0613-22 NY Times Crossword 13 Jun 22, Monday

Constructed by: Hoang-Kim Vu & Jessica Zetzman
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Reveal Answer: Jumpsuits

If we JUMP from one row to the row above, shaded letters in the grid spell out the four SUITS in a deck of cards:

  • 58A Garments similar to rompers … with a hint to the shaded squares in this puzzle : JUMPSUITS
    li>20A Egyptian queen, for short : CLEO
  • 17A Applies sloppily, as paint : DAUBS (jump CL-UBS)
  • 21A Stuck ashore, as a whale : BEACHED
  • 18A Data graphics with wedges : PIE CHARTS (jump HE-ARTS)
  • 36A Hot springs resort : SPA
  • 33A Skips over, as a spoken syllable : ELIDES (jump SPA-DES)
  • 50A Princess played by Emma Corrin on “The Crown” : DIANA
  • 48A Nuts used to make marzipan : ALMONDS (jump DIA-MONDS)

Bill’s time: 5m 46s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

10 Newspaper opinion piece : OP-ED

“Op-ed” is an abbreviation for “opposite the editorial page”. Op-eds started in “The New York Evening World” in 1921 when the page opposite the editorials was used for articles written by a named guest writer, someone independent of the editorial board.

14 Instrument in a string quartet : CELLO

A standard string quartet is made up of two violins, a viola and a cello. A string quintet consists of a standard string quartet with the addition of a fifth instrument, usually a second viola or cello.

15 French peak : ALPE

In French, the “Alpes” (Alps) is a large range of “monts” (mountains).

16 “___, far, wherever you are” (Celine Dion lyric) : NEAR

“My Heart Will Go On” is the love theme from the 1997 blockbuster movie “Titanic”. It was recorded by Céline Dion, and hit the number one spot in the charts all around the world. “My Heart Will Go On” was destined to become Dion’s biggest hit, and the best-selling single in the world for 1998.

18 Data graphics with wedges : PIE CHARTS

A pie chart can also be referred to as a circle graph. It is often stated that Florence Nightingale invented the pie chart. While this is not in fact true, she is due credit for popularizing it, and for developing the pie chart variation known as the polar area diagram. The earliest known pie chart appears in a book published in 1801 by Scottish engineer William Playfair.

20 Egyptian queen, for short : CLEO

Cleopatra was the last pharaoh to rule Egypt. After she died, Egypt became a province in the Roman Empire.

24 Air traffic control equipment : RADAR

Scientists have been using radio waves to detect the presence of objects since the late 1800s, but it was the demands of WWII that accelerated the practical application of the technology. The British called their system RDF standing for Range and Direction Finding. The system used by the US Navy was called “Radio Detection And Ranging”, which was shortened to the acronym “RADAR”.

28 Dirty dozen? : BAD EGGS

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”.

34 India’s smallest state : GOA

Goa is the smallest state in India, and is located in the southwest of the country. The Portuguese landed in Goa in the early 1500s, at first peacefully carrying out trade, but then took the area by force creating Portuguese India. Portugal held onto Portuguese India even after the British pulled out of India in 1947, until the Indian Army marched into the area in 1961.

35 Ambulance specialists, in brief : EMTS

Emergency medical technician (EMT)

Our word “ambulance” originated from the French term “hôpital ambulant” meaning “field hospital” (literally “walking hospital”). In the 1850s, the term started to be used for a vehicle transporting the wounded from the battlefield, leading to our “ambulance”.

37 Sent by UPS, e.g. : SHIPPED

United Parcel Service (UPS) is based in Sandy Springs, Georgia and has its own airline that operates out of Louisville, Kentucky. UPS often goes by the nickname “Brown”, because of its brown delivery trucks and brown uniforms.

40 Baseball’s ___ Wee Reese : PEE

Pee Wee Reese was a shortstop who played his professional career with the Brooklyn and LA Dodgers. Reese is remembered not only for his skill on the field, but for his very visible support for teammate Jackie Robinson, who famously struggled to be accepted as the first African-American player in the majors. As he was an outstanding marbles player as a child, Reese was given the nickname “pee wee” after the name for a small marble.

41 Light white powder : TALC

Talc is a mineral, hydrated magnesium silicate. Talcum powder is composed of loose talc, although these days “baby powder” is also made from cornstarch.

44 Existing in hidden form : LATENT

Something is said to be latent if it is present, but not active.

46 Spotted wildcats of the South American jungle : OCELOTS

The ocelot is a wildcat 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.

48 Nuts used to make marzipan : ALMONDS

Marzipan is a scrumptious confection made from almond meal sweetened with sugar or honey. The former English name was “marchpane” meaning “March bread”. We now use the term “marzipan”, which is the German name.

50 Princess played by Emma Corrin on “The Crown” : DIANA

The tradition in the UK is to invest the heir-apparent to the throne with the title of Prince of Wales. Since Prince Charles is that heir today, he is called Prince of Wales and his first wife was known as Diana, Princess of Wales.

“The Crown” is a historical drama produced for Netflix that covers the life of British Queen Elizabeth II from her marriage to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh. For the first two seasons, Elizabeth is played by Claire Foy and Philip by Matt Smith. For the next two seasons, Olivia Colman and Tobias Menzies take over as Elizabeth and Philip.

51 Ramadan observers : MUSLIMS

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and is traditionally a period of fasting. The faithful who observe Ramadan refrain from eating, drinking and sexual relations from dawn to dusk everyday, a lesson in patience, humility and spirituality.

54 Fill to capacity : SATE

“Sate” is a variant of the older word “satiate”. Both terms can mean either to satisfy an appetite fully, or to eat to excess.

58 Garments similar to rompers … with a hint to the shaded squares in this puzzle : JUMPSUITS

A jumpsuit is a one-piece item of clothing that covers the torso, arms and legs, but not the hands or feet. The term “jumpsuit” comes from skydiving, as parachutists make their “jumps” in a one-piece “suit” designed for purpose.

61 Three-point driving maneuver : K-TURN

Three-point turn (also “Y-turn, K-turn”).

65 Kings of Leon or Queens of the Stone Age : BAND

Kings of Leon is an American rock band formed in Nashville, Tennessee in 1999. The band members are all related to each other and chose the group’s name in honor of their common grandfather, whose given name is “Leon”.

66 “If you ask me …,” online : IMHO …

In my humble opinion (IMHO)

Down

1 Electrical adapter letters : AC/DC

Anyone with a laptop with an external power supply has an AC/DC converter, that big “block” in the power cord. It converts the AC current from a wall socket into the DC current that is used by the laptop.

8 Blueprint detail : SPEC

Blueprints are reproductions of technical or architectural drawings that are contact prints made on light-sensitive sheets. Blueprints were introduced in the 1800s and the technology available dictated that the drawings were reproduced with white lines on a blue background, hence the name “blue-print”.

9 Silicon Valley field : TECH

The Santa Clara Valley, located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay, is better known as “Silicon Valley”. The term “Silicon Valley” dates back to 1971 when it was apparently first used in a weekly trade newspaper called “Electronic News” in articles written by journalist Don Hoefler.

11 The “p” of m.p.g. : PER

Miles per gallon (mpg)

13 Stethoscope users: Abbr. : DRS

The word “stethoscope” comes from the Greek word for “chest examination”. The stethoscope was invented back in 1816 in France by René Laennec, although back then it looked just like an ear trumpet, a wooden tube with flared ends.

23 Middle ___ (time before the Renaissance) : AGES

European history is often divided in three major periods: classical antiquity and the modern period, with the Middle Ages in between. Specifically, the Middle Ages are said to have begun in 476 AD, when the last Roman Emperor was deposed by a Germanic chieftain. The end date for the Middle Ages is less specific, but is about 1500 AD. The list of events signaling the end of the Middle Ages includes Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the New World (1492) and the Protestant Reformation (1517). The term “medieval” is used to describe something belonging to the Middle Ages.

The Renaissance is the period in European history that bridges the Dark Ages and the Modern Era. “Renaissance” is French for “rebirth”, and is a term reflecting the rebirth of interest in the learnings from ancient Greece and ancient Rome.

29 Andean herd animal : ALPACA

Alpacas are like small llamas, but unlike llamas were never beasts of burden. Alpacas were bred specifically for the fleece. As such, there are no known wild alpacas these days, even in their native Peru.

31 Alley ___ (basketball play) : OOP

An alley-oop is a play in basketball in which one player lobs the ball close to the basket for a teammate who usually scores with a slam dunk.

32 Spanish rice dishes : PAELLAS

Paella is sometimes referred to as the Spanish national dish, but not by Spaniards. In Spain, paella is regarded as a typical regional dish from Valencia. The name “paella” means “frying pan” in Valencian, and is a reference to the shallow vessel traditionally used to cook the dish over an open fire.

34 4.0 is a great one, for short : GPA

Paella is sometimes referred to as the Spanish national dish, but not by Spaniards. In Spain, paella is regarded as a typical regional dish from Valencia. The name “paella” means “frying pan” in Valencian, and is a reference to the shallow vessel traditionally used to cook the dish over an open fire.

38 Org. that won’t call to demand payments, despite what its impostors would have you believe : IRS

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) was set up during the Civil War to raise money to cover war expenses. Prior to the introduction of income tax in 1862, the government was funded by levies on trade and property.

45 Appliance on a kitchen counter : TOASTER

The electric toaster is a Scottish invention, one created by Alan McMasters in Edinburgh in 1893.

47 Numbered musical work : OPUS

The Latin for “work” is “opus”, with the plural being “opera”. We sometimes use the plural “opuses” in English, but people do that just to annoy me …

52 Believer in Islamic mysticism : SUFI

A sufi is a Muslim mystic, an ascetic. Apparently, the term “sufi” can be translated as “man of wool”. This might be a reference to the practice of donning holy garments made from wool, as opposed to silk.

53 Actor Neeson : LIAM

Irish actor Liam Neeson got his big break when he played Oskar Schindler in the Spielberg epic, “Schindler’s List”. Neeson was in the news some years later when he lost his wife, actress Natasha Richardson, in a tragic skiing accident in 2009. Earlier in his life, in the 1980s, Neeson lived for several years with Oscar-winning actress Helen Mirren.

55 Lead-in to correct or tune : AUTO-

Auto-Tune is a proprietary audio process that is primarily used to alter pitch in a recorded track. One of the main uses of Auto-Tune is to correct voice tracks that are slightly off-pitch, which probably explains why even professional singers tend to sound better on a recording than they do live. More extreme levels of Auto-Tune adjustment are now quite common, creating a sound effect that distorts vocals. Such sound effects really took off with the release of Cher’s 1998 hit song “Believe”, in which you can really notice the vocal distortion.

58 Triangular sail : JIB

A jib is a triangular sail that is set at the bow of a sailboat.

59 Land between Can. and Mex. : USA

The US-Canada border is the longest international border in the world. The total length is 5,525 miles. Canada’s border with the lower 48 states is 3,987 miles long, and the border with Alaska extends 1,538 miles.

The Mexico-US border is the most frequently-crossed border in the world, although it is only the tenth longest border in the world between two countries.

60 All vice presidents before Harris : MEN

Kamala Harris was a US Senator for California starting in 2017, after serving for six years as the Attorney General of California. In early 2019, Harris announced her run for the Democratic nomination for US president in the 2020 election. Although she dropped out of the race, she was chosen by eventual nominee Joe Biden as his vice-presidential running mate. When the Biden-Harris ticket won the election, Harris became the highest-ranking female politician in the history of the US.

61 Colonel Sanders’s chain : KFC

The famous “Colonel” of Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) fame was Harland Sanders, an entrepreneur from Henryville, Indiana. Although not really a “Colonel”, Sanders did indeed serve in the military. He enlisted in the Army as a private in 1906 at the age of 16, lying about his age. He spent the whole of his time in the Army as a soldier in Cuba. It was much later, in the 1930s, that Sanders went into the restaurant business making his specialty deep-fried chicken. By 1935 his reputation as a “character” had grown, so much so that Governor Ruby Laffoon of Kentucky gave Sanders the honorary title of “Kentucky Colonel”. Later in the fifties, Sanders developed his trademark look with the white suit, string tie, mustache and goatee. When Sanders was 65 however, his business failed and in stepped Dave Thomas, the founder of Wendy’s. Thomas simplified the Sanders menu, cutting it back from over a hundred items to just fried chicken and salads. That was enough to launch KFC into the fast food business. Sanders sold the US franchise in 1964 for just $2 million and moved to Canada to grow KFC north of the border. He died in 1980 and is buried in Louisville, Kentucky. The Colonel’s secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices is indeed a trade secret. Apparently there is only one copy of the recipe, a handwritten piece of paper, written in pencil and signed by Colonel Sanders. Since 2009, the piece of paper has been locked in a computerized vault surrounded with motion detectors and security cameras.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Like the path of a lob : ARCED
6 Stand the test of time : LAST
10 Newspaper opinion piece : OP-ED
14 Instrument in a string quartet : CELLO
15 French peak : ALPE
16 “___, far, wherever you are” (Celine Dion lyric) : NEAR
17 Applies sloppily, as paint : DAUBS
18 Data graphics with wedges : PIE CHARTS
20 Egyptian queen, for short : CLEO
21 Stuck ashore, as a whale : BEACHED
22 Cries loudly : WAILS
24 Air traffic control equipment : RADAR
28 Dirty dozen? : BAD EGGS
31 Do surgery : OPERATE
33 Skips over, as a spoken syllable : ELIDES
34 India’s smallest state : GOA
35 Ambulance specialists, in brief : EMTS
36 Hot springs resort : SPA
37 Sent by UPS, e.g. : SHIPPED
40 Baseball’s ___ Wee Reese : PEE
41 Light white powder : TALC
43 “… spoon ___ fork?” : OR A
44 Existing in hidden form : LATENT
46 Spotted wildcats of the South American jungle : OCELOTS
48 Nuts used to make marzipan : ALMONDS
49 Crumple into a ball : WAD UP
50 Princess played by Emma Corrin on “The Crown” : DIANA
51 Ramadan observers : MUSLIMS
54 Fill to capacity : SATE
58 Garments similar to rompers … with a hint to the shaded squares in this puzzle : JUMPSUITS
61 Three-point driving maneuver : K-TURN
62 “Ah, that makes sense now” : I SEE
63 Fiction’s opposite : FACT
64 Malodorous : FETID
65 Kings of Leon or Queens of the Stone Age : BAND
66 “If you ask me …,” online : IMHO …
67 Farmer’s harvests : CROPS

Down

1 Electrical adapter letters : AC/DC
2 Authentic : REAL
3 You’re reading one right now : CLUE
4 Nudged : ELBOWED
5 ___ and don’ts : DOS
6 Big flaps in the fashion industry? : LAPELS
7 Assumed name : ALIAS
8 Blueprint detail : SPEC
9 Silicon Valley field : TECH
10 How you might walk through the graveyard at night : ON A DARE
11 The “p” of m.p.g. : PER
12 Have for lunch : EAT
13 Stethoscope users: Abbr. : DRS
19 “Present!” : HERE!
21 V.I.P. : BIG SHOT
23 Middle ___ (time before the Renaissance) : AGES
25 Make slightly wet : DAMPEN
26 Go to an event : ATTEND
27 Adjusts, as a clock : RESETS
28 Confer (upon) : BESTOW
29 Andean herd animal : ALPACA
30 Used a rotary phone : DIALED
31 Alley ___ (basketball play) : OOP
32 Spanish rice dishes : PAELLAS
34 4.0 is a great one, for short : GPA
38 Org. that won’t call to demand payments, despite what its impostors would have you believe : IRS
39 “Shucks!,” only stronger : DAMN!
42 In a mass : CLUMPED
45 Appliance on a kitchen counter : TOASTER
47 Numbered musical work : OPUS
48 Hopes one will : AIMS TO
50 Get rid of, informally : DITCH
52 Believer in Islamic mysticism : SUFI
53 Actor Neeson : LIAM
55 Lead-in to correct or tune : AUTO-
56 Excursion : TRIP
57 Finishes : ENDS
58 Triangular sail : JIB
59 Land between Can. and Mex. : USA
60 All vice presidents before Harris : MEN
61 Colonel Sanders’s chain : KFC