LA Times Crossword Answers 9 Apr 16, Saturday

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Ed Sessa
THEME: None
BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 12m 19s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 2 … HOT (hop!!!), RAT-A-TAT-TAT (rat-a-tap-tat!!!)

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

5. JFK Library architect PEI
The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library is a splendid structure located right beside the Boston campus of the University of Massachusetts. President Kennedy chose the location for his library just one week before he was assassinated. The library itself was designed by architect I. M. Pei.

8. “The Well-Tempered Clavier” composer JS BACH
J. S. Bach composed a set of 24 preludes and fugues published as a book in 1722, intended to be used as exercises for students of music. He composed another set of 24 in 1742, and the whole collection is today known as the “Well-Tempered Clavier”, the title of the original book. A “clavier” is a keyboard of a musical instrument.

15. In abundance, in slang UP THE WAZOO
The slang term “up the wazoo” means to have plenty. It’s pretty vulgar slang and is a specific anatomical reference so I don’t think it belongs in the crossword myself …

17. Data lead-in META-
“Metadata” is usually defined as “data about data”. The classic example is the card catalog of a library. The catalog is a set of data about a collection of books. Each entry in the catalog is data about a specific publication.

18. Flowerlike marine creature SEA ANEMONE
The name “anemone” means “daughter of the wind” in Greek, and at one time it was believed that the wind was what actually caused the flower to bloom. The sea anemone is named for the terrestrial plant even though it isn’t a plant at all. The sea anemone is a predatory animal found on the ocean floor.

19. Latin 101 word ERAT
“Esse” is the Latin for “to be”. “Sum” means “I am” and “erat” means “he, she was”.

20. Bear’s call SELL!
The terms “bull” and “bear” markets come from the way in which each animal attacks. A bull thrusts his horns upwards (an “up” market), whereas a bear swipes with his paws downward (a “down” market).

34. Ammo for Moe PIES
Moe Howard, of the Three Stooges, was an expert at tossing a pie in someone’s ace.

36. Peloponnesian War side SPARTA
Sparta was a city-state in ancient Greece, famous for her military might. Spartan children had a tough upbringing, and newborn babies were bathed in wine to see if the child was strong enough to survive. Every child was presented to a council of elders that decided if the baby was suitable for rearing. Those children deemed too puny were executed by tossing them into a chasm. We’ve been using the term “spartan” to describe something self-disciplined or austere since the 1600s.

The Peloponnesian War was fought from 431 to 404 BC between the Athenian Empire and the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. Prior to the war, Athens was the strongest city-state in Greece. After the victory by the Peloponnesian League, Sparta emerged as the leading power.

41. “Downton Abbey” title EARL
In the incredibly successful period drama “Downton Abbey”, the patriarch of the family living at Downton is Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham or Lord Grantham. The character is played by Hugh Bonneville. Lord Grantham married American Cora Levinson (played by Elizabeth McGovern. Lord and Lady Grantham had three daughters, and no son. The lack of a male heir implied that the Grantham estate would pass to a male cousin, and out of the immediate family. The Grantham daughters are Lady Mary (played by Michelle Dockery), Lady Edith (played by Laura Carmichael) and Lady Sybil (played by Jessica Brown Findlay). Lady Sybil had the audacity to marry the family chauffeur, an Irish nationalist. The shame of it all …

42. “City of the Beasts” author Allende ISABEL
Isabel Allende is a Chilean writer, apparently the world’s most widely-read, Spanish-language author. Isabel is related to Salvador Allende, the ex-President of Chile.

46. Tommy Pickles’ younger brother on “Rugrats” DIL
Tommy Pickles is the protagonist on the Nickelodeon cartoon show “Rugrats”. Dil Pickles is Tommy’s younger brother.

47. Vitamin A form RETINOL
Retinol is a form of vitamin A. Retinol helps keep skin healthy.

49. Infect with the T-virus, in “Resident Evil” films ZOMBIFY
A zombie is a corpse that has been brought back to life by some mystical means. Our modern use of the term largely stems from the undead creatures featured in the 1968 horror movie called “Night of the Living Dead”. Now that film, I haven’t seen and probably never will …

“Resident Evil” is a whole media franchise spawned from a video game that was launched in 1996. Now there are films, comic books, novels and more games. The series originated in Japan, although over the series goes by the name of “Biohazard”.

53. Melody and Millie, to Minnie Mouse NIECES
Minnie Mouse is the son of farmer Marcus Mouse. Two of her grandparents are Marshal Mouse and Matilda Mouse. Minnie also has an Uncle Mortimer Mouse, as well as twin nieces Millie and Melody Mouse. Minnie’s boyfriend is Mickey Mouse.

54. Earth pigment OCHRE
“Ochre” is often spelled “ocher” in the US (it’s “ochre” where I come from). Ocher is a light, yellowy-brown color, although variations of the pigment are possible such as red ocher and purple ocher.

58. Jargon CANT
“Cant” is insincere language, or the language associated with a particularly group. Back in the 1600s, the term described the whining of beggars.

“Jargon” can mean nonsensical and meaningless talk, or the specialized language of a particular group, trade or profession. The term is Old French, with the more usual meaning of “a chattering”. How apt …

60. Wood strip LATH
The words “lath” and “lattice” have the same root in Old French. Laths are thin strips of wood that are nailed across a frame forming a backing to which plaster can be applied to finish a wall. The term is also used for the main elements in a trellis, or the lengths of wood in a roof to which shingles are nailed.

61. Focus of 1972 environmental legislation CLEAN WATER
The main legislation governing water pollution in the US is the Clean Water Act (CWA), which became law in 1972.

64. “Yikes!” HOLY TOLEDO!
The origin of the term “Holy Toledo!” is much debated. My favorite story is that it comes from the days of Vaudeville. Back then the week before Easter, known as Holy Week, was the worst week at the box office. Old Vaudeville entertainers used to quip that any week in Toledo was Holy Week, that ticket sales were always bad there. They referred to the city as “Holy Toledo”.

67. High-speed letters DSL
The abbreviation “DSL” originally stood for Digital Subscriber Loop, but is now accepted to mean (Asymmetric) Digital Subscriber Line. DSL is the technology that allows Internet service be delivered down the same telephone line as voice service, by separating the two into different frequency signals.

Down
1. Clothing material for John the Baptist CAMEL’S HAIR
According to the Gospel of Matthew in the King James Bible:

And the same John (the Baptist) had his raiment
of camel’s hair, and a leathern
girdle about his loins; and his
meat was locusts and wild honey.

John the Baptist is regarded by some Christians as the forerunner of Jesus. Early in his life, Jesus was a disciple or follower of John, and is was John who baptized Jesus.

2. Marx Brothers setting OPERA HOUSE
“A Night at the Opera” is a 1935 Marx Brothers film that was the first movie in which Chico, Harpo and Groucho appeared without their brother Zeppo. “A Night at the Opera” is really great entertainment!

5. Catkin bearer PUSSY WILLOW
Pussy Willow is the name given to small willow and sallow shrubs, but only when their furry catkins are young in early spring. The flowering shoots of pussy willow are used as substitutes for palm branches on Palm Sunday in regions too far north for palms to grow.

6. Near-pointless swordplay? EPEE
The épée that is used in today’s sport fencing is derived from the old French dueling sword. In fact, the the sport of épée fencing is very similar to dueling of the 19th century. The word “épée” translates from French as “sword”.

7. Romans and countrymen: Abbr. ITALS
Italians (Itals.)

8. Brad’s ex JEN
Jennifer Aniston won a 2002 Emmy for playing Rachel on the great sitcom “Friends”. Jennifer’s parents are both actors, and her godfather is the actor Telly Savalas.

Brad Pitt’s first major role was the cowboy hitchhiker in the 1991’s “Thelma and Louise”. Pitt’s life offscreen garners as much attention as his work onscreen, it seems. The tabloids revel in the series of high-profile relationships in which he has been involved. He was engaged to Gwyneth Paltrow for a while, married to Jennifer Aniston, and he now lives with Angelina Jolie.

10. 2016 College Football Playoff champ BAMA
The athletic teams of the University of Alabama (“Bama”) are nicknamed the Crimson Tide, a reference to the team colors of crimson and white.

11. Sea of __, south of Ukraine AZOV
The Sea of Azov lies east of the Crimean Peninsula and is linked to the larger Black Sea via the narrow Strait of Kerch. The Sea of Azov is the shallowest sea in the world, with the depth never going above forty-six feet.

Ukraine is a large country in Eastern Europe, a Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR) before the dissolution of the USSR. In English we often call the country “the” Ukraine, but I am told that we should just say “Ukraine”.

16. Immortal Bears coach HALAS
The NFL’s George Stanley Halas, Sr. was nicknamed “Papa Bear”. He also earned the well-deserved nickname of “Mr Everything” as he was a player, coach, inventor, jurist, producer, philanthropist, philatelist and NFL owner. He led the Chicago Bears from 1921 to 1967.

29. Singer Carly __ Jepsen RAE
Carly Rae Jepsen is a singer/songwriter from Mission, British Columbia. Jepsen got her start on TV’s “Canadian Idol” when she placed third in the show’s fifth season.

32. You can count on it TALLY SHEET
Back in the mid-1600s, a “tally” was a stick marked with notches that tracked how much one owed or paid. The term came from the Latin “talea” meaning “stick, rod”.

35. Flier to Sundsvall SAS
SAS was formerly known as Scandinavian Airlines System and is the flag carrier of three countries: Denmark, Norway and Sweden. SAS is based at Stockholm Arlanda Airport located just north of the Swedish capital.

Sundsvall is a city on the east coast of Sweden, sitting on the Gulf of Bothnia. The city has burned to the ground four times in all, with the last fire in 1888 being the biggest fire in the history of the country. As a result of this last fire, the city was built with buildings made from stone. It’s no wonder then that Sundsvall has the nickname “the Stone City”.

38. Eastern sash OBI
The sash worn as part of traditional Japanese dress is known as an obi. The obi can be tied in what is called a butterfly knot.

40. Loadable confections PEZ
PEZ is an Austrian brand name for a particular candy sold in a mechanical dispenser. Famously, PEZ dispensers have molded “heads”, and have become very collectible over the years. The list of heads includes historical figures like Betsy Ross and Paul Revere, characters from “Star Wars” and “Star Trek”, and even British royalty like the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (“William and Kate”). The name PEZ comes from the first, middle and last letters of “Pfefferminz”, the German word for “peppermint”.

43. International accord ENTENTE
An “entente cordiale” (sometimes just “entente”) is a friendly understanding, usually between two nations. The term, which translates from French as “cordial agreement”, was first used to describe a set of agreements between the UK and France that were put in place 1904.

45. “More than I care to know” TMI
Too much information! (TMI)

48. Subway option LOCAL
Local trains may stop at every station.

50. Guy de Maupassant novel BEL AMI
“Bel Ami” is an 1885 novel by French author Guy de Maupassant. The title translates as “Nice Friend”, although a 1903 translation of the novel is titled “Bel Ami, or, The History of a Scoundrel”.

52. Stuffed SATED
“Sate” is a variant of the older word “satiate”. Both terms can mean either to satisfy an appetite fully, or to eat to excess.

54. “Draft Dodger Rag” folk singer OCHS
Phil Ochs was an American protest singer who was active in the days of the Vietnam War. Sadly, the singer’s mental health declined at the very time the war was winding down. Saigon fell in 1975, and Ochs committed suicide in 1976.

57. Comical Martha RAYE
Martha Raye was a comic actress as well as a singer. Strangely enough, Raye was famous for the size of her mouth, something that she used to her own advantage. As her nickname was “The Big Mouth”, she made a little money appearing in commercials for the Polident denture cleaner in the eighties. Her line was, “So take it from the Big Mouth: new Polident Green gets tough stains clean!”

59. “__ Declassified School Survival Guide”: 2000s Nickelodeon sitcom NED’S
“Ned’s Declassified School Survival Guide” is a sitcom for children that originally aired on Nickelodeon from 2004 to 2007.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Heart CORE
5. JFK Library architect PEI
8. “The Well-Tempered Clavier” composer JS BACH
14. “C’mon, be __!” A PAL
15. In abundance, in slang UP THE WAZOO
17. Data lead-in META-
18. Flowerlike marine creature SEA ANEMONE
19. Latin 101 word ERAT
20. Bear’s call SELL!
21. Worked on the road PAVED
22. Nowadays LATELY
24. Mine yield SALT
26. Tails SHADOWS
28. Most lemony SOUREST
33. Word with air or bed HOT
34. Ammo for Moe PIES
36. Peloponnesian War side SPARTA
37. One on a lot AUTO
39. Didn’t reach logically, with “to” LEAPT
41. “Downton Abbey” title EARL
42. “City of the Beasts” author Allende ISABEL
44. Dissenting group SECT
46. Tommy Pickles’ younger brother on “Rugrats” DIL
47. Vitamin A form RETINOL
49. Infect with the T-virus, in “Resident Evil” films ZOMBIFY
51. Things that come in pairs TWOS
53. Melody and Millie, to Minnie Mouse NIECES
54. Earth pigment OCHRE
58. Jargon CANT
60. Wood strip LATH
61. Focus of 1972 environmental legislation CLEAN WATER
63. Stub __ A TOE
64. “Yikes!” HOLY TOLEDO!
65. No more than MERE
66. Bad temper SPLEEN
67. High-speed letters DSL
68. Ain’t right? ISN’T

Down
1. Clothing material for John the Baptist CAMEL’S HAIR
2. Marx Brothers setting OPERA HOUSE
3. Rapping sound RAT-A-TAT-TAT
4. Carried away ELATED
5. Catkin bearer PUSSY WILLOW
6. Near-pointless swordplay? EPEE
7. Romans and countrymen: Abbr. ITALS
8. Brad’s ex JEN
9. Suddenly involved (in) SWEPT UP
10. 2016 College Football Playoff champ BAMA
11. Sea of __, south of Ukraine AZOV
12. Ice cream parlor purchase CONE
13. Worked in a bed HOED
16. Immortal Bears coach HALAS
23. Prune LOP
25. Went ballistic LOST CONTROL
27. Get it SEE
29. Singer Carly __ Jepsen RAE
30. Uproots ERADICATES
31. In a state of endless conflict STRIFE-TORN
32. You can count on it TALLY SHEET
35. Flier to Sundsvall SAS
38. Eastern sash OBI
40. Loadable confections PEZ
43. International accord ENTENTE
45. “More than I care to know” TMI
48. Subway option LOCAL
50. Guy de Maupassant novel BEL AMI
52. Stuffed SATED
54. “Draft Dodger Rag” folk singer OCHS
55. Western sound effect CLOP
56. Inferno HELL
57. Comical Martha RAYE
59. “__ Declassified School Survival Guide”: 2000s Nickelodeon sitcom NED’S
62. Persuaded, with “over” WON

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10 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 9 Apr 16, Saturday”

  1. 1 error. Needed 68-Across to finish the very bottom corner of the grid in that area.

  2. This went together pretty easily, especially for a Saturday. Really didn't get stuck anywhere. I know I'll pay for my hubris next week, but I'm going to enjoy this feeling of triumph while I can!

    Hope you all have a great weekend. I'll see if I can't get to the Sunday grid on a more timely basis so I can chime in with the other big grid solvers tomorrow.

  3. I stuck with it.
    One blank CA?T/?EDS and one wrong SiLT/HALiS.
    Yeah, back to the old SILT mines. Sheesh.

    Let's see what tomorrow brings.

  4. @Glenn – I don't know if you found the time for the Saturday WSJ "Big Grid" by Mike Shenk today or not, but I just finished it. On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being most difficult for my puzzle solving ability I give it a 6.5. I finally got the theme which really helped me solve this thing.

  5. I don't see an explanation for 66 across. I'm unfamiliar with a bad temper and spleen. I would appreciate your insight!

  6. @Becca

    "Spleen" is another word for "bad temper" or "spite", as illustrated in the dictionary. Used in a sentence: Given his passions in politics, he never failed to vent his spleen when he had the opportunity.

    @Tony

    I usually do, it's usually between that one and Birnholz's grid (the only two that come out in .puz that I have, so how I do them kind of vary), after I finish the LA Times one – and one or the other is usually the toughest 21×21 I get for the week, unless I get the Sunday paper with the NYT grid in it. While I got the theme idea down, the execution of it is a bit dodgy, as are some of the clues. 3 errors so far, but haven't finished the grid yet either.

  7. @Glenn – If you want a "clue" to the theme answers let me know. I never even give clues unless someone wants them in advance (NO SPOILERS!)…

  8. Whoo hoo, finished, without errors, only my second Saturday. I'm so happy. I guess I'm entitled to be mildly smug for a few hours.

    -Dirk

  9. @Tony I looked up the two older actors so I could at least see the movie that was being hinted at in each of the clues. Doing the grid with Across Lite (.puz) will also offer hints and check the grid. 9 or so errors total when I got done.

    I'll see how the other 21x21s do tomorrow, I'm certain.

  10. HEY!! COMPLETED THIS ONE ERROR FREE!! MY FIRST SATURDAY!! Which means, Dirk, you're still ahead of me, but this here is my new personal best. Color me smug!
    @Pookie I also wasn't sure about that "N." Didn't know CANT could mean jargon, but I figure NED'S is as good a name as any, for a show I've never heard of.
    The long answers seemed pretty easy for a Saturday. And I had Scott JOPLIN before JS BACH, but I figured it out…
    I guess I'm getting better at these things! Half the time I don't even make an effort on a Saturday, but now I guess I'll have to… :-
    Sweet dreams~~™

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