Day: April 24, 2025

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Constructed by: Zachary Schiff
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Location, Location, Location … and Location

Themed answers are all named for a location in the US:

• 20A Boston, e.g. : CLASSIC ROCK BAND
• 32A Tacoma, e.g. : PICKUP TRUCK
• 41A Philadelphia, e.g. : CREAM CHEESE
• 51A Manhattan, e.g. : BOURBON COCKTAIL

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

Bill’s time: 8m 00s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Yankee __: Christmas party tradition : SWAP

We use the idiomatic term “white elephant” to describe an object or venture that costs more to maintain than can be gained by disposing of it. The term comes from the tradition of presenting a white, albino elephant to a Southeast Asian monarch. Such a beast was a blessing, in that it was viewed as sacred and a sign of great power. It was also a curse, in that the animal was of no practical use and was expensive to maintain. The derivative phrase “white elephant gift exchange” (also called “Yankee swap”) refers to a party game in which impractical gag gifts are exchanged, usually at Christmas.

5 Radar image : BLIP

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”.

15 “Black-ish” star Tracee Ellis __ : ROSS

Actress Tracee Ellis Ross is perhaps best known for playing lead roles in the TV shows “Girlfriends” and “black-ish”. She was born Tracee Joy Silberstein, and is the daughter of singer Diana Ross and music executive Robert Ellis Silberstein.

“Black-ish” is a sitcom starring Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross that premiered in 2014. The lead actors play Dre and Rainbow Johnson, a married couple leading an upper-middle class black family. The show is noted for tackling tough issues such as racism, police brutality, attitudes toward the LGBT community, and the 2016 US presidential election.

16 Acting gig : ROLE

Musicians use “gig” to describe a job, a performance. The term originated in the early 1900s in the world of jazz. The derivative phrase “gig economy” applies to a relatively recent phenomenon where workers find themselves jumping from temporary job to temporary job, from gig to gig.

18 Esq. : ATTY

The title “esquire” is of British origin and is used differently today depending on whether one is in the US or the UK. Here in America the term is usually reserved for those practicing the law (both male and female). In the UK, “esquire” is a term of gentle respect reserved for a male who has no other title that one can use. So, a mere commoner like me might receive a letter from the bank, say, addressed to W. E. Butler Esq.

20 Boston, e.g. : CLASSIC ROCK BAND

Boston is a rock band from … Boston. Boston’s biggest hit is “Amanda”, released in 1986.

24 State where five U.S. presidents are buried : OHIO

The state of Ohio shares the nickname “Mother of Presidents” with the state of Virginia, as seven US presidents were born there:

• Ulysses S. Grant
• Rutherford B. Hayes
• James A. Garfield
• Benjamin Harrison
• William McKinley
• William Howard Taft
• Warren G. Harding

Additionally, Virginia-born Henry Harrison lived most of his life in Ohio, and indeed is buried there.

32 Tacoma, e.g. : PICKUP TRUCK

The Tacoma is a pickup truck introduced by Toyota in 1995. “Motor Trend” dubbed it Truck of the Year in 2005.

37 Haitian friend : AMIE

The Republic of Haiti occupies the smaller, western portion of the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean. The rest of the island is taken up by the Dominican Republic. Haiti is one of only two nations in the Americas to have French as an official language, the other being Canada.

41 Philadelphia, e.g. : CREAM CHEESE

Philadelphia Cream Cheese, despite its name, originated in the town of Chester, New York. In 1872, a local dairyman accidentally created a richer, smoother cream cheese while trying to replicate a French Neufchâtel cheese. After selling the new cheese for several years, the dairyman and his partner introduced the “Philadelphia” name to capitalize on the high-quality reputation of the diary farms surrounding the city.

50 “Veni, vidi, __” : VICI

The oft-quoted statement “Veni, vidi, vici” (“I came, I saw, I conquered”) is believed by many to have been written by Julius Caesar. The words date back to 47 BCE and refer to the short war between Rome and Pharnaces II of Pontus.

51 Manhattan, e.g. : BOURBON COCKTAIL

The cocktail called a manhattan is made from whiskey, sweet vermouth and Angostura bitters. I favor my own version of a brandy manhattan, using brandy, sweet vermouth and orange bitters.

60 “The Hunchback of __ Dame” : NOTRE

The title character in Victor Hugo’s novel “The Hunchback of Notre-Dame” is Quasimodo, the hunch-backed bell-ringer . Quasimodo falls for the beautiful Roma girl Esmeralda, and eventually rescues her just before she is due to be hanged. He carries Esmeralda into Notre-Dame crying out “Sanctuary!” There is some recent evidence that a hunchbacked stone carver, working at Notre-Dame at the same time Hugo was alive, may have been the inspiration for Quasimodo the bell-ringer.

61 “How We Do (Party)” singer Ora : RITA

“How We Do (Party)” is a 2012 song released by English singer Rita Ora as the lead single from her debut studio album “Ora”, which was released the same year. The song samples the refrain from a 1993 song by the Notorious B.I.G. As a result, when the Notorious B.I.G. was sued for an alleged copyright infringement related to the original song, Rita Ora was also dragged into court. But, the court ruled against the plaintiff, and life moved on.

62 Heavy book : TOME

“Tome” first came into English from the Latin “tomus” which means “section of a book”. The original usage in English was for a single volume in a multi-volume work. By the late 16th century, “tome” had come to mean “large book”.

Down

3 Shawkat of “Being the Ricardos” : ALIA

Alia Shawkat is an actor who might be best known for playing Maeby Fünke on the sitcom “Arrested Development”. She is best friends with fellow actor Elliot Page (formerly Ellen Page), whom Shawkat met while filming the 2009 movie “Whip It”.

“Being the Ricardos” is a 2021 biopic about the lives of married couple Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Lucy and Desi are played by Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem. The title comes from the show “I Love Lucy”, in which Ball and Arnaz played Lucy and Ricky Ricardo. I haven’t seen this one, but it’s on my list as the film was written and directed by the great Aaron Sorkin …

6 Fantasy trilogy, initially : LOTR

“Lord of the Rings” (LOTR)

7 “Life __ short to skip dessert” : IS TOO

Our word “dessert” comes from the French verb “desservir” meaning “to clear the table”. The idea is that dessert is usually the last course to be cleared from the table.

9 Will Smith sci-fi film set in 2035 : I, ROBOT

“I, Robot” is an interesting 2004 science fiction film starring Will Smith that is loosely based on the excellent collection of short stories of the same name by Isaac Asimov.

Science fiction author Isaac Asimov wrote a marvelous collection of short stories titled “I, Robot” that were first published together in 1950. In the stories, he makes repeated reference to the Three Laws of Robotics, which he introduced in the story “Runaround”, first published in 1942. The three laws are:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

10 Big East school in Pennsylvania, to fans : NOVA

Villanova University is a private Catholic school located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, in what is now the village of Villanova. It was founded in 1842, and takes its name from Saint Thomas of Villanova, a 16th-century Spanish bishop known for his charity and dedication to the poor.

14 Production company started by Ball and Arnaz : DESILU

As one might imagine, “Desilu” is a contraction of the names of the production company’s owners, Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The name “Desilu” was first given to the couple’s ranch in Chatsworth, California. Desilu produced some great shows, including the original “Star Trek” and “Mission: Impossible”.

21 Clouseau’s rank: Abbr. : INSP

Apparently, some people think that the Inspector Clouseau character (played originally by Peter Sellers) is “The Pink Panther”. “Pink Panther” is actually the jewel that was stolen in the original movie. Would you believe there are eleven “Pink Panther” movies in the whole series?

25 Comic actor David : SPADE

David Spade is a comedian and comic actor from Birmingham, Michigan. His big break came with a stint on “Saturday Night Live” in the 1990s. More recently, he played starring roles in sitcoms like “Just Shoot Me!”, “8 Simple Rules” and “Rules of Engagement”.

26 Meerkat in “The Lion King” : TIMON

Timon and Pumbaa are a pair of characters in Disney’s 1994 animated film “The Lion King”. Timon is a meerkat, and was voiced by the great Nathan Lane. Pumbaa is a warthog, and was voiced by Ernie Sabella.

29 Gulf Coast wading bird : EGRET

Egrets are a group of several species of white herons. Many egret species were faced with extinction in the 1800s and early 1900s due to plume hunting, a practice driven by the demand for egret plumes that could be incorporated into hats.

31 Skin care product : TONER

A skin toner is a cosmetic used to cleanse the skin and to shrink pores.

33 Part of FTW : THE

“FTW” is an initialism abbreviating “for the win”, a phrase meaning “being great, sure to succeed”.

34 “V for Vendetta” actor Stephen : REA

“V for Vendetta” is a 2006 movie based on the political thriller graphic novel of the same name by Alan Moore and David Lloyd. The film stars Hugo Weaving, Natalie Portman and Stephen Rea. Two other Moore novels made it to the big screen: “From Hell” and “The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen”.

41 Soft-shell __ : CRAB

The culinary term “soft-shell crabs” refers to crabs that have recently molted their hard outer shells. The brief period after molting, lasting only a few hours, results in the serving of a cooked crab that is almost entirely edible.

43 Bic’s __ Stic : CLIC

Société Bic is a company based in Clichy in France. The first product the company produced, more than fifty years ago, was the Bic Cristal ballpoint pen that is still produced today. Bic also makes other disposable products such as lighters and razors.

50 Cast a ballot : VOTED

Today, a ballot is a piece of paper or equivalent used to cast a vote. Back in the 1500s, a “ballot” was a small “ball” used in the process of voting.

53 Sephora rival : ULTA

Ulta Beauty is an American chain of beauty stores that was founded in 1990 and headquartered in Bolingbrook, Illinois. I am not part of the company’s target demographic …

54 “On the __ Up”: Angie Thomas novel about a teenage rapper : COME

“On the Come Up” is a 2019 novel by Angie Thomas. The main character, a 16-year-old named Bri, is a talented rapper trying to follow in the footsteps of her father, a legendary underground rapper. However, the father was murdered before he could make it into the big leagues.

55 Flour for roti and naan : ATTA

Atta is a whole-wheat flour used to make flatbreads in South Asian cuisine, such as chapati and naan. “Atta” is the Hindi or Urdu word for “dough”.