Tag: “1812 Overture” instrument crossword clue

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Constructed by: Ben Tolkin
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Missing Links

Themed clues are single words MISSING the suffix “-LINK”. Clever …

• 48A Evolutionary mysteries, and a feature of three clues in this puzzle : MISSING LINKS

• 20A S : MOVE SNEAKILY (Slink)
• 28A C : SOUND OF A TOAST (Clink)
• 42A B : CLOSE ONE’S EYES (Blink)

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

Bill’s time: 7m 32s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5 “A Land More Kind Than Home” novelist Wiley : CASH

Wiley Cash is an author who set his first three novels in his home state of North Carolina. Those novels are:

• A Land More Kind Than Home (2012)
• This Dark Road to Mercy (2014)
• The Last Ballad (2017)

9 Mary-in-mourning sculpture : PIETA

The Pietà is a representation of the Virgin Mary holding in her arms the dead body of her son Jesus. The most famous Pietà is undoubtedly the sculpted rendition by Michelangelo that is located in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. That particular sculpture is thought to be the only work that Michelangelo signed. In some depictions of the Pietà, Mary and her son are surrounded by other figures from the New Testament. Such depictions are known as Lamentations.

14 1968 self-titled live folk album : ARLO

Arlo Guthrie is the son of Woody Guthrie. Both father and son are renowned for singing protest songs about social injustice. Arlo is most famous for his epic “Alice’s Restaurant Massacree”, a song that lasts a full 18m 34s. In the song Guthrie tells how, after being drafted, he was rejected for service in the Vietnam War based on his criminal record. He had only one incident on his public record, a Thanksgiving Day arrest for littering and being a public nuisance when he was 18-years-old.

15 Baseball family name : ALOU

Jesus Alou played Major League Baseball, as did his brothers Matty and Felipe, and as did Felipe’s son Moises.

23 “Gloria in Excelsis __” : DEO

“Gloria in excelsis Deo” is a Latin hymn, the title of which translates as “Glory to God in the Highest”.

28 C : SOUND OF A TOAST (Clink)

The tradition of toasting someone probably dates back to the reign of Charles II, when the practice was to drink a glass of wine to the health of a beautiful or favored woman. In those days, spiced toast was added to beverages to add flavor, so the use of the word “toast” was an indicator that the lady’s beauty would enhance the wine. Very charming, I must say …

32 Cornfield cries : CAWS

A caw is the harsh cry of a crow, and crows might be found in fields of corn …

34 Joe : MUD

It seems that no one really knows why we refer to coffee as “joe”, but we’ve been doing so since early in WWII.

36 “The Street” novelist Petry : ANN

Ann Petry was an author best known perhaps for her 1946 debut novel “The Street” and her 1953 novel “The Narrows”. “The Street” was the first novel by an African-American woman to sell over a million copies.

48 Evolutionary mysteries, and a feature of three clues in this puzzle : MISSING LINKS

The term “missing link” is usually applied to the concept that there existed some form of animal that is a hybrid between apes and humans. The idea that there was some “apeman” is discounted these days by the scientific community, who now favor the theory of evolution.

60 Tourney format : PRO-AM

“Tourney” is another word for “tournament”. The term comes from the Old French word “tornei” meaning “contest of armed men”, from “tornoier” meaning “to joust, jilt”.

63 Hatha yoga posture : ASANA

“Asana” is a Sanskrit word that translates literally as “sitting down”. The asanas are the poses that a practitioner of yoga assumes. The most famous is the lotus position, the cross-legged pose called “padmasana”.

Hatha yoga is a yoga system developed in 15th century India. Traditional Hatha yoga is a more “complete” practice than often encountered in the west, involving not just exercise but also meditation and relaxation. “Hatha” is a Sanskrit word meaning “force”.

64 Patches potholes, say : TARS

The terms “tarmac” and “macadam” are short for “tarmacadam”. In the 1800s, Scotsman John Loudon McAdam developed a style of road known as “macadam”. Macadam had a top-layer of crushed stone and gravel laid over larger stones. The macadam also had a convex cross-section so that water tended to drain to the sides. In 1901, a significant improvement was made by English engineer Edgar Purnell Hooley who introduced tar into the macadam, improving the resistance to water damage and practically eliminating dust. The “tar-penetration macadam” is the basis of what we now call “tarmac”.

Down

1 “Good Omens” actor Jon : HAMM

Jon Hamm lived the life of a struggling actor for quite some time before he hit gold with a starring role in the AMC drama “Mad Men”. He plays the main character, advertising executive and man about town Don Draper.

“Good Omens” is a fantasy comedy TV series based on a 1990 novel of the same name by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pretchett. The show stars Michael Sheen as an angel, and David Tenant as a demon, both of whom have lived on Earth since the dawn of creation. The supporting cast includes Frances McDormand, who plays the voice of God and the show’s narrator.

2 Cookie with a Cakesters variety : OREO

Oreo Cakesters are a soft version of the celebrated cookie, a version introduced by Nabisco in 2007.

3 Balkan native : SLAV

The Slavic peoples are in the majority in communities covering over half of Europe. This large ethnic group is traditionally broken down into three smaller groups:

• the West Slavic (including Czechs and Poles)
• the East Slavic (including Russians and Ukrainians)
• the South Slavic (including Bulgarians, Croats and Serbs)

The Balkan Peninsula in Southeast Europe is usually referred to as “the Balkans”. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains located in present-day Bulgaria and Serbia. “Balkan” is Bulgarian for “mountain”.

4 Soft-pedal : TONE DOWN

When a note is played on a piano, the sound is produced by a hammer striking three strings, all tuned to the same frequency. When the soft pedal is depressed, to give a softer quieter sound, the hammer only strikes two of those strings. The use of the soft pedal can be indicated in a musical score by using the Italian words “due corde” (meaning “two strings”). The indication to release the soft pedal is the words “tre corde” (meaning “three strings”). We also use the term “soft-pedal” figuratively as a verb, meaning “tone down, de-emphasize”.

5 “1812 Overture” instrument : CANNON

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s famous “1812 Overture” is more correctly called “The Year 1812 (festival overture in E-flat major)”. Tchaikovsky wrote the piece in 1880 as a commemoration of Russia’s successful defense in face of an 1812 invasion by Napoleon’s French Army and allies. The “1812” is renowned for its use of cannon fire, ringing bells and a robust brass fanfare at its climax.

8 Tamale wrapper : HUSK

The husk (sometimes “hull”) of a seed is its outer coating or shell. With reference to corn, the husk is the leafy outer covering of a whole ear. In the case of a legume, the husk is the pod.

A tamale is a traditional dish from Central America composed of a starchy dough that is steamed or boiled in a wrapper made from a corn husk or banana leaf. The dough is called masa, and can include many different ingredients including meat, cheese, fruit and vegetables. A hot tamale is a kind of tamale that originated in the Mississippi Delta. It is particularly spicy, and the masa is replaced with corn meal.

9 Milne friend who notes, “It is hard to be brave when you’re a Very Small Animal” : PIGLET

In A. A. Milne’s “Winnie-the-Pooh” collection of stories, Pooh has many friends in the Hundred Acre Wood. Besides Christopher Robin, who doesn’t actually live in the woods, the list includes Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit, Tigger and Owl.

11 Blight-stricken tree : ELM

Dutch elm disease is a fungus devastating to all species of elm trees that is transmitted by the elm bark beetle. The disease is thought to have originated in Asia and is now rampant in Europe and North America. Even though there is a hybrid of elm known as the Dutch elm, the disease isn’t named after the tree. Rather, the disease is called “Dutch” as it was identified in 1921 by a phytopathologist (plant pathologist) in the Netherlands.

12 Bit of concert merch : TEE

Merchandise (merch)

13 Donkey : ASS

A hinny is the offspring of a male horse (the “h-” from h-orse) and a female donkey/ass (the “-nny” from je-nny). A mule is more common, and is the offspring of a female horse and male donkey/ass.

21 Sneetches creator : SEUSS

“Dr. Seuss” was the pen name of Theodor Seuss Geisel. Geisel first used the pen name while studying at Dartmouth College and at the University of Oxford. Back then, he pronounced “Seuss” as it would be in German, i.e. rhyming with “voice”. After his books found success in the US, he went with the pronunciation being used widely by the public, quite happy to have a name that rhymes with “Mother Goose”.

25 Caravan mounts : CAMELS

A camel train carrying passengers or goods across a desert can be referred to as a caravan. “Caravan” derives from the Persian “karwan”, which has the same meaning. Over in Britain, “caravan” is the name given to travel trailers.

27 Gate postings, briefly : ETDS

Estimated time of departure (ETD)

28 “__ Moon”: manga series : SAILOR

“Sailor Moon” is a manga series from Japan. The title character is a soldier who is destined to save the Earth from evil. She is also the alter ego of a schoolgirl named Usagi Tsukino. Sailor Moon’s companion is a talking black cat named Luna who has magical powers.

30 Light weight : OUNCE

Our term “ounce” (abbreviated to “oz.”) comes from the Latin “uncia”. An “uncia” was 1/12 of a Roman “libra” (pound).

31 Squeals (on) : FINKS

A fink is an informer, someone who rats out his or her cohorts.

32 Bowlful served with a cinnamon roll in the Midwest : CHILI

The full name of the dish that is often called simply “chili” is “chili con carne”, Spanish for “peppers with meat”. The dish was created by immigrants from the Spanish Canary Islands in the city of San Antonio, Texas (a city which the islanders founded). The San Antonio Chili Stand was a popular attraction at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair, and that stand introduced the dish to the rest of America and to the world.

35 RPM gauge : TACH

The tachometer takes its name from the Greek word “tachos” meaning “speed”. A tachometer in a car measures engine revolutions per minute (rpm).

37 Poem of rustic life : IDYLL

An idyll (also “idyl”) is a short poem with a pastoral theme, usually depicting the scene in romantic and idealized terms. The word “idyl” comes from the Greek “eidyllion”, which literally translates to “little picture” but was a word describing a short poem with a rustic theme.

40 Record holders : LOGS

The word “logbook” dates back to the days when the captain of a ship kept a daily record of the vessel’s speed, progress etc. using a “log”. A log was a wooden float on a knotted line that was dropped overboard to measure speed through the water.

43 Apelike : SIMIAN

“Simian” means “pertaining to monkeys or apes”, from the Latin word “simia” meaning “ape”.

44 Challenging puzzle : ENIGMA

Our term “enigma” meaning “puzzle, riddle” comes from the Greek “ainigma”, which means the same thing.

45 Aerie nesters : EAGLES

An aerie (sometimes “eyrie”) is an eagle’s nest. The term “aerie” can also more generally describe any bird’s nest that is located on a cliff or a mountaintop.

50 Skunk River state : IOWA

The Skunk River in Iowa is a tributary of the Mississippi. The etymology of the river’s name is a little unclear, and is probably a mistranslation of the Sauk and Meskwaki name “Shecaqua”, which means “strong and obnoxious smell”. The headwaters of the Skunk River was known for its wild onions along the banks, hence the “odoriferous” reference. A better translation might have been “Onion River”.

51 Gritty film genre : NOIR

The expression “film noir” has French origins, but only in that it was coined by a French critic in describing a style of Hollywood film. The term, meaning “black film” in French, was first used by Nino Frank in 1946. Film noir often applies to a movie with a melodramatic plot and a private eye or detective at its center. Good examples would be “The Big Sleep” and “D.O.A”.

52 “Ja” opposite : NEIN

In German, one might answer “ja” (yes) or “nein” (no).

53 Hindu goddess of destruction : KALI

Kali is a Hindu goddess and the consort of Lord Shiva. The name “Kali” translates as “the black one”.

55 Transcript fig. : GPA

Grade point average (GPA)

56 Hosp. areas : ORS

An operating room (OR) is usually found in a hospital (hosp.).