Tag: 1790s political powder keg crossword clue

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Constructed by: Andy Kravis
Edited by: Rich Norris

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Today’s Theme: None

Bill’s time: 16m 14s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

15. “Geek sighting!” : NERD ALERT!

Originally, a geek was a sideshow performer, perhaps one at a circus. We use the term today for someone regarded as foolish or clumsy, and also for someone who is technically driven and expert, but often socially inept.

16. “Mad TV” alum Lange : ARTIE

Artie Lange is a comedian who is best known perhaps for his daily radio appearances as a sidekick on “The Howard Stern Show” from 2001 to 2009.

“MADtv” is a television sketch show that ran for fourteen seasons starting in 1995. The show had nothing to do with the famous “Mad” magazine, although it did license the name and logo from the publication.

20. Kid gloves, so to speak : CARE

Back in the late 1600s, “kid gloves” were gloves made from the skin of a young goat, a kid. Kid gloves were expensive and became associated with the nouveau riche, and so the wearing of kid gloves was viewed as ostentatious. When the phrase “kid gloves” crossed the Atlantic to America, the notion of using kid gloves morphed into the current meaning of “treating with delicacy and care”.

22. City on Lake Michigan : GARY

The city of Gary, Indiana is located just 25 miles from downtown Chicago and falls within the Chicago metropolitan area (also known as “Chicagoland”). Gary was founded by US Steel in 1906, as the company selected it as the site for a new steel plant. The name “Gary” was chosen in honor of Elbert H. Gary, who was the key player in setting up US Steel in 1901.

23. African capital formerly called Salisbury : HARARE

Harare is the capital of Zimbabwe, and is the African nation’s largest city. It was founded by the British in 1890 as Fort Salisbury (later just “Salisbury”). The outpost was named after Lord Salisbury, who was Prime Minister of the UK at the time. Salisbury was renamed to Harare in 1982, on the second anniversary of the independence of Zimbabwe. The name “Haarare” applied to the area in which Fort Salisbury had been erected. “Haarare” is a local word meaning “It doesn’t sleep”, a word applied to locations with constant noise.

27. Court dance : PAVANE

A pavane is a slow dance, one in which the dancers process majestically. Pavanes were very popular in Renaissance Europe.

32. It’s all downhill from here : ACME

The acme is the highest point. The term comes from the Greek word “akme” that has the same meaning.

34. Comics pooch : ODIE

Odie is Garfield’s best friend, and is a slobbery beagle. Both are characters in Jim Davis’ comic strip named “Garfield”.

37. Take forcibly : WREST

The verb “to wrest” can mean to obtain by violent twisting and pulling. The term comes from the Middle English “wresten” meaning “to twist”. Our word “wrestling” has the same etymology.

38. Like milk of magnesia : CHALKY

Magnesia is an alternative name for magnesium oxide. Magnesia is used in many cement formulations, and is also used as an antacid. “Milk of magnesia” is a suspension of magnesium hydroxide that was introduced in 1872 by English pharmacist Charles Henry Phillips under the brand name Phillips’ Milk of Magnesia.

39. “You Gotta Be” soul singer : DES’REE

Des’ree is an R&B singer from London, England. One of her biggest hits is the song “Kissing You”, which was used in the 1996 film adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes.

41. Corduroy feature : WALE

Wales are parallel ribs in a fabric, such as the ribs in corduroy.

There’s a myth that the name of textile known as “corduroy” comes from the French “corde du roi” (the cord of the king). It’s more likely that “corduroy” comes from a melding of “cord” and “duroy” (a coarse fabric that used to be made in England).

42. Rose __: reddish mineral : QUARTZ

Rose quartz is a type of quartz with a pale pink hue resulting from trace amounts of titanium, iron or manganese.

43. Big name in hair trimmers : WAHL

The Wahl Clipper Corporation is a business based in Sterling, Illinois that makes grooming clippers. The company makes clippers targeted at both humans and animals.

44. Big Ten sch. that competes for the Paul Bunyan Trophy : MSU

The Paul Bunyan Trophy is awarded annually to the winner of the football game between the University of Michigan Wolverines and the Michigan State University Spartans. Reflecting the history Michigan as a lumber-producing state, the trophy is a 4-foot high statue of the legendary giant lumberjack Paul Bunyan, and is made out of wood.

47. Singer __ Marie : TEENA

Teena Marie was a very successful R&B singer, born Mary Christine Brockert in Santa Monica, California.

48. Exposes to public scorn : PILLORIES

Nowadays, to pillory someone is to expose them to public ridicule. Back in the day, a pillory was a wooden or metal framework erected on a post, and which had holes through which the hands and head were secured. Pillories were set up in marketplaces and major crossroads, and were used as a form of punishment by public humiliation.

50. Goldbrick : IDLER

A goldbrick is someone, especially a soldier, who lies down on the job, someone who shirks his or her responsibilities. “Goldbrick” arose as slang during WWII, initially meaning “to swindle, cheat”. This was a play on the old confidence trick of selling fake gold bricks.

53. 1790s political powder keg : XYZ AFFAIR

During the administration of President John Adams, there was a drawn-out exchange between three American and three French diplomats in an attempt to avoid war between the two countries. The French diplomats made demands that were considered insulting by the US. Documents released by the Adams administration denoted the three French diplomats as simply X, Y and Z. There was public outcry when the documents were released and the demands disclosed, and the whole incident became known as the XYZ Affair. The end result was an undeclared war between the US and France with American ships capturing 80 vessels that flew the French flag.

Down

1. “Honey, I’m Good” singer Grammer : ANDY

Andy Grammer is a singer based in Los Angeles who came to public attention with the release of the 2014 song “Honey, I’m Good”. Andy is the son of singer-songwriter Red Grammer.

2. “Sesame Street” roommate : BERT

For many years, I believed that the “Sesame Street” characters Bert and Ernie were named after two roles played in the Christmas classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”. In the movie, the policeman’s name is Bert and his taxi-driving buddy is named Ernie. However, the “Sesame Street” folks have stated that the use of the same names is just a coincidence. Aww, I don’t wanna believe that’s a coincidence …

4. ’60s protest org. : SDS

Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) was an activist group in the sixties. The SDS organized the largest student strike in the history of the United States on 26 April 1968, with about a million students staying away from class that day. The “Students for a Democratic Society” name was revived in 2006 with the foundation of a new US-based student organization with left wing beliefs. Today’s SDS was founded by a pair of high school students from Greenwich Village, New York.

5. Units of pressure : PASCALS

The pascal is the SI unit of pressure. It is named for the French polymath Blaise Pascal, who made major contributions to the study of fluids.

6. Owner of a legendary lantern kicker : O’LEARY

The Great Chicago Fire blazed for almost three full days in October of 1871. By the time it was extinguished, hundreds of people had died and four square miles of the city had been destroyed. It is known that the fire started in or near a small barn owned by an Irish immigrant, a Mrs. Catherine O’Leary. A reporter called Michael Ahern wrote in the “Chicago Tribune” that the fire was ignited when a cow in the barn kicked over a lantern. Years later, Ahern admitted that he made up the story about the cow and the lantern, as he felt it made colorful copy. Supposedly Mrs. O’Leary died a heartbroken woman as she spent the rest of her life with the public blaming her on the tragic loss of life and property.

7. Put through the wringer again? : REDRY

Oh how I remember my mother passing the clothes through the wringer out in our backyard. When did I get to be so old …?

9. Brand sold at Pep Boys : STP

STP is a brand name for automotive lubricants and additives. The name STP comes from “Scientifically Treated Petroleum”.

The Pep Boys automotive stores started out in Philadelphia when four friends pooled their money ($800, in 1921) to open an auto parts store. The name “Pep” was taken from a Pep Valve grinding compound that they carried. They changed the name to Pep Boys as at least one local used to refer to the store as “the boys at Pep”. One of the friends cashed out of the business, and the remaining trio eventually rebranded the store as “The Pep Boys – Manny, Moe & Jack”.

10. Official cocktail of New Orleans : SAZERAC

The New Orleans cocktail known as a Sazerac is a mixture of rye, absinthe, bitters and sugar. The use of rye is a little incongruous, given that the cocktail is named for Sazerac de Forge et Fils brand of Cognac that was originally the base spirit.

11. Agent that undermines from within : TROJAN HORSE

The ancient city of Troy was located on the west coast of modern-day Turkey. The Trojan War of Greek mythology was precipitated by the elopement of Helen, the wife of the king of Sparta, with Paris of Troy. The war itself largely consisted of a nine-year siege of Troy by the Greeks. We know most about the final year of that siege, as it is described extensively in Homer’s “Iliad”. The city eventually fell when the Greeks hid soldiers inside the Trojan Horse, which the Trojans brought inside the city’s walls. Beware of Greeks bearing gifts …

12. “Cure Ignorance” magazine : UTNE READER

The “Utne Reader” is known for aggregation and republishing of articles on politics, culture and the environment from other sources in the media. The “Utne Reader” was founded in 1984 by Eric Utne, with management taken over by Eric’s wife Nina Rothschild Utne in 1990.

13. Victoria, to William IV : NIECE

William IV ascended to the British throne at the advanced age of 64 years old, following the death of his older brother George IV. William was king for just seven years, until he died in 1837. Although he had several illegitimate children with his Irish mistress Dorothea Jordan, he had no children with his wife, Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen. William’s passing marked the demise of Britain’s House of Hanover. He was succeeded on the throne by his niece Victoria.

Queen Victoria ruled over the UK from 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign saw the expansion of the British Empire, especially with the incorporation of British possessions on the Indian subcontinent. Indeed, for the last quarter century of her reign, Victoria also used the title Empress of India.

22. Britt Reid’s alter ego : GREEN HORNET

The Green Hornet is a masked crime-fighter who first appeared in a radio show in 1936. The alter ego of newspaper publisher Britt Reid, the Green Hornet fights crime in a long, green overcoat, green fedora hat and green mask. He also drives around in a hi-tech car called the Black Beauty that is driven by his masked partner Kato.

24. Med school admissions data : GPAS

Grade point average (GPA)

26. “Miracle on Ice” commentator : AL MICHAELS

Al Michaels is a sportscaster who worked with NBC Sports for nearly 30 years. Michaels is probably best known for his work on “Monday Night Football” for nearly two decades starting in 1986.

27. Cooler : POKEY

“Pokey” (also “poky”) is a slang term for prison. It might be a corruption of “pogie”, a term for a “poorhouse”.

31. Parcel (out) : METE

To “mete out” is to distribute by allotments. The verb comes from the Old English word “metan” meaning “to measure”, which is also believed to be the root of our word “meter”.

33. 1980s-’90s Notre Dame football coach Lou : HOLTZ

Lou Holtz is a retired football coach. Holtz moved around quite a bit, and is the only college football coach to have led six different schools to bowl games.

36. Medieval Turko-Mongol settlers : TARTARS

Tatars (sometimes “Tartars”) are an ethnic group of people, mainly residing in Russia (a population of about 5 1/2 million). One of the more famous people with a Tatar heritage was Hollywood actor Charles Bronson. Bronson’s real name was Charles Buchinsky.

39. National flower of Mexico : DAHLIA

The dahlia is a flowering plant native to Mexico and Central America. It was named the national flower of Mexico relatively recently, in 1963. The plant was given the name dahlia in 1791, in honor of Swedish botanist Anders Dahl.

40. Jacket material : SUEDE

Suede is leather made from the underside of the skin, mainly from a lamb. As such it is very soft, although not as durable as leather made from the exterior skin. The soft leather was, and is still used for making gloves. Back in 1859 these gloves were called “gants de Suede” in France, or “gloves of Sweden”. So, the name “suede” comes from the French word for Sweden.

41. Strauss piece : WALTZ

Of the many classical composers with the Strauss name, “The Waltz King” was Johann Strauss II from Austria. Among the many beautiful waltzes that Strauss penned are “The Blue Danube” and “Tales from the Vienna Woods”. He also composed the famous operetta “Die Fledermaus”.

42. Common applicator : Q-TIP

Cotton swabs were originally marketed under the name “Baby Gays”, but this was changed in 1926 to “Q-Tips”, with the Q standing for “quality”.

43. Like an Irish Terrier’s outer coat : WIRY

The Irish terrier is one of the older terrier breeds, and originated in the 1870s. Irish terriers usually have a golden red coat that is straight and wiry on the outside, with a soft undercoat.

44. Flaky mineral : MICA

Mica is a silicate mineral. Thin sheets of mica are transparent and are used in place of glass in certain applications. This form of mica is called isinglass, and as it has a better thermal performance than glass it is a great choice for “peepholes’ in boilers and lanterns. Mica is also used in the electronics industry, making use of its unique electrical and thermal insulating properties.

45. Long-distance calling 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 (such as radio waves) reaching the Earth in the hope of finding a transmission from a civilization in another world.

46. “Miracle on Ice” loser : USSR

Team USA won the gold medal in men’s hockey at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid. The victory was a surprising one given the decades-long dominance of the USSR team. The “big result” for the American team was the epic victory against the Soviets, a victory often referred to as the “Miracle on Ice”. The US went on to defeat Finland in the final and secured the gold medal. The moniker “miracle” comes from words uttered by sportscaster Al Michaels, who was calling the game for ABC. He declared, in the final seconds, “Do you believe in miracles?! Yes!”

48. __ Romana : PAX

“Pax Romana” is Latin for “Roman Peace”. The term literally described a period in Roman history for the 1st and 2nd centuries AD during which the Roman Empire was ruled by Caesar Augustus. Under his control, expansionist ideas by powerful generals were held in check, and the peoples of foreign lands ruled by the Romans were relatively calm. The peace enjoyed was considered uneasy as Rome governed its conquered territories with an iron fist, and insurrection was likely at all times. The expression “pax Romana” then came to be used in English to describe any situation in which there is an uneasy peace, a peace imposed by a powerful state on a weaker state.

49. Battle of Britain gp. : RAF

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the oldest independent air force in the world (i.e. the first air force to become independent of army or navy forces). The RAF was formed during WWI on 1 April 1918, a composite of two earlier forces, the Royal Flying Corps (part of the Army) and the Royal Naval Air Service. The RAF’s “finest hour” was the Battle of Britain, when the vastly outnumbered British fighters fought off the might of the Luftwaffe causing Hitler to delay his plan to cross the English Channel. This outcome prompted Winston Churchill to utter the memorable words

Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.