Day: March 3, 2016

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Congressional authority WHIP
In the world of politics, the party whip is the “heavy”, the person whose job it is to ensure that party members vote according to party policy. “Whip” comes from “whipping in”, a term used in hunting. Any hounds tending to stray from the pack were “whipped in” to prevent them wandering off.

16. Dancer Fred’s dancing sister ADELE
Adele Astaire was Fred Astaire’s elder sister. Before Fred made it big in movies, the two were a successful music hall act, particularly in England. Adele married into nobility in England, taking the name Lady Charles Cavendish.

20. Hot rod rods AXLES
A “hot rod” is an American car that has been modified for speed by installing a larger than normal engine. A “street rod” is generally a more comfortable type of “hot rod”, with the emphasis less on the engine and more on custom paint jobs and interiors. By definition, a street rod must be based on an automobile design that originated prior to 1949.

26. Wall St. event IPO
An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is the very first offer of stock for sale by a company on the open market. In other words, an IPO marks the first time that a company is traded on a public exchange. Companies have an IPO to raise capital to expand (usually).

36. Beth, to Jo SIS
“Little Women” is a novel written by American author Louisa May Alcott. The quartet of little women is Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March. Jo is a tomboy and the main character in the story, and is based on Alcott herself.

37. Hindu “sir” BABU
“Babu” is a Hindu word used in South Asia as a sign of respect to men. It can be used to mean “boss” or “father”.

38. Spot in a spa 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).

39. Jangle pop and the like, and a hint to a hidden feature of 17-, 30-, 46- and 63-Across ALTERNATIVE ROCK
The musical genre of alternative rock has a relatively self-evident origin, as it is an alternative to traditional rock music. I’m no expert, not even close …

Jangle pop is an alternative rock musical genre that arose in the mid-eighties. The genre features “jangly” guitar sounds and pop melodies reminiscent of the sixties. Names associated with the genre are the Smiths. REM and Tom Petty.

43. Old counters ABACI
The abacus (plural “abaci”) was used as a counting frame long before man had invented a numbering system. It is a remarkable invention, particularly when one notes that abaci are still widely used today across Africa and Asia.

44. Aussie hoppers ROOS
The name “kangaroo” comes from the Australian Aborigine term for the animal. There’s an oft-quoted story that James Cook (later Captain Cook) asked a local native the name of this remarkable looking animal, and the native responded with “kangaroo”. The story is that the native was actually saying “I don’t understand you”, but as cute as that tale is, it’s just an urban myth.

45. Daisy __ MAE
Daisy Mae Scragg was the vampish woman who chased Li’l Abner trying to goad him into marriage. This went on for 15 years in the cartoon strip until creator Al Capp succumbed to public pressure and married the couple at the end of March 1952. The marriage was such a big event that it made the cover of “Life” magazine.

49. The Constitution St. CONN
Connecticut’s official nickname is the Constitution State, but can also be referred to as the Nutmeg State, the Provisions State, and the Land of Steady Habits.

50. Cadenza maker KIA
51. 50-Across’ locale ASIA
The Cadenza is a full-size automobile sold in North America, and made by Kia. The same model is sold as the Kia K7 in South Korea.

Kia Motors is the second largest manufacturer of cars in South Korea, behind Hyundai (and Hyundai is a part owner in Kia now). In recent years, Kia has focused on sales into Europe, and has been remarkably successful.

58. About CIRCA
“Circa” is a Latin word meaning “around, near, about the time of”. We use “circa” directly in English to mean “about the time of”, as well as in derivative words such as “circle” and “circus”.

62. Old marketplace AGORA
In early Greece the “agora” was a place of assembly. Often the assemblies held there were quite formal, perhaps for the reading of a proclamation. Later in Greek history, things became less formal as the agora evolved into a market place. Our contemporary word “agoraphobia” comes from these agorae, in the sense that an agoraphobe has a fear of open spaces, a fear of “public meeting places”.

63. Restaurant convenience CHECKROOM
A “checkroom”, where one might check a hat, coat or perhaps a bag.

66. Flower part SEPAL
In a flower, the sepals are those green, leaf-like structures that are “interleaved” with the petals, providing support. Prior to acting as support for the petals, the sepals protect the flower in bud.

68. The Big Easy acronym NOLA
The city of New Orleans, Louisiana has the nickname “The Big Easy”. This name might come from the early 1900s when musicians found it relatively “easy” to find work there. The city is also known by the acronym NOLA, standing for New Orleans, LA.

69. “East of Eden” surname TRASK
John Steinbeck considered “East of Eden” his magnus opus. Most of the storyline takes place near Salinas, just south of where I live here in the Bay Area. Two of the characters in the story are brothers Cal and Aron Trask, representative of the biblical Cain and Abel.

70. Balcony section LOGE
In most theaters today, “loge” is the name given to the front rows of a mezzanine level. Loge can also be the name given to box seating.

71. Card game for three SKAT
When I was a teenager in Ireland, I had a friend with a German father. The father taught us the game of Skat, and what a great game it is. Skat originated in Germany in the 1800s and is to this day the most popular card game in the country. I haven’t played it in decades, but would love to play it again …

Down
1. Where the Sky and the Sun collide, for short? WNBA
The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) includes the Connecticut Sun and the Chicago Sky.

3. Part of the pkg. INCL
That’s included (incl.) in the package (pkg.).

6. Airport near Tel Aviv LOD
Ben-Gurion International (TLV) is Israel’s main airport, and is located in the city of Lod just a few miles southeast of Tel Aviv. The airport is named for David Ben-Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister.

7. Withhold information about, say ABET
The word “abet” comes into English from the Old French “abeter” meaning “to bait” or “to harass with dogs” (it literally means “to make bite”). This sense of encouraging something bad to happen morphed into our modern usage of “abet” meaning to aid or encourage someone in a crime.

9. Supports in shop class SAWHORSES
Sawhorses are used to support boards for sawing. Sawhorses are also used as barricades.

10. Comic strip drooler ODIE
Odie is Garfield’s best friend and is a slobbery beagle, a character in Jim Davis’s comic strip named “Garfield”.

11. Mythical Spartan queen LEDA
In Greek mythology, Leda was the beautiful Queen of Sparta who was seduced by Zeus when he took the form of a swan. Leda produced two eggs from the union. One egg hatched into the beautiful Helen, later to be known as Helen of Troy and over whom the Trojan War was fought. The other egg hatched into the twins Castor and Pollux. Castor and Pollux had different fathers according to the myth. Pollux was the son of Zeus and was immortal, while Castor was the son of Leda’s earthly husband, and so he was a mortal. William Butler Yeats wrote a famous sonnet called “Leda and the Swan” in 1924. Peter Paul Rubens made a copy of a painting called “Leda and the Swan” by Michelangelo, which is now lost.

12. The mi. in Mile-High City ELEV
Denver, Colorado is nicknamed the “Mile-High City” because its official elevation is listed as exactly one mile. Denver City was founded in 1858 as a mining town. The name was chosen in honor of the Kansas Territorial Governor at the time, James W. Denver.

18. Kyrgyzstan city OSH
Osh is the second largest city in the former Soviet Republic of Kyrgyzstan (after the capital Bishkek). Osh was a center of silk production and lies along the old Silk Road, the trade route that traversed Asia.

22. Walther __: James Bond’s pistol PPK
Walther is a German gun manufacturer that was founded in 1886 by Carl Walther. The company’s most famous weapon is the Walther PPK, a small semiautomatic pistol designed primarily for use by police forces. Ian Fleming armed his fictional hero James Bond with a Walther PPK. Also, Adolph Hitler killed himself with his own PPK in the Führerbunker in Berlin in 1945.

24. Thom of shoes MCAN
Thom McAn footwear was introduced in 1922 by the Melville Corporation (now CVS Caremark). The brand was named after a Scottish golfer called Thomas McCann. The Thom McAn line is epitomized by the comfortable leather casual and dress shoe, so sales have really been hurt in recent decades by the growing popularity of sneakers.

25. Tyrrhenian Sea island ELBA
I had a lovely two-week vacation in Tuscany once, including what was supposed to be a two-night stay on the island of Elba. I had envisioned Elba as a place full of history, and maybe it is, but it is also overrun with tourists who use it as a beach getaway. We left after one day and we won’t be going back again …

The Tyrrhenian Sea is that part of the Mediterranean that lies off the west coast of Italy. It is bounded on the north and east by the Italian mainland, on the west by the large islands of Corsica and Sardinia, and on the south by Sicily.

27. Name on the “Robot” series books ISAAC
Science fiction author Isaac Asimov wrote a marvelous collection of short stories called “I. Robot”. In the stories, he made repeated reference to the Three Laws of Robotics, which he introduced in the story “Runaround”, first published in 1942. The three laws are:

1. A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm.
2. A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings, except where such orders would conflict with the First Law.
3. A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Law.

28. Bag End notable BILBO
Bilbo Baggins is the main character in J. R. R. Tolkien’s fantasy novel “The Hobbit”, and a supporting character his “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

29. To be, in Toledo ESTAR
Toledo is a city in central Spain.

31. Bizarre OUTRE
The word “outré” comes to us from French, as you might imagine, derived from the verb “outrer” meaning “to overdo, exaggerate”. “Outrer” is also the ultimate root of our word “outrage”.

32. Berne’s river AAR
The Aar (also called the “Aare” in German) is the longest river entirely in Switzerland.

33. Italian cathedral DUOMO
“Duomo” is an Italian word for “cathedral”. The term probably comes from the Latin “domus” meaning “house”, and used in the sense of a cathedral being a house of God, or perhaps the house of a bishop.

34. Like Andean pyramids INCAN
Inca pyramids were usually located at the center of a community. They were symbolic centers of power and usually had an altar that was used for rituals.

40. Luther opponent Johann __ ECK
During the Protestant Reformation in the 16th and 17th centuries, as Martin Luther was attacking the policies of the Catholic Church, Johann Eck was one of the leading defenders of Catholicism. The two had public debates, with Luther generally coming out ahead.

41. Louisiana Territory state IOWA
The state of Iowa was part of the French colony known as New France until it was acquired by the US in the Louisiana Purchase. The state’s name comes from the Ioway Native American people who lived there at the time Europeans started exploring the area.

In the Louisiana Purchase the US government bought French Louisiana from France. Soon after the purchase was made, the newly acquired land was split into the Orleans Territory, lands south of the 33rd parallel (and today’s southern border of Arkansas), and the Louisiana Territory, which was the land in the purchase north of the 33rd parallel. The Louisiana Territory stretched northwards as far as the Great Lakes, and the seat of government was chosen as the city of St. Louis. Just to confuse everyone (such as foreigners like me), the Orleans Territory was admitted to the Union in 1812 as the State of Louisiana. At the same time, in a measure designed to prevent confusion, the Louisiana Territory was renamed, to the Territory of Missouri.

42. Discovery astronaut James VOSS
James Voss is a retired astronaut who went into space five times, including a 163-day stint on the International Space Station (ISS). While on the ISS, Voss and fellow astronaut Susan Helms conducted the longest spacewalk to date, a staggering 8 hours and 56 minutes outside the space station.

47. Cannes corp. CIE
“Cie.” is an abbreviation used in French. “Cie.” is short for “compagnie”, the French word for “company”, and is used as we would use “Co.”

Cannes is a city on the French Riviera, noted as host of the Cannes Film Festival. The idea of the annual film festival was adopted by the city just before WWII. However, the festival had to wait for the end of the war for its launch in 1946.

49. Stone monuments CAIRNS
A cairn is a man-made pile of stones that can have various uses. A cairn might be a prosaic trail marker, or a distinctive landmark or monument. Our term “cairn” derives from the Gaelic “carn” meaning “rocky hill, heap of stones”.

55. Club in a Manilow song COPA
The Copacabana of the Barry Manilow song is the Copacabana nightclub in New York City (which is also the subject of the Frank Sinatra song “Meet Me at the Copa”). The Copa opened in 1940 and is still going today although it is struggling. The club had to move due to impending construction and is now “sharing” a location with the Columbus 72 nightclub.

56. Baseball stats ERAS
Earned run average (ERA)

57. Religious prefix THEO-
The prefix “theo-” means “god”, coming from the Greek word “theos” that has the same meaning.

59. Corner piece ROOK
The corner piece in the game of chess is a called a rook, a word coming from the Persian word “rokh” meaning a “chariot”. The rook has also been called, perhaps incorrectly, the castle, tower, marquess or rector.

61. Bit of introductory Latin AMAT
“Amo, amas, amat: … “I love, you love, he/she/it loves”, in Latin.

64. 100 nanojoules ERG
An erg is a unit of mechanical work or energy. It is a small unit, as there are 10 million ergs in one joule. it has been suggested that an erg is about the amount of energy required for a mosquito to take off.

65. 41-Down college COE
Coe College is a private school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that was founded in 1851. Coe is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Congressional authority WHIP
5. Lifeless BLAH
9. Repaired, as a boot SOLED
14. Warning to a tot NO NO!
15. Academic apparel ROBE
16. Dancer Fred’s dancing sister ADELE
17. Temporarily out of stock, with “on” BACK ORDER
19. Add a lane to, say WIDEN
20. Hot rod rods AXLES
21. Not stable, in a way TOP-HEAVY
23. Sighed line AH ME
26. Wall St. event IPO
27. “Yeah, sure!” I BET!
30. One might spoil a dream CLOCK RADIO
36. Beth, to Jo SIS
37. Hindu “sir” BABU
38. Spot in a spa SAUNA
39. Jangle pop and the like, and a hint to a hidden feature of 17-, 30-, 46- and 63-Across ALTERNATIVE ROCK
43. Old counters ABACI
44. Aussie hoppers ROOS
45. Daisy __ MAE
46. Gadgets with helical parts called worms CORKSCREWS
49. The Constitution St. CONN
50. Cadenza maker KIA
51. 50-Across’ locale ASIA
53. Enjoy the sunset FACE WEST
58. About CIRCA
62. Old marketplace AGORA
63. Restaurant convenience CHECKROOM
66. Flower part SEPAL
67. Dynamic beginning? AERO-
68. The Big Easy acronym NOLA
69. “East of Eden” surname TRASK
70. Balcony section LOGE
71. Card game for three SKAT

Down
1. Where the Sky and the Sun collide, for short? WNBA
2. Scam HOAX
3. Part of the pkg. INCL
4. Jab POKE AT
5. “Darn, it’s cold!” BRR!
6. Airport near Tel Aviv LOD
7. Withhold information about, say ABET
8. Beyond noble HEROIC
9. Supports in shop class SAWHORSES
10. Comic strip drooler ODIE
11. Mythical Spartan queen LEDA
12. The mi. in Mile-High City ELEV
13. Opposite of admit DENY
18. Kyrgyzstan city OSH
22. Walther __: James Bond’s pistol PPK
24. Thom of shoes MCAN
25. Tyrrhenian Sea island ELBA
27. Name on the “Robot” series books ISAAC
28. Bag End notable BILBO
29. To be, in Toledo ESTAR
31. Bizarre OUTRE
32. Berne’s river AAR
33. Italian cathedral DUOMO
34. Like Andean pyramids INCAN
35. Kind of bucket OAKEN
37. Outdoor exercise choice BRISK WALK
40. Luther opponent Johann __ ECK
41. Louisiana Territory state IOWA
42. Discovery astronaut James VOSS
47. Cannes corp. CIE
48. Imp RASCAL
49. Stone monuments CAIRNS
52. Word of disgust ICK
53. Up-tempo FAST
54. Too much sun, they say AGER
55. Club in a Manilow song COPA
56. Baseball stats ERAS
57. Religious prefix THEO-
59. Corner piece ROOK
60. Fizzy drink COLA
61. Bit of introductory Latin AMAT
64. 100 nanojoules ERG
65. 41-Down college COE

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