LA Times Crossword 10 Oct 19, Thursday

Advertisement

Constructed by: Kevin C. Christian
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Bent out of Shape

Themed answers each include the letter sequence BENT, but that sequence is reordered, is “OUT OF SHAPE”:

  • 61A Upset … and what can be found in the four other longest answers? : BENT OUT OF SHAPE
  • 16A Participated in a pub crawl : WENT BARHOPPING
  • 24A “Shadows of the Night” Grammy winner : PAT BENATAR
  • 37A Placating words before a confession : DON’T BE MAD
  • 53A New and improved : EVEN BETTER

Bill’s time: 6m 52s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Gold rush storyteller Bret : HARTE

Bret Harte was a storyteller noted for his tales of the American West, even though he himself was from back East, born in Albany, New York. One work attributed to him is “Ah Sin”, a disastrously unsuccessful play written by Bret Harte and Mark Twain. The two writers didn’t get on at all well during the writing process, and when the play was produced for the stage it was very poorly received. Nevertheless, Twain suggested a further collaboration with Harte, and Harte downright refused!

6 Saints’ org. : NFL

The New Orleans Saints football team takes its name from the jazz song “When the Saints Go Marching In”, a tune that is very much associated with the city. The team was founded in 1967, on November 1st, which is All Saints’ Day in the Roman Catholic tradition.

9 Word pronounced like its middle letter : ARE

The letter “R” sounds like “are”.

12 “The Lion in Winter” co-star : O’TOOLE

Irish actor Peter O’Toole got his big break in the movies when he played the title role in the 1962 epic film “Lawrence of Arabia”. My favorite of O’Toole’s movies is much lighter fare, namely “How to Steal a Million” in which he stars opposite Audrey Hepburn. O’Toole never won an Oscar, but holds the record for the greatest number of Best Actor nominations without a win (8).

“The Lion in Winter” is a play by James Goldman that was first staged in 1966 on Broadway. The two lead characters in the piece are King Henry II of England and his wife Eleanor of Aquitaine. The play was adapted into a very successful movie in 1968 starring Peter O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn. There was also a 2003 television movie adaption that I’d like to see, starring Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close.

14 Senator Lisa Murkowski, notably : ALASKAN

Lisa Murkowski is the first Alaska senator who was actually born in the state. In 2002 she was appointed to the US Senate by her father, then Governor Frank Murkowski, but then won the seat in her own right in the 2004 election. In 2010, she narrowly lost the Republican primary election to Joe Miller, a candidate famously supported by former Governor Sarah Palin. Senator Murkowski has put herself forward as a “write-in” candidate in the November 2010 election, meaning that anyone who wants to vote for her may do so by simply writing in her name on the ballot.

20 Video game pioneer : ATARI

At one point, the electronics and video game manufacturer Atari was the fastest growing company in US history. However, Atari never really recovered from the video game industry crash of 1983.

22 Sch. playing home games in the Sun Bowl : UTEP

The football stadium on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) is known as the Sun Bowl. The stadium opened in 1963, and was named for the Sun Bowl game which it hosts annually every December.

24 “Shadows of the Night” Grammy winner : PAT BENATAR

Pat Benatar is a singer from Brooklyn, New York who was born Patricia Andrzejewski. She married her high school boyfriend Dennis Benatar in 1972 when she was 19 years old, but they divorced in 1979. Presumably, she kept the Benatar name as her career was already showing signs of taking off. Benatar’s biggest hits are “Hit Me with Your Best Shot”, “Love is a Battlefield” and “We Belong”.

“Shadows of the Night” is a 1980 song that was written for the 1980 film “Times Square”, but sadly, it didn’t make it into the movie. The song was then a hit for Rachel Sweet in 1981, and a 1982 version by Pat Benetar earned her a Grammy.

30 Bilingual TV explorer : DORA

“Dora the Explorer” is a cartoon series shown on Nickelodeon. Part of Dora’s remit is to introduce the show’s young viewers to some Spanish words and phrases.

32 Seiko Group printers : EPSONS

Seiko Epson is a Japanese company, and one of the largest manufacturers of printers in the world. The company has its roots in the watch business, roots that go back to 1942. Seiko was chosen as the official timekeeper for the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and was asked to supply a timer that produced a printed record. This request brought Seiko into the business of printer production. The company developed the world’s first mini-printer for the 1964 Games and called it EP-101 (with “EP” standing for Electronic Printer). In 1975 Seiko introduced the next generation of EP printers which was called EPSON, from “SON of EP”. Cute, huh?

34 Mountain myth : YETI

The yeti, also known as the abominable snowman, is a beast of legend. “Yeti” is a Tibetan term, and the beast is fabled to live in the Himalayan regions of Nepal and Tibet. Our equivalent legend in North America is that of Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch. The study of animals whose existence have not yet been substantiated is called cryptozoology, and a cryptid is a creature or plant that isn’t recognized by the scientific community, but the existence of which has been suggested.

40 The Eiger, for one : ALP

The Eiger is a mountain in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland. It is a noted peak for mountain climbing, with its treacherous north face being the most famous approach to the summit. Over sixty climbers have died since 1935 on that north face.

43 Scott who played Chachi : BAIO

Scott Baio is the actor who played Chachi Arcola in the great sitcom “Happy Days” and in the not-so-great spin-off “Joanie Loves Chachi”. Baio also played the title role in a later sitcom called “Charles in Charge”. Earlier in his career, he played another title role, in the 1976 movie “Bugsy Malone”, appearing opposite a young Jodie Foster.

48 Snowblower brand : TORO

Toro is a manufacturer of lawn mowers and snow removal equipment that is based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The company was founded in 1914 to build tractor engines.

52 “Borat” star __ Baron Cohen : SACHA

The full name of the 2006 “mockumentary” is “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan”. Borat is played by a British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen. Not my cup of tea …

57 San __, California : MATEO

San Mateo is a city located south of San Francisco, just across the other side of the Bay from where I live. San Mateo is Spanish for Saint Matthew.

58 “Fool (If You Think It’s Over)” singer Chris : REA

Chris Rea is a singer-songwriter and respected blues guitar player from England. Rea’s biggest hit is a song that he wrote himself called “Fool (If You Think It’s Over”), released in 1978.

67 Twain of country : SHANIA

Shania Twain is a country and pop singer from Windsor, Ontario. Shania’s birth name is “Eileen Edwards”, and this changed to “Eilleen Twain” when her mother remarried. Twain changed her name to Shania in the early 1990s, around the same time that her musical career started to take off.

68 Bigger copy: Abbr. : ENL

Enlargement (enl.)

Down

3 Short poems : RONDELS

A rondel is a short poem consisting of 13-14 lines. A good example of the form is “Merciless Beauty” by Geoffrey Chaucer:

Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and keen.

Only your word will heal the injury
To my hurt heart, while yet the wound is clean –
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene.

Upon my word, I tell you faithfully
Through life and after death you are my queen;
For with my death the whole truth shall be seen.
Your two great eyes will slay me suddenly;
Their beauty shakes me who was once serene;
Straight through my heart the wound is quick and keen.

5 Hamburg’s river : ELBE

The River Elbe rises in the Czech Republic and travels over a thousand kilometers before emptying into the North Sea near the port of Hamburg in Germany.

Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany (after Berlin), and the third largest port in Europe (after Rotterdam and Antwerp).

7 Woman in Progressive ads : FLO

Progressive is a popular auto insurance company, the one that uses the perky character named “Flo” as a spokeswoman. Flo is played by comedian and actress Stephanie Courtney.

9 Tough dogs : AKITAS

The Akita breed of dog is named for its point of origin, Akita Prefecture in Japan. When Helen Keller visited Japan in 1937, she asked for and was given an Akita breed of dog, with the name of Kamikaze-go. Sadly, the dog died within a year from distemper. The following year the Japanese government officially presented Keller with a replacement dog. Supposedly Keller’s dogs were the first members of the breed to be introduced into the US.

10 Deferred payment at the pub : RAN A TAB

When we run a “tab” at a bar, we are running a “tabulation”, a listing of what we owe. Such a use of “tab” is American slang that originated in the 1880s.

13 1994 Costner role : EARP

The legendary Western gunfighter and lawman Wyatt Earp has been portrayed on the big and small screen many, many times. Kevin Costner played the title role in 1994’s “Wyatt Earp”, and Val Kilmer played Earp in 2012’s “The First Ride of Wyatt Earp”. Joel McCrea had the part in 1955’s “Wichita”, and Kurt Russell was Earp in 1993’s “Tombstone”. James Garner played Earp twice, in 1967’s “Hour of the Gun” and 1988’s “Sunset”.

Kevin Costner attributes some of his motivation to pursue an acting career to the great Welsh actor, Richard Burton. Back when Costner was taking acting classes, and was undecided about whether to continue chasing his dream, he ran into Burton on a flight from Puerto Vallarta. Burton agreed to chat with him for a little while, and so Costner was able to ask him if acting meant tolerating the kind of personal drama that had plagued Burton’s own life. Burton told him, “You have green eyes. I have green eyes. I think you’ll be fine”.

26 “Grimm” actress Turner : BREE

Actress and dancer Bree Turner is perhaps best known for playing Rosalee Calvert on the fantasy TV show “Grimm”.

“Grimm” is an NBC television police drama, one that I haven’t seen. It doesn’t sound like my cup of tea though, as the hero of the piece is a Portland Police Bureau detective who has to battle with mythological creatures who come in and out of the human world.

27 Wonderland cake words : 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”.

33 Harry Potter’s potions teacher : SNAPE

Severus Snape is a character in the “Harry Potter” novels by J. K. Rowling. He was played by the wonderful Alan Rickman on the big screen.

35 Fleming and Holm : IANS

Ian Fleming is most famous for writing the “James Bond” series of spy novels. You might also know that he wrote the children’s story “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang”, which was made into a cute movie released in 1968 and even a stage musical that opened in 2002.

English actor Sir Ian Holm is very respected on the stage in the UK, but is better known for his film roles here in the US. Holm played the hobbit Bilbo Baggins in two of the “Lord of the Rings” movies, and he also played the character who is revealed as an android in the film “Alien”.

45 Most sparsely populated European country : ICELAND

Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in the whole of Europe, with two-thirds of the nation’s population residing in and around the capital city of Reykjavik. Iceland was settled by the Norse people in AD 874, and was ruled for centuries by Norway and then Denmark. Iceland became independent in 1918, and has been a republic since 1944. Iceland is not a member of the EU but is a member of NATO, having joined in 1949 despite not having a standing army.

51 Sleuth Wolfe : NERO

Nero Wolfe is a fictional detective and the hero of many stories published by author Rex Stout. There are 33 Nero Wolfe novels for us to read, and 39 short stories. There are also movie adaptations of two of the novels: “Meet Nero Wolfe” (1936) which features a young Rita Hayworth, and “The League of Frightened Men” (1937). One of Wolfe’s endearing traits is his love of good food and beer, so he is a pretty rotund character.

54 Some spammers : BOTS

A bot is a computer program that is designed to imitate human behavior. It might crawl around the Web doing searches for example, or it might participate in discussions in chat rooms by giving pre-programmed responses. It might also act as a competitor in a computer game.

55 Two-legged zebras : REFS

A football referee is sometimes called a “zebra”, a reference to the striped shirt that is part of the official uniform.

59 1975 Wimbledon winner : ASHE

Arthur Ashe was a professional tennis player from Richmond, Virginia. In his youth, Ashe found himself having to travel great distances to play against Caucasian opponents due to the segregation that still existed in his home state. He was rewarded for his dedication by being selected for the 1963 US Davis Cup team, the first African American player to be so honored. Ashe continued to run into trouble because of his ethnicity though, and in 1968 was denied entry into South Africa to play in the South African Open. In 1979, Ashe suffered a heart attack and had bypass surgery, with follow-up surgery four years later during which he contracted HIV from blood transfusions. Ashe passed away in 1993 due to complications from AIDS. Shortly afterwards, Ashe was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Bill Clinton.

The Wimbledon Championships of tennis are held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club located in Wimbledon, a district of London. The Wimbledon Championships started in 1877, and have been played on grass since day one.

62 Non’s opposite : OUI

In French, a response on “un questionnaire” (a questionnaire) might be “oui” (yes) or “non” (no).

64 Phil Rizzuto’s retired number : TEN

Phil Rizzuto was a shortstop who spent his whole career with the New York Yankees. After retiring from the game, Rizzuto worked as a radio and television announcer for the Yankees for 40 years. He was famous for using the expression “Holy cow!”

65 Chewie’s pal : HAN

Han Solo is the space smuggler in “Star Wars” played by Harrison Ford. Ford was originally hired by George Lucas just to read lines for actors during auditions for “Star Wars”, but over time Lucas became convinced that Ford was right for the pivotal role of Han Solo.

Wookiees are a biped race featured in “Star Wars”. The most notable Wookiee is Chewbacca (aka “Chewie”), the loyal friend and associate of Han Solo who serves as co-pilot on the Millennium Falcon spaceship.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Gold rush storyteller Bret : HARTE
6 Saints’ org. : NFL
9 Word pronounced like its middle letter : ARE
12 “The Lion in Winter” co-star : O’TOOLE
14 Senator Lisa Murkowski, notably : ALASKAN
16 Participated in a pub crawl : WENT BARHOPPING
18 Cleanse (of) : RID
19 Afore : ERE
20 Video game pioneer : ATARI
22 Sch. playing home games in the Sun Bowl : UTEP
24 “Shadows of the Night” Grammy winner : PAT BENATAR
28 Numbs, as senses : DULLS
30 Bilingual TV explorer : DORA
31 File menu command : SAVE
32 Seiko Group printers : EPSONS
34 Mountain myth : YETI
36 Flower location : BED
37 Placating words before a confession : DON’T BE MAD
40 The Eiger, for one : ALP
43 Scott who played Chachi : BAIO
44 Supplement : ENRICH
48 Snowblower brand : TORO
50 Schedule : PLAN
52 “Borat” star __ Baron Cohen : SACHA
53 New and improved : EVEN BETTER
56 Vegetable with Golden and Chioggia varieties : BEET
57 San __, California : MATEO
58 “Fool (If You Think It’s Over)” singer Chris : REA
60 __-di-dah : LAH
61 Upset … and what can be found in the four other longest answers? : BENT OUT OF SHAPE
66 Nonworking time : LEISURE
67 Twain of country : SHANIA
68 Bigger copy: Abbr. : ENL
69 Place to retire : INN
70 Over : ENDED

Down

1 Indignant reaction : HOW RUDE!
2 Savored the flattery : ATE IT UP
3 Short poems : RONDELS
4 Playdate participant : TOT
5 Hamburg’s river : ELBE
6 “I don’t wanna” : NAH
7 Woman in Progressive ads : FLO
8 One of 12 on a sitting jury? : LAP
9 Tough dogs : AKITAS
10 Deferred payment at the pub : RAN A TAB
11 Impress deeply? : ENGRAVE
13 1994 Costner role : EARP
15 Go over : SPAN
17 Get lost in a book : READ
21 Ticked off : IRED
23 Lumber (along) : PLOD
25 Bath time plaything : TOY BOAT
26 “Grimm” actress Turner : BREE
27 Wonderland cake words : EAT ME
29 Elitist sort : SNOB
33 Harry Potter’s potions teacher : SNAPE
35 Fleming and Holm : IANS
38 Incline : TILT
39 Hardly lively : DRAB
40 “Lemme __!” : AT ‘EM
41 Precious : LOVABLE
42 Many a middle schooler : PRETEEN
45 Most sparsely populated European country : ICELAND
46 Inexpensive knockoff : CHEAPIE
47 Consequence of wearing a cap too long : HAT HEAD
49 Low soccer score : ONE-NIL
51 Sleuth Wolfe : NERO
54 Some spammers : BOTS
55 Two-legged zebras : REFS
59 1975 Wimbledon winner : ASHE
62 Non’s opposite : OUI
63 Coffee server : URN
64 Phil Rizzuto’s retired number : TEN
65 Chewie’s pal : HAN