Category: Wendy L. Brandes

Advertisement

Constructed by: Wendy L. Brandes
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: No Hesitation

Themed answers appear as common phrases in the grid, but we need to remove a 2-letter synonym of “HESITATION” in order for them to match the clues:

• 57A “Proceed with confidence!,” and how to make the answers to 20-, 31-, and 43-Across match their clues : NO HESITATION!

• 20A Pouch for collecting cobs? : CORN POCKET (CORNER POCKET with no “ER”)
• 31A Source of inspiration for a candlemaker? : WAX MUSE (WAX MUSEUM with no “UM”)
• 43A Cry of dismay from a sailor? : OY, MATEY! (AHOY, MATEY! with no “AH”)

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

Bill’s time: 6m 13s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

14 Edible flower whose bulb has a toxic core : TULIP

We usually associate the cultivation of tulips with the Netherlands, but they were first grown commercially in the Ottoman Empire. The name “tulip” ultimately derives from the Ottoman Turkish word “tulbend” that means “muslin, gauze”.

16 Brief qualifier : IMO

In my opinion (IMO)

19 “NCIS” airer : CBS

NCIS is the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, which investigates crimes in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. The service gives its name to the CBS TV show “NCIS”, a spin-off drama from “JAG” in which the main “NCIS” characters were first introduced. The big star in “NCIS” is the actor Mark Harmon. “NCIS” is now a franchise, with spin-off shows “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “NCIS: New Orleans”.

26 Inflammation reducers : STEROIDS

Inflammation is a naturally occurring response of body tissues in response to the presence of an irritant. Inflamed tissue might feel warm, and swell up. Insufficient inflammation can result in the irritant causing progressive damage. Too much inflammation can be painful and debilitating, and is associated with conditions such as hay fever and osteoarthritis.

27 “2 Fast 2 Furious” actress Mendes : EVA

I am most familiar with actress Eva Mendes as the female lead in the movie “Hitch”, in which she played opposite Will Smith. Mendes started a relationship with fellow actor Ryan Gosling in 2011, and the couple have two children together.

“2 Fast 2 Furious” … and 2 many “Fast and Furious” movies 2 watch for me …

28 Swiper of “Dora the Explorer,” for one : FOX

“Dora the Explorer” is a cartoon series shown on Nickelodeon. Part of Dora’s remit is to introduce the show’s young viewers to some Spanish words and phrases. Dora often spars with a thieving anthropomorphic fox named Swiper.

30 ISP choice : DSL

The initialism “DSL” originally stood for Digital Subscriber Loop, but is now accepted to mean (Asymmetric) Digital Subscriber Line. It is a technology that allows Internet service to be delivered down the same telephone line as voice service, by separating the two into different frequency signals.

31 Source of inspiration for a candlemaker? : WAX MUSE (WAX MUSEUM with no “UM”)

The term “museum” comes from the ancient Greek word “mouseion” that denoted a temple dedicated to the “Muses”. The Muses were the patrons of the arts in Greek mythology.

39 Paragon : IDEAL

A paragon is a model of excellence, a peerless example. Ultimately the term “paragon” derives from the Greek “para-” meaning “on the side” and “akone” meaning “whetstone”. This derivation comes from the ancient practice of using a touchstone to test gold for its level of purity by drawing a line on the stone with the gold and comparing the resulting mark with samples of known purity.

40 The Nature Conservancy, e.g., briefly : NGO

Non-governmental organization (NGO)

Founded in 1951, the Nature Conservancy is an environmental non-profit headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.

41 Only state to adopt a state seal designed by a woman : IDAHO

The Great Seal of the state of Idaho was designed by painter and designer Emma Edwards Green, who passed away in 1942. Idaho’s is the only state seal to have been designed by a woman.

42 Swift’s home : NEST

Swifts are birds that are related to hummingbirds. Swifts are aptly named, with larger swift species clocked at airspeeds of over 100 miles/hour.

43 Cry of dismay from a sailor? : OY, MATEY! (AHOY, MATEY! with no “AH”)

“Ahoy!” is a nautical term used to signal a vessel. When the telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell, he suggested that “ahoy” be used as a standard greeting when answering a call. However, Thomas Edison came up with “hello”, and we’ve been using that ever since.

45 Short address : URL

An Internet address (like NYXCrossword.com and LAXCrossword.com) is more correctly called a uniform resource locator (URL).

60 Saw : ADAGE

A saw is an old adage, a saying.

68 Yellowstone resident : ELK

Yellowstone was the first National Park to be established in the world when it was designated as such by President Grant in 1872. What a great tradition it started! The American National Parks are truly a treasure …

69 Olympic blades : EPEES

The French word for sword is “épée”. In competitive fencing the épée is connected to a system that records an electrical signal when legal contact is made on an opponent’s body.

Down

4 Pop band Panic! at the __ : DISCO

Panic! at the Disco was formed as a pop rock band from Las Vegas in 2004. Two of the original four members left the group in 2009, to form their own band, and Panic! at the Disco was reinvented as a duo. One of the two remaining musicians also moved on, in 2015, leaving just the original lead vocalist Brendon Urie. Urie decided to continue performing as Panic! at the Disco, and treats it as a solo project.

5 Sugar amount, per Mary Poppins : SPOONFUL

“A Spoonful of Sugar” is a song from the 1964 Disney movie “Mary Poppins” that was sung by the title character, played by Julie Andrews. Lyricist Robert Sherman came up with the line “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down” after hearing from his wife that their children had just received their polio vaccine. The vaccine was delivered orally, on a cube of sugar.

7 Bistros : CAFES

“Bistro” was originally a Parisian slang term describing a little wine shop or restaurant.

8 Fully caffeinated, say : ALERT

Caffeine is a naturally occurring stimulant that is found in several plants. The chemical serves as a natural pesticide by paralyzing and killing certain insects that would otherwise feed on the plant. Caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive drug that is consumed by humans across the world.

11 Documentary filmmaker Stern : RICKI

Screenwriter and director Ricki Stern is best known for her documentaries. Included in her filmography are “The End of America” (2007) about policy changes made by the George W. Bush administration, and “Surviving Jeffrey Epstein” (2020) about the convicted sex offender.

12 Battle zone journalist : EMBED

Although journalists have been directly reporting from the front lines in military conflicts for some time, the term “embedded journalism” only came into fashion during the 2003 Invasion of Iraq. A formal arrangement was made between the US Military and hundreds of reporters allowing journalists to travel with military units and, under pre-ordained conditions, report directly from those units. Some say that the arrangement was mutually beneficial. On the one hand the journalists had relatively little to worry about in terms of transportation and travel through combat zones. On the other hand, the military had better control over what did and did not get reported.

21 Some antique cars : REOS

The REO Motor Company was founded by Ransom Eli Olds (hence the name REO). The company made cars, trucks and buses, and was in business from 1905 to 1975 in Lansing, Michigan. Among the company’s most famous models were the REO Royale 8 and the REO Flying Cloud.

22 Piña __ : COLADA

“Piña colada” is a Spanish term that translates into “strained pineapple”. The piña colada cocktail was introduced in the Caribe Hilton San Juan in 1954, and since 1978 it has been the official beverage of Puerto Rico. The mocktail version of the drink is known as a nada colada.

29 TV’s warrior princess : XENA

The Xena character, played by New Zealander Lucy Lawless, was introduced in a made-for-TV movie called “Hercules and the Amazon Women”. Lawless reprised the role in a series called “Hercules: The Legendary Journeys”. Xena became so popular that a series was built around her character, with Lawless retained for the title role. The fictional Xena supposedly came from the “non-fictional” Greek city of Amphipolis.

34 No longer relevant : MOOT

To moot is to bring up as a subject for discussion or debate. So, something that is moot is open to debate. Something that is no longer moot, is no longer worth debating. We don’t seem to be able to get that right, which drives me crazy …

36 Like books on goodreads.com : RATED

Goodreads is a much-used website that provides an extensive database of books along with reader’s reviews and recommendations. Launched in 2007, Goodreads was purchased by Amazon in 2013. The change in ownership is somewhat controversial, as the world’s biggest bookseller has ownership of a book review website with about 100 million subscribers.

38 Vacillates : YO-YOS

To vacillate is to be indecisive, to waver. The verb “to vacillate” comes from the Latin “vacillare” meaning “to sway to and fro”.

44 Meditation expert : YOGI

A yogi is a master practitioner of yoga. A master practitioner who is female might be referred to as a yogini.

46 Goal of many eBayers : RESALE

There have been some notable things sold on eBay over the years. For example:

• Ad space on a guy’s forehead, in the form of a temporary tattoo – $37,375
• William Shatner’s kidney stone – $25,000
• A cornflake shaped like Illinois – $1,350
• A single corn flake – $1.63
• A box of 10 Twinkies – $59.99
• The original Hollywood sign – $450,400
• The meaning of life – $3.26

51 “Mrs. Dalloway” or “The Hours” : NOVEL

“Mrs. Dalloway” is a novel by Virginia Woolf that was first published in 1925. The story tells of a day in the life of Clarissa Dalloway, a day in which she is preparing for a party that she is hosting. The novel has been compared to “Ulysses” by James Joyce, a story about a day in the life of Leopold Bloom.

“The Hours” is a Pullitzer-winning 1998 novel by Michael Cunningham. It was adapted into an Oscar-winning 2002 movie of the same name starring Julianne Moore, Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman.

“The Hours” is 2002 film with an outstanding leading cast consisting of Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore and Nicole Kidman. The leads play three women in three different decades who are connected in some way to Virginia Woolf’s 1925 novel “Mrs Dalloway”. I haven’t seen this one, but it just has to be worth watching …

52 __ by jowl: side by side : CHEEK

The term “jowl” can be used for the jaw or cheek, and more specifically for a fold of flesh hanging from the jaw.

54 Two under par : EAGLE

The following terms are routinely used in golf for scores relative to par:

• Bogey: one over par
• Par
• Birdie: one under par
• Eagle: two under par
• Albatross (also “double eagle”): three under par
• Condor: four under par

No one has ever recorded a condor during a professional tournament.

56 “Naruto” genre : ANIME

“Naruto” is a manga comic series from Japan that has been adapted into a television anime show. A censored version of the TV show (to remove gore, bad language, smoking etc.) shows on the Cartoon Network here in the US.

58 Poet Gallagher : TESS

Tess Gallagher is an American poet. One of her better known works is “Boogie-Woogie Crisscross”, a collaboration with Lawrence Matsuda. Matsuda was born in a Japanese-American internment camp during WWII, and grew up in a period of racism against Japanese. “Boogie-Woogie Crisscross” grew out of correspondence between Gallagher and Matsuda.

62 Lenny Kravitz, to Roxie Roker : SON

Lenny Kravitz is a Grammy-winning singer/songwriter from New York City. More recently Kravitz is making quite a name for himself as an actor. He plays the character Cinna in the 2012 hit film “The Hunger Games”.

Actress Roxie Roker was best known for playing Helen Willis on the sitcom “The Jeffersons”. She was the mother of singer-songwriter Lenny Kravitz.