1014-17 NY Times Crossword Answers 14 Oct 2017, Saturday

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Constructed by: Sam Ezersky
Edited by: Will Shortz

Today’s Theme: None

Bill’s time: 16m 03s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

15. Hit TV series based on a Colombian telenovela : UGLY BETTY

“Ugly Betty” is a drama-comedy show that originally aired on television from 2006 to 2010. The show is based on a telenovela soap opera from Colombia called “Yo soy Betty, la fea”. The title role of Betty Suarez is played by America Ferrera.

16. Source of the line “They have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind” : HOSEA

Hosea was one of the Twelve Prophets of the Hebrew Bible, also called the Minor Prophets of the Old Testament in the Christian Bible.

19. Farmhand in “The Wizard of Oz” : ZEKE

Zeke is the farmworker played by Bert Lahr in 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz”. Zeke is the character who morphed into the Cowardly Lion in Dorothy’s dream.

25. Eponym of a North Carolina city : ASHE

Samuel Ashe was the Governor of North Carolina from 1795 to 1798. North Carolina’s Ashe County and the cities of Asheboro and Asheville are named in his honor.

27. With 33-Across, husky-voiced singer known as the Jezebel of Jazz : ANITA … (33A. See 27-Across : … O’DAY)

Anita O’Day was the stage name of the jazz singer Anita Colton. She chose the name as “O’Day” is Pig Latin for “dough”, a slang term for “money”. O’Day had problems with heroin and alcohol addiction leading to erratic behavior, and earning her the nickname “The Jezebel of Jazz”.

29. Unnerving boom, of sorts : A-TEST

Atomic test (A-test)

35. Tough : THUG

The handheld weapon known as a garrote (or garotte) was in particular used by murderers and robbers harassing travelers in India. These felons were known locally as “thuggees” (from the Hindi word for “thief”). This gave us our contemporary word “thug”, meaning a brute.

37. Sorcerer : MAGUS

“Magi” is the plural of the Latin word “magus”, a term applied to someone who was able to read the stars. Hence, magi is commonly used with reference to the “wise men from the East” who followed the star and visited Jesus soon after he was born. In Western Christianity, the three Biblical Magi are:

  • Melchior: a scholar from Persia
  • Caspar: a scholar from India
  • Balthazar: a scholar from Arabia

40. Senior moment? : PROM

A prom is a formal dance held upon graduation from high school (we call them “formals” over in Ireland). The term “prom” is short for “promenade”, the name given to a type of dance or ball.

42. World capital once known as Philadelphia : AMMAN

Amman is the capital city of Jordan, and is one of the oldest continuously-inhabited cities in the world. Amman has been occupied by a number of different civilizations over the centuries, including the Greeks who called it “Philadelphia”, a name retained by the Romans when they occupied the city just after 100 AD.

43. Onetime competitor of Gulf : AMOCO

“Amoco” is an abbreviation for “American Oil Company”, an oil company that merged with BP in 1998. Amoco was the first oil company to introduce gasoline tanker trucks and drive-through filling stations. I wonder did they know what they were starting …?

53. Tropical bar offering : PINA COLADA

“Piña colada” is a Spanish term which translates into “strained pineapple”. The Piña colada cocktail was introduced in the Caribe Hilton San Juan in 1954, and since 1978 it has been the official beverage of Puerto Rico. Yum …

56. One of 70 in a Shakespearean sonnet : IAMB

An iamb is a metrical foot containing an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable. Robert Frost’s “Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening” consists of lines made up of four sequential iambs e.g. “Whose woods / these are / I think / I know”. With a sequence of four iambs, the poem’s structure is described as iambic tetrameter.

A sonnet is a short poem with varying rhyming schemes but always with 14 lines. The sonnet form has been around at least since the 13th century. The Shakespearean sonnet, for example, is composed of three quatrains (4 lines) and a final couplet (2 lines).

58. Mrs. Woodrow Wilson : EDITH

Edith Wilson was the second wife of President Woodrow Wilson. There is little doubt that Mrs. Wilson acted as Chief of Staff for her husband, and some say actually ran the country, for some time after he suffered a stroke in 1919. She strongly opposed the notion that Vice President Riley Marshall should assume the powers of president, and so stepped in herself. Mrs Wilson retired with her husband in 1921 when he left office, and she nursed him until his death in 1924. Edith Wilson is sometimes referred to as the “first female president of the US”. Since 1965, the issue no longer exists, as the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the Constitution was enacted, providing direction on procedure should the President become incapacitated.

59. Many a B-school applicant : ECON MAJOR

Business school (B-school)

62. Crunchy Klondike product : CHOCO TACO

A Choco Taco is an elaborate ice cream dessert that was created in the eighties by the Jack and Jill Ice Cream Company in Philadelphia.

63. Samuel ___, investment banking firm co-founder : SACHS

The investment banking firm of Goldman Sachs was founded in New York in 1869 by Marcus Goldman. Samuel Sachs joined the firm in 1882, the same year that he married Louisa Goldman, Marcus’s daughter. The name “Goldman Sachs” was adopted by the firm in 1885. Goldman Sachs made out like bandits during the subprime mortgage crisis of 2007-08 as the company actually short-sold subprime mortgage bonds. As the price of the bonds nose-dived, Goldman Sachs made huge profits.

64. Model who popularized the term “smizing” : TYRA BANKS

Tyra Banks is a tremendously successful model and businesswoman. Banks created and hosted the hit show “America’s Next Top Model “, and also had her own talk show. She was also the first African American woman to make the cover of the “Sports Illustrated” swimsuit issue. Banks took over as host of “America’s Got Talent” in 2017.

Down

1. Spin out on the ice? : LUTZ

2. Symbol of the National Audubon Society : EGRET

The National Audubon Society is an environmental organization that was formed in 1905. The society is named for John James Audubon, an ornithologist who compiled his famous book “Birds of America” between 1827 and 1838.

4. Ambitious and high-energy : TYPE A

The Type A and Type B personality theory originated in the fifties. Back then, individuals were labelled as Type A in order to emphasize a perceived increased risk of heart disease. Type A personality types are so called “stress junkies”, whereas Type B types are relaxed and laid back. But there doesn’t seem to be much scientific evidence to support the linkage between the Type A personality and heart problems.

5. Pit-y party? : BBQ

It is believed that our word “barbecue” (BBQ) comes from the Taíno people of the Caribbean in whose language “barbacoa” means “sacred fire pit”.

9. Half of a 1997 telecom merger : NYNEX

The telecommunications company that we know today as Verizon was founded in 1983 as Bell Atlantic, and was one of the “Baby Bells” that were formed after the breakup of AT&T. Bell Atlantic merged with fellow Baby Bell NYNEX in 1997, and then merged with GTE in 2000 to form Verizon. The new company name is a portmanteau of “veritas” (“truth” in Latin) and “horizon”.

10. P.M. between Barak and Olmert : SHARON

Ariel Sharon was a former Prime Minister of Israel. While still in office in 2005, Sharon suffered two debilitating strokes that left him in a permanent vegetative state from early 2006, until he finally passed away in early 2014.

Ehud Barak served as Prime Minister of Israel from 1999 to 2001, taking over from Benjamin Netanyahu. Barak left office after he called a special election for Prime Minister and lost the vote to Ariel Sharon. Barak resigned from the Knesset and took an advisory job with the US company Electronic Data Systems (EDS), and did some security-related work with a private equity company. In 2007, Barak took over leadership of Israel’s Labor Party.

Ehud Olmert took over as Acting Prime Minister when Ariel Sharon suffered a severe stroke early in 2006. Olmert then led his party to victory in a general election held later that same year. He held Israel’s highest office in his own right until 2009, when he had to step down facing allegations of corruption.

11. What turns 1,000 into 3, in base 10 : LOGARITHM

As an example of a logarithm, the number 10,000 is equal to 10 to the power of 4, so the base-10 logarithm of 10,000 is said to be 4. Inversely, the antilogarithm of 4 (in the base-10) is 10,000. But, we all remember that from school, don’t we?

12. Longest song on Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon” : US AND THEM

Pink Floyd was an English rock band founded in 1965. The band’s most famous albums are probably “The Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wall”.

13. Britt ___, real name of the Green Hornet : REID

In “The Green Hornet” television series, Kato was famously played by Bruce Lee. The Kato role has been cited as a driving force behind the increase in popularity of martial arts in the US during the sixties.

21. Tony’s place, for short? : B’WAY

The Tony Awards are more completely referred to as the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre. The awards are named for Mary Antoinette “Tony” Perry, who was a co-founder of the American Theatre Wing.

23. Topics for Kaplan : SATS

Kaplan Inc. was founded in 1938 by Stanley Kaplan, who started out tutoring students for the New York State Regents Exam in the basement of his parents’ home in Brooklyn. He opened up locations for tuition around the country, and in 1984 sold the company to the Washington Post. Revenue for Kaplan was over 2½ billion dollars in 2009.

30. Neighbor of Twelve Oaks, in fiction : TARA

Scarlett O’Hara’s home is the Tara plantation, in Margaret Mitchell’s “Gone with the Wind”. Tara was founded not far from the Georgia city of Jonesboro by Scarlett’s father, Irish immigrant Gerald O’Hara. Gerald won the square mile of land on which Tara was built in an all-night poker game. He named his new abode after the Hill of Tara back in his home country, the ancient seat of the High King of Ireland. Rhett’s rival for the affections of Scarlet is Ashley Wilkes who lives at the nearby Twelve Oaks plantation.

31. Emperor Nero, by all accounts : EGOMANIAC

Nero was Emperor of Rome from 54 to 68 CE, and towards the end of his reign participated in the Olympic Games in the year 67. The Roman leader raced in a ten-horse chariot, of which he lost control and nearly perished after being thrown from the vehicle. Acting and singing were Olympic events back then, and Nero also took part in those competitions. By all accounts, Nero performed badly in every event in which he vied, and yet somehow still managed to win Olympic crowns that he paraded around Rome on his return from Greece.

32. Popular Tokyo entertainment : SUMO MATCH

Sumo is a sport that is practiced professionally only in Japan, the country of its origin. There is an international federation of sumo wrestling now, and one of the organization’s aims is to have the sport accepted as an Olympic event.

34. One way to the top : ATTIC DOOR

An attic or loft is a room or space located below the roof of a building. The term “attic” is a shortened form of “attic story”, the uppermost story or level of a house. This term “attic story” originally applied to a low, decorative level built on top of the uppermost story behind a building’s decorative facade. This use of decoration at the top of buildings was common in ancient Greece, and was particularly important in the Attica style. That Attica style was so called because it originated in the historical region of Attica that encompassed the city of Athens. And that’s how our attics are linked to ancient Greece.

44. Browsers’ aids : CACHES

In the world of computers a “cache” is a component that stores data locally so that there is no need to go get that original data all over again after the first usage. Applications that use a cache move along more quickly. A good example is a web browser that will store some information from a website in a cache on one’s computer. When you ask your browser to visit a website that you’ve used before, while the browser is waiting for the latest information from the website it will display the old data (the stuff that doesn’t change, that was retained from the last visit) from its cache, so that you don’t have to wait so long to view a web page.

50. Spider alternative : MIATA

The Mazda MX-5 is sold as the Miata in North America, and as the Roadster in Japan. I’ve always liked the looks of the Mazda Miata, probably because it reminds me so much of old British sports cars. The Miata is built in Hiroshima, Japan.

51. Person from Barbados, informally : BAJAN

Now that Barbados is an independent country, by all measures it is a very developed country. Using the Human Development Index (HDI), Barbados is the third most developed country in the western hemisphere, coming up right behind the US and Canada.

57. Warner ___ : BROS

The Warner Bros. film studio was founded by four Warner brothers, although their original family name was Wonskolaser. The older brothers emigrated from Poland as children with their parents, and changed their name when they landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1889.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Place where analysis is done : LEFT BRAIN
10. Impolite sound : SLURP
15. Hit TV series based on a Colombian telenovela : UGLY BETTY
16. Source of the line “They have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind” : HOSEA
17. 2015 #2 hit for rapper Fetty Wap : TRAP QUEEN
18. Over : AGAIN
19. Farmhand in “The Wizard of Oz” : ZEKE
20. They’re not generic : NAME BRANDS
22. China assembly : TEA SET
24. What you’re solving, informally : XWORD
25. Eponym of a North Carolina city : ASHE
27. With 33-Across, husky-voiced singer known as the Jezebel of Jazz : ANITA …
29. Unnerving boom, of sorts : A-TEST
33. See 27-Across : … O’DAY
35. Tough : THUG
37. Sorcerer : MAGUS
38. Crossed : MET
39. With 39-Down, question after an interruption : WHERE …
40. Senior moment? : PROM
41. Like a paper clip : BENT
42. World capital once known as Philadelphia : AMMAN
43. Onetime competitor of Gulf : AMOCO
45. Some kin : SIBS
47. Knock over : AMAZE
49. Shins : CLIMBS
53. Tropical bar offering : PINA COLADA
56. One of 70 in a Shakespearean sonnet : IAMB
58. Mrs. Woodrow Wilson : EDITH
59. Many a B-school applicant : ECON MAJOR
61. “See ya!” : PEACE!
62. Crunchy Klondike product : CHOCO TACO
63. Samuel ___, investment banking firm co-founder : SACHS
64. Model who popularized the term “smizing” : TYRA BANKS

Down

1. Spin out on the ice? : LUTZ
2. Symbol of the National Audubon Society : EGRET
3. Abandon plans, in modern slang : FLAKE
4. Ambitious and high-energy : TYPE A
5. Pit-y party? : BBQ
6. Gets together after 10 or 20 years, say : REUNES
7. Didn’t go out to dinner : ATE AT HOME
8. Hot ___ : ITEM
9. Half of a 1997 telecom merger : NYNEX
10. P.M. between Barak and Olmert : SHARON
11. What turns 1,000 into 3, in base 10 : LOGARITHM
12. Longest song on Pink Floyd’s “The Dark Side of the Moon” : US AND THEM
13. Britt ___, real name of the Green Hornet : REID
14. Slams : PANS
21. Tony’s place, for short? : B’WAY
23. Topics for Kaplan : SATS
26. Blissful locales : EDENS
28. Atmosphere : AURA
29. Fire (up) : AMP
30. Neighbor of Twelve Oaks, in fiction : TARA
31. Emperor Nero, by all accounts : EGOMANIAC
32. Popular Tokyo entertainment : SUMO MATCH
34. One way to the top : ATTIC DOOR
36. Next ___ (emerging group of young leaders, informally) : GEN
39. See 39-Across : … WAS I?
41. Dum-dum : BOZO
44. Browsers’ aids : CACHES
46. Like snow en Argentina : BLANCA
48. Give a seat : ELECT
50. Spider alternative : MIATA
51. Person from Barbados, informally : BAJAN
52. Lab wear : SMOCK
53. Fires (up) : PEPS
54. It’s just in your head : IDEA
55. Fluish, perhaps : ACHY
57. Warner ___ : BROS
60. Idol group : MOB