LA Times Crossword 26 Jun 19, Wednesday

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Constructed by: Dan Schoenholz
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Cake Mixes

Themed answers include circled letters that spell out the name of a CAKE, The order of those letters has been MIXED, rearranged:

  • 64A Baking conveniences, and a hint to this puzzle’s circles : CAKE MIXES
  • 17A It may be hard to turn down : NICE OFFER (hiding “coffee” mix)
  • 26A Stockpiled : LOADED UP ON (hiding “pound” mix)
  • 41A Sitting in an assigned seat, e.g. : TAKING ONE’S PLACE (hiding “sponge” mix)
  • 51A Corporate annual report focus : FISCAL YEAR (hiding “layer” mix)

Bill’s time: 7m 54s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 Ziti, e.g. : PASTA

Cylindrical pasta is known in general as “penne”, and there are many variants. For example, ziti is a particularly large and long tube with square-cut ends. “Penne” is the plural of “penna”, the Italian for “feather, quill”.

20 Small flightless bird : KIWI

The kiwi is an unusual bird in that it has a highly developed sense of smell and is the only one of our feathered friends with nostrils located at the tip of its long beak.

21 “Oye Como Va” songwriter Puente : TITO

After serving in the navy in WWII for three years, musician Tito Puente studied at Juilliard, where he got a great grounding in conducting, orchestration and theory. Puente parlayed this education into a career in Latin Jazz and Mambo. He was known as “El Rey” as well as “The King of Latin Music”.

“Oye Como Va” is a song written by Tito Puente in 1963. The best-known recording is the cover version by Santana released in 1970.

24 Low-risk investments: Abbr. : CDS

A certificate of deposit (CD) is like a less-flexible and higher-paying savings account. Instead of depositing money into a savings account and earning interest periodically, one can open a CD. With a CD one deposits a minimum amount of money but must leave it there for a specified length of time. In return for committing the funds for a fixed period, one is given a higher interest rate than a savings account and can redeem that interest and the initial deposit when the term has expired. CDs are relatively low-risk investments as they are FDIC insured, just like savings accounts.

26 Stockpiled : LOADED UP ON (hiding “pound” mix)

Pound cake is so called because the traditional recipe calls for a pound of each of four ingredients:

  • a pound of flour
  • a pound of butter
  • a pound of eggs
  • a pound of sugar

I’d say that’s a lot of cake …

34 “The Green Hornet” co-writer/star Rogen : SETH

Seth Rogen is a Canadian comedian who got a lot of credit for his supporting role in “The 40-Year-Old Virgin”. That led to him being cast as the lead in the 1970 film “Knocked Up”. Rogen also co-directed and and co-starred in the movie “The Interview”, which created a huge ruckus in North Korea.

“The Green Hornet” is a 2011 film starring Seth Rogen in the title role. Rogen also co-wrote the script, with his childhood friend Evan Goldberg. Musician Jay Chou plays the Green Hornet’s sidekick Kato, and Christoph Waltz plays bad guy Benjamin Chudnofsky.

44 Editor’s retraction : 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.

56 “Irreverence is easy–what’s hard is __”: Tom Lehrer : WIT

Tom Lehrer is an American singer-songwriter, and someone famous for writing humorous songs and parodies.

58 12-1 MLB victory, e.g. : ROUT

Major League Baseball (MLB)

59 Davenport setting : IOWA

Davenport, Iowa sits on the Mississippi River. The city was founded in 1836 by landowner and businessman Antoine LeClaire, with the assistance of a group of investors. The investors resisted the use of LeClaire’s name for the new settlement as LeClaire was of mixed race, had a French name and was a Catholic. Instead, it was named for George Davenport, one of the other investors.

69 Spy org. called “The Company” : CIA

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is the successor to the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) formed during WWII. The CIA was chartered by the National Security Act of 1947. The organization is often referred to familiarly as “the Company”.

70 Hapless : INEPT

One’s hap is one’s luck. So to be hapless is to be out of luck, unfortunate.

71 North Sea county : ESSEX

Essex is a county in England that is referred to as one of the “home counties”. The home counties are those that surround the city of London, outside of London itself. “Home county” is not an official designation but has been in popular use since the 1800s. The list of home counties usually comprises Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Kent, Surrey, and Sussex.

The North Sea is an offshoot of the Atlantic Ocean that is located between Britain and Scandinavia.

72 __-country music : ALT

“Alt-” is a prefix used to denote “alternative”, and is used to define a number of music genres e.g. alt-rock, alt-country.

Down

2 Tokyo sash : OBI

The sash worn as part of traditional Japanese dress is known as an obi. The obi can be tied at the back in what is called a butterfly knot. The term “obi” is also used for the thick cotton belts that are an essential part of the outfits worn by practitioners of many martial arts. The color of the martial arts obi signifies the wearer’s skill level.

3 Large python : ROCK SNAKE

The African rock python is the largest snake endemic to Africa, and the sixth largest species of snake in the world. It is non-venomous, and kills its prey by constriction. That prey can sometimes be the size of an antelope or even a crocodile.

4 German trio : DREI

“Eins, zwei, drei, vier” is German for “one, two, three, four”.

6 Sunscreen 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 …

7 Michelangelo masterpiece : PIETA

The Pietà is a representation of the Virgin Mary holding in her arms the dead body of her son Jesus. The most famous Pietà is undoubtedly the sculpted rendition by Michelangelo that is located in St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. That particular sculpture is thought to be the only work that Michelangelo signed. In some depictions of the Pietà, Mary and her son are surrounded by other figures from the New Testament. Such depictions are known as Lamentations.

9 Taoist temple : PAGODA

Pagodas are tiered (“storied”) towers found in various parts of Asia that are usually built for religious purposes.

The name of the Chinese character “tao” translates as “path”, but the concept of Taoism signifies the true nature of the world.

12 Off-limits : TABOO

The word “taboo” was introduced into English by Captain Cook in his book “A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean”. Cook described “tabu” (likely imitative of a Tongan word that he had heard) as something that was both consecrated and forbidden.

24 Vouchers : CHITS

A chit is a note or a short letter. The term tends to be used these days in the sense of an amount owed (as in a poker game). The word used to be “chitty”, which is now obsolete but was closer to the original Hindi term. I feel a tad obsolete myself because when we are at school we would be excused class if we had a “chitty”.

25 Old European coin : DUCAT

The ducat was a coin introduced by the Republic of Venice in 1284.

27 Eats too much of, as junk food : OD’S ON

Overdose (OD)

30 Blogger, at times : CRITIC

Many folks who visit this website regard it as just that, a website. That is true, but more specifically it is referred to as a blog, as I make regular posts (actually daily posts) that then occupy the “front page” of the site. The blog entries are in reverse chronological order, and one can just look back day-by-day, reading older and older posts. “Blog” is a contraction of the term “web log”.

35 Sinusitis-treating doc : ENT

Ear, nose and throat specialist (ENT)

The suffix “-itis” is used to denote inflammation, as in laryngitis (inflammation of the larynx), otitis (inflammation of the ear), tendinitis (inflammation of a tendon), tonsillitis (inflammation of the tonsils) and sinusitis (inflammation of the sinuses).

36 Edison contemporary : TESLA

Nikola Tesla was born in Serbia, but later moved to the US. Tesla’s work on mechanical and electrical engineering was crucial to the development of alternating current technology, the same technology that is used by equipment at the backbone of modern power generation and distribution systems.

39 When the duel occurs in “Hamilton” : ACT II

“Hamilton” is a 2015 musical based on the life of US Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, as described in the 2004 biography by Ron Chernow. The show opened off-Broadway in February 2015, and transferred to Broadway in August of the same year. Advance ticket sales for the Broadway production were unprecedented, and reportedly amounted to $30 million. The representations of the main characters is decidedly ground-breaking. The show is rooted in hip-hop and the main roles such as Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington are all played by African-American and Hispanic actors.

Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s Founding Fathers, chief of staff to General George Washington and the first Secretary of the Treasury. It was Hamilton who established the nation’s first political party, the Federalist Party. He is also famous for fighting a duel with Vice President Aaron Burr, which resulted in Hamilton’s death a few days later.

42 Big name in California viticulture : GALLO

E & J Gallo Winery was founded by Ernest and Julio Gallo in Modesto, California in 1933. Gallo is the largest exporter of wine from the state of California.

43 Entry-level GI : PVT

The lowest military rank of soldier is often called “private” (pvt.). The term comes from the Middle Ages when “private soldiers” were hired or conscripted by noblemen to form a private army. The more generic usage of “private” started in the 1700s.

48 Voice box : LARYNX

The voice box or larynx is where pitch and volume of sound are manipulated when we talk. The structure called the Adam’s apple that protrudes from the human neck is formed by the thyroid cartilage that surrounds the larynx. The Adam’s apple of males tends to increase in size during puberty, so the feature tended to be associated more with males in days gone by, perhaps leading to the name “Adam’s” apple. A doctor specializing in treating the larynx is a laryngologist.

50 Scary-sounding lake : ERIE

Lake Erie is the fourth largest of the five Great Lakes by area (Lake Ontario is the smallest). The lake takes its name from the Erie tribe of Native Americans that used to live along its southern shore. Erie is the smallest of the Great Lakes by volume and the shallowest, something for which nearby residents must be quite grateful. Being relatively shallow, much of Erie freezes over part way through most winters putting an end to most of the lake-effect snow that falls in the snow belt extending from the lake’s edge.

54 Desert plant with sword-shaped leaves : YUCCA

Yuccas are a genus of shrubs and trees that live in hot and dry areas of North and South America. One of the more famous species of Yucca is the Joshua tree. Yuccas has a very unique pollination system, with moths transferring pollen from plant to plant.

65 Dennings of “2 Broke Girls” : KAT

Kat Dennings is the stage name of actress Katherine Litwack, who is noted today for her co-starring role on CBS’s sitcom “2 Broke Girls”. Dennings is an avid blogger, and you can check out her video blog on YouTube.

66 AQI monitor : EPA

The air quality index (AQI) is monitored by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 They may be exchanged in anger : WORDS
6 Jet stream locale? : SPA
9 Ziti, e.g. : PASTA
14 Scrub, as a launch : ABORT
15 Short film? : PIC
16 Pronouncement platform : ALTAR
17 It may be hard to turn down : NICE OFFER (hiding “coffee” mix)
19 Lumps : GLOBS
20 Small flightless bird : KIWI
21 “Oye Como Va” songwriter Puente : TITO
23 Barnyard noise : MOO!
24 Low-risk investments: Abbr. : CDS
26 Stockpiled : LOADED UP ON (hiding “pound” mix)
29 Stooped (over) : HUNCHED
32 Beer container : CAN
33 “It matters to me” : I CARE
34 “The Green Hornet” co-writer/star Rogen : SETH
37 Scorch : CHAR
41 Sitting in an assigned seat, e.g. : TAKING ONE’S PLACE (hiding “sponge” mix)
44 Editor’s retraction : STET
45 Picnic pests : ANTS
46 Blows off steam : VENTS
47 Feverish, say : ILL
49 Doesn’t continue, as an argument : LET’S DIE
51 Corporate annual report focus : FISCAL YEAR (hiding “layer” mix)
56 “Irreverence is easy–what’s hard is __”: Tom Lehrer : WIT
57 Lime ending : -ADE
58 12-1 MLB victory, e.g. : ROUT
59 Davenport setting : IOWA
62 Like spinach, say : LEAFY
64 Baking conveniences, and a hint to this puzzle’s circles : CAKE MIXES
68 Tanning site : SALON
69 Spy org. called “The Company” : CIA
70 Hapless : INEPT
71 North Sea county : ESSEX
72 __-country music : ALT
73 “Get it done!” : TODAY!

Down

1 Lacking color : WAN
2 Tokyo sash : OBI
3 Large python : ROCK SNAKE
4 German trio : DREI
5 Put away : STOW
6 Sunscreen letters : SPF
7 Michelangelo masterpiece : PIETA
8 Sharp : ACRID
9 Taoist temple : PAGODA
10 Every one of : ALL
11 Defeat soundly : STOMP
12 Off-limits : TABOO
13 Fiery crime : ARSON
18 Computer menu heading : FILE
22 Computer fixers : TECHS
24 Vouchers : CHITS
25 Old European coin : DUCAT
27 Eats too much of, as junk food : OD’S ON
28 Family tree figures : UNCLES
30 Blogger, at times : CRITIC
31 Farm clucker : HEN
35 Sinusitis-treating doc : ENT
36 Edison contemporary : TESLA
38 Manually spiffed up at the carwash : HAND-WAXED
39 When the duel occurs in “Hamilton” : ACT II
40 Start over : RESET
42 Big name in California viticulture : GALLO
43 Entry-level GI : PVT
48 Voice box : LARYNX
50 Scary-sounding lake : ERIE
51 Like many a rumor : FALSE
52 Creative output : IDEAS
53 Makes airtight : SEALS
54 Desert plant with sword-shaped leaves : YUCCA
55 Source of net profits? : E-TAIL
60 Exclude : OMIT
61 Sot : WINO
63 Enemy : FOE
65 Dennings of “2 Broke Girls” : KAT
66 AQI monitor : EPA
67 Muddy pen : STY