Day: November 5, 2012

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
10. Leave at the altar JILT
To “jilt” someone with whom you have a relationship is to drop them suddenly or callously. “Jilt” is an obsolete noun that used to mean “harlot” or “loose woman”.

14. Diva’s showpiece ARIA
“Diva” comes to us from Latin via Italian. “Diva” is the feminine form of “divus” meaning “divine one”. The word is used in Italy to mean “goddess” or “fine lady”, and especially is applied to the prima donna in an opera. We often use the term to describe a singer with a big ego.

16. Pierre’s possessive A MOI
“À moi” (literally “to me”) is the French for “mine”.

21. Relaxing time in the chalet APRES SKI
Après-ski is a French term, meaning “after skiing”, and refers to the good times to be had after coming off the slopes.

25. Hi-fi spinners LPS
The first vinyl records designed to play at 33 1/3 rpm were introduced by RCA Victor in 1931, but were discontinued due to quality problems. The first Long Play (LP) 33 1/3 rpm disc was introduced by Columbia Records many years later in 1948, with RCA Victor following up with a 45 rpm “single” the following year, in 1949.

26. Plain dessert POUND (CAKE)
“Pound cake” is so called because the traditional recipe calls for a pound of each of four ingredients:

– a pound of flour
– a pound of butter
– a pound of eggs
– a pound of sugar

I’d say that’s a lot of cake …

37. Yukon’s country CANADA
Canada’s federal territory known as Yukon takes its name from the Yukon River. “Yukon” means “Big Stream” in the local Gwich’in language.

38. Prada imitation, perhaps KNOCK(OFF HANDBAG)
Prada was started in 1913 as a leathergoods shop in Milan, by the two Prada brothers. One of the brothers, Mario Prada, prevented the female members of his family participating in the company as he didn’t believe women should be involved in business (!). When the sexist brother died, his son had no interest in the business so it was his daughter who took over and ran the company for about twenty years, handing it over to her own daughter. I’d say the devil loved that …

45. Fruity-smelling compound ESTER
Esters are very common chemicals. The smaller, low-molecular weight esters are usually pleasant smelling and are often found in perfumes. At the other end of the scale, the higher-molecular weight nitroglycerin is a nitrate ester and is very explosive, and polyester is a huge molecule and is a type of plastic.

46. Jay-Z, for one RAP (ARTIST)
Jay-Z, as well as being a successful and very rich rap artist, is married to singer Beyonce.

49. L.A. bus-and-rail org. MTA
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is known as the MTA or Metro.

67. Very familiar note recipient? SELF
Note to self …

68. “Fetch my smelling salts!” EGADS
“Egad” developed as a polite way of saying “oh God” in the late 1600s and is an expression of fear or surprise somewhat like “good grief!”.

Down
3. Barcelona boy NINO
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain, after the capital Madrid. Barcelona is the largest European city that sits on the Mediterranean coast. It is also the capital city of the autonomous community of Catalonia.

5. HMO alternative PPO
Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) or Health Maintenance Organization (HMO). Make your choice …

7. One-named Irish folk singer ENYA
Enya’s real name is Eithne Patricia Ní Bhraonáin, which can translate from Irish into Enya Brennan. Her Donegal family (in the northwest of Ireland) formed a band called Clannad, which included Enya. In 1980 Enya launched her very successful solo career. She sure does turn up a lot in crosswords!

8. Magazine with a Stylewatch spinoff PEOPLE
There used to be a “People” page in each issue of “Time” magazine. This page was spun-off in 1974 as a publication of its own, which we now call “People” magazine.

“People” magazine has a Stylewatch column that’s all about celebrity fashion. Since 2007, “People” has been publishing a “People Stylewatch” magazine, basically a whole magazine that deals with the same subject matter as the column.

11. “In the morning” radio host IMUS
Don Imus’s syndicated radio show, “Imus in the Morning”, broadcasts from New York City.

13. __ torch: patio light TIKI
A tiki torch is a bamboo torch that’s very commonly used in Tiki culture. Tiki culture is a relatively modern invention dating from the 20th century, and is the experience created in Polynesian-style restaurants. The word “Tiki” is borrowed from Polynesia.

19. Perform another MRI on RESCAN
A CT (or “CAT”) scan produces (via computer manipulation) a three dimensional image of the inside of an object, usually the human body. It does so by taking a series of two dimensional x-ray images while rotating the camera around the patient. The issue with CT scans is that they use x-rays, and high doses of radiation can be harmful causing damage that is cumulative over time. An MRI on the other hand (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), uses powerful magnetic fields to generate its images so there is no exposure to ionizing radiation (such as X-rays). We used MRI equipment in our chemistry labs at school, way back in the days when the technology was still called Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging (NMRI). Apparently the marketing folks didn’t like the term “nuclear” because of its association with atomic bombs, so now it’s just called MRI.

23. Oldman or Newman ACTOR
Gary Oldman is an English stage and screen actor. Like many English actors it seems, Oldman has played a lot of villains in Hollywood movies e.g. in “Air Force One” and “The Fifth Element”. My favorite Oldman performance is as Ludwig van Beethoven in “Immortal Beloved”.

Paul Newman was an actor from Shaker Heights, Ohio. He won his only Best Actor Oscar for his role in “The Color of Money”, a Martin Scorsese film. Off screen Newman was a very successful racing driver and won several national championships. He also founded a food company called Newman’s Own which donates its profits to charity, an amount that now exceeds $300 million.

27. Old Dodge autos OMNIS
The Dodge Omni was basically the same car as the Plymouth Horizon, and was produced by Chrysler from 1978-90. The Omni is a front-wheel drive hatchback, the first of a long line of front-wheel drive cars that were very successful for Chrysler. The Omni was actually developed in France, by Chrysler’s Simca division. When production was stopped in the US in 1990, the tooling was sold to an Indian company that continued production for the Asian market for several years.

29. “The Trial” writer Franz KAFKA
Franz Kafka was born in 1883 in Prague, then part of Bohemia, and today the capital of the Czech Republic. Kafka is known as one of the greatest novelists who worked in the German language, and even has an adjective named after him. Something that is “kafkaesque” is senseless, disorienting and may have menacing complexity. As it was for many great artists, Kafka’s fame came after his death when much of his work was published.

33. Times to send in the troops D-DAYS
The most famous D-Day in history was June 6, 1944, the date of the Normandy landings in WWII. The term “D-Day” is used by the military to designate the day on which a combat operations are to be launched, especially when the actual date has yet to be determined. What D stands for seems to have been lost in the mists of time although the tradition is that D just stands for “Day”. In fact, the French have a similar term, “Jour J” (Day J), with a similar meaning. We also use H-Hour to denote the hour the attack is to commence.

34. “Full House” co-star Bob SAGET
Bob Saget is a real enigma to me. He made a name for himself playing very sugary roles in TV shows like “Full House” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos”, and yet in the world of stand-up comedy he is known for very blue and raunchy routines.

37. Panama crosser CANAL
The Panama Canal was predated by the Panama Railway. The railway’s route actually determined the eventual route of the canal. The impetus to build a canal was spurred on by the success of the Suez Canal which opened in 1869. Work on the Panama Canal started in 1881, but things did not go smoothly at all. Companies involved in the project went bankrupt, one after the other. Eventually the US government bought its way into the project with President Roosevelt handing over millions of dollars to the country of Panama. The canal was finally completed in 1914. All in all, about 27,500 workers died during construction.

39. Co. in Paris CIE
“Cie.” is an abbreviation (not an acronym) used in French. It is short for “compagnie”, the French word for “company”, and is used as we would use “Co.”

40. “Sesame Street News Flash” reporter KERMIT
Kermit has to be the most readily recognized puppet character created by the late great Jim Henson. Henson came up with Kermit way back in 1955 when he appeared on a puppet show called “Sam and Friends” that aired in Washington, D.C. Kermit is loved so much that he even has his own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

41. Hula swivelers HIPS
Hula is the name of the Polynesian dance. The chant or song that the dance illustrates, that’s known as the mele.

47. German coal valley RUHR
The Ruhr is a large urban area in western Germany. The area is heavily populated, and is the fifth largest urban area in the whole of Europe, after Istanbul, Moscow, London and Paris.

50. Sierra Nevada resort TAHOE
Lake Tahoe is up in the Sierra Nevada mountains, right on the border between California and Nevada. Lake Tahoe is the largest alpine lake in the country. It’s also the second deepest lake, with only the beautiful Crater Lake in Oregon being deeper. Given its location, there are tall casinos that sit right on the shore on the Nevada side of the state line where gambling is legal.

54. The “I” in IHOP: Abbr. INTL
The International House of Pancakes (IHOP) was founded back in 1958. IHOP was originally intended to be called IHOE, the International House of Eggs, but that name didn’t do too well in marketing tests …

55. End-of-the-week letters TGIF
“Thank God It’s Friday” (TGIF) is a relatively new expression that originated in Akron, Ohio. It was a catchphrase used by disk jockey Jerry Healy of WAKR in the early seventies.

56. Scandinavian literary collection EDDA
The Poetic Edda and Prose Edda are two ancient works that are the source for much of Norse mythology.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Chinese temple instrument GONG
5. Nestling noises PEEPS
10. Leave at the altar JILT
14. Diva’s showpiece ARIA
15. Group of experts PANEL
16. Pierre’s possessive A MOI
17. Return on one’s investment, in slang BANG (FOR YOUR BUCK)
20. Replay technique, briefly SLO-MO
21. Relaxing time in the chalet APRES SKI
22. “There oughta be __” A LAW
25. Hi-fi spinners LPS
26. Plain dessert POUND (CAKE)
30. Playing decks CARDS
35. Diplomatic bldg. EMB
36. Juanita’s aunt TIA
37. Yukon’s country CANADA
38. Prada imitation, perhaps KNOCK(OFF HANDBAG)
42. More greasy OILIER
43. Extended family KIN
44. “Bon voyage!” BYE
45. Fruity-smelling compound ESTER
46. Jay-Z, for one RAP (ARTIST)
49. L.A. bus-and-rail org. MTA
51. Speak indistinctly SLUR
52. Begin INITIATE
57. Gate-hanging hardware HINGE
61. Announce one’s arrival gently … as opposed to words that start 17-, 26-, 38- and 46-Across RING THE DOORBELL
64. Voting no ANTI
65. In an unusual way ODDLY
66. Student’s stressor EXAM
67. Very familiar note recipient? SELF
68. “Fetch my smelling salts!” EGADS
69. Avg. levels STDS

Down
1. Goes on and on GABS
2. Unwritten ORAL
3. Barcelona boy NINO
4. Joke writer GAGMAN
5. HMO alternative PPO
6. Musical sensitivity EAR
7. One-named Irish folk singer ENYA
8. Magazine with a Stylewatch spinoff PEOPLE
9. Eat noisily, as soup SLURP
10. Elbows rudely JABS
11. “In the morning” radio host IMUS
12. Security device LOCK
13. __ torch: patio light TIKI
18. Finish the laundry FOLD
19. Perform another MRI on RESCAN
23. Oldman or Newman ACTOR
24. Ragamuffin WAIF
26. Orange __ tea PEKOE
27. Old Dodge autos OMNIS
28. Horseshoe-shaped fastener U BOLT
29. “The Trial” writer Franz KAFKA
31. Furthermore AND
32. Synagogue scholar RABBI
33. Times to send in the troops D-DAYS
34. “Full House” co-star Bob SAGET
37. Panama crosser CANAL
39. Co. in Paris CIE
40. “Sesame Street News Flash” reporter KERMIT
41. Hula swivelers HIPS
46. Family-friendly, filmwise RATED G
47. German coal valley RUHR
48. Native American groups TRIBES
50. Sierra Nevada resort TAHOE
52. Tax-sheltered accts. IRAS
53. Store opening time NINE
54. The “I” in IHOP: Abbr. INTL
55. End-of-the-week letters TGIF
56. Scandinavian literary collection EDDA
58. Bakery call NEXT
59. Happy GLAD
60. Spreading trees ELMS
62. Ancient OLD
63. Yiddish cries of dismay OYS

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