LA Times Crossword Answers 6 Jul 13, Saturday

CROSSWORD SETTER: Bill Thompson
THEME: None
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 17m 36s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 2 … RED DOGS (med dogs!), BEAR (beam)

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Onetime college All-Star football game HULA BOWL
The annual college football game called the Hula Bowl isn’t played anymore. The inaugural game was in 1947, and the last was in 2008.

9. “Hasn’t scratched yet!” cleanser BON AMI
Bon Ami cleanser was introduced just a few years after Bon Ami soap went to market in 1886. The cleanser was marketed by emphasising its “non-scratch” properties. The label showed a chick coming out of an egg, the idea being that a newly hatched chick hasn’t yet scratched the ground looking for worms and insects.

15. Song played at the 1920 Olympics when music for the Italian national anthem could not be found O SOLE MIO
“‘O sole mio” is a famous Italian song from Naples, written in 1898. The song’s lyrics are usually sung in the original Neapolitan, as opposed to Italian. The title translates from Neapolitan into “My Sun” (and not into “O, My Sun” as one might expect). It’s a love song of course, sung by a young man declaring that there is a sun brighter than that in the sky, the sun that is his lover’s face. Awww …

18. Sorbetto alternative GELATO
Gelato is the Italian version of American ice cream, differing in that it has a lower butterfat content than its US counterpart.

“Sorbetto” is the Italian name for sorbet or sherbert.

20. Blitzes, in old football lingo RED DOGS
The maneuver in American football known as “the blitz” was supposedly first used in 1957 by the San Francisco 49ers. Back in the early sixties, blitzes were called “Red Dogs”, a term coined by 49er announcer Bob Fouts after his Irish Setter pet dog.

22. RSA neighbor, in the Olympics ZIM
The country now known as Zimbabwe started out as a British colony called Southern Rhodesia, named after Cecil Rhodes the British empire builder.

The Republic of South Africa (RSA)

23. Grizzlies, in Granada OSOS
In Spanish, “osa” is a female bear, and “oso” is a male.

26. “He who hath many friends hath __”: Aristotle NONE
Aristotle was actually a student of Plato in Ancient Greece (and in turn, Plato was a student of Socrates). Aristotle’s most famous student was Alexander the Great.

29. “Crusade in Europe” memoirist, initially DDE
“Crusade in Europe” is a memoir written by Dwight D. Eisenhower that was first published in 1948 when he was Chief of Staff of the Army.

30. “Bouquet of Sunflowers” painter MONET
Claude Monet painted the harbor of Le Havre in the north of France in 1872, giving it the title “Impression, Sunrise”. The painting is not a “realistic” representation of the scene in front of him, hence the name “impression”. It was this very painting that gave rise to the name of the Impressionist movement.

35. Film based on junk science, say SCHLOCKUMENTARY
A film described as a “schlockumentary” is one that purports to be a well-researched documentary but in fact uses perhaps junk science or biased research to make a particular point.

40. Czech sci-fi play RUR
“R.U.R.” is a play written in Czech by Karel Capek, first produced in 1921. “R.U.R.” is a science fiction work and is remembered in part for introducing the world to the word “robot”. The words “automaton” and “android” were already in use, but Capek gave us “robot” from the original Czech “robota” meaning “forced labor”.

48. First Nations tribe CREE
The Cree are one of the largest groups of Native Americans on the continent. In the US most of the Cree nation live in Montana on a reservation shared with the Ojibwe people. In Canada most of the Cree live in Manitoba.

49. Skirts that come in bell and pancake styles TUTUS
The word “tutu”, used for a ballet dancer’s skirt, is actually a somewhat “naughty” term. It came into English from French in the early 20th century. The French “tutu” is an alteration of the word “cucu”, a childish word for “cul” meaning the “bottom,” or “backside”.

52. Rx instruction TID
“Ter” is the Latin word for “three”, commonly used in the medical world on prescriptions as part of the expression “ter in die”. “Ter in die” is Latin for “three times a day”, abbreviated to “TID”. “Bis in die” (BID) would be twice a day, and “quater in die” (QID) would be four times a day.

Down
1. Mingle (with) HOBNOB
The term “hobnob” dates back to the mid 1700s, and is derived from “hob and nob”, a phrase meaning to toast each other in turn, or to buy alternate rounds of drinks.

2. 1992 Dream Team chant USA! USA!
In 1989, the International Basketball Federation changed its rule requiring amateur status for participants in the Olympic Games (although prior to the ruling, European and South American professionals could play). So the US was able to field the “Dream Team” at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Since the rules changed, the US won gold in four out of the five Olympic tournaments.

3. Cambodian leader ousted by the Khmer Rouge LON NOL
Lon Nol was a soldier and politician in Cambodia, later serving twice as the country’s president. When the Khmer Rouge took over Cambodia in 1975, Nol escaped the country to Indonesia. He eventually found a home in Fullerton, California, where he died in 1985.

4. City pol. ALD
The term “alderman” comes from English law, and is used for a member of a municipal assembly or council. In some locations in the US some cities have a Board of Aldermen instead of a city council.

6. Exeunt __: stage direction OMNES
“Exeunt omnes” is a stage direction instructing everyone on stage to exit. The term translates from Latin as “they all go out”.

11. Cipher NIL
The word “cipher” can be used for a person with no influence, a nonentity. The term comes from the Arabic “sifr” meaning “zero”. So, a cipher is a big nothing.

12. Vast rainforest AMAZONIA
The Amazon rainforest is the world’s largest, 1.4 billion acres of rainforest that includes territory in nine different countries in South America. Those 1.4 billion acres represent more than half of the rainforest that’s left on the planet.

13. Bounty rebel MUTINEER
Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall wrote “Mutiny on the ‘Bounty'”, based on a true story. They followed up their successful novel with two more works, creating what is now called the “Bounty Trilogy”. The three books are:

1. “Mutiny on the ‘Bounty'”, the tale of the mutiny against Captain Bligh.
2. “Men Against the Sea”, the story of Captain Bligh and the eighteen men set adrift in an open boat by the mutineers.
3. “Pitcairn’s Island”, a narrative about the lives of the mutineers on South Sea islands after the mutiny.

21. Concert hall ODEUM
In Ancient Greece an odeon (also odeum) was like a small theater, with “odeon” literally meaning a “building for musical competition”. Odea were used in both Greece and Rome for entertainments such as musical shows and poetry readings.

26. Medicine show elixir NOSTRUM
“Nostrum” is an old Latin term for patent medicine, compounds sold as cures but that have no efficacy.

28. Refuse DROSS
When metals are smelted, there is a scum made up of impurities that floats on the surface of the molten metal. This scum is called “dross” and is drawn off and discarded. The term “dross” then came to mean any waste or impure matter.

32. Old coin with an accented first letter ECU
The écu was an Old French coin. When introduced in 1640, the écu was worth three livres (an older coin, called a “pound” in English). The word “écu ” comes from the Latin “scutum” meaning “shield”. The original écu had a coat of arms on it, a shield.

36. Licorice stick in a pit CLARINET
“Licorice stick” is a slang term for a clarinet, presumably because it is long and dark and is put in the mouth …

38. Brat topper KRAUT
“Sauerkraut” translates from German as “sour herb” or “sour cabbage”. During WWI, American sauerkraut producers changed its name in order to distance their product from “the enemy”. They called it “Liberty cabbage”.

50. Prefix in a Dow trademark STYRO-
Styrofoam is an extruded polystyrene foam made by The Dow Chemical Company. Styrofoam has loads of applications, including home insulation and use as a buoyancy aid.

54. “Contact” acronym SETI
SETI is the name given to a number of projects that are searching for extraterrestrial life. The acronym stands for “search for extraterrestrial intelligence”. One of the main SETI activities is the monitoring of electromagnetic radiation (such as radio waves) reaching the Earth in the hope of finding a transmission from a civilization in another world.

“Contact” is a sci-fi novel by Carl Sagan that was first published in 1985. Sagan had written “Contact” originally as a screenplay in 1979, but when plans for the film stalled, Sagan decided to go ahead and create the novel. An excellent film did eventually hit the theaters in 1997, and starred Jodie Foster.

57. Baseball’s Bando SAL
Sal Bando is a former Major League Baseball player and baseball executive.

59. Oporto-to-Lisbon direção SUL
“Sul” is Portuguese for “south”.

The city of Oporto in Portugal gave its name to port wine in the late 1600s, as it was the seaport through which most of the region’s fortified wine was exported.

Lisbon is the capital of Portugal. Lisbon is the westernmost capital city in Europe, and indeed is the westernmost large city on the continent. It is also the oldest city in Western Europe and is hundreds of years older than London, Paris and Rome.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Onetime college All-Star football game HULA BOWL
9. “Hasn’t scratched yet!” cleanser BON AMI
15. Song played at the 1920 Olympics when music for the Italian national anthem could not be found O SOLE MIO
16. Enmity ANIMUS
17. Colorful headwear BANDANNA
18. Sorbetto alternative GELATO
19. Sister NUN
20. Blitzes, in old football lingo RED DOGS
22. RSA neighbor, in the Olympics ZIM
23. Grizzlies, in Granada OSOS
25. Not at all swank SEEDY
26. “He who hath many friends hath __”: Aristotle NONE
27. Did some farm work BALED
29. “Crusade in Europe” memoirist, initially DDE
30. “Bouquet of Sunflowers” painter MONET
31. Have a life ARE
33. More unsettled QUEASIER
35. Film based on junk science, say SCHLOCKUMENTARY
39. Delight PLEASURE
40. Czech sci-fi play RUR
41. Pulls down EARNS
42. Fire proof ASH
44. Like infant fingers PUDGY
48. First Nations tribe CREE
49. Skirts that come in bell and pancake styles TUTUS
51. Insignificant MERE
52. Rx instruction TID
53. Pros ARTISTS
55. Decline SAG
56. Strand, in a way ENISLE
58. “Absolutely!” OH YES I DO!
60. Wrap again, as an ankle RETAPE
61. Cared for NURTURED
62. Cut and dried? STYLED
63. Premature plot giveaways, e.g. SPOILERS

Down
1. Mingle (with) HOBNOB
2. 1992 Dream Team chant USA! USA!
3. Cambodian leader ousted by the Khmer Rouge LON NOL
4. City pol. ALD
5. Support BEAR
6. Exeunt __: stage direction OMNES
7. Breathless WINDED
8. Biased interview features LOADED QUESTIONS
9. Like some jeans BAGGY
10. People ONES
11. Cipher NIL
12. Vast rainforest AMAZONIA
13. Bounty rebel MUTINEER
14. Equality of measure ISOMETRY
21. Concert hall ODEUM
24. Pirate’s hunting ground SEA LANE
26. Medicine show elixir NOSTRUM
28. Refuse DROSS
30. Put on one’s big-boy pants MAN UP
32. Old coin with an accented first letter ECU
34. Poetic adverb E’ER
35. Haunting images SPECTERS
36. Licorice stick in a pit CLARINET
37. Trait determinant HEREDITY
38. Brat topper KRAUT
43. Keep under wraps HUSH UP
45. Really fancy DESIRE
46. Teacher, during exam week GRADER
47. “Mercy me!” YE GODS!
49. Stuck up? TREED
50. Prefix in a Dow trademark STYRO-
53. Suisse peak ALPE
54. “Contact” acronym SETI
57. Baseball’s Bando SAL
59. Oporto-to-Lisbon direção SUL

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