0721-22 NY Times Crossword 21 Jul 22, Thursday

Constructed by: Anne Marie Crinnion & Eric Bornstein
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Reveal Answer: Drop-Down Menu

Themed answers each end with a command found in a DROP-DOWN MENU. That command DROPS DOWN from the across- to the down-direction:

  • 46A Options at the top of a computer window … as seen three times in this puzzle? : DROP-DOWN MENU
  • 20A Attracting much publicity : HIGH PRO(FILE)
  • 21D – : FILE
  • 27A Commentary on a scientific article : SCHOLARLY RE(VIEW)
  • 31D – : VIEW
  • 56A Alternative to a refund, often : STORE CR(EDIT)
  • 59D – : EDIT

Bill’s time: 13m 41s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Statistical abbr. : PCT

Percent (pct.)

4 Male swan : COB

An adult male swan is a cob and an adult female is a pen. Young swans are swanlings or cygnets.

7 Common prelaw major, informally : POLI SCI

Political science (poli sci)

16 Neither over nor under, but a round? : EVEN PAR

That would be golf.

17 Xi follower : OMICRON

Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet and is the one that looks like a horseshoe when in uppercase. The lowercase omega looks like a Latin W. The word “omega” literally means “great O” (O-mega). Compare this with the Greek letter Omicron, meaning “little O” (O-micron).

19 Tattletale : RAT FINK

A fink is an informer, someone who rats out his or her cohorts.

Something described as tattletale is revealing, it gives away a secret. The term is a combination of “tattle” and “tale”, and is probably patterned on the similar word “telltale”. “To tattle” means “to tell secrets”, and the noun “tattletale” applies to someone who tells secrets and informs.

22 Destination in Hercules’ 12th labor : HADES

“The Twelve Labors of Hercules” is actually a Greek myth, although “Hercules” is the Roman name for the hero that the Greeks called “Heracles”.

23 N.L. Central team, on scoreboards : CHI

The Chicago Cubs are one of only two charter members of the baseball’s National League who are still playing, the other being the Atlanta Braves. The Cubs won the World Series in 2016 for the first time since 1908, which is a long time ago. In fact, the Cubs had the longest championship drought of any professional sports team in North America.

24 The Super Bowl, with “the” : … BIG GAME

Super Bowl I was played in January 1967 between the Green Bay Packers and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Packers emerged victorious in a game with a score of 35-10. That game was officially known as the AFL-NFL Championship Game, as the name “Super Bowl” wasn’t applied until two seasons later. That “first” Super Bowl is now known as Super Bowl III and was played between the New York Jets and the Baltimore Colts. The Jets came out on top.

36 Spring time in Paris : MAI

In French, the month of “mai” (May) is in the season of “printemps” (spring).

37 Cats with the unique ability to turn their ankle joints around : OCELOTS

The ocelot is a wild cat found mainly in South and Central America, although there have been sightings as far north as Arkansas. An ocelot doesn’t look too different from a domestic cat, and some have been kept as pets. Perhaps most famously, Salvador Dali had one that he carried around everywhere with him.

43 Polynesian staple food : POI

I am a big fan of starch (being an Irishman I love potatoes). That said, I think that poi tastes horrible! Poi is made from the bulbous tubers (corm) of the taro plant by cooking the corm in water and mashing it until the desired consistency is achieved.

50 Law bigwig : PARTNER

A bigwig is someone important. The use of the term “bigwig” harks back to the days when men of authority and rank wore … big wigs.

54 Alibi, say : STORY

“Alibi” is the Latin word for “elsewhere” as in, “I claim that I was ‘elsewhere’ when the crime was committed, I have an ‘alibi’”.

60 Itching to fight : HAWKISH

The dove is a symbol of peace, and the hawk is a symbol of war.

63 Favorite : ONE-SEED

A seeded player or team in a tournament is one given a preliminary ranking that is used in the initial draw. The intention is that the better competitors are less likely to meet each other in the early rounds.

67 Nerf product that might be used to bother a sibling : DART GUN

Nerf is a soft material used in a whole series of toys designed for “safe” play indoors. The Nerf product is used to make darts, balls and ammunition for toy guns. “NERF” is an acronym, standing for Non-Expanding Recreational Foam.

Down

1 “The House at ___ Corner” (children’s classic) : POOH

“The House at Pooh Corner” is the second volume of stories written by A. A. Milne about the wonderful Winnie-the-Pooh. “The House at Pooh Corner” marks the first time we meet the bouncy character called Tigger.

4 Whine, maybe : CARP

The word “carp” used to mean simply “talk” back in the 13th century, with its roots in the Old Norwegian “karpa” meaning “to brag”. A century later, the Latin word “carpere” meaning “to slander” influenced the use of “to carp” so that it came to mean “to find fault with”.

5 Noted feature of Limburger cheese : ODOR

Limburger is a delicious, strong-smelling cheese from Germany. It originated in the Duchy of Limburg which was located partly in the modern-day Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.

6 Relative of a chimpanzee : BONOBO

The bonobo used to be called the pygmy chimpanzee, and is a cousin of the common chimpanzee. The bonobo is an endangered species that is now found in the wild only in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Africa. Along with the common chimpanzee, the bonobo is the closest species to humans genetically.

8 Some sex cells : OVA

A gamete is a reproductive cell that has half the full complement of genes needed to make a normal cell. In sexual reproduction, it takes two gametes, one from each parent, to fuse into one cell which then develops into a new organism. The female gamete is the ovum, and the male the sperm.

9 Like the bite of a king cobra : LETHAL

The king cobra isn’t a cobra at all and rather belongs to its own genus. The king cobra is the world’s longest venomous snake and can grow to over 18 feet in length.

11 Noted web developer : SPIDER-MAN

Spider-Man is a creation of Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, and first appeared in comics in 1962. Spider-Man was a somewhat groundbreaking character in that his alter ego was a teenage high school student (Peter Parker), which marked the first time that a young person featured front and center as the superhero.

25 Teri of “Tootsie” : GARR

Actress Teri Garr had a whole host of minor roles in her youth, including appearances in nine Elvis movies. Garr’s big break came with the role of Inga in “Young Frankenstein”, and her supporting role in “Tootsie” earned Garr an Academy Award nomination. Sadly, Teri Garr suffers from multiple sclerosis. She is a National Ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

“Tootsie” is a hilarious 1982 comedy starring Dustin Hoffman in the title role, a male actor who adopts a female identity in order to land an acting job. Jessica Lange won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in the film. “Tootsie” also provided Geena Davis with her first movie role.

28 Executive role for an engineer: Abbr. : CTO

Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

33 Big name in laptops : ACER

Acer is a Taiwanese company that I visited a couple of times when I was in the electronics business. I was very impressed back then with the company’s dedication to quality, although I have heard that things haven’t gone so well in recent years …

34 Presidential check : VETO POWER

The verb “veto” comes directly from Latin and means “I forbid”. The term was used by tribunes of ancient Rome to indicate that they opposed measures passed by the Senate.

40 Chaney known as “The Man of a Thousand Faces” : LON

Lon Chaney, Sr. played a lot of crazed-looking characters in the days of silent movies. He did much of his own make-up work, developing the grotesque appearances that became his trademark, and earning himself the nickname “the man of a thousand faces”. Most famous were his portrayals of the title characters in the films “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923) and “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925).

41 Certain warm-up exercises : ETUDES

An étude is a short instrumental composition that is usually quite hard to play and is intended to help the performer master a particular technique. “Étude” is the French word for “study”. Études are commonly performed on the piano.

49 Character with a “Wild Ride” at Disneyland : MR TOAD

Mr. Toad is one of the main characters in the children’s novel “The Wind in the Willows” by Kenneth Grahame. A. A. Milne (of “Winnie-the-Pooh” fame) wrote several plays based on “The Wind in the Willows”, the first of which is “Toad of Toad Hall”. And, Mr Toad’s Wild Ride was (it’s closed now!) one of the original rides at Disneyland when the park opened in 1955.

54 Herringlike fish : SHAD

The shad is also known as the river herring. The eggs (roe) of the shad are prized as a delicacy, especially in the Eastern US.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Statistical abbr. : PCT
4 Male swan : COB
7 Common prelaw major, informally : POLI SCI
14 Response to an unveiling : OOH!
15 Bother : ADO
16 Neither over nor under, but a round? : EVEN PAR
17 Xi follower : OMICRON
19 Tattletale : RAT FINK
20 Attracting much publicity : HIGH PRO(FILE)
22 Destination in Hercules’ 12th labor : HADES
23 N.L. Central team, on scoreboards : CHI
24 The Super Bowl, with “the” : … BIG GAME
27 Commentary on a scientific article : SCHOLARLY RE(VIEW)
32 Must : HAVE TO
35 Poetic conjunction : ERE
36 Spring time in Paris : MAI
37 Cats with the unique ability to turn their ankle joints around : OCELOTS
39 Set free : RELEASE
42 Diminutive suffix : -LET
43 Polynesian staple food : POI
45 Previously seen : NOT NEW
46 Options at the top of a computer window … as seen three times in this puzzle? : DROP-DOWN MENU
50 Law bigwig : PARTNER
51 Professional nickname : DOC
54 Alibi, say : STORY
56 Alternative to a refund, often : STORE CR(EDIT)
60 Itching to fight : HAWKISH
63 Favorite : ONE-SEED
64 Eroded : ATE INTO
65 Top of a deck : ACE
66 Question of self-reflection : AM I?
67 Nerf product that might be used to bother a sibling : DART GUN
68 100%, in slang : DEF
69 Bring in : NET

Down

1 “The House at ___ Corner” (children’s classic) : POOH
2 Paper strip : COMIC
3 Cutoff point for some boots : THIGH
4 Whine, maybe : CARP
5 Noted feature of Limburger cheese : ODOR
6 Relative of a chimpanzee : BONOBO
7 Following the direction of : PER
8 Some sex cells : OVA
9 Like the bite of a king cobra : LETHAL
10 Bad reputation : INFAMY
11 Noted web developer : SPIDER-MAN
12 Support staff? : CANE
13 Gets under the skin of : IRKS
18 Icebreaker? : CHISEL
21 – : FILE
25 Teri of “Tootsie” : GARR
26 “Colorful” county name in 14 states : GREENE
28 Executive role for an engineer: Abbr. : CTO
29 Dish in which ingredients are cooked at the table : HOT POT
30 Lessen : EASE
31 – : VIEW
32 Grip : HOLD
33 Big name in laptops : ACER
34 Presidential check : VETO POWER
38 Planted : SOWN
40 Chaney known as “The Man of a Thousand Faces” : LON
41 Certain warm-up exercises : ETUDES
44 Chemical suffixes : -INES
47 Grab a seat : PARK IT
48 Hanging out, say : DRYING
49 Character with a “Wild Ride” at Disneyland : MR TOAD
52 Continental divide? : OCEAN
53 It’s found in many French desserts : CREME
54 Herringlike fish : SHAD
55 “Farewell!” : TA-TA!
57 Start of a reminiscence : ONCE …
58 ___ shark : REEF
59 – : EDIT
61 Name found in consecutive letters of the alphabet : STU
62 Sweet pea : HON