Category: Katherine Baicker

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Constructed by: Katherine Baicker & Laura Dershewitz
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: To Build a Fire

Themed answers each end with an item used TO BUILD A FIRE:

• 54A Jack London short story set in harsh winter conditions, and what the ends of 20-, 28-, and 47-Across can be used for : TO BUILD A FIRE

• 20A Talks things out to resolve tension : CLEARS THE AIR
• 28A Slumbers soundly : SLEEPS LIKE A LOG
• 47A Applies more pressure : TURNS UP THE HEAT

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

Bill’s time: 5m 45s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Symbol on the Texas state flag : STAR

The single star on the state flag of Texas is a reminder of the “lone star” on the 1836 National Standard of Texas. The single white star on a blue background symbolizes Texas as an independent republic and its struggle for independence from Mexico.

15 Cuatro y cuatro : OCHO

In Spanish, “ocho” (eight) is the sum of “cuatro y cuatro” (four plus four).

17 North Carolina university : ELON

Elon is a city in the Piedmont region of North Carolina located close to the city of Burlington. Elon University is a private liberal arts school founded in 1889.

23 Miss Piggy’s favorite pronoun : MOI?

The Muppet named Miss Piggy has a pretentious air, and so refers to herself as “moi”. In 1998, Miss Piggy even released her own perfume called “Moi”.

25 Post for an MBA, maybe : CFO

A chief financial officer (CFO) might have a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree.

33 Ecol. or geol. : SCI

Ecology (ecol.) and geology (geol.) are sciences (scis.).

35 Digital camera insert, briefly : SD CARD

SD cards are memory cards that were introduced in 1999. The initials “SD” stand for “Secure Digital”.

46 __ Diego Padres : SAN

The San Diego Padres baseball team was founded in 1969, and immediately joined the ranks of Major League Baseball as an expansion team. The Padres took their name from a Minor League team that had been in the city since 1936. The name is Spanish for “fathers” and is a reference to the Franciscan Friars from Spain who founded San Diego in 1769.

51 Paramount channel : CBS
52 Paramount channel : TMC

Paramount Pictures is one of the oldest surviving film studios, and is the last major studio that still has its headquarters in Hollywood. Paramount was founded in 1912 as the Famous Players Film Company by Adolph Zukor, with partners Daniel and Charles Frohman. Paramount is now owned by Viacom.

54 Jack London short story set in harsh winter conditions, and what the ends of 20-, 28-, and 47-Across can be used for : TO BUILD A FIRE

“To Build a Fire” is a 1908 Jack London short story. It is about a man and husky dog hiking through forests in the Yukon Territory in very low temperatures. The man accidentally breaks through ice and soaks himself, forcing him to stop to build a fire to dry off. His attempts to dry off are thwarted by snow falling from the trees above. Eventually, he tries unsuccessfully to kill his canine companion, in order to avail of its body heat. He is unable to do so, and succumbs to hypothermia.

60 Green energy category : SOLAR

Solar panels are arrays of solar cells that make use of what’s known as the photovoltaic effect. We are more likely to have learned about the photoelectric effect in school, in which electrons were ejected from the surface of some materials when it was exposed to light or other forms of radiation. The photovoltaic effect is related but different. Instead of being electrons ejected from the surface, in the photovoltaic effect electrons move around in the material creating a difference in voltage.

66 “__, Brute?” : ET TU

It was Shakespeare who popularized the words “Et tu, Brute?” (meaning “And you, Brutus?”). They appear in his play “Julius Caesar”, although the phrase had been around long before he penned his drama. It’s not known what Julius Caesar actually said in real life (if anything at all) as he was assassinated on the steps of the Senate in Rome.

69 Amy of “The Wire” : RYAN

Actress Amy Ryan is perhaps best known on the big screen for her playing Helene McCready, the mother of the abducted girl in the 2007 crime thriller “Gone Baby Gone”. On the small screen, she plays Holly Flax, the love interest of Michael Scott in “The Office”.

70 Rabbit kin : HARE

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

Down

1 On __: how much freelance work is done : SPEC

The term “free lance” was coined by Sir Walter Scott in his 1820 novel “Ivanhoe”, when he used it to describe a medieval mercenary warrior. Forty years later, a “freelancer” was a journalist who did work for more than one publication without a long-term commitment.

5 Deals in dirt : GOSSIPS

To dish the dirt is to talk about someone or something without regard to veracity. The phrase comes from “dish” (in the sense of dishing out food) and “dirt” (in the sense of negative information). To be dishy is to be given to gossip.

6 Rapper who plays Fin on “Law & Order: SVU” : ICE-T

Rapper Ice-T must be tired of having his name come up as an answer in crossword puzzles (I know I am!). Born Tracy Marrow, Ice-T has been interested in acting for decades and made his film debut in the 1984 movie about breakdancing called “Breakin’”. He has also played Detective Fin Tutuola in the TV show “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” since the year 2000.

“Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” is a spin-off from the TV crime drama “Law & Order”. “SVU” has been on the air since 1999, and is set in New York City. Interestingly (to me), there is a very successful Russian adaptation of the show that is set in Moscow.

7 Toppled Iranian leader : SHAH

The last Shah of Iran was Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was overthrown in the revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979. The post-revolution government sought the extradition of the Shah back to Iran while he was in the United States seeking medical care (he had cancer). His prolonged stay in the United States, recovering from surgery, caused some unrest back in Iran and resentment towards the United States. Some say that this resentment precipitated the storming of the US Embassy in Tehran and the resulting hostage crisis.

8 Black Lives Matter co-founder Ayo __ : TOMETI

Opal Tometi is a Nigerian-born human rights activist who co-founded the Black Lives Matter movement in 2013, along with Alicia Garza and Patrisse Cullors. One of Tometi’s major contributions was setting up the social media aspects of the movement. Opal changed her given name to “Ayo”, a name with strong connections to her Nigerian ancestry.

27 “Happiness is having a scratch for every itch poet Nash” : OGDEN

Ogden Nash was a poet from Rye, New York who is remembered for his light and quirky verse. Nash had over 500 such works published between 1931 and 1972.

28 Disheveled clod : SCHLUB

A “schlub” is a clumsy, stupid person. The term comes into English possibly via Yiddish from the Polish “żłób“ meaning “blockhead”.

29 Crossbred big cats : LIGERS

The tiger is the largest species in the cat family. Tigers have been known to breed with lions. A liger is a cross between a male lion and female tiger. A tigon is a cross between a female lion and a male tiger.

33 Component of cider but not cola? : SOFT C

The starting letter of the word “cider” is a soft letter C,

38 Twists, as data : DISTORTS

To distort something is to twist it out of shape, or to twist it out of the true meaning. The verb “to distort” comes from the Latin “dis-” meaning “completely”, and “torquere” meaning “to twist”.

43 Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably __” : NUMB

“Comfortably Numb” is a 1980 single released by English rock band Pink Floyd. It is also a track on the band’s iconic 1979 album “The Wall”. The song’s music was composed by guitarist David Gilmour, and the lyrics written by bassist Roger Waters. Waters’ lyrics were inspired by his own experience of being injected with a tranquilizer before a 1977 performance, because he was experiencing stomach cramps.

49 Condo management gp. : HOA

Homeowner’s association (HOA)

The terms “condominium” and “apartment” tend to describe the same type of residential property, namely a private living space with facilities shared with others residing in the same building or complex. The difference is that a condominium is usually owned, and an apartment is rented. At least that’s how it is in the US. The word “condominium” comes from the Latin “com-” (together) and “dominum” (right of ownership).

54 Cassette : TAPE

The French for “box” is “casse”. So, a “cassette” is a “little box”.

56 “Close My Eyes Forever” singer Ford : LITA

“Close My Eyes Forever” is a track from Lita Ford’s 1988 album “Lita”. It is a duet, sung with Ozzy Osbourne. Apparently, the pair wrote the lyrics together by accident after drinking heavily in a recording studio. I am not sure how that works …

60 Cul-de-__ : SAC

Even though “cul-de-sac” can indeed mean “bottom-of-the-bag” in French, the term “cul-de-sac” is of English origin. The term was introduced in aristocratic circles at a time when it was considered very fashionable to speak French. Dead-end streets in France are usually signposted with just a symbol and no accompanying words, but if words are included they are “voie sans issue”, meaning “way without exit”.

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