Day: May 2, 2025

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Constructed by: Kathy Lowden
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Drop In

Themed clues require us to DROP the letter pairing “IN”:

• 73A Stop by unannounced, and how to make the starred clues match their answers? : DROP IN

• 21A *Hot point : SHABU-SHABU (Hot pot)
• 27A *Main event : MOTHER’S DAY (Ma event)
• 50A *Chain-chain-chain : CUBAN DANCE (Cha-cha-cha)
• 56A *Rhino : PI FOLLOWER (Rho follower)

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

Bill’s time: 8m 56s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Number with 101 digits : GOOGOL

A googol is 10 raised to the power of 100. The term “googol” was coined by the nine-year-old nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner. The uncle had asked the boy to come up with an interesting name for “a very large number”. Kasner then came up with the name “googleplex”, which he defined as 1 followed by as many zeros one could write before getting tired. He later refined the definition of a googolplex to be 10 to the power of a googol. And yes, the search engine called “Google” is a deliberate misspelling of “googol”, and Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California is called the Googleplex, a similar deliberate misspelling.

7 Tenerife, por ejemplo : ISLA

In Spanish, Tenerife “por ejemplo” (for example), is an “isla” (island).

Tenerife is the largest of the seven Canary Islands located off the coast of Morocco in North Africa. Part of Spain, Tenerife is the nation’s most populous island, home to almost 900,000 people. It also receives about five million visitors annually, making it one of the most important tourist destinations in the world.

11 Oft-torn knee pt. : ACL

The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of four major ligaments that support the knee. It is located in the center of the knee and connects the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (shin bone).

17 Cardiology implants : STENTS

In the world of surgical medicine, a stent is an artificial tube inserted inside a vessel in the body, say an artery, in order to reduce the effects of a local restriction in the body’s conduit.

21 *Hot point : SHABU-SHABU (Hot pot)

Shabu-shabu is a hotpot dish in Japanese cuisine. It comprises very thin slices of meat that are boiled in water and served with various dipping sauces. Diners cook the meat in the boiling water themselves. They submerge a slice into the water and stir it around using chopsticks, usually just for a few seconds. The name “shabu-shabu” is onomatopoeic, and comes from the swishing sound made by the meat being stirred in the water.

24 Broccoli part : STEM

The Italian term “broccolo” is used to describe the flowering crest of a cabbage. We use the plural form of the same word “broccoli” as the name of the edible green plant in the cabbage family.

27 *Main event : MOTHER’S DAY (Ma event)

Note the official punctuation in “Mother’s Day”, even though one might think it should be “Mothers’ Day”. President Wilson and Anna Jarvis, who created the tradition, specifically wanted Mother’s Day to honor the mothers within each family and not just “mothers” in general, so they went with the “Mother’s Day” punctuation.

37 Cross piece? : PEN

A. T. Cross is a company that claims to be the oldest manufacturer of fine pens. Cross was founded in 1846 in Providence, Rhode Island by one Richard Cross. Richard passed the company on to his son Alonzo T. Cross, who gave it the current name.

38 Patti with a plaque on the Apollo Theater’s Walk of Fame

“Patti LaBelle” is the stage name of singer Patricia Holt-Edwards from Philadelphia. She started her career in the sixties as the lead singer of the vocal group Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, later changing its name to simply “LaBelle”. When the group disbanded in 1976, Patti launched a remarkably successful solo career.

41 Rank in judo : DAN

Judo is a martial art from Japan that developed relatively recently, in 1882. The name “judo” translates as “gentle way”. Practitioners of judo proceed through a series of proficiency grades known as the kyu-dan system. At each progression, a different colored belt is awarded.

50 *Chain-chain-chain : CUBAN DANCE (Cha-cha-cha)

The cha-cha-cha (often simplified to “cha-cha”) is a Latin dance with origins in Cuba, where it was introduced by composer Enrique Jorrin in 1953.

53 Mushroom with a honeycomb-like top : MOREL

A morel is a mushroom with a honeycomb-like structure on the cap. They are highly prized, especially in French cuisine. Morels should never be eaten raw as they are toxic, with the toxins being removed by thorough cooking.

56 *Rhino : PI FOLLOWER (Rho follower)

Pi is the sixteenth letter of the Greek alphabet, and is probably most famous to us as a symbol for a mathematical constant, the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter. The letter pi has represented this constant since the mid-1700s, and was chosen because pi is the first letter of the Greek word “perimetros” meaning “circumference”.

60 “¿Cómo __ usted?” : ESTA

“¿Cómo está usted?” is a more formal way of asking “How are you?” in Spanish.

65 European automaker : AUDI

The predecessor to today’s Audi company was called Auto Union. Auto Union was formed with the merger of four individual entities: Audi, Horch, DKW and Wanderer. The Audi logo comprises four intersecting rings, each representing one of the four companies that merged.

66 Benders : SPREES

The terms “jag” and “bender” describe periods of unrestrained activity, particularly those involving alcohol. Both words have been in use since the 1800s.

70 Van Gogh’s “The Potato __” : EATERS

“The Potato Eaters” is a Vincent van Gogh painting that you can see in the Vincent van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. It was stolen from the museum in 1991, along with nineteen other paintings. Luckily, all of the stolen works were recovered extremely quickly as the robbers abandoned them only 35 minutes after the theft.

72 Princess Anne, to Prince William : AUNT

Anne, Princess Royal was born in 1950 and is the only daughter of British Queen Elizabeth II. Princess Anne has been in the public spotlight for many things, including her success as an equestrian. Princess Anne was the first member of the British Royal Family to have competed in an Olympic Games. Her daughter Zara Phillips continued the tradition and competed as a member of the British equestrian team in the 2012 Olympic Games. Zara’s medal was presented to her by her own mother, Princess Anne.

Prince William, born William Arthur Philip Louis, is the elder son of King Charles III and the late Diana, Princess of Wales. He is the heir apparent to the British throne. Having married Catherine Middleton in 2011, the couple are now known as the Prince and Princess of Wales, and have three children: Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

Down

1 Crux : GIST

“Crux” is the Latin word for “cross”. The term came into English meaning “a central difficulty” in the early 1700s.

4 Elephant-headed god : GANESHA

Ganesha is a Hindu deity usually depicted with the head of an elephant. He is widely revered as the “Remover of Obstacles” and the “Lord of Beginnings”. He is worshipped before any major undertaking, symbolizing wisdom, prosperity, and good fortune.

5 Mel in the Baseball Hall of Fame : OTT

I wonder if Mel Ott had any idea that he would turn in crosswords so very often?

7 Emmy nominee Rae : ISSA

Issa Rae is a Stanford University graduate who created a YouTube web series called “The Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl”. Rae also plays the title role in the series, a young lady named “J”. “Awkward Black Girl” was adapted into an HBO comedy-drama called “Insecure”, in which Issa Rae stars.

9 Doozy : LULU

We call a remarkable thing or a person a lulu. The term “lulu” was coined in honor of Lulu Hurst, the Georgia Wonder, who was a stage magician active in the 1880s.

A doozy is something extraordinary or bizarre. The exact origins of the word “doozy” aren’t clear, but it might be a derivative of the name Eleanora Duse, an Italian actress popular early in the 20th century. Some say that the term comes from the Duesenberg brand of automobile, which was indeed referred to as a “duesy”. However, the use of “doozy” in print occurs before the Duesenberg hit the market.

11 1998 Michael Bay disaster film : ARMAGEDDON

As one might expect from the title, “Armageddon” is a disaster movie, released in 1998. The storyline centers on attempts to destroy an asteroid that is on a collision course with Earth. The cast includes quite a few big names, led by Bruce Willis. “Armageddon” was a huge success when released, even grossing more money than “Saving Private Ryan”, which came out the same year. That, I cannot explain, because I think “Armageddon” is a very average film, and “Saving Private Ryan” is a masterpiece …

Michael Bay is a film director and producer known for his distinctive, high-octane style. His films are typically characterized by rapid editing, elaborate special effects, and intense action sequences. He was at the helm for films like “Armageddon”, “Pearl Harbor”, and the “Transformers” franchise. While his work has achieved significant commercial success, it has also drawn criticism for its emphasis on spectacle over narrative and character development.

13 Animals found only in Madagascar : LEMURS

Lemurs are unusual-looking creatures that are native to the island of Madagascar off the east coast of Africa. With their white fur and dark eyes that are very reflective at night, they have a “ghostly” appearance. Indeed, the animals take their name from Roman mythology in which “lemures” were spirits of the restless dead.

Madagascar is a large island nation lying off the southeast coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean. The main island of Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world (after Greenland, New Guinea and Borneo).

22 Letters for the Royal Navy : HMS

The prefix “HMS” is used by the warships of the Royal Navy, and stands for “Her/His Majesty’s Ship/Submarine”. The prefix “RMS” is used by ships of the merchant navy, and stands for “Royal Mail Ship/Steamer”.

The Royal Navy is the oldest of the armed services of the United Kingdom, having been formed in the early 16th century. As such, it is known as the Senior Service. The first truly organized naval force was founded by Henry VIII in 1546.

23 Rabbit’s larger cousin : HARE

Rabbits and hares belong to the taxonomic order Lagomorpha, and specifically in the family Leporidae.

25 Inventor Nikola : TESLA

Nikola Tesla was born in the Austrian Empire in a village located in modern-day Croatia, and later moved to the US. Tesla’s work on mechanical and electrical engineering was crucial to the development of alternating current technology, the same technology that is used by equipment at the backbone of modern power generation and distribution systems.

29 Novice : TENDERFOOT

The adjective “tender-footed” originally applied to horses, describing an animal that was young and inexperienced, not sure of foot. That was back in the late 17th century, By the mid-1800s the term was being applied to humans, with a “tenderfoot” being a novice, and particularly a newcomer to the worlds of ranching and mining in the American West.

30 Dorky type : DWEEB

“Dweeb” is relatively recent American slang that came out of college life in the late sixties. Dweeb, squarepants, nerd; they’re all not-nice terms that mean the same thing, i.e. someone excessively studious and socially inept.

32 Designer bag monogram : YSL

Yves Saint Laurent (YSL)

39 “The View” network : ABC

“The View” is a daytime talk show that was created by Barbara Walters and Bill Geddie in 1997. The show features a panel of five women as co-hosts.

40 __-ray disc : BLU

A CD player reads the information on the disc using a laser beam. The beam is produced by what’s called a laser diode, a device similar to a light-emitting diode (LED) except that a laser beam is emitted. That laser beam is usually red in CD and DVD players. Blu-ray players are so called as they use blue lasers.

42 Rainbow shape : ARC

Sunlight reflected by airborne water droplets can produce rainbows. The water droplets act as little prisms, dispersing the white light into its constituent colors. Sometimes we see double rainbows. If we look carefully, we can see that the order of the colors in the first and second arcs is reversed.

43 San Diego-to-Palm Springs dir. : NNE

The name of the California city of San Diego dates back to 1602, when Spanish explorer Sebastián Vizcaíno named the area after the Catholic Saint Didacus. Saint Didacus was more commonly referred to as San Diego de Alcalá.

The desert resort city of Palm Springs is located about 100 miles east of Los Angeles. The name “Palm Springs” dates back at least to 1853, and probably is a reference to the abundant California fan palms that are native to the area. However, earlier Spanish explorers used the place name “La Palma de la Mano de Dios” (The Palm of God’s Hand), giving an alternative derivation for the “Palm Springs” moniker.

48 Zambezi Valley antelope : IMPALA

“Impala” is the Zulu word for “gazelle”. When running at a sustained speed, gazelles can move along at 30 miles per hour. If needed, they can accelerate for bursts up to 60 miles per hour.

The Zambezi is the largest African river flowing into the Indian Ocean, and the fourth-longest river on the continent. The most famous spot along the Zambezi is Victoria Falls.

49 Like many laundromats : COIN-OP

If you go looking for a laundromat in the UK or Ireland, folks will likely know what you’re talking about. However, the local name for such a facility is “launderette” or sometimes “laundrette”.

54 Alpaca kin : LLAMA

Alpacas are like small llamas, but unlike llamas were never beasts of burden. They were bred specifically for the fleece. As such, there are no known wild alpacas these days, even in their native Peru.

57 Island banquet : LUAU

The anglicized name of the Hawaiian feast “luau” comes from the Hawaiian word “lu’au”, which translates literally as “young taro tops”. Taro leaves and corms are often served at luaus.

58 Norse god of war : ODIN

In Norse mythology, Odin was the chief of the gods. He is usually depicted as having one eye, reflecting the story of how he gave one of his eyes in exchange for wisdom.

62 Garr of “Tootsie” : TERI

Actress Teri Garr had a whole host of minor roles in her youth, including appearances in nine Elvis movies. Garr’s big break came with the role of Inga in “Young Frankenstein”, and her supporting role in “Tootsie” earned Garr an Academy Award nomination. Sadly, Teri Garr suffered from multiple sclerosis, and was a National Ambassador for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

“Tootsie” is a hilarious 1982 comedy starring Dustin Hoffman in the title role, a male actor who adopts a female identity in order to land an acting job. Jessica Lange won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in the film. “Tootsie” also provided Geena Davis with her first movie role.