Day: December 27, 2023

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Constructed by: Amanda Cook & Katie Hale
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): How Did We Get Here?

Themed answers are common phrases reinterpreted as means of transportation for those cited in the corresponding clues:

• 17A Transport for loudmouths? : VOCAL COACH
• 26A Transport for nanobots? : MICROPLANE
• 36A Transport for the army’s best poker players? : SHARK TANK
• 51A Transport for rural golf instructors? : PRO TRACTOR
• 60A Transport for seminary students? : CROSS TRAIN

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

Bill’s time: 6m 28s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Parakeet’s pole : PERCH

Parakeets are a group of bird species that are small parrots. The most common type of parakeet that we see in pet stores is the budgerigar.

6 Margarita flavor : LIME

No one seems to know for sure who first created the margarita cocktail. The most plausible and oft-quoted is that it was invented in 1941 in Ensenada, Mexico. The barman mixed the drink for an important visitor, the daughter of the German ambassador. The daughter’s name was Margarita Henkel, and she lent her name to the new drink. The basic recipe for a margarita is a mixture of tequila, orange-flavored liqueur (like Cointreau) and lime juice.

14 Nebraska city : OMAHA

Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska. It is located on the Missouri River, about 10 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River. When Nebraska was still a territory Omaha was its capital, but when Nebraska achieved statehood the capital was moved to the city of Lincoln.

16 29-Across, for one : JOEY
[29 Young character in Milne stories : ROO]

A male kangaroo is known as a buck, jack or boomer. A female is called a jill, flyer or doe. A young kangaroo is a joey, and a group of kangaroos is a mob or troop.

24 Singer-songwriter Tori : AMOS

Tori Amos is an American pianist and singer. She started playing the piano at two years old, and was composing piano pieces by age five. Amos was playing in piano bars (chaperoned by her father) when she was 14. I’m going to have to find some of her music …

26 Transport for nanobots? : MICROPLANE

A microplane is a rasp-style grater with fine blades, allowing for more precise grating and resulting in material (cheese, garlic, etc) with a finer texture.

Nanorobots (also “nanobots”) are tiny devices that range from 0.1 to 10 micrometers in size. The technology of nanorobotics is in its infancy, but it is hoped that nanobots might be used (for example) in medicine one day. The oft-cited application is the use of nanobots inserted inside the body to identify and destroy cancer cells.

29 Young character in Milne stories : ROO

Like most of the characters in A. A. Milne’s “Winnie-the-Pooh”, the kangaroo named “Roo” was inspired by a stuffed toy belonging to Milne’s son Christopher Robin.

31 Being tracked, in a way : ON RADAR

Scientists have been using radio waves to detect the presence of objects since the late 1800s, but it was the demands of WWII that accelerated the practical application of the technology. The British called their system RDF standing for Range and Direction Finding. The system used by the US Navy was called “Radio Detection And Ranging”, which was shortened to the acronym “RADAR”.

32 Little sandwich treat : MINI OREO

Bite-sized Oreo cookies were introduced in 1991 under the brand name Mini Oreo. Mini Oreos were dropped in the late nineties, but reintroduced in 2000 as part of a promotion for the Dodge Caravan. They’re still around, and you can now even get a mint version.

35 Express checkout units : ITEMS

I say avoid any express checkout lane in a market that is labeled “10 items or less”. It should be “10 items or fewer”. I know, I know … I should calm down … and get a life …

36 Transport for the army’s best poker players? : SHARK TANK

A “card sharp” is someone who is skilled and deceptive with playing cards, particularly when playing gambling games like poker. It seems that the term “card sharp” predates the related “card shark”, both of which have the same meaning.

During WWI, First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill formed the Landship Committee to oversee development of armored fighting vehicles. The vehicles in development were referred to using the codeword “tank” for secrecy. Within a few months, the committee was renamed to the “Tank Supply Committee”. The codeword eventually became the overt name for the weapon.

39 __-knit sweater : CABLE

Until the early 1880s, the word “sweater” applied to clothing worn specifically for weight reduction by “sweating”.

42 “Barefoot __”: Ina Garten cooking show : CONTESSA

Ina Garten is an author as well as the host of a cooking show on the Food Network called “Barefoot Contessa”. She is a mentee of Martha Stewart, and indeed was touted as a potential “successor” to the TV celebrity when Stewart was incarcerated in 2004 after an insider trading scandal. Garten has no formal training as a chef, and indeed used to work as a nuclear policy analyst at the White House!

46 Overdue debt : ARREARS

To be in arrears is to have an unpaid obligation or debt. The term “arrears” came into English from the Old French “ariere” meaning “behind”.

51 Transport for rural golf instructors? : PRO TRACTOR

A protractor is an instrument used to measure angles. It is a simple form of goniometer, which is a more complex instrument used to measure angles. We’ve all used protractors in school, whereas someone like a physical therapist might use a goniometer, to measure the range of motion in a person’s joints.

54 Rocker Vicious portrayed by Gary Oldman : SID

Sid Vicious was a famous English musician and the best-known member of the seventies punk rock group called the Sex Pistols. In 1978, Vicious woke up out of a drugged stupor in his hotel room in New York, to find his girlfriend stabbed to death in the bathroom. Vicious was charged with the murder, and ten days later sliced his wrist in a suicide attempt. Vicious made bail a few months later and at a celebratory party his own mother supplied him with heroin on which Vicious overdosed and died, at the age of 21.

Gary Oldman is an English stage and screen actor. Like many English actors it seems, Oldman has played a lot of villains in Hollywood movies e.g. in “Air Force One” and “The Fifth Element”. My favorite Oldman performance is as Ludwig van Beethoven in “Immortal Beloved”. He also gave an outstanding, and Oscar-winning, portrayal of Winston Churchill in “Darkest Hour”.

“Sid and Nancy” is a 1986 film that tells the life of Sid Vicious, the famous bass player with the Sex Pistols. The “Nancy” in the title refers to Nancy Spungen, Sid Vicious’ girlfriend. The title characters are played by Gary Oldman and Chloe Webb.

58 Hall of Fame catcher Rodríguez nicknamed “Pudge” : IVAN

Iván Rodríguez is a retired MLB catcher who played most of his career for the Texas Rangers. He also played in the World Series with the Detroit Tigers in 2006, and won the World Series with the Florida Marlins in 2003. Iván’s son Dereck was drafted in 2011 by the Minnesota Twins.

60 Transport for seminary students? : CROSS TRAIN

Originally, a seminary was where plants were raised from seeds, as “semen” is the Latin for “seed”. The first schools labeled as seminaries were established in the late 1500s. Those first schools were more likely to be academies for young ladies back then, rather than for trainee priests.

64 Letter after epsilon : ZETA

Zeta is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet, and is a precursor of our Roman letter Z. The word “zeta” is also the ancestor of the letter name “zed”, which became “zee”, the term that we use here in the US.

65 Overture follower : ACT I

Overtures can be independent, stand-alone musical works. However, the form was originally introduced as an instrumental introduction to another work, such as an oratorio, ballet or opera. The term “overture” came into English from French, specifically from the word “ouverture” meaning “opening”.

66 __ Carta : MAGNA

The Magna Carta is a landmark document issued in England in 1215. It represents the first time that an English king had to submit to the will of his subjects, a group of barons who sought to limit the powers of the monarchy. In particular the Magna Carta calls out that no freeman could be punished except through the law of the land. And famously, the Magna Carta was an inspiration for the United States Constitution.

67 Utopia : EDEN

The word “Utopia” was coined by Sir Thomas More in his book “Utopia” published in 1516 to describe an idyllic fictional island in the Atlantic Ocean. More’s use of the name Utopia comes from the Greek “ou” meaning “not” and “topos” meaning “place”. By calling his perfect island “Not Place”, More was apparently making the point that he didn’t think that the ideal could actually exist.

Down

1 Perspective, for short : POV

Point of view (POV)

2 My Chemical Romance genre : EMO

My Chemical Romance was an alternative rock band from Jersey City that was active from 2001 to 2013. One of the band members suggested the name, after noticing the title of the book “Ecstasy: Three Tales of Chemical Romance” by Irvine Welsh.

3 Critter also called a trash panda : RACCOON

The raccoon is native to North America. In captivity, raccoons can live to over 20 years of age, but in the wild they only live two or three years. The main causes for the shorter lifespan are hunting and road traffic.

5 Edvard Grieg’s “In the __ of the Mountain King” : HALL

“In the Hall of the Mountain King” is a charming orchestral piece composed by Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg. It is mainly heard today as part of Grieg’s “Peer Gynt, Suite No. 1”, which is a collection of incidental music that he wrote for Henrik Ibsen’s 1876 play “Peer Gynt”.

7 “Foundation” series writer Asimov : ISAAC

Isaac Asimov was a wonderful science fiction writer, and a professor of biochemistry. He was a favorite author as I was growing up and I must admit that some hero worship on my part led me to study and work as a biochemist for a short while early in my career. My favorite of his works is the collection of short stories called “I, Robot”, although Asimov’s most famous work is probably his “Foundation” trilogy of novels. Asimov wrote three autobiographies, the last of which was called “I, Asimov”, which was published in 1994, two years after his death.

8 Powerful Apple : MAC PRO

The Mac Pro is the most powerful line of computers made by Apple. The level below the Mac Pro is the iMac, Apple’s all-in-one line of desktops that is most popular. The Mac Mini is Apple’s least powerful desktop, and the smallest. The Mini uses mainly laptop components.

9 Filmmaker Nora : EPHRON

Nora Ephron had many talents, including writing film scripts and novels. Many of the movies that she wrote, she also directed. These would include some of my favorite movies of all time like “Sleepless in Seattle”, “You’ve Got Mail” and most recently, the wonderful “Julie & Julia”. And, did you know that Nora Ephron’s second marriage was to journalist Carl Bernstein of Watergate fame? She wrote an autobiographical novel based on her life with Bernstein, which deals in particular with Bernstein’s affair with the daughter of British Prime Minister James Callaghan.

11 French meat dish : ROULADE

A roulade is made by wrapping a slice of meat around a filling prior to cooking. The name “roulade” comes from the French “rouler” meaning “to roll”.

13 Shellfish served with mignonette sauce : OYSTERS

Mignonette sauce is traditionally served with raw oysters. The sauce is a condiment made from minced shallots and cracked pepper suspended in vinegar.

18 GoPro product : CAMERA

GoPro is a company that makes high-definition video cameras that have a rugged design. Famously, GoPro cameras are used in extreme conditions. For example, they are often mounted on moving vehicles or used by people playing sports. Two astronauts on the International Space Station inserted a GoPro camera inside a floating ball of water, and then showed the view from inside the ball of water. Amazing footage …

24 Common injection site : ARM

An injection using a hypodermic needle might be termed a “shot” in North America, and a “jab” in Britain and Ireland.

25 Me, in Marseille : MOI

Marseille (often written “Marseilles” in English) is the second largest city in France, after Paris. Marseille is also the largest commercial port in the country. I used to live nearby, and can attest that Marseille and environs is a great place to visit …

27 Disney CEO Bob : IGER

Robert Iger took over from Michael Eisner as CEO in 2005. Iger worked for ABC when it was taken over by Disney in 1996, and in 1999 he was named president of Walt Disney International. Iger is doing okay for himself; he earned more than $29 million in 2009.

28 Hanukkah pancake : LATKE

A latke is a delicious potato pancake (I’m Irish, so anything made with potatoes is delicious, to be honest).

30 Problem for the Tin Man : NO HEART

In the Land of Oz, created by author L. Frank Baum, the character we know as the Tin Man from the movies is named Nick Chopper or the Tin Woodman.

34 Thunder’s city, for short : OKC

The Oklahoma City Thunder NBA team arrived in 2008 after relocating from Seattle, where they were named the SuperSonics. The “Thunder” name was chosen as a reference to Oklahoma City’s exposure to the storms of Tornado Alley, and to the 45th Infantry Division “Thunderbirds” who were headquartered there until 1968.

37 “Africa” rock band : TOTO

“Africa” is a 1982 song that was a big hit for the American rock band Toto. In fact, it was destined to become the band’s only Billboard chart-topper. Apparently, someone set up a sound installation in the Namib Desert in 2019 just to play “Africa”. The song plays on a constant loop, and the installation is powered by solar panels. It just keeps on going …

38 “We Feed People” chef José : ANDRES

José Andrés is a Spanish-born celebrity chef who emigrated to the US in 1990. In 2010, he founded the World Central Kitchen NGO in the wake of a devastating earthquake in Haiti. The organization provides meals for people affected by natural disasters.

43 Bangers and mash protein : SAUSAGE

Sausages are often referred to as bangers on the other side of the pond. The term “banger” is a reference to the tendency of the sausage to burst open with a bang while cooking. The rather tasty dish called bangers and mash is traditional British fare and comprises sausages with mashed potatoes, and smothered in brown gravy. Yum …

52 Dressage paces : TROTS

The equestrian sport of dressage involves demonstration of how well a horse responds to training. “Dressage” is a French word meaning “training”.

61 Command to a collie : SIT

The collie isn’t actually a breed of dog, but rather the name given to a group of herding dogs that originated in Scotland and Northern England. An obvious (and wonderful) example would be the border collie. Many dogs classed as collies don’t have the word “collie” in the name of the breed, for example the old English sheepdog and the Shetland sheepdog.

63 __ Geo Wild : NAT

The National Geographic Channel (Nat Geo) is jointly owned by Fox and the National Geographic Society, and was launched in 2001. Nat Geo has a sister channel known as National Geographic Wild (Nat Geo Wild) that focuses on programming about wildlife.