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Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
6. Glad shelfmate HEFTY
Hefty is a brand name of trash bags and related products.

14. Justice Samuel ALITO
Associate Justice Samuel Alito was nominated to the US Supreme Court by President George W. Bush. Alito is the second Italian-American to serve on the Supreme Court (Antonin Scalia was the first). Alito studied law at Yale and while in his final year he left the country for the first time in his life, heading to Italy to work on his thesis about the Italian legal system.

16. Veal cordon bleu stuffing HAM
A “cordon bleu” dish is a meat dish, one prepared by wrapping the meat around cheese, covering with breading and then pan-frying. Specifically, veal Cordon bleu is made using veal that is pounded thin and wrapped around slices of ham and cheese. The term “cordon bleu” translated from French as “blue ribbon”.

19. DSL offerer ISP
An Internet Service Provider (ISP) is just what the name indicates, a company that provides its customers with access to the Internet. One way that ISPs differentiate themselves from each other is in the way in which end users are connected to the ISP’s network. So, there are cable ISPs, DSL ISPs, dial-up ISPs and satellite ISPs. I’d go with cable if I were you, if it’s available in your area …

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

20. Photo lab abbr. ENL
Enlargement (enl.)

21. It may be gluten-free DIET
Gluten is a protein mixture found in foods processed mainly from wheat. The sticky properties of gluten are used in making bread, giving dough its elasticity and making the final product very chewy. “Gluten” is the Latin word for “glue”.

22. Impressionist Claude MONET
Claude Monet painted the harbor of Le Havre in the north of France in 1872, giving it the title “Impression, Sunrise”. The painting is not a “realistic” representation of the scene in front of him, hence the name “impression”. It was this very painting that gave rise to the name of the Impressionist movement.

24. Comedian Handler’s talk show CHELSEA LATELY
Chelsea Handler is a comedian who has been making a name for herself as a late-night talk show host on the E! network. Handler has her own talk show called “Chelsea Lately”.

28. Many Southwestern homes ADOBES
The building material known as adobe has been around a long time, and has been used in dry climates all over the world. The original form of the word “adobe” dates back to Middle Egyptian times, about 2000 BC. The original spelling is “dj-b-t”, and translates as mud (sun-dried) brick.

30. Tennille of pop’s Captain & Tennille TONI
The seventies singing duo known as Captain & Tennille was made up of husband and wife Daryl Dragon and Toni Tennille. Early in 2014, Tennille filed for divorce from Dragon after 39 years of marriage. Sad to see that …

32. Debatable 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.

34. Spot for a remote SOFA
“Sofa” is a Turkish word meaning “bench”.

38. Bach’s “Mass __ Minor” IN B
Perhaps the most famous mass in classical music is J. S. Bach’s “Mass in B minor”, fittingly completed just before he died. It was one of the last of Bach’s compositions, although much of the music was composed earlier in his life.

39. Elite Navy group that’s fittingly camouflaged in the four longest answers in this puzzle SEALS
SEAL is an acronym used by the US Navy’s SEa, Air and Land teams. The SEALs were born out of the Navy’s special warfare groups from WWII, like the Underwater Demolition Teams and the Motor Torpedo Boat Squadrons. The Navy SEAL unit was established soon after President Kennedy’s famous speech in which he announced the plan to put a man on the moon, as in the same speech the president allocated $100m of funding to strengthen special operations forces. The Navy used some of this money to set up guerrilla and counter-guerrilla units, which soon became the SEALs.

40. Zen garden fish KOI
Koi are also called Japanese carp. Koi have been bred for decorative purposes and there are now some very brightly colored examples found in Japanese water gardens.

Japanese Zen gardens are inspired by the meditation gardens of Zen Buddhist temples. Zen gardens have no water in them, but often there is gravel and sand that is raked in patterns designed to create the impression of water in waves and ripples.

41. High-protein beans SOYS
What are known as soybeans here in the US are called “soya beans” in most other English-speaking countries. So, I drink soy milk here in America, but when I am over in Ireland I drink “soya milk”.

43. British aristocrat EARL
In the ranking of nobles, an earl comes above a viscount and below a marquess. The rank of earl is used in the British peerage system and is equivalent to the rank of count in other countries. Other British ranks have female forms (e.g. marquess and marchioness, viscount and viscountess), but there isn’t a female word for the rank of earl. A female given the same rank as an earl is known simply as a countess.

44. Poppy product OPIUM
Opiates are the narcotic alkaloids found in the opium poppy plant, although some synthetic versions and derivatives of the same alkaloids are also called opiates. To produce opiates, the latex sap of the opium poppy is collected and processed. The naturally-occurring drugs of morphine and codeine can both be extracted from the sap. Some synthesis is required to make derivative drugs like heroin and oxycodone.

55. Big Mack SEMI
A “semi” is a “semi-trailer truck”. The vehicle is so called because it consists of a tractor and a half-trailer. The half-trailer is so called because it only has wheels on the back end, with the front supported by the tractor.

Mack Trucks was founded by John Mack in the early 1900s, after he had spent some years working in companies that made carriages and electric motor cars. Along with his two brothers, Mack started their company to focus on building heavy-duty trucks and engines.

56. A/C capacity meas. BTU
In the world of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), the power of a heating or cooling unit can be measured in British Thermal Units (BTUs). This dated unit is the amount of energy required to heat a pound of water so that the water’s temperature increases by one degree Fahrenheit.

59. Campus aides, for short TAS
Teaching assistant (TA)

64. Ozzie Smith’s number ONE
Ozzie Smith is a former professional shortstop. Smith played for the San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals.

66. Chai __: Starbucks order LATTE
The term “latte” is an abbreviation of the Italian “caffelatte” meaning “coffee (and) milk”. Note that in the correct spelling of “latte”, the Italian word for milk, there is no accent over the “e”. An accent is often added by mistake when we use the word in English, perhaps meaning to suggest that the word is French.

Chai is a drink made from spiced black tea, honey and milk, with “chai” being the Hindi word for “tea”. We often called tea “a cup of char” growing up in Ireland, with “char” being our slang word for tea, derived from “chai”.

67. Director Howard RON
Ron Howard sure has come a long way since playing Opie Taylor on “The Andy Griffith Show”. He has directed some fabulous movies including favorites of mine like “Apollo 13”, “A Beautiful Mind” and “The Da Vinci Code”. And today, “Opie” is a grandfather …

68. Like old attics MUSTY
Something described as “musty” has as stale or moldy odor. The term derives from an obsolete word “moisty”, as in “moist”.

69. Fencing swords EPEES
The épée that is used in today’s sport fencing is derived from the old French dueling sword. In fact, the the sport of épée fencing is very similar to the dualing of the 19th century. The word “épée” translates from French as “sword”.

Down
2. “Moon Shot” co-author Shepard ALAN
Alan Shepard was the first American in space. Shepard’s flight was originally scheduled for October 1960 but a series of delays pushed it out till May 5, 1961. Yuri Gagarin made his celebrated flight on April 12, 1961, just one one month earlier, winning that part of the Space Race for the Soviets.

3. Portrayer of TV’s Dr. Cliff Huxtable BILL COSBY
The great comedic entertainer Bill Cosby is from Philadelphia. After working as a standup comedian, Cosby got his big break on television when he landed a starring role in “I Spy” alongside Robert Culp in the sixties. His greatest success on television came in the eighties and early nineties with his own sitcom “The Cosby Show”. At its height, “The Cosby Show” was the number one show in the US for five straight years.

4. “Avatar” extras ETS
In the James Cameron epic “Avatar”, the “blue people” are the Na’vi, the indigenous species that lives on the lush moon called Pandora. The main Na’vi character featuring in the film is the female Neytiri. According to Cameron, Neytiri was inspired by the Raquel Welch character in the movie “Fantastic Voyage” and the comic book character Vampirella.

5. Short-antlered critter ROE DEER
Roe deer are found mainly in Europe. They would be the deer shown on television and in movies when Robin Hood was out hunting in Sherwood Forest.

8. Prez on a dime FDR
President Roosevelt was a major driver in the founding of the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis. The Foundation’s most successful fund raising campaign was to encourage the public to just send a dime to support the charity, so that even before the Foundation officially changed its name, the public were already calling it March of Dimes. After President Roosevelt passed away in office, Congress passed legislation calling for a new design for the dime, one featuring the image of FDR. The Roosevelt dime was introduced in 1946, on the day that would have been the President’s 64th birthday.

9. Journalist Russert TIM
Tim Russert was a TV journalist who moderated NBC’s “Meet the Press” for over sixteen years. Some say that Russert coined the phrases “red state” and “blue state”. Russert denied that, but he certainly did popularize the usage.

12. Prop for van Gogh EASEL
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 carry its load.

Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch post-impressionist painter who seems to have had a very tortured existence. Van Gogh only painted for the last ten years of his life, and enjoyed very little celebrity while alive. Today many of his works are easily recognized, and fetch staggering sums in auction houses. Van Gogh suffered from severe depression for many of his final years. When he was only 37, he walked into a field with a revolver and shot himself in the chest. He managed to drag himself back to the inn where he was staying but died there two days later.

23. Milo’s film friend OTIS
“The Adventures of Milo and Otis” is a movie about and orange tabby cat called Milo, and a fawn-colored pug called Otis. The film was originally released in Japanese in 1986, and then was revamped for English audiences in a version released in 1989.

25. “Game of Thrones” channel HBO
HBO’s “Game of Thrones” is a fantasy television drama that was adapted from a series of novels by George R. R. Martin called “A Song of Ice and Fire”. A lot of the exterior scenes in “Game of Thrones” are actually shot around Belfast, Northern Ireland.

26. Lagoon-enclosing isle ATOLL
An atoll is a coral island that is shaped in a ring and enclosing a lagoon. There is still some debate as to how an atoll forms, but a theory proposed by Charles Darwin while on his famous voyage aboard HMS Beagle still holds sway. Basically an atoll was once a volcanic island that had subsided and fallen into the sea. The coastline of the island is home to coral growth which persists even as the island continues to subside internal to the circling coral reef.

28. Rental car choice AVIS
Avis has been around since 1946, and is the second largest car rental agency after Hertz. Avis has the distinction of being the first car rental company to locate a branch at an airport.

29. “The Flintstones” pet DINO
In the Hanna-Barbera cartoon “The Flintstones”, Dino the pet dinosaur was voiced by the famous Mel Blanc, until Blanc passed away in 1989.

32. Victor at Gettysburg MEADE
George Meade was a career army officer with a depth of experience in civil and military operations even before the onset of the Civil War. During the war he rose to the level of commander of the Army of the Potomac, and is best remembered for leading the Union forces that defeated General Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg in 1863.

I visited Gettysburg for the first time in 2010, and goodness me what a moving place that is. As I discovered on my visit, there are five known copies of Lincoln’s Gettysburg address and all of them differ in some way or another, so I suppose the exact words spoken will never be known. Martin Luther King Jr. evoked Abraham Lincoln’s words in another of America’s iconic addresses, his “I Have a Dream” speech. Lincoln’s speech began with “Four score and seven years ago …”, and King’s speech began with “Five score years ago …” as a nod to the Gettysburg Address.

33. Sculling need OAR
A scull is a boat used for competitive rowing. The main hull of the boat is often referred to as a shell. Crew members who row the boat can be referred to as “oars”.

44. First name in popcorn ORVILLE
Orville Redenbacher’s Gourmet Popping Corn was introduced in 1969. Redenbacher starred in the commercials for the product, until he died in 1995. Sadly, he suffered a heart attack and drowned in his jacuzzi.

48. Tornado response gp. FEMA
Federal emergency management has been structured for over 200 years, but what we know today as the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created in 1979 in an Executive Order issued by President Jimmy Carter.

50. Number-calling game BEANO
In the US, “Beano” is an alternative name for the number-calling game “Bingo”.

51. Daily Planet cub reporter OLSEN
In the Superman stories, Jimmy Olsen is a cub photographer who works on the “Daily Planet” newspaper with Clark Kent and Lois Lane.

57. Beret’s perch TETE
A Frenchman would place his beret on his head (tête).

61. Fighting Tigers’ sch. LSU
The LSU Tigers are the sports teams of Louisiana State University, officially known as the Fightin’ Tigers, with the school mascot of “Mike the Tiger”. The name comes from the days of the Civil War, when two Louisiana brigades earned the nickname the “Louisiana Tigers”.

62. Tiebreakers, briefly OTS
Overtime (OT)

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Curved sword SABER
6. Glad shelfmate HEFTY
11. Pint-size WEE
14. Justice Samuel ALITO
15. Blast from the past OLDIE
16. Veal cordon bleu stuffing HAM
17. Faulty smoke detectors, e.g. FALSE ALARMS
19. DSL offerer ISP
20. Photo lab abbr. ENL
21. It may be gluten-free DIET
22. Impressionist Claude MONET
24. Comedian Handler’s talk show CHELSEA LATELY
28. Many Southwestern homes ADOBES
30. Tennille of pop’s Captain & Tennille TONI
31. Cap brim VISOR
32. Debatable MOOT
34. Spot for a remote SOFA
38. Bach’s “Mass __ Minor” IN B
39. Elite Navy group that’s fittingly camouflaged in the four longest answers in this puzzle SEALS
40. Zen garden fish KOI
41. High-protein beans SOYS
43. British aristocrat EARL
44. Poppy product OPIUM
46. Bowled over AWED
48. Bells and whistles FRILLS
49. Higher than zero, on an altimeter ABOVE SEA LEVEL
54. “E! News” subject CELEB
55. Big Mack SEMI
56. A/C capacity meas. BTU
59. Campus aides, for short TAS
60. Countries with strong economic ties, say CLOSE ALLIES
64. Ozzie Smith’s number ONE
65. Autumn blossom ASTER
66. Chai __: Starbucks order LATTE
67. Director Howard RON
68. Like old attics MUSTY
69. Fencing swords EPEES

Down
1. Bank vault SAFE
2. “Moon Shot” co-author Shepard ALAN
3. Portrayer of TV’s Dr. Cliff Huxtable BILL COSBY
4. “Avatar” extras ETS
5. Short-antlered critter ROE DEER
6. Boring outcomes? HOLES
7. Bring joy to ELATE
8. Prez on a dime FDR
9. Journalist Russert TIM
10. Overly agreeable guy YES-MAN
11. Snivel WHINE
12. Prop for van Gogh EASEL
13. Unthreatening, as some threats EMPTY
18. Feels sick AILS
23. Milo’s film friend OTIS
25. “Game of Thrones” channel HBO
26. Lagoon-enclosing isle ATOLL
27. Oodles LOTS
28. Rental car choice AVIS
29. “The Flintstones” pet DINO
32. Victor at Gettysburg MEADE
33. Sculling need OAR
35. “This may be a trick, but tell me” OK, I’LL BITE
36. Umpire’s call FOUL
37. Points (at) AIMS
39. Gets the point SEES
42. Copy to the hard drive SAVE
44. First name in popcorn ORVILLE
45. Dessert slice PIE
47. Video chat need WEBCAM
48. Tornado response gp. FEMA
49. Audition hopeful ACTOR
50. Number-calling game BEANO
51. Daily Planet cub reporter OLSEN
52. Selling point ASSET
53. Not fully trusting LEERY
57. Beret’s perch TETE
58. Puts to work USES
61. Fighting Tigers’ sch. LSU
62. Tiebreakers, briefly OTS
63. Once around the track LAP

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