Day: October 23, 2013

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
11. “Essence of Man” cologne BRUT
Brut is a brand of men’s grooming products made by Fabergé since 1964. The folks marketing Brut use the slogan “the Essence of Man”.

15. Bar game fodder TRIVIA
Trivia are things of little consequence. “Trivia” is the plural of the Latin word “trivium” which means “a place where three roads meet”. Now that’s what I call a trivial fact …

16. Old Roman coin LIRA
The word “lira” is used in a number of countries for currency. “Lira” comes from the Latin for “pound” and is derived from a British pound sterling, the value of a Troy pound of silver. For example, the lira (plural “lire”) was the official currency of Italy before the country changed over to the euro in 2002.

17. Light, to a moth LURE
It isn’t really understood why moths are attracted to artificial lights. There is one theory that sounds plausible to me though. It is suggested that moths navigate at night by maintaining the moon (the brightest celestial object) at a fixed angle. When a moth finds a brighter light source, like an artificial light, it gets confused.

21. *Small fruit first cultivated in Oregon BING CHERRY
The Bing cherry is the most widely grown sweet cherry in the US. The cultivar was created in Oregon in 1875 by Seth Lewelling. Lewelling was a horticulturist, and he named the cherry for his Chinese foreman Ah Bing.

23. Ruler divs. CMS
Centimeters (cms.)

26. ’80s-’90s German chancellor KOHL
Helmut Kohl was Chancellor of West Germany when the Berlin Wall came down leading to German reunification. Kohl was Chancellor of West Germany from 1982 to 1990, and Chancellor of Germany from 1990 to 1998. That made Kohl the longest serving Chancellor since Otto von Bismarck.

30. Kansas City footballer CHIEF
The Kansas City Chiefs were founded as the Dallas Texans in 1960, a charter member team of the AFL. The Texans moved to Kansas City in 1963 and took the name of the Chiefs. The team owners (perhaps naively) expected to keep the Texans name in Kansas City, but a fan contest opted instead for the Chiefs, named after the Kansas City mayor at the time, “Chief” Bartle.

32. L.A. commuter org. MTA
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority is referred to sometimes as the Metro and sometimes the MTA.

33A. 16-Across replacer EURO
(16A. Old Roman coin LIRA)
The European Union (EU) today stands at a membership of 27 states. The Euro is the official currency of only 16 of the 27. The list of states in the EU that don’t use the Euro includes the UK, Denmark and Sweden.

34. Daniel Barenboim’s opera house LA SCALA
The La Scala Opera House opened in 1778. It was built on the site of the church of Santa Maria della Scala, which gave the theater its name, “Teatro alla Scala” in Italian.

Daniel Barenboim is an Israeli pianist and conductor who was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Barenboim has served as music director with several prestigious orchestras, including the Chicago Symphony. He is currently the music director of La Scala in Milan and the Berlin State Opera.

40. Surg. sites ORS
Operating Rooms (ORs)

41. Humanitarian symbol, and a hint to what happens where the answers to starred clues intersect RED CROSS
Back in 1859, a Swiss businessman called Henri Dunant went to meet French emperor Napoleon III, to discuss making it easier to conduct commerce in French-occupied Algeria. The Emperor was billeted at Solferino, where France and Austria were engaged in a major battle. In one day, Dunant witnessed 40,000 soldiers die in battle and countless wounded suffering on the battlefield without any organized medical care. Dunant abandoned his business agenda and instead spent a week caring for the sick and wounded. Within a few years he had founded the precursor to the Red Cross, and in 1901 he was awarded the first ever Nobel Peace Prize.

43. BART stop STA
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) serves the San Francisco Bay Area.

46. Haiti’s elder Duvalier PAPA DOC
The dictatorial President of Haiti known as “Papa Doc” was in fact a medical doctor. Francois Duvalier graduated with a medical degree from the University of Haiti in 1934, and even spent a year studying public health at the University of Michigan. It was his grateful patients who used to call him Papa Doc. When he came to power as President, he was less caring, and ruled with an iron fist until he died in office in 1971.

48. Somewhat, in music POCO
“Poco” is an Italian word for “little” and is used in musical notation to mean “to a small degree, a little”.

51. Facebook option SHARE
A personal plea to Facebook users … please share this blog with your friends. I’m sure there are some crossword solvers out there who find either LAXCrossword.com (my LA Times crossword blog) or NYTCrossword.com (my New York Times crossword blog). For that matter, I’d request that non-Facebook users share my blogs via email. Thank you!

57. Part of Mac OSX: Abbr. SYS
Apple introduced the Mac OS X Operating System in 2000. Each version of this operating system has had a code name, and that code name is always a type of big cat. The versions and code names are:

– 10.0: Cheetah
– 10.1: Puma
– 10.2: Jaguar
– 10.3: Panther
– 10.4: Tiger
– 10.5: Leopard
– 10.6: Snow Leopard

Interestingly, the earlier beta version was called Kodiak, after the bear, and not a cat at all.

58. *Vin Scully will be its 2014 Grand Marshal ROSE PARADE
The first Rose Parade was staged in 1890, on New Years Day in Pasadena, California. The initial parades were organized by the Pasadena Valley Hunt Club, whose members wanted to highlight the mild winter weather in the area. The initial parades did not feature flowers, but these were added to underscore the favorable climate. It was the inclusion of the flowers that gave rise to the name “Tournament of Roses”. The first Rose Bowl football game was played in 1902.

61. Chevy pickup SILVERADO
The GMC Sierra truck is also sold as the Chevrolet Silverado.

72. 69-Across’s tongue ERSE
(69A. 72-Across speaker GAEL)
There are actually three Erse languages. Irish, Manx (spoken on the Isle of Man) and Scots Gaelic. In their own tongues, these would be Gaeilge (in Ireland), Gaelg (on the Isle of Man) and Gaidhlig (in Scotland).

73. Patron of lost causes ST JUDE
Saint Jude was one of the twelve apostles, who also went by the name Thaddeus. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Jude is the patron saint of lost causes and desperate cases.

Down
1. Rehab symptoms DTS
The episodes of delirium that can accompany withdrawal from alcohol are called Delirium Tremens (the DTs). The literal translation of this Latin phrase is “trembling madness”.

2. Crumb ORT
Orts are small scraps of food left after a meal. “Ort” comes from Middle English, and originally described scraps left by animals.

4. Actress Longoria EVA
Eva Longoria is a fashion model and an actress with a regular role on “Desperate Housewives”, playing Gabrielle Solis.

6. Vision-correcting surgery LASIK
LASIK surgery uses a laser to reshape the cornea of the eye to improve vision. The LASIK acronym stands for “laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis”.

8. “Arrowsmith” Pulitzer decliner Lewis SINCLAIR
Sinclair Lewis was an American novelist and playwright. Lewis was the first US writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, which he won in 1930.

9. Sports MD’s specialty ORTH
Orthopedics (orth.)

10. Orbitz info FARES
Orbitz is one of the big online travel companies, one that is based in Chicago. Orbitz was originally set up as a joint-venture of several airlines including Continental, Delta, Northwest and United.

12. *Chain named for a Stones hit RUBY TUESDAY
“Ruby Tuesday” is a 1966 song by the Rolling Stones written by Keith Richards, apparently about a groupie that he once knew. The American chain of restaurants with the name Ruby Tuesday is named after the song.

13. Google revelation URL
Internet addresses (like NYTCrossword.com and LAXCrossword.com) are more correctly called Uniform Resource Locators (URLs).

14. Titleist holder TEE
The golf equipment brand name “Titleist” is most closely associated with golf balls. The name of the brand comes from the word “titlist” meaning “the one who holds the title”.

23. Ben-Hur’s vehicle CHARIOT
The celebrated Charlton Heston movie “Ben-Hur” is a dramatization of a book published in 1880 by Lew Wallace titled “Ben-Hur: A Tale of Christ”. The 1959 epic film won a record 11 Academy Awards, a feat that has been equaled since then but has never been beaten. The other winners of 11 Oscars are “Titanic” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the Rings”.

24. *”Clue” suspect MISS SCARLET
Clue is another board game that we knew under a different name growing up in Ireland. Outside of North America, Clue is marketed as “Cluedo”. Cluedo was the original name of the game, introduced in 1949 by the famous British board game manufacturer Waddingtons. There are cute differences between the US and UK versions. For example, the man who is murdered is called Dr. Black (Mr. Boddy in the US), one of the suspects is the Reverend Green (Mr. Green in the US), and the suspect weapons include a dagger (a knife in the US), a lead pipe (lead piping in the US) and a spanner (a wrench in the US). I think it’s a fabulous game, a must during the holidays …

28. Stump figures ORATORS
“To stump” can mean to go on a speaking tour during a political campaign. This peculiarly American term dates back to the 19th century. Back then a “stump speech” was an address given by someone standing on a large tree stump that provided a convenient perch to help the speaker get his or her message across to the crowd.

37. Brown v. Board of Education city TOPEKA
Brown v. Board of Education was the US Supreme Court Case that established the unconstitutionality of separate public schools for black and white students. Oliver L. Brown was one of thirteen parents who filed a class action suit against the Topeka, Kansas Board of Education on behalf of their twenty children. The suit called for the city to reverse its racial segregation policy. The final decision by the US Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Earl Warren was unanimous in rejecting segregation.

38. FICA-funded org. SSA
The Social Security Administration (SSA) was of course set up as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. The first person to receive a monthly retirement benefit was Ida May Fuller of Vermont who received her first check for the sum of $22.54 after having contributed for three years through payroll taxes. The New Deal turned out to be a good deal for Ms. Fuller, as she lived to 100 years of age and received a total benefit of almost $23,000, whereas her three years of contributions added up to just $24.75.

The Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax (FICA) was introduced in the 1930s as part of President Roosevelt’s New Deal. FICA payments are made by both employees and employers in order to fund Social Security and Medicare.

45. Pizza-making need HOT OVEN
Pizza was invented in Naples where it has a long tradition that goes back to Ancient Rome. During an 1889 visit to Naples, Queen Margherita of Savoy was served a special pizza that was created with toppings designed to mimic the colors of the Italian flag. The ingredients of tomato (red), mozzarella (white) and basil (green) can still be found together on menus today on a pie usually named Pizza Margherita after the queen. I do love basil on my pizza …

50. It can shorten a sentence PAROLE
The term “parole” is a French word that we use in English, with the French “parole” meaning “word, speech”. Of particular interest is the French phrase “parole d’honneur” which translates as “word of honor”. In the early 1600s we started using “parole” to mean a promise by a prisoner of war not to escape, as in the prisoner giving his “word of honor” not to run off. Over time, parole has come to mean conditional release of a prisoner before he or she has served the full term of a sentence.

54. Suit material SERGE
Serge is a type of twill fabric with diagonal ridges on both sides. The name “serge” comes from the Greek word for “silken”.

59. Allen’s successor on “The Tonight Show” PAAR
Jack Paar was most famous as the host of “The Tonight Show”, from 1957 to 1962. When he died in 2004, “Time” magazine wrote that Paar was “the fellow who split talk show history into two eras: Before Paar and Below Paar”. Very complimentary …

Steve Allen was a television personality who always seemed to be on air in the fifties, sixties and seventies. Famously, Allen was the original host of “The Tonight Show”. He also played a little piano and composed over 10,000 songs, perhaps more than anyone in history. His best known song is probably “This Could Be the Start of Something Big”.

61. Reggae kin SKA
Ska originated in Jamaica in the late fifties and was the precursor to reggae music. No one has a really definitive etymology of the term “ska”, but it is likely to be imitative of some sound.

62. Bankbook abbr. INT
Interest (int.)

64. Sixers’ #6 DR J
Julius Erving is a retired professional basketball player who was known as “Dr. J”, a nickname he picked up in high school. Dr. J was a trailblazer in many ways, being the first player associated with slam dunking and other moves above the rim.

65. Vichy water EAU
Vichy is a spa town in the center of France. The people from Vichy are known as Vichyssois. After Paris, was occupied by the Germans in WWII, Vichy was chosen as the seat of government for what was called the French State. The Vichy government had theoretical authority even in occupied France, and is remembered for its collaboration with the German authorities. Vichy was chosen as the new seat of government because of its relative proximity to Paris, and simply because the town had the largest hotel room capacity in the “free zone” of the country.

67. Start to dig? DEE
The word “dig” starts with the letter D (dee).

Return to top of page

For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. “Let’s hear it!” DO TELL!
7. Beginning on AS OF
11. “Essence of Man” cologne BRUT
15. Bar game fodder TRIVIA
16. Old Roman coin LIRA
17. Light, to a moth LURE
18. Cooks, in a way STEAMS
19. Up the creek IN TROUBLE
21. *Small fruit first cultivated in Oregon BING CHERRY
23. Ruler divs. CMS
26. ’80s-’90s German chancellor KOHL
27. Brief brawls SET-TOS
30. Kansas City footballer CHIEF
32. L.A. commuter org. MTA
33. 16-Across replacer EURO
34. Daniel Barenboim’s opera house LA SCALA
36. “Agreed!” IT’S A DEAL!
40. Surg. sites ORS
41. Humanitarian symbol, and a hint to what happens where the answers to starred clues intersect RED CROSS
43. BART stop STA
44. Jumble MISHMASH
46. Haiti’s elder Duvalier PAPA DOC
48. Somewhat, in music POCO
49. Oaf APE
51. Facebook option SHARE
52. Facebook option STATUS
55. Tool with teeth RAKE
57. Part of Mac OSX: Abbr. SYS
58. *Vin Scully will be its 2014 Grand Marshal ROSE PARADE
61. Chevy pickup SILVERADO
63. “My goose is cooked!” I’M DEAD!
68. Clothing patch site KNEE
69. 72-Across speaker GAEL
70. Angry outburst TIRADE
71. “It’s for you,” on an env. ATTN
72. 69-Across’s tongue ERSE
73. Patron of lost causes ST JUDE

Down
1. Rehab symptoms DTS
2. Crumb ORT
3. Bind TIE
4. Actress Longoria EVA
5. Life partner? LIMB
6. Vision-correcting surgery LASIK
7. Come down to earth ALIGHT
8. “Arrowsmith” Pulitzer decliner Lewis SINCLAIR
9. Sports MD’s specialty ORTH
10. Orbitz info FARES
11. Said suddenly BLURTED
12. *Chain named for a Stones hit RUBY TUESDAY
13. Google revelation URL
14. Titleist holder TEE
20. Valuable rock ORE
22. Oasis seekers NOMADS
23. Ben-Hur’s vehicle CHARIOT
24. *”Clue” suspect MISS SCARLET
25. “Gimme a __” SEC
28. Stump figures ORATORS
29. Comfort SOLACE
30. Treads heavily CLOMPS
31. Henhouse locale FARM
35. Rural expanse LEA
37. Brown v. Board of Education city TOPEKA
38. FICA-funded org. SSA
39. Nile snakes ASPS
42. Game in which one player doesn’t speak CHARADES
45. Pizza-making need HOT OVEN
47. Contented sighs AHS
50. It can shorten a sentence PAROLE
53. Put to work USE
54. Suit material SERGE
56. Trims text, perhaps EDITS
59. Allen’s successor on “The Tonight Show” PAAR
60. Give off, as rays EMIT
61. Reggae kin SKA
62. Bankbook abbr. INT
64. Sixers’ #6 DR J
65. Vichy water EAU
66. Put in ADD
67. Start to dig? DEE

Return to top of page