0118-18 NY Times Crossword Answers 18 Jan 2018, Thursday

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Constructed by: Ryan McCarty & Alan Southworth
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme: No Way

Themed answers are common phrases with the word WAY removed:

  • 69A. “Forget it!” … or a hint to 17-, 30-, 46- and 62-Across : NO WAY!
  • 17A. Rooftop heist? : HIGH ROBBERY (from “highway robbery”)
  • 30A. Handle engineer duties? : RUN A TRAIN (from “runaway train”)
  • 46A. Della or Picabo? : ONE STREET (from “one-way street”)
  • 62A. Sandwich shops? : SUB STATIONS (from “subway stations”)

Bill’s time: 14m 02s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1. Rebound : CAROM

A carom is a ricochet, the bouncing of some projectile off a surface. Carom has come to mean the banking of a billiard ball, the bouncing of the ball off the side of the table.

6. Lady ___ Ashley, Jake Barnes’s love in “The Sun Also Rises” : BRETT

“The Sun Also Rises” was Ernest Hemingway’s first major novel, published in 1926. Hemingway originally titled the work “Fiesta”, and indeed it was originally published under this title outside of America. At the recommendation of the publisher, Scribner’s, the title was changed to “The Sun Also Rises”, taken from Ecclesiastes 1:5 “The sun also ariseth, and the sun goeth down, and hasteth to his place where he arose.”

11. Interregnum : GAP

The original meaning of the word “interregnum” is the gap between the reign of a sovereign and his or her successor. The word has also come to mean a gap in continuity in general. Interregnum is from the Latin “inter” (between) and “regnum” (reign).

15. Like the planets beyond the asteroid belt : OUTER

The vast majority of asteroids in the Solar System are found in the main asteroid belt, which is located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Four large asteroids (Ceres, Vesta, Pallas and Hygeia) make up about half the mass of the asteroid belt and are 400-950 km in diameter. The total mass of the belt is just 4% of the mass of our Moon. The larger asteroids are also known as “planetoids”.

16. Chemical suffix : -ENE

An alkene is an organic compound made up of carbon and hydrogen atoms. It differs from an alkane in that it has at least one C=C double bond. The simplest alkene is the gas ethylene, a major raw material used in the manufacture of plastics (like polyethylene).

19. Travel org. with an eTix app : MTA

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has public transportation responsibility in the state of New York (as well as part of Connecticut). “MTA” might also refer to the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which is known as “the Metro” and sometimes “the MTA”.

20. “If you ask me,” to texters : IMHO

In my humble opinion (IMHO)

21. Org. that discourages traveling : NBA

National Basketball Association (NBA)

22. Flowerless plants : MOSSES

There is a traditionally-held belief that in the northern hemisphere there is a heavier growth of moss on the north-facing side of trees. The assumption is that the sun creates a drier environment on the south side of the tree, an environment that is less conducive to the growth of moss.

24. Diamond club : BAT

That would be baseball.

25. Some roles in the Jack Benny film “College Holiday” : COEDS

“College Holiday” is a 1936 movie with a great cast that includes Jack Benny, George Burns and and Gracie Allen. I’ve never seen the film, and I assume it’s a comedy. The cited storyline sounds a little sinister, though, through contemporary eyes:

A group of men are invited to spend the summer with a lady hotelier interested in eugenics.

32. Bird that has one long talon on each foot for fighting : EMU

The emu has had a tough time in Australia since man settled there. There was even an “Emu War” in Western Australia in 1932 when migrating emus competed with livestock for water and food. Soldiers were sent in and used machine guns in an unsuccessful attempt to drive off the “invading force”. The emus were clever, breaking their usual formations and adopting guerrilla tactics, operating as smaller units. After 50 days of “war”, the military withdrew. Subsequent requests for military help for the farmers were ignored. The emus had emerged victorious …

34. Pear variety : BOSC

Bosc is a cultivar of the European pear grown in the northwest of the United States. The Bosc is that pear with a skin the color of a potato, with a long neck. I always seem to use the potato as my point of reference. How Irish am I …?

36. Last at Daytona, say : SLOWEST

The coastal city of Daytona Beach in Florida is known for hard-packed sand on the beach. This makes a good surface for driving motorized vehicles, and resulted in Daytona Beach becoming a center for motorsports. The Daytona 500 is the event with the largest purse on the NASCAR calendar.

40. N.H.L. team that became the Hurricanes in 1997 : WHALERS

The Carolina Hurricanes are the professional hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The team was founded as the New England Whalers, when they were located in Boston, and then Hartford, Connecticut. The Whalers moved to Raleigh in 1997, and became the Hurricane.

42. “Mazel ___!” : TOV

“Tov” is the Hebrew word for “good”, as in “mazel tov” meaning “good luck”.

45. My Chemical Romance genre : EMO

My Chemical Romance was an alternative rock band from Jersey City that was active from 2001 to 2013.

46. Della or Picabo? : ONE STREET (from “one-way street”)

Della Street is Perry Mason’s very capable secretary in the Erle Stanley Gardner novels. Street was played on the TV show by the lovely Barbara Hale.
Picabo Street is an alpine ski racer from Triumph, Idaho who won medals at the 1994 and 1998 Winter Olympics.

53. Jewel case insert : CD-ROM

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.

56. Response to “Madam, I’m Adam” that is itself a palindrome : EVE

The three most famous palindromes in English have to be:

  • Able was I ere I saw Elba
  • A man, a plan, a canal, Panama!
  • Madam, I’m Adam

One of my favorite words is “Aibohphobia”, although it doesn’t appear in the dictionary and is a joke term. “Aibohphobia” is a great way to describe a fear of palindromes, by creating a palindrome out of the suffix “-phobia”.

57. Alaskan bear : KODIAK

Brown bears are found over much of northern Europe, Asia, and North America. The biggest subspecies of brown bear is the Kodiak bear, which is the largest land-based predator in the world. Named for the Kodiak Archipelago in Alaska, the Kodiak bear grows to about the same size as the enormous polar bear.

59. ___ favor : POR

“Por favor” is Spanish for “please”.

60. Reindeer in “Frozen” : SVEN

Sven is a Scandinavian name. “Sven” is derived from the Old Norse word for “young man” or “young warrior”.

61. “Wheel of Fortune” buy : AN O

Contestants have been spinning the “Wheel of Fortune” since the game show first aired in 1975.

66. Orchestra tuners : OBOES

When the members of a full orchestra tune their instruments, they almost always tune to an “A” played by an oboe. A wind ensemble usually tunes to a B-flat, as this is an “open” note on many instrument, one in which all valves are open on trumpet for example, or the slider on a trombone is in home position.

68. “Listen ___!” (Cockney cry) : ‘ERE

A Cockney is someone who, according to tradition, is born within the sound of Bow Bells in the center of London. The Cockney accent is usually considered “working class”. Cockney speakers often use a wonderful form of speech called rhyming slang. So, Cockney’s drink a lot of “Rosie Lea” (tea), and climb the “apples and pears” (stairs) using their “plates of meat” (feet). Cockneys also tend to “drop their aitches”, so “home” becomes “‘ome” and “horse” becomes “‘orse”.

70. Gripes : BEEFS

A beef is a complaint or a grievance. It’s not quite clear how “beef” came to have this meaning, but one suggestion is that derives from the habit of soldiers at the end of the 1800s complaining about the quality or availability of beef in their rations.

Down

1. Premium Cuban cigar : COHIBA

The brand name “Cohiba” is actually used by two cigar manufacturers. The first is produced by Habanos S.A. which is a state-owned tobacco company in Cuba. The second is produced by a US company in the Dominican Republic. The name “cohíba “ means “tobacco”.
Cuban leader Fidel Castro smoked the Cohiba brand of cigar, which comes from his native land. The cigars made for Castro and his top officials were produced under conditions of tight security. Apparently, back in the early sixties, the CIA actually worked on the development of exploding cigars as a means of assassination.

2. Category in a guessing game : ANIMAL

Animal, vegetable or mineral … or abstract? Those are the choices in the famous guessing game.

4. Number above “Operador” on un teléfono : OCHO

In Spanish, the number “ocho” (eight) is above the “operador” (operator) key of “un teléfono” (a telephone).

5. La Méditerranée, e.g. : MER

In French, “La Méditerranée” (the Mediterranean) is a “mer” (sea).
The Mediterranean Sea is almost completely enclosed by land, and is connected to the Atlantic Ocean by the narrow Strait of Gibraltar. The sea takes its name from the Latin “mediterraneus”, which means “in the middle of land”.

6. Tackle box item : BOBBER

That would be fishing.

7. Start of a children’s rhyme : RUB-A-DUB-

The nursery rhyme “Rub-a-Dub-Dub” dates back to at least 1798 when it was first published in London:

Rub-a-dub-dub,
Three men in a tub,
And how do you think they got there?
The butcher, the baker,
The candlestick-maker,
They all jumped out of a rotten potato,
‘Twas enough to make a man stare.

8. It lasts trois mois : ETE

In French, “été” (summer) lasts “trois mois” (three months).

11. Idaho, with “the” : GEM STATE

Idaho has the nickname “Gem State”, mainly because almost every known type of gemstone has been found there. Idaho is also sometimes called the Potato State as potatoes are such a popular crop in the state. I’d go for the potatoes over the gems, but that’s probably just me …

13. Group rallied by Mao Zedong : PEASANTS

Mao Zedong (also “Mao Tse-tung”) was born on December 16, 1893 in the Hunan Province of China. As Mao was the son of a peasant farmer, his prospects for education were limited. Indeed he left school at age 13 to work on the family farm but did eventually get to secondary school in Changsha, the provincial capital. In the years following, Mao continued his education in Beijing and actually turned down an opportunity to study in France.

18. Fish at a Hawaiian barbecue : ONO

The wahoo is a cousin of the mackerel, and is known as the ono in Hawaii.

23. Nikon product, for short : SLR

Nikon was founded in 1917 with the merger of three companies making various optical devices. After the merger, the company’s main output was lenses (including the first lenses for Canon cameras, before Canon made its own). During the war, Nikon sales grew rapidly as the company focused on (pun!) equipment for the military including periscopes and bomb sights.

26. ___ globe : SNOW

It is believed that the first snow globes were introduced in France in the early 1800s. They were a development of glass paperweights that were already common, and were initially used to do the same job. Do you know who owns the biggest collection of snow globes in the world, over 8,000 of them? That would be the actor Corbin Bernsen of “LA Law” and “Psych” fame.

31. Queens stadium name : ASHE

The Arthur Ashe Stadium in Queens, New York opened in 1997 and for years was the largest outdoor, tennis-only venue in the world. The stadium was often criticized for not having a retractable dome to protect the playing surface from inclement weather. Well, that changed in 2016 when the stadium debuted its new retractable roof, a $150 million investment in the facility.

41. John : LOO

The use of “john” as a slang term for a toilet is peculiar to North America. “John” probably comes from the older slang term of “jack” or “jakes” that had been around since the 16th century. In Ireland, in less polite moments, we still refer to a toilet as “the jacks”.

52. Has an inkling : SENSES

Our word “inkling” apparently comes from the Middle English word “inclen” meaning “to hint”.

55. Major group HQ’d in Fairfax, Va. : NRA

National Rifle Association (NRA)

60. Wave to a math teacher? : SINE

A sine wave is a mathematical function that describes a simple, smooth, repetitive oscillation. The sine wave is found right throughout the natural world. Ocean waves, light waves and sound waves all have a sine wave pattern.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Rebound : CAROM
6. Lady ___ Ashley, Jake Barnes’s love in “The Sun Also Rises” : BRETT
11. Interregnum : GAP
14. Chilling : ON ICE
15. Like the planets beyond the asteroid belt : OUTER
16. Chemical suffix : -ENE
17. Rooftop heist? : HIGH ROBBERY (from “highway robbery”)
19. Travel org. with an eTix app : MTA
20. “If you ask me,” to texters : IMHO
21. Org. that discourages traveling : NBA
22. Flowerless plants : MOSSES
24. Diamond club : BAT
25. Some roles in the Jack Benny film “College Holiday” : COEDS
27. Marathon leader? : ULTRA-
28. Dateless, say : ALONE
30. Handle engineer duties? : RUN A TRAIN (from “runaway train”)
32. Bird that has one long talon on each foot for fighting : EMU
34. Pear variety : BOSC
35. Preschooler : TOT
36. Last at Daytona, say : SLOWEST
40. N.H.L. team that became the Hurricanes in 1997 : WHALERS
42. “Mazel ___!” : TOV
43. “No ___” (“I’m fine”) : NEED
45. My Chemical Romance genre : EMO
46. Della or Picabo? : ONE STREET (from “one-way street”)
49. Openings at a day spa? : PORES
53. Jewel case insert : CD-ROM
54. Bright lights : NEONS
56. Response to “Madam, I’m Adam” that is itself a palindrome : EVE
57. Alaskan bear : KODIAK
59. ___ favor : POR
60. Reindeer in “Frozen” : SVEN
61. “Wheel of Fortune” buy : AN O
62. Sandwich shops? : SUB STATIONS (from “subway stations”)
65. Study : DEN
66. Orchestra tuners : OBOES
67. Pull some strings? : UNTIE
68. “Listen ___!” (Cockney cry) : ‘ERE
69. “Forget it!” … or a hint to 17-, 30-, 46- and 62-Across : NO WAY!
70. Gripes : BEEFS

Down

1. Premium Cuban cigar : COHIBA
2. Category in a guessing game : ANIMAL
3. “You betcha!” : RIGHTO!
4. Number above “Operador” on un teléfono : OCHO
5. La Méditerranée, e.g. : MER
6. Tackle box item : BOBBER
7. Start of a children’s rhyme : RUB-A-DUB-
8. It lasts trois mois : ETE
9. Contract period : TERM
10. Events for prospective pro athletes : TRYOUT CAMPS
11. Idaho, with “the” : GEM STATE
12. Toward the front, anatomically : ANTERIOR
13. Group rallied by Mao Zedong : PEASANTS
18. Fish at a Hawaiian barbecue : ONO
23. Nikon product, for short : SLR
25. One who has concrete plans for the day? : CEMENT MASON
26. ___ globe : SNOW
29. Fresh out of the box : NEW
31. Queens stadium name : ASHE
33. ___ interface : USER
36. Defense fence : STOCKADE
37. Cockney, e.g. : LONDONER
38. Trite : OVERDONE
39. Typical college freshman : TEEN
41. John : LOO
44. Home of lanternfish and giant squids : DEEP SEA
47. “___ gather” : SO I
48. Foot, baby-style : TOOTSY
50. Election do-over : REVOTE
51. No matter whether : EVEN IF
52. Has an inkling : SENSES
55. Major group HQ’d in Fairfax, Va. : NRA
58. 2016 animated film “___ and the Two Strings” : KUBO
60. Wave to a math teacher? : SINE
63. Opposite of stern : BOW
64. Moonshiner’s vessel : TUB