Tales from the Trail

First came celebrity endorsements from Oprah and Arianna. Now Jon Stewart’s Washington “Rally to Restore Sanity” has a more puzzling promoter.

Here’s a clue: German summer pants for little William? (10 letters) 

Stumped? The answer is ”Will Shortz“. He’s editor of the New York Times crossword puzzle, which today devotes no fewer than eight clues to the Daily Show host, his fellow satirist Stephen Colbert of the Colbert Report and the joint rally they’re planning for Saturday on the National Mall.

For anyone flummoxed by the clues to 54 and 65 Across, Colbert’s version of the event is called the “March to Keep Fear Alive.”

The Stewart-Colbert gathering is a reaction to Fox News commentator Glenn Beck‘s “Restoring Honor” rally, which was held at the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on this year’s anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
    
Stewart is also a big fan of Shortz and appeared in the 2006 documentary Wordplay, which focused on the Times crossword puzzle editor and the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament. 
    
Do Stewart and Colbert need the fiery presence of thousands of crossword puzzle enthusiasts? Now that’s a question. But the idea may be too inside the box for rally organizers.

“It’s great. But how does this help? That’s not something for us to answer because this is not something we solicited or planned on,” said Steve Albani, spokesman for Comedy Central, the cable TV channel that airs Stewart and Colbert. 
    
Folks at the Times were not immediately available for comment. (If they intend to respond via their puzzle, they may miss our deadline.)
    
Meanwhile, Stewart and Colbert are expected to draw about 150,000 people to the National Mall. That’s a Wall Street Journal estimate based on the number of portable toilets ordered by Comedy Central.  No _____. (4 letters).

First he gave an unexpected endorsement to Jon Stewart’s upcoming “Rally to Restore Sanity.” Now President Barack Obama is giving the host of the satirical talk show the ultimate television “get” — himself as a guest.

Obama will appear on “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” on Wednesday, Oct. 27, in the middle of a week of special episodes taped in Washington ahead of the Nov. 2 midterm elections. It all culminates with a Saturday rally on the National Mall.

The Washington episodes – to air Oct. 25 – Oct. 28 – are called “When Grizzlies Attack: A ‘Daily Show’ Midterm Teapartyganza.” That’s a reference to the conservative Tea Party political movement and former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin referring to conservative women politicians as “Mama Grizzlies.”