Day: May 31, 2014

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. California/Arizona border reservoir LAKE HAVASU
Lake Havasu is the reservoir that resulted from the construction of the Parker Dam in the mid-1930s. The dam is on the Colorado River, and the lake is on the border between California and Arizona. The name “Havasu” comes from a Mohave word meaning “blue”.

16. Salinger’s “__ Stories” NINE
J. D. Salinger’s 1953 collection of short stories includes the works “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” and “For For Esmé—with Love and Squalor”. Dear Esmé turns up a lot in crosswords …

J. D. Salinger was a very reclusive author, most famous for his novel “Catcher in the Rye”. Salinger fought in WWII after he was drafted into the US Army. He saw action on Utah Beach on D-Day, and in the Battle of the Bulge. He also spent a lot of time interrogating prisoners due to his knowledge of French and German, and he was one of the first Americans to go into a liberated concentration camp. He later spent time in hospital suffering from what was then called combat stress reaction, as he tried to deal with what he saw in the German camps.

17. Yellow sticky, often NOTE TO SELF
The Post-it note was invented at 3M following the accidental discovery of a low-tack, reusable adhesive. The actual intent of the development program was the discovery of a super-strong adhesive.

18. With 3-Down, Wingey Wallace’s comic strip girlfriend ETTA
(3D. See 18-Across KETT)
“Etta Kett” was a comic strip that first ran in 1925. The strip ceased to be published in 1974, when creator Paul Robinson passed away. The initial intent was to offer tips to teenagers on manners and social graces, hence the name of the title character Etta Kett (sounds like “etiquette”).

19. __’acte ENTR
The term “entr’acte” comes to us from French, and is the interval between two acts (“entre” deux “actes”) of a theatrical performance. It often describes some entertainment provided during that interval.

20. Pkg. measures WTS
One might check the weight (wt.) of a package (pkg.) for shipping, say.

21. Wife of Jacob RACHEL
According to the Bible, Leah was one of the two wives of Jacob, the other being Leah’s sister Rachel. Jacob’s intention had been to marry Rachel, but the Leah and Rachel’s father “switched” his daughters and provided Leah as the veiled bride. Jacob married Rachel a week later, and lived with the two wives concurrently.

23. Ominous time IDES
There were three important days in each month of the old Roman calendar. These days originally depended on the cycles of the moon but were eventually “fixed” by law. “Kalendae” were the first days of each month, originally the days of the new moon. “Nonae” were originally the days of the half moon. And “idus” (the ides) was originally the day of the full moon, eventually fixed at the 15th day of a month. Well, actually the ides were the 15th day of March, May, July and October. For all other months, the ides fell on the 13th. Go figure …

Julius Caesar was assassinated on the 15th (the ides) of March, 44 BC. He was attacked by a group of sixty people in the Roman Senate, and was stabbed 23 times. The first to strike a blow was Servilius Casca, who attacked Caesar from behind and stabbed him in the neck.

25. Smiley creator LE CARRE
George Smiley is the protagonist in several of John Le Carré’s spy novels.

John Le Carré is the pen name of David Cornwell, an English author famous for his spy novels. Cornwell worked for British Intelligence during the fifties and sixties, even as he was writing his spy thrillers. He left MI6 soon after his most famous 1963 novel “The Spy Who Came in from the Cold”, became such a great success.

29. 57501 preceder, on envelopes PIERRE, SD
Here’s an old chestnut of a trivia question for you … what’s the only state capital in the Union in which the name of the capital and the name of its state share no common letters? You guessed it … Pierre, South Dakota …

31. __ ball MATZO
Matzo is a unleavened bread, that is very brittle. The bread is crushed, creating Matzo meal that is then formed into balls using eggs and oil as a binder. The balls are usually served in a chicken stock.

32. A little freedom? LIB
Liberty (lib.)

34. Star of the 1931 film “M” LORRE
“M” is a German movie released in 1931, a thriller written and directed by Fritz Lang. The film starred Peter Lorre in his first major role. Before playing in “M”, Lorre was known for his comic roles, but in this he played the villain, a role in which he very much became typecast in Hollywood.

37. Toon lead singer in a leopard-print leotard JOSIE
“Josie and the Pussycats” is a comic book aimed at teens, published from 1963 to 1982.

43. Japanese sandal ZORI
Zori are thonged sandals commonly worn in Japan. Our modern “flip-flops” are based on the traditional zori design, although the original sandal is a pair of symmetrical shoes.

45. Thrice, in Rx’s TER
“Ter” is the Latin word for “three”, commonly used in the medical world on prescriptions as part of the expression “ter in die”. “Ter in die” is Latin for “three times a day”, abbreviated to “TID”. “Bis in die” (BID) would be twice a day, and “quater in die” (QID) would be four times a day.

There seems to some uncertainty about the origin of the symbol “Rx” that’s used for a medical prescription. One explanation is that it comes from the astrological sign for Jupiter, a symbol put on prescriptions in days of old to invoke Jupiter’s blessing to help a patient recover.

46. Egyptian Christian COPT
The Copts make up the largest minority religious group in Egypt. Copts are Christians, with most adhered to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, and others practicing Coptic Catholicism or Coptic Protestantism. The term “Copt” ultimately derives from a Greek word for Egyptian.

57. Number that’s physically impossible to write out in standard form GOOGOLPLEX
A “googol” is 10 raised to the power of 100. The term “googol” was coined by the nine-year-old nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner. The uncle had asked the boy to come up with an interesting name for “a very large number”. Kasner then came up with the name “googleplex”, which he defined as 1 followed by as many zeros one could write before getting tired. He later refined to definition of a googolplex to be 10 to the power of a googol. And yes, the search called “Google” is a deliberate misspelling of “googol”, and Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California is called the Googleplex, a similar deliberate misspelling.

Down
2. “The company for women” company AVON
In 1886, a young man called David McConnell was selling books door-to-door. To enhance his sales numbers he was giving out free perfume to the ladies of the houses that he visited. Seeing as his perfume was more popular than his books, he founded the California Perfume Company in New York City and started manufacturing and selling across the country. The company name was changed to Avon in 1939, and the famous “Avon Calling” marketing campaign was launched in 1954.

4. Honored retiree EMERITUS
Emeritus (female form “emerita”, plural “emeriti”) is a term in the title of some retired professionals, particularly those from academia. Originally an emeritus was a veteran soldier who had served his time. The term comes from the Latin verb “emerere” meaning to complete one’s service.

7. Sleeveless garments VESTS
Here’s another word that often catches me out. What we call a “vest” in the US is a waistcoat back in Ireland. And the Irish use the word “vest” for an undershirt.

8. Summer quaffs ADES
“Quaff” is both a verb and a noun. One quaffs (takes a hearty drink) of a quaff (a hearty drink).

9. Nuevo __: Peruvian currency SOL
The Nuevo Sol has been the currency of Peru since the 1980s.

24. __ Arc, Arkansas DES
The city of Des Arc, Arkansas takes its name from the Bayou des Arc located two mile to the north. The term “arc” is French for “curve, bow”.

25. Petrol purchase LITRE
Petrol is the same thing as gasoline. “Petrol” comes via French from the Latin “petroleum”, itself derived from “petra” meaning “rock” and “oleum” meaning “oil”.

28. Winter soil phenomena ICE NEEDLES
The fascinating phenomenon known as “needle ice” can form when the temperature of the air falls below zero degrees Celsius, while the temperature of the soil is above the freezing point. Water in the soil is brought to the surface by capillary action, where it freezes. As more water comes upwards, the frozen water grows into needles.

29. Trojan War figure PARIS
In Greek legend, Paris was the son of the king of Troy. Paris eloped with Helen, Queen of Sparta, and this act 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.

31. Law recipient MOSES
Moses is an important prophet in Christianity and Islam, and the most important prophet in Judaism. It fell to Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt across the Red Sea. He was given the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, and then wandered the desert with his people for forty years. Moses then died within sight of the Promised Land.

34. Takes a bath LOSES BIG
In old gambling slang, if you lost all of your money you were “cleaned out”. This expression evolved into the phrase “to take a bath”, meaning “to lose everything”.

35. It merged with Travelers in 1998 CITICORP
When Citicorp and Travelers Group merged in 1998, so did the company logos. The “Citi” name was retained and the Travelers umbrella became a red arc over the “Citi” name.

38. Irreg. spelling VAR
Variant (var.)

40. Xylophonist’s tool MALLET
The glockenspiel and xylophone are similar instruments, the main difference being the material from which the keys are made. Xylophone keys are made from wood, and glockenspiel keys are made from metal.

41. Antecede FOREGO
“To forego” means to precede. “To forgo” means “to do without”. That said, one is a variant spelling of the other. It’s all very confusing …

43. 1983 Woody Allen title role ZELIG
“Zelig” is a 1983 film by Woody Allen. “Zelig” tells the fictitious story, in documentary style, of Leonard Zelig (played by Allen) who has the gift of being able to change his appearance in order to better fit in with the company he keeps. He becomes famous as a “human chameleon”. By using archive footage, the film includes clever “cameos” by real figures from history (like Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover and Susan Sontag).

45. TV watcher’s convenience TIVO
TiVo was introduced in 1999 and was the world’s first commercially successful DVR (Digital Video Recorder).

48. Best of the Beatles PETE
Musician Pete Best is most famous as the first drummer with the Beatles. Famously, Best was sacked from the band by manager Brian Epstein. However, Epstein took this step reluctantly, and at the request of Lennon, McCartney and Harrison. Several stories have emerged about why the decision was made, but it seems that record producers at Parlophone were insisting that a session drummer be used in the band’s first recordings, and things snowballed from there. And of course, Best was soon replaced by Ringo Starr.

49. Big natural history museum attraction T REX
The Tyrannosaurus rex (usually written T. rex) was a spectacular looking dinosaur. “Tyrannosaurus” comes from the Greek words “tyrannos” (tyrant) and “sauros” (lizard), and the “rex” is of course Latin for “king”. They were big boys, measuring 42 feet long and 13 feet tall at the hips, and weighing 7.5 tons.

52. Bride in 1969 news ONO
The artist and singer Yoko Ono was married several times, most notably to John Lennon of the Beatles. Ono’s first husband was composer Toshi Ichiyanagi, whom she married in 1956 and divorced in 1962 after being separated for several years. Later in 1962 she married an American jazz musician called Anthony Cox. Ono and Cox had to marry twice as Ono’s divorce hadn’t been properly finalized. The marriage to Cox ended in divorce in 1969, with Ono being awarded full custody of their daughter. Ono married Lennon in 1969.

53. N.Z. currency DOL
The new Zealand dollar was introduced in 1967, replacing the New Zealand pound, which in turn replaced the pound sterling in 1933. An oft-used informal name for the currency is the “kiwi”.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. California/Arizona border reservoir LAKE HAVASU
11. Has yet to settle OWES
15. “Let a new chapter begin” I’VE MOVED ON
16. Salinger’s “__ Stories” NINE
17. Yellow sticky, often NOTE TO SELF
18. With 3-Down, Wingey Wallace’s comic strip girlfriend ETTA
19. __’acte ENTR
20. Pkg. measures WTS
21. Wife of Jacob RACHEL
23. Ominous time IDES
25. Smiley creator LE CARRE
26. Treated with malice SPITED
29. 57501 preceder, on envelopes PIERRE, SD
30. Place LOCUS
31. __ ball MATZO
32. A little freedom? LIB
33. Lea grazers EWES
34. Star of the 1931 film “M” LORRE
35. Film CINE
36. Yet, poetically E’EN
37. Toon lead singer in a leopard-print leotard JOSIE
38. Outlook VISTA
39. Building and grounds PREMISES
41. Comprehend FATHOM
42. Post-reaping sights SHEAVES
43. Japanese sandal ZORI
44. Bunches OODLES
45. Thrice, in Rx’s TER
46. Egyptian Christian COPT
50. Nonexistent NULL
51. Blew up BOILED OVER
54. “Gotcha” I SEE
55. Liven up INVIGORATE
56. Experiment TEST
57. Number that’s physically impossible to write out in standard form GOOGOLPLEX

Down
1. __ drive LINE
2. “The company for women” company AVON
3. See 18-Across KETT
4. Honored retiree EMERITUS
5. Selling fast HOT
6. Swore AVOWED
7. Sleeveless garments VESTS
8. Summer quaffs ADES
9. Nuevo __: Peruvian currency SOL
10. Remove restrictions from UNFREEZE
11. Like many a garage ONE-CAR
12. Enthusiastically WITH RELISH
13. Signs, as an agreement ENTERS INTO
14. Type of headlight SEALED BEAM
22. Start to bat? ACRO-
24. __ Arc, Arkansas DES
25. Petrol purchase LITRE
26. Weighs options SLEEPS ON IT
27. Dominant team POWERHOUSE
28. Winter soil phenomena ICE NEEDLES
29. Trojan War figure PARIS
31. Law recipient MOSES
34. Takes a bath LOSES BIG
35. It merged with Travelers in 1998 CITICORP
37. Tease, in slang JIVE
38. Irreg. spelling VAR
40. Xylophonist’s tool MALLET
41. Antecede FOREGO
43. 1983 Woody Allen title role ZELIG
45. TV watcher’s convenience TIVO
47. Like zero OVAL
48. Best of the Beatles PETE
49. Big natural history museum attraction T REX
52. Bride in 1969 news ONO
53. N.Z. currency DOL

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