Constructed by: Tony Caruso & C.C. Burnikel
Edited by: Rich Norris
Quicklink to a complete list of today’s clues and answers
Quicklink to comments
Theme: Step Up
Today’s themed answers are all written in the down-direction, with each containing a hidden word. That word is “PETS”, which is actually the word “STEP” written “UP”.
- 66A…Rise to the challenge … and a hint to a hidden word in 5-, 10-, 25- and 28-Down..STEP UP
- 5D…Armstrong improvisation..TRUMPET SOLO
- 10D…Stop on a redecorating spree..CARPET STORE
- 25D…King novel set in a graveyard..PET SEMATARY
- 28D…Nominally sovereign country..PUPPET STATE
Bill’s time: 7m 00s
Bill’s errors: 0
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
6…Fave texting pals..BFFS
Best friend forever (BFF)
10…”2 Broke Girls” network..CBS
“2 Broke Girls” is a sitcom about two penniless young ladies sharing an apartment in Brooklyn, with one of the pair born poor, and one born rich but now poor. The “two broke girls” wait tables in a restaurant, while dreaming about opening their own cupcake business. The title characters are played by Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs.
13…Chain known for fresh-baked bread..PANERA
Panera Bread is a chain of bakery/coffeehouses. It’s a good place to get online while having a cup of coffee. Back in 2006 and 2007, Panera was the largest provider of free Wi-Fi access in the whole of the US.
16…”Blessed __ the meek … “..ARE
In the Christian tradition, the Beatitudes are a collection of moral teachings laid out by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, according to the Gospel of Matthew. The eight Beatitudes are:
- … Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
- … Blessed are those who mourn: for they will be comforted
- … Blessed are the meek: for they will inherit the earth
- … Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness: for they will be filled
- … Blessed are the merciful: for they will be shown mercy
- … Blessed are the pure in heart: for they will see God
- … Blessed are the peacemakers: for they will be called children of God
- … Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
22…Page with views..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.
23…Cough syrup meas…TSP
Teaspoon (tsp.)
26…Cowpoke’s pal..PARD
“Cowpoke” is a term used nowadays for any cowboy, but it was originally limited to the cowboys who prodded cattle onto railroad cars using long poles.
27…Like the Flash..SPEEDY
The Flash is a DC Comics superhero who is nicknamed “the Scarlet Speedster” or “the Crimson Comet”. The Flash’s superpower is his ability to move extremely quickly, with speed that defies the laws of physics.
29…Tennis period since 1968..OPEN ERA
In the sport of tennis, the Grand Slam tournaments were opened up to professional players, and not just amateurs, in 1968. So, the period since 1968 has been called “The Open Era”.
31…Legendary soul seller..FAUST
Faust is a character from a classic German legend who makes a pact with the devil. He agrees to exchange his soul for worldly gratification and unlimited knowledge.
35…Fryolator sound..SSS
A fryolator is a deep fat fryer, a kitchen appliance.
40…Piece of a pansy..PETAL
The garden flower called the pansy takes its name from the French word “pensée” meaning “thought”. This name was chosen as the flower was often used as a symbol of remembrance.
46…MapMyWalk statistic..MILES
MapMyWalk is smartphone app that does what it says on the box: maps your walk. Hit the start button when you start your walk, and the stop button at the end of the walk. You then have the option of saving a map of your walk, which you can share with others. One of the benefits of MapMyWalk is that if you are in an unfamiliar location, you can check maps showing walks that others have taken and shared, along with notes they might have made about elevation, distance, degree of difficulty, etc.
53…Tolkien creature..ENT
Ents are those tree-like creatures that live in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth in his series of books “The Lord of the Rings”. “Ent” is an Old English word for “giant”.
54…Viola’s clef..ALTO
Clef is the French word for “key”. In music, a clef is used to indicate the pitch of the notes written on the stave. The bass clef is also known as the F-clef, the alto clef is the C-clef, and the treble clef is the G-clef.
The viola looks like and is played like a violin, but is slightly larger. It is referred to as the middle voice in the violin family, between the violin and the cello.
55…Italian relative of grits..POLENTA
Polenta is a porridge made from finely ground corn. The term “polenta” is Italian.
60…Catwoman portrayer Kitt..EARTHA
Eartha Kitt really did have a unique voice and singing style. Her rendition of “Santa Baby” has to be one of the most distinctive and memorable recordings in the popular repertoire. Some of you will no doubt remember Eartha playing Catwoman on the final series of the TV show “Batman”.
64…Seafarer..TAR
A Jack Tar, or just “tar”, was a seaman in the days of the British Empire. The term probably arose due to a sailor’s various uses of tar back then, including waterproofing his clothes and using tar in his hair to slick down his ponytail.
68…Some Fr. martyrs..STES
“Sainte” (ste.) is French for “saint”, when referring to a female.
Down
4…Lower-APR deal..REFI
Refinance (refi)
Annual percentage rate (APR)
5…Armstrong improvisation..TRUMPET SOLO
Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans in 1900. Armstrong had a poor upbringing, and only stayed in school till he was 11 years old. The exact origin of Louis’s nickname “Satchmo” seems to be a little unclear. One story is that he used to dance for pennies in New Orleans as a youngster and would hide those pennies in his mouth away from the other kids. For this he earned the nickname “satchel mouth”, which was shortened to “Satchmo”.
8…Bobbing wreckage..FLOTSAM
Flotsam and jetsam are both terms used to describe “garbage” in the ocean. Flotsam is floating wreckage from a ship or its cargo. Jetsam is similar to flotsam, except that it is part of a ship or cargo that is deliberately cast overboard, perhaps to lighten a vessel.
9…Country W of Iraq..SYR
The modern state that we know as Syria was established after WWI as a French mandate. Syria was granted independence from France in 1946.
11…Make more toys?..BREED
The toy group of dogs is made up of the smallest breeds. The smallest toy breeds are sometimes also called “teacup” breeds.
12…Far from posh..SEEDY
We use the word “seedy” to mean “shabby”. The usage probably arose from the appearance of a flowering plant that has gone to seed.
19…Ones on either side of a “v.”..FOES
Versus (“vs.” or “v.”) is the Latin for “turned toward or against”.
21…Conduits for gods’ wisdom..ORACLES
In Ancient Greece and Rome, an oracle was someone believed inspired by the gods to give wise counsel. The word “oracle” derives from the Latin “orare” meaning “to speak”, which is the same root for our word “orator”.
23…South Pacific monarchy..TONGA
The Kingdom of Tonga is made up of 176 islands in the South Pacific, 52 of which are inhabited and scattered over an area of 270,000 square miles. Tonga was given the name Friendly Islands in 1773 when Captain James Cook first landed there, a reference to the warm reception given to the visitors.
25…King novel set in a graveyard..PET SEMATARY
“Pet Sematary” is a horror novel by Stephen King, first published in 1983. King was inspired to write the story after his experiences in a rented house on a busy road. Lots of animals were killed on the road so local children created a pet cemetery in a nearby field.
31…With 52-Across, jeweled creations made for Russian czars..FABERGE …
(52A…See 31-Down.. …EGGS)
Fabergé eggs are beautiful jeweled eggs made by the House of Fabergé from 1885 to 1917. The tradition of fabricating the eggs started when Tsar Alexander III commissioned Fabergé to create a jeweled egg for his wife in 1885. After this, the House of Fabergé produced more and more elaborate designs, year after year.
34…Rock’s __ Lobos..LOS
Los Lobos are an American Chicano rock band, who released their first LP in 1978 and are still going strong today. The band’s name “Los Lobos” translates from Spanish as “The Wolves”.
36…Buyer of 31-Across’ soul..SATAN
(31A…Legendary soul seller..FAUST)
Satan is the bringer of evil and temptation in the Abrahamic religions. The name “Satan” is Hebrew for “adversary”.
41…CPR provider..EMT
An emergency medical technician (EMT) might administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
47…Apple MP3 player..IPOD
The iPod is Apple’s signature line of portable media players. The iPod first hit the market in 2001 with a hard drive-based device, now known as the iPod Classic. Later models all use flash memory, allowing a smaller form factor. The smallest of the flash-based models is the iPod Shuffle, which was introduced in 2005.
MP3 is an audio coding format, the most common format used for music stored on digital audio players. MP3 files are compressed and “lossy”, meaning that some audio information is lost when the file is generated. For this reason, MP3 files are about 1/11 of the size of the equivalent music files found CD.
49…Anne Brontë’s “__ Grey”..AGNES
Anne was the youngest of the three sisters in the literary Brontë family. Her older sisters wrote novels that are more recognized, but Anne’s two novels do have a following. “Agnes Grey” is based on her own experiences working as a governess. Her other novel, “The Tenant of Wildfell Hall”, is written as a long letter from a young man describing the events leading up to his first meeting with his wife-to-be. Anne Brontë’s writing career was cut short in 1849, when she died of pulmonary tuberculosis, at only 29 years of age.
50…Medicare card specification..PART A
Medicare is divided into four parts:
- A: Hospital Insurance
- B: Medical Insurance
- C: Medicare Advantage Plans
- D: Prescription Drug Plans
51…Big name in online financial services..E-LOAN
E-Loan used to be based just down the road from me in the San Francisco Bay Area, but after takeover by a Rosemont, Illinois company it was moved to the parent’s headquarters. E-Loan was founded in 1997 to provide customers access to mortgages over the Internet.
59…Towel word..HIS
“HIS” towel usually hangs beside the towel marked “HERS”.
61…Pulls a yard prank on, briefly..TPS
TP’ing (toilet papering) is a prank involving the covering of some object or location with rolls and rolls of toilet paper. If you live in Texas or Minnesota, that little “prank” is legal, but if you live here in California it is classed as mischief or vandalism.
63…College-level H.S. classes..APS
Advanced placement courses (APs).
Complete List of Clues and Answers
Across
1…Sharp as a tack..SMART
6…Fave texting pals..BFFS
10…”2 Broke Girls” network..CBS
13…Chain known for fresh-baked bread..PANERA
15…Count (on)..RELY
16…”Blessed __ the meek … “..ARE
17…Imaginative..ARTFUL
18…Lacking scents..ODOR-FREE
20…”My parents are gonna kill me!”..I’M TOAST!
22…Page with views..OP-ED
23…Cough syrup meas…TSP
26…Cowpoke’s pal..PARD
27…Like the Flash..SPEEDY
29…Tennis period since 1968..OPEN ERA
31…Legendary soul seller..FAUST
32…Tag line?..NOT IT!
33…Woodworking device..CLAMP
35…Fryolator sound..SSS
38…Central parts..GISTS
39…High ball..LOB
40…Piece of a pansy..PETAL
42…Pub pint..ALE
43…More than a little plump..OBESE
45…Put a little extra into the part..EMOTE
46…MapMyWalk statistic..MILES
48…Dilapidated place..RATTRAP
50…Vegetable container..PEA POD
52…See 31-Down.. … EGGS
53…Tolkien creature..ENT
54…Viola’s clef..ALTO
55…Italian relative of grits..POLENTA
58…Hard-to-pass drivers..ROAD HOGS
60…Catwoman portrayer Kitt..EARTHA
64…Seafarer..TAR
65…Tropical getaway..ISLE
66…Rise to the challenge … and a hint to a hidden word in 5-, 10-, 25- and 28-Down..STEP UP
67…”__ takers?”..ANY
68…Some Fr. martyrs..STES
69…Relaxes..EASES
Down
1…Place for losers?..SPA
2…Scratch or dent..MAR
3…Little six-footer..ANT
4…Lower-APR deal..REFI
5…Armstrong improvisation..TRUMPET SOLO
6…Far-reaching..BROAD
7…Govt. agents..FEDS
8…Bobbing wreckage..FLOTSAM
9…Country W of Iraq..SYR
10…Stop on a redecorating spree..CARPET STORE
11…Make more toys?..BREED
12…Far from posh..SEEDY
14…Wedding site..ALTAR
19…Ones on either side of a “v.”..FOES
21…Conduits for gods’ wisdom..ORACLES
23…South Pacific monarchy..TONGA
24…Ruin..SPOIL
25…King novel set in a graveyard..PET SEMATARY
28…Nominally sovereign country..PUPPET STATE
30…Minor peeve..NIT
31…With 52-Across, jeweled creations made for Russian czars..FABERGE …
34…Rock’s __ Lobos..LOS
36…Buyer of 31-Across’ soul..SATAN
37…Sacked out..SLEPT
41…CPR provider..EMT
44…Canopy support..BEDPOST
47…Apple MP3 player..IPOD
49…Anne Brontë’s “__ Grey”..AGNES
50…Medicare card specification..PART A
51…Big name in online financial services..E-LOAN
52…”It’s somebody __ problem”..ELSE’S
56…Check out rudely..OGLE
57…Geometric figure..AREA
59…Towel word..HIS
61…Pulls a yard prank on, briefly..TPS
62…Color nuance..HUE
63…College-level H.S. classes..APS
LAT: 14:48, 1 error (computer). Natick at 55A-49D. Fair amount of loopy (towel word?) and junk stuff (PARD, SSS, APS). About what I would expect though. Another Zhouquin sighting.
WSJ: 21:29, More strike-overs than I care to admit, due to the two dumb errors and not spelling ISAAK correctly. Fair difficulty increase, mainly from the theme – consistently applied but hard for me to figure out puns. But within the realm for the week overall.
An average Wednesday grid. Some good, some junky as Glenn pointed out. TAR was a new one for me, so thanks for the explanation.
Earlier this year, the BBC has an interesting story on the history of FABERGE EGGS, including how the name became associated with that revolting after shave link.
Very Nice puuzle, enjoyed it very much. Quite challenging, but very much doable. A new collaborator for the powerhouse, C. C. Unfamiliar with some of the slang in the clues …. well, its a Wednesday.
I am quite familiar with the Faberge eggs …. saw an exhibit in the local museum of art, 15 years ago. …. the excesses of the russian dynasty. I didnt know he was ‘russian’ – actually he was of french stock.
Have a nice day, all.
So, am I the only one who confidently put in “odorless” for 18 Across and then scratched his head as the down answers in the NE corner wouldn’t come? Finally put in “free” for “less” and then the puzzle finally got completed. D’oh!
Tony: I put “odorless” in as well and finally realized it was “odor free”which let the remaining clues fall into place.
But was still staring at the answers to the “make more toys” and the sides of “v” and just having no idea. Had to read Bill’s explanations. My brain just wasn’t going to equate toys with dogs today.
Would have loved to see the BBC special on the Faberge Eggs.
Trouble since I got hung up on Prophets instead of ORACLES and ODERless rather than ODERFREE. Had to look up MILES, CBS, OPENERA, TONGA to straighten out. Never caught the theme, and don’t consider AREA a geometric figure.
Also love the FABERGE eggs.
Sfingi,
There’s an answer in the blog’s FAQ section about how to get an icon to appear beside comments here on the blog. That should explain everything. If not, please contact me.
Bill
Also reminded of Mario Cuomo telling us his mother called Mondale as “Mangia Polent” meaning bland. Generaly it is an epithet describing Northern Italians, who eat corn meal loaf instead of pasta.
How do I get my icon back on? And is there a built in spell-check? Sorry I’m so whiny.
Made this puzzle much harder on myself than I needed to. In addition to adding myself to the long line of “odorless” people (so to speak), I also had “rathole” before RATTRAP and “plan A” before PART A. Not suprisingly, this grid took more like a Thursday amount of time due to those errors. But I did finish error free….eventually.
Agree about SSS and PARD, but AP (Advanced Placement) is as common as anything. My high school offered a whole array of AP classes for seniors, and the movie “Stand and Deliver” was all about an AP Calculus class in the inner city so I can’t take issue with that one.
Panera Bread started not far from where I grew up as one store known as the St. Louis Bread Co. It still goes by that name in St. Louis, and there are over 100 of them there now. It’s Panera Bread everywhere else outside of St. Louis, but I still remember it as a small local bread store. How large it has become amazes me; they are now starting a delivery service here in Houston. Sheesh.
I’m now going to attempt to go forward DAZEDLY with my day after this grid…..
Best –
Thank you Jeff, from yesterday – about OJ Simpson.
2 notes – he was convicted on an entirely different crime, that of 2007, ‘Las Vegas; robbery, long past his acquittal on the original ‘Ito’ trial 1995. He tried to ‘retrieve’ his goods, then on auction, after his civil lawsuit loss, and that was another crime altogether.
Secondly, a federal trial on violating his wife’s civil rights , right after his acquittal on state charges of her murder, might be thought, by some, to have constituted an impermissible ‘double jeopardy’ clause. However, the US Supreme court has ruled, that a federal trial ( or even a trial in another state ), on essentially the same crime, ( after the acquittal on ‘first’ state charges, previously – ) , DOES NOT constitute double jeopardy. ( the ruling was in another case – ). Heath vs. Alabama, 1985 is a commonly cited precedent.
A famed man, who was, among other things, on the board of directors, of Gillette ( of the “”Atra”” fame in xwords ). His descent into a living hell, is most unfortunate, albeit of his own doing. Very sad,
@Amy Reynolds
Do you and RestMyCase work together? 🙂
Yeah – the documentary also covers his life after the trial including the remarkably sordid events in Florida leading up to his current incarceration.
FWIW – I was never as obsessed with the OJ trial as a lot of the public even at the time. However by osmosis alone, I’m as well versed on the story lines and characters associated with the trial as the next guy. But this documentary was personally the first time I had ever really heard a sympathetic and heartfelt portrayal of the victims and their families. I was glad they did it, but I was also a bit saddened that I could write that sentence 22 years hence. It has too often been a forgotten part of the story unfortunately.
Best –
Just completed the WSJ daily puzzle. Not being much of a rap listener/lover it took me almost to the very last answer before I got the theme. I think solving this puzzle would have been much easier had I understood the theme upfront. Oh, well…
Hope all my puzzle loving FOB’sB have a good Hump Day.
>had I understood the theme upfront.
That’s something I wondered in the process of doing that “Margin of Error” Friday WSJ a few weeks ago (responded to you, but not sure you saw). Didn’t get to talk about it much, but one thing I did do pretty quickly on that grid was attack the theme revealer and saw the message that the edges would be factually wrong, which is about as upfront as grids get. I’m just in the habit of jumping in, but I’m wondering after doing this grid and seeing your comment if making that my general process would pay a lot of dividends. Just a thought.
I’ve often felt that a lot of crosswords would not be solvable for anyone under the age of 60, but the inclusion of “Part A” as a “Medicare card specification” brings the advantage of being retired to new heights 🙂
@Piano Man – Are you C(AARP)ing about crossword puzzle clues being tilted toward the Boomers among us? (g)
Oh, that’s good!
This one took :17 on paper which is pretty good for me, since I usually take :20 to :25 on Wednesdays. I put in ODOR but stopped short of filling in the rest when L didn’t seem like a good cross.
Not retired yet, so I had to get PARTA on the crosses. Hmm, I think I’ll have some POLENTA tonight with my asparagus spears. Nice to learn that CLEF is key in French.
EARTHA was a good Catwoman but, for me, no one can replace Julie Newmar. She was awesome!
Well, back to the Euro 2016…see you all in a while.
Okay THAT’S weird! I’m on my tablet in the middle of writing my fascinating comment when suddenly the tablet dies! Then I hear a coyote howling out front! The coyote ran off; my tablet came back to life.
Annnyway — all fixed now, I guess. Good puzzle & great comments. Time for bed…
Be well~~™?