0625-20 NY Times Crossword 25 Jun 20, Thursday

Constructed by: Amanda Chung & Karl Ni
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Reveal Answer: Go Out on a Limb

Themed answers each require us to GO OUT ON A LIMB, to place a limb on the outside of the grid to complete the answer:

  • 51A Act riskily … or what three answers in this puzzle do : GO OUT ON A LIMB
  • 20A Totally does the trick : WORKS LIKE A CH(ARM)
  • 35A 2001 comedy starring Reese Witherspoon : (LEG)ALLY BLONDE
  • 42A Reporting internal wrongdoing : WHISTLEBLO(WING)

… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 12m 14s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 1950s-’60s sitcom nickname : BEAV

Wally Cleaver and his younger brother Theodore (“the Beaver”) were the children of Ward and June Cleaver on the fifties sitcom “Leave It to Beaver”.

13 Scary story? : ATTIC

An attic or loft is a room or space located below the roof of a building. The term “attic” is a shortened form of “attic story”, the uppermost story or level of a house. This term “attic story” originally applied to a low, decorative level built on top of the uppermost story behind a building’s decorative facade. This use of decoration at the top of buildings was common in ancient Greece, and was particularly important in the Attica style. That Attica style was so called because it originated in the historical region of Attica that encompassed the city of Athens. And that’s how our attics are linked to ancient Greece.

17 A chair might hold one : GAVEL

The small hammer that one raps on a table or desk to call a meeting to order, or perhaps to signify a sale at an auction, is called a gavel. The term “gavel” is actually American English, and is a word that emerged in the early 19th century.

26 What makes the Impossible Burger possible : SOY

Heme (also “haem”) is an organic structure containing iron, and is a component of hemoglobin, the protein that transports primarily oxygen around the body. It is the “heme” in “hemoglobin” that binds the oxygen atoms. A plant-derived version of heme is the magic ingredient in the famous Impossible Burger that has become so popular on vegetarian menus.

27 “___ That Good News,” 1964 Sam Cooke album : AIN’T

Sam Cooke was a soul singer from Clarksdale, Mississippi. Cooke is considered by many to have been one of the founders of the soul genre. Cooke’s impressive list of hits includes “You Send Me”, Chain Gang” and “Twistin’ the Night Away”. Cooke was only 33 years old when he died. He was shot after a drunken brawl by a motel manager in what was deemed by the courts to be a justifiable homicide.

28 Train maker : LIONEL

Lionel is the brand name most associated with toy trains in the US. The first Lionel trains rolled off the production line in 1901 and they are still produced today, although the original Lionel Corporation is long gone. In 1995, the brand was bought by an investment company that included train enthusiast Neil Young (the singer), and operated as Lionel, LLC. Neil Young’s financial involvement ended after a 2008 reorganization of the company following a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing, but the company is still producing and selling.

30 Shred : IOTA

Iota is the ninth letter in the Greek alphabet, and one that gave rise to our letters I and J. We use the word “iota” to portray something very small, as it is the smallest of all Greek letters.

32 Golfer Poulter with three P.G.A. Tour wins : IAN

Ian Poulter is a golfer from England who for a while was ranked number five in the world. Poulter might be described as a colorful and perhaps controversial character. Perhaps that’s why he has millions of followers on Twitter, the most of anyone on the PGA Tour besides Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy.

35 2001 comedy starring Reese Witherspoon : (LEG)ALLY BLONDE

“LEGALLY blonde” is a 2001 comedy film starring Reese Witherspoon as a girlish sorority president who heads to Harvard to earn a law degree. “LEGALLY blonde” was successful enough to warrant two sequels as well as a spin-off musical that played most successfully in London’s West End (for 974 performances).

37 Dum-dum : BOZO

A bozo is a person with a low IQ, and someone who is usually quite muscular. We’ve been using the term since the early 1900s and it possibly comes from the Spanish “bozal” that was used to describe someone who spoke Spanish poorly.

38 Like hedgehogs : SPINY

Hedgehogs are spiny mammals that have adapted to a nocturnal life. Even though they have spines, hedgehogs are unrelated to porcupines. The term “hedgehog” arose in the 15th century. They are often found in hedgerows and have hog-like snouts, hence the name “hedgehog”.

39 Twice-chewed food : CUD

Animals that chew the cud are called ruminants. Ruminants eat vegetable matter but cannot extract any nutritional value from cellulose without the help of microbes in the gut. Ruminants collect roughage in the first part of the alimentary canal, allowing microbes to work on it. The partially digested material (the cud) is regurgitated into the mouth so that the ruminant can chew the food more completely exposing more surface area for microbes to do their work.

40 “___ makes the going great” (old ad slogan) : PAN AM

Pan American World Airways (usually just “Pan Am”) started out as a mail and passenger service between Key West, Florida and Havana, Cuba in 1927. From very early in the company’s life it was the de facto representative air carrier of the United States. For many years, Pan Am’s fleet was built around the Boeing 314 Clipper, a long-range flying boat that was one of the largest aircraft around at the time. Pan Am adopted the Clipper as part of its image, even using “clipper” as the call sign for its flights.

41 R&B singer Gray : MACY

Macy Gray is an R&B singer noted for her raspy voice, and a singing style that resembles that of Billie Holliday.

44 Chemical suffix : -ANE

The “smaller” alkanes are gases and are quite combustible. Methane (CH4) is the main component of natural gas, with ethane (C2H6) being the second largest component. Propane (C3H8) is also found in natural gas and is heavy enough to be readily turned into a liquid by compression, for ease of transportation and storage. Butane (C4H10) is also easily liquefied under pressure and can be used as the fuel in cigarette lighters or as the propellant in aerosol sprays. The heavier alkanes are liquids and solids at room temperature.

47 Best-selling game series for the Xbox : HALO

Halo is a series of video games that was introduced in 2001. Apparently, there’s a lot of shooting, and a lot of aliens …

49 Small island : CAY

A key (also “cay”) is a low offshore island, as in the Florida “Keys”. Our term in English comes from the Spanish “cayo” meaning “shoal, reef”.

50 When doubled, a 2010s dance : NAE

The Nae Nae is a hip hop dance that is named for the 2013 song “Drop that NaeNae” recorded by We Are Toon. The main move in the dance involves swaying with one hand in the air and one hand down, with both feet firmly planted on the dancefloor. Go on, do it. You know you want to …

57 Corn product : PONE

“Pone” is another name for corn bread, and comes from the Powhatan term “apan” meaning “something baked”.

63 Bluesy James : ETTA

“Etta James” was the stage name of celebrated blues and soul singer Jamesetta Hawkins. James’ most famous recording was her 1960 hit “At Last”, which made it into the pop charts. James performed “At Last” at the age of 71 in 2009 on the reality show “Dancing with the Stars”, which was to be her final television appearance. She passed away in 2012.

64 Trunk : TORSO

“Torso” (plural “torsi”) is an Italian word meaning the “trunk of a statue”, and is a term that we imported into English.

66 Animal in “Do-Re-Mi” : DEER

Doe, a deer, a female deer
Ray, a drop of golden sun
Me, a name I call myself
Far, a long, long way to run
Sew, a needle pulling thread
La, a note to follow Sew
Tea, a drink with jam and bread
That will bring us back to Do

Down

3 Durable transport, for short : ATV

All-terrain vehicle (ATV)

6 Author Leon : URIS

Leon Uris is an American writer. Uris’s most famous books are “Exodus” and “Trinity”, two excellent stories, in my humble opinion …

9 Actress Elizabeth of the “Avengers” films : OLSEN

Elizabeth Olsen is an actress and singer, and the younger sister of the famed Olsen twins Mary-Kate and Ashley.

10 Goodwill receptacle : DONATION BIN

Goodwill Industries is a non-profit organization focused on providing aid to people in the community. Goodwill is funded by thrift stores located right across North America. The organization has its roots in an urban outreach program of the Morgan methodist Chapel in Boston, Massachusetts that started operations in 1902. That program involved the collection of discarded household goods and clothing, and the repair of the items so that they could be distributed to the needy.

22 Korean export : KIA

Kia Motors is the second largest manufacturer of cars in South Korea, behind Hyundai (and Hyundai is a part owner in Kia now). Kia was founded in 1944 as a manufacturer of bicycle parts, and did indeed produce Korea’s first domestic bicycle. The company’s original name was Kyungsung Precision Industry, with the Kia name introduced in 1952.

24 Crankcase component : OIL PAN

In most internal combustion engines the pistons that move up and down are arranged in a line, and connected to a crankshaft that runs along the bottom of the engine. The up and down motion of the pistons turns the crankshaft, which turning motion is “transmitted” (via the “transmission”) to the wheels. The case surrounding the crankshaft is called the crankcase. The crankcase contains a lot of oil that is squirted onto the crankshaft to lubricate it. Excess oil falls to the bottom of the crankcase and into a reservoir called the oil pan.

25 Mountie’s ride : POLICE HORSE

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (the Mounties, RCMP) is an unusual police force in that it provides policing for the whole country on the national level, and in many cases right down to the municipal level. The force’s distinctive uniform of red serge tunic, blue pants with a yellow stripe, stetson hat, etc. is known internally as “Review Order”. The red uniform dates back to the days of the North-West Mounted Police, which was one of the existing forces that were merged in 1920 to form the RCMP.

29 Big Apple inits. : NY, NY

Apparently, the first published use of the term “Big Apple” to describe New York City dates back to 1909. Edward Martin wrote the following in his book “The Wayfarer in New York”:

Kansas is apt to see in New York a greedy city. . . . It inclines to think that the big apple gets a disproportionate share of the national sap.

Over ten years later, the term “big apple” was used as a nickname for racetracks in and around New York City. However, the concerted effort to “brand” the city as the Big Apple had to wait until the seventies and was the work of the New York Convention and Visitors Bureau.

30 Arctic native : INUIT

The Inuit people live in the Arctic, in parts of the US, Russia, Greenland and Canada.

33 State wildflower of Georgia : AZALEA

Azaleas are very toxic to horses, sheep and goats, but strangely enough cause no problem for cats or dogs. And if you go to Korea, you might come across “Tug Yonju”, which is azalea wine made from the plant’s blossoms. Azaleas are usually grown as shrubs, but are also seen as small trees, and often indoors.

37 She performed “We Shall Overcome” at the 1963 March on Washington : BAEZ

Joan Baez is an American folk singer and a prominent activist in the fields of non-violence, civil rights, human rights and environmental protection. Baez has dated some high-profile figures in her life including Bob Dylan, Steve Jobs (of Apple) and Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead.

The exact origins of the protest song titled “We Shall Overcome” is a little unclear. Some say that it is based on an early gospel song “I’ll Overcome Someday”, but there doesn’t seem to be much similarity between the two works beyond the titles. Early performers of the song who helped to popularize its use were Pete Seeger and Joan Baez.

45 Key near the space bar : ALT

The Alt (alternate) key is found on either side of the space bar on US PC keyboards. The Alt key evolved from what was called a Meta key on old MIT keyboards, although the function has changed somewhat over the years. Alt is equivalent in many ways to the Option key on a Mac keyboard, and indeed the letters “Alt” have been printed on most Mac keyboards starting in the nineties.

51 Biotech crops, e.g., for short : GMOS

A genetically modified organism (GMO) is one with genetic material that has been altered by genetic engineering. One might argue that the oldest form of genetic engineering is selective breeding, the use of animals or plants with desired traits for the creation of the next generation.

52 Home of Daniel K. Inouye International Airport : OAHU

Honolulu International Airport in Hawaii was renamed in 2012 to honor Senator Daniel K. Inouye, who had represented the state for almost 50 years. Back in the early fifties, Honolulu Airport was the third-busiest in the country, and its 13,000-foot runway was the longest in the world. The airport’s IATA code is “HNL”.

Senator Daniel Inouye was a US Senator for the state of Hawaii and was the President pro tem of the Senate (the US Vice President is the President of the Senate). Given this role, he was the highest-ranking Japanese-American in the country’s history as he was third in the line of succession to the office of US President. Senator Inouye passed away in 2012. Honolulu’s airport was renamed to Daniel K. Inouye International Airport in 2017 in his honor.

60 Gift that much thought is put into? : ESP

Extrasensory perception (ESP)

61 Foreign denial : NON

In French, a response on “un questionnaire” (a questionnaire) might be “oui” (yes) or “non” (no).

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 1950s-’60s sitcom nickname : BEAV
5 Chaps : GUYS
9 They take dedication to write : ODES
13 Scary story? : ATTIC
15 Specialty : AREA
16 Wolf’s gait : LOPE
17 A chair might hold one : GAVEL
18 Droop : WILT
19 Huff : SNIT
20 Totally does the trick : WORKS LIKE A CH(ARM)
23 Really stand out : POP
26 What makes the Impossible Burger possible : SOY
27 “___ That Good News,” 1964 Sam Cooke album : AIN’T
28 Train maker : LIONEL
30 Shred : IOTA
32 Golfer Poulter with three P.G.A. Tour wins : IAN
35 2001 comedy starring Reese Witherspoon : (LEG)ALLY BLONDE
37 Dum-dum : BOZO
38 Like hedgehogs : SPINY
39 Twice-chewed food : CUD
40 “___ makes the going great” (old ad slogan) : PAN AM
41 R&B singer Gray : MACY
42 Reporting internal wrongdoing : WHISTLEBLO(WING)
44 Chemical suffix : -ANE
45 Like ___ knife through butter : A HOT
46 Less distinct : HAZIER
47 Best-selling game series for the Xbox : HALO
49 Small island : CAY
50 When doubled, a 2010s dance : NAE
51 Act riskily … or what three answers in this puzzle do : GO OUT ON A LIMB
56 Shopper’s stop : MART
57 Corn product : PONE
58 Out of this world : ALIEN
62 Very : OH SO
63 Bluesy James : ETTA
64 Trunk : TORSO
65 Makes a case against : SUES
66 Animal in “Do-Re-Mi” : DEER
67 Informal title of respect : CAP’N

Down

1 Traveler’s item : BAG
2 Efficiency symbol, in physics : ETA
3 Durable transport, for short : ATV
4 Perspective : VIEW
5 Nervously awkward : GAWKY
6 Author Leon : URIS
7 Long-distance call : YELL
8 Fill : SATIATE
9 Actress Elizabeth of the “Avengers” films : OLSEN
10 Goodwill receptacle : DONATION BIN
11 Completely amazing, in slang : EPIC
12 Egyptian god of chaos : SETH
14 Near : CLOSE BY
21 Sushi order : ROLL
22 Korean export : KIA
23 Blood bank need : PLASMA
24 Crankcase component : OIL PAN
25 Mountie’s ride : POLICE HORSE
29 Big Apple inits. : NY, NY
30 Arctic native : INUIT
31 9 to 5, e.g. : ODDS
33 State wildflower of Georgia : AZALEA
34 “Enough!” : NO MORE!
36 Evening hour in Spain : OCHO
37 She performed “We Shall Overcome” at the 1963 March on Washington : BAEZ
40 Crawl space? : PLAY MAT
42 Hooted and hollered : WHOOPED
43 Language with five tones : THAI
45 Key near the space bar : ALT
48 Products of some plants : AUTOS
49 Obvious : CLEAR
51 Biotech crops, e.g., for short : GMOS
52 Home of Daniel K. Inouye International Airport : OAHU
53 Observe : NOTE
54 Up the ___ : ANTE
55 Coalition : BLOC
59 Saving option, in brief : IRA
60 Gift that much thought is put into? : ESP
61 Foreign denial : NON

15 thoughts on “0625-20 NY Times Crossword 25 Jun 20, Thursday”

  1. 15:50, no errors. Good one. I’m sure there’s a good pun to be had out of this one, but I’ll leave it for Jeff, who is much more clever than I with that sort of thing … 😜.

  2. 18:52 No issues, which surprises me for a Thursday. Then I read Fearless Leader’s blog and I once again am reminded that I am oblivious to themes… No problem filling in the grid, but I never noticed the words hanging off the grid were limbs…. *sigh*

  3. 24:56. Got the theme fairly early then got tripped up on simple words in the upper middle. Bleech.

  4. 23:20. Had a difficult time starting this one. Once I got into a flow I was ok, but that flow took too long. That happens when I’m really busy and my mind is elsewhere.

    Nonny – I can’t think of any puns with this one. They already used ARMS and LEGs so we’re out of limbs. So maybe my puns will have to stay in LIMBo?

    Anyway.

    One minor nit: I thought an ATTIC is when two obscure proper nouns cross each other in a crossword, and there’s little hope of the solver getting either one…

    Best –

  5. 20:27 Several miscues to start. Got the theme when filling (LEG) ALLY BLONDE. However, got stuck with 37A. Could not detach my brain (maybe there’s a pun in there) from DODO – at least the Os are in the right place. That kept me from 37D and 33D. Instead of just letting it rest and re-attaching my brain I looked up the state wildflower as AZALEA and then it fell into place. Technically, a couple final errors due to impatience.

  6. No errors.. Took me longer than 20 minutes But I did it., like others, had DODO for 37A. That gave me DION for 37D. Realized that wasn’t going to work .. Someone from ’63??? When I worked around 37D , the only name that came to me was Joan Baez?? In 1963?? Sure enough. I remember her from the 70’s..!! I was starstruck. Couldn’t believe it. I went to WIKI and there she is with Bob frickin’ Dylan at the 1963 protest!! Holy canolies!!!!

  7. 41:32 no errors…I spent a long time in the NW corner until I changed MR ED to BEAV but there is always something to slow me or stop me in my tracks when dealing with two setters.👎.
    Stay safe😊

  8. 16:55, no errors. NW corner was the last to fall. Tough time getting the BEAV, thought ATTIC would be some sort of GOTHIC with a limb attached to the left, and had LOG before BAG. Similar to others, started with DODO before BOZO. Seemed easier than the previous 3 days.

  9. Started fast with the themers, ended slowly with a couple of
    mindless errors in the fill.

  10. “That was a lovely 1 across answer Ms Chung and Mr Ni” – Eddie Haskell

    RIP Ken Osmond

  11. The RCMP does not provide ALL policing across all of Canada. It never has.
    It does provide law enforcement in the whole of Canada in the same way the FBI does in the USA.
    Some provinces have their own provincial police and the other provinces and territories contract with the RCMP to provide policing, while some cities in all provinces have their own police forces.

    1. Thanks, Rheta Rattay. I stand corrected. Thanks for taking the time to notify me of the error.

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