LA Times Crossword 14 Mar 19, Thursday

Advertisement

Constructed by: Alan Olschwang
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Crazy Eights

Themed answers include the hidden word “EIGHT”, but the letters are rearranged, i.e. are CRAZY:

  • 63A. Simple card game, and what’s hidden in the answers to starred clues : CRAZY EIGHTS
  • 17A. *Like power lines : HIGH TENSION
  • 24A. *End an engagement? : GET HITCHED
  • 38A. *Teddy kin : NIGHTIE
  • 51A. *Feature items in some annual sales : WHITE GOODS

Bill’s time: 6m 50s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1. Grammy category word : ALBUM

The first Grammy Awards ceremony was held in 1959 and focused on recognizing outstanding achievement in the recording industry. The idea of a Grammy Award came up when recording executives were working on the Hollywood Walk of Fame project in the fifties. These executives concluded that there were many people in the recording industry deserving of accolades but who would probably never make it to the Walk of Fame. As a result, they founded the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. The Academy considered naming the award the “Eddies” after Thomas Edison, but then opted for “Grammy” after Edison’s invention: the gramophone.

6. “And here it is!” : VOILA!

The French word “voilà” means “there it is”, and “voici” means “here it is”. The terms come from “voi là” meaning “see there” and “voi ici” meaning “see here”.

15. “Return of the Jedi” forest moon : ENDOR

The fictional forested moon of Endor features prominently in the “Star Wars” movie “Return of the Jedi”. The moon is home to the race of furry aliens known as Ewoks. Filming for the forest scenes actually took place in Humboldt Redwoods State Park in Northern California.

17. *Like power lines : HIGH TENSION

“High tension” is another way of saying “high voltage”.

19. Band booking : GIG

Musicians use “gig” to describe a job, a performance. The term originated in the early 1900s in the world of jazz. The derivative phrase “gig economy” applies to a relatively recent phenomenon where workers find themselves jumping from temporary job to temporary job, from gig to gig.

21. Cake invitation Alice accepted : EAT ME

In Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, Alice follows the white rabbit down a rabbit hole and finds a bottle labelled “DRINK ME”. When she drinks the contents, it causes her to shrink. She also sees a cake adorned with the words “EAT ME” written using currants, and when she eats the cake she grows so big she finds it hard to stand up. After eating the cake, she utters the words, “Curiouser and curiouser”.

23. Does, say : DEER

A male deer is usually called a buck, and a female is a doe. However, the male red deer is usually referred to as a stag. The males of even larger species of deer are often called bulls, and females cows. In older English, male deer of over 5 years were called harts, and females of over 3 years were called hinds. The young of small species are known as fawns, and of larger species are called calves. All very confusing …

30. Any member of ABBA : SWEDE

Only three members of the quartet that made up the Swedish pop group ABBA were born in Sweden. Anni-Frid Lyngstad was born in Norway just after the end of WWII, the daughter of a Norwegian mother and a father who was German soldier and a member of the German occupying force during the war. The father returned to Germany with the army, and in 1947, Anni-Frid was taken with her family to Sweden. They left fearing reprisals against those who dealt with the German army during the occupation.

33. What a birdie beats : PAR

The following terms are routinely used in golf for scores relative to par:

  • Bogey: one over par
  • Par
  • Birdie: one under par
  • Eagle: two under par
  • Albatross (also “double eagle”): three under par
  • Condor: four under par

No one has ever recorded a condor during a professional tournament.

34. Aromatic herb : DILL

Often, a dill pickle is actually a pickled gherkin, as the gherkin and cucumber are different cultivars within the same species. Here in the US, dill is commonly added to the pickling vinegar or brine, but this wasn’t the case when I used to eat them back in Ireland (I can’t stand dill!). You might see jars labeled as “cornichons”, but they’re gherkins. “Cornichon” is just the French word for “gherkin”.

37. ’90s game disc : POG

The game of pogs was originally played with bottle caps from POG fruit juice. The juice was named for its constituents, passion fruit, orange and guava.

38. *Teddy kin : NIGHTIE

The item of lingerie known as a teddy can also be called “camiknickers”. The alternative name was used when the one-piece garment was introduced in the twenties, a combination of a camisole and panties (aka “knickers”).

42. One of the fire signs : LEO

Each of the twelve astrological signs is associated with one of the classical elements:

  • Fire signs: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius
  • Earth signs: Taurus, Capricorn, Virgo
  • Air signs: Libra, Aquarius, Gemini
  • Water signs: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces

46. Brilliance : ECLAT

“Éclat” can describe a brilliant show of success, as well as the applause or accolade that one receives for that success. The word “éclat” derives from the French “éclater” meaning “to splinter, burst out”.

48. One-footer, e.g. : TAP-IN

That would be golf.

60. Babe __, only woman in ESPN’s Top 10 North American Athletes of the 20th Century : ZAHARIAS

Babe Zaharias was an American all-round athlete who won two track and field gold medals in the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She then became a professional golfer, and won ten LPGA majors. And in the world of baseball, Zaharias holds the record for the farthest baseball throw by a woman.

62. Life-saving pro : EMT

Emergency medical technician (EMT)

63. Simple card game, and what’s hidden in the answers to starred clues : CRAZY EIGHTS

The card game called Crazy Eights is named for the former military designation “Section 8”. Section 8 referred to a category of discharge from the US military, reserved for personnel deemed mentally unfit for duty.

66. __-disant: self-styled : SOI

“Soi-disant” is a French term that we’ve imported into English. Meaning “self-styled, so-called”, we tend to use the term disparagingly, suggesting an element of self-promotion. “Soi-disant” translates literally from French as “saying oneself”.

67. Ancient Aegean region : IONIA

The geographic region called Ionia is located in present day Turkey. Ionia was prominent in the days of Ancient Greece although it wasn’t a unified state, but rather a collection of tribes. The tribal confederacy was more based on religious and cultural similarities than a political or military alliance. Nowadays we often refer to this arrangement as the Ionian League.

68. “The Wreck of the Mary __” : DEARE

“The Wreck of the Mary Deare” is a novel by Hammond Innes, as well as a 1959 movie adaptation of the book, starring Gary Cooper.

69. Channel that airs many RKO films : TMC

The Movie Channel is owned by Showtime, which in turn is subsidiary of CBS. The channel’s name is often abbreviated to “TMC”, although this is informal usage.

71. John of “The Addams Family” : ASTIN

The actor John Astin is best known for playing Gomez, the head of the household on “The Addams Family” TV series.

Down

1. Agricultural pest : APHID

Aphids are called “greenfly” back in the British Isles where I come from. The most effective way to control aphids, in my experience, is to make sure there are plenty of ladybugs in the garden (called “ladybirds” in Ireland!).

2. “Rawhide” singer : LAINE

Singer Frankie Laine was known for singing the theme songs from Western movies and shows, although he wasn’t a country & western singer. Laine released a version of the theme for “High Noon” for example, and “Champion the Wonder Horse”, and they became bigger hits than the originals.

“Rawhide” was on the air from 1959-65. The most famous cast member was Clint Eastwood who played Rowdy Yates. The list of guest stars was also impressive. It included Mary Astor, Frankie Avalon, Charles Bronson, and even Frankie Laine. Laine sang the theme song, which was composed by Russian Dimitri Tiomkin.

3. Taps player : BUGLE

“Taps” is played nightly by the US military, indicating “lights out”. It’s also known as “Butterfield’s Lullaby” as it is a variation of an older bugle call named the “Scott Tattoo”, arranged during the Civil War by the Union Army’s Brigadier General Daniel Butterfield. The tune is called “Taps”, from the notion of drum taps, as it was originally played on a drum, and only later on a bugle. The whole tune comprises just 24 notes, with there only being four different notes within the 24, i.e. “low G”, C, E and “high G”. Minimalism at its best …

5. Like a footnote that explains footnotes : META

In recent decades the prefix “meta-” has started to be used as a standalone adjective. In this sense “meta” means “self-referential”, describing something that refers to itself. For example, “This sentence starts with the word ‘this’ and ends with the word ‘this’” might be called a meta sentence. A movie that is about the making of the very same movie could also be described as meta.

8. Dictator played by Forest : IDI

“The Last King of Scotland” is a 2006 film adaptation of a 1998 novel of the same name by Giles Foden. The story tells of a Scottish doctor (played by James McAvoy) who was employed by Idi Amin (played by Forest Whitaker). The title of the piece comes from the fact that Idi Amin offered his services as King of Scotland, should he ever be needed.

9. Leicester toilet : LOO

Leicester is the county town of Leicestershire in the English Midlands. Leicester has been associated with many famous Englishman including actor Richard Attenborough and his brother David, the world famous naturalist, both of whom grew up there. Graham Chapman of “Monty Python” was born there, and singer Engelbert Humperdinck, although born in India, grew up in Leicester. Leicester was in the news relatively recently when remains found under a car park were identified as those of Richard III, the last king of the House of York.

10. Journalist Peter : ARNETT

Peter Arnett is an American journalist who is originally from New Zealand. I mainly remember him from his coverage of the Gulf War for CNN, although Arnett was awarded his Pulitzer Prize in 1966 for his work in Vietnam, during the war there.

12. Cartoon genre : ANIME

Anime is cartoon animation in the style of Japanese Manga comic books.

18. “The one who makes it, takes it” breakfast brand : EGGO

Eggo is 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”.

26. Crucifix letters : INRI

The letters written on the cross on which Jesus died were INRI. “INRI” is an initialism standing for the Latin “Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Iudaeorum”, which translates into English as “Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews”.

In many of the Christian traditions, a crucifix is a representation of Jesus on the cross. The term comes from the Latin “cruci fixus” meaning “fixed to a cross”.

30. Beach letters : SPF

In theory, the sun protection factor (SPF) is a calibrated measure of the effectiveness of a sunscreen in protecting the skin from harmful UV rays. The idea is that if you wear a lotion with say SPF 20, then it takes 20 times as much UV radiation to cause the skin to burn than it would take without protection. I say just stay out of the sun …

33. Third deg.? : PHD

“Ph.D.” is an abbreviation for “philosophiae doctor”, Latin for “teacher of philosophy”. Often, candidates for a PhD already hold a bachelor’s and a master’s degree, so a PhD might be considered a “third degree”.

35. Verdant patch : LEA

Back in the late 1500s, “verdant” simply meant “green”, but we now tend to use the term to mean “green and lush with vegetation”. “Viridis” is the Latin for “green”.

40. Singer Vannelli : GINO

Gino Vannelli is a Canadian singer from Montreal, Quebec. Vannelli is apparently very popular in the Netherlands, and divides his time between homes there and in Oregon in the US.

41. Some RIT grads : EES

The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private school in Rochester, New York that is actually located in the town of Henrietta. Despite the “technology” moniker, the school has a noted fine arts program. RIT was formed in 1891 when the Rochester Athenaeum (a literary society) merged with the Mechanics Institute (a technical training institute). The school’s first name was the Rochester Athenaeum and Mechanics Institute, but this was changed to RIT in 1944.

49. #2, for one : PENCIL

I grew up with the HB method of grading pencils, from “hardness” to “blackness”. Here in the US we sometimes use a numerical grading system, with #2 being the equivalent of HB. The numerical system was introduced in the US by one John Thoreau, father of famed author and hero of mine Henry David Thoreau.

50. ’60s-’70s tennis great Arthur : ASHE

The great American tennis player Arthur Ashe spent the last years of his life writing his memoir called “Days of Grace”. He finished the manuscript just a few days before he passed away, dying from AIDS caused by a tainted blood transfusion.

51. Extract forcibly : WREST

The verb “to wrest” can mean to obtain by violent twisting and pulling. The term comes from the Middle English “wresten” meaning “to twist”. Our word “wrestling” has the same etymology.

52. Bleachers sign : HI, MOM!

At a sports event one might sit in the bleachers. “Bleachers” is a particularly American term used to describe the tiered stands that provide seating for spectators. These seats were originally wooden planks, and as they were uncovered they would be bleached by the sun, giving them the name we use today. Sometimes the fans using the bleachers might be referred to as “bleacherites”.

53. David and Ricky’s dad : OZZIE

“The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet” originally ran from 1952 to 1966, and has been running continuously in syndication ever since. It still holds the record for the longest-running, non-animated sitcom ever seen on US television.

54. Israeli hero Moshe : DAYAN

Moshe Dayan had a long and distinguished military career (including command of Israeli forces during the 1956 Suez Crisis). He also played a pivotal, and militarily active, role as Minister for Defense during the Six-Day War of 1967. He was a very recognizable figure with a black patch over his left eye. Dayan received that injury when he was fighting for the Allies in Vichy French Lebanon during WWII. He was using a pair of binoculars that was hit by an enemy bullet, smashing metal and glass fragments into his eye.

56. Drum kit part : HI-HAT

In a drum kit, a hi-hat is a pairing of cymbals that sits on a stand and is played by using a foot pedal. The top cymbal is raised and lowered by the foot, hence creating a crashing sound.

58. German steel center : ESSEN

Essen is a large industrial city located on the River Ruhr in western Germany. The city experienced major population growth in the mid-1800s that was driven by the iron works established by the Krupp family.

61. Operatic princess : AIDA

“Aida” is a famous opera by Giuseppe Verdi that is based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette. Mariette also designed the costumes and stages for the opening performance. The opera was first staged in 1871 in an opera house in Cairo. In the storyline, Aida is an Ethiopian princess brought into Egypt as a slave. Radames is an Egyptian commander who falls in love with her, and then complications arise!

64. Versailles monarch : ROI

Versailles is a city located just 10 miles from the center of Paris. It is famous as home to the magnificent Palace of Versailles. The palace started out as a hunting lodge built in the village of Versailles in 1624, built for Louis XIII. Louis XIII extended the lodge into a full-blown château, but it was Louis XIV who expanded it into one of the largest palaces on the planet. Louis XIV moved the royal court from Paris to Versailles starting in 1678.

65. Taylor of fashion : ANN

There was no actual person called “Ann Taylor” associated with the Ann Taylor line of clothes. The name was chosen by the marketing professionals because “Ann” was considered to be “very New England” back in 1954 when the stores first opened, and “Taylor” suggested that clothes were carefully “tailored”.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Grammy category word : ALBUM
6. “And here it is!” : VOILA!
11. Pickup spot, perhaps : BAR
14. Take a break : PAUSE
15. “Return of the Jedi” forest moon : ENDOR
16. Fashion or sense preceder : IN A …
17. *Like power lines : HIGH TENSION
19. Band booking : GIG
20. Conspiring (with) : IN LEAGUE
21. Cake invitation Alice accepted : EAT ME
23. Does, say : DEER
24. *End an engagement? : GET HITCHED
27. Alternative rock genre : EMO
29. “Come on in!” : ENTER!
30. Any member of ABBA : SWEDE
33. What a birdie beats : PAR
34. Aromatic herb : DILL
37. ’90s game disc : POG
38. *Teddy kin : NIGHTIE
42. One of the fire signs : LEO
43. Pull a fast one on : FOOL
45. Served, as time : DID
46. Brilliance : ECLAT
48. One-footer, e.g. : TAP-IN
50. Gray shade : ASH
51. *Feature items in some annual sales : WHITE GOODS
55. World-weary words : AH ME
59. Up : RISEN
60. Babe __, only woman in ESPN’s Top 10 North American Athletes of the 20th Century : ZAHARIAS
62. Life-saving pro : EMT
63. Simple card game, and what’s hidden in the answers to starred clues : CRAZY EIGHTS
66. __-disant: self-styled : SOI
67. Ancient Aegean region : IONIA
68. “The Wreck of the Mary __” : DEARE
69. Channel that airs many RKO films : TMC
70. __ closet : LINEN
71. John of “The Addams Family” : ASTIN

Down

1. Agricultural pest : APHID
2. “Rawhide” singer : LAINE
3. Taps player : BUGLE
4. Brought (in) : USHERED
5. Like a footnote that explains footnotes : META
6. Locale : VENUE
7. Early stage : ONSET
8. Dictator played by Forest : IDI
9. Leicester toilet : LOO
10. Journalist Peter : ARNETT
11. Time of one’s life : BIG THRILL
12. Cartoon genre : ANIME
13. Continued unabated : RAGED
18. “The one who makes it, takes it” breakfast brand : EGGO
22. Breezed through : ACED
25. Recipe verb : HEAT
26. Crucifix letters : INRI
28. Fellows : MEN
30. Beach letters : SPF
31. Try to attract : WOO
32. Lacking humility : EGOTISTIC
33. Third deg.? : PHD
35. Verdant patch : LEA
36. Auction unit : LOT
39. “Gotcha!” : I DIG!
40. Singer Vannelli : GINO
41. Some RIT grads : EES
44. After-hours : LATE
47. Supplies power to : CHARGES
49. #2, for one : PENCIL
50. ’60s-’70s tennis great Arthur : ASHE
51. Extract forcibly : WREST
52. Bleachers sign : HI, MOM!
53. David and Ricky’s dad : OZZIE
54. Israeli hero Moshe : DAYAN
56. Drum kit part : HI-HAT
57. Motherly introduction? : MATRI-
58. German steel center : ESSEN
61. Operatic princess : AIDA
64. Versailles monarch : ROI
65. Taylor of fashion : ANN