0606-26 NY Times Crossword 6 Jun 26, Saturday

Bill’s time: 14m 24s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1A Spreads out in the morning? : SCHMEARS

The word “schmear” comes from the Yiddish word “shmir” meaning “spread”. The phrase “the whole schmear” is a relatively recent one, dating back to around 1969 and coming from the world of business.

9A Tool in the opening scene of Disney’s “Frozen” : ICE SAW

“Frozen” is a 2013 animated feature from Walt Disney Studios that is based on the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale “The Snow Queen”. The film is all about the exploits of Princess Anna, the younger sister of Elsa, Snow Queen of Arendelle. Elsa was originally intended to be a villain, a malicious and power-hungry character. By the final version of the film, Elsa had transformed from a one-dimensional villain into a fully fleshed-out protagonist.

15A Moving day rental : U-HAUL VAN

The U-Haul company was started by married couple Leonard Shoen and Anna Mary Carty in Ridgefield, Washington in 1945. The Shoens used $5,000 of seed money to build trailers in their garage, and then cleverly recruited gas station owners as franchisees with whom they would split the rental revenue. There are now well over 20,000 U-Haul dealers across the country.

16A Portmanteau nickname for politician Harris : MOMALA

Kamala Harris was a US Senator for California starting in 2017, after serving for six years as the Attorney General of California. In early 2019, Harris announced her run for the Democratic nomination for US president in the 2020 election. Although she dropped out of the race, she was chosen by eventual nominee Joe Biden as his vice-presidential running mate. When the Biden-Harris ticket won the election, Harris became the first female US vice president, and the highest-ranking female politician in the history of the nation.

17A Cleanse negative energy, in Indigenous tradition : BURN SAGE

The burning of sage is known as “smudging”. It is a ritual that originated with many Native-American peoples, although similar practices are found around the world in other cultures. The most common type of sage used in smudge sticks (sage bundles) is white sage, Salvia apiana.

19A “What gives the artist real ___ is his imitators”: Igor Stravinsky : PRESTIGE

Composer Igor Stravinsky’s most famous works were completed relatively early in his career, when he was quite young. His three ballets “The Firebird”, “Petrushka” and “The Rite of Spring” were published in 1910-1913, when Stravinsky was in his late twenties and early thirties..

22A Former CBS procedural that co-starred LL Cool J, informally : NCIS: LA

Rap star LL Cool J was born James Todd Smith. Smith’s stage name stands for “Ladies Love Cool James”. When not rapping, LL Cool J plays Special Agent Sam Hanna on TV show “NCIS: Los Angeles”.

23A Like bows, at times : ROSINED

Rosin is a solid form of resin derived from plant sources. Rosin is formed into cakes that players of stringed instruments use to rub along the hairs of their bows to help improve sound quality. The rosin increases the degree of friction between the strings and the bow. That same friction-increasing property comes into play when baseball pitchers use rosin to get a better grip on the ball, or when dancers apply rosin to the soles of their shoes.

33A Rapper who performed in the Super Bowl LVI halftime show, familiarly : DRE

“Dr. Dre” is the stage name of rapper Andre Romelle Young. He is known for his own singing career as well as for producing records and starting the careers of others such as Snoop Dogg, Eminem and 50 Cent.

35A Rainer who was the first person ever to win two consecutive acting Academy Awards : LUISE

Luise Rainer was a Hollywood actress from Dusseldorf in Germany. Rainer won the Academy Award for Best Actress for playing Anna Held in 1936’s “The Great Ziegfeld”, and again for playing O-Lan in 1937’s “The Good Earth”. In doing so, she became the first actor to win more than one Oscar. Rainer passed away in 2014, just a few days shy of her 105th birthday.

38A Took Marie Antoinette’s advice? : ATE CAKE

There is no evidence that Marie Antoinette ever uttered the words “Let them eat cake”. The phrase was attributed to “a great princess” though, by the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Rousseau wrote in his autobiography:

Finally I recalled the stopgap solution of a great princess who was told that the peasants had no bread, and who responded: “Let them eat brioche (cake).”

46A Wild chase? : SAFARI

“Safari” is a Swahili word meaning “journey” or “expedition”.

54A Lepidopterist, often : NETTER

A lepidopterist is a person who studies butterflies and moths. The term “lepidopterist” comes from “Lepidoptera”, the order of insects that encompasses such flying insects. “Lepidoptera” itself comes from the Greek words for “scale” and “wing”.

Down

2D Mexican fried pastry often covered in cinnamon sugar : CHURRO

A churro is pastry made from fried dough, and is sometimes called a Spanish doughnut. Churros are often served for breakfast, when they are dipped in hot chocolate or milky coffee.

3D Groups of female elephant seals : HAREMS

Male seals are called bulls, females are cows, and babies are pups. A group of seals comprising one or two males, with several females and their offspring, is known as a harem.

5D ___ Howard, first Black player on the Yankees : ELSTON

Elston Howard was the first African American to play for the New York Yankees, and was the first African American to become the American League’s MVP, an honor he received in 1963. Howard also goes down in history as the inventor of the batting donut, the lead weight that slips around a bat to make it feel heavier.

8D Old blades : SNEES

A snee is a type of dagger, one formerly used by Scottish highlanders.

11D Mexican revolutionary Zapata : EMILIANO

Emiliano Zapata was a leader in the Mexican Revolution that took place from 1910 to 1920. Zapata was the leader of the Liberation Army of the South, a force more commonly referred to as the Zapatistas.

24D Religious right? : AMENDMENT I

The Constitution of the United States was adopted on September 17, 1787. There have been 27 amendments to the constitution, the first ten of which are collectively called the Bill of Rights. In essence the Bill of Rights limits the power of the Federal Government and protects the rights of individuals. For example, the First Amendment states:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

26D Prohibition ___ : ERA

The 18th Amendment to the US Constitution was a great victory for the temperance movement (the “dry” movement), and in 1919 ushered in the Prohibition era. Highly unpopular (with the “wet” movement), Prohibition was repealed in 1933 by the 21st Amendment.

29D Doc’s license plate in “Back to the Future” : OUTATIME

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 …?

30D Staple of slapstick comedy : PIE FIGHT

Slapstick is a physical form of comedy or horseplay. Back in the late 19th century, the term “slapstick” described a device made from two sticks loosely fastened together, which could be “slapped” together to create a sound effect offstage. The sound effect augmented the audience reaction when a clown or actor was given a slap on stage.

31D Ce n’est pas du fast food : ESCARGOT

“Escargot” is the French word for “snail”. In order to eat snails, apparently they have to be “purged” before killing them. That means starving them or feeding them on something “wholesome” for several days before cooking them up. Ugh …

41D Ski race that debuted at the Olympics in 1988 : SUPER G

Super Giant Slalom (Super G) is an alpine skiing event introduced in 1982. The Super G isn’t as fast as its sister event the Downhill, but is faster than the more technical Giant Slalom.

43D Mr. Miyagi, to the Karate Kid : SENSEI

“Sensei” is a Japanese form of address used for figures of authority, from lawyers to martial arts instructors.

The 1984 film “The Karate Kid” starred Ralph Macchio in the title role, with Pat Morita playing the enigmatic karate teacher Mr. Miyagi. There is an excellent 2010 remake, starring Jaden Smith (Will Smith’s son) as the Karate Kid himself, with Jackie Chan playing the teacher. In the original 1984 movie, the Karate Kid was named Daniel LaRusso, and in the 2010 remake was named Dre Parker.

44D Faux : ERSATZ

Something described as ersatz is a copy, and usually not a good one. “Ersatz” comes from the German verb “ersetzen” meaning “to replace”.

45D Pest with a repetitive name : TSETSE

The tsetse fly is responsible for the transmission of sleeping sickness, a disease that is more correctly called African trypanosomiasis. The disease is only observed in humans who have been bitten by a tsetse fly that is infected with the trypanosome parasitic protozoan.