LA Times Crossword 10 Dec 18, Monday

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Constructed by: Frank Virzi
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Bottom Line

Themed answers are all in the down-direction. The BOTTOM of those answers are all types of LINE:

  • 30D. Net profit, and what the answers to starred clues have : BOTTOM LINE
  • 3D. *Nominal leader : FIGUREHEAD (giving “headline”)
  • 6D. *Atmospheric wind that aids an eastbound U.S. flight : JET STREAM (giving “streamline”)
  • 9D. *Boston tax protest of 1773 : TEA PARTY (giving “party line”)
  • 36D. *Failed, as a business : WENT UNDER (giving “underline”)
  • 39D. *2016 film wrongly announced as Best Picture : LA LA LAND (giving “landline”)

Bill’s time: 5m 11s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6. Scribble (down) : JOT

A jot is something very small, with “jot” coming from the Latin “jota”. In turn, “jota” is from the Greek “iota”, which is the smallest letter in the Greek alphabet. The verb “to jot” comes from the noun, in the sense of making a small, short note.

9. Former Russian despots : TSARS

The last ruler of Imperial Russia was Tsar Nicholas II (of the House of Romanov). Famously, the Tsar and his family were murdered in 1918 in the basement of a house in Yekaterinburg, Russia by members of the Bolshevik secret police. The Tsar’s youngest daughter was 16-year-old Anastasia and rumors of her escape have persisted for years. The rumors grew with the help of numerous women who claimed to be Anastasia. In 2009, DNA testing finally proved that the remains of all of the Tsar’s immediate family, including Anastasia, have been found and identified.

A despot is a ruler with absolute power, and often one who wields that power oppressively. “Despot” is an old French term from the 14th century that is ultimately derived from the Greek “despotes” meaning “master of a household, absolute ruler”.

14. Dickens’ Heep : URIAH

Uriah Heep is a sniveling and insincere character in the novel “David Copperfield” by Charles Dickens. The character is such a “yes man” that today, if we know someone who behaves the same way, then we might call that person a “Uriah Heep”.

15. Cain raiser : EVE

As Cain was the first murderer according the Bible, he is associated with evil or trouble. The idiom “raise Cain” is the equivalent of “raise Hell” and “raise the Devil”. In all cases, the meaning is to bring back evil or to cause trouble.

16. Florida’s __ Center : EPCOT

EPCOT Center (now just called “Epcot”) is the theme park beside Walt Disney World in Florida. EPCOT is an acronym standing for Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow, and is a representation of the future as envisioned by Walt Disney. Walt Disney actually wanted to build a living community for 20,000 residents at EPCOT, but he passed away without that vision being realized.

17. Nabisco cookie with a pastry jacket : FIG NEWTON

The Fig Newton cookie is based on what is actually a very old recipe that dates back to Ancient Egypt. Whereas we grew up with “Fig Rolls” in Ireland, here in America the brand name “Fig Newton” was used, as the cookies were originally produced in Newton, Massachusetts.

19. “Cold Case Files” airer : A AND E

The A&E television network used to be a favorite of mine, with the “A&E” standing for “arts and entertainment”. A&E started out airing a lot of the old classic dramas, as well as biographies and arts programs. Now there seems to be more reality TV, with one of the flagship programs being “Dog the Bounty Hunter”. A slight change of direction I’d say …

“Cold Case Files” is a legal documentary show hosted by broadcast journalist Bill Kurtis. The show centers on murder cases that have long been left unsolved, but which have been revisited using modern forensic science techniques.

20. Seminoles’ sch. : FSU

Florida State University (FSU) is located in Tallahassee, the state capital of Florida. The school’s athletic teams are known as the Seminoles (sometimes “the ‘Noles”). The team name was chosen in 1947 by the students in a vote, and alludes to the Seminole people who originally lived in the state. Most of the Seminole now live in Oklahoma, after their forced relocation by the US government in the 1840s.

24. Gulf Coast Florida city : SARASOTA

Sarasota is a city on Florida’s Gulf Coast. The area was noted on maps in the mid-1700s as “Zara Zote”, which was perhaps a local name. The name became “Sara Sota” when European settlers arrived in the late 1840s, and eventually “Sarasota” in 1902.

33. Hostess snack : HO HO

Ho Hos snack cakes were first produced in San Francisco in 1967. The “Happy Ho Ho” mascot was created for the brand in the 1970s, and was a cartoon character in a Robin Hood outfit. Ho Hos weren’t the best thing to come out of the sixties I’d say …

35. Sound from a tabby : MEOW

Tabbies aren’t a breed of cat, but rather are cats with particular markings regardless of breed. Tabbies have coats with stripes, dots and swirling patterns, and usually an “M” mark on the forehead.

38. Barley brew : ALE

The many, many different styles of beer can generally be sorted into two groups: ales and lagers. Ales are fermented at relatively warm temperatures for relatively short periods of time, and use top-fermenting yeasts, i.e. yeasts that float on top of the beer as it ferments. Lagers ferment at relatively low temperatures and for relatively long periods of time. Lagers use bottom-fermenting yeasts, i.e. yeasts that fall to the bottom of the beer as it ferments.

39. __ Fáil: Irish coronation stone : LIA

The Lia Fáil is the coronation stone that is found on the Hill of Tara, the traditional seat of the High Kings of Ireland. “Lia Fáil” translates from Irish as “stone of destiny”.

40. Joseph of ice cream fame : EDY

Dreyers’ ice cream sells its products under the name Dreyers in the Western United States, and Edy’s in the Eastern states. The company’s founders were William Dreyer and Joseph Edy.

42. “Cats” monogram : TSE

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s source material for his hit musical “Cats” was T. S. Eliot’s “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats”. Eliot’s collection of whimsical poems was published in 1939, and was a personal favorite of Webber as he was growing up. “Cats” is the second longest running show in Broadway history (“Phantom of the Opera” is the longest and is still running; deservedly so in my humble opinion). My wife and I have seen “Cats” a couple of times and really enjoyed it …

43. Mazda sports car : MIATA

The Mazda MX-5 is sold as the Miata in North America, and as the Roadster in Japan. I’ve always liked the looks of the Mazda Miata, probably because it reminds me so much of old British sports cars. The Miata is built in Hiroshima, Japan. The name “Miata” comes from an Old High German word meaning “reward”.

45. City bond, briefly : MUNI

A municipal bond (“muni”) is one that is issued by a city or local government, or some similar agency. Munis have an advantage over other investments in that any interest earned on the bond is usually exempt from state and federal income taxes.

48. The “M” in LEM : MODULE

In the Apollo program, the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) was the vehicle that actually landed on the moon and returned the astronauts to the command module that was orbiting overhead. The third LEM built was named “Spider”, and it participated in the Apollo 9 mission which tested the functionality of the LEM design in space. The fourth LEM was called “Snoopy” and it flew around the moon in the Apollo 10 mission, the dress rehearsal for the upcoming moon landing. Apollo 11’s LEM was called “Eagle” and it brought Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to and from the moon’s surface. Another famous LEM was Apollo 13’s Aquarius. Although Aquarius never landed on the moon, it did serve as a “lifeboat” for the three astronauts after the explosive rupture of an oxygen canister in the Service Module.

50. Like red-line traffic, on Google Maps : STOP-GO

Google Maps was developed as a web mapping service for desktops. The (wonderful!) Google Maps mobile app was released in 2008, and is now the most popular smartphone app in the world.

56. Kate of “Steve Jobs” : WINSLET

Kate Winslet is one of my favorite actresses, one known for taking both the big Hollywood roles while still finding the time to act in smaller independent films. Perhaps Winslet’s most famous part was opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in “Titanic”, although she won her Oscar for a more dramatic role in “The Reader”. But my favorite of her performances is in the romantic comedy “The Holiday” from 2006. I love that movie …

“Steve Jobs” is a 2015 biographical film about the life of the Apple co-founder. The film is based on an excellent biography of the same name by Walter Isaacson. Michael Fassbender plays Jobs, and Seth Rogen plays Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. Aaron Sorkin wrote the screenplay, which is always a good thing as far as I’m concerned. I’m going to have to put this film on my watch list …

61. Bucolic setting : LEA

The word “bucolic”, meaning “rustic, rural”, comes to us from the Greek word “boukolos” meaning “cowherd”.

62. __ Gay: WWII bomber : ENOLA

The Enola Gay was the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb, the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima in August 1945. Enola Gay was the name of the mother of pilot Col. Paul W. Tibbets, Jr.

66. “Over the Rainbow” composer Harold : ARLEN

Harold Arlen is a composer of popular music who will forever be associated with his composition “Over the Rainbow” from the movie “The Wizard of Oz”. Arlen also composed the music to “Come Rain or Come Shine”, “It’s Only a Paper Moon”, “Lydia the Tattooed Lady” and the wonderful “Stormy Weather”.

“Over the Rainbow” is a classic song written especially for the 1939 movie “The Wizard of Oz”. It was sung by the young Judy Garland (Dorothy) in the film, and it was to become her signature song. There is an introductory verse that wasn’t used in the movie, and is very rarely heard:

When all the world is a hopeless jumble
And the raindrops tumble all around,
Heaven opens a magic lane
When all the clouds darken up the skyway,
There’s a rainbow highway to be found
Leading from your window pane
To a place behind the sun,
Just a step beyond the rain.

68. The Lindy, e.g. : DANCE

The Lindy hop (sometimes just “lindy”) is a swing dance that evolved in Harlem in the twenties and was especially popular during the swing Era of the thirties and forties. Allegedly, the dance is named for aviator Charles Lindbergh. Lucky Lindy “hopped” the Atlantic in 1927, making the first nonstop solo flight from the US to Europe.

69. Tally again : RE-ADD

Back in the mid-1600s, a tally was a stick marked with notches that tracked how much one owed or had paid. The term came from the Latin “talea” meaning “stick, rod”. The act of “scoring” the stick with notches gave rise to our word “score” for the number in a tally.

70. Hide-hair link : NOR

The phrase “neither hide nor hair” means “nothing whatsoever”. This peculiarly American phrase arose in the mid 1800s, and paradoxically may have its origins in a much older English expression that means exactly the opposite. The older “in hide and hair” meant “wholly, entirely”.

71. Jouster’s ride : STEED

“Jousting” and “tilting” are synonyms describing the medieval competition in which two horsemen yielding blunted lances attempt to unseat each other. Such an event has been referred to as “jousting” since the 1300s. At some point, the path of the two charging horsemen was separated by a cloth barrier known as a tilt (“tilt” meant “cloth covering”). The term “tilting” was applied to the sport in the 1500s, although by then the cloth barrier had been upgraded to a wooden fence.

Down

1. Blows like the Big Bad Wolf : HUFFS

The Big Bad Wolf is a character in many folklore stories, including “Little Red Riding” and “Three Little Pigs”. Walt Disney’s version of Big Bad Wolf is called Zeke Wolf, and has a son called Li’l Bad Wolf, or just “Li’l Wolf” to his friends.

2. Pension law acronym : ERISA

ERISA is the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, enacted in 1974. ERISA regulates the operation of a pension plan once it has been established. However, ERISA does not require that a pension plan be offered by an employer. ERISA is also the legislation that introduced what is now referred to a traditional IRA (individual retirement account).

6. *Atmospheric wind that aids an eastbound U.S. flight : JET STREAM (giving “streamline”)

Jet streams are narrow air currents high in the atmosphere that move very quickly around the earth. The major jet streams surrounding our planet move in a westerly direction.

7. Lacto-__ vegetarian : OVO

A lacto-ovo vegetarian is someone who does not consume meat or fish, but does who eat eggs (ovo) and dairy (lacto) products.

9. *Boston tax protest of 1773 : TEA PARTY (giving “party line”)

The famous destruction of tea in Boston Harbor to protest against the Tea Act took place on December 16, 1773. The action was referred to as the “destruction of the tea” for decades, and it wasn’t until 1834 that the term “Boston Tea Party” first appeared in print.

10. Cousin of a snowfinch : SPARROW

Snowfinches are small birds in the sparrow family, As the name perhaps suggest, the natural habitats of the snowfinch are rocky mountainous areas above 5,000 feet.

13. Fr. holy women : STES

“Sainte” (ste.) is French for “saint”, when referring to a “femme” (woman).

18. End of many a riddle : WHO AM I?

Here’s a “who am I?” riddle:

Say my name and I disappear.
Who am I?

Answer: Silence

23. Holy Roman VIP: Abbr. : EMP

The Holy Roman Empire (HRE) existed from 962 to 1806 AD and was a territory of varying size over the centuries that centered on the Kingdom of Germany. The HRE was a successor to the western half of the Ancient Roman Empire.

25. Japan’s largest active volcano : ASO

Mount Aso is the largest active volcano in Japan and is found on the island of Kyushu.

26. PFC’s address : APO

Army post office (APO)

Private First Class (PFC)

30. Net profit, and what the answers to starred clues have : BOTTOM LINE

In a statement of accounts, gross profit is the difference between revenue from sales and the cost of making goods or providing a service. So-called fixed costs, i.e. overhead, payroll, taxes and interest payments, are not included in gross profits. When these fixed costs have been deducted, what is left is called the net profit, also known as “the bottom line”.

32. Hook’s right hand : SMEE

In J. M. Barrie’s play and novel about Peter Pan, Smee is one of Captain Hook’s pirates and is Hook’s right-hand man. Smee is described by Barrie as being “Irish” and “a man who stabbed without offence”. Nice guy! Captain Hook and Smee sail on the pirate ship called the Jolly Roger.

33. Soccer great Mia : HAMM

Mia Hamm is a retired American soccer player, a forward who played on the US national team that won the FIFA women’s World Cup in 1991. Hamm has scored 158 international goals, more than other player in the world, male or female. Amazingly, Hamm was born with a clubfoot, and so had to wear corrective shoes when she was growing up.

34. Mishmash : OLIO

“Olio” is a term meaning a hodgepodge or a mixture that comes from the mixed stew of the same name. The stew in turn takes its name from the Spanish “olla”, the clay pot used for cooking.

39. *2016 film wrongly announced as Best Picture : LA LA LAND (giving “landline”)

“La La Land” is a 2016 romantic musical film starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone as a musician and actress who fall in love in “La La Land” (Los Angeles, i.e. “LA”). The film was written and directed by Damien Chazelle, who had found success two years earlier with the musical drama “Whiplash”. “La La Land” won a record-breaking seven Golden Globes and tied the record number of Oscar nominations at fourteen, winning six.

There was a celebrated gaffe made at the Oscar ceremony honoring the best films of 2016. Presenters Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty, due to no fault of their own, declared “La La Land” as the winner of the Best Picture award. The producers of “La La Land” were over two minutes into their acceptance speeches when it became clear that the actual winner of the award was the movie “Moonlight”.

41. Singer Warwick : DIONNE

Dionne Warwick is a very, very successful singer, with more Top 100 hits than any other female vocalist other than Aretha Franklin. Warwick had a pretty successful cousin who was a singer as well … named Whitney Houston.

46. Battleship initials : USS

The abbreviation “USS” stands for “United States Ship”. The practice of naming US Navy vessels in a standard format didn’t start until 1907 when President Theodore Roosevelt issued an executive order that addressed the issue.

In the days of sail, a naval fleet of ships often formed a “line of battle” in the vessels formed up end to end. The advantage of such a formation was that all vessels could fire a battery of cannon along the full length of the ship. Vessels deemed powerful enough to join the line of battle became known as “ships of the line”, or “line of battle ships”. The term “line of battle ship” shortened over time to become our modern word “battleship”. The main feature of a contemporary battleship is a battery of large caliber guns.

47. Turkish chief : AGA

“Aga” (also “agha”) is a title that was used by both civil and military officials in the Ottoman Empire.

49. Peacock tail feature : EYE

An ocellus (plural “ocelli”) is an eye-like marking, or eyespot. A good example of ocelli are the eyespots on the elaborate display feathers of a peacock.

54. Pound’s 100, in England : PENCE

The official name of our smallest denomination coin is “cent”, and our use of the word “penny” is just a colloquialism derived from the British coin of the same name. In the UK, the plural of penny is “pence”, whereas we have “pennies” in our pockets.

I remember the days when there used to be 240 pence (pennies) in an Irish/British pound. Life became so much easier when that was changed to 100 “new” pence in 1971.

57. Regarding, on memos : IN RE

The term “in re” is Latin, and is derived from “in” (in) and “res” (thing, matter). “In re” literally means “in the matter”, and is used to mean “in regard to” or “in the matter of”.

58. Pelican St. city : NOLA

The city of New Orleans, Louisiana has the nickname “The Big Easy”. This name might come from the early 1900s when musicians found it relatively “easy” to find work there. The city is also known by the acronym NOLA, standing for New Orleans (NO), LA.

The official nickname of Louisiana is the Pelican State, but it is also known as the Bayou State, the Child of Mississippi, the Creole State, the Sportsman’s Paradise and the Sugar State.

59. Fed chasing Capone : T-MAN

A T-man is a law-enforcement agent of the US Treasury (T stands for “Treasury”).

The Chicago gangster Al Capone was eventually jailed for tax evasion. He was given a record 11-year sentence in federal prison, of which he served 8 years. He left prison suffering dementia caused by late-stage syphilis. Capone suffered through 7-8 sickly years before passing away in 1947.

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Strains to lift : HEFTS
6. Scribble (down) : JOT
9. Former Russian despots : TSARS
14. Dickens’ Heep : URIAH
15. Cain raiser : EVE
16. Florida’s __ Center : EPCOT
17. Nabisco cookie with a pastry jacket : FIG NEWTON
19. “Cold Case Files” airer : A AND E
20. Seminoles’ sch. : FSU
21. Lukewarm reviews? : EHS
22. Sadden : DEPRESS
24. Gulf Coast Florida city : SARASOTA
27. Scrape or scratch : MAR
28. F equivalent, in music : E-SHARP
29. Investigations : PROBES
33. Hostess snack : HO HO
35. Sound from a tabby : MEOW
37. Wee hr. : TWO AM
38. Barley brew : ALE
39. __ Fáil: Irish coronation stone : LIA
40. Joseph of ice cream fame : EDY
42. “Cats” monogram : TSE
43. Mazda sports car : MIATA
45. City bond, briefly : MUNI
47. Suit to __ : A TEE
48. The “M” in LEM : MODULE
50. Like red-line traffic, on Google Maps : STOP-GO
52. For example : SAY
53. Lights that darken : SUNLAMPS
56. Kate of “Steve Jobs” : WINSLET
60. SSW opposite : NNE
61. Bucolic setting : LEA
62. __ Gay: WWII bomber : ENOLA
63. Succeeded big-time : MADE A MINT
66. “Over the Rainbow” composer Harold : ARLEN
67. Grow older : AGE
68. The Lindy, e.g. : DANCE
69. Tally again : RE-ADD
70. Hide-hair link : NOR
71. Jouster’s ride : STEED

Down

1. Blows like the Big Bad Wolf : HUFFS
2. Pension law acronym : ERISA
3. *Nominal leader : FIGUREHEAD (giving “headline”)
4. Beachgoer’s color : TAN
5. “Good grief!” : SHEESH!
6. *Atmospheric wind that aids an eastbound U.S. flight : JET STREAM (giving “streamline”)
7. Lacto-__ vegetarian : OVO
8. Look after : TEND
9. *Boston tax protest of 1773 : TEA PARTY (giving “party line”)
10. Cousin of a snowfinch : SPARROW
11. Most common skin condition in the U.S. : ACNE
12. Fishing sticks : RODS
13. Fr. holy women : STES
18. End of many a riddle : WHO AM I?
23. Holy Roman VIP: Abbr. : EMP
25. Japan’s largest active volcano : ASO
26. PFC’s address : APO
30. Net profit, and what the answers to starred clues have : BOTTOM LINE
31. Lessen, as pain : EASE
32. Hook’s right hand : SMEE
33. Soccer great Mia : HAMM
34. Mishmash : OLIO
36. *Failed, as a business : WENT UNDER (giving “underline”)
39. *2016 film wrongly announced as Best Picture : LA LA LAND (giving “landline”)
41. Singer Warwick : DIONNE
44. Wrestled : TUSSLED
46. Battleship initials : USS
47. Turkish chief : AGA
49. Peacock tail feature : EYE
51. Tells it to the judge : PLEADS
54. Pound’s 100, in England : PENCE
55. Totally full : SATED
56. Be dressed in : WEAR
57. Regarding, on memos : IN RE
58. Pelican St. city : NOLA
59. Fed chasing Capone : T-MAN
64. In the past : AGO
65. Doorstep welcomer : MAT

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