Day: November 24, 2023

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Constructed by: Zachary David Levy
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: End In

Themed answers are common phrases with an “IN” sound added to the END:

• 39A Conclude with, and a phonetic hint for the answers to the starred clues : END IN

• 17A *Obstacle encountered at dawn? : EARLY BURDEN (from “early bird”)
• 24A *Plot where blue bars of soap grow? : COAST GARDEN (from “coast guard”)
• 47A *Time when tall, thick grass covers a golf course? : ROUGH SEASON (from “rough seas”)
• 58A *Shoutout to a ride-hailing app? : UBER-MENTION (from “Übermensch”)
• 11D *Everyone’s favorite fire-breathing monster? : MAIN DRAGON (from “main drag”)
• 29D *Controller part that gets worn out playing “Mortal Kombat”? : KICK BUTTON (from “kick butt”)

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

Bill’s time: 13m 37s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Chuckleheads : BOZOS

The unsavory word “bozo” describes a person with a low IQ, and someone who is usually quite muscular. The term has been used since the early 1900s, and possibly comes from the Spanish “bozal” that was used to describe someone who spoke Spanish poorly.

6 Marcus Aurelius, for one : STOIC

Zeno of Citium was a Greek philosopher famous for teaching at the Stoa Poikile, the “Painted Porch”, located on the north side of the Ancient Agora of Athens. Because of the location of his classes, his philosophy became known as stoicism (from “stoa”, the word for “porch”). We get our adjective “stoic”, meaning “indifferent to pleasure or pain”, from the same root.

Marcus Aurelius was Emperor of Rome from 161 until his passing in 180. His death in 180 is generally regarded as the end of the “Pax Romana”, the long period of relative peace in the Roman Empire that started in 27 BCE. So, the death of Marcus Aurelius also marked the beginning of what came to be known as the Fall of the Roman Empire.

15 Confection typically flavored with saffron and rosewater : HALVA

Halvas are sweet confections found in many parts of the world. Halvas are generally flour-based or based on nut-butter like sesame paste. Sounds delicious …

Saffron is the world’s most expensive spice by weight. It is derived from the saffron crocus. The spice itself is the dried stigma found in the flower of the plant.

Rosewater is a flavoring used in some foods, as well as a component of some cosmetics. It is made by steeping rose petals in water.

19 Letters before a take : IMO

In my opinion (IMO)

21 Flamenco shout : OLE!

Flamenco is a style of Spanish music and dance. The origin of the word “flamenco” isn’t clearly understood, but the explanation that seems most credible to me is that it comes from Flanders in Northern Europe. Given that “flamenco” is the Spanish word for “Flemish” and Flanders is home to the Flemish people it makes perfect sense, doesn’t it?

22 Sleep study subject : APNEA

Sleep apnea (“apnoea” in British English) can be caused by an obstruction in the airways, possibly due to obesity or enlarged tonsils.

24 *Plot where blue bars of soap grow? : COAST GARDEN (from “coast guard”)

Coast is a deodorant soap that was launched by Procter & Gamble in 1976. The target market for Coast is men.

The US Coast Guard (USCG) has the distinction of being the country’s oldest continuous seagoing service. The USCG was founded as the Revenue Cutter Service by Alexander Hamilton in 1790.

27 Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy : AIKMAN

Troy Aikman is a former quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Now that he is retired from football, Aikman works as a sportscaster on the Fox network.

38 Chest muscles, briefly : PECS

“Pecs” is the familiar name for the chest muscle, which is more correctly known as the pectoralis major muscle. “Pectus” is the Latin word for “breast, chest”.

40 Four-award acronym : EGOT

The acronym “EGOT” stands for “Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony”, and is a reference to performers who have won all four awards.

41 Big Apple store : SAKS

Saks Fifth Avenue is a high-end specialty store that competes with the likes of Bloomingdale’s and Neiman Marcus. The original Saks & Company business was founded by Andrew Saks in 1867. The first Saks Fifth Avenue store was opened on Fifth Avenue in New York City in 1924. There are now Saks Fifth Avenue stores in many major cities in the US, as well in several locations worldwide.

42 Fibber : LIAR

To fib is to tell a lie. The verb “to fib” likely comes from “fibble-fable” meaning “nonsense”, with “fibble-fable” coming from “fable”.

43 “Pride Is the Devil” rapper : J COLE

“Pride Is the Devil” is a 2021 rap song written and recorded by J. Cole and Lil Baby. If you’re searching for the song online, be sure to use the original styling of the title: “pride . is . the . devil”.

44 Soaks up the sun : BASKS

Our verb “to bask”, meaning “to expose one to pleasant warmth”, is derived from the gruesome, 14th-century term “basken”, meaning “to wallow in blood”. The contemporary usage apparently originated with Shakespeare, who employed “bask” with reference to sunshine in “As You Like It”.

53 Western gas chain : ARCO

The company name “ARCO” is an acronym standing for “Atlantic Richfield Company”. One of ARCO’s claims to fame is that it is responsible for the nation’s largest Superfund site. Mining and smelting in the area around Butte, Montana polluted the region’s water and soil, and ARCO has agreed to pay $187 million to help clean up the area.

57 Avocado discard : PIT

The wonderful avocado comes from a tree that is native to Mexico and Central America. The avocado fruit is sometimes called an avocado pear, because of its shape, even though it is not related to the pear at all. The fruit might also be referred to as an alligator pear, due to the roughness of the green skin of some avocado cultivars.

58 *Shoutout to a ride-hailing app? : UBER-MENTION (from “Übermensch”)

“Über” is the German word for “over, across, above”. We have absorbed “uber-” into English as a prefix meaning “very”.

Friedrich Nietzsche introduced the concept of the Übermensch in his 1883 book “Thus Spoke Zarathustra”. He presents the Übermensch as a goal that humanity sets for itself. This idea contrasts with the philosophy of Christian values as the goals of humanity. “Übermensch” has been translated into English as “beyond-man”, “superman”, “overman” and “superior humans”.

64 Center of Renaissance art : ITALY

The Renaissance is the period in European history that bridges the Dark Ages and the Modern Era. “Renaissance” is French for “rebirth”, and is a term reflecting the rebirth of interest in the learnings from ancient Greece and ancient Rome.

65 Actor Cariou : LEN

Len Cariou is a Canadian actor who is famous for his Broadway portrayal of “Sweeney Todd”. I most recognize Cariou from supporting roles in “Flags of Our Fathers” and “Thirteen Days”, two great movies.

67 Anti-anxiety drug : XANAX

Xanax is a brand name for the anti-anxiety drug alprazolam. It is one of the most commonly misused prescription drugs in the US, with wide acceptance in the illegal recreational drug market.

Down

1 Appliance alert : BEEP

An “appliance” is an instrument or machine “applied” for a specific purpose. Back in the mid-1500s, the term “appliance” described just the action of putting something into use.

5 Porcine pen : STY

“Porcine” means “of a pig”, coming into English via French from the Latin “porcus” meaning “pig”.

6 NFL coach with the most career wins : SHULA

Don Shula is a former football player and coach. Shula appeared as head coach in a record six Super Bowls, including a run of three successive Super Bowls (1971-73, winning twice). Shula holds the record for most NFL career wins (347). He also led the Miami Dolphins during their 1972 perfect season, the only perfect season in the history of the NFL.

7 Scale allowances : TARES

Tare is the weight of a container that is deducted from the gross weight to determine the net weight, the weight of the container’s contents.

10 Ancient land on the Dead Sea : CANAAN

The ancient region in the Middle East known as Canaan corresponds roughly to modern-day Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and Israel. The term “Canaanite” is used in the Bible to describe various indigenous populations in the region. In fact, “Canaanite” is an ethnic term used more frequently in the Bible than any other.

The Middle East’s Dead Sea lies more than 1,400 feet below sea level, making it the lowest point on the Earth’s landmass. It is also one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world, with a salt content that is almost ten times that of most oceans.

11 *Everyone’s favorite fire-breathing monster? : MAIN DRAGON (from “main drag”)

The main street of a city or town is often referred to as the “main drag”. The main drag is where horses would “drag” along most of the wagons and buggies back in the day.

12 Mann of pop : AIMEE

Aimee Mann is a rock singer and guitarist from Virginia. Mann is married to Michael Penn, the brother of actor Sean Penn.

18 Windfall : BOON

A windfall is a piece of good fortune, like a piece of fruit that has fallen from the tree when the wind blows.

24 Jaguar, for one : CAR

Auto manufacturer Jaguar started out as a manufacturer of sidecars for motorcycles back in 1922, when the company was known as the Swallow Sidecar Company (SS for short). The company changed its name to Jaguar after WWII, because of the unfortunate connotations of the letters “SS” in that era (i.e. the Nazi paramilitary organization).

27 Egyptian cobras : ASPS

The Egyptian cobra (Naja haje) is also known as the asp. That said, the term “asp” can apply to several species of snake, including the Egyptian cobra. Legend has it that Cleopatra committed suicide by enticing an asp to bite her. If that’s true, then that asp was probably an Egyptian cobra.

28 Maker of BILLY bookcases : IKEA

BILLY is a line of bookcases supplied by IKEA since 1979. As of 2017, over 60 million BILLY bookcase units had been sold. The line was named for an IKEA advertising manager, Billy Liljedhal. Liljedhal had made the request for the design of “a proper bookcase just for books”.

29 *Controller part that gets worn out playing “Mortal Kombat”? : KICK BUTTON (from “kick butt”)

Mortal Kombat is a series of video games launched in 1992 by Midway Games. It’s pretty violent stuff, apparently …

30 Text, e.g. : MESSAGE

Short Message Service (SMS) is the name for the text messaging service that many of us still use on our cell phones to contact friends and family.

33 Star __: expensive spice : ANISE

Star anise is a spice similar to anise in flavor, even though it is obtained from an evergreen tree native to Vietnam and southwest China that is unrelated to the anise plant. The spice is obtained from the tree’s star-shaped fruits.

34 Rx overseer : FDA

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has its roots in the Division of Chemistry (later “Bureau of Chemistry”) that was part of the US Department of Agriculture. President Theodore Roosevelt gave responsibility for examination of food and drugs to the Bureau of Chemistry with the signing of the Pure Food and Drug Act. The Bureau’s name was changed to the Food, Drug and Insecticide Organization in 1927, and to the Food and Drug Administration in 1930.

36 Whirled weapon : BOLA

Bolas are heavy balls connected by cords that constitute a throwing weapon. Bolas are often used to capture animals by tripping them as they run. The weapon is usually associated with gauchos, South American cowboys, although there is evidence that the Inca army used them in battle.

37 Pedometer unit : STEP

A pedometer is an instrument worn by a runner or walker that measures the number of steps taken. The name of the device comes from “pes”, the Latin for “foot”.

43 “SNL” alum Hooks : JAN

Actress and comedian Jan Hooks was perhaps best known for the time she spent as a regular on “Saturday Night Live” (SNL) from 1986 to 1991. After leaving SNL, she landed the role of Carlene Frazier-Dobber for the last two seasons of the sitcom “Designing Women”.

46 Post-op wear for some pets : CONE

A vet may fit a cone-like device around an animal’s head to prevent it from biting or licking a wound. That device is known as an Elizabethan collar or pet cone, although it has more frivolously been referred to as a cone of shame, pet lampshade or pet radar dish.

48 Waiting in the wings : ON ICE

To wing it is to improvise, to do something without sufficient preparation. There is some debate about the term’s etymology, but I like the idea that it came from the theater. An actor would be described as winging it if he or she learned lines while standing in the wings just before going on stage.

50 __ the Owl: Rice University mascot : SAMMY

Rice University is a private school in Houston, Texas. William Marsh Rice had made a will endowing the funds for the establishment of the school at the time of his death. When he was found dead one morning in his bed, his lawyer announced that his will had been changed, with the bulk of Rice’s estate actually going to the lawyer making the announcement. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the lawyer had paid Rice’s valet to murder his employer using chloroform and a fake will was written. Eventually, the original will was deemed valid and the funds were disbursed so that the school could be built.

54 “Glass Onion” filmmaker Johnson : RIAN

“Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” is a 2022 sequel to “Knives Out”, with both films written and directed by Rian Johnson and starring Daniel Craig as private investigator Benoit Blanc. Johnson wrote “Glass Onion” during the COVID-19 lockdown, and set the film against the backdrop of the pandemic. The score for both films was written by Nathan Johnson, Rian’s cousin.

56 Black gemstone : ONYX

Onyx is a form of quartz that comes in many different shades, but most often it’s the black version that’s used for jewelry. The name “onyx” comes from the Greek word for “fingernail”, as onyx in the flesh color is said to resemble a fingernail.