LA Times Crossword Answers 2 Oct 16, Sunday




LA Times Crossword Solution 2 Oct 16







Constructed by: Thomas Bianchi & Patti Varol

Edited by: Rich Norris

Quicklink to a complete list of today’s clues and answers

Quicklink to comments

Theme: Beatles Mash-up

Today’s themed answers are constructed by MASHING UP (linking together) the titles of two BEATLES songs:

  • 27A…Cold War defector’s observation?..”I’M A LOSER” “BACK IN THE USSR”
  • 43A…Promise to the IRS?..”WE CAN WORK IT OUT”, “TAXMAN”
  • 67A…”Please take the van, dear”?..”HONEY DON’T” “DRIVE MY CAR”
  • 90A…Agreement with a Scandinavian furniture maker?..”LET IT BE” “NORWEGIAN WOOD”
  • 108A…Words from the brokenhearted?..”TELL ME WHY” “YOU WON’T SEE ME”

Bill’s time: 17m 49s

Bill’s errors: 0




Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies

Across

13…Chows down..EATS

“Chow” is an American slang term for food that originated in California in the mid-1800s. “Chow” comes from the Chinese pidgin English “chow-chow” meaning “food”.

17…Looie’s underling..NONCOM

A “looie” (lieutenant) has a higher rank than a “noncom” (noncommissioned officer).

19…Mata __..HARI

Mata Hari was the stage name used by Margaretha Geertruida Zella, born in the Netherlands in 1876. After an unsuccessful and somewhat tragic marriage, Zella moved to Paris in 1903 where she struggled to make a living. By 1905 she was working as an exotic dancer and using the name Mata Hari. She was a successful courtesan, notably moving in various circles of high-ranking military officers. She apparently worked as a double agent, both for the French and the Germans. When Mata Hari was accused by the French of passing information to the enemy, she was tried, found guilty and executed by firing squad at the height of WW1, in 1917.

20…Condo, say..UNIT

The terms “condominium” and “apartment” tend to describe the same type of residential property, a private living space with facilities shared with others residing in the same building or complex. The difference is that a condominium is usually owned, and an apartment is rented. At least that’s how it is in the US. The word “condominium” comes from the Latin “com-” (together) and “dominum” (right of ownership).

24…”The Rachel Papers” novelist..AMIS

“The Rachel Papers” is a 1973 novel, the first written by Martin Amis to be published. The title character is the first girlfriend of the novel’s protagonist, an autobiographical character named Charles Highway.

25…Attorney general after William Barr..JANET RENO

Janet Reno was Attorney General of the US from 1993 to 2001. Reno was the person to hold the office second longest, and was our first female Attorney General. In 2002, Reno ran for Governor of Florida but failed to win the Democratic nomination. Thereafter she retired from public life.

William Barr was the US Attorney General for two years in the administration of President George H. W. Bush. When not working, Barr is a very enthusiastic player of the Scottish bagpipes!

27…Cold War defector’s observation?..”I’M A LOSER” “BACK IN THE USSR”

The Beatles song “I’m a Loser” first appeared on the “Beatles for Sale” album in 1964. The first pressing of the album listed the song’s title as “I’m a Losser”. If you have one of those records, I’d say it’s worth a pretty penny …

By the time the Beatles recorded “Back in the U.S.S.R”, they were having a lot of problems working with each other. The song was recorded in 1968, with the band formally dissolving in 1970. Tensions were so great during the recording of “Back in the U.S.S.R” that Ringo Starr actually stormed out saying that he had quit, and the remaining three Beatles made the record without Ringo. Drums were played mainly by Paul McCartney, but there are also drum tracks on the final cut by both George Harrison and John Lennon. Interesting, huh?

30…Physicist Mach..ERNST

The Mach number of a moving object (like say an airplane) is its speed relative to the speed of sound. A plane travelling at Mach 2, for example, is moving at twice the speed of sound. The term “Mach” takes its name from the Austrian physicist Ernst Mach who published a groundbreaking paper in 1877 that even predicted the “sonic boom”.

32…Pommes frites sprinkling..SEL

In French, one might put “sel” (salt) on “pommes frites” (French fries).

33…Shelf-filling bks…OED

The “Oxford English Dictionary” (OED) contains over 300,000 “main” entries and 59 million words in total. The longest entry for one word in the second edition of the OED is the verb “set”. When the third edition was published in 2007, the longest entry for a single word became the verb “put”. Perhaps not surprisingly, the most-quoted author in the OED is William Shakespeare, with his most quoted work being “Hamlet”. The most-quoted female author is George Eliot (aka Mary Ann Evans).

34…Accident initials..EMS

Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

37…Platform for Apple mobile devices..IOS

iOS is what Apple now call their mobile operating system, previously known as iPhone OS.

41…Antique auto..REO

The REO Motor Company was founded by Ransom Eli Olds (hence the name REO). The company made cars, trucks and buses, and was in business from 1905 to 1975 in Lansing, Michigan. Among the company’s most famous models were the REO Royale and the REO Flying Cloud.

43…Promise to the IRS?..”WE CAN WORK IT OUT”, “TAXMAN”

The 1966 Beatles hit “We Can Work It Out” was part of the first record ever to be described as a “double A-side”, and featured alongside “Day Tripper”.

Back in the UK in the seventies, the UK government put in place a progressive tax that topped out at 95% for the super-rich. The band members of the Beatles fell into that tax bracket, so George Harrison wrote a song called “Taxman” that had a lyric “There’s one for you, nineteen for me”. That reference meant that the government took nineteen shillings out of every twenty that the band earned.

52…”You got that right!”..AMEN!

The word “amen” is translated as “so be it”. “Amen” is said to be of Hebrew origin, but it is likely to be also influenced by Aramaic and Arabic.

54…Colorful salamander..NEWT

Salamanders are lizard-like amphibians found in all across the northern hemisphere. They are the only vertebrate animals that can regenerate lost limbs.

57…Dublin-born rocker/activist..BONO

Irish singer Bono is a Dubliner, born Paul David Hewson. As a youth, Hewson was given the nickname “Bono Vox” by a friend, a Latin expression meaning “good voice”, and so the singer has been known as Bono since the late seventies. His band’s first name was “Feedback”, later changed to “The Hype”. The band members searched for yet another name and chose U2 from a list of six names suggested by a friend. They picked U2 because it was the name they disliked least …

59…”Fantastic!”..BRAVO!

To express appreciation for a male performer at an operatic performance, traditionally one calls out “bravo!”. Appreciation for a female performer is shown by using “brava!”, and for more than one performer by using “bravi!”

62…Volvo competitor..SAAB

SAAB stands for Svenska Aeroplan AB, which translates into English as Swedish Aeroplane Limited. SAAB was, and still is, mainly an aircraft manufacturer. If you take small hops in Europe you might find yourself on a SAAB passenger plane. The SAAB automotive division was acquired by General Motors in the year 2000, who then sold it to a Dutch concern in 2010. However, SAAB (automotive) finally went bankrupt in 2011. A Chinese consortium purchased the assets of SAAB Automotive in 2012, and so SAAB vehicles are in production again. The new vehicles are using the SAAB name, but cannot use the SAAB griffin logo, the rights to which have been retained by the mother company.

Volvo is a Swedish manufacturers of cars, trucks and construction equipment. The Volvo name was chosen as “volvo” is Latin for “I roll”.

64…Holiday evergreen..FIR

The custom of decorating trees at Christmas seems to have originated in Renaissance Germany. Those first trees were placed in guildhalls and were decorated with sweets and candy for the apprentices and children. After the Protestant Reformation, the Christmas tree became an alternative in Protestant homes for the Roman Catholic Christmas cribs. The Christmas tree tradition was imported into Britain by the royal family because of its German heritage. That tradition spread from Britain into North America.

66…Entomologist’s tool..NET

Entomology is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of insects. The etymology of “entomology” (!) is the Greek “entomon” (meaning “insect”) and “logia” (meaning “study of”). In turn, the Greek word “entomos” for insect is literal translation into Greek of “having a notch or cut”, in deference to the observation by Aristotle that insects have segmented bodies.

67…”Please take the van, dear”?..”HONEY DON’T” “DRIVE MY CAR”

“Honey Don’t” is a Carl Perkins song, released in 1956 as the B-side of his hit “Blue Suede Shoes” (covered by Elvis Presley). “Honey Don’t” was also covered by many artists, most famously by the Beatles in 1964.

“Drive My Car” is a Beatles song released in 1965. Written mainly by Paul McCartney, the song is narrated by a young man who is offered a job as a chauffeur by a woman who thinks she is going to be a movie star. By the end of the song, we learn that she hasn’t got a car.

72…Netizen’s guffaw..LOL

A netizen is an “Internet citizen”, someone with a presence on the Internet.

73…Agnus __..DEI

“Agnus Dei” is Latin for “Lamb of God”, a term used in Christian faiths for Jesus Christ, symbolizing his role as a sacrificial offering to atone for the sins of man.

75…”Gladiator” setting..ARENA

“Gladiator” is an epic drama film released in 2000 starring Russell Crowe and directed by Ridley Scott. Veteran British actor Oliver Reed played a supporting role, the final performance before his death. In fact, Reed died before all of his scenes had been shot, requiring the use of a CGI body double and changes in the script for completion of the film.

76…Traveler’s aid..ATLAS

The famous Flemish geographer Gerardus Mercator published his first collection of maps in 1578. Mercator’s collection contained a frontispiece with an image of Atlas the Titan from Greek mythology holding up the world on his shoulders. That image gave us our term “atlas”.

78…Druid, for one..CELT

Druids were priests of Celtic Europe during the Iron Age.

80…Formerly, formerly..ERST

“Erst” is an archaic way of saying “formerly, before the present time”. The term is mostly seen as part of the word “erstwhile”, an adjective meaning “of times past”.

81…Pizza Quick sauce brand..RAGU

The Ragú brand of pasta sauce is owned by Unilever. The name ” Ragù” is the Italian word for a sauce used to dress pasta, however the spelling is off a little. In Italian the word is “Ragù” with a grave accent over the “u”, but if you look at a jar of the sauce on the supermarket shelf it is spelled “Ragú” on the label, with an acute accent. Sometimes I think we just don’t try …

89…Creator of a cocky hare..AESOP

The Tortoise and the Hare is perhaps the most famous fable attributed to Aesop. The cocky hare takes a nap during a race against the tortoise, and the tortoise sneaks past the finish line for the win while his speedier friend is sleeping.

90…Agreement with a Scandinavian furniture maker?..”LET IT BE” “NORWEGIAN WOOD”

“Let It Be” was the last album that the Beatles released as an active group playing together. The title song “Let It Be” was written by Paul McCartney, and it is clearly one of his own favorites. McCartney says that he was inspired to write the song after having had a dream about his mother (who had died some years earlier from cancer). In fact he refers to her (Mary McCartney) in the line “Mother Mary comes to me”. Paul’s first wife, Linda, is singing backing vocals on the song, the only time she is known to have done so in a Beatles recording. 18 years after that 1970 recording was made, Paul, George and Ringo sang “Let It Be” at a memorial service for Linda, who was also lost to cancer. Sad stuff, but a lovely song …

“Norwegian Wood” is a Beatles song from 1965. “Norwegian Wood” is somewhat groundbreaking in that George Harrison is playing a sitar, the first time the sitar was used by a rock band on a record. And, if you like to waltz around the dance floor, this is one of the few Beatles records that is in triple time.

96…In-flight info..ETA

Expected time of arrival (ETA)

98…Nashville awards org…CMA

Country Music Association (CMA)

99…Storied abduction craft..UFO

Unidentified flying object (UFO)

100…Barely make, with “out”..EKE

To “eke out” means to “make something go further or last longer”. For example, you could eke out your income by cutting back on expenses.

103…Sign of a hit..SRO

Standing room only (SRO)

105…WWII female..WAC

The Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was formed in 1942, and the unit was converted to full status the following year to become the Women’s Army Corps (WAC). Famously, General Douglas MacArthur referred to the WACs as his “best soldiers”, saying they worked harder, complained less and were better disciplined than men. The WACs were disbanded in 1978 and the serving members were integrated into the rest of the army.

106…Assume as fact..POSIT

“To posit” is to assume as fact, to lay down as a “position”.

108…Words from the brokenhearted?..”TELL ME WHY” “YOU WON’T SEE ME”

“Tell Me Why” is a 1964 Beatles song from the album “A Hard Day’s Night”, as well as from the film of the same name.

“You Won’t See Me” is a Beatles song from their 1965 “Rubber Soul” album. Written by Paul McCartney, the lyrics address a time in his life when his then-girlfriend Jane Asher was ignoring him and not returning phone calls.

116…1961 Pulitzer-winning novelist..HARPER LEE

Nelle Harper Lee was an author from Monroeville, Alabama. For many years, Lee had only one published novel to her name. That is a “To Kill a Mockingbird”, a contribution to the world of literature was enough to earn her the Presidential Medal of Freedom and a Pulitzer Prize. Harper Lee was a close friend of fellow author Truman Capote who was the inspiration for the character named “Dill” in her novel. Lee was all over the news in 2015 as she had published a second novel, titled “Go Set a Watchman”. The experts seem to be agreeing that “Go Set a Watchman” is actually a first draft of “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Lee passed away less than a year after “Go Set a Watchman” hit the stores.

117…Aspiring atty.’s exam..LSAT

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) has been around since 1948.

119…Many a folk song writer: Abbr…ANON

Anonymous (anon)

120…Hospital fluids..SERA

Blood serum is the clear, yellowish part of blood i.e. that part which is neither a blood cell or a clotting factor. Included in blood serum are antibodies, the proteins that are central to our immune system. Blood serum from animals that have immunity to some disease can be transferred to another individual, hence providing that second individual with some level of immunity. Blood serum used to pass on immunity can be called “antiserum”.

123…Van __, Calif…NUYS

The Los Angeles neighborhood of Van Nuys was founded in 1911 and named for one of its developers, Isaac Newton Van Nuys.

125…IRS auditor’s requests..RCTS

Receipt (rct.)

126…Longship language..NORSE

The Vikings were a Germanic people from northern Europe who were noted as great seafarers. Key to the success of the Vikings was the design of their famous “longships”. Made from wood, the longship was long and narrow with a shallow hull, It was also light, so that the crew would actually carry it small distances over land and around obstacles. Longships were designed to be propelled both by sail and by oars.

Down

1…”The King __”..AND I

“The King and I” is a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical based on a book by Margaret Landon called “Anna and the King of Siam” first published in 1944. Landon’s book is based on a true story, told in the memoirs of Anna Leonowens. Leonowens was the governess of the children of King Mongkut of Siam in the 1860s, and she also taught the king’s wives.

2…Work with a writer of its ilk contained in it..POEM

The word “poem” includes the name “Poe”.

Edgar Allan Poe lived a life of many firsts. Poe is considered to be the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He was also the first notable American author to make his living through his writing, something that didn’t really go too well for him as he was always financially strapped. In 1849 he was found on the streets of Baltimore, delirious from either drugs or alcohol. Poe died a few days later in hospital at 39 years of age.

3…South American native..INCA

The Inca people emerged as a tribe around the 12th century, in what today is southern Peru. The Incas developed a vast empire over the next 300 years, extending along most of the western side of South America. The Empire fell to the Spanish, finally dissolving in 1572 with the execution of Tupac Amaru, the last Incan Emperor.

4…Deli sight..SCALE

The word “delicatessen” (or “deli” for short) came into English from the German “Delikatessen”. The Germans borrowed the word from French, in which language “délicatesse” means “delicious things (to eat)”. The term’s ultimate root is “delicatus”, the Latin for “giving pleasure, delightful”.

7…Moussaka meat..LAMB

Moussaka is a delicious dish from the Balkans that uses eggplant or potato as a base. The dish often includes ground meat, particularly lamb.

8…The Habanera from “Carmen,” e.g…ARIA

When Georges Bizet wrote his famous opera “Carmen”, he used the melody of what he thought was an old folk song as a theme in the lovely aria “the Habanera”. Not long after he finished “Carmen” he discovered that the folk song was in fact a piece that had been written by another composer, who had died just ten years before “Carmen” was published. Fittingly, Bizet added a note to the score, declaring the original source.

10…Self-defense method..JUJITSU

Jujitsu (also “jiujitsu”) is a group of martial arts associated with Japan. The name “jujitsu” comes from “ju” meaning “gentle” and “jitsu” meaning “technique”. The name was chosen to represent the principle of using the opponent’s force against himself, rather than relying on one’s own strength.

11…”… roasting __ open fire”..ON AN

The Christmas classic known as “The Christmas Song”, which starts out with the line “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire”, was written in 1944 by Bob Wells and singer Mel Tormé. According to Tormé, the song was actually written on a very hot summer day, with Wells providing the lyrics. Apparently without the intention of writing a song, Wells jotted down four Christmassy phrases in an effort to “stay cool by thinking cool”. Those phrases were:

Chestnuts roasting
Jack Frost nipping
Yuletide carols
Folks dressed up like Eskimos

“The Christmas Song” is now the most-performed Christmas song in the world.

13…Light brown..ECRU

The shade called ecru is a grayish, yellowish brown. The word “ecru” comes from French and means “raw, unbleached”. “Ecru” has the same roots as our word “crude”.

18…Aptly named Vt. ski resort..MT SNOW

Mount Snow is a ski area on the mountain of the same name in Vermont, part of the state’s Green Mountains.

21…Braves’ All-Star pitcher Julio..TEHERAN

Julio Teherán is a baseball pitcher from Cartagena, Colombia who signed with the Atlanta Braves in 2007 at the age of 16, and made his Atlanta debut in 2011.

26…Fax predecessor..TELEX

Telex grew out of the world of the telegraph. What Telex brought to telegraphy was the ability to route messages. Instead of having to talk to an operator to route a particular message to the intended party, the user of a telex could route the message directly to another telex machine by way of a rotary dial, very similar to that on a telephone.

28…”Put a tiger in your tank” brand..ESSO

“Put a Tiger in Your Tank” was an advertising slogan and theme used by Esso gasoline in the 1960s.

29…Big name in corn syrup..KARO

Karo is a brand of corn syrup, an industrially manufactured sweetener derived from corn.

34…McGregor of “Trainspotting”..EWAN

Ewan McGregor is a very talented Scottish actor, one who got his break in the 1996 film “Trainspotting”. McGregor’s first big Hollywood role was playing the young Obi-Wan-Kenobi in the “Star Wars” prequels. Less known is his televised marathon motorcycle journey from London to New York via central Europe, Ukraine, Siberia, Mongolia and Canada. The 2004 trip was shown as “Long Way Round” on TV. McGregor did a similar trip in 2007 called “Long Way Down”, which took him and the same travelling companion from the north of Scotland to Cape Town in South Africa.

35…Internet __: viral item..MEME

A “meme” (short for “mineme”) is a cultural practice or idea that is passed on verbally or by repetition from one person to another. The term lends itself very well to the online world where links, emails, files etc. are so easily propagated.

36…Garbage barge..SCOW

A scow is a flat-bottomed boat with squared-off ends that’s often used for transportation, usually pushed or pulled by a barge. Often a scow can be seen carrying junk or garbage.

39…YouTube clip, for short..VID

YouTube is a video-sharing website, launched in 2005 by three ex-PayPal employees. Google bought YouTube in 2006 for $1.65 billion. Yep, $1.65 billion, less than two years after it was founded …

40…School for some princes..ETON

The world-famous Eton College is just a brisk walk from Windsor Castle, which itself is just outside London. Eton is noted for producing many British leaders including David Cameron who took power in the last UK general election. The list of Old Etonians also includes Princes William and Harry, the Duke of Wellington, George Orwell, and the creator of James Bond, Ian Fleming (as well as 007 himself as described in the Fleming novels).

42…He played Yuri in “Doctor Zhivago”..OMAR

Omar Sharif was a great Hollywood actor from Egypt, someone who played major roles in memorable movies such as “Doctor Zhivago” and “Lawrence of Arabia”. But to me, he was my bridge hero (the card game). In his heyday, Sharif was one of the best bridge players in the world.

Doctor Zhivago is an epic novel by Boris Pasternak, first published in 1957. I haven’t tried to read it the book, but the 1965 film version is a must-see, directed by David Lean and starring Omar Sharif in the title role. The story centers on Yuri Zhivago, a doctor and poet, and how he is affected by the Russian Revolution and the Russian Civil War.

44…Composer Bruckner..ANTON

Anton Bruckner was an Austrian composer, not a favorite of mine as he embraces the use of dissonances (I’m a sober traditionalist!). Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7 is perhaps his most popular work. He created a slow and mournful movement for the work in recognition of the impending death of Richard Wagner, whom he greatly admired.

45…Savanna heavyweight..RHINO

There are five types of rhinoceros that survive today, and the smaller Javan Rhino is the most rare. The rhinoceros is probably the rarest large mammal on the planet, thanks to poaching. Hunters mainly prize the horn of the rhino as it is used in powdered form in traditional Chinese medicine.

A savanna (also savannah) is a grassland. If there are any trees in a savanna, by definition they are small and widely spaced so that light can get to the grasses allowing them to grow unhindered.

47…Freezer maker..AMANA

The Amana Corporation takes its name from the location of its original headquarters, in Middle Amana, Iowa. Today, the Amana name is very much associated with household appliances. The company was founded in 1934 to manufacture commercial walk-in coolers.

53…Word in most Commandments..NOT

According to the Book of Exodus, God inscribed the Ten Commandments on two stone tablets and gave them to Moses on Mount Sinai.

56…Human-powered 87-Across..PEDICAB

A pedicab is also known as a cycle rickshaw

58…Japanese 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.

59…__ Mawr..BRYN

I used to live not far from Bryn-mawr (also “Brynmwar”) in Wales, the town with the highest elevation in the country. Appropriately enough, “bryn mawr” is Welsh for “big hill”. There is also a Bryn Mawr in Pennsylvania (note the different capitalization) that is named after its Welsh counterpart. At the Pennsylvania location there’s a Bryn Mawr college, a private women’s school that was the first American university to offer graduate degrees to women.

61…Agents of Uncle Sam..FEDS

The Uncle Sam personification of the United States was first used during the War of 1812. The “Uncle Sam” term was so widely accepted that even the Germans used it during WWII, choosing the codeword “Samland” for “America” in intelligence communiques.

62…Leave in, to an editor..STET

“Stet” is a Latin word meaning “let it stand”. In editorial work, the typesetter is instructed to disregard any change previously marked by writing the word “stet” and then underscoring that change with a line of dots or dashes.

63…Sports drink suffix..-ADE

Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida by a team of researchers at the request of the school’s football team. And so, Gatorade is named after the Gators football team.

65…”How __ Your Mother”: CBS sitcom..I MET

“How I Met Your Mother” is a sitcom that CBS has been airing since 2005. The main character is Ted Mosby, played by Josh Radnor. Mosby is also the narrator for the show looking back from the year 2030 (the live action is set in the present). As narrator, the older Mosby character is voiced by Bob Saget.

67…Most of the RMS Queen Mary, now..HOTEL

The RMS Queen Mary is a retired ocean liner that worked the North Atlantic for the Cunard line from 1936 to 1967. The Queen Mary, along with her sister ship the Queen Elizabeth, dominated the transportation of passengers between Europe and North America from the end of WWII until jet planes came into service in the late 50s. The Queen Mary was built in Clydebank, adjacent to Glasgow, Scotland. The ship was named after Queen Mary, the consort of King George V. The Queen Mary now sits in Long Beach, California where it is used as a hotel and a tourist attraction. It’s well worth a visit if you’re in the area …

68…Skateboarding leap..OLLIE

An “ollie” is a skateboarding trick invented in 1976 by Alan “Ollie” Gelfand. Apparently it’s a way of lifting the board off the ground, while standing on it, without touching the board with one’s hands. Yeah, I could do that …

69…Red Wings’ org…NHL

The Detroit Red Wings play in the National Hockey League. The Red Wings have won the Stanley Cup more times than any other US-based NHL team.

70…Brazilian airline..VARIG

Varig was Brazil’s first airline. VARIG is an acronym standing for “Viação Aérea Rio-Grandense”.

71…Panama-born MLB Hall of Famer..CAREW

Rod Carew is a former Major League Baseball player from Panama. Actually. Carew is a “Zonian”, meaning that he was born in the Panama Canal Zone, a political entity that existed for decades from 1903.

72…Head, for short..LAV

Our word “lavatory” originally referred to a washbasin, and comes from the Latin “lavatorium”, a place for washing. In the 1600s a “lavatory” came to mean a washroom, and in the 1920s a toilet.

In old sailing ships the toilet area for the regular sailors was located in the forward part (the head) of the ship, hence the term “head” that has been used since then for any toilet on board a boat.

77…Price of hand delivery?..ANTE

That would be in a card game like poker.

82…Not worth __: valueless..A SOU

A sou is an old French coin. We use the term “sou” to mean “an almost worthless amount”.

84…Beehive, e.g…UPDO

That distinctive “beehive” hairstyle is also called a B-52, because the round, beehive-shape also resembles the bulbous nose of a B-52 bomber! The style originated in 1958, and is credited to Margaret Vinci Heldt, the owner of a hair salon in downtown Chicago. I’m not a fan of the beehive, but I do have to say that Audrey Hepburn carried it off in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, as did Dusty Springfield in her heyday.

89…”A Spy in the House of Love” novelist..ANAIS NIN

Anaïs Nin was a French author, famous for her journals that she wrote for over sixty years from the age of 11 right up to her death. Nin also wrote highly regarded erotica and cited D. H. Lawrence as someone from whom she drew inspiration. Nin was married to banker and artist Hugh Parker Guiler in 1923. Decades later in 1955, Nin married former actor Rupert Pole, even though she was still married to Guiler. Nin and Pole had their marriage annulled in 1966, but just for legal reasons, and they continued to live together as husband and wife until Nin passed away in 1977.

92…When a ball may be dropped..NEW YEAR

The famous New Year’s Eve ball-dropping tradition in Times Square, New York started on January 1st 1908. The original ball was lit with one hundred 25-watt light bulbs and was dropped at one second after midnight. A fifth version of the ball was introduced in 2008 for the centennial anniversary of the ceremony. The 2008 ball was built by Waterford Crystal and was lit by 9,567 LED bulbs that consumed the same amount of power as ten electric toasters. The current ball was used for the first time in 2009, and is double the size of the 2008 ball at 12 feet in diameter. The ball now sits atop Times Square year round, so you can go see it next time you are in town.

93…”Challenge What’s Possible” skin care brand..OLAY

Oil of Olay was developed in South Africa in 1949. When Oil of Olay was introduced internationally, it was given slightly different brand names designed to appeal in the different geographies. In Ireland we know it as Oil of Ulay, for example, and in France it is Oil of Olaz.

95…Dutch brewery..AMSTEL

Amstel is a Dutch beer and brewery, founded in 1870 in Amsterdam. The brewery takes its name from the Amstel river which runs through the city.

100…”__ Frome”..ETHAN

“Ethan Frome” is a novel by New York and Massachusetts author Edith Wharton, first published in 1911. Wharton started “Ethan Frome” as a composition in French that she wrote while studying the language in Paris.

101…Sandra’s “Speed” co-star..KEANU

Keanu Reeves is a Canadian actor whose most celebrated roles were a metalhead in “Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure” (1989), a cop in “Speed” (1994) and the main antagonist Neo in “The Matrix” series of films. Although Reeves is a Canadian national, he was born in Beirut, Lebanon. Reeves has some Hawaiian descent, and the name “Keanu” is Hawaiian for “the coldness”.

The actress Sandra Bullock is the daughter of a part-time voice coach (her father) and an opera singer and voice coach (her mother). Her father was an American soldier stationed in Nuremberg in Germany when he met his German wife. Sandra Bullock’s maternal grandfather was a rocket scientist working in Nuremberg.

“Speed” is a 1994 action film, starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock, as well as the late Dennis Hopper as the bad guy.

102…”The Jetsons” boy..ELROY

“The Jetsons” is an animated show from Hanna-Barbera that had its first run in 1962-1963, and then was recreated in 1985-1987. When it was debuted in 1963 by ABC, “The Jetsons” was the network’s first ever color broadcast. “The Jetsons” are like a space-age version of “The Flintstones”. The four Jetson family members are George and Jane, the parents, and children Judy and Elroy. Residing with the family are Rosie the household robot, and Astro the pet dog.

106…Annie of “Ghostbusters”..POTTS

Annie Potts is an actress from Nashville, Tennessee. She had roles in successful films such as “Ghostbusters” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash” and did voice work for “Toy Story” and “Toy Story 2”. Potts was lucky to survive a car crash when she was 21 years old, as she broke nearly every bone in her lower body.

1984’s “Ghostbusters” really is an entertaining movie. It stars Bill Murray and Harold Ramis, and was directed by Ivan Reitman (a trio that also worked together on 1981’s “Stripes”). The first draft of the screenplay was written by another star of the movie, Dan Aykroyd. Aykroyd originally envisioned “Ghostbusters” as a vehicle for himself and John Belushi, but sadly Belushi passed away before the project could be realized.

107…Día de San Valentín sentiment..TE AMO

“I love you” translates into “te amo” in Spanish, and into “je t’aime” in French.

In Spanish, Saint Valentine’s Day is a usually translated as “el Día de San Valentín”. Another possibility is “el Día de los Enamorados”, which translates literally as “the day of those who have fallen in love”.

109…ICU caregivers..LPNS

A licensed practical nurse (LPN) might work in an intensive care unit (ICU).

110…Mount Olympus VIP..HERA

In Greek mythology, Hera was the wife of Zeus and was noted for her jealous and vengeful nature, particularly against those who vied for the affections of her husband. The equivalent character to Hera in Roman mythology was Juno. Hera was the daughter of Cronus and Rhea.

Mount Olympus is the highest peak in Greece. In Greek mythology, Mount Olympus was home to the gods, and in particular home to the principal gods known as the Twelve Olympians.

111…Letters at Camp Lejeune..USMC

Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune is located in Jacksonville, North Carolina. The 246-square mile facility includes 14 miles of beaches, making Camp Lejeune important for amphibious assault training. Built in 1941, the base was named for the 13th Commandant of the Marine Corps John A. Lejeune, who served in the USMC for nearly forty years, and who is often referred to as the “greatest of Leathernecks”.

113…Qatari chieftain..EMIR

An emir is a prince or chieftain, most notably in the Middle East. In English, emir can also be written as emeer, amir and ameer (watch out for those spellings in crosswords!).

Qatar is a sovereign state in the Middle East occupying the Qatar Peninsula, itself located in the Arabian Peninsula. Qatar lies on the Persian Gulf and shares one land border, with Saudi Arabia to the south. Qatar has more oil and gas reserves per capita of population than any other country in the world. In 2010, Qatar had the fastest growing economy in the world, driven by the petrochemical industry. Qatar is scheduled to who the 2022 FIFA World Cup, although the nation’s eligibility to do so is under question after a far-reaching bribery scandal was uncovered at the sport’s governing body.

114…2015 National League champs..METS

The New York Mets baseball team was founded in 1962, a replacement for two teams that the city had lost, namely the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants. For several years the Mets played very poorly, finishing no better than second-to-last in their division. Then of course along came the “Miracle Mets” (aka “Amazin’ Mets”) who beat the Baltimore Orioles in 1969 to claim the World Series in a huge upset.

Return to top of page

Complete List of Clues and Answers

Across

1…Really silly..APISH

6…All-__: high-end cookware..CLAD

10…Scribble..JOT

13…Chows down..EATS

17…Looie’s underling..NONCOM

19…Mata __..HARI

20…Condo, say..UNIT

22…Work for a captain..CREW

23…Transfer, in a way..DECANT

24…”The Rachel Papers” novelist..AMIS

25…Attorney general after William Barr..JANET RENO

27…Cold War defector’s observation?..”I’M A LOSER” “BACK IN THE USSR”

30…Physicist Mach..ERNST

31…Double-crosser..RAT

32…Pommes frites sprinkling..SEL

33…Shelf-filling bks…OED

34…Accident initials..EMS

37…Platform for Apple mobile devices..IOS

38…Disinclined..AVERSE

41…Antique auto..REO

43…Promise to the IRS?..”WE CAN WORK IT OUT”, “TAXMAN”

49…In a crowd of..AMONG

50…Cover up..HIDE

51…Have..OWN

52…”You got that right!”..AMEN!

54…Colorful salamander..NEWT

55…Bias..SPIN

57…Dublin-born rocker/activist..BONO

59…”Fantastic!”..BRAVO!

60…Facetious way to vote..OFTEN

62…Volvo competitor..SAAB

64…Holiday evergreen..FIR

66…Entomologist’s tool..NET

67…”Please take the van, dear”?..”HONEY DON’T” “DRIVE MY CAR”

72…Netizen’s guffaw..LOL

73…Agnus __..DEI

74…Follow..HEED

75…”Gladiator” setting..ARENA

76…Traveler’s aid..ATLAS

78…Druid, for one..CELT

80…Formerly, formerly..ERST

81…Pizza Quick sauce brand..RAGU

85…Layer of ore..VEIN

86…Beheld..SAW

87…Vehicle for hire..TAXI

89…Creator of a cocky hare..AESOP

90…Agreement with a Scandinavian furniture maker?..”LET IT BE” “NORWEGIAN WOOD”

96…In-flight info..ETA

97…Leans (on)..RELIES

98…Nashville awards org…CMA

99…Storied abduction craft..UFO

100…Barely make, with “out”..EKE

103…Sign of a hit..SRO

105…WWII female..WAC

106…Assume as fact..POSIT

108…Words from the brokenhearted?..”TELL ME WHY” “YOU WON’T SEE ME”

116…1961 Pulitzer-winning novelist..HARPER LEE

117…Aspiring atty.’s exam..LSAT

118…Protective finish..ENAMEL

119…Many a folk song writer: Abbr…ANON

120…Hospital fluids..SERA

121…Forget about..OMIT

122…Highway postings..LIMITS

123…Van __, Calif…NUYS

124…Gravel alternative..TAR

125…IRS auditor’s requests..RCTS

126…Longship language..NORSE

Down

1…”The King __”..AND I

2…Work with a writer of its ilk contained in it..POEM

3…South American native..INCA

4…Deli sight..SCALE

5…In tribute to..HONORING

6…Meeting illustration..CHART

7…Moussaka meat..LAMB

8…The Habanera from “Carmen,” e.g…ARIA

9…Separate..DISCRETE

10…Self-defense method..JUJITSU

11…”… roasting __ open fire”..ON AN

12…Salon supply..TINTS

13…Light brown..ECRU

14…Childish comeback..ARE SO!

15…Needing a chill pill..TENSE

16…War metaphor..SWORD

18…Aptly named Vt. ski resort..MT SNOW

21…Braves’ All-Star pitcher Julio..TEHERAN

26…Fax predecessor..TELEX

28…”Put a tiger in your tank” brand..ESSO

29…Big name in corn syrup..KARO

34…McGregor of “Trainspotting”..EWAN

35…Internet __: viral item..MEME

36…Garbage barge..SCOW

38…Analogous..AKIN

39…YouTube clip, for short..VID

40…School for some princes..ETON

42…He played Yuri in “Doctor Zhivago”..OMAR

44…Composer Bruckner..ANTON

45…Savanna heavyweight..RHINO

46…Some bargains..TWOFERS

47…Freezer maker..AMANA

48…”When pigs fly!”..NEVER!

53…Word in most Commandments..NOT

55…Eye problem..STYE

56…Human-powered 87-Across..PEDICAB

57…Meter writer..BARD

58…Japanese sash..OBI

59…__ Mawr..BRYN

61…Agents of Uncle Sam..FEDS

62…Leave in, to an editor..STET

63…Sports drink suffix..-ADE

65…”How __ Your Mother”: CBS sitcom..I MET

67…Most of the RMS Queen Mary, now..HOTEL

68…Skateboarding leap..OLLIE

69…Red Wings’ org…NHL

70…Brazilian airline..VARIG

71…Panama-born MLB Hall of Famer..CAREW

72…Head, for short..LAV

77…Price of hand delivery?..ANTE

79…Decorative pitcher..EWER

80…They’re no longer together..EXES

82…Not worth __: valueless..A SOU

83…Loaf, with “off”..GOOF

84…Beehive, e.g…UPDO

86…Rubberneckers..STARERS

87…Like some pasta..TRICOLOR

88…Amaze..AWE

89…”A Spy in the House of Love” novelist..ANAIS NIN

91…Caller ID?..IT’S ME

92…When a ball may be dropped..NEW YEAR

93…”Challenge What’s Possible” skin care brand..OLAY

94…Computer image..ICON

95…Dutch brewery..AMSTEL

100…”__ Frome”..ETHAN

101…Sandra’s “Speed” co-star..KEANU

102…”The Jetsons” boy..ELROY

104…Young hooter..OWLET

106…Annie of “Ghostbusters”..POTTS

107…Día de San Valentín sentiment..TE AMO

109…ICU caregivers..LPNS

110…Mount Olympus VIP..HERA

111…Letters at Camp Lejeune..USMC

112…”Stop right there!”..WAIT!

113…Qatari chieftain..EMIR

114…2015 National League champs..METS

115…”If all __ fails … “..ELSE

Return to top of page

13 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 2 Oct 16, Sunday”

  1. Just a note about the Queen Mary, it being so close to Halloween. If you’re in the greater LA area this month, and like scary stuff, don’t miss the Queen Mary; in my opinion, the best “haunted house” in SoCal. Bring throat lozenges—you WILL scream!

  2. I liked this one. I’m a big Beatles fan so titles came easy. It was my fastest Sunday solve ever.

  3. I was really ready for a challenge when I read the theme on this puzzle. I’m not a huge Beatles fan so I figured the theme answers wouldn’t come easily. Fortunately they did even though I hadn’t heard of all of those songs. I really got tied up in knots with LOL, LAV and OLLIE as I read Netizen as Neitzen and thought it was some German phrase. I eventually figured it all out.

    Liked the “cocky hare” reference. POEM containing Poe was completely lost on me until I came to the blog.

    Carrie – I did not know that about Osco, but that’s pretty amusing as well. It’s written as “asco” in Spanish, but it sounds the same. These things work both ways, however. One of the largest brands of bread in Mexico and a huge sponsor of the Mexican soccer league is a company called “Bimbo”. “Bimbo” is written prominently all over their jerseys. Apparently they have a US division, but they kept the name as is here. They now own Sara Lee and Entenmann’s, but the name Bimbo prevails…

    Best –

    Best –

  4. Very clever puzzle, but I do have one question. 60A: Facetious way to vote= often? I don’t understand this one. How is voting often being facetious?

  5. @RestMyCase- That was my favorite clue!
    The tongue-in-cheek political motto of Chicago—”Vote early, and vote often”—has been attributed to Mayor Richard J. Daley, gangster Al Capone, and Mayor William Hale Thompson.
    I guess it refers to the questionable voting of fictitious and even dead people in Chicago.
    This was FUN!!
    Now this is what a Sunday puzzle should be.
    Straight-ahead clues and a payoff in the long answers.
    BRAVO! Thomas and Patti.

  6. RMC –

    I think that’s a reference to the phrase “Vote early and vote often” – which is said facetiously to get people out to vote….ie obviously you can’t really vote more than once. I suspect the expression has its origin in some sort of fraud though…

  7. Thanks, Pookie and Jeff! I learned something today, which is always great. I also agree that this was a great Sunday puzzle, finally!! Pookie described it perfectly.

  8. What a nostalgic delight for an old beatles fan. Saw them in “The Cave” in Britain in’65, just before they got Ringo (Best was still their drummer) and about two months before they left for Germany. Very few knots in this one since I got the theme crosses early. LAT: Please HELP my disposition before I go down that LONG AND WINDING ROAD and have another one like this! It makes up for YESTERDAY’s and Friday’s toughies. All I have is LOVE, LOVE, LOVE for these sorts of grids. Better stop here, before somebody throws a pie my way!

  9. 24:03, no errors, pen and paper. Agree this was a very pleasant puzzle. My only real pause was SEL / TEHERAN: Since I’d never heard of the Braves’ All-Star pitcher Julio Teheran and I don’t know a lot of French, I briefly contemplated changing the E at the intersection to an A, but I successfully resisted the temptation. Running late and tired today: I was up at 5 dealing with the finishing touches on a crockpot full of Boeuf Bourguignonne (can’t spell that without looking it up!) and then spent the rest of the day with a friend. Past time for bed …

  10. WOW!! A BEATLES THEME, AND MY PAPER GOT STOLEN!!
    Had to do the puzzle online, but I just skipped to the themed answers, being a huge Beatles fan. I tried to get them with only two or three letters in there somewhere. So, I clicked on a coupla “down” items, hit REVEAL WORD, then figured out the horizontal Beatles songs.
    Just a couple of notes: I’d bet $200 that John actually DIDN’T drum on “USSR.” It was all Paul. John’s the most talented, IMO, but he couldn’t drum.
    Also, Linda McCartney died in 1998, so that tribute was 28 years after “Let It Be” was recorded.
    And @Bobbi–how completely awesome that you saw them then!!! I’m so jealous!! But it would have been 1963 at the latest, not ’65. Bet that was just a typo, and please forgive my mentioning it; I’m just a little too obsessed when it comes to the Beatles!!! (apparently…?)
    See everyone tomorrow…!!
    Be well~~™????

    1. Thanks, Barry.

      Let’s pretend that was a deliberate mistake, and you caught it! 🙂

Comments are closed.