LA Times Crossword Answers 19 Dec 12, Wednesday

CROSSWORD SETTER: Kurt Mengel & Jan-Michele Gianette
THEME: Cowboy Style … each of today’s themed answers starts with a word that has a Western flavor:

17A. Lay a trip on, cowboy-style? SADDLED WITH GUILT
27A. Motivate, cowboy-style? SPUR INTO ACTION
43A. Control spending, cowboy-style? REIN IN THE COSTS
56A. Hang in there, cowboy-style? RIDE OUT THE STORM

COMPLETION TIME: 12m 36s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. “__ Comes Mary”: Association hit ALONG
The Association is a soft rock band that made it big in the sixties, and is still going strong. The group’s first big hit was “Along Comes Mary” in 1966. The following year they released their first album, inventively titled “And Then … Along Comes the Association”. The biggest hits by the Association are “Cherish”, “Windy” and “Never My Love”.

6. Black-clad subculturist GOTH
The goth subculture developed from the gothic rock scene in the early eighties, and is a derivative of the punk music movement. It started in England and spread to many countries around the globe. The term “goth” of course comes from the Eastern Germanic tribe called the Goths. Frankly, I don’t understand the whole goth thing …

10. “Famous” snack maker AMOS
Wally Amos was a talent agent, one who was in the habit of taking home-baked cookies with him as an enticement to get celebrities to see him. He was urged by friends to open a cookie store (the cookies were that delicious, I guess) and this he did in Los Angeles in 1975 using the name “Famous Amos”. The store was a smash hit and he was able build on the success by introducing his cookies into supermarkets. The brand was eventually bought up making Wally a rich man, and Famous Amos cookies are still flying off the shelf.

14. Fracas MELEE
“Melee” comes from the French word (“mêlée”), and in both languages it means a “confused fight”.

“Fracas” is a French word that we absorbed into English. In turn, the French usage evolved from the Italian “fracasso” meaning “uproar, crash”.

15. Finis OVER
Our word “finis”, meaning “it’s ended”, comes directly from Latin.

16. Logan of “60 Minutes” LARA
Lara Logan is a South African newswoman, currently the Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent for CBS News.

20. Hockey legend ORR
Bobby Orr is regarded as one of the greatest hockey players who ever played the game. By the time he retired in 1978, Orr had undergone over a dozen knee surgeries. At 31 years of age, Orr concluded that he just couldn’t skate anymore. Reportedly, he was even having trouble walking …

22. Tony’s cousins EMMYS
The Emmy Awards are the television equivalent of the Oscars in the world of film, the Grammy Awards in music and the Tony Awards for the stage. Emmy Awards are presented throughout the year, depending on the sector of television being honored. The most famous of these ceremonies are the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Daytime Emmy Awards. The distinctive name of “Emmy” is a softened version of the word “immy”, the nickname given to the video camera tubes found in old television cameras.

The full name for the Tony Award is the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre. Antoinette Perry was an American actress and co-founder of the American Theatre Wing, one of the organizations that selects the award recipients.

23. Nobelist Hahn et al. OTTOS
Otto Hahn was a German chemist, someone who rigorously opposed the anti-Jewish policies of Nazi Germany. Hahn was one of a small group of scientists who discovered nuclear fission, pointing out that uranium atoms could be split into barium atoms when bombarded with neutrons. Hahn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1944 for this discovery, although he probably got the credit for work that was actually shared with others.

25. City on the Rhine BONN
After WWII, Bonn was chosen as the capital of West Germany, a choice promoted by Chancellor Konrad Adenauer who was from the area. After German reunification, the capital was moved to Berlin.

32. Decathlon gold medalist Ashton __ EATON
Ashton Eaton is a decathlete from Portland, Oregon. Eaton is the current world record holder for both the decathlon and heptathlon events.

The decathlon event is a track and field competition, with the name “decathlon” coming from the Greek “deka” (ten) and “athlos” (contest). The ten events in the men’s decathlon are:

– 100 meters
– Long jump
– Shot put
– High jump
– 400 meters
– 110 meters hurdles
– Discus throw
– Pole vault
– Javelin throw
– 1500 meters

36. __ rain ACID
Acid rain is any precipitation that is unusually acidic. The acidity in rain mainly comes from sulfur dioxide that is discharged into the atmosphere from industrial plants and volcanic eruptions.

37. Selassie worshipper RASTA
I must admit that I don’t really understand Rastafarianism. I do know that a “Rasta”, like Bob Marley, is a follower of the movement. Some say that Rastafarianism is a religion, some not. I also know that it involves the worship of Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia.

39. One-time teammate of 20-Across, familiarly ESPO
Phil “Espo” Esposito is a former professional hockey player who played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Boston Bruins and New York Rangers.

41. Actress Skye IONE
Ione Skye is an American actress born in Hertfordshire in England. She is best known for portraying the character Diane Court in the 1989 high school romance movie “Say Anything …”, starring opposite John Cusack. Skye is the daughter of the Scottish folk singer Donovan.

42. Winner of 82 PGA Tour tournaments SNEAD
Sam Snead was probably the most successful golfer never to win a US Open title, as he won a record 82 PGA Tour events. Snead did win seven majors, but never the US Open. He was also quite the showman. He once hit the scoreboard at Wrigley Field stadium with a golf ball by teeing off from home plate.

47. WWII battle site ST LO
Saint-Lô is a town in Normandy that was occupied by Germany in 1940. Saint-Lo stood at a strategic crossroads and so there was intense fighting there during the Normandy invasion of 1944. After the bombardment, very little of the town was left standing.

60. Sheryl Crow’s “__ Wanna Do” ALL I
“All I Wanna Do” is Sheryl Crow’s biggest hit, released in 1994.

Sheryl Crow famously dated cyclist Lance Armstrong from 2003-2006. Armstrong has stated publicly more than once that Crow’s music cured his cancer.

Down
2. King with three daughters LEAR
“King Lear” is one of William Shakespeare’s tragedies. Lear’s three daughters figure prominently in the storyline. The three are, in order of age:

– Goneril
– Regan
– Cordelia

4. Folk hero Kelly NED
Ned Kelly was an Irish-Australian outlaw, regarded by many as a symbol of resistance against the British ruling class in Australia in the 19th century. There have been two famous films made of his life story. “The Story of the Kelly Gang” was released in 1906, and is recognized today as the first feature film ever made. We might be more familiar with the film called “Ned Kelly” released in 1970, as it starred rocker Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones in the title role.

6. Greeley’s advice GO WEST
Horace Greeley was a newspaper editor and politician. In the media industry, Greeley founded and edited the “New York Tribune”, which was a very influential paper in the 1800s. In an 1865 editorial he wrote the famous words “Go West, young man, go West and grow up with the country.” As a politician, Greeley ran for US President in the 1872 election. He lost that election to Ulysses S. Grant in a landslide. Greeley died not long after the votes were cast, making him the only presidential candidate to have died prior to the counting of electoral college votes.

7. Exiled Roman poet OVID
The Roman poet Publius Ovidius Naso is today known simply as Ovid. Ovid is usually listed alongside the two other great Roman poets: Horace and Virgil.

8. Asian holiday TET
The full name for the New Year holiday in Vietnam is Tet Nguyen Dan, meaning “Feast of the First Morning”. Tet usually falls on the same day as Chinese New Year.

10. Grads ALUMNI
An “alumnus” (plural … alumni) is a graduate or former student of a school or college. The female form is “alumna” (plural … alumnae). The term comes into English from Latin, in which alumnus means foster-son or pupil.

12. Paris airport ORLY
Orly is on the outskirts of Paris, to the south of the city. It is home of course to the Paris-Orly Airport, the second busiest international airport for the city after the more recently built Charles de Gaulle Airport. That said, Orly is home to more domestic flights than Charles de Gaulle.

18. MBA’s course ECON
The world’s first MBA degree was offered by Harvard’s Graduate School of Business Administration, in 1908.

27. Jeans joint SEAM
Denim fabric originated in Nimes in France. The French phrase “de Nimes” (from Nimes) gives us the word “denim”. Also, the French phrase “bleu de Genes” (blue of Genoa) gives us our word “jeans”.

28. ’70s AMC compact PACER
The AMC Pacer is an iconic car from the seventies. The Pacer has big glass windows leading to it being nicknamed “the Flying Fish Bowl” by “Car and Driver” magazine.

38. __ Domini ANNO
The designations Anno Domini (AD, “year of Our Lord”) and Before Christ (BC) are found in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. The dividing point between AD and BC is the year of the conception of Jesus, with AD 1 following 1 BC without a year “0” in between. The AD/BC scheme dates back to AD 525, and gained wide acceptance soon after AD 800. Nowadays a modified version has become popular, with CE (Common/Christian Era) used to replace AD, and BCE (Before the Common/Christian Era) used to replace BC.

39. Grandson of Eve ENOS
Enos was the son of Seth and the grandson of Adam and Eve.

46. Palindromic fashion model EMME
Emme is the highest paid plus-size model in the world. Emme’s real name is Melissa Aronson, and she was born in New York City and raised in Saudi Arabia.

58. Eastern path TAO
The Chinese character “tao” translates as “path”, but the concept of Tao signifies the true nature of the world.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. “__ Comes Mary”: Association hit ALONG
6. Black-clad subculturist GOTH
10. “Famous” snack maker AMOS
14. Fracas MELEE
15. Finis OVER
16. Logan of “60 Minutes” LARA
17. Lay a trip on, cowboy-style? SADDLED WITH GUILT
20. Hockey legend ORR
21. Breezed through ACED
22. Tony’s cousins EMMYS
23. Nobelist Hahn et al. OTTOS
25. City on the Rhine BONN
27. Motivate, cowboy-style? SPUR INTO ACTION
32. Decathlon gold medalist Ashton __ EATON
33. Minor quibbles NITS
34. Chest protector BIB
36. __ rain ACID
37. Selassie worshipper RASTA
39. One-time teammate of 20-Across, familiarly ESPO
40. Guys MEN
41. Actress Skye IONE
42. Winner of 82 PGA Tour tournaments SNEAD
43. Control spending, cowboy-style? REIN IN THE COSTS
47. WWII battle site ST LO
48. Out of whack AMISS
49. Town __ CRIER
52. Acquisitions in a certain race ARMS
53. Treat, as a bruise ICE
56. Hang in there, cowboy-style? RIDE OUT THE STORM
60. Sheryl Crow’s “__ Wanna Do” ALL I
61. Baby’s word MAMA
62. “… but it could be otherwise” OR NOT
63. Swimming contest MEET
64. Needy POOR
65. Carpenters’ tools RASPS

Down
1. Playground retort AM SO!
2. King with three daughters LEAR
3. Thing to break free of, perhaps OLD ROUTINE
4. Folk hero Kelly NED
5. Glue base GELATIN
6. Greeley’s advice GO WEST
7. Exiled Roman poet OVID
8. Asian holiday TET
9. Royal title: Abbr. HRH
10. Grads ALUMNI
11. Hurt badly MAIM
12. Paris airport ORLY
13. H.S. hurdles SATS
18. MBA’s course ECON
19. Classy guys GENTS
24. Walked TROD
25. Worms, e.g. BAIT
26. Prefix with -gon OCTA-
27. Jeans joint SEAM
28. ’70s AMC compact PACER
29. Beginning ONSET
30. More than just desires OBSESSIONS
31. Try to bite, puppy-style NIP AT
35. Spa displays? BODS
37. Stir up ROIL
38. __ Domini ANNO
39. Grandson of Eve ENOS
41. Brief opening INTRO
42. Cut SCISSOR
44. Response to “Look!” I SEE IT!
45. Sarcastic laugh HAR HAR
46. Palindromic fashion model EMME
49. Squeeze (in) CRAM
50. Annoy RILE
51. Vegging out IDLE
52. Sphere starter ATMO-
54. Harvesting target CROP
55. Paramedics, briefly EMTS
57. Diamond caller UMP
58. Eastern path TAO
59. Song syllable TRA

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