In the mood : AMOROUS
56. Buffet centerpiece? : EFS
60. Sinatra, for one : BARITONE
62. Squash : END
63. Aggravation : AGITA
65. Just manages : EKES OUT
66. Takes the first step : BEGINS
67. Christmas Day exhortation : OPEN IT!
68. Removed expeditiously : WHISKED AWAY
70. 1920s anarchist in a prominent trial : SACCO
71. Big mouth : MAW
74. Extinct cousin of the kiwi : MOA
77. Go out for a while? : NAP
80. Caffeine source : KOLA
82. Make no bones about : ADMIT
84. Completely convinced about : DEAD SET ON
85. “I hate the Moor” speaker : IAGO
86. Quick and detached, musically: Abbr. : STAC
88. Special Agent Gibbs’s beat : NCIS
89. Call wrongly : MISTITLE
90. Bris official : MOHEL
92. Also-___ : RANS
98. Swing site : PORCH
99. Activity in a dohyo : SUMO
101. Site-seeing? : ONLINE
102. Certain Consumer Reports employee : TESTER
103. Beatles song, album or movie : HELP!
104. Pasta picks : ELBOWS
106. Discontinued Toyota line : SCION
109. Put-down : SLUR
110. Speck of dust : MOTE
112. Didn’t give way : HELD
113. Yankee Sparky who wrote “The Bronx Zoo” : LYLE
114. Abruzzi bell town : ATRI
115. Da’s opposite : NYET
117. “Phooey!” : BAH!
118. Assist with the dishes : DRY
120. Spring for a vacation? : SPA
121. “No ___!” : MAS