0225-23 NY Times Crossword 25 Feb 23, Saturday

Constructed by: Trent H. Evans
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme: None

Bill’s time: 14m 37s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Dessert portmanteau : FROYO

Frozen yogurt (“froyo” or “fro-yo”)

A portmanteau was a large suitcase, one that could be taken apart into two separate pieces. The word “portmanteau” is French for a “traveling bag”, from “porter” (to carry) and “manteau” (a coat, cloak). We also use “portmanteau” to mean a word that has been melded together from two parts (just as the suitcase comprised two parts). This usage was introduced to the world by Humpty Dumpty in Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”. He explained to Alice that the nonsense words in the “Jabberwocky” poem were actually portmanteau words. For example “slithy” comes from “slimy” and “lithe”.

6 Denial of responsibility : IT WASN’T ME

Nor me …

15 Quivers on the radio : ROBIN

Robin Quivers is a co-host and sidekick on “The Howard Stern Show”, which now airs on Sirius XM Radio. Quivers is a qualified nurse and a veteran of the US Air Force, from which she was honorably discharged at the rank of captain.

Howard Stern is one of the original “shock jocks” who seems now to have found his niche on uncensored satellite radio (SiriusXM).

17 Shoelace tip : AGLET

An aglet is a plastic or metal sheath that is found on the end of a shoelace or perhaps a drawstring. The name “aglet” comes from the Old French word “aiguillette” meaning “needle”.

25 Amanda of “Togetherness” : PEET

Actress Amanda Peet studied acting with the celebrated Uta Hagen at Columbia University. Peet has appeared in a number of successful films including “The Whole Nine Yards” and “Syriana”. I remember her best from what I thought was a great TV show (but no one seemed to agree!) called “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip”.

34 Turn follower, in Texas hold ’em : RIVER CARD

In the card game called Texas hold ‘em, two hole cards are dealt to each player, and five community cards are dealt face up on the table. The community cards are dealt in the three stages. The first three cards are dealt in one stage (the flop), then the fourth card is shown (the turn), and finally the fifth card (the river).

35 Something found under a hood : CAR ENGINE

The hinged cover over the engine of a car is referred to in the US as a “hood”, and in Britain and Ireland as a “bonnet”. On the other side of the Atlantic, a hood is a fabric cover that goes over a car’s passenger compartment. That same cover is called a “top” here in the US.

40 Lead-in to -logy : THEO-

Theology is the study of religious faith. The term comes from the Greek “theos” meaning “god” and “-logos” meaning “treating of”.

41 Golden Globe nominee for 2012’s “Arbitrage” : GERE

Richard Gere is an American actor who is a practicing Buddhist and has been a student of the Dalai Lama for many years. He has been married three times, including his first marriage to supermodel Cindy Crawford. They were married from 1991 to 1995.

“Arbitrage” is an entertaining drama released in 2012 that stars Richard Gere and Susan Sarandon, two favorite actors of mine. Gere plays a none-too-honest hedge fund manager who gets himself into a lot of trouble.

42 Bit of attire that shares its name with part of a musical instrument : G-STRING

The origins of “G-string”, the type of revealing underwear, is unclear. However, the term “gee string” has been used since the 1800s and originally referred to the string that held the loincloths worn by Native Americans.

44 Farm denizen : ANT

“Formicary” is another name for “ant nest”, and comes from the Latin “formica” meaning “ant”. The phrase “ant colony” describes the ants living in an ant nest. A formicarium is similar to an aquarium, and used to house an ant colony perhaps for study. The phrase “ant farm” is usually reserved for ant nests built by an ant colony in a formicarium.

Nowadays we use “denizen” to mean simply “resident”, but historically a denizen was an immigrant to whom certain rights had been granted, somewhat like today’s resident alien.

49 Singer/songwriter nicknamed “The High Priest of Country Music” : TWITTY

Conway Twitty was a country singer who crossed over to the rock and roll and pop genres. Twitty’s real name was Harold Lloyd Jenkins, and he was named for the silent movie actor Harold Lloyd. There doesn’t seem to be a definitive explanation for how Twitty chose his stage name, but one suggestion is that he combined the names of the cities of Conway, Arkansas and Twitty, Texas.

55 Actress Birch : THORA

Thora Birch is an actress from Los Angeles. Birch is probably best known for her breakthrough role in the 1999 movie “American Beauty” in which she was the insecure daughter of a married couple played by Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening.

Down

2 Something that guarantees you’ll come out on top? : ROGAINE

Rogaine is a brand name for the drug minoxidil. It was developed as an oral medication to treat high blood pressure, but was found to have an exploitable side-effect. It caused an increase in the rate of hair growth. A topical solution was marketed to promote growth of hair especially in balding men. The drug seems to work well, but when the patient stops using it, things go back to normal in about 60 days. Wouldn’t dream of touching the stuff myself …

5 Making a pointe? : ON TOE

“En pointe” is ballet dancing on the tips of the toes, and is a French term. A ballerina wears pointe shoes (sometimes “toe shoes”) to perform this delightful-looking, albeit unhealthy, feat (pun!).

9 Things sometimes named after metals : AGES

Ancient societies can be classified by the “three-age system”, which depends on the prevalence of materials used to make tools. The three ages are:

  • The Stone Age
  • The Bronze Age
  • The Iron Age

The actual dates defined by each age depend on the society, as the timing of the transition from the use of one material to another varied around the globe.

12 Who wrote “Our life is frittered away by detail … Simplify, simplify” : THOREAU

Henry David Thoreau is a personal hero of mine. He is best known for his book called “Walden” published in 1854. The book outlines his philosophy of life and details his experiences living in a cabin near Walden Pond just outside Concord, Massachusetts.

13 Scraps : MELEES

Our term “melee” comes from the French “mêlée”, and in both languages the word means “confused fight”.

28 Word with ships or shorts : CARGO …

Cargo is freight carried by some vehicle. The term “cargo” comes into English via Spanish, ultimately deriving from the Latin “carricare” meaning “to load on a cart”.

Cargo pants are trousers made out of hard-wearing material and have several large pockets designed to carry tools. They are sometimes referred to as “combat pants”, reflecting the original use by members of the armed forces in the 1930s and 1940s.

30 Like Grumpy among the Seven Dwarfs : MEANEST

In the original Brothers Grimm fairy tale called “Snow White”, the seven dwarfs were not given any names. The names were added for the 1937 classic Disney film “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs”. The seven dwarfs are:

  • Doc (the leader of the group)
  • Grumpy (that would be me, according to my wife …)
  • Happy
  • Sleepy
  • Bashful
  • Sneezy
  • Dopey

31 Fictional student of the Lowood School : EYRE

“Jane Eyre” is a celebrated novel written by Charlotte Brontë, under the pen name Currer Bell. The love story is perhaps represented by the oft-quoted opening lines of the last chapter, “Reader, I married him”. There is a wonderful 4-hour television adaptation made by the BBC that I highly recommend to fans of the novel …

39 Divisions of families : GENERA

Biological classification is a method used to group organisms by biological type. The method uses a hierarchy of nested classes, with an organism being classified with reference to evolutionary traits. The major taxonomic ranks used are:

  • Life
  • Domain
  • Kingdom
  • Phylum (plural “phyla”)
  • Class
  • Order
  • Family
  • Genus (plural “genera”)
  • Species

41 Jennie ___, co-star of “Beverly Hills, 90210” : GARTH

“Beverly Hills, 90210” is a drama that aired on Fox from 1990 to 2000. The show follows the lives of little rich kids in Beverly Hills. Many of the cast members have made it big following their appearances on “90210”, including Jason Priestly, Luke Perry, Shannen Doherty, Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling. I’ve never even seen one episode …

46 Shoe chain : ALDO

ALDO is a chain of shoe stores that was founded in Montreal in 1972 by Moroccan-born Canadian Aldo Bensadoun. Bensadoun is the son of a retailer of shoes in Morocco and France, and the grandchild of a cobbler. A man with shoe leather in his blood …

48 Instrument originally played with a quill : LUTE

The lute is a stringed instrument with a long neck and usually a pear-shaped body. It is held and played like a guitar, and was popular from the Middle Ages right through to the late Baroque era. A person who plays the lute can be referred to as a “lutenist”.

51 Many a scoutmaster : DAD

As every little boy (of my era) knows, the Scouting movement was founded by Lord Baden-Powell, in 1907. He also founded the Girl Guide and Girl Scout organization in 1910, along with this sister Agnes Baden-Powell. The Boy Scouts of America (BSA) soon followed, also in 1910. The Boy Scouts motto is “Be Prepared”.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Dessert portmanteau : FROYO
6 Denial of responsibility : IT WASN’T ME
15 Quivers on the radio : ROBIN
16 “That much is clear” : SO I GATHER
17 Shoelace tip : AGLET
18 Informal retreat : HIDEY-HOLE
19 Modify : TAILOR
21 “Stand a little ___ between me and the sun” (reputed words from Diogenes to Alexander) : LESS
22 ___ league : REC
23 Far-from-wowed response : BIG DEAL
25 Amanda of “Togetherness” : PEET
26 See 36-Across : … ONES
27 Sign at some exhibits : NO CAMERAS
32 Progressive rock band inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 : YES
33 “Everything good?” : HOW ARE YOU?
34 Turn follower, in Texas hold ’em : RIVER CARD
35 Something found under a hood : CAR ENGINE
36 With 26-Across, eccentrics : ODD …
39 Slangy catchphrase of encouragement : GET ‘ER DONE
40 Lead-in to -logy : THEO-
41 Golden Globe nominee for 2012’s “Arbitrage” : GERE
42 Bit of attire that shares its name with part of a musical instrument : G-STRING
44 Farm denizen : ANT
45 Visit, with “on” : CALL …
49 Singer/songwriter nicknamed “The High Priest of Country Music” : TWITTY
50 Like many children’s stories : READ ALOUD
53 Release : ISSUE
54 When some arguments might begin : TRIAL DATE
55 Actress Birch : THORA
56 Pro with digital photography? : HAND MODEL
57 More balanced : SANER

Down

1 College brother, in slang : FRAT BOY
2 Something that guarantees you’ll come out on top? : ROGAINE
3 Requires : OBLIGES
4 Bond figures : YIELDS
5 Making a pointe? : ON TOE
6 Thereabouts : ISH
7 Beaver away : TOIL
8 Far left or far right, maybe : WIDE
9 Things sometimes named after metals : AGES
10 “___ you!” : SAYS
11 Last in a long line : NTH
12 Who wrote “Our life is frittered away by detail … Simplify, simplify” : THOREAU
13 Scraps : MELEES
14 Put up : ERECT
20 Went long : RAN OVER
24 Cheap and tawdry : LOW-END
25 Spur : PROD
28 Word with ships or shorts : CARGO …
29 Electrical danger : ARCING
30 Like Grumpy among the Seven Dwarfs : MEANEST
31 Fictional student of the Lowood School : EYRE
33 Bring on : HIRE
34 Bond figure : RATE
35 Particular : CERTAIN
36 “NOW you’ve crossed the line!” : OH, IT’S ON!
37 Mouth piece? : DENTURE
38 It’s equivalent to over 2,500 human days : DOG YEAR
39 Divisions of families : GENERA
40 Nickname that’s an alternative to Pat : TRISHA
41 Jennie ___, co-star of “Beverly Hills, 90210” : GARTH
43 Nincompoops : TWITS
45 Pacific : CALM
46 Shoe chain : ALDO
47 Computer program command : LOAD
48 Instrument originally played with a quill : LUTE
51 Many a scoutmaster : DAD
52 Home of Rehoboth Bay: Abbr. : DEL