LA Times Crossword Answers 24 Oct 14, Friday

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Bruce Haight
THEME: Latin Phrases and Letters … each of today’s themed answers is a common Latin phrase used in English, but with an extra added to suit the wacky clue:

17A. Latin for “big idiot”? MAGNUM DOPUS (“magnum opus” plus “D”)
23A. Latin for “holding a grudge for a long, long time”? MAD INFINITUM (“ad infinitum” plus “M”)
38A. Latin for “fighting over parking spots is not allowed”? NO LOT CONTENDERE (“nolo contendere” plus “T”)
47A. Latin for “cheating on one’s timecard”? TEMPUS FUDGIT (“tempus fugit” plus D)
59A. Latin for “fish trading”? SQUID PRO QUO (“quid pro quo” plus S)

BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 10m 19s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

1. Critters who worshiped C-3PO as a god EWOKS
The Ewoks are creatures who live on the moon of Endor, first appearing in “Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi”. They’re the cute and cuddly little guys that look like teddy bears.

C-3PO, Threepio for short, is the “protocol droid” that appears in all six “Star Wars” movies.

6. Penicillin precursor SULFA
“Sulfa drug” is a common term for sulphonamides. Many sulfa drugs have antibacterial properties, and were the first antimicrobial drugs developed. The first sulphonamide introduced to treat bacterial infections was named Prontosil, and was developed by Bayer AG in Germany.

11. Like Beethoven’s Second Symphony IN D
If I had to name which of Beethoven’s symphonies I listen to most often, at the top of the list comes the 7th followed closely by the 9th, and then the 5th a little further down. But that four-note opening of the 5th … that is superb …

15. Central Florida city OCALA
The city of Ocala, Florida was founded near a historic village with the same name. In the local Timucua language “Ocala” means “Big Hammock”. Back in the 1890s, Ocala was famous for its oranges, with over one third of that fruit shipped from Florida coming from the city. Also, thoroughbred horse farming in Florida started in Ocala, back in 1943. Some folks today call Ocala the “Horse Capital of the World”, but I bet that’s disputed by others …

16. Wild West MAE
Comic actress Mae West can be quoted so easily, as she had so many great lines delivered so well. Here are a few:

• When I’m good, I’m very good. When I’m bad, I’m better.
• When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I’ve never tried before.
• I’ll try anything once, twice if I like it, three times to make sure.
• Marriage is a great institution, but I’m not ready for an institution yet.
• I used to be Snow White, but I drifted.
• Why don’t you come on up and see me sometime — when I’ve got nothin’ on but the radio.
• When women go wrong, men go right after them.
• To err is human, but it feels divine.
• I like my clothes to be tight enough to show I’m a woman, but loose enough to show I’m a lady.
• I never worry about diets. The only carrots that interest me are the number you get in a diamond.
• Is that a gun in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?

17. Latin for “big idiot”? MAGNUM DOPUS (“magnum opus” plus “D”)
“Magnum opus” is a Latin term meaning “great work”. The magnum opus of a writer or composer perhaps, is his or her greatest work.

19. “Certainement!” OUI!
In French, an emphatic “yes” (oui) might be said as “certainly!” (certainement!).

20. Blotter letters AKA
Also known as (aka)

A police blotter is (or used to be) a daily record of arrests made.

21. Good, in Genoa BUONO
Genoa is a seaport in the very north of Italy, in the region known as Liguria. One of Genoa’s most famous sons was Christopher Columbus.

23. Latin for “holding a grudge for a long, long time”? MAD INFINITUM (“ad infinitum” plus “D”)
“Ad infinitum” is a Latin phrase that we use in English to mean “endlessly”. A literal translation is “to infinity”.

26. Classic pops NEHIS
The brand of Nehi cola has a name that sounds like “knee-high”, a measure of a small stature. Back in the mid-1900’s, the Chero-Cola company that owned the brand went for a slightly different twist on “knee-high” in advertising. The logo for Nehi was an image of a seated woman’s stockinged legs, with her skirt pulled up to her knees, to hint at “knee-high”.

29. Charles of old mysteries NORA
High on the list of my favorite movies of all time is “The Thin Man” series starring William Powell and the incredibly attractive Myrna Loy. Powell and Loy played the characters Nick and Nora Charles. The film series is based on “The Thin Man” novel by Dashiell Hammett.

31. Steam table fuel STERNO
Sterno is a very useful product, a “jellied alcohol” that usually comes in a can. The can is opened and the contents burn very easily and persistently. The brand name “Sterno” comes from the original manufacturer, S. Sternau & Co. of Brooklyn, New York.

A steam table is an array of stainless steel containers in which food is kept warm using steam from hot water located below.

35. “Good” cholesterol initials HDL
HDL (high-density lipoprotein) is a compound that is used to transport fats around the body. When HDL is combined with (i.e. is transporting) cholesterol, it is often called “good cholesterol”. This is because HDL seems to remove cholesterol from where it should not be, say on the walls of arteries, and transports it to the liver for reuse or disposal. Important stuff …

LDL (low-density lipoprotein) is one of the compounds responsible for transporting fats around the body. When LDL is combined with cholesterol it can be referred to as “bad cholesterol”. This is because LDL actually transports cholesterol into the inner walls of blood vessels leading to atherosclerosis.

38. Latin for “fighting over parking spots is not allowed”? NO LOT CONTENDERE (“nolo contendere” plus “T”)
“Nolo contendere” is a legal term that translates from Latin as “I do not wish to contend”. It’s the plea of “no contest” and is an alternative to “guilty” or “not guilty”, meaning that one doesn’t admit guilt but nor does one dispute the charge.

41. Adams of “The Muppets” AMY
Amy Adams is an American actress. although she was actually born in Vicenza, Italy while her father was a US serviceman stationed on an Italian base. My favorite Amy Adams film so far is the outstanding “Julie & Julia” in which she acted alongside Meryl Streep. I highly recommend this truly delightful movie.

“The Muppets” is a 2011 film starring Jason Segel and Amy Adams. It was the first “Muppet” film to be released after a hiatus of twelve years, with a sequel coming out in 2014.

43. Turkmenistan neighbor IRAN
The countries of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Pakistan lie along Iran’s north and eastern borders.

46. “Choose taste” sauce brand PREGO
The Prego brand of pasta sauce is owned by the Campbell Soup Company. It is actually based on the family recipe of one of the company’s chefs. “Prego” literally means “I pray” in Italian, but it translates in English best as “you’re welcome” when it is used after a “thank you” (“grazie”, in Italian).

47. Latin for “cheating on one’s timecard”? TEMPUS FUDGIT (“tempus fugit” plus D)
“Tempus fugit” is a Latin phrase meaning “time flies”, which we use in English in the same sense. The expression was coined by Roman poet Virgil in his work “Georgics”.

53. Son of Aphrodite EROS
As always seems to be the case with Greek gods, Eros and Aphrodite have overlapping spheres of influence. Aphrodite was the goddess of love between a man and a woman, and Eros was the god who stirred the passions of the male. The Roman equivalent of Aphrodite was Venus, and the equivalent of Eros was Cupid.

54. Cell terminal ANODE
The two terminals of a battery are called the anode and the cathode. Electrons travel from the cathode to the anode creating an electric current in a circuit.

58. Torah holder ARK
The Torah ark is found in a synagogue, and is the ornamental container in which are stored the Torah scrolls. The word “Torah” best translates as “teaching”, I am told.

59. Latin for “fish trading”? SQUID PRO QUO (“quid pro quo” plus S)
“Quid pro quo” is Latin for “something for something”, a swap.

62. Journalist William Shirer’s alma mater COE
Coe College is a private school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa that was founded in 1851. Coe is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church.

William Shirer was a war correspondent who most famously wrote the history of Nazi Germany called “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich”, published in 1960. Shirer reported firsthand from the German lines at the beginning of WWII. He travelled with the German army, through the invasions of Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium and France.

63. Verve GUSTO
“Gusto” is an Italian word meaning “taste”. We use it in the sense of “with gusto”, with great enjoyment.

66. Idée sources TETES
In French, one’s head (tête) might produce an idea (idée).

67. Salon and others EMAGS
Salon.com is a popular online magazine, one of the first “ezines” ever published. “Salon” focuses on American politics and current affairs, but also has articles about books, music and films. The magazine was launched in 1995, and managed to survive many loss-making years. Most of “Salon’s” content is free, but it does make money by offering a premium service with extra content, and by selling ad space.

Down
1. First name in wit ERMA
Erma Bombeck wrote for newspapers for about 35 years, producing more than 4,000 witty and humorous columns describing her home life in suburbia.

3. One of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” OLGA
Olga, Masha and Irina were the “Three Sisters” in the play by Anton Chekhov. The three title characters were inspired by the three Brontë sisters, the English authors.

5. Takes a dive? SCUBAS
The self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA) was co-invented by celebrated French marine explorer Jacques Cousteau.

7. Sch. originally endowed by the Storrs brothers UCONN
The University of Connecticut (UConn) was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, taking its name from the Storrs brothers who donated the land and provided initial funding.

12. Pacific republic near the equator NAURU
Nauru is the world’s smallest island nation, located in the South Pacific 300 km to the east of Kiribati. The island was taken as a colony by Germany in the late 1800s, and came under the administration of Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom after WWI. The Japanese invaded during WWII, but Nauru was one of the islands that was bypassed in the US advance across the Pacific towards Japan. Nauru achieved independence in 1968.

13. Voltaire’s world-view DEISM
Deism (from the Latin “deus” meaning god) is the belief that a supreme being created the universe, a belief based on observation and reason and without the need for faith. Further, a deist does not accept divine intervention, but rather believes that the supreme being, having created the universe, leaves the world to it own devices.

Voltaire was the pen name of French writer and philosopher François-Marie Arouet. He chose the name “Voltaire” as it is an anagram of “Arovet Li”, the Latinized spelling of his family name “Arouet”.

18. Joe with some oomph MUD
It seems that no one really knows why we refer to coffee as “joe”, but we’ve been doing so since early in WWII.

23. Sapporo soup MISO
Miso is the name of the seasoning that makes the soup. Basic miso seasoning is made by fermenting rice, barley and soybeans with salt and a fungus (!) to produce a paste. The paste can be added to stock to make miso soup, or perhaps to flavor tofu.

Sapporo is the fourth largest city in Japan, and lies on the island of Hokkaido. The city and surrounding area was home to the first Olympic Games to be held in Asia, the Winter Games of 1972. For the beer drinkers out there, Sapporo is also home to Sapporo Brewery, with the Sapporo beer being one of the more internationally recognizable.

25. “High __” NOON
I am not a fan of western movies, but “High Noon” works for me. The film has a great cast, with Gary Cooper and Grace Kelly in the lead roles. I suppose I like the film because it doesn’t fit the mold as a typical western with lots of predictable action sequences. That said, when “High Noon” first hit theaters it was not popular with audiences, largely because moviegoers were expecting the formulaic western film. One interesting feature of the storyline is that the sequence of events takes place in approximate real time.

27. Biblical kingdom near the Dead Sea EDOM
Edom is an ancient Iron Age kingdom located in the south of modern-day Jordan. The area is known for its red-colored sandstone, which gave the kingdom its name. The Hebrew word “Edom” translates as “red”.

The Dead Sea is a salt lake that lies over 1,000 feet below sea level in the Middle East. It is one of the saltiest bodies of water in the world, with a salt content that is almost ten times that of the ocean.

31. Glaswegians, e.g. SCOTS
A Glaswegian is someone from Glasgow, Scotland.

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and sits on the River Clyde. Back in the Victorian Era, Glasgow earned a reputation for excellence in shipbuilding and was known as “Second City of the British Empire”. Glasgow shipyards were the birthplaces of such famous vessels as the Lusitania, the Queen Mary and the Queen Elizabeth.

33. Tolkien creature ENT
Ents are those tree-like creatures that live in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth in his series of books “The Lord of the Rings”. “Ent” is an Old English word for “giant”.

37. 2014 Television Academy Hall of Fame inductee LENO
Jay Leno was born James Leno in New Rochelle, New York. Jay’s father was the son of Italian immigrants, and his mother was from Scotland. Leno grew up in Andover, Massachusetts and actually dropped out of school on the advice of a high school guidance counsellor. However, years later he went to Emerson college and earned a Bachelor’s degree in speech therapy. Leno also started a comedy club at Emerson in 1973. Today Jay Leno is a car nut and owns about 200 vehicles of various types. You can check them out on his website: www.jaylenosgarage.com.

47. Emulate Anne Sullivan TEACH
Helen Keller became a noted author despite been deaf and blind, largely through the work of her teacher, Anne Sullivan. Keller was left deaf and blind after an illness (possible meningitis or scarlet fever). when she was about 18 months old. She was to become the first deaf and blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. The relationship between Sullivan and Keller is immortalized in the play and film called “The Miracle Worker”.

49. Gounod opera FAUST
Charles Gounod was a French composer from Paris. Gounod’s most frequently performed work is his setting of the Latin text “Ave Maria”. When Gounod passed away in 1893, two famous French composers attended his funeral service. Camille Saint-Saëns played the organ and Gabriel Fauré conducted the orchestra.

51. Extinct Mauritian birds DODOS
The dodo was a direct relative of the pigeon and dove, although the fully grown dodo was usually three feet tall. One of the reasons the dodo comes to mind when we think of extinction of a species, is that it disappeared not too long ago and humans were the reason for its demise. The dodo lived exclusively on the island of Mauritius and when man arrived, we cut back the forests that were its home. We also introduced domestic animals, such as dogs and pigs, that ransacked the dodo’s nests.

52. Econ. stat GDP
A country’s Gross National Product (GNP) is the value of all services and products produced by its residents in a particular year. GNP includes all production wherever it is in the world, as long as the business is owned by residents of the country concerned. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is different, and is the value of all services and goods produced within the borders of the country for that year.

59. Friday is one: Abbr. SGT
Sgt. Joe Friday may have said “No, ma’am” and “I’m a cop” a lot on “Dragnet”, but he never actually said the oft-quoted “Just the facts, ma’am”.

60. Prov. on the St. Lawrence QUE
The name “Québec” comes from an Algonquin word “kebec” meaning “where the river narrows”. This refers to the area around Quebec City where the St. Lawrence River narrows as it flows through a gap lined by steep cliffs.

61. Electrical unit OHM
The unit of electrical resistance is the ohm (with the symbol omega) named after German physicist Georg Simon Ohm. Ohm was the guy who established experimentally that the amount of current flowing through a circuit is directly proportional to the voltage applied, (V=IR) a relationship that every school kid knows as Ohm’s Law.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Critters who worshiped C-3PO as a god EWOKS
6. Penicillin precursor SULFA
11. Like Beethoven’s Second Symphony IN D
14. Museum piece RELIC
15. Central Florida city OCALA
16. Wild West MAE
17. Latin for “big idiot”? MAGNUM DOPUS (“magnum opus” plus “D”)
19. “Certainement!” OUI!
20. Blotter letters AKA
21. Good, in Genoa BUONO
22. Hides in the closet? FURS
23. Latin for “holding a grudge for a long, long time”? MAD INFINITUM (“ad infinitum” plus “D”)
26. Classic pops NEHIS
29. Charles of old mysteries NORA
30. Bustles ADOS
31. Steam table fuel STERNO
35. “Good” cholesterol initials HDL
38. Latin for “fighting over parking spots is not allowed”? NO LOT CONTENDERE (“nolo contendere” plus “T”)
41. Adams of “The Muppets” AMY
42. Owl, at times HOOTER
43. Turkmenistan neighbor IRAN
44. Where change is welcome SLOT
46. “Choose taste” sauce brand PREGO
47. Latin for “cheating on one’s timecard”? TEMPUS FUDGIT (“tempus fugit” plus D)
53. Son of Aphrodite EROS
54. Cell terminal ANODE
55. Cry made with a raised index finger AHA!
58. Torah holder ARK
59. Latin for “fish trading”? SQUID PRO QUO (“quid pro quo” plus S)
62. Journalist William Shirer’s alma mater COE
63. Verve GUSTO
64. Hefty portion CHUNK
65. Shop door nos. HRS
66. Idée sources TETES
67. Salon and others EMAGS

Down
1. First name in wit ERMA
2. Watery, as a drink WEAK
3. One of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” OLGA
4. Blood KIN
5. Takes a dive? SCUBAS
6. Agreeable words SO DO I
7. Sch. originally endowed by the Storrs brothers UCONN
8. __ luxury LAP OF
9. Viral ailment FLU
10. Remote power sources AAS
11. “See ya!” I’M OUTA HERE!
12. Pacific republic near the equator NAURU
13. Voltaire’s world-view DEISM
18. Joe with some oomph MUD
22. Holiday buy FIR
23. Sapporo soup MISO
24. __ circle INNER
25. “High __” NOON
26. Family nickname NANA
27. Biblical kingdom near the Dead Sea EDOM
28. “Yikes!” HOLY SMOKES!
31. Glaswegians, e.g. SCOTS
32. Furthermore TOO
33. Tolkien creature ENT
34. Series of turns: Abbr. RTE
36. Snoozefest DRAG
37. 2014 Television Academy Hall of Fame inductee LENO
39. Biblical pronoun THOU
40. Gossip DIRT
45. Vinyl spinners LPS
46. Go through PIERCE
47. Emulate Anne Sullivan TEACH
48. Flub ERROR
49. Gounod opera FAUST
50. Form an alliance UNITE
51. Extinct Mauritian birds DODOS
52. Econ. stat GDP
55. Blue hue AQUA
56. Like curtains HUNG
57. NASA go-aheads A-OKS
59. Friday is one: Abbr. SGT
60. Prov. on the St. Lawrence QUE
61. Electrical unit OHM

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