Day: December 24, 2014

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
7. PC speed unit MSEC
A millisecond is one thousandth of a second, and is often abbreviated to “msec”. However, the more correct abbreviation for millisecond is “ms”.

11. D.C. United’s __ Stadium RFK
Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium was opened in 1961 as the District of Columbia Stadium, and is actually owned by the District of Columbia. The stadium was renamed in 1969, a few months after Robert Kennedy was assassinated. Kennedy had been instrumental the racial integration of the Washington Redskins who played in the stadium for 36 seasons. As Attorney General, Kennedy threatened to oust the Redskins from the federally-owned stadium unless the team agreed to sign African American players.

D.C. United is a professional soccer team based in the nation’s capital. The team competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) and plays home games at the Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium.

14. Marvel Entertainment parent company DISNEY
Marvel Entertainment is known for publishing Marvel Comics and for the superhero films produced by Marvel Studios. Marvel has been owned by Disney since 2009.

15. Cinders of old comics ELLA
“Ella Cinders” was a comic strip that ran from 1925 until 1961. The strip’s storyline was based on the Cinderella fairy tale, as one might imagine. There is also a 1926 movie called “Ella Cinders” that is based on the strip.

18. “Double, double, __ and trouble”: “Macbeth” TOIL
As the three witches in Shakespeare’s “Macbeth” are boiling up their evil brew, they call out all the exotic ingredients. Stirring away they also repeat several times the famous lines:

Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn, and cauldron bubble.

19. DCIV ÷ IV CLI
In Roman numerals, 604 (DCIV) divided by 4 (IV) is 151 (CLI).

22. Individual : SSN :: corp. : __ EIN
An Employer Identification Number (EIN) is the corporate equivalent of an individual’s Social Security Number (SSN).

23. Hospital fluids SERA
Blood serum is the clear, yellowish part of blood i.e. that part which is neither a blood cell or a clotting factor. Included in blood serum are antibodies, the proteins that are central to our immune system. Blood serum from animals that have immunity to some disease can be transferred to another individual, hence providing that second individual with some level of immunity. Blood serum used to pass on immunity can be called “antiserum”.

29. Capital on the Dnieper River KIEV
Kiev is the capital of Ukraine and a beautiful city, from what I’ve heard from friends who have visited …

The Dnieper River rises in Russia, and travels through Belarus and Ukraine to empty into the Black Sea.

33. Prosecutors, at times ARRAIGNERS
In the law, to arraign someone is to call a person before a court to answer charges that have been brought.

38. Nod from the maestro CUE
“Maestro” is often used to address a musical conductor. “Maestro” (plural “maestri”) is the Italian word for “master, teacher”. The plural in English is usually “maestros”.

39. Short or gross measure TON
The long ton is the name given to the “ton” in the imperial system, to distinguish it from the short ton used in the United States. A long ton is equal to 2,240 pounds, and a short ton is equal to 2,000 pound. Dear, dear me … let’s all just go metric!

44. “The Thin Man” pooch ASTA
Asta is the wonderful little dog in the superb “The Thin Man” series of films starring William Powell and Myrna Loy (as Nick and Nora Charles). In the original story by Dashiell Hammett, Asta was a female Schnauzer, but on screen Asta was played by a wire-haired fox terrier called “Skippy”. Skippy was also the dog in “Bringing up Baby” with Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn, the one who kept stealing the dinosaur bone. Skippy retired in 1939, so Asta was played by other dogs in the remainder of “The Thin Man” films.

45. Dot on un mapa ISLA
In Spanish, an island (isla) is a dot on a map (un mapa).

46. Capital of Senegal DAKAR
The Republic of Senegal is a country on the far western coast of Africa. For many years Senegal was a French colony, gaining independence in 1960. The capital of Senegal is Dakar, a city located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula that juts out into the Atlantic Ocean.

50. Bon __: Comet rival AMI
Bon Ami cleanser was introduced just a few years after Bon Ami soap went to market in 1886. The cleanser was marketed by emphasising its “non-scratch” properties. The label showed a chick coming out of an egg, the idea being that a newly hatched chick hasn’t yet scratched the ground looking for worms and insects.

The Comet brand of household cleanser produced a famous series of ads in the sixties through the eighties that featured a character known as “Josephine the Plumber”. Played by actress Jane Withers, she was noted for uttering the line “Nothing can hold a can to Comet!”

54. Clever remark MOT
“Bon mot” translates from French as “good word”. We use “bon mot” (and sometimes just “mot”) to mean a quip, a witticism.

55. Classic 6-Down suggested by this puzzle’s circles SILENT NIGHT
The beautiful Christmas Carol “Silent Night” was first performed in Austria in 1818, with words by a priest, Father Joseph Mohr, and melody by an Austrian headmaster, Franz Xaver Gruber. The carol was of course in German and called “Stille Nacht”. The English translation that we use today was provided to us by an American bishop, John Freeman Young from Florida, in 1859.

62. A, in Oaxaca UNA
Oaxaca is a state in the southern part of Mexico on the Pacific coast. The state takes the name of Oaxaca, its largest city.

63. Gremlins and Matadors AMCS
The Gremlin is a subcompact car that was made by AMC in the 1970s. The Gremlin was positioned to compete with the Chevy Vega and Ford Pinto from the US, and with imports like the VW Beetle and Toyota Corona. On the list of ex-Gremlin drivers are Presidents Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush.

The AMC Matador was a car produced from 1971 to 1978. The mid-size automobile came to be popular with police departments. The Los Angeles Police Department was the largest user of Matador patrol cars.

64. Lustrous fabric SATEEN
Sateen is a cotton fabric, with a weave that is “four over, one under” meaning that most of the threads come to the surface giving it a softer feel.

66. “… be good for goodness’ __!” SAKE
“… be good for goodness’ __!” is a lyric from the song “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town”.

The Christmas song “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” was introduced to us in November of 1934 on Eddie Cantor’s radio show. The song was written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie. It has become a Christmas standard, and there is even an hour-long TV special that was adapted from the song in 1970. Fred Astaire is the narrator in the special and tells the story of Santa Claus.

Down
1. Like many Keats poems ODIC
The poet John Keats is famous for writing a whole series of beautiful odes. The most renowned are the so-called “1819 Odes”, a collection from the year 1819 that includes famous poems such as “Ode on a Grecian Urn”, “Ode to a Nightingale” and “Ode to Psyche”.

2. Bogotá boys NINOS
Bogotá is the capital city of Colombia. Noted for having many libraries and universities, Bogotá is sometimes called “The Athens of South America”.

6. “Ave Maria,” e.g. HYMN
“Ave Maria” (“Hail Mary” in English) is the prayer at the core of the Roman Catholic Rosary, which itself is a set of prayers asking for the assistance of the Virgin Mary. Much of the text of the “Hail Mary” comes from the Gospel of Luke. The words in Latin are:

AVE MARIA, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc, et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen.

The prayer has been adapted as a hymn. The two most famous musical versions of “Ave Maria” are by Charles Gounod (based on a piece by Bach) and by Franz Schubert.

8. A deadly sin SLOTH
“Sloth”, meaning “indolence, sluggishness”, comes from the Middle English word “slowe”, the same root for our contemporary word “slow”. The animal, the sloth, is named for its slow-moving behavior.

The cardinal sins of Christian ethics are also known as the seven deadly sins. The seven deadly sins are:

– wrath
– greed
– sloth
– pride
– lust
– envy
– gluttony

9. Oscar-winning director Kazan ELIA
Elia Kazan won Oscars for best director in 1948 for “Gentleman’s Agreement” and in 1955 for “On The Waterfront”. In 1999 Kazan was given an Academy Lifetime Achievement Award. He also directed “East of Eden”, which introduced James Dean to movie audiences, and “Splendor in the Grass” that included Warren Beatty in his debut role.

11. Stereo components RECEIVERS
If you have home entertainment system with a receiver, then it is kind of acting like the “nerve center” of the set up. The receiver is primarily for gathering sound inputs from all of your sound-producing devices (CD player, DVD player, VHS player, phonograph etc.) and then processing and sending that sound signal to your collection of speakers.

12. “__ Navidad”: Feliciano song FELIZ
Jose Feliciano is the celebrated Puerto Rican singer, perhaps most famous for his rendition of “Feliz Navidad” heard every Christmas season. Feliciano has been blind from birth, suffering from congenital glaucoma.

13. Kevin of “Dave” KLINE
The actor Kevin Kline stars in many of my favorite films, like “French Kiss” (in which he had a very impressive French accent) and “A Fish Called Wanda.” Kline also appeared in the romantic comedy “In & Out”, another favorite. “In & Out” is perhaps best remembered for it’s dramatic “interaction” between Kevin Kline and Tom Selleck … if you haven’t seen it yet, I won’t spoil it for you by saying any more!

“Dave” is a fun 1993 comedy film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver. Kline plays the title character, someone who has a side job impersonating the sitting US president. Dave ends up impersonating the president in the White Office, and hilarity ensues.

28. Post-workout destination SAUNA
As my Finnish-American wife will tell you, “sauna” is a Finnish word, and is correctly pronounced “sow-nah” (with “sow” as in the female pig).

29. Mall stand KIOSK
Our word “kiosk” came to us via French and Turkish from the Persian “kushk” meaning “palace, portico”.

Surprisingly, our word “mall”, meaning “shady walk” or “enclosed shopping space”, comes from the Italian for “mallet”. All of our shopping-style malls are named for “The Mall” in St. James’s Park in London. This tree-lined promenade was so called as it used to a famous spot to play the croquet-like game called “pall-mall”. The game derived its name from the Italian for ball (palla) and mallet “maglio”. The London thoroughfare called the Mall still exists, at one end of which is Buckingham Palace. Indeed, parallel to the Mall is a street called Pall Mall.

30. Wall St. hedger ARB
“Arb” is short for an arbitrageur, one who profits from the purchase of securities in one market and the subsequent sale in another, hence taking advantage of price discrepancies across markets.

31. Cote cry BAA!
The Old English word “cote” was used for a small house. Our modern word “cottage” comes from “cote”. We now use “cote” to mean a small shelter on a farm for sheep or birds.

34. Transport in an Ellington classic A TRAIN
The A Train in the New York City Subway system runs from 207th Street, through Manhattan and over to Far Rockaway in Queens. The service lends its name to a jazz standard “Take the ‘A’ Train”, the signature tune of Duke Ellington and a song much sung by Ella Fitzgerald. One version of the lyric is:

You must take the A Train
To go to Sugar Hill way up in Harlem
If you miss the A Train
You’ll find you’ve missed the quickest way to Harlem
Hurry, get on, now, it’s coming
Listen to those rails a-thrumming (All Aboard!)
Get on the A Train
Soon you will be on Sugar Hill in Harlem.

38. Instruments that sound similar to glockenspiels CELESTAS
A celesta (also “celeste”) is a keyboard instrument in which the keys operate hammers that strike a set of metal plates. The resulting sound is similar to that from a glockenspiel, although it is much softer in tone as the celesta’s plates are suspended over wooden resonators. I’d say that the most famous musical work featuring a celesta is Tchaikovsky’s “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” from his ballet “The Nutcracker”.

42. The Tigers of the Ohio Valley Conf. TSU
The Tigers and Lady Tigers are the athletic teams of Tennessee State University (TSU) in Nashville.

43. Attorney general under Ronald Reagan ED MEESE
Ed Meese was born in Oakland, California just down the road here and spent 24 years in the office of the Treasurer of Alameda County, the county in which I live. After military service, Meese earned himself a law degree at UC Berkeley. Later, as Chief of Staff for President Reagan, he was instrumental in a famous decision to crack down on student protesters at Berkeley which resulted in one protester dying and a two-week occupation of the city by the California National Guard.

50. Smart guy? ALECK
Apparently the original “smart Alec” (sometimes “Aleck”) was Alec Hoag, a pimp, thief and confidence trickster who plied his trade in New York City in the 1840s.

52. Fits of fever AGUES
An ague is a fever, one usually associated with malaria.

53. French hens count THREE
There are “three French hens” in the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas”.

The fabulous Christmas Carol called “The Twelve Days of Christmas” dates back at least to 1780 when it was first published in England, and may be French in origin. The concept of twelve days of Christmas comes from the tradition that the three kings came to visit the Christ Child twelve days after he was born. This same tradition is the origin of the title to Shakespeare’s play “Twelfth Night”.

56. “__ la Douce” IRMA
“Irma la Douce” is a wonderful Billy Wilder movie, released in 1963. It stars Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine. Lemmon plays a maligned Parisian policeman, and MacLaine is the popular prostitute Irma la Douce (literally “Irma the Sweet”). Don’t let the adult themes throw you as it’s a very entertaining movie …

57. Recipe meas. TBSP
Tablespoon (tbsp.)

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Flexible lunch hour ONEISH
7. PC speed unit MSEC
11. D.C. United’s __ Stadium RFK
14. Marvel Entertainment parent company DISNEY
15. Cinders of old comics ELLA
16. Reef dweller EEL
17. Needing to be bailed out, maybe IN A JAM
18. “Double, double, __ and trouble”: “Macbeth” TOIL
19. DCIV ÷ IV CLI
20. Spreadsheet figure COLUMN TOTAL
22. Individual : SSN :: corp. : __ EIN
23. Hospital fluids SERA
24. “Impressive!” OOH!
25. Take by force SEIZE
27. Happen afterward ENSUE
29. Capital on the Dnieper River KIEV
30. Tot’s recitation ABCS
33. Prosecutors, at times ARRAIGNERS
37. Cheering word RAH!
38. Nod from the maestro CUE
39. Short or gross measure TON
40. See 59-Across RAP
41. Ones making the rounds? BARTENDERS
44. “The Thin Man” pooch ASTA
45. Dot on un mapa ISLA
46. Capital of Senegal DAKAR
48. Debate subject ISSUE
50. Bon __: Comet rival AMI
51. Sports fan’s factoid STAT
54. Clever remark MOT
55. Classic 6-Down suggested by this puzzle’s circles SILENT NIGHT
59. With 40-Across, trumped-up charge BUM
60. Holiday purchase TREE
61. Remove all doubt BE SURE
62. A, in Oaxaca UNA
63. Gremlins and Matadors AMCS
64. Lustrous fabric SATEEN
65. Mag staff EDS
66. “… be good for goodness’ __!” SAKE
67. Determined ahead of time PRESET

Down
1. Like many Keats poems ODIC
2. Bogotá boys NINOS
3. Online transaction E-SALE
4. Harms INJURES
5. Crew member SEAMAN
6. “Ave Maria,” e.g. HYMN
7. Copycat ME-TOOER
8. A deadly sin SLOTH
9. Oscar-winning director Kazan ELIA
10. Station identification letters CALL SIGN
11. Stereo components RECEIVERS
12. “__ Navidad”: Feliciano song FELIZ
13. Kevin of “Dave” KLINE
21. Took the show on the road TOURED
26. Poetic time of day E’EN
28. Post-workout destination SAUNA
29. Mall stand KIOSK
30. Wall St. hedger ARB
31. Cote cry BAA!
32. Present day? CHRISTMAS
34. Transport in an Ellington classic A TRAIN
35. Informant RAT
36. Hotel amenity SPA
38. Instruments that sound similar to glockenspiels CELESTAS
42. The Tigers of the Ohio Valley Conf. TSU
43. Attorney general under Ronald Reagan ED MEESE
44. Entertainer ARTISTE
47. Equally hot or cold? AS NEAR
48. Inspire deeply (with) IMBUE
49. In good shape SOUND
50. Smart guy? ALECK
52. Fits of fever AGUES
53. French hens count THREE
56. “__ la Douce” IRMA
57. Recipe meas. TBSP
58. Hiker’s shelter TENT

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