Colossal Book of Word Play

Martin Gardner 

You are solving a crossword puzzle, and see a clue that reads "Number of fingers." You look at the grid and wonder if five or ten will be the word that fits. To your surprise, the answer has nine letters and starts with J! What do you write in the blanks?

HINTS:

1. The answer involves wordplay.

2. The answer has two words.

3. The answer is a proper name.

 

Answer:

 

JACK FROST - who can certainly numb your fingers

("Number" is a heteronym - a single word that as two different pronunciations - like "wind" or "live" or "dove". With a silent "b" it means something that numbs.)