CROSSWORD SETTER: Doug Peterson & Brad Wilber
THEME: None
COMPLETION TIME: 21m 40s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 4 … HOSTA (hossa), CLOT (clos), STOLTZ (Staltz), CARO (cara)
Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Florida city with an I Dream of Jeannie Lane COCOA BEACH
In the TV show “I Dream of Jeannie”, the astronaut (Larry Hagman) and the genie (Barbara Eden) lived in Cocoa Beach, Florida. Cocoa Beach is a real city that is located close to Cape Canaveral.
Back in 1964, the second most watched show on American television was ABC’s “Bewitched”. Sidney Sheldon was tasked with the job of creating a rival sitcom and he came up with “I Dream of Jeannie”, which first aired in 1965. The censors had a big say in how the story developed. For starters, Jeannie’s skimpy costume was permitted provided Barbara Eden didn’t show off her navel. And Jeannie was only allowed to live with an unmarried man as long as the story made it clear that she slept in a bottle.
16. Skid row denizen WINO
The term “skid row” is used to describe a run-down urban neighborhood. “Skid row” appears to have originated in the Pacific Northwest where a “skid road” was a wooden pathway used for “skidding” logs through forests and over bogs. The terms “skid road” and “skid row” came to be used for logging camps and mills, and then somehow was applied to run-down areas in cities up and down the west coast of North America.
18. Matadors of the ’70s AMCS
The AMC Matador was a car produced from 1971 to 1978. The mid-size automobile came to be popular with police departments. The Los Angeles Police Department was the largest user of Matador patrol cars.
19. Alien-hunting org. SETI
SETI is the name given to a number of projects that are searching for extraterrestrial life. The acronym stands for “search for extraterrestrial intelligence”. One of the main SETI activities is the monitoring of electromagnetic radiation reaching the Earth in the hope of finding a transmission from a civilization in another world.
20. Shade-loving plant HOSTA
The Hosta genus of plant was once classified as a lily, but is now in a family of its own and is described as “lily-like”. The plant was given the name “Hosta” in honor of the Austrian botanist Nicholas Thomas Host.
21. Pope before Hilarius LEO I
The first pope named Leo is now known as Pope Saint Leo the Great. He is famous for meeting with the feared Attila the Hun and persuading him to turn back his invading force that was threatening to overrun Western Europe.
Pope Saint Hilarius (also Hilary) was head of the Roman Catholic Church from 461 to 468.
23. “The Sorrows of Young Werther” author GOETHE
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German writer (among other things!). His most famous work is probably his play “Faust”. This epic work was published in parts, starting in 1808. The work was only published in toto after his death in 1832.
“The Sorrows of Young Werther” is a novel by Johann Wolfgang von Geothe, first published in 1774. The piece is described as being loosely autobiographical, and it brought fame and success to Goethe as a writer within his own lifetime.
25. “Birdman of Alcatraz” Robert __ STROUD
Robert Stroud was a convicted murderer who earned the nickname of “Birdman of Alcatraz”. The “birdman” moniker was merited by Stroud’s penchant for rearing birds in his cell, and the “Alcatraz” name reflected his stay in the prison from 1942 to 1959. However, Stroud actually kept his birds while he was in Leavenworth early in his period of incarceration, and was never permitted to have pets in Alcatraz.
29. Diamond family name ALOU
Jesus Alou played major league baseball, as did his brothers Matty and Felipe, and as did Felipe’s son, Moises.
31. One curl, say REP
One leg curl, say, at the gym is a “rep”, a repetition.
38. WWII propaganda nickname AXIS SALLY
Axis Sally was a nickname given to two propaganda broadcasters during WWII. One was Mildred Gillars, a German-American from Portland, Maine who broadcast to Allied troops from Nazi Germany. The other was Rita Zucca, an Italian-American who did the same thing from Fascist Italy.
40. Castle on Broadway IRENE
Vernon and Irene Castle were a husband-wife team of ballroom dancers who regularly performed on Broadway at the start of the 20th century. The Castles have been credited with creating or at least popularizing the Fox Trot.
42. De bene __: provisionally ESSE
“De bene esse” is a legal term used to mean “conditionally, provisionally”. The literal translation from Latin is “of well being”.
43. “Mask” actor STOLTZ
Eric Stoltz is an actor from Whittier, California who is best known for playing the disfigured Rocky Dennis in the 1985 movie “Mask” opposite Cher.
44. Bow parts with anchor cable openings HAWSES
The hawse is that part of the bow of a ship containing the hawserholes, holes through which hawsers can be passed. Hawsers are thick cables or ropes used in mooring or towing.
46. Physical responses AHS
One might be asked to say “ah” by a doctor when undergoing a physical examination.
47. Six-Day War statesman EBAN
Abba Eban was an Israeli diplomat and politician, born Aubrey Solomon Meir Eban in Cape Town, South Africa. While working at the United Nations after WWII he changed his name to “Abba”, the Hebrew word for “father”, reportedly as he could see himself as the father of the nation of Israel.
The Six-Day War took place from June 5th to June 10th, 1967, and was fought between Israel and its neighbors Egypt, Jordan and Syria. By the time the ceasefire was signed, Israel had seized huge swaths of land formerly controlled by Arab states, namely the Gaza Strip, the Sinai Peninsula, the West Bank of the Jordan River and the Golan Heights. The overall territory under the control of Israel grew by a factor of three in just six days.
48. Say “cap’n,” e.g. ELIDE
To elide is to pass over, omit or slur a syllable when speaking.
51. “The boy you trained, gone he is” speaker YODA
Yoda is one of the most beloved characters in the “Star Wars” series of films. Yoda’s voice was provided by the great modern-day puppeteer Frank Oz of “Muppets” fame.
55. Chartres cleric ABBE
Abbé is the French word for an abbot.
Chartres is a town in north-central France, lying about 60 miles southwest of Paris.
56. First ballplayer to hit 50 home runs before the end of August ROGER MARIS
Roger Maris (whose real name was Roger Maras) was the son of Croatian immigrants. It was Maris’s single-season record of 61 home runs that Mark McGwire broke in 1998 (hitting 70 that season). Maris’s own record of 61 runs (from 1961) beat the previous record of 60 set in 1927 by Babe Ruth.
59. Titular guys in a 1993 Spin Doctors hit TWO PRINCES
Spin Doctors is a New York City alternative rock band. That’s about all I know …
Down
2. Veterinary patient of Dr. Liz Wilson ODIE
Odie is Garfield’s best friend and is a slobbery beagle, a character in Jim Davis’s comic strip.
3. League of Women Voters organizer CATT
Carrie Chapman Catt founded the League of Women Voters and the International Alliance of Women. She was also very close to Susan B. Anthony and succeeded Anthony as head of the National American Woman Suffrage Association.
4. Magazine that excerpted Stephen King’s “Firestarter” OMNI
I used to enjoy reading the magazine “OMNI”, a very entertaining yet interesting read. It was founded in 1978 by Kathy Keeton, wife of Bob Guccione the publisher of “Penthouse”. The print magazine folded in 1995, and a web version continued for a few years, until Keeton passed away in 1998.
Stephen King’s novel “Firestarter” was adapted into a movie of the same name in 1984 starring Drew Barrymore.
5. Enzyme ending -ASE
Enzymes are basically catalysts, chemicals that act to increase the rate of a particular chemical reaction. For example, starches will break down into sugars over time, especially under the right conditions. However, in the presence of the enzyme amylase (found in saliva) this production of sugar happens very, very quickly.
7. Scanner brand EPSON
Seiko Epson is a Japanese company, one of the largest manufacturers of printers in the world. The company has its roots in the watch business, roots that go back to 1942. Seiko was chosen as the official time keeper for the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and was asked to supply a timer that produced a printed record. This request brought Seiko into the business of printer production. The company developed the world’s first mini-printer for the 1964 Games and called it EP-101 (EP standing for Electronic Printer). In 1975 Seiko introduced the next generation of EP printers which was called EPSON, from “SON of EP”. Cute, huh?
8. Manhunt initiators, briefly APBS
An All Points Bulletin (APB) is a broadcast from one US law enforcement agency to another.
11. Marshland tract SWALE
A swale is a narrow tract of low-lying land that is usually wet or marshy. It can be naturally occurring or man made. One might create a swale to help manage drainage of adjacent land.
12. “Doctor Who” subject TIME TRAVEL
The iconic science-fiction television show “Doctor Who” was first aired in 1963, and relaunched in 2005 by the BBC. The relaunched series is produced in-house by the BBC in Cardiff in Wales, and this is the setting of the successful “Doctor Who” spin-off called “Torchwood”. The new show is about the Cardiff branch of the Torchwood Institute which investigates incidents involving extraterrestrials.
14. She played Spike Lee’s girlfriend in “Do the Right Thing” ROSIE PEREZ
Rosie Perez is an American actress born in New York City of Puerto Rican descent. As well as pursuing her acting career, Perez is an activist promoting Puerto Rican rights, and was arrested in 2000 at a rally to protest US Navy weapons-training off the coast of Puerto Rica.
“Do the Right Thing” is a Spike Lee movie, released in 1989. Much of the action in the film is centered on a local pizzeria called “Sal’s” owned by Italian-American Salvatore Frangione (played by Danny Aiello).
26. Devious General Mills spokescritter TRIX RABBIT
Trix is a corn-based breakfast cereal that has been around since 1954, produced by General Mills. Ads for the cereal featured Trix Rabbit, who would try hard to get hold of bowls of the cereal. He would always get caught though, and be admonished with, “Silly rabbit, Trix are for kids!” With 46% sugar content, the rabbit probably wouldn’t have liked it anyway …
29. “Rolling in the Deep” singer ADELE
The English singer Adele Adkins goes by the stage name “Adele”. Adele describes her musical style as “heartbroken soul”.
30. Lacking pep LOGY
Something that is “logy” is dull and heavy. “Logy” might come from the Dutch word “log” that means “heavy, dull”.
34. “__ nome”: “Rigoletto” aria CARO
“Rigoletto” is one of Giuseppe Verdi’s most famous and oft-performed operas. The storyline comes from the Victor Hugo play “Le roi s’amuse” (usually translated as “The King’s Fool”). Rigoletto is the king’s fool, the jester.
43. Shepherd of “The View” SHERRI
Sherrie Shepherd is a comedienne and television personality, best known these days as one of the five co-hosts of the talk show “The View”. Shepherd is often invited to appear as a guest on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show”, and has appeared more often with Ellen than any other person.
49. Eponymous hardware store founder Lucius LOWE
Lucius S. Lowe opened the first Lowe’s hardware store in 1921, in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. Lucius only knew the one store, as it was family who expanded the company after he passed away in 1940.
50. “__ Stripes”: Cash song I GOT
I must admit that I am not a big country music fan, but who doesn’t love Johnny Cash? The man had such a unique voice, and indeed unique songs. I think that his biopic, “Walk the Line”, is very cool, as is the title song itself. Recorded back in 1956, “Walk the Line” is relatively creative for “popular” music. The basic rhythm of the song emulates the sound of a freight train, the “boom-chicka-boom” sound. Cash’s guitar has a unique tone to it as it plays this rhythm, achieved by threading a piece of paper between the guitar strings giving the rhythm a bit of a “buzz”. Above the rhythm line, each of the five verses is sung in different keys. You can actually hear Cash hum a note signifying the key change at the start of each verse. With all these modulations, the final verse is sung a full octave lower that the first. A remarkable tune …
51. Masculine principle YANG
The yin and the yang can be explained using many different metaphors. In one, as the sun shines on a mountain, the side in the shade is the yin and the side in the light is the yang. The yin is also regarded as the feminine side, and the yang the masculine. The yin can also be associated with the moon, while the yang is associated with the sun.
52. Middle-earth soldiers ORCS
According to Tolkien, Orcs are small humanoids that live in his fantasy world of Middle-earth. They are very ugly and dirty, and are fond of eating human flesh.
54. The Y, e.g.: Abbr. ASSN
The YMCA is a worldwide movement that has its roots in London, England. There, in 1844, the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) was founded with the intent of promoting Christian principles through the development of “a healthy spirit, mind and body”. The founder, George Williams, saw the need to create YMCA facilities for young men who were flocking to the cities as the Industrial Revolution flourished. He saw that these men were frequenting taverns and brothels, and wanted to offer a more wholesome alternative.
For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Florida city with an I Dream of Jeannie Lane COCOA BEACH
11. Ado STIR
15. An orator’s may rise and fall ADAM’S APPLE
16. Skid row denizen WINO
17. Where a barrister’s questions are answered WITNESS BOX
18. Matadors of the ’70s AMCS
19. Alien-hunting org. SETI
20. Shade-loving plant HOSTA
21. Pope before Hilarius LEO I
22. Game pieces MEN
23. “The Sorrows of Young Werther” author GOETHE
25. “Birdman of Alcatraz” Robert __ STROUD
29. Diamond family name ALOU
31. One curl, say REP
32. Some racing teams CREWS
33. “No difference” I DON’T CARE
35. Fix firmly RIVET
36. Thanksgiving serving LEG
37. Have doubts WAVER
38. WWII propaganda nickname AXIS SALLY
40. Castle on Broadway IRENE
41. Eminent leader? PRE-
42. De bene __: provisionally ESSE
43. “Mask” actor STOLTZ
44. Bow parts with anchor cable openings HAWSES
46. Physical responses AHS
47. Six-Day War statesman EBAN
48. Say “cap’n,” e.g. ELIDE
51. “The boy you trained, gone he is” speaker YODA
55. Chartres cleric ABBE
56. First ballplayer to hit 50 home runs before the end of August ROGER MARIS
58. Eye-popping profit PILE
59. Titular guys in a 1993 Spin Doctors hit TWO PRINCES
60. Poll closure? -STER
61. Part of a typical Western ending SETTING SUN
Down
1. Field calls CAWS
2. Veterinary patient of Dr. Liz Wilson ODIE
3. League of Women Voters organizer CATT
4. Magazine that excerpted Stephen King’s “Firestarter” OMNI
5. Enzyme ending -ASE
6. Denounced BASHED
7. Scanner brand EPSON
8. Manhunt initiators, briefly APBS
9. Small, tight group CLOT
10. Its internal angles total 720 degrees HEXAGON
11. Marshland tract SWALE
12. “Doctor Who” subject TIME TRAVEL
13. Hard to follow INCOHERENT
14. She played Spike Lee’s girlfriend in “Do the Right Thing” ROSIE PEREZ
22. Thing not to miss MUST-SEE
24. Gets the jump on OUTWITS
25. Dumps SCRAPHEAPS
26. Devious General Mills spokescritter TRIX RABBIT
27. Like home runs nowadays REVIEWABLE
28. Is short OWES
29. “Rolling in the Deep” singer ADELE
30. Lacking pep LOGY
33. Reformers’ targets ILLS
34. “__ nome”: “Rigoletto” aria CARO
39. Maintains ASSERTS
43. Shepherd of “The View” SHERRI
45. Twisted look SNEER
46. Crackerjack ADEPT
49. Eponymous hardware store founder Lucius LOWE
50. “__ Stripes”: Cash song I GOT
51. Masculine principle YANG
52. Middle-earth soldiers ORCS
53. Almighty, to a 55-Across DIEU
54. The Y, e.g.: Abbr. ASSN
57. Short time? MIN