Day: December 25, 2012

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
9. British county SHIRE
The word “shire” comes from the Old English “scir” meaning “administrative district”. The term was replaced with county as far back as the 14th century, but the usage still persists to this day, largely because some counties retain the use of -shire as a suffix (Yorkshire, Lancashire etc.).

20. Oompah maker TUBA
The tuba is the lowest pitched of all the brass instruments, and one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra (usually there is just one tuba included in an orchestral line-up). “Tuba” is the Latin word for “trumpet, horn”.

23. Rocky Balboa skipped it ROPE
If ever there was a movie that defines a career breakthrough for an actor, it would have to be “Rocky” for Sylvester Stallone. Stallone was a struggling actor in 1975 when a Muhammad Ali fight inspired Stallone to write a screenplay for a boxing movie, which he did in just three days. His efforts to sell the script went well but for the fact that the interested studios wanted a big name for the lead role, and Stallone was determined to be the star himself. Stallone persevered and “Rocky” was eventually made with him playing title role of Rocky Balboa. The movie won three Oscars, and “Sly” Stallone had arrived …

25. Choir recess APSE
The apse of a church or cathedral is a semicircular recess in an outer wall, usually with a half-dome as a roof and often where there resides an altar. Originally apses were used as burial places for the clergy and also for storage of important relics.

30. Office supplies order REAM
A ream is 500 sheets of paper. As there were 24 sheets in a quire, and 20 quires made up a ream, there used to be 480 sheets in a ream. Ever since the standard was changed to 500, a 480-sheet packet of paper has been called a “short ream”.

34. The Tigers of the NCAA’s Southeastern Conference AUBURN
Auburn University in Alabama was chartered in 1856, as the East Alabama Male College. The school was renamed when it was granted university status in 1960.

37. Prez on a penny ABE
The US one-cent coin has borne the profile of President Abraham Lincoln since 1909, the centennial of Lincoln’s birth. Fifty years later, a representation of the Lincoln Memorial was added to the reverse side.

39. Big bang creator TNT
TNT is an abbreviation for trinitrotoluene. Trinitrotoluene was first produced in 1863 by the German chemist Joseph Wilbrand who developed it for use as a yellow dye. TNT is relatively difficult to detonate so it was on the market as a dye for some years before its more explosive properties were discovered.

40. Choir voices ALTOS
In choral music, an alto is the second-highest voice in a four-part chorus made up of soprano, contr(alto), tenor and bass. The word “alto” describes the vocal range, that of the deepest female singing-voice, whereas the term “contralto” describes more than just the alto range, but also its quality and timbre. An adult male’s voice (not a boy’s) with the same range as an alto is called a “countertenor”.

43. __ gin fizz SLOE
By definition, a cocktail known as a Fizz includes lemon or lime juice and carbonated water. The most popular of the genre is the Gin Fizz, made from 3 parts gin, 2 parts lemon juice, 1 part sugar syrup and 5 parts soda water.

The sloe is the fruit of the blackthorn bush, and is the flavoring that gives gin its distinctive taste.

46. ExxonMobil trade name ESSO
The brand name Esso has its roots in the old Standard Oil company as it uses the initial letters of “Standard” and “Oil” (ESS-O). The Esso brand was replaced by Exxon in the US but ESSO is still used in many other countries.

65. Agua, across the Pyrenees EAU
The Pyrénées is a mountain range that runs along the border between Spain and France. Nestled between the two countries, high in the mountains, is the lovely country of Andorra, an old haunt of my family during skiing season …

67. Bonnie’s partner in crime CLYDE
Clyde Barrow was one half of the famous duo Bonnie and Clyde. Barrow was born a desperately poor young boy just south of Dallas, Texas. He was always in trouble with the law, first getting arrested at the age of 16. He met Bonnie Parker in 1930 at a friend’s house, and the smitten Parker followed Clyde into a life of crime. The pair were killed by a posse of Texas police officers just four years later in Louisiana.

68. Paul’s partner in song ART
Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel performed together as “Simon & Garfunkel”, as I am sure we all know. The friends started singing together way back in the fifties when they were still in school together. The name of their act at that time was “Tom & Jerry”.

Down
2. Matty or Felipe of baseball ALOU
Felipe Alou is a former professional baseball player and manager. Alou managed the Montreal Expos from 1992 to 2001, and the San Francisco Giants from 2003 to 2006. Alou was born and raised in the Dominican Republic and came to the US to play for the Giants in 1955. Felipe’s brothers Matty and Jesús followed him to the US, and into Major League baseball.

19. Safari heavyweight HIPPO
“Safari” is a Swahili word, meaning “journey” or “expedition”.

24. Shrek and his relatives OGRES
Before “Shrek” was a successful movie franchise and Broadway musical, it was a children’s picture book called “Shrek!” authored and illustrated by William Steig. The title “Shrek!” came from the German/Yiddish word Schreck, meaning “fear” or “terror”.

28. Melodious winds OBOES
The oboe is perhaps my favorite of the reed instruments. The name “oboe” comes from the French “hautbois” which means “high wood”. When you hear an orchestra tuning before a performance you’ll note (pun intended!) that the oboe starts off the process by playing an “A”. The rest of the musicians in turn tune to that oboe’s “A”. Oh, and if you want to read a fun book (almost an “exposé”) about life playing the oboe, you might try “Mozart in the Jungle” by oboist Blair Tindall. I heard recently that the folks at HBO are working towards a pilot based on the book, and I can’t wait to see it!

44. “My Fair Lady” composer Frederick LOEWE
Frederick Loewe was a composer best known for his collaborations with the lyricist Alan Jay Lerner, the most famous of which were “My Fair Lady” and “Camelot”.

51. Northwest capital BOISE
Boise, Idaho is the largest metropolitan area in the state by far. There are a number of stories pertaining to the etymology of the name “Boise”. One is that French trappers named the tree-lined river that ran through the area “la rivière boisée”, meaning “the wooded river”.

53. Electrically flexible AC/DC
If you have a laptop with an external power supply then that big “block” is an AC/DC converter. It converts the AC current you get from a wall socket into the DC current that is used by the laptop.

55. Revolutionary British sympathizer TORY
During the American Revolution, those advocating Independence were known as Patriots. Those who stayed loyal to Britain were called Loyalists or Tories.

59. Kill the dele STET
“Stet” is the Latin word meaning “let it stand”. In editorial work, the typesetter is instructed to disregard any change previously marked by writing the word “stet” beside the change and then underscoring the change with a line of dots or dashes.

“Dele” is the editorial instruction to delete something from a document, and is often written in red.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Easy mark PATSY
6. Where X marks the spot MAP
9. British county SHIRE
14. Marry on the sly ELOPE
15. Top pilot ACE
16. __ wave TIDAL
17. With 26- and 48-Across, unexpected Christmas morning observation SOMETHING HUGE IS
20. Oompah maker TUBA
21. “To a …” poem ODE
22. Take a breath INHALE
23. Rocky Balboa skipped it ROPE
25. Choir recess APSE
26. See 17-Across CLOGGING UP
30. Office supplies order REAM
34. The Tigers of the NCAA’s Southeastern Conference AUBURN
35. __ about: approximately ON OR
37. Prez on a penny ABE
38. Old battle-ax CRONE
39. Big bang creator TNT
40. Choir voices ALTOS
42. Giggling syllable HEE
43. __ gin fizz SLOE
45. Zips along SPEEDS
46. ExxonMobil trade name ESSO
48. See 17-Across OUR CHIMNEY
50. “That’s unlikely” I BET
52. Start from scratch REDO
53. Pitchman’s “Don’t delay!” ACT NOW
56. “Sure, skipper!” AYE
57. Where eggs mark the spot? NEST
61. Goodies unclaimed as a result of this puzzle’s predicament COOKIES FOR SANTA
64. Has the guts DARES
65. Agua, across the Pyrenees EAU
66. Milk dispenser UDDER
67. Bonnie’s partner in crime CLYDE
68. Paul’s partner in song ART
69. Outdoes BESTS

Down
1. Pantry ant, e.g. PEST
2. Matty or Felipe of baseball ALOU
3. Mummy’s home TOMB
4. Underwater weapon SPEAR GUN
5. “However …” YET
6. Damsel MAIDEN
7. Teen’s woe ACNE
8. Place to hang your hat PEG
9. Astonishes STUNS
10. More expensive HIGHER
11. Item in a writer’s notebook IDEA
12. Commuter’s option RAIL
13. Alternatively ELSE
18. “Climb aboard!” HOP IN
19. Safari heavyweight HIPPO
24. Shrek and his relatives OGRES
25. Family reunion attendee AUNT
26. Secret supply CACHE
27. Angler’s boxful LURES
28. Melodious winds OBOES
29. Dead duck GONER
31. Unlike leftovers EATEN
32. Home ABODE
33. Like many a dorm room MESSY
36. Fast RAPID
39. Publicize in a big way TOUT
41. Sidewalk stand buy LEMONADE
44. “My Fair Lady” composer Frederick LOEWE
45. Transparent, as stockings SHEER
47. Sounded like a pig OINKED
49. Shout CRY OUT
51. Northwest capital BOISE
53. Electrically flexible AC/DC
54. Naughty child’s stocking filler COAL
55. Revolutionary British sympathizer TORY
56. “Bearing gifts, we traverse __” AFAR
58. Comes to a stop ENDS
59. Kill the dele STET
60. Finishes, as a road TARS
62. Ocean SEA
63. Ocean traveler SUB

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