Tag: Soldiers’ support gp. since 1944 crossword clue

Bill’s time: 5m 45s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

5. Simon & Garfunkel’s “El Condor __” : PASA

“El Cóndor Pasa” is a song from Peru, the best-known Peruvian song in the world, almost certainly. It was written in 1913, and famously covered by Simon & Garfunkel on their “Bridge Over Troubled Water” album in 1970. “El Cóndor Pasa” translates from Spanish as “The Condor Flies By”.

14. Texas home of Baylor University : WACO

The Texas city of Waco is named for the Wichita people known as the “Waco”, who occupied the area for thousands of years.

Remember Ken Starr of Whitewater fame? He was President of Baylor University in Waco, Texas from 2010 to 2016.

15. CPR pros : EMTS

An emergency medical technician (EMT) might administer cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

16. Jazz clarinetist Shaw : ARTIE

Artie Shaw was a composer, bandleader and jazz clarinetist. Shaw’s real name was Arthur Jacob Arshawsky, born in New York City in 1910. One of his many claims to fame is that he (a white bandleader) hired Billie Holiday (a black vocalist) and toured the segregated South in the late thirties. Holiday chose to leave the band though, due to hostility from Southern audiences back then. Artie Shaw was married eight times in all. The list of his wives includes the actresses Lana Turner and Ava Gardner, as well as Betty Kern, daughter of songwriter Jerome Kern.

17. National Portrait Gallery, e.g. : ART MUSEUM

The National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C. is part of the Smithsonian Institution. The gallery is housed in the Old Patent Office Building, a facility that it shares with the Smithsonian American Art Museum

21. 67-Across exile : ADAM
(67A. Genesis paradise : EDEN)

In the Christian tradition, the “fall of man” took place in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve succumbed to the temptation of eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This went against the bidding of God, and was at the urging of the serpent. As a result, Adam and Eve were banished from Eden to prevent them becoming immortal by eating from the tree of life. The first humans had transitioned from a state of innocent obedience to a state of guilty disobedience.

23. Dollar bills : ONES

The nation’s first president, George Washington, is on the US one-dollar bills produced today. When the original one-dollar bill was issued in 1863, it featured a portrait of Salmon P. Chase, President Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of the Treasury.

31. The Emerald Isle : EIRE

Ireland is often referred to as “the Emerald Isle” (and described as “green”) because of all that green grass that grows due to the seemingly non-stop rain.

32. Ideology suffix : -ISM

Our word “ideology” was imported from French, in which language “idéologie” was coined by philosopher Destutt de Tracy In the late 1800s. He created the word from the Greek “idea” meaning “form, nature, sort”. Within a few years, “ideology” was being used to describe a systematic set of ideas through which the world was interpreted.

37. Merged labor org. : CIO

The American Federation of Labor (AFL) was founded in 1886, making it one of the first federations of unions in the country. Over time the AFL became dominated by craft unions, unions representing skilled workers of particular disciplines. In the early thirties, John L. Lewis led a movement within the AFL to organize workers by industry, believing this would be more effective for the members. But the craft unions refused to budge, so Lewis set up a rival federation of unions in 1932, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). The two federations became bitter rivals for over two decades until finally merging in 1955 to form the AFL-CIO.

38. Medium for many talk shows … and an apt place to discuss six puzzle answers? : AM RADIO

The radio spectrum is divided into bands based on frequency. “High band” is composed of relatively high frequency values, and “low band” is composed of frequencies that are relatively low. FM radio falls into the band called Very High Frequency (VHF). Television signals use frequencies even higher than VHF, frequencies in the Ultra High Frequency band (UHF). AM radio uses lower frequencies that fall into the relatively low bands of Low, Medium and High Frequency (LF, MF, and HF).

41. Soldiers’ support gp. since 1944 : AMVETS

American Veterans (AMVETS) is a charitable service organization founded by World War II veterans. The objective of AMVETS is to provide support for all US veterans and active military personnel.

43. Sign gas : NEON

Neon was discovered in 1898 by two British chemists Sir William Ramsay and Morris Travers. They chilled a sample of air, turning it into a liquid, and then warmed the liquid and separated out the gases that boiled off. Along with nitrogen, oxygen and argon (already known), the pair of scientists discovered two new gases. The first they called “krypton” and the second “neon”. “Krypton” is Greek for “the hidden one” and “neon” is Greek for “new”.

The basic design of neon lighting was first demonstrated at the Paris Motor Show in 1910. Such lighting is made up of glass tubes containing a vacuum into which has been introduced a small amount of neon gas. When a voltage is applied between two electrodes inside the tube, the neon gas “glows” and gives off the familiar light.

44. “Life of Pi” director Lee : ANG

The 2012 movie “Life of Pi” is based on a 2001 novel of the same name by Yann Martel. The “Pi” in the title is an Indian boy named Pi Patel who finds himself adrift for 227 days in small boat with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

46. Not __ snuff: unsatisfactory : UP TO

The term “up to snuff” today means “up to standard”. It was introduced to us for the first time in 1811 in a play called “Hamlet Travestie” by Englishman John Poole. He used the term to mean “in the know”. It was perhaps a reference to the habit of taking powdered tobacco, a practice back then that was associated with the upper classes, the educated, those in the know.

48. “Cats” poet’s monogram : TSE

T. S. Eliot (TSE) was born in New England but grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. Much of Eliot’s college education was at Oxford, and clearly he became comfortable with life in England. In 1927 he became a British citizen and lived the rest of life in the UK.

“Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” is a 1939 collection of poems by T. S. Eliot (TSE). The collection of whimsical poetry was a favorite of composer Andrew Lloyd Webber when he was a child. Webber used Eliot’s poems as inspiration for his megahit musical “Cats”.

49. Rosary recital : AVE MARIA

“Ave Maria” (“Hail Mary” in English) is the prayer at the core of the Roman Catholic Rosary, which itself is a set of prayers asking for the assistance of the Virgin Mary. Much of the text of the “Hail Mary” comes from the Gospel of Luke. The words in Latin are:

AVE MARIA, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.

The prayer has been adapted as a hymn. The two most famous musical versions of “Ave Maria” are by Charles Gounod (based on a piece by Bach) and by Franz Schubert.

The Rosary is a set of prayer beads used in the Roman Catholic tradition. The name “Rosary” comes from the Latin “rosarium”, the word for a “rose garden” or a “garland of roses”. The term is used figuratively, in the sense of a “garden of prayers”.

54. Taiwan-based laptop giant : ACER

Acer is a Taiwanese company that I visited a couple of times when I was in the electronics business. I was very impressed back then with the company’s dedication to quality, although I have heard that things haven’t gone so well in recent years …

55. Spanish island, to locals : MENORCA

The island of Minorca in the Mediterranean takes its name from the larger neighboring island of Majorca. The names come from the Latin “Insula Minor” meaning “Minor Island” and “Insula Major” meaning “Major Island”. The island is known as “Minorca” in English, and “Menorca” in Spanish and Catalan.

64. Dorothy’s dog : TOTO

Toto is Dorothy’s dog in the film “The Wizard of Oz”, and in the original book “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” by L. Frank Baum. Toto was played in the movie by a dog called Terry, but Terry’s name was soon changed to Toto in real life due to the success of the film.

65. Tiny fraction of a min. : MSEC

A millisecond is one thousandth of a second, and is often abbreviated to “msec”. However, the more correct abbreviation for millisecond is “ms”.

67. Genesis paradise : EDEN

The Book of Genesis is the first book in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles. Some of the main figures in the book are Adam and Eve, Noah, Moses and Abraham. “Genesis” is a Greek word meaning “origin, creation”.

Down

1. First word of “A Visit From St. Nicholas” : ‘TWAS

The poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” was published anonymously in 1823, and is better known today by its first line “‘Twas the night before Christmas”. Most scholars believe that the poem was written by Clement Clarke Moore, a theologian from New York City. Others say that it was written by Henry Livingston, Jr., a poet from Upstate New York.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash …

4. Alumnae, e.g. : WOMEN

An alumnus (plural “alumni”) is a graduate or former student of a school or college. The female form is “alumna” (plural “alumnae”). The term comes into English from Latin, in which an alumnus is a foster-son or pupil. “Alum” is an informal term used for either an alumna or an alumnus.

5. Cuban coins : PESOS

Cuba is the only country in the world that has two official currencies. The Cuban peso (CUP) is referred to as the “national currency”. Government workers are paid in CUPs, and CUPs can be used to pay for government-provided services and price-controlled items such as fruit and vegetables. There is also the Cuban convertible peso (CUC) that was introduced in 1994, when its value was pegged to the US dollar. Most products available in stores are imported, and have to be purchased with CUCs. Cubans with access to CUCs, like hotel workers interfacing with tourists, they tend to have better lifestyles than government workers in general.

6. Blessing conclusion : AMEN

The word “amen” translates as “so be it”. “Amen” is said to be of Hebrew origin, but it is also likely to be influenced by Aramaic and Arabic.

7. Good name for a cook : STU

“Stu” sounds like “stew”.

8. Eritrea’s capital : ASMARA

Asmara is the capital and largest city in Eritrea. The same city is known locally as “Asmera”.

9. Yemen’s capital : SANA’A

Sana (also “Sana’a”) is the capital city of Yemen. Sitting at an elevation of 7,380 feet, Sana is one of the highest capital cities in the world. Within the bounds of today’s metropolis is the old fortified city of Sana, where people have lived for over 2,500 years. The Old City is now a World Heritage Site. According to legend, Sana was founded by Shem, the son of Noah.

11. Extra NBA periods : OTS

Overtime (OT)

13. “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” actress Tina : FEY

“Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” is a 2016 film based on a memoir called “The Taliban Shuffle: Strange Days in Afghanistan and Pakistan” by Kim Barker. Tina Fey stars as a TV journalist on assignment as a war correspondent in Afghanistan. Despite the somber setting, “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” is a comedy-drama. The title is the initialism WTF spelled out using the NATO phonetic alphabet. WTF stands for “what the fudge?!”, or similar …

22. Texas border city : DEL RIO

Del Rio is a border city in Texas, sitting opposite the Ciudad Acuña in the Mexican state of Coahuila. Del Rio was chosen as the site for Laughlin Air Force Base back in the forties. Laughlin was closed after just a few years but reopened during the Cold War, mainly for flight training. Laughlin is now the busiest flight training base in the US Air Force.

24. Home of the Braves : ATLANTA

The Atlanta Braves are the only team to have won baseball’s World Series in three different home cities. They won as the Boston Braves in 1914, the Milwaukee Braves in 1957 and the Atlanta Braves in 1995.

27. Municipal waste : SEWAGE

A municipality is an urban administrative division, and one usually with self-governing powers. The term “municipality” comes from the concept of the ancient Roman “municipium”, a community whose citizens had the same privileges as Roman citizens but who were governed by their own laws.

28. Noisy summer insect : CICADA

Cicadas are insects that are found all over the world. Although they resemble locusts, cicadas are an unrelated family. The name “cicada” is Latin and translated as “tree cricket”. However, the name is imitative of the clicking sound the insect makes using parts of its exoskeleton known as “tymbals”.

29. “I, Robot” author : ASIMOV

Science fiction author Isaac Asimov wrote a marvelous collection of short stories called “I, Robot” that were first published together in 1950. In the stories, he makes repeated reference to the Three Laws of Robotics, which he introduced in the story “Runaround”, first published in 1942. The three laws are:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

33. Napa Valley vessel : VAT

The first commercial winery in Napa Valley, California was established way back in 1858. However, premium wine production only dates back to the 1960s, with the region really hitting the big time after its success at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. The story of that famous blind wine tasting is told in the entertaining 2008 film “Bottle Shock”.

39. “Gloria in Excelsis __” : DEO

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

42. All together : EN MASSE

“En masse” is a French term, one that best translates as “as a group”

52. Card game inducted into the Toy Hall of Fame in 2018 : UNO

UNO is a card game that was developed in the early seventies and that has been sold by Mattel since 1992. UNO falls into the “shedding” family of card games, in that the goal is to get rid of all your cards while preventing opponents from doing the same.

The National Toy Hall of Fame was established in Salem, Oregon in 1998, but was relocated to Rochester, New York in 2002. There were seventeen original inductees, including:

Barbie

Etch A Sketch

Frisbee

Hula Hoop

Marbles

Monopoly

56. Tech news site : CNET

c|net is an excellent technology website. c|net started out in 1994 as a television network specializing in technology news. The host of “American Idol”, Ryan Seacrest, started off his career as host of a c|net show.

57. “I Got You Babe” label : ATCO

Atco Records is an American record label founded in 1955, taking its name from the parent company Atlantic Corporation.

“I Got You Babe” is a duet that was released in 1965 by Sonny & Cher. The lyrics and music for the song were written by Sonny Bono himself. In 1993, Sonny and Cher did a version of the song with the animated characters Beavis and Butt-head. One has to ask, “Why …?”

59. Managed care gp. : HMO

Health Maintenance Organization (HMO)

60. Arctic seabird : AUK

Auks are penguin-like sea birds that live in colder northern waters including the Arctic. Like penguins, auks are great swimmers, but unlike penguins, auks can fly.

62. Coal scuttle : HOD

A coal scuttle, sometimes called a hod, is a container rather like a bucket that is used for carrying coal and pouring it onto the fire. Coal scuttles were important features in every home in which I grew up …