Day: June 10, 2014

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Corp.-partnership hybrids LLCS
A limited liability company (LLC) is a company structure that limits the liability of the owner or owners.

5. Turkish title AGA
“Aga” (also “agha”) is a title that was used by both civil and military officials in the Ottoman Empire.

12. Icy-road application SALT
Halite is the mineral form of sodium chloride, and is also known as “rock salt”. Halite is used melt ice, as salt water has a lower freezing point than pure water. Adding salt to icy sidewalks can therefore cause any ice to melt (as long as the ambient temperature isn’t too low). A mixture of halite and ice can also be used to cool things below the freezing point of water, perhaps to make ice cream.

13. Intravenous substance FLUID
Intravenous therapy can be used to replace lost fluids.

22. “Do unto __ …” OTHERS
The Golden Rule is also known as the ethic of reciprocity, and is a basis for the concept of human rights. A version of the rule used in the Christian tradition is attributed to Jesus: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”.

23. Hoodwink companies? CONFIRMS (or “con firms”)
A business is sometimes called a “firm”. “Firm” comes into English from Latin via the Italian “firma” meaning signature. The concept is that business transactions are confirmed, made firm, by applying a signature.

32. Papal crown TIARA
“Triregnum” is the Latin name for the papal tiara that has been worn by Roman Catholic popes since the 8th century. The crown has three tiers, so it is also known as the triple tiara. “Triregnum” is Latin for “three crowns”.

35. Bank teller’s call NEXT
“To tell” can mean “to count”, as in “telling one’s blessings” and “there are 16, all told”. This usage of the word “tell” gives us the term “bank teller”.

39. Pail-of-water fetcher of rhyme JILL
The “Jack and Jill” nursery rhyme dates back at least to the 1700s:

Jack and Jill went up the hill
To fetch a pail of water.
Jack fell down and broke his crown,
And Jill came tumbling after.

42. Japanese cartoon art ANIME
Anime is cartoon animation in the style of Japanese Manga comic books.

The Japanese word “manga” means “whimsical pictures” and is an apt term to describe the Japanese style of comic book. Manga publications are more diverse than American comic books and have a larger audience. Manga cover many subjects including romance, sports, business, horror, and mystery.

43. Kenny G’s horn SAX
Saxophonist Kenny G’s full name is Kenneth Bruce Gorelick. Kenny’s “G” might also stand for “golfer”, as in 2006 he was ranked by “Golf Digest” magazine as the number one golfer working in the field of music.

46. Como or Crosby, notably CROONER
Perry Como is still my mother’s favorite singer. Como was born about 20 miles from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Famously, his first career was barbering. He learned the trade from a local hairdresser and soon had his own shop in a Greek coffee house, at the age of 14!

The singer Bing Crosby was a great lover of the game of golf. Crosby had just finished up 18 holes on a course in Spain in 1977 when he suffered a massive heart attack on the final green. Crosby’s last words were “That was a great game of golf, fellas.”

51. Prom attendee SENIOR
A prom is a formal dance held upon graduation from high school (we call them “formals” over in Ireland). The term “prom” is short for “promenade”, the name given to a type of dance or ball.

57. Pull a fast one on proctors? CONTESTERS (or “con testers”)
A “proctor” is a supervisor, especially of an examination in a school, or perhaps of a dormitory. The word “proctor” originated in the late 1500s, a contraction of the word “procurator”, the name given to an official agent of a church.

63. Away from the wind ALEE
“Alee” is the direction away from the wind. If a sailor points into the wind, he or she is pointing “aweather”.

Down
1. Pelican State sch. LSU
LSU’s full name is Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College.

The official nickname of Louisiana is the Pelican State, but it is also known as the Bayou State, the Child of Mississippi, the Creole State, the Sportsman’s Paradise and the Sugar State.

2. Cowboy using a rope LASSOER
Our English word “lasso” comes from the Spanish “lazo”, and ultimately from the Latin “laqueum” meaning “noose, snare”.

5. Org. with Titans and Chiefs AFC
The Tennessee Titans are a football team based in Nashville. The team relocated to Nashville from Houston in 1997, and was called the Tennessee Oilers for two seasons, before adopting the “Titans” moniker.

The Kansas City Chiefs professional football team started out as the Dallas Texans, in 1960.

7. Em and Bee AUNTS
In “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, Dorothy lives with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry.

Aunt Bee was a character in “The Andy Griffith Show”. The character’s full name was Beatrice Taylor but everyone in Mayberry called her “Aunt Bee”. In the storyline she was the aunt of the protagonist, Sheriff Andy Taylor, and great-aunt to Andy’s son Opie. Aunt Bee was played by actress Frances Bavier.

9. Cut with a pink slip AXE
The term “pink slip” can be used as a verb meaning “to terminate an employee”. No one really seems to know for sure where the term originated, but there are lots of stories.

15. California’s San __ Padres DIEGO
The San Diego Padres were founded in 1969. The Padres took their name from a Minor League team that had been in the the city since 1936. The name is Spanish for “fathers” and is a reference to the Franciscan Friars from Spain who founded San Diego in 1769.

21. “Me, too” DITTO
“Ditto” was originally used in Italian (from Tuscan dialect) to avoid repetition of the names of months in a series of dates. So “ditto” is yet another wonderful import from that lovely land …

23. Ill. summer hrs. CDT
Illinois (Ill.) is on Central Daylight Savings Time (CDT) during the summer.

26. Before, to Byron ERE
George Gordon Byron, known simply as “Lord Byron”, was an English poet active in the early 1800s. Byron was equally as famous for his poetry as he was for the wild excesses in his personal life. Byron lived much of that life outside of England, and fought for revolutionaries in both Italy and Greece. He died from a fever contracted while fighting for the Greeks against the Ottomans.

30. Big name in spydom 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 in 1917 at the height of WWI.

33. Partly open AJAR
Our word “ajar” is thought to come from Scottish dialect, in which “a char” means “slightly open”.

36. Religious place of seclusion CLOISTER
Cloisters are usually such beautifully peaceful areas. They are found as part of religious buildings in particular. Cloisters are rectangular open spaces surrounded by covered walkways that are attached to other structures.

38. Rates on Monopoly deeds RENTS
The commercial game of Monopoly is supposedly a remake of “The Landlord’s Game” created in 1903 by a Quaker woman called Lizzie Phillips. Phillips used her game as a tool to explain the single tax theory of American economist Henry George. The Landlord’s Game was first produced commercially in 1924. The incredibly successful derivative game called Monopoly was introduced in 1933 by Charles Darrow, who became a very rich man when Parker Brothers bought the rights to the game just two years later in 1935.

39. Store founder Penney and golfer Snead JCS
JC Penney’s department stores started out as the Golden Rule Store, founded by James Cash Penney and two partners in 1902 in Kemmerer, Wyoming. That first store is still operating today in Kemmerer. Sam Walton used to work for Penney’s in Des Moines, Iowa, before moving on to found the Walmart empire.

JC. Snead is a professional golfer, and the nephew of the great Sam Snead.

41. Actor Chaney LON
Lon Chaney, Sr. played a lot of crazed-looking characters in the days of silent movies. He did much of his own make-up work, developing the grotesque appearances that became his trademark, and earning himself the nickname “the man of a thousand faces”. Most famous were his portrayals of the title characters in the films “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923) and “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925).

43. Lizardlike SAURIAN
Something described as “saurian” is lizard-like. “Sauros” is the Greek word for “lizard”.

45. Ballot box fillers? XES
Today a “ballot” is a piece of paper used to cast a vote. Back in the 1500s, a “ballot” was a small “ball” used in the process of voting.

48. Unevenly notched, as leaves EROSE
An edge that is “erose” is irregularly notched or indented.

52. 1980s-’90s Olds CIERA
Oldsmobile made the Cutlass Ciera from 1982 to 1996. The Ciera was the brand name’s most successful model.

53. When right turns may be allowed ON RED
If you’re sitting behind a car that doesn’t make a right on red, it may just be a rental car driven by someone from Europe. Speaking as someone who learned to drive over there, I must admit I held up a few people at red lights when I first visited this country. That’s because in Europe we aren’t allowed to make any move past a red light, unless there is an accompanying green arrow. So, if you’re driving over there, take care …

55. Educ. fundraiser PTA
Parent-Teacher Association (PTA)

57. Ohio NBAer CAV
The Cleveland Cavaliers are the professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. The Cavs joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1970.

58. Cheer for a matador OLE
“Matador” is a Spanish word used in English for a bullfighter, although the term isn’t used in the same way in Spanish. The equivalent in Spanish is “torero”. “Matador” translates aptly enough as “killer”.

59. Born, in wedding announcements NEE
“Née” is the French word for “born” when referring to a female. The male equivalent is “né”.

60. ’60s activist gp. SDS
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) was an activist group in the sixties. The SDS organized the largest student strike in the history of the United States on 26 April 1968, with about a million students staying away from class that day. The “Students for a Democratic Society” name was revived in 2006 with the foundation of a new US-based student organization with left wing beliefs. Today’s SDS was founded by a pair of high school students from Greenwich Village, New York.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Corp.-partnership hybrids LLCS
5. Turkish title AGA
8. Prepare for a trip PACK
12. Icy-road application SALT
13. Intravenous substance FLUID
16. Final or midterm EXAM
17. Reader of product instructions USER
18. Fool check writers? CONSIGNERS (or “con signers”)
20. Verbalized SAID
22. “Do unto __ …” OTHERS
23. Hoodwink companies? CONFIRMS (or “con firms”)
25. High spirits GAIETY
29. Take out, as text DELETE
30. Award recipient HONOREE
31. “Give it a shot” TRY
32. Papal crown TIARA
35. Bank teller’s call NEXT
36. Swindle court appointees? CONJURORS (or “con jurors”)
39. Pail-of-water fetcher of rhyme JILL
42. Japanese cartoon art ANIME
43. Kenny G’s horn SAX
46. Como or Crosby, notably CROONER
49. Infuriate ENRAGE
51. Prom attendee SENIOR
52. Mislead groups of vacationers? CONTOURS (or “con tours”)
54. Visit briefly STOP IN
56. Certain SURE
57. Pull a fast one on proctors? CONTESTERS (or “con testers”)
61. Evens up TIES
63. Away from the wind ALEE
64. Dog-__: folded at the corner EARED
65. Grabs a bite EATS
66. Change direction VEER
67. Classified messages ADS
68. Word before fall or ball SNOW-

Down
1. Pelican State sch. LSU
2. Cowboy using a rope LASSOER
3. In a tidy way CLEANLY
4. Bitter discord STRIFE
5. Org. with Titans and Chiefs AFC
6. Doom partner GLOOM
7. Em and Bee AUNTS
8. Income sources for retirees PENSIONS
9. Cut with a pink slip AXE
10. 52-Down, for one CAR
11. Metric measures: Abbr. KMS
14. “Kinda” suffix -ISH
15. California’s San __ Padres DIEGO
19. Nana GRAN
21. “Me, too” DITTO
23. Ill. summer hrs. CDT
24. Jockey’s strap REIN
26. Before, to Byron ERE
27. Nickname on the range TEX
28. Nevertheless YET
30. Big name in spydom HARI
33. Partly open AJAR
34. Hosiery mishap RUN
36. Religious place of seclusion CLOISTER
37. Black cat crossing one’s path, to some OMEN
38. Rates on Monopoly deeds RENTS
39. Store founder Penney and golfer Snead JCS
40. Wrath IRE
41. Actor Chaney LON
43. Lizardlike SAURIAN
44. Go along with AGREE TO
45. Ballot box fillers? XES
47. Quick message NOTE
48. Unevenly notched, as leaves EROSE
50. Paths to take ROUTES
52. 1980s-’90s Olds CIERA
53. When right turns may be allowed ON RED
55. Educ. fundraiser PTA
57. Ohio NBAer CAV
58. Cheer for a matador OLE
59. Born, in wedding announcements NEE
60. ’60s activist gp. SDS
62. U-turn from NNE SSW

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