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Constructed by: Patti Varol

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Gaining Weight

Themed answers are common phrases that have GAINED a “TON” on the end:

• 49A Getting heavier, or an apt title for this puzzle : GAINING WEIGHT

• 20A Box that’s unexpectedly popular? : SLEEPER CARTON (from “sleeper car”)
• 24A Lazy way to soothe hurt feelings? : NO OFFENSE BUTTON (from “no offense, but …”)
• 43A Take tiny crustaceans out for a stroll? : WALK THE PLANKTON (from “walk the plank”)

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 7m 36s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6A Primer lesson : ABCS

A primer is a textbook used to teach the alphabet and basic reading. When “primer” is used in this sense in the US, it is pronounced with a short letter I (giving “primmer”). I’ve never understood why such a pronunciation would be used …

14A Provençal sauce : AIOLI

To the purist, especially in Provence in the South of France, aioli is prepared just by grinding garlic with olive oil. However, other ingredients are often added to the mix, particularly egg yolks.

15A Bread from a tandoor : NAAN

A tandoor is a cylindrical clay or metal oven used in cuisines from several Asian locales, including India.

16A Many a techie or Trekkie : GEEK

Originally, a geek was a sideshow performer, perhaps one at a circus. Sometimes the term “geek” is used today for someone regarded as foolish or clumsy, and also for someone who is technically driven and expert, but often socially inept.

17A Fruit with a thick rind : MELON

Melons are plants with edible, fleshy fruits that are usually sweet. The fruit of a melon is actually a berry.

22A Raft : SEA

A “raft” is a large amount, coming from the Middle English “raf” meaning the same thing.

23A Fish that’s a symbol of Children’s Day in Japan : KOI

Japan has an official holiday on May 5th every year called Children’s Day, which is used to honor the happiness and personalities of all children. Prior to 1948, May 5th was celebrated as Boys’ Day, which complemented Girls’ Day, observed annually on March 3rd.

38A Bridget’s daughter in the “Bridget Jones” series : MABEL

“Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy” is the third novel in the “Bridget Jones” series by Helen Fielding. In this book, Bridget is 51 years old, and has two children: Mabel and Billy. Fans of the series were shocked to read that Bridget’s husband, and father of her children, had been killed in a landmine accident. The storyline centers on the single mother navigating the online dating scene, and romancing a younger man named Roxster.

40A “Big” and “Bang Bang” singer Rita : ORA

The 2021 song “Big” is very much a collaboration. It was performed by British singer Rita Ora, French disc jockey David Guetta and Kazakh disc jockey Imanbek. Also, the song was written by seven fellow artists, including Ed Sheeran.

The 2021 song “Bang Bang” is performed by English singer Rita Ora and Kazakh disk jockey Imanbek. It was released to promote the pair’s collaborative EP called “Bang”.

42A Old Spanish coin : PESETA

The peseta is a former currency of Spain and was also the de facto currency of Spain’s neighbor, the Principality of Andorra. It was replaced by the euro in 2002.

43A Take tiny crustaceans out for a stroll? : WALK THE PLANKTON (from “walk the plank”)

Plankton are organisms that float in water and are incapable of swimming against a current. They can be classified into four broad groups:

• Phytoplankton: algae that live on the surface and use light for photosynthesis.
• Zooplankton: small animals that mainly feed on other plankton.
• Bacterioplankton: the bacterial component of plankton.
• Mycoplankton: the fungal component of plankton.

Believe it or not, the dramatic execution method of forcing captives to walk the plank into the sea is largely a myth, a myth popularized by works like Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island” and J.M. Barrie’s “Peter Pan”. Real pirates tended to maroon their victims, or simply throw them overboard.

47A Scand. land : NOR

Strictly speaking, Scandinavia is a region in Northern Europe that covers the kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. The broader region that includes Finland and Iceland is referred to locally as “the Nordic countries”.

57A Nebraska rail hub : OMAHA

The first transcontinental railroad wasn’t really transcontinental. It was built to allow transportation of passengers and goods to and from the West Coast, and really was an extension of the network of lines that already existed east of the Missouri River. President Abraham Lincoln chose Omaha, Nebraska, as the eastern terminus of the new rail line that would connect initially with Sacramento, and soon after San Francisco, California. After the line was completed, most passengers from the East Coast made their way to Omaha using a patchwork of existing railroads, crossed the Missouri by ferry, before completing their transcontinental journey by train.

60A Foil kin : EPEE

There are three fencing events in the modern Olympics, with each distinguished by the weapon used:

• Foil
• Épée
• Sabre

62A Aloo mutter ingredients : PEAS

Aloo mutter (also “aloo matar”) is a very delicious dish from Indian cuisine comprising potatoes and peas in a spicy, creamy, tomato-based sauce. The dish’s name translates as “potatoes and peas”.

64A __ City: Pittsburgh : STEEL

The Pennsylvania city of Pittsburgh was named in 1758 for British statesman and future prime minister William Pitt the Elder. Originally known as Fort Duquesne, the settlement was renamed after it was captured from the French during the Seven Years’ War. The most commonly used nicknames for Pittsburgh are “Steel City”, referring to the history of steel-related industry, and “City of Bridges”, referring to the 446 bridges in the metropolis.

Down

1D Waterston in the American Theater Hall of Fame : SAM

Actor Sam Waterston is perhaps best known for his roles on television. He played District Attorney Jack McCoy on “Law & Order” for several years, and more recently was cast alongside Martin Sheen, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in the Netflix original “Grace and Frankie”.

The American Theater Hall of Fame was established in 1972 in New York City, housed in what now is called the Gershwin Theatre. To be eligible for induction, a theater professional must have at least 25 years of distinguished service in the American theater and a minimum of five major production credits on Broadway.

3D Craps turn : ROLL

If one considers earlier versions of craps, then the game has been around for a very long time and probably dates back to the Crusades. It may have been derived from an old English game called “hazard” also played with two dice, which was mentioned in Geoffrey Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales” from the 1300s. The American version of the game came here courtesy of the French and first took root in New Orleans where it was given the name “crapaud”, a French word meaning “toad”.

4D Succulent with lace and tiger tooth varieties : ALOE

Above and beyond the ubiquitous medicinal Aloe vera, the genus Aloe comprises over 500 species of flowering succulents. Ornamental varieties like the lace aloe (although not a true aloe) feature distinctive white-spotted bands, and the tiger tooth aloe forms stacking rosettes that have soft, prominent spines.

6D Like llamas : ANDEAN

The llama is a South American camelid that has been domesticated. They have been used as pack animals by Andean cultures since pre-Columbian times, as they are known for their calm demeanor and ability to carry heavy loads over long distances in rugged terrain. Llamas are also raised for their meat and wool.

7D Boxer Max : BAER

Max Baer was an American Heavyweight Champion of the World in the thirties. Baer held the title for 364 days, and then went into the ring after hardly any training at all against the well-prepared James J. Braddock. Braddock was a huge underdog, and yet emerged victorious after 15 rounds (Braddock is the subject of the 2005 movie “Cinderella Man”). By the way, Baer’s son is Max Baer, Jr., the actor who played Jethro on “The Beverly Hillbillies”.

8D Course after trig : CALC

Students typically tackle the subject of calculus only after mastering the prerequisite foundations of algebra, geometry, and trigonometry.

11D “Middle Cyclone” Grammy nominee Case : NEKO

“Middle Cyclone” is a 2009 indie folk album released by alternative country singer Neko Case. The lyrics of the songs evoke images of untamed nature and destructive weather, hence the album’s title. Famously, the final “song” is a 32-minute ambient track titled “Marais la Nuit”, French for “Marsh at Night”, that consists entirely of springtime frog calls recorded on her Vermont farm.

25D Catherine of “The Studio” : O’HARA

Catherine O’Hara was an actress and comedian from Toronto. One of O’Hara’s more famous film roles is Kevin’s mother in the Christmas classic “Home Alone”. She also played a lead character (Moira) in the excellent sitcom “Schitt’s Creek” alongside Eugene Levy.

“The Studio” is a 2025 satirical comedy TV series created by Seth Rogen and others. The show delves into the inner workings of a floundering Hollywood movie studio, Continental Studios. Seth Rogen himself stars as Matt Remick, the newly appointed studio head. I haven’t seen the show, but it sounds interesting, with many actors making cameo appearances …

30D Bhutan neighbor : TIBET

Bhutan is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is located high up in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and India to the south, east and west. It has been a constitutional monarchy since 2008, and has been ranked by “Businessweek” as the “happiest” country in Asia.

32D “The Odyssey” director : NOLAN

2026’s “The Odyssey” is an epic fantasy movie written and directed by Christopher Nolan. The stellar ensemble cast includes Matt Damon as the Ithacan king Odysseus, and Anne Hathaway as the king’s wife Penelope. It is the first feature film shot entirely on IMAX 70 mm film cameras.

British director Christopher Nolan was best known for some time for “rescuing” the floundering Batman movie franchise. In that series, Nolan directed “Batman Begins” and “The Dark Knight”. He was also at the helm of a couple of sci-fi movies that I really enjoyed, namely “Inception” (2010) and “Interstellar” (2014). And then, along came “Oppenheimer” and “The Odyssey” …

41D Masonic order member in a fez : SHRINER

The Shriners are an offshoot of the Freemasons. One of the Shriners’ founders was Walter Fleming, who picked up the idea of creating a group with a Middle Eastern theme after witnessing an Arabian musical comedy in Southern France and again in North Africa. He gave the group its name: the Ancient Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine, Shriners for short.

44D 2026 NBA champions : KNICKS

The New York Knickerbockers (“Knicks”) team is one of only two founding members of the original National Basketball Association that still plays in its original home city. The other is the Boston Celtics.

49D __ therapy : GENE

Gene therapy is an experimental technology used to treat disease. The basic principle is to transplant genes into a patient’s cells in order to cure a disease caused by the absence of those genes.

51D County east of Sonoma : NAPA

Commercial wine production officially began in Napa County in 1858 when John Patchett opened the county’s first commercial vineyard. Today, despite its global reputation and housing over 400 physical wineries, Napa accounts for only about four percent of California’s total annual wine harvest.

53D B-school entry req. : GMAT

If you want to get into a business school’s graduate program then you might have to take the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT), which will cost you $275-300, I believe …

55D “Hot Girl Summer” rapper Megan __ Stallion : THEE

“Hot Girl Summer” is a 2019 song released by Megan Thee Stallion, featuring Nicki Minaj and Ty Dolla Sign. Megan coined the phrase “hot girl summer” just before the song was published, and it went viral, describing unapologetic confidence, fun and hyping up one’s friends. Later that year, she trademarked the phrase to protect it from unauthorized commercial exploitation by major brands.