0530-19 NY Times Crossword 30 May 19, Thursday

Constructed by: Brandon Koppy
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Auto Loan Crossword, Perhaps?

Themed clues are two-word terms, and pairs of starting words of other two-word terms. Themed answers are the second words of those other terms, which together make a new two-word term:

  • 17A Peter … / Rabbit … : JACKSON HOLE (“Peter Jackson” & “rabbit hole”)
  • 24A Space … / Bar … : TIME FLIES (“space-time” & “barflies”)
  • 30A Dead … / Drop … : BEATBOX (“deadbeat” & “drop box”)
  • 42A Jack … / Cheese … : POTHEAD (“jackpot” & “cheesehead”)
  • 49A Fire … / Screen … : POWER PLAY (“fire power” & “screenplay”)
  • 59A Dog … / Star … : PADDLEBOARD (“dog paddle” & “starboard”)

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 7m 49s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

4 Apian way? : BEE LINE

Something described as apian is related to bees. “Apis” is Latin for “bee”.

11 Revolutionary subject for Banksy : CHE

Banksy is an English graffiti artist who is noted for his contempt of the British government for condemning his work as vandalism. Banksy’s work can fetch a pretty penny at auction. No one seems to know for sure who Banksy actually is …

14 Laundry room brand : ERA

Era was the first liquid laundry detergent produced by Procter & Gamble.

15 Was humbled : ATE CROW

The phrase “eat crow”, an alternative to “eat humble pie”, perhaps refers to the fact that cooked crow may be edible, but is not a great food choice.

16 Big sender of CDs in the 1990s : AOL

Founded as Quantum Computer Services in 1983, the company changed its name in 1989 to America Online. As America Online went international, the acronym AOL was used in order to shake off the “America-centric” sound to the name. During the heady days of AOL’s success the company could not keep up with the growing number of subscribers, so people trying to connect often encountered busy signals. That’s when users referred to AOL as “Always Off-Line”.

17 Peter … / Rabbit … : JACKSON HOLE (“Peter Jackson” & “rabbit hole”)

Jackson Hole is the name of a beautiful valley in Wyoming formed between the Teton and Gros Ventre Ranges. The name “Jackson Hole” is also used locally for the town of Jackson, located in the valley.

Beatrix Potter was an English author, famous for the children’s books she wrote and illustrated. The most famous character in her stories was Peter Rabbit, whose sisters were Flopsy, Mopsy and Cottontail. Potter put her talent as an artist to good use in the scientific world as well. She recorded many images of lichens and fungi as seen through her microscope. As a result of her work, she was respected as an expert mycologist.

19 Sport competed in barefoot, in brief : MMA

Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact combat sport in which competitors use a variety of techniques from a variety of traditional combat sports and martial arts.

21 What every infinitive in Esperanto ends in : AN I

Esperanto is an international language specially constructed to create some level of harmony between people from different parts of the world. It was created in the late 1800s by an opthamologist from modern-day Poland. Tens of thousands, and maybe even millions of people speak Esperanto, with some being taught it as a native language from birth.

23 Ancient marauder : HUN

The Huns were a nomadic people who originated in Eastern Europe in the 4th century. Under the command of Attila the Hun they developed a unified empire that stretched from modern-day Germany across to the steppes of Central Asia. The whole of the Hunnic Empire collapsed within a year of Attila’s death in 453 AD.

26 Ancient greeting : AVE

“Ave” is a Latin word meaning “hail” as in “Ave Maria”, which translates as “Hail Mary”. “Ave” can also be used to mean “goodbye”.

30 Dead … / Drop … : BEATBOX (“deadbeat” & “drop box”)

A dead drop is a system used by spies to pass along information. The dead drop is essentially a secret location in which a spy can leave information. A case officer, perhaps, picks up the information at a later time. This can be compared to a live drop, in which the individuals meet directly.

33 “Queen” on Broadway : NALA

In “The Lion King”, Nala is a lioness and the childhood friend of Simba. By the end of the story, Nala and Simba become wedded. “The Lion King” is inspired by William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”, with Simba representing the title character, and Nala representing Hamlet’s love interest Ophelia.

40 Fitbit bit : STEP

Fitbits are wearable activity trackers that are mainly used to track the number of steps walked, although more and more features have been added over time. A Fitbit was even used as evidence in at least one murder case. A Connecticut man claimed that a home intruder had shot and killed his wife. Police used data from the wife’s Fitbit to disprove the husband’s story, and ended up charging him with the murder.

42 Jack … / Cheese … : POTHEAD (“jackpot” & “cheesehead”)

“Potiguaya” is the Mexican-Spanish word for “marijuana leaves”. The slang name “pot” comes from “potiguaya”.

The term “jackpot” dates back to the 1800s and comes from the game of poker. In some variants there are progressive antes. This means that players have to ante up, add to the “pot”, when no player has a pair of “jacks” or better. They build a “jackpot”.

What we now call Monterey Jack cheese was originally made by Franciscan friars in Monterey, California in the 19th century. In the 1800s, a powerful landowner called David Jack started to make the same cheese as the friars in his own dairy, and marketed it as “Jack’s Cheese” and later “Monterey Jack”.

46 “Quickly!” : ASAP!

As soon as possible (ASAP)

48 Greek 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 …

51 “Isle of Dogs” director Anderson : WES

“Isle of Dogs” is a 2018 animated and stop-action film by Wes Anderson. The movie has a science-fiction storyline, and is set in near-future Japan. All dogs are banished to Trash Island after an outbreak of dog flu threatens to cross into the human population. The voice cast of “Isle of Dogs” is very impressive, and includes Bryan Cranston, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Jeff Goldblum, Frances McDormand, Scarlett Johansson, Yoko Ono and many other A-list names.

53 Businessman who gave his name to Berkeley’s business school : HAAS

The University of California, Berkeley (Cal) is the most difficult public university to get into in the world. It opened in 1869, and is named for Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkeley.

54 PC hookup : LAN

Local Area Network (LAN)

58 Boston athlete whose #4 jersey has been retired : ORR

Bobby Orr is regarded as one of the greatest hockey players of all time. By the time he retired in 1978 he had undergone over a dozen knee surgeries. At 31 years of age, he concluded that he just couldn’t skate anymore. Reportedly, he was even having trouble walking. While still 31 years old, in 1979, Orr became the youngest person inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Prior to that, in 1967, Orr became the youngest person named the NHL’s Rookie of the Year.

59 Dog … / Star … : PADDLEBOARD (“dog paddle” & “starboard”)

The starboard side of a ship is her right side. “Starboard” is a term that comes from the Old English “steobord” meaning “side on which a vessel was steered”. Apparently, old Germanic peoples constructed boats that were habitually propelled and steered by a paddle on the right side.

61 Arya’s father on “Game of Thrones” : NED

Ned Stark is the protagonist in George R. R. Martin’s fantasy novel “A Game of Thrones”, although his character doesn’t exactly come out on top by the end of the story. Stark is played by actor Sean Bean in the HBO television adaptation of the novel.

62 Question seen in some online memes : AM I RITE?

A meme (from “mineme”) is a cultural practice or idea that is passed on verbally or by repetition from one person to another. The term lends itself very well to the online world where links, emails, files etc. are so easily propagated.

63 Coastal inlet : RIA

A drowned valley might be called a ria or a fjord, with both formed as sea level rises. A ria is a drowned valley created by river erosion, and a fjord is a drowned valley created by glaciation.

64 Signature on a message to readers, maybe : EDS

Editors (Eds.)

65 1% of the body? : SENATOR

The US Senate comprises 100 senators, with each of the fifty states being represented by two popularly elected senators. US senators were appointed by their state legislators from 1798 until 1913, until the Seventeenth Amendment called for popular elections.

66 Spanish chess piece : REY

In Spanish, a “rey” (king) might live in a “palacio” (palace).

Down

1 Lead-in to “vu” : DEJA

“Déjà vu” is French for “already seen”.

2 401(k) alternatives : IRAS

A 401(k) account resembles an IRA in that contributions can be made from a paycheck prior to the deduction of income taxes. A 401(k) differs from an IRA in that it is an employer-sponsored plan, with payments taken by the employer directly from an employee’s paycheck. Additionally, contributions can be fully or partially matched by an employer.

3 Carry : PACK HEAT

“Packing” and “packing heat” are underworld slang for “carrying a gun”.

5 School for James Bond : ETON

The world-famous Eton College is just a brisk walk from Windsor Castle, which itself is just outside London. Eton is noted for producing many British leaders including David Cameron who was British prime minister from 2010 to 2016. The list of Old Etonians also includes Princes William and Harry, the Duke of Wellington and George Orwell. Author Ian Fleming was also and Eton alumnus, as was Fleming’s iconic character James Bond, although the 007 was expelled by the school.

7 “Cheers!” : L’CHAIM

“L’Chaim!” is a Hebrew toast meaning “To life!”, with “chai” being the Hebrew word for “life”.

8 Role in “The Avengers” : IRON MAN

Iron Man is another one of those comic book superheroes, this one created by Stan Lee for Marvel Comics. The character has become very famous in recent years since the appearance of the 2008 action movie “Iron Man” starring Robert Downey, Jr. in the title role. Iron Man’s love interest, Pepper Potts, is routinely played by Gwyneth Paltrow in the same series of films.

The Avengers are a team of superheroes in the Marvel Comics universe. The original lineup, which dates back to 1963, consisted of Ant-Man, Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and the Wasp. Soon after their formation, the Avengers rescued Captain America trapped in ice, and thereafter he joined the team. There is a 2012 movie called “The Avengers” that features Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk and Thor.

12 Class with ranges, informally : HOME EC

Home economics (home ec)

18 Jayhawks rival, for short : KSU

The athletic teams of Kansas State University (KSU) are called the Wildcats. The Wildcats official “colors” are just one: the color royal purple.

26 System used in hematology : ABO

The most important grouping of blood types is the ABO system. Blood is classified as either A, B, AB or O, depending on the type of antigens on the surface of the red blood cells. A secondary designation of blood is the Rh factor, in which other antigens are labelled as either positive or negative. When a patient receives a blood transfusion, ideally the donor blood should be the same type as that of the recipient, as incompatible blood cells can be rejected. However, blood type O-neg can be accepted by recipients with all blood types, A, B, AB or O, and positive or negative. Hence someone with O-neg blood type is called a universal donor.

28 Enchilada topper : MOLE

Mole sauce comes in various guises, with “mole negro” including everyone’s favorite ingredient, namely chocolate.

“Enchilada” is the past participle of the Spanish word “enchilar” meaning “to add chile pepper to”. An enchilada is a basically a corn tortilla rolled around some filling and then covered in chili pepper sauce. The term “big enchilada” is used in the same way as we would use “big cheese” i.e. the top dog. The phrase was popularized in the sixties when John Ehrlichman refers to Attorney General John Mitchell as “the big enchilada” on one of the Watergate Tapes.

32 Mean dog … or a flea on a dog : BITER

Fleas are flightless insects, but they sure can jump. Their very specialized hind legs allow them to jump up to 50 times the length of their bodies.

37 Independent counsel during the Bill Clinton scandal : KEN STARR

Ken Starr has to be one of the most famous lawyers in recent history, due to his tenure as Independent Counsel when President Bill Clinton was in office. Starr’s original brief was to investigate the suicide of White House Counsel Vince Foster as well as to continue the investigation of the Whitewater controversy in which then-Governor Clinton was accused of applying pressure to arrange an illegal loan to one of his partners in the Whitewater land deal. Famously, Starr’s purview was extended to include an investigation into President Clinton’s extramarital affair with Monica Lewinsky, to determine if the President had lied under oath about his relationship with the young intern.

38 Toilette water : EAU

“Eau de toilette” (toilet water) is a diluted perfume. A French person when dressing is said to be attending to his or her “toilette”.

39 Abbr. on a professional’s shingle : DDS

Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)

The phrase “to hang out a shingle” is mainly used in the legal profession with the meaning “to start one’s own law firm”. That said, the expression is sometimes applied to other businesses and trades. A shingle is small signboard.

41 Knight renowned for heroism and chivalry : PALADIN

The paladins were warrior attendants of Charlemagne, the King of the Franks. Also called the Twelve Peers, the paladins often features in fictional tales of heroism about the period.

43 Big Apple product : IPHONE

Apple started development of the iPhone in 2004 in collaboration with Cingular Wireless (now AT&T Mobility). The confidential program was given the name “Project Purple”, and took thirty months to complete at a cost of about $150 million. The iPhone was introduced in 2007 at the Macworld convention in San Francisco.

47 Actress Bullock : SANDRA

The actress Sandra Bullock is the daughter of a part-time voice coach (her father) and an opera singer and voice coach (her mother). Her father was an American soldier stationed in Nuremberg in Germany when he met his German wife. Sandra Bullock’s maternal grandfather was a rocket scientist working in Nuremberg.

50 Outed covert C.I.A. officer Valerie : PLAME

Journalist Robert Novak broke a story in 2003 naming Valerie Plame Wilson, wife of former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, as a covert CIA agent. Plame worked at a clothing store in Washington D.C. after graduating college, before being accepted into the CIA officer training class of 1985/86. She was to work for the CIA for over twenty years before being “outed”.

51 Unit of magnetic flux : WEBER

In the world of physics, the weber is the unit of magnetic flux. The unit is named for the German physicist Wilhelm Eduard Weber who was the co-inventor of the electromagnetic telegraph.

55 Kill bill? : VETO

The verb “veto” comes directly from Latin and means “I forbid”. The term was used by tribunes of ancient Rome to indicate that they opposed measures passed by the Senate.

56 It’s between Huron and Ontario : ERIE

Lake Erie is the fourth largest of the five Great Lakes by area (Lake Ontario is the smallest). The lake takes its name from the Erie tribe of Native Americans that used to live along its southern shore. Erie is the smallest of the Great Lakes by volume and the shallowest, something for which nearby residents must be quite grateful. Being relatively shallow, much of Erie freezes over part way through most winters putting an end to most of the lake-effect snow that falls in the snow belt extending from the lake’s edge.

57 Depiction in “Saving Private Ryan” : D-DAY

The most famous D-Day in history was June 6, 1944, the date of the Normandy landings in WWII. The term “D-Day” is used by the military to designate the day on which a combat operations are to be launched, especially when the actual date has yet to be determined. What D stands for seems to have been lost in the mists of time although the tradition is that D just stands for “Day”. In fact, the French have a similar term, “Jour J” (Day J), with a similar meaning. We also use H-Hour to denote the hour the attack is to commence.

“Saving Private Ryan” is an epic 1998 movie directed by Steven Spielberg, a real “must see”. The D-Day invasion scenes were shot over a two-month period on the southeast coast of Ireland.

60 Sauced : LIT

“Lit” and “sauced” are terms meaning “drunk”.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Downturn : DIP
4 Apian way? : BEE LINE
11 Revolutionary subject for Banksy : CHE
14 Laundry room brand : ERA
15 Was humbled : ATE CROW
16 Big sender of CDs in the 1990s : AOL
17 Peter … / Rabbit … : JACKSON HOLE (“Peter Jackson” & “rabbit hole”)
19 Sport competed in barefoot, in brief : MMA
20 Welcomes : ASKS IN
21 What every infinitive in Esperanto ends in : AN I
22 Smoke detector alert : BEEP
23 Ancient marauder : HUN
24 Space … / Bar … : TIME FLIES (“space-time” & “barflies”)
26 Ancient greeting : AVE
28 Frequent first word : MAMA
29 Cross swords, say : FENCE
30 Dead … / Drop … : BEATBOX (“deadbeat” & “drop box”)
33 “Queen” on Broadway : NALA
35 Kind of soup : OXTAIL
36 Appended, with “on” : TACKED
40 Fitbit bit : STEP
42 Jack … / Cheese … : POTHEAD (“jackpot” & “cheesehead”)
43 Steamed : IRATE
46 “Quickly!” : ASAP!
48 Greek letters : NUS
49 Fire … / Screen … : POWER PLAY (“fire power” & “screenplay”)
51 “Isle of Dogs” director Anderson : WES
53 Businessman who gave his name to Berkeley’s business school : HAAS
54 PC hookup : LAN
55 Like some stock shares : VESTED
58 Boston athlete whose #4 jersey has been retired : ORR
59 Dog … / Star … : PADDLEBOARD (“dog paddle” & “starboard”)
61 Arya’s father on “Game of Thrones” : NED
62 Question seen in some online memes : AM I RITE?
63 Coastal inlet : RIA
64 Signature on a message to readers, maybe : EDS
65 1% of the body? : SENATOR
66 Spanish chess piece : REY

Down

1 Lead-in to “vu” : DEJA
2 401(k) alternatives : IRAS
3 Carry : PACK HEAT
4 Sink : BASIN
5 School for James Bond : ETON
6 Poetic contraction : E’EN
7 “Cheers!” : L’CHAIM
8 Role in “The Avengers” : IRON MAN
9 “Honest!” : NO LIE!
10 Flock member : EWE
11 Finished, as second or third : CAME IN
12 Class with ranges, informally : HOME EC
13 Pass : ELAPSE
18 Jayhawks rival, for short : KSU
22 Laundry room supply : BLEACH
24 Duty : TAX
25 E equivalent : F-FLAT
26 System used in hematology : ABO
27 Nettle : VEX
28 Enchilada topper : MOLE
31 Preferences : TASTES
32 Mean dog … or a flea on a dog : BITER
34 Surmounting : ATOP
37 Independent counsel during the Bill Clinton scandal : KEN STARR
38 Toilette water : EAU
39 Abbr. on a professional’s shingle : DDS
41 Knight renowned for heroism and chivalry : PALADIN
42 Sensitive figure to ask someone about : PAY
43 Big Apple product : IPHONE
44 Thundered : ROARED
45 Edgar, Oscar and Tony : AWARDS
47 Actress Bullock : SANDRA
50 Outed covert C.I.A. officer Valerie : PLAME
51 Unit of magnetic flux : WEBER
52 That: Sp. : ESO
55 Kill bill? : VETO
56 It’s between Huron and Ontario : ERIE
57 Depiction in “Saving Private Ryan” : D-DAY
59 Old men : PAS
60 Sauced : LIT