0325-25 NY Times Crossword 25 Mar 25, Tuesday

Bill’s time: 6m 25s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

7 Initials on an invitation : RSVP

“RSVP” stands for “répondez s’il vous plaît”, which is French for “answer, please”.

11 Mil. installations : FTS

Fort (ft.)

14 Like Eeyore in “Winnie-the-Pooh” : SOMBER

Eeyore is the donkey character in A. A. Milne’s “Winnie-the-Pooh”. He is very lovable, but has a gloomy and pessimistic outlook on life.

15 Langston Hughes poem about the hope for equality : I, TOO

Langston Hughes was a poet active in the Harlem Renaissance, and someone who helped develop the literary form known as “jazz poetry”. His poem “I, Too, Sing America” was published in 1925.

I, too, sing America.

I am the darker brother.
They send me to eat in the kitchen
When company comes,
But I laugh,
And eat well,
And grow strong.

Tomorrow,
I’ll be at the table
When company comes.
Nobody’ll dare
Say to me,
“Eat in the kitchen,”
Then.

Besides,
They’ll see how beautiful I am
And be ashamed–

I, too, am America.

17 “The Lego Movie”? : PLASTIC FILM

“The Lego Movie” is a 2014 computer animated film in which all the characters are Lego figures. The hero of the piece is Emmet Brickowski (great name!), who goes up against tyrannical Lord Business. Chris Pratt voices Emmet, and Will Ferrell Lord Business. Apparently, “The Lego Movie” was well received, and resulted in the spin-off film “The Lego Batman Movie”.

19 Oldest Gershwin brother : IRA

Ira Gershwin was the lyricist who worked with his brother George to create such American classics as the songs “I Got Rhythm” and “Someone to Watch Over Me”, as well as the opera “Porgy and Bess”. After George Gershwin died, Ira continued to create great music, and worked with the likes of Jerome Kern and Kurt Weill.

20 Lesions : SORES

A lesion is a wound or any abnormal tissue found in an organism. The word “lesion” comes from the Latin word “laesio” meaning “injury”.

21 ___ mater : ALMA

The term “alma mater” is used to describe a school from which one has graduated. It can also describe a school’s song or hymn.

23 “Star Trek”? : SPACE PROGRAM

When Gene Roddenberry first proposed the science fiction series that became “Star Trek”, he marketed it as “Wagon Train to the Stars”, a pioneer-style Western in outer space. In fact, his idea was to produce something more like “Gulliver’s Travels”, as he intended to write episodes that were adventure stories on one level, but morality tales on another. Personally, I think that he best achieved this model with the spin-off series “Star Trek: The Next Generation” (TNG). If you watch individual episodes you will see thinly disguised treatments of moral issues such as racism, homosexuality, genocide etc. For my money, “The Next Generation” is the best of the whole franchise …

26 Schlemiel : SAD SACK

The slang phrase “sad sack” is used for a person who bungles things, someone who is pathetically inept. The phrase was coined in the twenties but gained popularity during WWII when it was used by a cartoon character in the US Armed Forces magazine “Yank”. The term is probably a shortened form of the much ruder phrase “sad sack of ****”.

A schlemiel is an awkward and clumsy person. “Shlemiel” is the Yiddish for “bungler”, with the term coming from the German story “The Wonderful History of Peter Schlemihl”, published in 1813.

31 Perch for a plant or a pie : SILL

“Sill plate”, or simply “sill”, is an architectural term describing a bottom horizontal member to which vertical members are attached. Window sills and door sills are specific sill plates found at the bottoms of windows and door openings.

42 Channel for the Mavericks and Cavaliers : NBA TV

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.

The Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavs joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1970.

46 Luau instrument, informally : UKE

The ukulele (uke) originated in the 1800s and mimicked a small guitar brought to the Hawaiian Islands by Portuguese immigrants.

47 Tokyo-based company that produces cameras and office equipment : RICOH

Ricoh is a Japanese company that started out in 1936 and by the year 2000 was the biggest manufacturer of copiers in the world. The company is also well known as a supplier of cameras. The most successful of Ricoh’s lines of cameras is the compact model called a Caplio.

50 Political platform, perhaps : SOAPBOX

Back in the 1650s, a soapbox was just that, a wooden box for holding or transporting soap. Empty soapboxes were carried easily by a potential orator and used as a stand from which to deliver an address.

52 “Finding Nemo”? : WATER FEATURE

“Finding Nemo” is a 2003 animated blockbuster from Pixar. The film was the winner of the Oscar that year for Best Animated Feature. Believe it or not, “Finding Nemo” is the best-selling DVD of all time and, until 2010’s “Toy Story 3”, it was the highest-grossing, G-rated movie at the box office.

55 Second Amendment subject : ARMS

The Second Amendment of the US Constitution was adopted in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights. The actual text of the amendment is:

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

The wording and punctuation in the original text has led to some controversy over the years, some debate over the original intent. That might be an understatement …

57 Smallest country in the European Union (122 square miles) : MALTA

The island state of Malta is relatively small (122 square miles), but its large number of inhabitants makes it one of the most densely populated countries in Europe. Malta’s strategic location has made it a prized possession for the conquering empires of the world. Most recently it was part of the British Empire and was an important fleet headquarters. Malta played a crucial role for the Allies during WWII as it was located very close to the Axis shipping lanes in the Mediterranean. The Siege of Malta lasted from 1940 to 1942, a prolonged attack by the Italians and Germans on the RAF and Royal Navy, and the people of Malta. When the siege was lifted, King George VI awarded the George Cross to the people of Malta collectively in recognition of their heroism and devotion to the Allied cause. The George Cross can still be seen on the Maltese flag, even though Britain granted Malta independence in 1964.

62 “Planet Earth”? : WORLD SERIES

“Planet Earth” is a spectacular nature documentary first aired in 2006 by the BBC. It was also shown in the US on the Discovery Channel in 2007. The eleven episodes of “Planet Earth” are not only fascinating because of the content, but are also a visual delight as the marvelous cinematography used high-definition technology. Well worth a rental …

65 “___, Brute?” : ET TU

It was Shakespeare who popularized the words “Et tu, Brute?” (meaning “And you, Brutus?”). They appear in his play “Julius Caesar”, although the phrase had been around long before he penned his drama. It’s not known what Julius Caesar actually said in real life (if anything at all) as he was assassinated on the steps of the Senate in Rome.

68 Character name on both “This Is Us” and “The Last of Us” : TESS

“This Is Us” is a television drama that debuted in 2016. The storyline centers on three siblings Kevin, Kate and Randall Pearson and their parents Jack and Rebecca Pearson. Kevin and Kate are the surviving members of a triplet pregnancy. Jack and Rebecca decide to adopt Randall, a child born on the same day as the surviving siblings. The adopting family is white, and the adopted child is black.

“The Last of Us” is a post-apocalyptic drama TV show that is based on a video game of the same name. The apocalypse in the storyline is caused by mass fungal infection that developed into a pandemic. Those infected turn into zombie-like creatures. Ugh …

69 ___ Vallarta, Mexico : PUERTO

Puerto Vallarta is a resort city in Mexico on the Pacific Ocean. The name “Vallarta” comes from a former governor of the state, Ignacio Vallarta. Puerto Vallarta partly got on the map as a resort after the filming of the 1963 John Huston film “The Night of the Iguana”. There was a lot of publicity surrounding the making of the movie as Richard Burton brought Elizabeth Taylor to the shoot, with whom he was having an extramarital affair at the time.

Down

2 Popular candy wrapped in gold foil : ROLO

Rolo was a hugely popular chocolate candy in Ireland when I was growing up. It was introduced in the thirties in the UK, and is produced under license in the US by Hershey. I was a little disappointed when I had my first taste of the American version as the center is very hard and chewy. The recipe used on the other side of the Atlantic calls for a soft gooey center.

3 Minnesota representative Ilhan ___ : OMAR

Ilhan Omar has been representing Minnesota’s 5th congressional district in the US House since 2019. At that time, she became one of the first two Muslim women, as well as the first Somali American, to serve in the US Congress.

4 Have a bee in one’s bonnet : OBSESS

To have a bee in one’s bonnet is to be preoccupied with an idea. An earlier and related phrase is “to have bees in one’s head”.

7 Winchester, for one : RIFLE

The Winchester rifle was one of the first repeating rifles to be manufactured in volume. The Winchester repeater is known as “The Gun that Won the West”.

8 Ren’s cartoon buddy : STIMPY

“The Ren & Stimpy Show” is an animated television serial created by Canadian animator John Kricfalusi, and which ran on Nickelodeon from 1991 to 1996. The title characters are Marland “Ren” Höek, a scrawny Chihuahua, and Stimpson J. Cat, a rotund Manx cat. Not my cup of tea …

9 Hit 1958 song officially titled “Nel Blu, Dipinto di Blu” : VOLARE

The song we know as “Volare” doesn’t actually have that name. Its real name is “Nel blu dipinto di blu” (translating as “In the Blue Painted Blue”). The Italian lyrics tell of how the singer feels like he is flying when he is with his lover (“volare” is the Italian for “to fly”). The original version has a prelude, which helps put the “blue” and the “flying” in perspective … “I think that a dream like that will never return; I painted my hands and my face blue, then was suddenly swept up by the wind and started to fly in the infinite sky.”

10 When doubled, a cheerleader’s accessory : POM

The French call a ball made of tufted wool a “pompon”, a word that we imported into English directly as “pompon”. We use “pompon” to describe perhaps bobbles on some hats, or the tufted balls that are shaken by cheerleaders at sports events. Over time, the spelling “pompom” has become common in English, probably due to mishearing. To confuse matters a little, we also use the word “pom-pom”, which is a nickname for a British autocannon used mainly as an anti-aircraft weapon, particularly during WWII.

11 Locale famous for roasts : FRIARS CLUB

The Friars Club is a private show-business club in New York City that has roots dating back to 1904. Back then the club was called the Press Agents Association. Within a few years the name was changed to reflect its broadening membership of actors and musicians. The name “Friar” was chosen as it comes from the Latin for “brother”, deemed to be a good name for a fraternal organization. Famously, the Friars Club hosts events in which a celebrity is “roasted” by a panel of comedians and show business VIPs.

12 Alternative name for planet Earth : TERRA

The Greek goddess personifying the Earth was Gaea (also “Gaia”, and meaning “land” or “earth” in Greek). The Roman equivalent goddess was Terra Mater, “Mother Earth”.

24 Not a base : ACID

The “opposite” of an acid is a base. Acids turn litmus paper red, and bases turn it blue. Acids and bases react with each other to form salts. An important subset of the chemicals called bases are alkalis, hydroxides of the alkali metals and of ammonium. The term “alkali” is sometimes used interchangeably with “base”, especially if that base is readily soluble in water.

27 Horse that excels in equestrian sports : ARAB

The Arab (also “Arabian”) breed of horse takes its name from its original home, the Arabian Peninsula. Like any animal that humans have over-bred, the horse falls prey to genetic diseases, some of which are fatal and some of which require the horse to be euthanized.

28 Cabinet division : DEPARTMENT

In the Westminster system, the Cabinet is a group of sitting politicians chosen by the Prime Minister to head up government departments and also to participate collectively in major governmental decisions in all areas. In the US system, the Cabinet is made up not of sitting politicians, but rather of non-legislative individuals who are considered to have expertise in a particular area. The Cabinet members in the US system tend to have more of an advisory role outside of their own departments.

34 Gorilla that famously learned to 26-Down : KOKO
(26D Communicate with the hands : SIGN)

Koko was a female lowland gorilla that lives in Woodside, California. Researcher Penny Patterson taught Koko to speak a modified form of American Sign Language (ASL) that she called Gorilla Sign Language. Koko could apparently use over a thousand signs.

35 X-ray ___ (novelty goggles) : SPEX

X-ray specs were a novelty item much advertised in comic books in the 1950s and 1960s. Advertisements suggested that the spectacles allowed one to see through skin and view the underlying bones. In fact, the glasses produced two identical but slightly overlapped images. There was a darker image at the point of the overlap. Especially when one looked at a hand, this gave the illusion of seeing a darker (“bony”) hand within a lighter image. Excellent value for one or two bucks!

43 Device with tracking tech : VCR

The first video cassette recorder (VCR) was introduced in the 1950s, but it wasn’t until the 1970s that home VCRs became successful.

49 Game in which players tend to avoid the queen of spades : HEARTS

Hearts is a fun card game that is in the Whist family of trick-taking games, as are bridge (my favorite) and spades.

51 Actor Guy of “Memento” : PEARCE

Guy Pearce is an Australian actor (actually born in England) who got his break playing in the Aussie soap opera “Neighbours”. I remember him playing drag queen Felicia Jollygoodfellow in the entertaining Australian film “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” (1994). He also appeared in several hit American movies, such as “L.A. Confidential”, “The Count of Monte Cristo” and “The Time Machine”.

“Memento” is a 2000 mystery movie with an interesting storyline. Guy Pearce stars as a man suffering from short-term memory loss after an attack by two men who raped and killed his wife. He searches for the killers, and is forced to use tattoos and polaroids to track information that he knows he will not recall.

52 Oregon Trail vehicle : WAGON

The Oregon Trail was established by fur trappers and traders as early as 1811. The first migrant wagon train traveled the route in 1836, starting off in Independence, Missouri and going as far as Fort Hall, Idaho. In the coming years, the trail was extended for wagons as far as the Willamette Valley in Oregon.