Day: October 15, 2022

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Constructed by: Enrique Henestroza Anguiano
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 9m 13s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5 Pasta joint? : ELBOW

In many cases, the name given to a type of pasta comes from its shape. However, the name macaroni comes from the type of dough used to make the noodles. Here in the US, macaroni is usually elbow-shaped, but it doesn’t have to be.

10 Network that airs 52-Down news : CNBC
[52D Wall St. index : NYSE]

CNBC is a business news channel owned by NBC. Launched in 1989, CNBC was known as the Consumer News and Business Channel up until 1991.

15 “Uprooted” novelist Novik : NAOMI

Naomi Novik is a fiction writer who is perhaps best known for her “Temeraire” series of novels. Those novels provide an alternate history of the Napoleonic Wars, a history in which an air force of dragons participate in the battles. Yowza …

17 Quaint arcade prompt : INSERT COIN

Our word “arcade” comes from the Latin “arcus” meaning “arc”. The first arcades were passages made from a series of arches. This could be an avenue of trees, and eventually any covered avenue. I remember arcades lined with shops and stores when I was growing up on the other side of the Atlantic. Arcades came to be lined with lots of amusements, resulting in amusement arcades and video game arcades.

19 Harmon series : NCIS

NCIS is the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The service gives its name to the CBS TV show “NCIS”, a spin-off drama from “JAG” in which the main “NCIS” characters were first introduced. The big star in “NCIS” is the actor Mark Harmon. “NCIS” is now a franchise, with spin-off shows “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “NCIS: New Orleans”.

Actor Mark Harmon is best known today for playing the lead in the drama show “NCIS”. Harmon played a similar character for several episodes on “The West Wing”. Mark is the son of a football star Tom Harmon, and was the brother-in-law of rock and roll star Ricky Nelson and automotive executive John DeLorean (through his sisters). Harmon has been married since 1987 to actress Pam Dawber, who played the female title role on “Mork & Mindy”.

23 Like some fine frames : GILT

To gild is to coat with gold. The phrase “to gild the lily” means to add unnecessary ornamentation, to try to improve something that is already ideal.

25 Contacted over Slack, for short : IMED

Slack is a messaging app aimed at businesses. At its core, Slack is an instant messaging system. Slack also provides tools designed to increase collaboration within teams.

27 Some sketchy characters? : CARTOONS

The word “cartoon” was originally used for a “drawing on strong paper”, a durable drawing used as a model for a work of art. The term comes from the French word “carton” meaning “heavy paper, pasteboard”. Cartoons have been around a long time, with some of the most famous having been drawn by Leonardo da Vinci.

31 Ship’s hdg. : NNE

Heading (hdg.)

32 Type of photo that led to the “Streisand effect” : AERIAL SHOT

In 2003, the California Coastal Records Project took aerial photographs intended to document the erosion of the coast. The photos also included images of the homes located along the coastline. Singer Barbra Streisand took the photographer to court, arguing that her privacy had been violated. When the complaint was made, the online photo had been viewed and downloaded just a handful of times. Once news of the case broke, the image was viewed by almost half a million people. We now use the term “Streisand effect” to describe the unintended consequence of increasing awareness of information when an attempt is made to hide it. And, Streisand lost the case.

38 Doc who may share paw-shaped treats : VET

“Vet” is an abbreviation for “veterinarian”, a professional who treats animals for disease and injury. The word “veterinary” comes from the Latin “veterinae” meaning “working animals, beasts of burden”.

39 Something to sneeze at : ALLERGEN

The common term “hay fever” describes a type of seasonal allergic rhinitis, inflammation of the nose due to an immune reaction to airborne allergens.

42 Iron clothes? : MAIL

Mail is a type of armor that was worn as far back as 300 BCE. Chainmail is basically a mesh made of metal rings that are linked together and fashioned into a protective garment.

45 Policy-driving appointee : CZAR

The term “czar” (also “tsar”) is a Slavic word that was first used as a title by Simeon I of Bulgaria in 913 AD. “Czar” is derived from the word “caesar”, which was synonymous with “emperor” at that time. We tend to use the “czar” spelling, as opposed to “tsar”, when we describe a person today with great power or authority, e.g. “Drug Czar”.

47 Swiftie or Little Monster : ADORING FAN

A swiftie is a fan of singer Taylor Swift.

Fans of Lady Gaga often refer to the singer as Mother Monster. In turn, Gaga refers to her fans as Little Monsters, and has a “LIttle Monsters” tattoo in their honor.

53 Round up, as cats or cattle : HERD

The idiomatic phrase “herding cats” describes a futile attempt to control a group of people (perhaps) who are inherently uncontrollable. This phrase originated relatively recently, and appears to come from a line spoken in the 1979 film “Monty Python’s Life of Brian”. In the movie’s opening, three shepherds are discussing sheep, and move on to cats: “Can you imagine a herd of cats waiting to be sheared? Meow! Meow! Woo hoo hoo.”

55 Lake into which the Cuyahoga empties : ERIE

The Cuyahoga River in northeastern Ohio has a sad history. Deemed to be one of the most polluted US rivers in the 20th century, the river actually caught fire at least 13 times. A 1952 blaze caused over a million dollars worth of damage. Things have improved over the past few decades, with fish now inhabiting stretched off the river that were once practically devoid of life.

56 Fleck on a baked potato : CHIVE

Chives are the smallest species of edible onion, and a favorite of mine …

57 Iowa home of the Cyclones : AMES

Iowa State University of Science and Technology (ISU) is located in Ames, Iowa. Among many other notable milestones, ISU created the country’s first school of veterinary medicine, in 1879. The sports teams of ISU are known as the Cyclones.

58 “The Girl Who Drank the __”: Newbery winner about a girl named Luna : MOON

“The Girl Who Drank the Moon” is a children’s fantasy book by Kelly Barnhill that was first published in 2016. The protagonist in the story is a girl named Luna who gains magical powers as a baby by mistake.

59 Polished off : EATEN

To polish off is to dispose of completely or rapidly. The verb “to polish off” originated as boxing slang in the 1820s, when it described the act of defeating an opponent quickly and easily.

Down

3 Queen who appears in “Olaf’s Frozen Adventure” : ELSA

“Olaf’s Frozen Adventure” is a 2017 animated short featuring several characters and voice actors from the 2013 animated feature “Frozen”.

5 Part of a log : ENTRY

The word “logbook” dates back to the days when the captain of a ship kept a daily record of the vessel’s speed, progress etc. using a “log”. A log was a wooden float on a knotted line that was dropped overboard to measure speed through the water.

6 What loafers do without? : LACES

The loafer slip-on shoe dates back to 1939. “Loafer” was originally a brand name introduced by Fortnum and Mason’s store in London. The derivative term “penny loafer” arose in the late fifties or early sixties, although the exact etymology seems unclear.

7 Retired Monopoly token : BOOT

The tokens included with a game of Monopoly have changed over the years. Two of the more interesting tokens are the battleship and cannon. These were created by Hasbro for a board game called Conflict. When Conflict failed in the market, the excess tokens were recycled and included with Monopoly.

9 Vitis vinifera cultivar : WINE GRAPE

The common grape vine species name is Vitis vinifera. Although the species has thousands of varieties, only a few are used in the commercial production of wine.

12 Ritual for some eight-day-olds : BRIS

A mohel is a man who has been trained in the practice of brit milah (circumcision). Brit milah is known as “bris” in Yiddish. The brit milah ceremony is performed on male infants when they are 8 days old.

25 Xeon processor maker : INTEL

Intel is the world’s largest manufacturer of semiconductor chips. The company was founded in 1968, and the name “Intel” is derived from the term “int(egrated) el(ectronics)”. Recognition of the Intel brand has been greatly helped by the success of the “Intel Inside” campaign that started back in 1991.

26 Silver-colored plumber in Super Smash Bros. : METAL MARIO

“Super Smash Bros.” is a series of fighting games played on the Wii video game console. Apparently, it’s very popular …

30 Editorial override : STET

“Stet” is a Latin word meaning “let it stand”. In editorial work, the typesetter is instructed to disregard any change previously marked by writing the word “stet” and then underscoring that change with a line of dots or dashes.

31 Beyoncé voice role : NALA

In “The Lion King”, Nala is a lioness and the childhood friend of Simba. By the end of the story, Nala and Simba become wedded. “The Lion King” is inspired by William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”, with Simba representing the title character, and Nala representing Hamlet’s love interest Ophelia.

2019’s “The Lion King” is described as a “photorealistic” remake of 1994’s movie of the same name, which was made using “traditional animation”. The voice cast for the 2019 film is different from the 1994 version, with one notable exception. We hear the magnificent voice of actor James Earl Jones as Mufasa in both productions. In fact, the lines spoken by Jones are almost identical in both films.

33 “__ kleine Nachtmusik” : EINE

Mozart’s ”Serenade No. 13 for Strings in G major” is better known as “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik”, which translates into “a little serenade”, but the more literal English translation of “a little night music” is often used. It is a delightful piece in four, very recognizable movements, although there is much debate about a “lost” fifth movement.

35 “Mildred Pierce” Oscar nominee : EVE ARDEN

Actress Eve Arden’s most famous role early in her career was playing the high school teacher in the 1950’s radio and television show “Our Miss Brooks”. Years later she played the Principal of Rydell High School in the movies “Grease” (a great film!) and “Grease 2” (a terrible film!).

“Mildred Pierce” is a 1945 film based on the 1941 of the same name by James M. Cain. Joan Crawford plays the title role, for which performance she won that season’s Best Actress Oscar. Cain’s novel was adapted for the small screen in a 2011 miniseries starring Kate Winslet as Pierce. That is well worth viewing …

36 Environmental design artist Oxman : NERI

Neri Oxman is an Israeli-born American designer and architect. She coined the phrase “material ecology” to describe her approach to design. One of the better-known examples of her work is the Silk Pavilion created at MIT, for which thousands of silk worms were released onto a robot-created dome structure. The worms wove a silk cover over the dome.

40 Snorkasaurus of Bedrock : DINO

In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon “The Flintstones”, Dino the pet dinosaur was voiced by the famous Mel Blanc, until Blanc passed away in 1989.

45 Nobel subj. : CHEM

The Peace Prize is the most famous of the five prizes bequeathed by Alfred Nobel. The others are for Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature. There is also a Nobel Prize in Economics that is awarded along with the original five, but it is funded separately and is awarded “in memory of Alfred Nobel”. Four of the prizes are awarded by Swedish organizations (Alfred Nobel was a Swede) and so the award ceremonies take place in Stockholm. The Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and is presented in Oslo.

48 Souq Waqif city : DOHA

Souq Waqif (Arabic for “the standing market”) is a marketplace, and tourist attraction, in the center of Doha in the state of Qatar.

50 Anxiety about exclusion, for short : FOMO

Fear of missing out (FOMO)

52 Wall St. index : NYSE

The roots of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) go back to 1792 when a group of 24 stock brokers set up the New York Stock & Exchange Board. They did so in an agreement signed under a buttonwood tree outside 68 Wall Street. That document became known as the Buttonwood Agreement. Today, the NYSE is located in a National Historic Landmark building with the address 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City.