Day: November 14, 2023

Bill’s time: 7m 10s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5 Web designer’s code : HTML

The initialism “HTML” stands for HyperText Markup Language. HTML is the language used to write most Internet web pages (including this one).

9 George or Marty of “Back to the Future” : MCFLY

In the fun 1985 movie “Back to the Future”, Marty McFly finds himself back in 1955, and is trying to get back to HIS future, 1985. But on the other hand, 1985 is really Marty’s present, before he went back in time. Why does time travel have to be so complicated …?

14 Cereal “for kids” with a “silly rabbit” : TRIX

Trix is a corn-based breakfast cereal that has been around since 1954, produced by General Mills. Ads for the cereal featured Trix Rabbit, who would try hard to get hold of bowls of the cereal. He would always get caught though, and be admonished with, “Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids!” With 46% sugar content, the rabbit probably wouldn’t have liked it anyway …

20 Blueprint info : SPECS

Blueprints are reproductions of technical or architectural drawings that are contact prints made on light-sensitive sheets. They were introduced in the 1800s and the technology available dictated that the drawings were reproduced with white lines on a blue background, hence the name “blue-print”.

23 … this streaker in the night : SHOOTING STAR

A meteoroid is a small rocky or metallic body traveling through space. Once in the atmosphere, the meteoroid is referred to as a “meteor” or “shooting star”. Almost all meteoroids burn up, but if one is large enough to survive and reach the ground then we call it a meteorite. The word “meteor” comes from the Greek “meteōros” meaning “high in the air”.

33 Long-running hip-hop magazine, with “The” : … SOURCE

“The Source” is a monthly magazine that mainly covers the world of rap music, but also some politics and culture.

36 German camera brand : LEICA

Leica is a German optics company that is famous for production of lenses and cameras. The 1913 Leica was the first practical camera that could use 35mm film, a size chosen because it was already the standard for film used in motion pictures.

39 … this insect crawling by : LADYBUG

The insect we know as a ladybug (also “ladybird”) has seven spots on its wing covers. These seven spots gave rise to the common name “ladybug”, as in the Middle Ages the insect was called the “beetle of Our Lady”. The spots were said to symbolize the Seven Joys and Seven Sorrows, events in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary called out in the Roman Catholic tradition.

42 Dallas five, to fans : MAVS

The Mavericks (also “Mavs”) are an NBA franchise in Dallas, Texas. The team was founded in 1980, and the Mavericks name was chosen by fan votes. The choice of “Mavericks” was prompted by the fact that the actor James Garner was a part-owner of the team, and Garner of course played the title role in the “Maverick” television series.

43 Mad ___ hatter : AS A

In Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, the Mad Hatter makes his first appearance in a chapter called “A Mad Tea-Party”. This event is usually described as “The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party”, even though the Mad Hatter was just a guest. The host was the March Hare. In fact, the phrase “Mad Hatter” doesn’t appear anywhere in Lewis Carroll’s novel, although the character, the Hatter (and sometimes “Hatta”), is described as “mad”.

44 Actress Cuthbert of TV’s “24” : ELISHA

Elisha Cuthbert is a Canadian actress who came to world attention playing Kim Bauer, Jack Bauer’s daughter on TV’s “24”. After “24”, Cuthbert played one of the lead characters on the sitcom “Happy Endings” that ran from 2011 to 2013.

46 Here, in Le Havre : ICI

Le Havre is a city on the mouth of the river Seine on the northwest coast of France. The city’s name translates as “The Haven”.

52 Vietnam’s Nguyen Van Thieu, after 1975 : EXILE

Nguyen Van Thieu was president of South Vietnam from 1967 to 1975. He was also the last person to hold the office, as it was abolished following the reunification of the country at the end of the Vietnam War.

53 River through three of the 10 largest cities of Russia : VOLGA

The Volga is the longest river in Europe. It is also considered the national river of Russia.

57 Block-stacking game : JENGA

Jenga is a relatively simple but entertaining game, one in which one stacks wooden blocks as high as possible until the resulting tower collapses. “Jenga” is the Swahili word for “to build”

60 … this just before you blow on the seeds : DANDELION

The name “dandelion” comes from the French “dent de lion” meaning “lion’s tooth”. The name is a reference to the coarse, tooth-like edges of dandelion leaves.

64 Rare achievement in entertainment : EGOT

The acronym “EGOT” stands for “Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony”, and is a reference to performers who have won all four awards. Also known as the “Showbiz Award Grand Slam”, there are relatively few individuals who have been so honored. The first five to do so were:

1. Richard Rodgers in 1962
2. Helen Hayes in 1977
3. Rita Moreno in 1977
4. John Gielgud in 1991
5. Audrey Hepburn in 1994 (posthumously)

67 Garnet and ruby : REDS

Garnets are silicate minerals that come in many colors. However, the color that we call “garnet” is a dark red.

Ruby is a precious stone made from the mineral corundum, also called aluminum oxide. The corundum includes some of the element chromium, which results in the red or pink color.

Down

2 Fail, with out : CRAP …

To crap out is to make a losing roll on the first throw in a game of craps. A losing roll (aka “a crap”) is a roll of 2, 3 or 12.

3 QB’s call : HIKE

The quarterback (QB) starts each play in football with a snap (also called a “hike”). He announces to his teammates the exact moment of the snap by calling out signals, usually including the word “hut” one or more times in a prearranged sequence.

4 C-suite roles : EXECS

The C-suite is the suite of offices assigned to senior management. The “C” reference is to the abbreviation for “Chief”, the word that starts the titles of many senior officers in a company, e.g. chief executive officer, chief operating officer and chief financial officer.

8 Christine of “Chicago Hope” : LAHTI

Christine Lahti is an actress probably best known for playing Dr. Kate Austen on the TV medical drama “Chicago Hope”. If you read “The Huffington Post” you might run across her as well, as Lahti is a contributing blogger.

9 Flowers prominently used in Indian weddings : MARIGOLDS

Marigolds are a very popular choice of flower at weddings in the Hindu tradition. They are said to represent the Sun, and symbolize positive energy and brightness.

10 Chinese-American dish : CHOP SUEY

Although the exact origins of the Chinese-American dish called “chop suey” are disputed, it seems clear that it started appearing on the menus of Chinese restaurants in the US in the 1880s. The dish became so popular that restaurants serving Chinese cuisine were often referred to as “chop suey houses”. “Chop suey” translates as “assorted pieces”, which is perhaps an appropriate name. The dish generally consists of an assorted mix of local ingredients stir-fried in a wok with a sauce.

12 Kid’s seat on Santa : LAP

The name “Santa Claus” is American English, and came into the language as a phonetic variant of “Sinterklaas”, the Dutch for “Saint Nicholas”.

18 ___ Wednesday : ASH

In the Christian tradition, the first day in the season of Lent is called Ash Wednesday. On Ash Wednesday, Palm Crosses from the prior year’s Palm Sunday are burned. The resulting ashes are mixed with sacred oil and then used to anoint worshipers on the forehead with the shape of a cross.

28 ___ National, airport serving D.C. : REAGAN

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is located in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the two main airports serving the nation’s capital, along with Washington Dulles. Washington National opened for business in 1941, and was dedicated to President Ronald Reagan in 1998.

35 Things that might have kids going off on a tangent? : MATH EXAMS

Remember doing calculus at school, and all those derivatives and integrals? Well, you probably also remember that an integral calculates the area under a curve (for example), and a derivative calculates the slope of a tangent at a particular point on a curve.

38 Native of Nevada’s largest city : LAS VEGAN

Back in the 1800s, the Las Vegas Valley was given its name from the extensive meadows (“las vegas” is Spanish for “the meadows”) present in the area courtesy of the artesian wells drilled by local farmers. Las Vegas was incorporated as a city in 1905, in the days when it was a stopping-off point for pioneers traveling west. It eventually became a railroad town, although with the coming of the railroad growth halted as travelers began to bypass Las Vegas. The city’s tourism industry took off in 1935 with the completion of the nearby Hoover Dam, which is still a popular attraction. Then gambling was legalized, and things really started to move. Vegas was picked, largely by celebrated figures in “the mob”, as a convenient location across the California/Nevada state line that could service the vast population of Los Angeles. As a result, Las Vegas is the most populous US city founded in the 20th century (Chicago is the most populous city founded in the 19th century, just in case you were wondering).

39 Lingerie material : LACE

“Lingerie” is a French term. As used in France, it describes any underwear, worn by either males or females. In English we use “lingerie” to describe alluring underclothing worn by women. The term “lingerie” comes into English via the French word “linge” meaning “washables”, and ultimately from the Latin “linum”, meaning “linen”. We tend not to pronounce the word correctly in English, either here in the US or across the other side of the Atlantic. The French pronunciation is more like “lan-zher-ee”, as opposed to “lon-zher-ay” (American) and “lon-zher-ee” (British).

40 Tel ___ : AVIV

Israel’s Tel Aviv is known as the “White City” because of its many Bauhaus-style buildings. In fact, it has the largest concentration of Bauhaus buildings in the world, with over 4,000 buildings in this style. Tel Aviv was founded in 1909 as a suburb of the ancient port city of Jaffa.

45 Singer/songwriter DiFranco : ANI

Singer Ani DiFranco founded her record company Righteous Records in 1990 in order to gain independence from the established record industry. She had to change the name to Righteous Babe Records as there already was a Righteous Record label, one that published gospel music.

50 Christmas ___ : EVE

Several factors contributed to the selection of December 25th as the day of the birth of Jesus. One factor is that it was the date of the winter solstice in the Roman calendar, and tradition had it that Jesus chose to be born on the shortest day of the year. It was also nine months after the vernal equinox (March 25th) in the same calendar, which was a date linked to the conception of Jesus.

57 Blue bird : JAY

The bird known as a “jay” is sometimes called a “magpie”, although the terms are not completely interchangeable.

62 Alcohol withdrawal symptoms, in brief : DTS

The episodes of delirium that can accompany withdrawal from alcohol are called delirium tremens (the DTs). The literal translation of this Latin phrase is “trembling madness”.