Tag: Aside containers for short crossword clue

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Constructed by: Matt Revis
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: Zero G

Themed answers are common phrases, but with the letter G removed, with “ZERO G”:

• 23A Judges in a best brie competition? : CHEESE RATERS (from “cheese graters”)
• 31A Truly blessed commuter line? : THE HOLY RAIL (from “the Holy Grail”)
• 48A Tirade that begins, “Why can’t those Sirens just shut up!?,” e.g.? : ULYSSES RANT (from “Ulysses Grant”)
• 66A Rotate crops of corn? : SWITCH EARS (from “switch gears”)
• 68A The weather forecast Snap, Crackle, and Pop were hoping for? : RAIN OF RICE (from “grain of rice”)
• 84A Party debriefs? : HOST STORIES (from “ghost stories”)
• 101A Intercom message when a young boy arrives at the office? : LAD TO SEE YOU (from “glad to see you”)
• 115A Cause of longing in a long-distance marriage? : A BRIDE TOO FAR (from “a bridge too far”)

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

Bill’s time: 17m 11s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Sporty Mazdas : MIATAS

The Mazda MX-5 is sold as the Miata in North America, and as the Roadster in Japan. I’ve always liked the looks of the Mazda Miata, probably because it reminds me so much of old British sports cars. The Miata is built in Hiroshima, Japan. The name “Miata” comes from an Old High German word meaning “reward”.

7 Kilt feature : PLEAT

The lovely Scottish garment called a kilt is pleated, but only at the rear.

15 Adobe exports : PDFS

Adobe Systems is a San Jose-based enterprise that is best known for developing Photoshop image editing software and the Portable Document Format (PDF). The company was founded in 1982 by John Warnock and Charles Geschke, in Warnock’s garage. The Adobe Creek ran behind that garage, and the founders borrowed the name of the waterway for the company’s moniker.

20 Israeli port city : HAIFA

Haifa is the third-largest city in Israel and the largest city in the north of the country. It is built on the slopes of Mount Carmel, and is a Mediterranean seaport.

21 “Ta-da!” : AND, VOILA!

The French word “voilà” means “there it is”, and “voici” means “here it is”. The terms come from “voi là” meaning “see there” and “voi ici” meaning “see here”.

23 Judges in a best brie competition? : CHEESE RATERS (from “cheese graters”)

Brie is a soft cheese that is named for the French region in which it originated. Brie is similar to the equally famous (and delicious) Camembert. Brie is often served baked in puff pastry with fig jam.

25 Lusty reaction : VA-VA-VOOM

“Va-va-voom!” is an expression that turns up in a lot of places. For example, it was a frequent utterance by comic actor Art Carney, most notably while playing Ed Norton in the sitcom “The Honeymooners” from the 1950s. Carney even released a comedy song “Va Va Va Voom” in 1954.

26 Mata __ : HARI

“Mata Hari” was the stage name used by Margaretha Geertruida Zelle, born in the Netherlands in 1876. After an unsuccessful and somewhat tragic marriage, Zella moved to Paris in 1903 where she struggled to make a living. By 1905 she was working as an exotic dancer and using the name Mata Hari. She was a successful courtesan, notably moving in various circles of high-ranking military officers. She apparently worked as a double agent, both for the French and the Germans. When Mata Hari was accused by the French of passing information to the enemy, she was tried, found guilty and executed by firing squad at the height of WW1, in 1917.

27 “GoodFellas” Oscar winner : PESCI

Joe Pesci got his big break in movies with a supporting role in “Raging Bull” starring Robert De Niro, earning Pesci an Oscar nomination early in his career. There followed a string of gangster roles played alongside De Niro, namely “Once Upon a Time in America”, “Goodfellas” and “Casino”. But I like Pesci’s comedic acting best of all. He was marvelous in the “Home Alone” films, the “Lethal Weapon” series, and my personal favorite, “My Cousin Vinny”. Pesci gets a mention in the stage musical “Jersey Boys”, which isn’t too surprising as he is one of the show’s producers.

The Martin Scorsese classic “GoodFellas” is a 1990 adaptation of a nonfiction book by Nicholas Pileggi called “Wiseguy”. The film tells the story of a mob family that succumbs to the FBI after one of their own becomes an informant.

31 Truly blessed commuter line? : THE HOLY RAIL (from “the Holy Grail”)

The Holy Grail is a theme found throughout Arthurian legend. The grail itself is some vessel, with the term “grail” coming from the Old French “graal” meaning “cup or bowl made of earth, wood or metal”. Over time, the legend of the Holy Grail became mingled with stories of the Holy Chalice of the Christian tradition, the cup used to serve wine at the Last Supper. Over time, the term “grail” came to be used for any desired or sought-after object.

34 Michael of “Barbie” : CERA

Michael Cera is a Canadian actor who played great characters on the TV show “Arrested Development”, and in the 2007 comedy-drama “Juno”. Cera is also quite the musician. He released an indie folk album titled “True That” in 2014.

35 102-Down goddess : GAIA
102D Realm of 35-Across : EARTH

The Greek goddess personifying the Earth was Gaea (also “Gaia”, and meaning “land” or “earth” in Greek). The Roman equivalent goddess was Terra Mater, “Mother Earth”.

39 MMA org. : UFC

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is the largest promoter in the world of mixed martial arts competitions. I think the idea is that competitors fight each other in various disciplines to see who is the “best of the best” …

Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact combat sport in which competitors use a variety of techniques from a variety of traditional combat sports and martial arts.

42 Pinkberry rival : TCBY

TCBY is a chain of stores selling frozen yogurt that was founded in 1981 in Little Rock, Arkansas. The initialism TCBY originally stood for “This Can’t Be Yogurt”, but this had to be changed due to a lawsuit being pressed by a competitor called “I Can’t Believe It’s Yogurt”. These days TCBY stands for “The Country’s Best Yogurt”.

Pinkberry is a chain of frozen dessert outlets that is based in Scottsdale, Arizona. Pinkberry’s desserts were originally marketed as frozen yogurt, but that description didn’t fit with criteria laid down by the State of California. After a hiatus of a few years, apparently the “yogurt” moniker is in use again.

44 Joan of folk music : BAEZ

Joan Baez is an American folk singer and a prominent activist in the fields of non-violence, civil rights, human rights and environmental protection. Baez has dated some high-profile figures in her life including Bob Dylan, Steve Jobs (of Apple) and Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead.

45 Insert marks : CARETS

The character known as a caret (^) was originally a proofreading mark, one used to indicate where a punctuation mark was to be inserted. “Caret” is Latin for “it lacks”.

48 Tirade that begins, “Why can’t those Sirens just shut up!?,” e.g.? : ULYSSES RANT (from “Ulysses Grant”)

In Greek mythology, the Sirens were seductive bird-women who lured men to their deaths with their song. When Odysseus sailed close to the island home of the Sirens he wanted to hear their voices, but in safety. He had his men plug their ears with beeswax and then ordered them to tie him to the mast and not to free him until they were safe. On hearing their song Odysseus begged to be let loose, but the sailors just tightened his bonds and the whole crew sailed away unharmed. We sometimes use the term “siren” today to describe a seductively charming woman, and “siren song” to describe an utterance that is particularly appealing.

US President Ulysses S. Grant was born Hiram Ulysses Grant. Ohio Congressman Thomas Hamer nominated a young Grant to attend West Point, and gave the candidate’s name as “Ulysses S. Grant” in error. Grant tried to fix the error while studying at the military academy, but bureaucracy won out and the future president eventually embraced the inaccurate name as his own.

54 “The Yearling” animal : DEER

“The Yearling” is a 1938, Pulitzer-winning novel by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. It tells the story of Jody Baxter, a young boy growing up in Florida scrub country, and his connection with a fawn that he adopts and names Flag. “The Yearling” is also widely recognized for its 1946 film adaptation starring Gregory Peck, Jane Wyman, and Claude Jarman Jr.

61 Roll on a field : TARP

Originally, tarpaulins were made from canvas covered in tar that rendered the material waterproof. The word “tarpaulin” comes from “tar” and “palling”, with “pall” meaning “heavy cloth covering”.

65 Buckeyes’ sch. : OSU

Ohio State University (OSU) in Columbus was founded back in 1870 as the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College. The athletic teams of OSU are called the Buckeyes, named after the state tree of Ohio. In turn the buckeye tree gets its name from the appearance of its fruit, a dark nut with a light patch thought to resemble a “buck’s eye”. The school’s athletic mascot was introduced in 1965, and is an anthropomorphic buckeye nut named Brutus Buckeye.

68 The weather forecast Snap, Crackle, and Pop were hoping for? : RAIN OF RICE (from “grain of rice”)

Snap, Crackle and Pop are three elves employed as the mascots for Kellogg’s Rice Krispies. The trio first appeared in an ad campaign in 1933, although the phrase “snap, crackle and pop” had been used for the cereal for some time in radio ads. By the way, the elves are selling “Rice Bubbles” in Australia, and the elves have different names in other parts of the world (like “Cric!, Crac! and Croc!” in Québec).

71 Philosophy associated with yin and yang : TAO

The yin and yang can be illustrated 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.

72 New Mexico art hub : TAOS

The town of Taos, New Mexico is named for the Native American village nearby called Taos Pueblo. The town is famous for its art colony. Artists began settling in Taos in 1899, and the Taos Society of Artists was founded in 1915.

80 Poe’s middle name : ALLAN

Celebrated American writer Edgar Allan Poe (EAP) was born “Edgar Poe” in 1809 in Boston. Poe’s father abandoned Edgar and his two siblings after the death of their mother. As a result, Edgar was taken into the home of the Allan family in Richmond, Virginia. His foster parents gave the future author the name “Edgar Allan Poe”.

82 French __ soup : ONION

To cook “au gratin” is to prepare something in a shallow dish with a crust of bread or cheese on top. In America we tend to think mainly of potatoes prepared this way, but the technique can be used for many different dishes. What we call French onion soup, a soup with some bread and cheese baked on top, is called “gratinée” in France.

88 Dr. Evil’s sidekick : MINI-ME

Actor Verne Troyer was best known for playing the character Mini-Me in the “Austin Powers” series of films. Troyer suffered from a form of dwarfism, and at a height of only 2 ft 8 in was one of the shortest men in the world.

92 Iowa college city : AMES

Iowa State University of Science and Technology (ISU) is located in Ames, Iowa. Among many other notable milestones, ISU created the country’s first school of veterinary medicine, in 1879. The sports teams of ISU are known as the Cyclones.

94 Tabloid : RAG

“Tabloid” is the trademarked name (owned by Burroughs Wellcome) for a “small tablet of medicine”, a name that goes back to 1884. The word “tabloid” had entered into general use to mean a compressed form of anything, and by the early 1900s was used in “tabloid journalism”, which described newspapers that had short, condensed articles and stories printed on smaller sheets of paper.

96 Japanese beer : KIRIN

Kirin lager is the oldest brand of beer in Japan. The “Kirin” name comes from the Japanese word for a mythical Chinese creature.

100 Back muscles, to trainers : LATS

The muscles known as the “lats” are the “latissimi dorsi”, and are the broadest muscles in the back. “Latissimus” is Latin for “broadest”, and “dorsum” is Latin for “back”.

110 Prince of Troy : PARIS

In Greek legend, Paris was the son of the king of Troy. Paris eloped with Helen, Queen of Sparta, an act that was a major trigger for the Trojan War. Also, it was Paris who fatally wounded Achilles by shooting him in the heel with an arrow.

112 Dance in “Lilo & Stitch” : HULA

“Lilo & Stitch” was released by Disney in 2002. Compared to other Disney feature-length cartoons, “Lilo & Stitch” was relatively cheaply produced, using the voices of lesser-known actors. One interesting change had to take place in the storyline during production, when Lilo was meant to fly a Jumbo Jet through downtown Honolulu in one sequence. This was replaced with a sequence using a spaceship instead, as the producers were sensitive to public sentiment after the September 11 attacks.

119 Hanukkah fare : LATKE

A latke is a delicious potato pancake (I’m Irish, so anything made with potatoes is delicious, to be honest).

The term “Hanukkah” (also “Chanukah”) comes from the Hebrew for “to dedicate”. Hanukkah is a holiday lasting eight days that commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple of Jerusalem after a successful Jewish revolt against the Seleucids in the 2nd-century BCE. The story of Hanukkah includes the miracle of the one-day supply of oil that kept the menorah alight for eight days.

120 Mysteriously alluring : EXOTIC

The word “exotic” means “belonging to another country”, and is derived from the Greek “exo-” meaning “outside”. Exotica are things that are excitingly strange, often from foreign parts.

123 Musical theater legend Merman : ETHEL

Ethel Merman was an actress and singer, one noted for having a very powerful voice. Merman was married and divorced four times. The last marriage was to actor Ernest Borgnine in 1964, although it lasted only 32 days.

124 Hoedown go-round : DO-SI-DO

The term “do-si-do” is a corruption of a French phrase “dos-à-dos”, meaning back-to-back. And parenthetically, this is just the opposite to the familiar French term “vis-à-vis”, meaning face-to-face. In the do-si-do dance move, the partners start facing each other and then advance past each other’s right shoulder, and then move to the right without turning so that they are now facing away from each other (back-to-back). They complete the move facing in the same direction, passing each other’s left shoulder by moving backwards until they return to the starting position. Did you get that …?

Down

1 Chocolaty cafe order : MOCHA

A caffè mocha is a caffè latte that has been flavored with chocolate. One might also regard a caffè mocha as hot chocolate with the addition of a shot of espresso.

2 Bygone Apple messaging tool : ICHAT

iChat was introduced in 2002, and was Apple’s “instant messaging” application that integrated with the Mac Operating System. iChat was replaced by the Messages app.

4 __ the line : TOEING

The idiomatic expression “to toe the line” means “to obey”. The etymology of the phrase is disputed, although it is likely to come from the Royal Navy. Barefooted sailors were required to stand to attention for inspection lined up along the seams for the wooden deck, hence “toeing the line”.

5 Summer coolers, briefly : ACS

Air conditioner (AC)

6 Doubters : SKEPTICS

The word “skeptic” derives from the Greek word “skeptikos”, meaning “inquirer” or “investigator.” The earliest skeptics, like Pyrrho of Elis, were philosophers who questioned the possibility of certain knowledge and emphasized the importance of doubt and inquiry. Today, “skeptic” can refer to anyone who critically examines evidence and challenges assumptions.

9 “With a moo moo here … ” preceder : E-I-E-I-O …

There was an old American version of the English children’s song “Old MacDonald Had a Farm” (E-I-E-I-O) that was around in the days of WWI. The first line of the older US version goes “Old MacDougal had a farm, in Ohio-i-o”.

10 Sahara continent: Abbr. : AFR

The name “Sahara” means “desert” in Arabic. The Sahara is just that, a great desert covering almost 4 million square miles of Northern Africa. That’s almost the size of the United States.

11 Prof aides : TAS

Teaching Assistants (TAs)

12 Word of warning : CAVEAT

A caveat is a warning or a qualification. “Caveat” is the Latin for “let him beware”.

13 How tic-tac-toe often ends : IN A TIE

When I was growing up in Ireland we played “noughts and crosses” … our name for the game tic-tac-toe.

14 Motrin competitor : ADVIL

The anti-inflammatory drug ibuprofen is sold under the brand names Advil and Motrin.

15 PBS documentary film series : POV

“POV” is a PBS television series that showcases independent documentary films. The program has been on the air since 1988.

16 Bishop’s territory : DIOCESE

In some Christian traditions, a district under the control of a bishop is a diocese, bishopric or see. Dioceses are in turn divided into parishes that are under the control of priests. A particularly significant diocese might be called an archdiocese, and falls under the control of an archbishop.

18 Some Pacific Islanders : SAMOANS

The official name for the South Pacific nation formerly known as Western Samoa is the Independent State of Samoa. Samoa is the western part of the island group, with American Samoa lying to the southeast. The whole group of islands used to be known as Navigators Island, a name given by European explorers in recognition of the seafaring skills of the native Samoans.

24 Amy Winehouse hit : REHAB

Amy Winehouse was a much ridiculed singer from the UK, and whose life was fraught with very public bouts of drug and alcohol abuse. Winehouse’s lifestyle caught up with her in 2011 when she was found dead from alcohol poisoning. The unfortunate singer was only 27 years old when she died, which means she is now viewed as a member of the “27 Club”. This “club” is made up of famous musicians who all died at the age of 27, including Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison of the Doors, and Kurt Cobain of Nirvana.

33 Part of YSL : YVES

Yves Saint Laurent (YSL)

43 “The King and I” star Brynner : YUL

Yul Brynner was a Russian-born actor. He was well known for his great performances, but also for his shaved head and his deep rich voice. Brynner first adopted the “hairstyle” while playing the King of Siam in the stage version of “The King and I”, and he stuck with it.

“The King and I” is a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical based on a book by Margaret Landon called “Anna and the King of Siam” first published in 1944. Landon’s book is based on a true story, told in the memoirs of Anna Leonowens. Leonowens was the governess of the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the 1860s, and she also taught the king’s wives.

45 “The Tonight Show” icon : CARSON

Johnny Carson hosted “The Tonight Show” for thirty years, from 1962 to 1992. Although Carson was the first choice to take over the show from Jack Paar, he initially declined the offer. He eventually took the job, after it had also been refused by Bob Newhart, Jackie Gleason, Groucho Marx and Joey Bishop.

47 Small salamander : NEWT

Salamanders are lizard-like amphibians found all across the northern hemisphere. They are the only vertebrate animals that can regenerate lost limbs.

49 Tolkien epic, familiarly : LOTR

J. R. R. Tolkien’s novel “The Lord of the Rings” (LOTR) consists of the three volumes:

• “The Fellowship of the Ring”
• “The Two Towers”
• “The Return of the King”

50 Late tourney round : SEMI

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

56 Actor/director Sidney : POITIER

Hollywood actor Sidney Poitier was born in Miami, but grew up in the Bahamas. Poitiers breakthrough role in movies came with 1955’s “Blackboard Jungle”, in which he played an incorrigible high school student. I find it interesting that one of Poitier’s most respected performances found him playing a teacher of a rough set of students in 1967’s “To Sir, with Love”. Off the screen, Poitier entered the diplomatic service for the Bahamas, serving as the nation’s non-resident ambassador to Japan from 1997 until 2007.

57 Seminole leader of the 19th century : OSCEOLA

Chief Osceola was a leader of the Seminole Native Americans in Florida who actively resisted the removal of his people from their lands during the Second Seminole War. Osceola was captured when he was tricked into entering a US fort for peace talks. He died in prison a few months later. The Florida State University Seminoles football team uses a student dressed as Chief Osceola on his horse Renegade as a mascot at their games. This practice, approved by the Seminole Tribe of Florida, involves Chief Osceola riding onto the field and planting a flaming spear at the 50-yard line.

60 Gliding ballet move : CHASSE

A chassé is a step used in ballroom and other styles of dance. It has a gliding character and is a triple-step movement. The term “chassé” comes to popular dance from ballet.

70 Cape Town currency : RAND

The rand is the currency of South Africa. Much of South Africa’s famed gold comes from mines around Johannesburg in the Witwatersrand (Afrikaans for “the ridge of white waters”). The rand currency takes its name from this ridge.

Cape Town is the legislative capital of South Africa (RSA), and one of three capital cities in the country. Pretoria is the executive capital, and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital.

74 Aside containers, for short : PARENS

Parentheses (parens.)

83 MetLife Stadium team, on scoreboards : NYG

The New York Giants (NYG) football team plays home games in MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, a stadium shared with the New York Jets (NYJ). The Giants are the only team remaining from a group of five that joined the league in 1925. For many years, the Giants shared team names with the New York Giants MLB team, before the baseball franchise moved to San Francisco after the 1957 season.

86 Mississippi tributary : OHIO

The Ohio River forms in Pittsburgh where the Allegheny and Monongahela Rivers meet. The Ohio empties into the Mississippi near the city of Cairo, Illinois.

88 “The Natural” novelist : MALAMUD

Bernard Malamud wrote the novel “The Natural”, published in 1952. It tells the story of a baseball player named Roy Hobbs, who gets shot early in his career and makes a remarkable comeback many years later. Although Roy Hobbs is a fictional character, the story is apparently based on the real-life Phillies player Eddie Waitkus, who was indeed shot in his hotel room by an obsessed fan in 1949. The film adaptation, released in 1984, is an excellent movie starring Robert Redford as “The Natural”.

93 Roger who played James Bond seven times : MOORE

Roger Moore is best known in the US for taking on the role of 007 in seven James Bond movies from 1973 to 1985. In my part of the world we remember him playing a very debonair hero called Simon Templar in a TV series called “The Saint” from 1962 to 1969. Moore’s Templar character could very easily have morphed into a great James Bond, but by the time he was offered the part I personally think that he was just a tad too long in the tooth to pull off a credible 007.

Here are the first seven actors to portray the iconic English spy in the “James Bond” series of movies:

1. Sean Connery: 1961–1967, 1970–1971 and 1982–1983
2. David Niven: 1967
3. George Lazenby: 1968–1969
4. Roger Moore: 1972–1985
5. Timothy Dalton: 1986–1994
6. Pierce Brosnan: 1994–2004
7. Daniel Craig: 2005–2021

96 NBA legend Abdul-Jabbar : KAREEM

Basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s name at birth was Ferdinand Lewis “Lew” Alcindor. Alcindor changed his name when he converted to Islam.

99 Some Swift characters : YAHOOS

Yahoos are brutish creatures introduced by Irish author Jonathan Swift in “Gulliver’s Travels”. Their savage, slovenly ways gave rise to the use of “yahoo” in English to describe a lout or neanderthal.

101 Key __ : LARGO

Key Largo is an island in the Florida Keys. The island gained a lot of celebrity in 1948 when the John Huston movie “Key Largo” was released, starring Humphrey Bogart, Edward G. Robinson and Lauren Bacall.

106 Muslim cleric : MUFTI

A mufti is a jurist who interprets Islamic law. A nonbinding opinion issued by a mufti is a fatwa.

107 Kilt feature : PLAID

“Tartan” is sometimes called “plaid” over here in the US, and is a word not used in the same sense outside of this country. In Scotland, a plaid is a blanket or a tartan cloth slung over the shoulder.

108 Name called out in a swimming pool : MARCO

Marco Polo is a game of tag that is played in a swimming pool. Marco! Polo!

117 Kitchen brand : OXO

The OXO line of kitchen utensils and housewares is designed to be ergonomically superior to the average household tools. The intended user of OXO products is someone who doesn’t have the normal range of motion or strength in the hands e.g. someone suffering from arthritis.