0922-26 NY Times Crossword 22 Sep 26, Tuesday

Bill’s time: 9m 18s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6A Beetle amulet in ancient Egypt : SCARAB

Scarabs were amulets in ancient Egypt. They were modeled on the dung beetle, as it was viewed as a symbol of the cycle of life.

16A ___ algebra : LINEAR

We usually use “regular” algebra to solve for one unknown (often “x”). In linear algebra, numbers are arranged in grids called matrices, so that solutions can be found for many unknowns, all at the same time. Heavy stuff …

19A 50/52-Across musician : STEVIE WONDER

The great musician Stevie Wonder signed on with Motown Records when he was just 11 years old. He was remarkably loyal to the label, recording with Motown for six decades (before launching his own So What The Fuss Records label). The level of Stevie Wonder’s success is illustrated by his collection of Grammy Awards, the most Grammys awarded to a male solo artist. Wonder was born 6 weeks prematurely, and incomplete development of blood vessels in his eyes caused the retinas to detach leaving him blind soon after birth. His mother, Lula Mae Hardaway, co-wrote many of Stevie’s songs when he was a teenager, including “I Was Made to Love Her”, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours” and “I Don’t Know Why I Love You”.

21A #1 hit from 50/52-Across (“You can feel it all over”) : SIR DUKE

“Sir Duke” is a song written and recorded by Stevie Wonder and released as a single in 1977. The song is a tribute to Duke Ellington, who passed away in 1974.

30A Resident of Africa’s fourth-largest country : LIBYAN

The Italo-Turkish War was fought between the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Italy between September 1911 and October 1912. At the end of the conflict the Ottoman Empire ceded to Italy the three provinces of Tripolitania, Fezzan and Cyrenaica. These provinces became Italian North Africa, and ultimately the country that we know today as Libya. The name “Libya” comes from the Ancient Greek “Libúē”, the historical name for Northwest Africa.

32A Secrecy contracts, in brief : NDAS

Non-disclosure agreement (NDA)

44A Like pagodas and some cakes : TIERED

Pagodas are tiered (“storied”) towers, found in various parts of Asia, that are usually built for religious purposes.

46A “Clemency” star Woodard : ALFRE

Alfre Woodard is an actress from Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was nominated for an Oscar for her performance in the 1983 film “Cross Creek”. Off the stage and screen, Woodard is very active in the Democratic Party.

62A ___ Kreme : KRISPY

The Krispy Kreme chain of doughnut stores was founded in 1937 in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The company introduced the Whole Wheat Glazed doughnut in 2007, which is great news for folks looking to eat a healthy diet, I am sure …

63A Doughnut quantities : DOZENS

Our word “dozen” is used for a group of twelve. We imported it into English from Old French. The modern French word for “twelve” is “douze”, and for “dozen” is “douzaine”.

Down

2D ___-Wan Kenobi : OBI

Obi-Wan Kenobi is one of the more beloved of the “Star Wars” characters. He was portrayed by two fabulous actors in the series of films. As a young man Kenobi was played by Scottish actor Ewan McGregor, and as an older man by Alec Guinness.

4D Popular times for tacos : TUESDAYS

Taco Tuesday is a promotion run by many American restaurants, especially in Southern California. Participating establishments offer deals on tacos, and perhaps other Mexican dishes served in tortillas. “Taco Tuesday” is a trademark formerly owned by Wyoming-based fast-food restaurant Taco John’s.

5D Pancake-flipping tool : SPATULA

A spatula is a tool or implement used for mixing, lifting or spreading. “Spatula” is the Latin name for the tool, and is a diminutive of the word “spatha” meaning “broad, flat blade”. “Spatha” also gives rise to our related term “spade”.

6D Feng ___ : SHUI

Feng shui is the ancient Chinese tradition of arranging objects, buildings and other structures in a manner that is said to improve the lives of the individuals living in or using the space. “Feng shui” translates as “wind-water”, a reference to the belief that positive and negative life forces ride the wind and scatter, but are retained when they encounter water.

13D “Star ___ II: The Wrath of Khan” : TREK

In the 1982 movie “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan” William Shatner played James T. Kirk, and the evil Khan was played by Ricardo Montalbán. Leonard Nimoy didn’t want to appear in the sequel, and only agreed to do so when the producers agreed to “kill off” Spock at the end of the story (but he comes back … and back … and back …).

20D “Oy ___!” : VEY

“Oy vey” is a Yiddish expression of dismay that translates literally as “oh, pain”. The more usual translation is “woe is me”.

21D Grain storage structures : SILOS

“Silo” is a Spanish word that we absorbed into English. The term ultimately derives from the Greek “siros”, which described a pit in which one kept corn.

22D Broadway star Menzel : IDINA

Actress and singer Idina Menzel came to public attention when she was a member of the original Broadway cast of “Rent”. She is known on the small screen for playing Shelby Corcoran on the musical TV show “Glee”. On the big screen, her most noted performance was as the voice actor behind Queen Elsa in the Disney hit “Frozen”. It is Menzel who sings the Oscar-winning song “Let It Go” in “Frozen”.

27D “Demon Slayer” or “Attack on Titan” : ANIME

“Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba” is a popular Japanese manga and anime series set in Taisho-era Japan. It follows Tanjiro Kamado, a young boy who becomes a demon slayer after his family is slaughtered and his sister, Nezuko, is turned into a demon.

28D Contents of plastic sleeves or jewel cases, informally : CDS

It seems that the derivation of the term “jewel case” (CD box) is unclear. One suggestion is that initial prototypes weren’t very successful, so when a workable design was found it was dubbed the “jewel” case.

33D They might be thatched : ROOFS

Thatch is a dried vegetation used as a roofing material. The choice of vegetation depends on what is growing locally. Common thatching materials are straw, rushes, heather and palm branches.

41D Feature of “rendezvous” and “laissez-faire” : SILENT Z

A rendezvous is a meeting. The noun used in English comes from the French phrase “rendez vous” meaning “present yourselves”.

“Laissez-faire” is a French term that we use to describe non-interference in the affairs of others. The literal translation is “allow to do”.

45D Broadband connection type, in brief : DSL

The initialism “DSL” originally stood for Digital Subscriber Loop, but is now accepted to mean (Asymmetric) Digital Subscriber Line. It is a technology that allows Internet service to be delivered down the same telephone line as voice service, by separating the two into different frequency signals.

47D Government agcy. founded to enforce antitrust laws : FTC

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was established in 1914, with the mission of protecting consumers.

59D Nail polish brand : OPI

OPI (originally “Odontorium Products Inc.”) is a manufacturer of nail polish based in North Hollywood, California. One of OPI’s marketing coups was the introduction of a line of Legally Blonde 2 polishes, which featured in the film. OPI also launched a collection of nail lacquers inspired by the hit Broadway musical “Wicked” in celebration of its 10th anniversary on Broadway.

60D It has M.S.G. in it : NYC

Madison Square Garden (MSG) is an arena in New York City used for a variety of events. In the world of sports it is home to the New York Rangers of the NHL, as well as the New York Knicks of the NBA. “The Garden” is also the third busiest music venue in the world in terms of ticket sales. The current arena is the fourth structure to bear the name, a name taken from the Madison Square location in Manhattan. In turn, the square was named for James Madison, the fourth President of the US.