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Constructed by: Jake Halperin
Edited by: Patti Varol
Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Repeat, and Repeat
Themed answers each contain two repetitions:
- 17A Admonition to an Egyptian boy king? : TUT-TUT, TUT
- 29A Pothole filler made from fish-and-chips sauce? : TARTAR TAR
- 46A Say farewell to a Dickens character? : PIP-PIP, PIP!
- 62A Is able to do high kicks in a chorus line? : CAN CANCAN
Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers
Want to discuss the puzzle? Then …
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Bill’s time: 6m 09s
Bill’s errors: 0
Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies
Across
5 Mardi Gras wear : MASK
“Mardi Gras” translates from French as “Fat Tuesday”, and gets its name from the practice of eating rich foods on the eve of the fasting season known as Lent. Lent starts on the next day, called Ash Wednesday.
9 Britcom with Eddie and Patsy, for short : ABFAB
“Absolutely Fabulous” (sometimes shortened to “AbFab”) is a cult-classic sitcom produced by the BBC. The two stars of the show are Jennifer Saunders (Edina Monsoon) and Joanna Lumley (Patsy Stone). “Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie” hit the screens in 2016. I haven’t seen it yet, but my wife did and really enjoyed it. She said that there’s a veritable cavalcade of British stars that make an appearance …
14 Minnesota representative Ilhan : OMAR
Ilhan Omar has been representing Minnesota’s 5th congressional district in the US House since 2019. At that time, she became one of the first two Muslim women, as well as the first Somali American, to serve in the US Congress.
16 Gibbs of “The Jeffersons” : MARLA
Marla Gibbs is an actress from Chicago who is best known for playing Florence Johnston, the maid on the sitcom “The Jeffersons” in the seventies and eighties. Gibbs was also a singer who released several albums. She also owned a jazz club for almost 20 years in South Central L.A. called “Maria’s Memory Lane Jazz and Supper Club”.
The very popular sitcom called “The Jeffersons” ran from 1975 until it came to an abrupt end in 1985. CBS canceled the show without even allowing a series finale that “wrapped things up”. In fact, lead actor Sherman Hemsley learned of the show’s cancellation in the newspaper.
17 Admonition to an Egyptian boy king? : TUT-TUT, TUT
“King Tut” is a name commonly used for the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun. Tutankhamun may not have been the most significant of the pharaohs historically, but he is the most famous today largely because of the discovery of his nearly intact tomb in 1922 by Howard Carter. Prior to this find, any Egyptian tombs uncovered by archaeologists had been ravaged by grave robbers. Tutankhamun’s magnificent burial mask is one of the most recognizable of all Egyptian artifacts.
19 Helps out illegally : ABETS
The word “abet” comes into English from the Old French “abeter” meaning “to bait” or “to harass with dogs” (literally “to make bite”). This sense of encouraging something bad to happen morphed into our modern usage of “abet” meaning to aid or encourage someone in a crime.
20 Ending for “Black,” “Mixed,” and “Grown,” in sitcom names : -ISH
“Black-ish” is a sitcom starring Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross that premiered in 2014. The show is noted for tackling tough issues such as racism, police brutality, attitudes toward the LGBT community, and the 2016 US presidential election.
“Mixed-ish” is a sitcom that premiered in 2019, and is a prequel to the hit show “Black-ish”. “Mix-ish” is actually the second “Black-ish” spinoff, as “Grown-ish” started airing in 2018.
“Grown-ish” is a spin-off sitcom of the series “Black-ish”. “Grown-ish” follows the character fro “Black-ish” named Zoey as she “grows” up and heads to college. Zoey is played by actress Yara Shahidi.
21 Olfactory assault : STENCH
The adjective “olfactory” means “relating to the sense of smell”. The term comes from the Latin verb “olfacere” meaning “to get the smell of”.
23 “Everything Everywhere All at Once” star Michelle : YEOH
Michelle Yeoh is an actress from Malaysia who appeared in several Hong Kong action films in which she did her own stunts and martial arts scenes. Her most famous action performance was in the 2000 movie “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, although I best know her for playing opposite Pierce Brosnan in the Bond film “Tomorrow Never Dies”.
“Everything Everywhere All at Once” is a 2022 comedy-drama movie starring Michelle Yeoh as a woman undergoing an IRS audit. That mundane storyline gets lost completely in a film full of science-fiction, fantasy, animation and martial arts. The screenplay was originally written for Jackie Chan, but it was reworked intentionally so that a female lead carried the plot. Frankly, this one sounds a little haphazard for my mundane and aging tastes …
24 Conical shelter : TEEPEE
A tepee (also written as “tipi” and “teepee”) is a cone-shaped tent traditionally made from animal hides that is used by the Great Plains Native Americans. A wigwam is a completely different structure and is often a misnomer for a tepee. A wigwam is a domed structure built by Native Americans in the West and Southwest, intended to be a more permanent dwelling. The wigwam can also be covered with hides but more often was covered with grass, reeds, brush or cloth.
29 Pothole filler made from fish-and-chips sauce? : TARTAR TAR
Tartar sauce is basically mayonnaise with some chopped pickles, capers and onion or chives. The recipe was invented by the French (as “sauce tartare”) with the name somehow linked to the Tatars, a people who once occupied Ukraine and parts of Russia.
Back in the early 1800s, the term “pothole” only applied to relatively small cylindrical cavities in rock and glaciers. We extended the usage to holes in roads at the start of the 20th century.
37 Amnesiac’s query : WHO AM I?
“Amnesia, meaning “loss of memory”, is a Greek word that we imported into English in the 17th century. The Greek term comes from combining the prefixes “a-” meaning “not” and “mnesi-” meaning “remembering”.
39 “Becoming” memoirist Michelle : OBAMA
“Becoming” is a 2018 memoir by former First Lady Michelle Obama. After “Becoming” was published in November 2018, it took just 15 days for it to break the record for copies sold of any book in the US that year.
41 Uno, dos, __ : TRES
In Spanish, “Uno, dos, tres” (one, two, three) starts off a count.
42 Reversals : U-TURNS
Hang a “uey” or “uie”, make a u-turn, make a 180.
44 “Succession” actor Brian : COX
The vastly experienced and much-respected Scottish actor Brian Cox was actually the first to play the character Hannibal Lecter on screen. He did so in 1986 in the film “Manhunter”, which is based on the Thomas Harris novel “Red Dragon”. More recently, Cox took on the role of Logan Roy in the drama series “Succession”.
“Succession” is a very popular dark comedy-drama series that premiered in 2018. It’s about a family-owned, global media company. The “succession” in question is who will get to run the empire after the passing of the ailing family patriarch. The marvelous Scottish actor Brian Cox plays the head of the company Logan Roy.
46 Say farewell to a Dickens character? : PIP-PIP, PIP!
“Pip-pip” is a colloquial expression used, somewhat humorously these days, by some English people to say “goodbye”.
The novel “Great Expectations” by Charles Dickens is written in the first person, through the eyes of the hero of the piece, a young orphan boy named Pip.
49 Aspire laptop maker : ACER
Acer’s Aspire line is a series of personal computers, both desktops and laptops, that were introduced in 1999.
50 Alternative to Alpine, in skiing : NORDIC
Nordic skiing differs from Alpine skiing in the type of equipment used. Nordic ski boots are fixed to the binding so that the heel can lift off the ski, whereas Alpine ski boots are fixed to the binding along the whole sole. Alpine skiing is also known as downhill skiing, and Nordic skiing disciplines include cross-country skiing and Telemark skiing.
Alpine skiing is also known as downhill skiing.
53 Current options : AC/DC
There are two types of electric current. The 120V supply that is distributed throughout our homes provides us with alternating current (AC). The AC current moves back and forth every 1/60 second, in two different directions. AC is great for transmission around the country, and that’s the main reason that AC is piped into our homes. However, all of our electronic devices need direct current (DC), current that flows in one direction. That’s why those devices have adapters at the end of a power cable. The 120V AC supply is converted by the adapter into the DC supply used by the device.
56 Enjoyed, as a lollipop : LICKED
A lollipop is a piece of candy on a stick. The name “lollipop” surfaced in 1908, and was taken from a prominent race horse of the day named Lolly Pop.
60 Plumbing issues : LEAKS
“Plumbum” is Latin for “lead”, explaining why the symbol of the element in the Periodic Table is “Pb”. It also explains why the original lead weight on the end of a line used to check vertical was called a “plumb line”. And, as pipes were originally made of lead, it also explains why we would call in a “plumber” if one of those pipes was leaking.
62 Is able to do high kicks in a chorus line? : CAN CANCAN
The Moulin Rouge cabaret is located right in the middle of one of the red light districts of Paris, the district of Pigalle. You can’t miss the Moulin Rouge as it has a huge red windmill on its roof (“moulin rouge” is French for “red windmill”). The nightclub opened its doors in 1889 and soon after, the working girls of the cabaret adopted a “respectable” party dance and used it to entice their clients. That was the birth of the can-can. Nowadays, the Moulin Rouge is home to a lavish, Las Vegas-style show that costs millions of euros to stage. It features showgirls, dancers and acrobats, a whole host of entertainers in fact. And I am sure the can-can features as well …
65 “Black Panther” villain Killmonger : ERIK
“Black Panther” is a 2018 superhero film starring Chadwick Boseman in the title role. Black Panther is a Marvel Comics character created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. When not a superhero, Black Panther is the king of the fictional African nation of Wakanda, and goes by the name “T’Challa”.
66 Pinochle-like card game : SKAT
When I was a teenager in Ireland, I had a friend with a German father. The father taught us the game of Skat, and what a great game it is. Skat originated in Germany in the 1800s and is to this day the most popular card game in the country. I haven’t played it in decades, but would love to play it again …
Pinochle is a card game that was developed from the 19th-century French game called bezique.
67 Far from posh : SEEDY
We use the word “seedy” to mean “shabby”. The usage probably arose from the appearance of a flowering plant that has gone to seed.
No one really knows the etymology of the word “posh”. The popular myth that “posh” is actually an acronym standing for “port out, starboard home” is completely untrue, and is a story that can actually be traced back to the 1968 movie “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”. The myth is that wealthy British passengers traveling to and from India would book cabins on the port side for the outward journey and the starboard side for the home journey. This trick was supposedly designed to keep their cabins out of the direct sunlight.
Down
4 Class with easels : ART
The word “easel” comes from an old Dutch word meaning “donkey”, would you believe? The idea is that an easel carries its load (an oil painting, say) just as a donkey would be made to carry a load.
5 Like low-shine lipstick : MATTE
Lipsticks have a remarkably long list of ingredients. Die-hard vegans have to be careful in their choice of lipstick, as most contain beeswax. and the “shimmering” types often contain fish scales. Yuk …
9 Doc’s org. : AMA
The list of American Medical Association (AMA) past-presidents includes William James Mayo (1906-07) and Charles Horace Mayo (1917-18). William and Charles were brothers, and were two founders of the famous Mayo Clinic located in Rochester, Minnesota.
12 Palo __, California : ALTO
The city of Palo Alto, California takes its name from a specific redwood tree called El Palo Alto (Spanish for “the tall stick”) that is located within the bounds of the city. The tree is 110 feet tall and over a thousand years old.
29 Bar bill : TAB
When we run a “tab” at a bar, we are running a “tabulation”, a listing of what we owe. Such a use of “tab” is American slang that originated in the 1880s.
30 Mechanical arithmetic aids : ABACI
The abacus (plural “abaci”) was used as a counting frame long before man had invented a numbering system. It is a remarkable invention, particularly when one notes that abaci are still widely used today across Africa and Asia.
31 Card sets sold in New Age shops : TAROT DECKS
Tarot cards have been around since the mid-1400s, and for centuries were simply used for entertainment as a game. It has only been since the late 1800s that the cards have been used by fortune tellers to predict the future. The list of tarot cards includes the Wheel of Fortune, the Hanged Man and the Lovers.
The New Age Movement is a western philosophy with roots that date back to the early 1800s. The movement focuses on achieving the highest human potential as an individual and embraces many traditionally eastern spiritual practices, but eschews all religious doctrines. New Age music is composed with the intent of supporting this philosophy. It tends to be very minimalistic, very tonal and harmonic. It is often used as a backdrop for relaxation or meditation.
32 Prayer ending : … AMEN
The word “amen” translates as “so be it”. “Amen” is said to be of Hebrew origin, but it is also likely to be influenced by Aramaic and Arabic.
34 Single-serve coffee pod : K-CUP
A K-Cup is a single-portion cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate in which the beverage is prepared in situ. K-Cup packs are used with brewing machines made by Keurig, a manufacturer of coffee brewers based in Reading, Massachusetts. Personally, I use a Nespresso machine …
36 Mass communication? : GOSPEL
The Gospel of Matthew is the first book of the New Testament in the Christian Bible. Despite the book’s title, the author is not named, with the words “according to Matthew” added about two centuries after it was written.
The principal act of worship in the Roman Catholic tradition is the Mass. The term “Mass” comes from the Late Latin word “missa” meaning “dismissal”. This word is used at the end of the Latin Mass in “Ite, missa est” which translates literally as “Go, it is the dismissal”.
43 Actor Cage, casually : NIC
Actor Nicolas “Nic” Cage was born Nicolas Coppola. Cage is the nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, both of whom are Nic Cage’s father’s siblings.
48 Green Jedi with his own grammar : YODA
In the “Star Wars” series of films, the character named Yoda has a unique speech pattern. He often uses the word order object-subject-verb. For example:
- Patience you must have …
- Truly wonderful, the mind of a child is.
- To answer power with power, the Jedi way this is not.
50 Parts of mandolins : NECKS
A mandolin is a stringed instrument in the lute family. There is also a mandola, a similar instrument that is a little larger. In fact, “mandolin” comes from the Italian word for “little mandola”.
51 “Wicked Game” singer Chris : ISAAK
Chris Isaak is not only a rock musician, but also has had a lot of acting parts. Isaak had small roles in movies like “Married to the Mob” and “The Silence of the Lambs”, but I remember him as astronaut Ed White in the fabulous HBO miniseries “From the Earth to the Moon”.
Chris Isaak’s 1991 hit “Wicked Game” is taken from his 1989 album “Heart Shaped World”. The song took a couple of years to become a hit after release on the album. “Wicked Game” received a boost in popularity after it was featured in the 1990 David Lynch film “Wild at Heart”.
52 Euro fractions : CENTS
The euro is divided into 100 cents, sometimes referred to as “euro cents”. Some countries within the European Union (Ireland, for example) have taken steps to withdraw the 1-cent and 2-cent coins from circulation by allowing cash transactions to be rounded to the nearest five cents. I found it a little odd when buying something in Ireland recently that was priced at 99 cents, and getting no change after handing over a euro coin …
53 Woeful word : ALAS
Our word “alas”, used to express unhappiness or concern, comes from the Old French phrase “ha, las”. “Ha, las” translates as “ah, unfortunate”. The modern French equivalent is “hélas”, which translates as “alas”! Go figure …
58 Make mittens, say : KNIT
When I was a toddler my mother used to sew a string to connect each of my mittens so that I wouldn’t lose them. The string went up one sleeve, across the back, and down the other sleeve.
63 Hush-hush org. : NSA
National Security Agency (NSA)
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Complete List of Clues/Answers
Across
1 Dinner with donors : GALA
5 Mardi Gras wear : MASK
9 Britcom with Eddie and Patsy, for short : ABFAB
14 Minnesota representative Ilhan : OMAR
15 Not pro : ANTI
16 Gibbs of “The Jeffersons” : MARLA
17 Admonition to an Egyptian boy king? : TUT-TUT, TUT
19 Helps out illegally : ABETS
20 Ending for “Black,” “Mixed,” and “Grown,” in sitcom names : -ISH
21 Olfactory assault : STENCH
23 “Everything Everywhere All at Once” star Michelle : YEOH
24 Conical shelter : TEEPEE
26 “Which of the two will it be?” : A OR B?
28 Shepherd’s tool : ROD
29 Pothole filler made from fish-and-chips sauce? : TARTAR TAR
34 Was sure about : KNEW
36 Chatter away : GAB
37 Amnesiac’s query : WHO AM I?
38 Secret language : CODE
39 “Becoming” memoirist Michelle : OBAMA
41 Uno, dos, __ : TRES
42 Reversals : U-TURNS
44 “Succession” actor Brian : COX
45 Hit the horn : HONK
46 Say farewell to a Dickens character? : PIP-PIP, PIP!
48 Thus far : YET
49 Aspire laptop maker : ACER
50 Alternative to Alpine, in skiing : NORDIC
53 Current options : AC/DC
56 Enjoyed, as a lollipop : LICKED
59 WNW’s opposite : ESE
60 Plumbing issues : LEAKS
62 Is able to do high kicks in a chorus line? : CAN CANCAN
64 TV spot seller : AD REP
65 “Black Panther” villain Killmonger : ERIK
66 Pinochle-like card game : SKAT
67 Far from posh : SEEDY
68 Gels : SETS
69 Inquires : ASKS
Down
1 “Duly noted” : GOT IT
2 Cause to chuckle : AMUSE
3 Sudsy : LATHERED UP
4 Class with easels : ART
5 Like low-shine lipstick : MATTE
6 Get the poker pot going : ANTE
7 Leave speechless : STUN
8 Vehicle that’s built after it’s bought : KIT CAR
9 Doc’s org. : AMA
10 Brand-new sibling, perhaps : BABY BROTHER
11 On the house : FREE
12 Palo __, California : ALTO
13 Big celebration : BASH
18 Didn’t waste : USED
22 Hair removal substance : HOT WAX
25 Like energy bars, in adspeak : POWER-PACKED
27 “Go team!” : RAH!
29 Bar bill : TAB
30 Mechanical arithmetic aids : ABACI
31 Card sets sold in New Age shops : TAROT DECKS
32 Prayer ending : … AMEN
33 Expose to danger : RISK
34 Single-serve coffee pod : K-CUP
35 Words of denial : NOT I
36 Mass communication? : GOSPEL
40 Floor-washing tool : MOP
43 Actor Cage, casually : NIC
47 Comparison shopper’s data : PRICES
48 Green Jedi with his own grammar : YODA
50 Parts of mandolins : NECKS
51 “Wicked Game” singer Chris : ISAAK
52 Euro fractions : CENTS
53 Woeful word : ALAS
54 Formally transfer : CEDE
55 Truth or __ : DARE
57 “Ask me if I __!” : CARE
58 Make mittens, say : KNIT
61 Secret agent : SPY
63 Hush-hush org. : NSA
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