Constructed by: Randolph Ross
Edited by: Will Shortz
Not your puzzle? Try today’s …
… syndicated NY Times crossword
Today’s Theme: Unemployment Lines
Themed answers comprise the name of a profession preceded by an adjective. That adjective is a pun on the profession and describes how the person might feel when his or her employment is taken away:
- 22A. Unemployed salon worker? : DISTRESSED HAIRDRESSER
- 29A. Unemployed nail polisher? : DEFILED MANICURIST
- 46A. Unemployed men’s clothier? : DISPATCHED TAILOR
- 63A. Unemployed educator? : DEGRADED TEACHER
- 83A. Unemployed loan officer? : DISTRUSTED BANKER
- 100A. Unemployed rancher? : DERANGED CATTLEMAN
- 111A. Unemployed prestidigitator? : DISILLUSIONED MAGICIAN
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… a complete list of answers
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Bill’s time: 19m 18s
Bill’s errors: 0
Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies
Across
13. “Foundation” author : ASIMOV
Isaac Asimov was a wonderful science fiction writer, and a professor of biochemistry. He was a favorite author as I was growing up and I must admit that some hero worship on my part led me to study and work as a biochemist for a short while early in my career. My favorite of his works is the collection of short stories called “I, Robot”, although Asimov’s most famous work is probably his “Foundation” trilogy of novels. Asimov wrote three autobiographies, the last of which was called “I, Asimov”, which was published in 1994, two years after his death.
19. Hit 2009 movie set in the 22nd century : AVATAR
2009’s epic “Avatar” is a science fiction film from James Cameron, who was director, writer and producer. It was an expensive movie to make and to promote, but was destined to become the highest-grossing film in the history of cinema. 20th Century Fox made a deal with Cameron to produce three “Avatar” sequels.
21. When Hamlet dies : ACT FIVE
The full title of William Shakespeare’s play that we tend to call “Hamlet” is “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”. It is the most performed of all Shakespeare’s plays and it is also his longest, the only one of his works comprising over 4,000 lines. That’s about a 4-hour sitting in a theater …
25. Venusians, e.g., informally : ETS
The planet Venus is the second brightest object in the night sky, after our Moon.
28. Foreign title that’s an anagram of its English equivalent : SRI
“Sri” is a title of respect for a male in India.
44. Cosby’s “I Spy” co-star : CULP
The very successful TV show “I Spy” ran from 1965-68. Robert Culp played secret agent Kelly Robinson, opposite Bill Cosby who played Alexander Scott. Sadly, Robert Culp passed away in 2010, pronounced dead after a fall just outside his home. He was 79 years old.
45. Jack-in-the-box part : LID
A Jack-in-the-box is child’s toy. It’s a box with a crank handle at the side. Turning the crank causes a tune to play (usually “Pop Goes the Weasel”), and at the right moment the lid pops open and a spring loaded clown character jumps up out of the box.
51. Wing it : AD LIB
“Ad libitum” is a Latin phrase meaning “at one’s pleasure”. In common usage, the phrase is usually shortened to “ad lib”. On the stage, the concept of an ad lib is very familiar.
56. Exam scored on a scale of 1 to 5, informally : AP TEST
The Advanced Placement (AP) program offers college-level courses to kids who are still in high school. After being tested at the end of the courses, successful students receive credits that count towards a college degree.
57. Designer Geoffrey : BEENE
Geoffrey Beene was an American fashion designer. He had an impressive list of clients that included First Ladies Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon and Nancy Reagan.
58. “___ Live” (onetime cooking show) : EMERIL
Emeril Lagasse is an American chef who was born in Massachusetts. Lagasse first achieved celebrity as executive chef in Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. Now famous for his television shows, his cuisine still showcases New Orleans ingredients and influences. Lagasse started using his famous “Bam!” catchphrase in order to keep his crew awake during repeated tapings of his show.
61. ___ tear (sports injury) : ACL
The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of four major ligaments that support the knee.
62. Jay preceder : DEE-
The world’s first radio disc jockey (DJ) was one Ray Newby of Stockton, California who made his debut broadcast in 1909, would you believe? When he was 16 years old and a student, Newby started to play his records on a primitive radio located in the Herrold College of Engineering and Wireless in San Jose. The records played back then were mostly recordings of Enrico Caruso.
68. Media inits. before One, Two or Four : BBC
The marvelous British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is mainly funded by the UK government through a television licence fee that is levied annually on all households watching TV transmissions. Currently the fee is 145 UK pounds, about 230 US dollars.
71. Wall Street order : PUT
“Put option” is the name given to a contract in which the buyer of the put has the option to sell something at a future date should it’s market price fall to a predetermined level. The seller of the put is obliged to purchase the security at that price.
73. Fish in a tank : TETRA
The neon tetra is a freshwater fish that is native to parts of South America. The tetra is a very popular aquarium fish and millions are imported into the US every year. Almost all of the imported tetras are farm-raised in Asia and very few come from their native continent.
81. Kitty : POT
The pot in a card game has been referred to as the kitty since the 1880s. It’s not certain how the name “kitty” evolved but possibly it came from “kit”, the necessary equipment for the game.
88. Watchdog org. established by Nixon : EPA
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was set up during the Nixon administration and began operation at the end of 1970.
90. “No returns,” e.g. : CAVEAT
A caveat is a warning or a qualification. “Caveat” is the Latin for “let him beware”.
94. Repeated word in a 1957 Harry Belafonte hit : DAY-O!
“Day-O (The Banana Boat Song)” is a traditional folk song from Jamaica. It is sung from the standpoint of dock workers unloading boats on the night shift, so daylight has come, and they want to go home. The most famous version of “Day-O” was recorded by Harry Belafonte, in 1956.
96. Cote call : BAA!
The Old English word “cote” was used for a small house. Our modern word “cottage” comes from “cote”. We now use “cote” to mean a small shelter on a farm for sheep or birds.
110. Airport near D.C. : BWI
There are three airports serving the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area:
- Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
- Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)
- Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
Of the three, BWI handles the most passengers.
111. Unemployed prestidigitator? : DISILLUSIONED MAGICIAN
We imported the word “prestidigitation”, meaning “magic, sleight of hand”, from French. The term was coined in 1830 and derives from the Latin “praestigiator”, meaning “juggler”.
117. Iconic 1950s-’70s female TV role played by a male : LASSIE
The canine character Lassie is the creation of Eric Knight, an author who wrote a short story that he expanded into a novel called “Lassie Come Home” published in 1940. “Lassie Come Home” was turned into a movie three years later, the first of a very successful franchise. The original Lassie (a female) was played by a dog called Pal, a male dog. In fact, all of the dogs that played Lassie over the years were males, because they looked better on camera, retaining a thick coat even during the summer months.
119. Like the lion slain by Hercules : NEMEAN
“The Twelve Labors of Hercules” is actually a Greek myth, although Hercules is the Roman name for the hero that the Greeks called Heracles. The first of these labors was to slay the Nemean lion, a monster that lived in a cave near Nemea. Hercules had a tough job as the lion’s golden fur was impenetrable to normal weapons. One version of the story is that Hercules killed the lion by shooting an arrow into its mouth. Another version says that Hercules stunned the monster with a club and then strangled him with his bare hands.
Down
2. Request for an online R.S.V.P. : E-VITE
“RSVP” stands for “répondez s’il vous plaît”, which is French for “answer, please”.
3. Bluegrass instrument : BASS FIDDLE
The double bass is usually referred to as the bass fiddle or bass violin in the world of folk and bluegrass music.
5. One out? : PAROLEE
The term “parole” is a French word that we use in English, with the French “parole” meaning “word, speech”. Of particular interest is the French phrase “parole d’honneur” which translates as “word of honor”. In the early 1600s we started using “parole” to mean a promise by a prisoner of war not to escape, as in the prisoner giving his “word of honor” not to run off. Over time, parole has come to mean conditional release of a prisoner before he or she has served the full term of a sentence.
7. ___ tea : ASSAM
Assam is a state in the very northeast of India, and just south of the Himalayas. Assam is noted for its tea as well as its silk.
9. “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” character : TED
Ted Knight was the actor best known for playing the slow-witted news anchor Ted Baxter on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show”. Knight’s most famous role on the big screen was Judge Elihu Smails in the 1980 comedy “Caddyshack”.
14. Surgical tube : STENT
In the world of surgical medicine, a stent is an artificial tube inserted inside a vessel in the body, say an artery, in order to reduce the effects of a local restriction in the body’s conduit.
16. Like Feburary : MISSPELLED
The name of the month February comes from the Latin word “februum” meaning “purification”. The Romans had a ritual named Februa (purification) on February 15th every year. I don’t think many people pronounce the first letter R in “February”, leaving it silent, but I could be wrong …
23. Part of S.O.P.: Abbr. : STD
Standard operating procedure (SOP)
31. Okinawa port : NAHA
Naha is located on the island of Okinawa in the very south of Japan. The city is the capital of Okinawa Prefecture, which comprises hundreds of islands in the Ryukyu Arc that extends over 1,000 km towards Taiwan.
32. “___ Rhythm” : I GOT
“I Got Rhythm” is a song composed by George and Ira Gershwin in 1930 for the musical “Girl Crazy”. The song was performed by Ethel Merman in the original production on Broadway. “I Got Rhythm” makes another appearance in a George Gershwin work, in the 1951 musical film “An American in Paris”. Gene Kelly sang the song in the movie, while tap-dancing.
38. Spill the beans : BLAB
To spill the beans is to divulge a secret. The expression first appeared in American English, in the early 1900s. The phrase arose as an alternative to “spoil the beans” or “upset the applecart”.
47. “Brave New World” drug : SOMA
In Aldous Huxley’s 1931 masterpiece, “Brave New World”, the members of his future society are encouraged to partake of the drug called soma. The soma provides hangover-free escapes referred to as “holidays”.
49. Dash gauge : TACH
The tachometer takes its name from the Greek word “tachos” meaning “speed”. A tachometer in a car measures engine revolutions per minute (rpm).
Back in the 1800s, “dashboard” was the name given to a board placed at the front of a carriage to stop mud from “dashing” against the passengers in the carriage, mud that was kicked up by the hoofs of the horses. Quite interesting …
50. AAA suggestion: Abbr. : RTE
The American Automobile Association (AAA) is a not-for-profit organization focused on lobbying, provision of automobile servicing, and selling of automobile insurance. The AAA was founded in 1902 in Chicago and published the first of its celebrated hotel guides back in 1917.
59. Like “A Star Is Born,” several times : REMADE
“A Star Is Born” is a 1937 film starring Janet Gaynor as an upcoming Hollywood actress. “A Star Is Born” was remade three times, in 1954 with Judy Garland playing the lead, in 1976 with Barbra Streisand, and in 2018 with Lady Gaga.
60. A mean Amin : IDI
Idi Amin ruled Uganda as a dictator from 1971 until 1979. Amin started his professional career as a cook in the Colonial British Army. Amin seized power from President Milton Obote in a 1971 coup d’état. The former cook eventually gave himself the title “His Excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular”.
61. Blackjack combo : ACE/TEN
The card game known as “twenty-one” was first referred to in a book by Cervantes, the author famous for writing “Don Quixote”. He called the game “ventiuna” (Spanish for “twenty-one”). Cervantes wrote his story just after the year 1600, so the game has been around at least since then. Twenty-one came to the US but it wasn’t all that popular so bonus payments were introduced to create more interest. One of the more attractive bonuses was a ten-to-one payout to a player who was dealt an ace of spades and a black jack. This bonus led to the game adopting the moniker “Blackjack”.
64. Maven : GURU
“Guru” is a Hindi word meaning “teacher” or “priest”.
I’ve always loved the term “maven”, which is another word for “expert”. Maven comes into English from the Yiddish “meyvn” describing someone who appreciates and is a connoisseur.
66. Every which way : AMOK
The phrase “to run amok” (sometimes “to run amuck”) has been around since the 1670s and is derived from the Malay word for “attacking furiously”, “amuk”. The word “amok” was also used as a noun to describe Malay natives who were “frenzied”. Given Malaya’s troubled history, the natives probably had good reason for that frenzy …
69. Two-masted sailing vessel : BRIGANTINE
A brig is a two-masted sailing vessel, with the name “brig” coming from the related vessel known as a brigantine. Brigs and brigantines are both two-masted, but there is a difference in the sails used. It was the use of retired brigs as prison ships that led to use of “brig” as the word for a jail or prison cell on a seagoing vessel.
70. Longtime host of “American Top 40” : CASEY KASEM
Not only was Casey Kasem so closely associated with the radio show “American Top 40”, but he was also well known for playing the voice of Shaggy Rogers on the “Scooby-Doo” animated series.
74. Source of a Boston “curse” : THE BAMBINO
Baseball legend George Herman Ruth, Jr. had several nicknames, the best known being “Babe”. He was also called “the Bambino” and “the Sultan of Swat”.
75. Defaulter’s comeuppance : REPO
Repossession (repo)
78. Normandy invasion town : ST-LO
Saint-Lô is a town in Normandy that was occupied by Germany in 1940. Saint-Lo stood at a strategic crossroads and so there was intense fighting there during the Normandy invasion of 1944. After a prolonged bombardment, very little of the town was left standing.
79. Marie and Donny Osmond, e.g. : UTAHANS
Former teen idol Donny Osmond was a member of the Osmond Brothers singing group that appeared for years on the “The Andy Williams Show”. At the height of his solo career, Donny teamed up with his younger sister Marie Osmond in their own variety show called “Donny & Marie”. The pair have been working together ever since and have been appearing at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas since 2008.
92. Royal Charlotte’s father : WILLIAM
Princess Charlotte of Cambridge (b. 2015) is the second child of Prince William and Catherine, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Charlotte has a relatively high ranking in succession to the British throne compared to her female ancestors. Before the rules were changed in 2011, Charlotte would have been bumped down the line of succession when her younger brother Louis was born in 2018, just because he was a male and she was not.
93. Abbr. in many an office address : STE
Suite (ste.)
95. Estée Lauder competitor : REVLON
Revlon was founded in the depths of the Great Depression in 1932 by Charles and Joseph Revson. The “S” in the “Revson” name was replaced by the “L” from Charles “Lachman”, a chemist who partnered with the two brothers.
97. “Evangeline” setting : ACADIA
“Evangeline, A Tale of Acadie” is an epic poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that was first published in 1847. Nowadays we tend to think first of “Hiawatha” when we see the name Longfellow, but within his own lifetime “Evangeline” was Longfellow’s most famous work. The poem tells the tale of Evangeline Bellefontaine who is separated from her beloved when the Acadians were forcibly removed from their land by the British.
100. Symbol of change : DELTA
Delta is the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet. We are most familiar with an upper-case delta and its distinctive triangular shape. The letter’s shape has influenced terms such as “deltoid muscle” and “river delta”. The upper-case delta is also used in mathematics and science to indicate a change in value. The lower-case delta looks a bit like our lower-case D, and indeed the Greek letter delta gave us our Latin letter D.
101. Young and Simon : NEILS
Neil Young is a singer and songwriter from Toronto, Ontario. Young is known for his solo work, as well as his earlier recordings with Buffalo Springfield and as the fourth member of Crosby, Stills & Nash. Young is also a successful movie director, although he uses the pseudonym “Bernard Shakey” for his movie work. Included in his filmography are “Human Highway” and “Greendale”.
Neil Simon was one of my favorite playwrights. Simon wrote over thirty plays and about thirty screenplays. He received more nominations for Oscars and Tony Awards than any other writer. My favorite play penned by Simon has to be “Brighton Beach Memoirs”, but the list of his great stage works seems endless and includes “Barefoot in the Park”, “The Odd Couple”, “Sweet Charity”, “Plaza Suite”, “California Suite”, “Biloxi Blues” and “The Goodbye Girl”.
103. Headgear for a knight : ARMET
The armet is a relatively lightweight helmet used in the 15th century. It was considered innovative in that it was the first helmet design to completely enclose the head, hence providing added protection.
104. Padre’s hermana : TIA
In Spanish, the “hermana” (sister) of your “padre” (father) is your “tia” (aunt).
106. Beethoven’s “Choral” Symphony : NINTH
Beethoven’s “Symphony No. 9” is his wonderful “Choral” symphony. When it was composed in 1824 it was the first time that a major composer had used voices in a symphony. By the time of the Ninth’s premier, Beethoven was essentially deaf. He insisted on sharing the stage with the musical director (who was conducting), and was visibly counting out time but was off by quite a few measures. When the last notes were played there was enthusiastic applause, although Beethoven was still conducting. The lead contralto had to walk over to Beethoven, stop him, and turn him to the audience to receive his adulation.
113. Code-cracking org. : NSA
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”.
114. Special gift : ESP
Extrasensory perception (ESP)
115. ___-Magnon : CRO
Remains of early man, dating back to 35,000 years ago, were found in Abri de Cro-Magnon in southwest France, giving the name to those early humans. Cro-Magnon remains are the oldest human relics that have been discovered in Europe.
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Complete List of Clues/Answers
Across
1. Google Calendar, e.g. : WEB APP
7. In addition : AT THAT
13. “Foundation” author : ASIMOV
19. Hit 2009 movie set in the 22nd century : AVATAR
20. Cry of exasperation : SHEESH!
21. When Hamlet dies : ACT FIVE
22. Unemployed salon worker? : DISTRESSED HAIRDRESSER
25. Venusians, e.g., informally : ETS
26. In base 8 : OCTAL
27. Bob ___, 1968 record-setting long jumper : BEAMON
28. Foreign title that’s an anagram of its English equivalent : SRI
29. Unemployed nail polisher? : DEFILED MANICURIST
33. Most preferred : PET
34. Coffee order : ICED
35. Jokester : WAG
36. Some TV drama settings, for short : ERS
37. Hot : SEXY
38. Troublemaker since birth : BAD SEED
41. Something paid to a hero : HOMAGE
44. Cosby’s “I Spy” co-star : CULP
45. Jack-in-the-box part : LID
46. Unemployed men’s clothier? : DISPATCHED TAILOR
51. Wing it : AD LIB
54. Remote figure: Abbr. : VOL
55. Hydro plant locale : DAM
56. Exam scored on a scale of 1 to 5, informally : AP TEST
57. Designer Geoffrey : BEENE
58. “___ Live” (onetime cooking show) : EMERIL
61. ___ tear (sports injury) : ACL
62. Jay preceder : DEE-
63. Unemployed educator? : DEGRADED TEACHER
68. Media inits. before One, Two or Four : BBC
71. Wall Street order : PUT
72. Question after “I’m back” : MISS ME?
73. Fish in a tank : TETRA
77. Rubber : ERASER
79. Article in La Repubblica : UNA
81. Kitty : POT
82. Port Authority posting: Abbr. : SCHED
83. Unemployed loan officer? : DISTRUSTED BANKER
88. Watchdog org. established by Nixon : EPA
89. Salon supply : GELS
90. “No returns,” e.g. : CAVEAT
91. “Extra! Extra!” shouter : NEWSBOY
94. Repeated word in a 1957 Harry Belafonte hit : DAY-O!
95. Fan noise : RAH!
96. Cote call : BAA!
98. ___ spell : SIT A
99. It’s kept in a pen : INK
100. Unemployed rancher? : DERANGED CATTLEMAN
107. Capt.’s guess : ETA
108. More balanced : EVENER
109. Popular font : ARIAL
110. Airport near D.C. : BWI
111. Unemployed prestidigitator? : DISILLUSIONED MAGICIAN
116. Efficient kind of shopping : ONE-STOP
117. Iconic 1950s-’70s female TV role played by a male : LASSIE
118. Achieve something by merit : EARN IT
119. Like the lion slain by Hercules : NEMEAN
120. Be short with : SNAP AT
121. Peanut butter choice : SMOOTH
Down
1. Tested the waters, say : WADED
2. Request for an online R.S.V.P. : E-VITE
3. Bluegrass instrument : BASS FIDDLE
4. ___.com, site with the category “Cellphones & tablets” : ATT
5. One out? : PAROLEE
6. Came before : PRECEDED
7. ___ tea : ASSAM
8. Sheriffs, marshals, etc. : THE LAW
9. “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” character : TED
10. Short snicker : HEH
11. Easy ___ : AS ABC
12. President during the Vietnam War : THIEU
13. Straddling : ACROSS
14. Surgical tube : STENT
15. Suppositions : IFS
16. Like Feburary : MISSPELLED
17. Advertise excessively : OVEREXPOSE
18. It’s the truth : VERITY
21. Used as a role model : ADMIRED
23. Part of S.O.P.: Abbr. : STD
24. Beauty that’s seldom seen : RARE GEM
30. Suffix with linguist : -ICS
31. Okinawa port : NAHA
32. “___ Rhythm” : I GOT
37. Exec : SUIT
38. Spill the beans : BLAB
39. Second : AIDE
40. Send in a different direction : DIVERT
42. Fast-food sandwiches introduced in 1985 : MCDLTS
43. “Bingo!” : AHA!
44. They go down easily : CAPLETS
47. “Brave New World” drug : SOMA
48. Responded in court : PLED
49. Dash gauge : TACH
50. AAA suggestion: Abbr. : RTE
52. It borders Ky. : IND
53. You can page through them : BEEPERS
59. Like “A Star Is Born,” several times : REMADE
60. A mean Amin : IDI
61. Blackjack combo : ACE/TEN
64. Maven : GURU
65. Locker room shower? : ESPN
66. Every which way : AMOK
67. ___ center : REC
68. Hospital unit : BED
69. Two-masted sailing vessel : BRIGANTINE
70. Longtime host of “American Top 40” : CASEY KASEM
74. Source of a Boston “curse” : THE BAMBINO
75. Defaulter’s comeuppance : REPO
76. Every 24 hours : A DAY
78. Normandy invasion town : ST-LO
79. Marie and Donny Osmond, e.g. : UTAHANS
80. It borders Ida. : NEV
84. Find with difficulty : SCARE UP
85. Hon : BABE
86. Not very much : A TAD
87. Produces a revival of : RESTAGES
92. Royal Charlotte’s father : WILLIAM
93. Abbr. in many an office address : STE
94. Failed, as a cellphone or car to its user : DIED ON
95. Estée Lauder competitor : REVLON
97. “Evangeline” setting : ACADIA
100. Symbol of change : DELTA
101. Young and Simon : NEILS
102. Preceder of “Do I have to?” : GROAN
103. Headgear for a knight : ARMET
104. Padre’s hermana : TIA
105. Look for : AWAIT
106. Beethoven’s “Choral” Symphony : NINTH
112. Suffix with expert : -ISE
113. Code-cracking org. : NSA
114. Special gift : ESP
115. ___-Magnon : CRO
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