LA Times Crossword Answers 30 Dec 2017, Saturday

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Constructed by: C.C. Burnikel
Edited by: Rich Norris

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Today’s Theme: None

Bill’s time: 10m 44s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1. On-the-go frozen breakfast : EGGO BITES

Eggo is the brand name of a line of frozen waffles made by Kellogg’s. When they were introduced in the 1930s, the name “Eggo” was chosen to promote the “egginess” of the batter. “Eggo” replaced “Froffles”, the original name chosen by melding “frozen” and “waffles”.

10. “Love, all alike, no season knows, nor __”: Donne : CLIME

Here are a couple of lines from John Donne’s poem “The Sun Rising”.

Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,
Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time.

John Donne is one of England’s most celebrated poets, and was active at the start of the 17th century. He spent much of his life in poverty and even spent a short time in prison for having married his wife without procuring the appropriate permissions. After his release, his wife bore him 12 children in 16 years, passing away a few days after the twelfth child was born.

15. Sinatra’s wife after Ava Gardner : MIA FARROW

Mia Farrow is an energetic, award-winning actress who really hasn’t looked back in her career since her first leading role, in “Rosemary’s Baby” back in 1968. Her on-screen celebrity is matched by the interest created by her personal life. Her first husband was Frank Sinatra, a wedding in 1966 that received a lot of attention partly due to the couple’s age difference (she was 21, he was 50). Her second husband was almost as famous, the magnificent musician André Previn. Farrow then moved in with Woody Allen, a relationship that famously fell apart when Farrow discovered that Allen was having a sexual relationship with Soon-Yi, one of her adopted daughters from the marriage with André Previn.

Frank Sinatra was married four times in all. His first wife, and mother of his three children, was Nancy Barbato. Barbato and Sinatra met in Jersey City while in their teens, and married in their early twenties in 1939. They divorced in 1951 following a string of affairs that Sinatra had after he moved his family to Hollywood. One of those very public affairs was with actress Ava Gardner, who became Sinatra’s second wife a few months after divorcing Barbato. That marriage lasted until 1957. Sinatra then married actress Mia Farrow, when she was 21 years old and he was 29 years her senior. That marriage only lasted a couple of years. Sinatra’s least marriage took place in 1976, and was Barbara Blakely Marx, the ex-wife of Zeppo Marx of the Marx Brothers.

16. “Breaking Bad” toxin : RICIN

Ricin is a highly toxic chemical found in the seeds of the castor oil plant. It is so poisonous because it inhibits one of the most basic metabolic processes, the synthesis of protein. One famous use of ricin as a weapon was the assassination of Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov in London in 1978. A agent of the Bulgarian secret police injected a tiny pellet of ricin into his victim’s leg using a modified umbrella.

The AMC drama “Breaking Bad” is a well-written show about a high school teacher stricken by lung cancer who turns to a life of crime to make money. It turns out that the teacher has a talent for making high-quality crystal meth. The show was created by Vince Gilligan who had spent many years as producer and writer of “The X-Files”. There is a “Breaking Bad” spin-off show running on AMC called “Better Call Saul” that focuses on the life of lawyer Saul Goodman. I hear that it’s pretty good …

19. Creator of the album “Reflection,” which consists of one 54-minute track : ENO

Brian Eno was one of the pioneers of the “ambient” genre of music. Eno composed an album in 1978 called “Ambient 1: Music for Airports”, which was the first in a series of four albums with an ambient theme. Eno named the tracks somewhat inventively: 1/1, 2/1, 2/1 and 2/2.

20. Tijuana pronoun : ESA

Tijuana is the largest city in the Mexican state of Baja California, and lies just across the US-Mexico border from San Diego. Tijuana is also the most westerly of all Mexican cities. A lot of Tijuana’s growth took place in the twenties as tourists flocked south of the border during the days of prohibition in the US. One of the many casinos and hotels that flourished at that time was Hotel Caesar’s in the Avenida Revolución area. Hotel Caesar’s claims to be the birthplace of the now ubiquitous Caesar Salad.

21. Gulf of Finland republic : ESTONIA

Estonia is one of the former Soviet Socialist Republics (SSRs) and is located in Northern Europe on the Baltic Sea due south of Finland. Estonia has been overrun and ruled by various empires over the centuries. The country did enjoy a few years of freedom at the beginning of the 20th century after a war of independence against the Russian Empire. However, Estonia was occupied again during WWII, first by the Russians and then by the Germans, and then reoccupied by the Soviets in 1944. Estonia has flourished as an independent country again since the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

The Gulf of Finland is an eastern arm of the Baltic Sea. Finland sits to the north of the gulf, Russia to east and Estonia to the south. The beautiful Russian city of St. Petersburg sits on the Gulf of Finland, as does the Finnish capital of Helsinki.

23. 2001 bankruptcy headliner : ENRON

After all the trials following the exposure of fraud at Enron, several of the key players ended up in jail. Andrew Fastow was the Chief Financial Officer. He plea-bargained and received ten years without parole, and became the key witness in the trials of others. Even Fastow’s wife was involved and she was sentenced to one year for helping her husband hide money. Jeffrey Skilling (ex-CEO) was sentenced to 24 years and 4 months. Kenneth Lay (CEO) died in 2006 after he had been found guilty but before he could be sentenced. The accounting firm Arthur Andersen was found guilty of obstruction of justice for shredding thousands of pertinent documents and deleting emails and files (a decision that the Supreme Court later overturned on a technicality). But still, Arthur Andersen collapsed under the weight of the scandal and 85,000 people lost their jobs (despite only a handful being directly involved with Enron).

28. Tuscany city : SIENA

Siena is a beautiful city in the Tuscany region of Italy. In the center of Siena is the magnificent medieval square called Piazza del Campo, a paved sloping open area made up of nine triangular sections. The square has to be seen to be believed. Twice a year, the famous bareback horse-race called the Palio di Siena is held in the Piazza.

29. Kind of butter used in skin care : SHEA

“Shea butter” is a common moisturizer or lotion used as a cosmetic. It is a fat that is extracted from the nut of the African shea tree. There is evidence that shea butter was used back in Cleopatra’s Egypt.

30. Pop, in Paris : PERE

In French, a “père” (father) is a “membre de la famille” (member of the family).

33. To a large degree : IN SPADES

The phrase “in spades” meaning “in abundance” dates back to the late twenties. The term probably comes from the game of bridge, in which spades are the highest-ranking suit.

39. Homemade crystal products : AM RADIOS

In telecommunications, a radio signal is transmitted using a sinusoidal carrier wave. Information is transmitted using this carrier wave in two main ways, by varying (modulating) the instantaneous amplitude (signal strength) of the carrier wave, and by modulating the instantaneous frequency of the carrier wave. The former is referred to as an AM signal (for “amplitude modulation”), and the latter as an FM signal (for “frequency modulation”).

A crystal radio is a passive receiver, meaning that it uses the power in the radio signal to produce sound and does not amplify that signal (it has no battery). The crystal in the radio acts as a primitive form of diode. The sound coming out of a crystal set is so low that you can only hear it with headphones.

41. “Entourage” agent Gold : ARI

Ari Gold is a fictional character in the HBO series “Entourage”. “Entourage” tells the story of a rising film star, Vincent Chase (played by Adrian Grenier), a native of New York but now learning to handle himself in Hollywood. Vincent’s Hollywood agent is Ari Gold, played by Jeremy Piven.

42. Driving force? : UBER

Uber is a ridesharing service that was founded in 2009 and is based in San Francisco. The service is somewhat controversial and has been described as an illegal taxicab operation. Central to Uber’s service is the company’s mobile app, which can use the client’s GPS location to help find the nearest available ride. Uber’s main competitor is Lyft.

43. Twin Cities daily, familiarly : TRIB

The “Star Tribune” is a Minneapolis-based newspaper that has the widest circulation in the state of Minnesota. “The Trib” dates back to the “Minneapolis Tribune” founded in 1867 and the “Minneapolis Daily Star” founded in 1920. A merger led to the formation of the “Star Tribune” in 1982.

49. Address-ending word : NET

The .net domain was one of the six original generic top-level domains specified. The complete original list is:

  • .com (commercial enterprise)
  • .net (entity involved in network infrastructure e.g. an ISP)
  • .mil (US military)
  • .org (not-for-profit organization)
  • .gov (US federal government entity)
  • .edu (college-level educational institution)

51. Tabbouleh grain : WHEAT

Tabbouleh is a Middle Eastern dish made from tomatoes, and chopped parsley, mint, bulgur and onion, along with olive oil, lemon juice and salt. The name “tabbouleh” comes from the Arabic “taabil” meaning “seasoning”. I love tabbouleh …

54. Energy Star co-mgr. : EPA

The Energy Star standard was created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) during the Clinton Administration. In general, an item marked with an Energy Star uses 20-30% less energy than that mandated by federal standards. Not too long ago, we put an Energy Star roof on our house, and noticed a remarkable difference in our energy bills.

57. Decluttering maven Kondo : MARIE

Marie Kondo runs a very successful organizing consulting business that she founded when she 19 years old, and while a student at Tokyo Woman’s Christian University. She wrote an extremely successful book titled “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing” that was first published in 2011. I’ve read it, and acted on the advice given therein …

63. Literature Nobelist who served in the Irish Senate : YEATS

Irish poet and dramatist William Butler Yeats won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1923 for “inspired poetry” that gave “expression to a whole nation”. Yeats was Ireland’s first Nobel laureate.

The legislature of Ireland is known as the “Oireachtas”, and consists of:

  • Uachtarán na hÉireann (President of Ireland)
  • Dáil Éireann (Assembly of Ireland, the lower house)
  • Seanad Éireann (Senate of Ireland, the upper house)

Down

1. Runs the show : EMCEES

The term “emcee” comes from “MC”, an initialism standing for Master or Mistress of Ceremonies.

2. Designer Versace : GIANNI

Gianni Versace was an Italian fashion designer. His death was perhaps as famous as his life. He was murdered in 1997 outside his mansion in Miami Beach by Andrew Cunanan. It is not certain that Cunanan knew who his victim was, as this was the last in a spree of five murders committed by him over a four month period. A few days after killing Versace, Cunanan used the same gun to commit suicide.

3. See 33-Across : GALORE
(33A. To a large degree : IN SPADES)

Our word “galore”, meaning “in great numbers”, comes from the Irish phrase “go leór” that translates as “sufficiently, enough”.

6. Nest egg accts. : IRAS

Individual retirement account (IRA)

8. Sister of Helios : EOS

In Greek mythology, Eos was the goddess of the dawn who lived at the edge of the ocean. Eos would wake each morning to welcome her brother Helios the sun. The Roman equivalent of Eos was Aurora.

11. Long ride? : LIMO

The word “limousine” derives from the French city of Limoges. The area around Limoges is called the Limousin, and it gave its name to a cloak hood worn by local shepherds. In early motor cars, a driver would sit outside in the weather while the passengers would sit in the covered compartment. The driver would often wear a limousin-style protective hood, giving rise to that type of transportation being called a “limousine”. Well, that’s how the story goes anyway …

13. Cookie in Snak Saks : MINI OREO

Bite-sized Oreo cookies were introduced in 1991 under the brand name Mini Oreo. Mini Oreos were dropped in the late nineties, but reintroduced in 2000 as part of a promotion for the Dodge Caravan. They’re still around, and you can now even get a mint version.

22. View from Yreka : SHASTA

Mount Shasta is in northern California. The origin of the name “Shasta” seems to be unclear. It may have come from the Russian “tchastal” meaning “white, clean, pure”, a name given to the volcanic peak by early Russian immigrants.

The California city of Yreka developed from a miners’ camp called Thompson’s Dry Diggings. “Yreka” derives from the name for Mount Shasta (wáik’a) in the Shasta language, which translates as “North Mountain” or “White Mountain”. There is, however, a story related by Mark Twain that the name “Yreka” comes from the word “bakery”. Back when the area was a mining boomtown, a baker was preparing a canvas sign with the word “BAKERY”. Leaving it out to dry, all but the B could be seen through the canvas. This reversed “-AKERY” was read by a stranger, and he presumed that the sign gave the name of the camp, and read it as “YREKA”. The name stuck.

24. GM security system : ONSTAR

The OnStar system was developed as a joint venture between GM, EDS and Hughes. The product itself was launched in 1996. Today, OnStar is only available on GM cars, although it used to be offered on other makes of car through a licensing agreement. OnStar is a subscription service that packages vehicle security, telephone, satellite navigation and remote diagnostics.

26. Often-grilled tuna : AHI

Yellowfin and bigeye tuna are usually marketed as “ahi”, the Hawaiian name. They are both big fish, with yellowfish tuna often weighing over 300 pounds, and bigeye tuna getting up to 400 pounds.

30. Outcast : PARIAH

“Pariah” is an anglicized version of the Tamil word “Paraiyar”. The Paraiyar are a social group of about 9 million people found in some Indian states and in Sri Lanka. The term “pariah” came to be a general term for members of the lowest caste in society, outcasts.

34. Controversial police procedure practices : PERP WALKS

When a crime suspect in the custody of the police is walked through a public place, often to and from a courthouse, it is known as a “perp walk”.

36. Seat of South Africa’s executive branch : PRETORIA

Pretoria is the executive capital of South Africa (RSA), and one of three capital cities in the country. Cape Town is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is the judicial capital.

Andries Pretorius was a leader of the Dutch settlers in southern Africa known as the Boers. He participated in the Great Trek, the migration during the 1830s and 1840s away from the British-controlled Cape Colony. He ended up in Natal and there became the Boers’ commandant-general in 1838, a position he held until 1852. He died in 1853, and two years later his son founded a new district and town that he named Pretoria after his father.

37. Olds luxury car : TORONADO

The Oldsmobile Toronado was produced by GM from 1966 to 1992.

39. Peter Parker’s adoptive mother : AUNT MAY

Aunt May and Uncle Ben Parker are characters in the spider-Man universe created by Marvel Comics. The couple’s nephew is Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man.

47. Fried shrimp sauce : TARTAR

Tartar sauce is basically mayonnaise with some chopped pickles, capers and onion or chives. The recipe was invented by the French (as “sauce tartare”) with the name somehow linked to the Tatars, a people who once occupied Ukraine and parts of Russia.

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. On-the-go frozen breakfast : EGGO BITES
10. “Love, all alike, no season knows, nor __”: Donne : CLIME
15. Sinatra’s wife after Ava Gardner : MIA FARROW
16. “Breaking Bad” toxin : RICIN
17. Exercise for the lower leg : CALF RAISE
18. In the presence of : AMONG
19. Creator of the album “Reflection,” which consists of one 54-minute track : ENO
20. Tijuana pronoun : ESA
21. Gulf of Finland republic : ESTONIA
23. 2001 bankruptcy headliner : ENRON
25. Shaper in a shop : LATHE
27. Minor player : COG
28. Tuscany city : SIENA
29. Kind of butter used in skin care : SHEA
30. Pop, in Paris : PERE
31. __ jump : SKI
33. To a large degree : IN SPADES
35. Most likely : APTEST
38. Car system : STEREO
39. Homemade crystal products : AM RADIOS
41. “Entourage” agent Gold : ARI
42. Driving force? : UBER
43. Twin Cities daily, familiarly : TRIB
45. Historic times : PASTS
49. Address-ending word : NET
50. Overplay : EMOTE
51. Tabbouleh grain : WHEAT
52. Walked-over : TRODDEN
54. Energy Star co-mgr. : EPA
56. Modern art? : ARE
57. Decluttering maven Kondo : MARIE
58. Branch : AFFILIATE
61. Strange : ALIEN
62. Wasted call? : DRUNK DIAL
63. Literature Nobelist who served in the Irish Senate : YEATS
64. “My bad” : OOPS, SORRY

Down

1. Runs the show : EMCEES
2. Designer Versace : GIANNI
3. See 33-Across : GALORE
4. Inaccurate : OFF
5. Completely uncovered : BARE NAKED
6. Nest egg accts. : IRAS
7. Court affairs : TRIALS
8. Sister of Helios : EOS
9. Improves, as an offer : SWEETENS
10. Box : CRATE
11. Long ride? : LIMO
12. “You win” : I CONCEDE
13. Cookie in Snak Saks : MINI OREO
14. Keeps occupied : ENGAGES
22. View from Yreka : SHASTA
24. GM security system : ONSTAR
26. Often-grilled tuna : AHI
30. Outcast : PARIAH
32. “Am I off-base here?” : IS IT ME?
34. Controversial police procedure practices : PERP WALKS
35. Light-brown brew : AMBER ALE
36. Seat of South Africa’s executive branch : PRETORIA
37. Olds luxury car : TORONADO
39. Peter Parker’s adoptive mother : AUNT MAY
40. Parking order? : SIT
44. Strengthen : BEEF UP
46. Oceanside home asset : SEA AIR
47. Fried shrimp sauce : TARTAR
48. Unwavering : STEELY
50. Wonderlands : EDENS
53. Losing effort : DIET
55. Flagsticks, to many golfers : PINS
59. To and __ : FRO
60. Veiled reply, perhaps : I DO

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15 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 30 Dec 2017, Saturday”

  1. LAT: 15:07, no errors. WSJ: 25:37, no errors, but – full disclosure – as I was preparing to check my answers, I realized I had written one letter incorrectly, so I fixed it – mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa ?. Newsday: 54:35, no errors; a little harder than usual (for me, but maybe not for others – I just got hung up in a couple of spots).

  2. 25:32. I breezed through the top half, but I really got bogged down on the bottom. If there’s a quiz on the MIA FARROW blurb, I’m sunk. I was unfamiliar with crystal RADIOs, but they sound interesting. I learned quite a bit doing today’s puzzle.

    Why are PERPWALKS considered controversial?

    I think that book by MARIE Kondo just made it to the top of my list. Since getting flooded out of my house, I’ve been living in a space about 1/3 the size of what I am used to….and it looks it. It’s only temporary…like some forms of insanity…but it’s starting to drive me nuts.

    Since offering to change places in line with my adjuster with some other Harvey victim, I STILL have heard nothing of my settlement, nevermind the promise was to have it in hand the day after Christmas. Originally I was supposed to have it by Thanksgiving. SOME day in 2018 this thing will get resolved, but my patience is running thin. Most of the people on my street have had their checks for several weeks or months. Mine is a month out AFTER I see the settlement. TMI? Just venting.

    NYT was brutal today so this was a nice way to finish up the crossword day.

    Best –

      1. Dave –
        Indeed I never realized the overt intent on it being public. I saw it as purely utilitarian. Guess not.

        Best –

  3. LAT: 34 minutes, no errors. As usual, went pretty quick except for a spot or two that took most all the time. WSJ: 36:06, 5 errors, mainly in the upper left’s Natick farm, but had a “dumb” spot too. Difficult. Newsday: Got about 50 minutes in and about 1/4 filled in. Not sure if I’m “stuck” or not, but I’ll probably check what I have and continue later, so call it a DNF per usual with the thought that I at least got the upper left entirely. On to working up more blog posts.

  4. My luck from yesterday ran out. I was doing great on the top half, but bottom was my killer. Ho, hum.

    Jeff: I think you’ve been too kind to the insurance co. They owe you BIG TIME! Maybe after these holidays things will move along. Good luck.

    1. @Kay –
      Thanks for the moral support. It’s actually my adjuster who is taking so long. The insurance company is simply waiting on her as am I. My insurer happens to use independent adjusters for such disasters so I don’t know how much control they have anyway.

      To be fair, my adjuster whom I met only one time is really a sweet woman and a dynamo – taking on a lot more cases than most do. She said she’d bend over backwards to max out my policy. She’s someone I’d much rather have on my side than not. In fact, if she does manage to max me out, all will be forgiven. In the meantime, I’ll just continue to be grumpy about the whole thing. Not time to become a squeaky wheel just yet, but we’re getting closer….

      Best –

      1. Update to my own updates. I was just emailed by my adjuster, and she is working on my file as I type. My file should be ready by tomorrow evening. Here’s hoping for a happy new years eve gift….

        And people say worrying doesn’t help? Here I was worried all day, and that seemed to have solved the problem… 🙂

        Beset –

        1. Jeff!! Don’t say you’re “beset”!!! You’ll jinx your payout!!?
          Seriously tho — good luck with everything! ?

  5. This puzzle was a bit harder than most, with the obscurity of some answers in relation to the clues, but can somebody please explain the answer to 56 Across “Modern Art”, “ARE”? I don’t get it at all.

      1. I see, as in “How art thou?”. Thanks for clearing that up; much too obscure for my old brain to have figured out.

  6. @Pat –

    “Modern art” is ARE..because the modern version of the word “art” is now ARE..

    Best –

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