0401-26 NY Times Crossword 1 Apr 26, Wednesday

Bill’s time: 7m 47s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6A Alternative to check or card : CASH

Our word “cash” comes from the Middle French “caisse” meaning “money box”.

10A World traveler’s need : VISA

A visa is usually a stamp in one’s passport, an indication that one is authorized to enter (and less often, to exit) a particular country. The word “visa” comes into English, via French, from the Latin expression “charta visa” meaning “paper that has been seen”, or “verified paper”.

14A Old Hollywood nickname that sounds like a golf term : BOGIE

Humphrey “Bogie” Bogart’s breakthrough movie was “The Petrified Forest” from 1936, but for me nothing beats “Casablanca”. That said, check out the original “Sabrina” from 1954. It’s a real delight. Bogie was nominated three times for a Best Actor Oscar, but only won once: for “The African Queen”.

The golfing term “bogey” originated at the Great Yarmouth Golf Club in England in 1890, and was used to indicate a total round that was one-over-par (and not one-over-par on a particular hole, as it is today). The name “bogey” came from a music hall song of the time “Here Comes the Bogeyman”. In the following years it became popular for players trying to stay at par to be “playing against Colonel Bogey”. Then, during WWI, the marching tune “Colonel Bogey” was written and named after the golfing term. If you don’t recognize the name of the tune, it’s the one that’s whistled by the soldiers marching in the great movie “The Bridge on the River Kwai”.

15A Birthplace of seven U.S. presidents : OHIO

The state of Ohio shares the nickname “Mother of Presidents” with the state of Virginia, as seven US presidents were born there:

• Ulysses S. Grant
• Rutherford B. Hayes
• James A. Garfield
• Benjamin Harrison
• William McKinley
• William Howard Taft
• Warren G. Harding

Additionally, Virginia-born William Henry Harrison lived most of his life in Ohio, and indeed is buried there.

31A Apple pan ___ (baked pastry) : DOWDY

Pandowdy is a variety of cobbler (the dessert) found mainly in New England and the Canadian Maritimes.

34A Waze ways: Abbr. : RTES

Waze is a navigation app that is similar to Google Maps and Apple Maps. Waze was developed in Israel, and was acquired by Google in 2013.

37A Stores selling Snödrottning pillowcases : IKEAS

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.

39A Scottish caps : TAMS

A tam o’shanter is a man’s cap worn traditionally by Scotsmen. “Tams” were originally all blue (and called “blue bonnets”) but as more dyes became readily available they became more colorful. The name of the cap comes from the title character of the Robert Burns poem “Tam o’ Shanter”. A pom-pom adorning a tam is known as a toorie.

41A Either of two wives of Henry VIII : ANNE

Anne Boleyn was the second wife of Henry VIII of England. She was found guilty of high treason after about a thousand days of marriage to Henry, accused of adultery and incest (probably trumped-up charges). Boleyn was executed, but perhaps her legacy lived on in her only child, as her daughter reigned for 45 very prosperous years as Queen Elizabeth I.

Anne of Cleves was the fourth wife of King Henry VIII. It seems that Anne’s arranged marriage to Henry was doomed from the day the two met soon after she arrived in England. Henry just wasn’t attracted to her, but the couple went ahead with the wedding. The marriage was annulled six months later on the grounds that it had not been consummated. Anne lived the rest of her life in England, and in fact outlived Henry’s five other wives.

42A Vault in a mummy movie : CRYPT

A crypt is a chamber that is located partially or totally underground. The term “crypt” comes from the Greek “kryptos” meaning “hidden”.

54A Word before market or collar : FLEA …

Flea markets are known by various names around the world. In Australia, the term “trash and treasure market” is used. Such outdoor events are called car boot sales in Britain and Ireland, whereas indoor versions might be jumble sales or bring-and-buy sales.

Flea collars are designed to release insecticides or insect growth regulators onto an animal’s fur. Some studies suggest they can be helpful in reducing flea populations, particularly around the neck and head, but their ability to provide full-body protection is often limited. The active ingredients tend to concentrate in the areas closest to the collar, and their spread can be uneven.

56A Tennis legend Arthur : ASHE

When Nelson Mandela was released after 27 years as a political prisoner in South Africa, he was asked which American he would most like to meet. His answer was “How about Arthur Ashe?” Ashe was a vocal critic of South Africa’s apartheid policies and had long campaigned for the country to be excluded from international tennis competition.

64A “Ramona the ___” (Beverly Cleary book) : PEST

Beverly Cleary was a remarkably successful author of children’s books. Her first book, “Henry Huggins”, was published in 1950. Cleary passed away in 2021, just before her 105th birthday.

65A Nash who wrote “Who wants my jellyfish? / I’m not sellyfish!” : OGDEN

Ogden Nash was a poet from Rye, New York who is remembered for his light and quirky verse. He had over 500 such works published between 1931 and 1972.

Down

2D Julia ___-Dreyfus of “Veep” : LOUIS

Actress and comedian Julia Louis-Dreyfus is an alum of the sketch show “Saturday Night Live”, in which she appeared from 1982 to 1985. Her really big break came when she was chosen to play Elaine Benes on “Seinfeld”. More recently, Louis-Dreyfus can be seen playing Vice President Selina Meyer on the HBO comedy show “Veep”.

“Veep” is a political satire sitcom created by Armando Iannucci, who also wrote the related British show “The Thick of It” (Warning: strong, strong language!). “Veep” is set in the office of fictional US Vice President Selina Meyer, played by Julia Louis-Dreyfus.

4D Happy Meal chain, informally : MICKEY D’S

The McDonald’s Happy Meal was introduced in 1977. It was inspired by a selection of food in a Guatemalan McDonald’s designed to suit children that was called “Menu Ronald”. The toys in Happy Meals often tie-in with some movie, and so are part of an advertising campaign.

6D Second wedding anniversary material : COTTON

Some traditional gifts for wedding anniversaries are:

• 5th: wooden
• 10th: tin
• 15th: crystal
• 20th: china
• 25th: silver
• 30th: pearl
• 40th: ruby
• 50th: gold
• 60th: diamond

8D Walter Scott or Isaac Newton : SIR

Sir Walter Scott was a Scottish novelist and playwright, the first English-language author to gain popularity around the world during his own lifetime. The most famous of his works are “Ivanhoe”, “Rob Roy” and “The Lady of the Lake”.

Sir Isaac Newton was one of the most influential people in history, and the man who laid the groundwork for all of classical mechanics. The story about an apple falling on his head, inspiring him to formulate his theories about gravity, well that’s not quite true. Newton often told the story about observing an apple falling in his mother’s garden and how this made him acutely aware of the Earth’s gravitational pull. However, he made no mention of the apple hitting him on the head.

9D Occasions for getting gussied up : HOT DATES

To gussy up is to dress showily. The term “gussy” was a slang term that was used to describe an overly-dressed person.

18D Annual D.C. address, for short : SOTU

The US President’s State of the Union (SOTU) address is a requirement called out in Article II of the Constitution. George Washington gave the first address before a joint session of Congress in 1790. Thomas Jefferson discontinued the practice of making a personal address by sending Congress a written document that was then read out by a clerk. In 1913, Woodrow Wilson re-established the custom of delivering the message personally, there have been occasions since then when a written address has had to suffice, the last occasion being in 1981 when Jimmy Carter was in office.

23D Phil who sang the protest song “The War Is Over” : OCHS

Phil Ochs was an American protest singer who was active in the days of the Vietnam War. Sadly, the singer’s mental health declined at the very time the war was winding down. Saigon fell in 1975, and Ochs committed suicide in 1976.

39D Amphibian with specialized toe pads : TREE FROG

The name “tree frog” (also “treefrog”) applies to a number of frog species. As the name implies, these are frogs that spend very little time on the ground, and rather live in trees and high-growing vegetation. Tree frogs are usually very small in size, so that their weight can be borne by twigs and branches.

42D MS NOW competitor : CNN

CNN (Cable News Network) was launched in 1980 by the Turner Broadcasting System, and was the first television channel in the world to provide news coverage 24 hours a day. CNN headquarters is located in Atlanta.

44D Edmonton’s hockey team : OILERS

The National Hockey League’s Edmonton Oilers are so called because they are located in Alberta, Canada … oil country.

45D Swarming insect : LOCUST

Some species of grasshoppers are known as locusts. The main characteristic defining a locust species is the tendency to swarm under certain circumstances. Those circumstances are usually drought conditions followed by rapid growth of vegetation.

46D Restaurant chain with locations in more than a dozen countries, thus justifying the first letter in its name : IHOP

International House of Pancakes (IHOP)

51D Gal in Glasgow : LASS

Glasgow sits on the River Clyde, and is the largest city in Scotland. Back in the Victorian Era, Glasgow earned a reputation for excellence in shipbuilding and was known as “Second City of the British Empire”. Glasgow shipyards were the birthplaces of such famous vessels as the Lusitania, the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth. People from Glasgow are known as Glaswegians.

52D “Cómo ___ usted?” : ESTA

“¿Cómo está usted?” is a more formal way of asking “How are you?” in Spanish.