Day: October 2, 2014

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
6. Insincere flattery SMARM
The term “smarm”, meaning insincere flattery, comes from a colloquial word “smalm” meaning to smear the hair with some sort of styling product.

11. Town in a Hersey title ADANO
“A Bell for Adano” is a novel written by John Hersey. Hersey’s story is about an Italian-American US Army officer, Major Joppolo, who found a replacement for a town’s bell stolen by fascists. “A Bell for Adano” was made into a film in 1945, the same year the novel won a Pulitzer.

12. Book before Joel 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.

13. Roadie’s burden AMP
An electric guitar, for example, needs an amplifier (amp) to take the weak signal created by the vibration of the strings and turn it into a signal powerful enough for a loudspeaker.

Roadies working with a musical band on tour have to tote amps from venue to venue.

16. Like some ALS Ice Bucket Challenge videos VIRAL
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge is a viral phenomenon in which participants are challenged to be filmed having a bucket of ice water poured over their heads. Each participant then gets to nominate up to three other people to do the same. Usually the nominees are given a day or two to comply, but can make a charitable donation is they want to avoid the icy shower. Happily, many participants opt to take the challenge, and also make a donation.

17. Home of the bush ballad AUSTRALIA
Bush ballads are traditional folk songs associated with the Australian Outback.

19. Greek letter ETA
Eta is the seventh letter of the Greek alphabet, and is a forerunner of our Latin character “H”. Originally denoting a consonant, eta was used as a long vowel in Ancient Greek.

23. Rocky pinnacle TOR
A tor is a high rocky hill. “Tor” comes from the Old English “torr”, the word for a tower or rock, which in turn comes from the Old Welsh “twrr” meaning a heap or a pile.

24. Brit who might lose a stone? DIETER
We’ve used pounds and stones in Ireland, for all my life there. However, they no longer have any “official” status in the country, as we’ve made the conversion to the metric system. Having said that, many folks still tend to measure body weight in stones and pounds. One stone is equal to fourteen pounds.

26. __ tape DUCT
What we tend to call “duct” tape today was originally known as “duck” tape. In its first form, duck tape was rubber-based adhesive applied to a duck cloth backing, hence the name. Cotton duck cloth is a canvas-like material, a plain woven cotton fabric. The name “duck” comes from the Dutch “doek” meaning “linen canvas”. Duck tape started to known as “duct tape” in the fifties, as it was commonly used to wrap air ducts in the construction industry.

27. Cicero, for one ORATOR
Cicero was a very influential senator in Ancient Rome, in part due to his renowned ability to deliver a persuasive speech. His full name was Marcus Tullius Cicero.

31. Half a drink TAI
The Mai Tai cocktail is strongly associated with the Polynesian islands, but the drink was supposedly invented in 1944 in Trader Vic’s restaurant in Oakland, California. One recipe is 6 parts white rum, 3 parts orange curaçao, 3 parts Orgeat syrup, 1 part rock candy syrup, 2 parts fresh lime juice, all mixed with ice and then a float added of 6 parts dark rum.

32. CV component BIO
A curriculum vitae (CV) is a listing of someone’s work experience and qualifications, and is used mainly in making a job application. The term “curriculum vitae” can be translated from Latin as “course of life”.

33. Three sheets to the wind LIT
A sheet is the rope that is used to control a sail on a sailing vessel. The expression “three sheets to the wind” meaning “drunk” dates back to the early 1800s. It likely derives from the notion that a sailboat with three sails, and with all three sheets slipped out of control, would behave like someone who was drunk, and vice versa.

34. Selassie of Ethiopia HAILE
Emperor Haile Selassie I ruled Ethiopia until he was removed from power in a revolution in 1974. Selassie died in 1975 under suspicious circumstances and it is widely believed that he was assassinated.

38. Snake eye? ONE
“Snake eyes” is the slang term for a roll of two dice in which one pip turns up on each die.

40. Seventh-century pope LEO II
Pope Saint Leo II was leader of the Roman Catholic Church for less than a year before he died in 683.

41. Blu-ray player ancestor VCR
A CD player reads the information on the disc using a laser beam. The beam is produced by what’s called a laser diode, a device similar to a light-emitting diode (LED) except that a laser beam is emitted. That laser beam is usually red in CD and DVD players. Blu-ray players are so called as they use blue lasers.

44. Astra or Insignia OPEL
Adam Opel founded his company in 1863, first making sewing machines in a cowshed. Commercial success brought new premises and a new product line in 1886, namely penny-farthing bicycles. Adam Opel died in 1895, leaving his two sons with a company that made more penny-farthings and sewing machines than any other company in the world. In 1899 the two sons partnered with a locksmith and started to make cars, but not very successfully. Two years later, the locksmith was dropped in favor of a licensing arrangement with a French car company. By 1914, Opel was the largest manufacturer of automobiles in Germany. My Dad had an Opel in the seventies, a station wagon (we’d say “estate car” in Ireland) called an Opel Kadett.

49. DWI-fighting gp. SADD
Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) was founded in Massachusetts in 1981. SADD’s aim is to prevent road traffic accidents by urging students to avoid potentially destructive decisions (such as driving under the influence of alcohol).

51. Genesis ORIGIN
“Genesis” is a Greek word meaning “origin, creation”.

53. “__ Cried”: 1962 hit for Jay and the Americans SHE
Jay and the Americans were a pop group that was most successful in the sixties. The band formed with the lead singer being John “Jay” Traynor, and their first big hit was “She Cried” in 1962. “Jay” left the band soon after, as the following recordings didn’t fare so well. He was replaced by guitarist and singer David Black, but not before David agreed to change his name to “Jay” Black. With the new lineup the band had more hits, including “Come a Little Bit Closer” (1964) and “Cara Mia” (1965).

56. Pooch sans papers MUTT
The original use of the term “mutt” was for a foolish person, and was probably short for “muttonhead”. The usage evolved into today’s “mongrel dog”.

62. Ice cream maker Joseph EDY
Dreyers’ ice cream sells its products under the name Dreyers in the Western United States, and Edy’s in the Eastern states. The company’s founders were William Dryer and Joseph Edy.

63. Bars with character, to some DIVES
“Dive’ is slang for a disreputable or run-down bar or nightclub. The term dates back to the 1870s and probably arose from the sense that won had to “dive down” into such an establishment, as they were usually located in basements.

64. Slower than adagio LENTO
A lento passage is a piece of music that has a slow tempo.

An adagio is a piece of music with a slow tempo. The “adagio” marking on the score is an instruction to play the piece slowly and in a stately manner. The word adagio is Latin for “at ease”.

Down
3. Classic music hall song that lent its melody to the “Howdy Doody” theme TA-RA-RA BOOM-DE-AY
“Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay” is an old music hall song from the late 1800s. The tune was used in 20th century for the theme song for the children’s TV show “Howdy Doody”, using the title “It’s Howdy Doody Time”.

4. Santa __ Mountains ANA
Southern California’s Santa Ana Mountains run southeast of Los Angeles. The range was named by Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolà. Don Gaspar camped below the mountains in 1769 on July 26, the Feast of Saint Anne.

5. Lake Erie city TOLEDO, OHIO
Toledo, Ohio lies in the northwest of the state, at the western end of Lake Erie. Toledo was founded as a result of the prosperity that hit the area when the Miami and Erie Canal was constructed in the 19th century connecting Cincinnati to the Great Lakes. Toledo is known as the Glass City as several glass companies originated there, including Owens Corning and Pilkington North America. There is a large exhibition of glass art at the Toledo Museum of Art.

10. Painter Chagall MARC
Marc Chagall was a Russian-French artist, one of the most successful of the 20th century. Unlike so many painters, Chagall was able to achieve wealth and notoriety for his work during his own lifetime. It did help that Chagall lived to a ripe old age though. He passed away in 1985, when he was 97 years young. One of Chagall’s most famous works is the ceiling of the Paris Opera. The new ceiling for the beautiful 19th-century building was commissioned in 1963, and took Chagall a year to complete. Chagall was 77 years old when he worked on the Paris Opera project.

13. Unalaska, e.g. ALEUTIAN ISLAND
The Aleutian Islands are a chain of 69 volcanic islands that extend in an arc-shape in the Northern Pacific Ocean. The Aleutian Islands are home to 57 volcanoes.

Unalaska Island is one of the Aleutian chain of islands off the coast of Alaska. Dutch Harbor, located within the city of Unalaska, is the largest fisheries port in the whole of the United States.

15. McDonald’s supply PATTIES
The original McDonald’s restaurant was opened in 1940 by Richard and Maurice McDonald as a barbecue restaurant. The brothers then moved into fast food hamburgers, eventually selling out to one of their franchise agents, Ray Kroc. It was Ray Kroc who really led the company to its worldwide success.

28. Small South American monkey TITI
Titis are monkeys found in much of South America. Totis have tails that are a little bit longer than the length of their heads and bodies.

35. Yankee suspended for the 2014 season A-ROD
Poor old Alex Rodriguez earned more nicknames than just A-Rod. He has been called “the Cooler” by some players as there is a perception that teams go cold when he joins them and hot when he leaves. He has also been called “A-Fraud” by teammates because of another perception, that he is over-demanding. Rodriguez now seems to be in a world of hurt for using illegal performance-enhancing drugs.

36. Start of a confession BLESS ME …
A member of the Roman Catholic church can participate in the sacrament of confession. A penitent confesses to a priest, starting with the words, “Bless me Father, for I have sinned. It has been [time period] since my last confession …”

45. Reminder of a kind POST-IT
The Post-it note was invented at 3M following the accidental discovery of a low-tack, reusable adhesive. The actual intent of the development program was the discovery of a super-strong adhesive.

47. Certain Muslim SHIITE
The Islamic sects of Sunni and Shia Muslims differ in the belief of who should have taken over leadership of the Muslim faithful after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. Followers of the Sunni tradition agree with the decision that the Prophet Muhammad’s confidante Abu Bakr was the right choice to become the first Caliph of the Islamic nation. Followers of the Shia tradition believe that leadership should have stayed within the Prophet Muhammad’s own family.

52. Letterman interviewee, say GUEST
Talk show host and comedian David Letterman has been appearing on late night television since 1982. Letterman has the longest late-night hosting career on US television, even longer than the iconic Johnny Carson. Letterman has announced his plan to retire in 2015.

55. Old Fords LTDS
There has been a lot of speculation about what the acronym LTD stands for in the car model known as “Ford LTD”. Many say it stands for Luxury Trim Decor, and others that it is an abbreviation for “limited”. Although the car was produced in Australia with the acronym meaning Lincoln Type Design, it seems LTD was originally chosen as just three meaningless letters that sound well together.

61. __ culpa MEA
Many Roman Catholics are very familiar with the Latin phrase “mea culpa” meaning “my fault”, as it is used in the Latin Mass. The additional term “mea maxima culpa” translates as “my most grievous fault”.

Return to top of page

For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Hint GET AT
6. Insincere flattery SMARM
11. Town in a Hersey title ADANO
12. Book before Joel HOSEA
13. Roadie’s burden AMP
16. Like some ALS Ice Bucket Challenge videos VIRAL
17. Home of the bush ballad AUSTRALIA
19. Greek letter ETA
20. Take in EARN
22. Hardest to get close to ICIEST
23. Rocky pinnacle TOR
24. Brit who might lose a stone? DIETER
26. __ tape DUCT
27. Cicero, for one ORATOR
29. From the top ANEW
31. Half a drink TAI
32. CV component BIO
33. Three sheets to the wind LIT
34. Selassie of Ethiopia HAILE
36. Stew base BROTH
38. Snake eye? ONE
39. Doctoral candidate’s hurdle ORALS
40. Seventh-century pope LEO II
41. Blu-ray player ancestor VCR
42. Swindle CON
43. Sturdy tree ELM
44. Astra or Insignia OPEL
46. Salad veggie  RADISH
49. DWI-fighting gp. SADD
51. Genesis ORIGIN
53. “__ Cried”: 1962 hit for Jay and the Americans SHE
54. Prepares (oneself), as for combat STEELS
56. Pooch sans papers MUTT
57. Diminutive, diminutively LIL’
58. Fated MEANT TO BE
60. Send, in a way EMAIL
62. Ice cream maker Joseph EDY
63. Bars with character, to some DIVES
64. Slower than adagio LENTO
65. Act surprised START
66. Puts on cargo LADES

Down
1. Donated for the benefit of  GAVE TO
2. One checking stories EDITOR
3. Classic music hall song that lent its melody to the “Howdy Doody” theme TA-RA-RA BOOM-DE-AY
4. Santa __ Mountains ANA
5. Lake Erie city TOLEDO, OHIO
6. Trading unit SHARE
7. Apt challenger of this puzzle’s circled locations MOUNTAIN CLIMBER
8. Long-eared beast ASS
9. Hit the hay RETIRE
10. Painter Chagall MARC
13. Unalaska, e.g. ALEUTIAN ISLAND
14. Name incorrectly MISCALL
15. McDonald’s supply PATTIES
18. Succor AID
21. Service station offering AIR
25. Wide key ENTER
28. Small South American monkey TITI
30. “No one knows” WHO CAN TELL?
33. Enthusiast LOVER
35. Yankee suspended for the 2014 season A-ROD
36. Start of a confession BLESS ME …
37. Like family RELATED
45. Reminder of a kind POST-IT
46. Slowing, in scroes  RIT
47. Certain Muslim SHIITE
48. Greetings  HELLOS
50. Room with a remote, often DEN
52. Letterman interviewee, say GUEST
55. Old Fords LTDS
59. Reproductive cells OVA
61. __ culpa MEA

Return to top of page