Day: June 13, 2014

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Album with the hit “Mamma Mia” ABBA
The hit musical “Mamma Mia!” was written to showcase the songs of ABBA. I’m a big fan of ABBA’s music, so I’ve seen this show a couple of times and just love it. “Mamma Mia!” is such a big hit on the stage that on any given day there are at least seven performances going on somewhere in the world. There is a really interesting film version of the show that was released in 2008. I think the female lead Meryl Streep is wonderful in the movie, but the male leads … not so much! By the way, one can tell the difference between “Mamma Mia” the ABBA song and “Mamma Mia!” the musical, by noting the difference in the punctuation in the titles.

15. Sashimi fish OPAH
Opah is the more correct name for the fish also known as the sunfish, moonfish or Jerusalem haddock. I’ve seen one in the Monterrey Aquarium. It is huge …

16. Shinto temple gateway TORII
A torii is a very traditional Japanese gate, often seen at the entrance to a Shinto shrine.

It is perhaps best not to describe Shinto as a religion, but more as a “spirituality of the Japanese people”, a spirituality that encompasses folklore, history and mythology. Having said that, “Shinto” translates literally as “Way of the Gods”. Most people in Japan who are described as practicing Shinto, also practice Buddhism.

18. Roadside sign for sticklers? PEDANT XING (from “PED XING”)
A pedant, someone who is pedantic, is a person “who trumpets minor points of learning”, a person who tends to nit-pick. “Pedant” comes via Middle French from the Italian word “pedante” meaning “teacher”.

23. Bar staple GIN
The spirit known as gin gets its unique flavor mainly from juniper berries. The name “gin” comes into English from the translation of “juniper” from either French (genièvre), Dutch (jenever) or Italian (ginepro).

25. Priest in 1 Samuel ELI
In the Bible, Eli is a High Priest of Shiloh, and the teacher of Samuel. As such, his story is told in the Book of Samuel.

29. Homer’s father, on “The Simpsons” ABE
In the animated TV show called “The Simpsons”, Grampa Abe Simpson is voiced by Dan Castellaneta, the same actor who provides the voice for Homer.

30. Lower-class bovine? COW PEASANT (from “cowpeas”)
Most of the world’s cowpeas are grown and consumed in Africa, with over 70% of the world’s production coming from Nigeria and Niger.

33. Blue stuff SMUT
“Smut” means “dirt, smudge” and more recently “pornographic material”. The term comes from the Yiddish “schmutz”, which is a slang word used in English for dirt, as in “dirt on one’s face”.

34. Church cheers HOSANNAS
“Hosanna” is derived from Hebrew, probably from the term “hoshi’ah-nna” meaning “save, we pray”.

35. “Respect” songwriter Redding OTIS
Otis Redding is often referred to as the “King of Soul”, and what a voice he had. Like so many of the greats in the world of popular music it seems, Redding was killed in a plane crash, in 1967 when he was just 26 years old. Just three days earlier he had recorded what was to be his biggest hit, “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay”.

“Respect” is a song by Otis Redding, and one that he recorded himself in 1965. It became a hit when Aretha Franklin made her famous cover version in 1967. Having said that, the Redding and Franklin versions do have different storylines and musical “feels”.

36. “Tarzan” character at an Imax? GIANT JANE (from “GI Jane”)
Jane Porter is the love interest in the “Tarzan” series of novels penned by Edgar Rice Burroughs. Famously, Jane was played by Maureen O’Sullivan on the big screen, opposite Johnny Weissmuller as Tarzan. However, in the movies Jane’s family name was changed from Porter to Parker. Also, Porter is an American in the books, and Parker is an Englishwoman in the films.

G.I. Joe was the original “action figure”, the first toy to carry that description. G.I. Joe first hit the shelves in 1964. There have been a few movies based on the G.I. Joe figure, but, more famous than all of them I would say is the 1997 movie “G.I. Jane” starring Demi Moore in the title role. I think this movie had some potential, to be honest, but it really did not deliver in the end.

The IMAX Corporation, which is behind the IMAX film format, is a Canadian company. The impetus for developing the system came after Expo ’67 in Montreal. Back then large format screenings were accomplished using multiple projectors with multiple screens, with images basically stitched together. The team behind the IMAX technology set out to simplify things, and developed a single-camera, single-projector system.

39. Jazzy style SCAT
Scat singing is a vocal improvisation found in the world of jazz. There aren’t any words as such in scat singing, just random nonsense syllables made up on the spot.

41. “The Return of the Native” heroine __ Vye EUSTACIA
“The Return of the Native” is a novel by English author Thomas Hardy. The storyline deals with illicit sexual relations and created quite a stir when it was published in Victorian England.

46. Coat waterproofing application? FUR SEALANT (from “fur seal”)
Fur seals are actually closer related to sea lions than true seals. Fur seals have dense underfur, which was unfortunate for them as it made them prey of commercial sealers who clubbed them to death to support the fur trade.

48. Macklemore’s genre RAP
Macklemore is the stage name of rap artist Ben Haggerty from Seattle, Washington.

49. Bernina Range peak ALP
The Bernina Range of mountains in the Alps is located in eastern Switzerland and northern Italy.

50. Bojangles’ art TAP
Bill Robinson was a tap dancer and actor who often went by the nickname “Bojangles”. It was Bojangles who often danced with child star Shirley Temple in a whole series of films from the 1930s. He also starred in 1943’s “Stormy Weather”, a movie that was loosely based on Robinson’s own life.

51. Jeanne d’Arc, e.g.: Abbr. STE
Joan of Arc (also Jeanne d’Arc, her birth name) led the French Army successfully into battle a number of times during the Hundred Years War with England. When she was eventually captured, Joan was tried in Rouen, the seat of the occupying English government in France at that time. There she was burned at the stake having been found guilty of heresy. Joan of Arc was canonized some 600 years later, in 1920, and is now one of the patron saints of France.

52. Blotter letters AKA
Also known as (aka)

A police blotter is, or used to be, a daily record of arrests made.

61. Mata __ 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.

63. Lollapaloozas LULUS
We call a remarkable thing or a person a “lulu”. The term is used in honor of Lulu Hurst, the Georgia Wonder, who was a stage magician active in the 1880s.

A lollapalooza is something outstanding, one of a kind.

64. Present day, for short XMAS
The abbreviation “Xmas” that is used for “Christmas” comes from the Greek letter chi (X), which is the first letter of the Greek word for “Christ” (Χριστός).

65. Land west of Nod, in Genesis EDEN
According to the Book of Genesis in the Bible, after Cain murdered his younger brother Abel he fled to the Land of Nod, located “east of Eden”, which is the source for the title of John Steinbeck’s celebrated novel “East of Eden”.

67. Vacation sub TEMP
A substitute (sub) while one is on vacation is a temporary (temp) employee.

Down
2. Cause of worry BUGABOO
“Bugaboo” is another term for a bogeyman, an imaginary and scary creature used to frighten children.

4. On the quieter side ALEE
“Alee” is the direction away from the wind. If a sailor points into the wind, he or she is pointing “aweather”.

5. Fashion plate FOP
A “fashion plate” is a fashionable person, someone who dresses in the latest fashions. The term originally applied to illustrations (plates) that were used to disseminate fashionable styles in the 1800s and early 1900s.

7. Opening word? DADA
The first word out of a baby’s mouth might be “Dada”.

8. Rose of __ SHARON
Rose of Sharon is a name given to several species of flowering plants.

9. Rose oil ATTAR
Attar is a fragrant essential oil obtained from flowers, and the term may particularly refer to attar of roses.

10. __ screen: medical test TOX
A “tox screen” or “toxicology test” might be used to check for common drugs or toxins if a patient presents with life-threatening symptoms or bizarre behavior. One such screen is called “triage 8”, which can detect within 15 minutes the presence of amphetamines, benzodiazepines, cocaine,methadone, opiates, cannabis, barbiturates and tricyclic antidepressants.

11. Art requiring a folder ORIGAMI
Origami is the traditional Japanese art form of paper folding. The word “origami” is derived from “ori“ (folding) and “kami” (paper).

13. Ring seal SIGNET
A signet is a seal, in particular one used by an official to mark a document. A signet can be incorporated into a “signet ring”.

19. Unlike Oscar Madison NEAT
“The Odd Couple” is a play by the wonderfully talented Neil Simon first performed on Broadway, in 1965. This great play was adapted for the big screen in 1968, famously starring Jack Lemmon (as Felix Unger, the neat-freak) and Walter Matthau (as Oscar Madison, the slob). The success of the play and the film gave rise to an excellent television sitcom that ran from 1970-1975, starring Tony Randall and Jack Klugman. In 1985, Neil Simon even went so far as to adapt the play for an all-female cast, renaming it “The Female Odd Couple”. I’d like to see that one …

24. Weimar word of woe ACH!
The German exclamation “ach!” is usually translated into English as “oh!”

Weimar is city in Germany, perhaps best known as the location of the signing of the country’s first democratic constitution resulting in the creation of the Weimar Republic.

At the end of WWI, the imperial government of Germany was overthrown in the German Revolution of November 1918. Just under a year later, a new constitution was adopted by a national assembly in the city of Weimar. The resulting Weimar Republic lasted until German democracy collapsed in the early 1930s and the Nazi Party came to power.

26. Turner on a screen LANA
Lana Turner started work as a Hollywood actress at a very young age, signing up with MGM at only sixteen. Early in her career she earned the nickname “The Sweater Girl” after wearing a pretty tight sweater in the film “They Won’t Forget”, which was her film debut. She married eight times, to seven different husbands, the first of which was bandleader Artie Shaw. Shaw and Turner eloped and married on their very first date, when the young actress was just nineteen years old. After divorcing Shaw she married restaurateur Joseph Crane, but had the marriage annulled when she found out that Crane was still married to his first wife. The two had a daughter together, and so remarried when Crane’s divorce was finalized. Cheryl Crane was the daughter from the marriage to Joseph and she lived with Turner after her parents split up. When Cheryl was 14-years-old, her mother was romantically involved with a shady character named Johnny Stompanato. One evening Cheryl found her mother engaged in a violent argument with Stompanato, and Cheryl became so scared that she pulled out a gun and killed him in what was deemed to be justifiable homicide. Turner’s last marriage was to a nightclub hypnotist, Ronald Pellar, and that union lasted just six months as Pellar disappeared one day with a lot of Turner’s money and jewelry. Years later Turner said, “My goal was to have one husband and seven children, but it turned out to be the other way around.”

27. “Winning … __ all-the-time thing”: Lombardi IS AN
According to football player and coach Vince Lombardi:
Winning is not a sometime thing, it is an all the time thing. You don’t do things right once in a while…you do them right all the time.

31. Missionary’s concern PAGAN
A pagan is someone who holds religious beliefs that are different from the main religions of the world. In classical Latin “paganus” was a villager, a rustic.

38. Like Phileas Fogg during much of his journey ASEA
“Around the World in 80 Days” is just a wonderful adventure story, written by French author Jules Verne and first published in 1873. There have been some great screen adaptations of the story, including the 1956 movie starring David Niven as Phileas Fogg. In almost all adaptations, a balloon is used for part of the journey, perhaps the most memorable means of transportation on Fogg’s trip around the world. However, if you read the book, Fogg never used a balloon at all.

42. Dishwasher brand CASCADE
Cascade is a brand of dishwasher detergent that is owned by Procter & Gamble.

49. Captain’s order AVAST!
“Avast” is a nautical term used to tell someone to stop or desist from what they are doing. The word comes from the Dutch “hou vast” meaning “hold fast”.

56. Classic 1954 horror film whose title creatures have invaded this puzzle THEM!
“Them!” is a 1954 horror sci-fi film about gigantic ants in the New Mexico desert. It was the first of the “big bug” genre of movies of the fifties, and one of the first movies to feature monsters that were born out of nuclear irradiation. Included in the cast of “Them!” were James Arness (Marshal Matt Dillon in “Gunsmoke”), Fess Parker (TV’s “Daniel Boone”) and even Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock from “Star Trek”) in a small uncredited role.

58. Many a bon mot PUN
“Bon mot” translates from French as “good word”. We use “bon mot” (and sometimes just “mot”) to mean a quip, a witticism.

59. ’60s arena NAM
Vietnam (“Nam”)

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Album with the hit “Mamma Mia” ABBA
5. They won’t last FADS
9. Little bits ATOMS
14. Combat with seconds DUEL
15. Sashimi fish OPAH
16. Shinto temple gateway TORII
17. Look like a wolf OGLE
18. Roadside sign for sticklers? PEDANT XING (from “PED XING”)
20. Bar round ALES
22. One may be restricted AREA
23. Bar staple GIN
24. Blood-typing letters ABO
25. Priest in 1 Samuel ELI
28. Yacht club hanging OAR
29. Homer’s father, on “The Simpsons” ABE
30. Lower-class bovine? COW PEASANT (from “cowpeas”)
33. Blue stuff SMUT
34. Church cheers HOSANNAS
35. “Respect” songwriter Redding OTIS
36. “Tarzan” character at an Imax? GIANT JANE (from “GI Jane”)
39. Jazzy style SCAT
41. “The Return of the Native” heroine __ Vye EUSTACIA
45. Comparative word THAN
46. Coat waterproofing application? FUR SEALANT (from “fur seal”)
48. Macklemore’s genre RAP
49. Bernina Range peak ALP
50. Bojangles’ art TAP
51. Jeanne d’Arc, e.g.: Abbr. STE
52. Blotter letters AKA
53. Boxy transports VANS
55. Fix permanently ETCH
57. Spiders’ talent show? WEB PAGEANT (from “web page”)
61. Mata __ HARI
63. Lollapaloozas LULUS
64. Present day, for short XMAS
65. Land west of Nod, in Genesis EDEN
66. Tuckered out SPENT
67. Vacation sub TEMP
68. Like a doormat MEEK

Down
1. Fuss ADO
2. Cause of worry BUGABOO
3. Air delivery method? BELLOWS
4. On the quieter side ALEE
5. Fashion plate FOP
6. Mimic APE
7. Opening word? DADA
8. Rose of __ SHARON
9. Rose oil ATTAR
10. __ screen: medical test TOX
11. Art requiring a folder ORIGAMI
12. Airport transport MINIBUS
13. Ring seal SIGNET
19. Unlike Oscar Madison NEAT
21. “Already caught that film!” SEEN IT!
24. Weimar word of woe ACH!
26. Turner on a screen LANA
27. “Winning … __ all-the-time thing”: Lombardi IS AN
31. Missionary’s concern PAGAN
32. Starlike flower ASTER
33. Bargain STEAL
35. Recorded, in a way ON TAPE
37. A moment ago JUST
38. Like Phileas Fogg during much of his journey ASEA
39. Overhaul SHAKE UP
40. Fit CAPABLE
42. Dishwasher brand CASCADE
43. Trisected IN THREE
44. Bolted ATE
45. Fishes, in a way TRAWLS
46. A ref may throw one FLAG
47. “Right after this show …” UP NEXT …
49. Captain’s order AVAST!
54. “__ here” SAME
56. Classic 1954 horror film whose title creatures have invaded this puzzle THEM!
58. Many a bon mot PUN
59. ’60s arena NAM
60. 1/48 cup: Abbr. TSP
62. Cartridge contents INK

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