Constructed by: Kelly Richardson
Edited by: Joel Fagliano
Not your puzzle? Try today’s …
… syndicated NY Times crossword
Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Tease, by the Sound of It
Themed answers are varieties of TEA, and common phrases interpreted with reference to TEA:
- 14A 1959 Marilyn Monroe film … or what can be said of the drink featured in today’s puzzle? : SOME LIKE IT HOT
- 51A What someone might remark after drinking the blend at the heart of this puzzle? : NOT MY CUP OF TEA
- 37A Variety #1, popular in the South : PEACH
- 43A Variety #2, a major export of Sri Lanka : PEKOE
- 46A Variety #3, named for a region in India : ASSAM
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… a complete list of answers
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Bill’s time: 8m 11s
Bill’s errors: 0
Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies
Across
1 Group of cards in hearts or bridge : TRICK
Hearts is a fun card game that is in the Whist family of trick-taking games, as are bridge (my favorite) and spades.
The version of the card game bridge that is played mostly today is contract bridge. Auction bridge is a similar game, and is a precursor to contract bridge.
14 1959 Marilyn Monroe film … or what can be said of the drink featured in today’s puzzle? : SOME LIKE IT HOT
“Some Like it Hot” is such a fun movie, It was released in 1959 and directed by Billy Wilder. The big three in the cast are Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. Several years ago a stage version of “Some Like It Hot” was playing in San Francisco, with Tony Curtis in the cast. This time he played the older man who was wooing the Jack Lemmon character in the movie.
20 London-based cosmetics giant : 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.
22 “Blue ___,” classic Irving Berlin tune : SKIES
The song “Blue Skies” was composed in 1926 by Irving Berlin. It was written for a Rodgers and Hart musical called “Betsy” that was a flop. “Betsy” only ran for 39 performances, but the song “Blue Skies” was a huge hit. On the opening night of the show, the lead singer had to endure 24 encores of “Blue Skies”!
23 Tucker (out) : TIRE
The exact etymology of the verb “to tucker”, meaning “to tire”, seems to be uncertain. However, it seems to have originated in New England, and at least dates back to the 1830s.
27 Tenet : PRECEPT
A tenet is an article of faith, something that is held to be true. “Tenet” is Latin for “he/she/it holds”.
30 Princess who helped Theseus escape the Minotaur : ARIADNE
In Greek mythology, Ariadne was the daughter of Minos, the King of Crete and master of the Minotaur. Minos charged his daughter with control of the labyrinth that housed the Minotaur. However, Ariadne fell in love with Theseus, who had vowed to kill the Minotaur, and she helped him fulfill his mission. In other myths, Ariadne became the bride of the god Dionysus.
34 Lowly chess piece : PAWN
In the game of chess, the pawns are the weakest pieces on the board. A pawn that can make it to the opposite side of the board can be promoted to a piece of choice, usually a queen. Using promotion of pawns, it is possible for a player to have two or more queens on the board at one time. However, standard chess sets come with only one queen per side, so a captured rook is often used as the second queen by placing it on the board upside down.
38 Decorative pillowcase : SHAM
A sham is something that is imitation, fake. In the world of bed linens, a sham is also an imitation or fake, in the sense that it is a decorative cover designed to cover up a regular pillow used for sleeping.
43 Variety #2, a major export of Sri Lanka : PEKOE
A pekoe (or more commonly “orange pekoe”) is a medium-grade black tea. There is no orange flavor in an orange pekoe tea. The “orange” name most likely derived from the name of the trading company that brought the tea to Europe from Asia.
44 Weighty book : TOME
“Tome” first came into English from the Latin “tomus” which means “section of a book”. The original usage in English was for a single volume in a multi-volume work. By the late 16th century, “tome” had come to mean “large book”.
46 Variety #3, named for a region in India : ASSAM
Assam, located in northeastern India, is the largest tea-producing state in the country. It is also famous for its silk production, particularly the golden muga silk.
48 Smart society : MENSA
Mensa is a high-IQ society that was founded in Oxford, England in 1946. The founders were two lawyers: Australian Roland Berrill and Englishman Lancelot Ware. Apparently, the elitist founders were unhappy with the development of Mensa, given that most members came from the working and lower classes.
51 What someone might remark after drinking the blend at the heart of this puzzle? : NOT MY CUP OF TEA
Back in the late 1800s, something that one really liked was “my cup of tea”. By the 1900s, the negative “not my cup of tea” was the more prevalent form of the idiom. I admit, I tend to overuse “not my cup of tea” …
58 Feudal farmer : PEASANT
Feudalism was a legal and military system that flourished in medieval Europe. Central to the system were the concepts of lords, vassals and fiefs. Lords would grant fiefs (land or rights) to vassals in exchange for allegiance and service.
59 “United Shades of America” channel : CNN
“United Shades of America” is a CNN documentary series that is hosted by comedian W. Kamau Bell. In each episode, Bell explores the challenges faced by various communities across the country.
62 Gift set for a newborn : LAYETTE
A newborn baby’s collection of clothing and accessories is called a layette.
Down
1 Colored like saddle shoes : TWO-TONE
Saddle shoes are those two-toned shoes (usually black and white) that were worn particularly by young women with poodle skirts and bobby socks in the fifties. The name comes from the dark (black) “saddle” of leather that goes over the top of the shoe, in which the eyelets for the laces are inserted. Saddle shoes didn’t make it to Ireland, but bell-bottoms certainly did …
2 Los Angeles football player : RAM
The Los Angeles Rams are the only franchise to have won NFL championships in three different cities, i.e. Cleveland (1945), Los Angeles (1951 & 2021) and St. Louis (1999). The Rams were based in Cleveland from 1936 to 1945, in Los Angeles from 1946 to 1994, in St. Louis from 1995 to 2015, and returned to Los Angeles in 2016.
3 Store selling Smedstorp sofas : IKEA
The IKEA furniture stores use the colors blue and yellow for brand recognition. Blue and yellow are the national colors of Sweden, where IKEA was founded and is headquartered.
5 New York basketball player : KNICK
The New York Knickerbockers (“Knicks”) team is one of only two founding members of the original National Basketball Association that still plays in its original home city. The other is the Boston Celtics.
6 Martin of “Only Murders in the Building” : STEVE
Comedian, actor and writer Steve Martin is from Waco, Texas. Martin’s entertainment career started to take off with success as a writer for the “Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour”. He then turned to stand-up comedy and often appeared on “The Tonight Show”. He was, and still is, a popular guest host on “Saturday Night Live”. He is so popular on “SNL” that many mistakenly believe that he was a permanent member of the “Saturday NIght Live” cast.
“Only Murders in the Building” is a comedy-mystery TV show starring Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez as a trio of true-crime podcasters who band together to solve murders in their apartment building. Steve Martin co-created the series. Highly recommended …
16 Yellow jacket, e.g. : WASP
“Yellowjackets” is a name commonly used in North America for what are often referred to simply as “wasps” in other English-speaking parts of the world. Both terms describe several different species.
28 Pig of children’s cartoons : PEPPA
“Peppa Pig” is a children’s animated show that is produced in the UK and airs all over the world. There’s even a Peppa Pig World theme park located in Hampshire, England.
29 Arboretum assortment : TREES
An arboretum is a living collection of trees of varying species.
30 Major metals manufacturer : ALCOA
The Aluminum Corporation of America (ALCOA) is the largest producer of aluminum in the United States. The company was founded in 1888 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where its headquarters are to this day.
33 ___ Fifth Avenue : SAKS
Saks Fifth Avenue is a high-end specialty store that competes with the likes of Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus. The original Saks & Company business was founded by Andrew Saks in 1867. The first Saks Fifth Avenue store was opened on Fifth Avenue in New York City in 1924. There are now Saks Fifth Avenue stores in many major cities in the US, as well in several locations worldwide.
34 Coconut producer : PALM
The coconut is the fruit of the coconut palm. The term “coconut” comes from “coco” and “nut”, with “coco” being 16th-century Spanish and Portuguese for “head”, and more specifically “grinning face”. The three holes found in the base of a coconut shell might be said to resemble a human face.
49 “Brooklyn of ___ hills was mine”: Walt Whitman : AMPLE
“I too lived, Brooklyn of ample hills was mine …” is a line from the 1856 poem “Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” by Walt Whitman.
“Crossing Brooklyn Ferry” is an 1856 poem by Walt Whitman that describes his experiences and impressions crossing from Manhattan to Brooklyn on the Brooklyn Ferry. Whitman grew up in Brooklyn, and later lived there again for many years. That ferry crossed the East River in exactly the same spot where sits the Brooklyn Bridge today.
50 More than sporadically : OFTEN
An event described as sporadic occurs in irregular instances. The term “sporadic” comes from the Greek “sporas” meaning “scattered, dispersed”. “Sporas” comes from “spora” meaning “a sowing”, and so our word “sporadic” is etymologically related to our word “spore”. Quite interesting …
53 Many Caribbean islands : CAYS
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”.
57 3, for most disc golf holes : PAR
Disc golf is also known as Frisbee golf, and sometimes even Frolf. Believe it or not, disc golf predates the introduction of the Frisbee. The first game was played at a school in Bladworth, Saskatchewan in 1926. The participating schoolkids threw tin lids into circles drawn on a course they created in the school grounds. They named the game “Tin Lid Golf”. By the way, I try to play disc golf at least three times a week. Lots of fun …
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Complete List of Clues/Answers
Across
1 Group of cards in hearts or bridge : TRICK
6 Drawn-out tales : SAGAS
11 Rise and shine : AWAKEN
12 Counts on : TRUSTS
14 1959 Marilyn Monroe film … or what can be said of the drink featured in today’s puzzle? : SOME LIKE IT HOT
16 Like the losers of a water balloon fight : WET
17 Architectural nooks : ALCOVES
18 Canyon’s edge : RIM
20 London-based cosmetics giant : AVON
22 “Blue ___,” classic Irving Berlin tune : SKIES
23 Tucker (out) : TIRE
24 Herr : German :: ___ : Spanish : SENOR
26 Pronoun frequently confused with its homophones : THEIR
27 Tenet : PRECEPT
30 Princess who helped Theseus escape the Minotaur : ARIADNE
32 Didn’t wake up in a timely manner : OVERSLEPT
34 Lowly chess piece : PAWN
37 Variety #1, popular in the South : PEACH
38 Decorative pillowcase : SHAM
42 Came down to earth : ALIT
43 Variety #2, a major export of Sri Lanka : PEKOE
44 Weighty book : TOME
45 Shout from a forgetful actor : LINE!
46 Variety #3, named for a region in India : ASSAM
47 Central points : HUBS
48 Smart society : MENSA
50 Desert haven : OASIS
51 What someone might remark after drinking the blend at the heart of this puzzle? : NOT MY CUP OF TEA
57 Furry foot : PAW
58 Feudal farmer : PEASANT
59 “United Shades of America” channel : CNN
61 Noshed : ATE
62 Gift set for a newborn : LAYETTE
63 King topper : ACE
64 Visibly embarrassed, perhaps : RED
65 Canadian exclamations : EHS
66 Babe : HON
67 Casual top : TEE
Down
1 Colored like saddle shoes : TWO-TONE
2 Los Angeles football player : RAM
3 Store selling Smedstorp sofas : IKEA
4 Spreadsheet boxes : CELLS
5 New York basketball player : KNICK
6 Martin of “Only Murders in the Building” : STEVE
7 Springtime astrological sign : ARIES
8 Courage, colloquially : GUTS
9 Incense residue : ASH
10 Legendary : STORIED
11 Invariably : AS EVER
13 Add, as to a batter : STIR IN
15 Fish in a Japanese garden : KOI
16 Yellow jacket, e.g. : WASP
19 Trifling : MERE
21 Plea that waives the right to a trial : NO CONTEST
23 “End of discussion!” : THAT’S THAT!
25 Gun, as an engine : REV
26 Gratuity : TIP
28 Pig of children’s cartoons : PEPPA
29 Arboretum assortment : TREES
30 Major metals manufacturer : ALCOA
31 Shorten again, as a dress : RE-HEM
33 ___ Fifth Avenue : SAKS
34 Coconut producer : PALM
35 Estrange : ALIENATE
36 Slowly whittled down : WINNOWED
39 Purring pet : HOUSE CAT
40 Factor in a restaurant review : AMBIANCE
41 Jumble : MESS
49 “Brooklyn of ___ hills was mine”: Walt Whitman : AMPLE
50 More than sporadically : OFTEN
52 “Sure!” : YEAH!
53 Many Caribbean islands : CAYS
54 Take advantage of : USE
55 Trail through the woods : PATH
56 Not fooled by : ONTO
57 3, for most disc golf holes : PAR
60 Formerly known as : NEE
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