LA Times Crossword 3 Apr 20, Friday

Bill’s time: 6m 37s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 “Get outta here!” : SCAT!

Our word “scat!” means “get lost!” It comes from a 19th-century expression “quicker than s’cat”, which meant “in a great hurry”. The original phrase probably came from the words “hiss” and “cat”.

14 Concerning kidneys : RENAL

Something described as renal is related to the kidneys. “Ren” is the Latin word for “kidney”.

16 Annapolis sch. : USNA

The United States Naval Academy (USNA) is located in Annapolis, Maryland. The USNA was founded in 1845 and educates officers for both the US Navy and the US Marine Corps. The motto of the USNA is “Ex Scientia Tridens”, which translates as “From Knowledge, Sea Power”.

17 “Roots” author Haley : ALEX

Not only did Alex Haley author the magnificent novel “Roots”, he was also the collaborator with Malcolm X on “The Autobiography of Malcolm X”. His 1976 novel “Roots” is based on Haley’s own family history, and he claimed to be a direct descendant of the real life Kunta Kinte, the slave who was kidnapped in the Gambia in 1767. If you remember the original television adaptation of “Roots”, you might recall that Kunta Kinte was played by LeVar Burton, who later went on to play another famous role, Geordi La Forge on “Star Trek: the Next Generation”.

18 Actress Graff : ILENE

Ilene Graff is an American actress, probably best known for playing Marsha Owens, the wife of George in the TV series “Mr. Belvedere”.

20 Never heard of a 1996 Robin Williams movie? : DON’T KNOW “JACK”

“Jack” is a 1996 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola that stars the amazing Robin Williams as a boy who ages four times faster than normal. For most of the movie, Williams is playing a 10-year-old boy in the body of a 40-year-old man. I’d guess Williams was a shoo-in for the role …

24 Juegos Olímpicos prize : ORO

In Spanish, one might win “oros” (golds) at “los Juegos Olímpicos” (the Olympic Games).

25 Road crew’s supply : TAR

The terms “tarmac” and “macadam” are short for “tarmacadam”. In the 1800s, Scotsman John Loudon McAdam developed a style of road known as “macadam”. Macadam had a top-layer of crushed stone and gravel laid over larger stones. The macadam also had a convex cross-section so that water tended to drain to the sides. In 1901, a significant improvement was made by English engineer Edgar Purnell Hooley who introduced tar into the macadam, improving the resistance to water damage and practically eliminating dust. The “tar-penetration macadam” is the basis of what we now call tarmac.

31 Sexually attractive : NUBILE

The word “nubile” can mean “of a marrying age” or ”sexually attractive”. The word generally applies to young women, and comes from the Latin “nubere” meaning “to take a husband”.

33 Magical phrase starter : ABRA-

The incantation “abracadabra” has a long history. It was used as far back as the 2nd century AD in ancient Rome when the word was prescribed by a physician to be worn on an amulet to help his emperor recover from disease. “Abracadabra” is Aramaic, and roughly translates as “I will create as I speak”.

37 “You grabbed the wrong Stephen King movie”? : THAT’S NOT “IT”

“It” is a 1986 horror novel penned by Stephen King. The title character is a demon who preys on children, primarily appearing in the form of Pennywise the Dancing Clown. The novel was adapted into a 1990 miniseries of the same name. I don’t do Stephen King …

39 The Parthenon, e.g. : RUINS

The Parthenon is the ruined temple that sits on the Athenian Acropolis. Although the Parthenon was dedicated to the goddess Athena as a sacred building in the days of the Athenian Empire, it was actually used primarily as a treasury. In later centuries, the Parthenon was repurposed as a Christian Church dedicated to the Virgin Mary, and was also used as a mosque after Ottoman conquest.

41 Cry from a card holder : UNO!

UNO is a card game that was developed in the early seventies and that has been sold by Mattel since 1992. UNO falls into the shedding family of card games, meaning that the goal is to get rid of all your cards while preventing opponents from doing the same.

43 Essay about a 2015 Christina Applegate movie? : ON “VACATION”

“Vacation” is a 2015 comedy film starring Ed Helms as Rusty Griswold and Christina Applegate as his wife Debbie Fletcher Griswold. This is a reboot of the celebrated “National Lampoon’s Vacation” series of films. Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo reprise their roles as Rustys parents Clark and Ellen Griswold.

Actress Christina Applegate started her career as a child actress in the sitcom “Married… with Children”. More recently, Applegate co-starred in the show “Up All Night”.

46 Fallon’s predecessor : LENO

“The Tonight Show” has had six permanent hosts so far:

• Steve Allen (1954-57)
• Jack Paar (1957-62)
• Johnny Carson (1962–92)
• Jay Leno (1992–2009, 2010–14)
• Conan O’Brien (2009–10)
• Jimmy Fallon (2014–present)

48 Ancient queen, familiarly : CLEO

Cleopatra was the last pharaoh to rule Egypt. After she died, Egypt became a province in the Roman Empire.

50 Immigrant’s subj. : ESL

English as a Second Language (ESL) is sometimes referred to as English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and English as a Foreign Language (EFL).

51 Rap name contraction : LIL’

Lil’ is a short form of the word “little”. There are a whole slew of rappers named “Lil’ something”, such as Lil Wayne, Lil’ J, and Lil’ Kim.

53 Like some numerals : ARABIC

The numbers that we use in English and most other languages (0, 1, 2, 3 etc.) are Arabic numerals, also called Hindu-Arabic or Indo-Arabic numerals. The concept of positional numbers was developed by the Babylonians, and the first use of “zero” is attributed to mathematicians in the Indian subcontinent.

58 Start a 2001 Keanu Reeves movie? : PLAY “HARDBALL”

“Hardball” is a 2001 film in which Keanu Reeves plays an indebted gambler who is forced to coach a baseball team of troubled fifth-graders. The film is inspired by a true story, and a book by Daniel Coyle titled “Hardball: A Season in the Projects”. However, the real-life coach Bob Muzikowski attempted to get the film’s release blocked as he claimed that it misrepresented him and the kids on the team.

65 Paella pot : OLLA

An olla is a traditional clay pot used for the making of stews. “Olla” was the Latin word used in ancient Rome to describe a similar type of pot.

Paella is sometimes referred to as the Spanish national dish, but not by Spaniards. In Spain, paella is regarded as a typical regional dish from Valencia.

66 “Rhyme Pays” rapper : ICE-T

“Rhyme Pays” is a 1987 album released by musician Ice-T. It was the rapper’s first studio album, and is considered in retrospect to be perhaps the album that defined the genre now known as “gangsta rap”.

67 Unsettled states : SNITS

The exact etymology of “snit”, meaning “fit of temper”, isn’t really known. The term was first used in print in the play “Kiss the Boys Goodbye” by Clare Boothe Luce, which dates back to the 1930s and is set in the American South.

69 Sainted historian : BEDE

The Venerable Bede was a monk in the north of England in the eighth century AD. Saint Bede is mainly known as an author and scholar, publisher of “The Ecclesiastical History of the English People”. In his writings, Bede struggled with the two common ways of referring to dates at that time. Bede turned to the anno domini dating method that had been devised by Dionysius Exiguus in 525. Bede’s writings of circa 730 were extremely influential and helped popularize the “anno domini” method.

71 Weight allowance : TARE

Tare is the weight of a container that is deducted from the gross weight to determine the net weight, the weight of the container’s contents.

Down

2 Rainbow flag component : COLOR

The best-known rainbow flag is the one representing gay pride. Such usage of the rainbow flag was popularized in 1978 by artist Gilbert Baker. The varying colors of the flag represent the diversity of the gay community.

6 Move, in Realtor-speak : RELO

Relocate (relo)

8 Scruggs’ strings : BANJO

The instrument that we know today as the banjo is a derivative of instruments that were used in Africa.

Earl Scruggs and Lester Flatt are the musicians who founded the bluegrass band called the Foggy Mountain Boys in 1948.

9 Nestlé product suffix : QUIK

Nestlé Quik was introduced in 1948, and is a flavored powdered milk drink. It was sold in Europe as “Nesquik”, and that brand name replaced “Quik” here in the US in 1999. The Nesquik mascot is the Quik Bunny. The Quik Bunny had a large “Q” on a collar around his neck, and with the brand name change this “Q” became an “N”, and he is now known as the Nesquik Bunny.

10 Initials before a state’s name, sometimes : 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.

11 Imaret, say : INN

Imarets were inns or hostels used by pilgrims throughout the Ottoman Empire. The network of imarets was set up to provide food to anyone in need, so they also served as soup kitchens, as it were.

12 Bit of ink : TAT

The word “tattoo” (often shortened to “tat”) was first used in English in the writings of the famous English explorer Captain Cook. In his descriptions of the indelible marks adorning the skin of Polynesian natives, Cook anglicized the Tahitian word “tatau” into our “tattoo”. Tattoos are sometimes referred to as “ink”.

25 Words on a spine : TITLE

In the US, the convention is to write the title on the spine of a book from top-to-bottom. In most of Europe, the convention is to write the title from bottom-to-top. We have a lot of books in the “library” in our house from both sides of the Atlantic, and so there is much moving of the head from left to right as we glance along our bookshelves.

26 1979 sci-fi classic with three sequels and two prequels : ALIEN

The 1979 sci-fi horror movie “Alien” was the big break for Sigourney Weaver as it was her first lead role, and her character ended up as central to a whole set of sequels. The movie’s producers made a very conscious decision to cast a female in the lead role so as to have the film stand out in the male-dominated genre of science fiction. Famously, the film was publicized with the tagline “In space no one can hear you scream”.

34 Diamond strategies : BUNTS

To bunt in baseball is to barely hit the ball, just enough to have it roll slowly in front of the infielders.

40 Racing craft : SCULL

A scull is a boat used for competitive rowing. The main hull of the boat is often referred to as a shell. Crew members who row the boat can be referred to as “oars”. And, a scull is also an oar mounted on the stern of a small boat. It’s all very confusing …

49 Chicago airport code : ORD

The IATA airport code for O’Hare International in Chicago is ORD, which comes from Orchard Place Airport/Douglas Field (OR-D).

55 Modeling wood : BALSA

Balsa is a very fast-growing tree that is native to parts of South America. Even though balsa wood is very soft, it is actually classified as a hardwood, the softest of all the hardwoods (go figure!). Balsa is light and strong, so is commonly used in making model airplanes. Amazingly, in WWII a full-size British plane, the de Havilland Mosquito, was built largely from balsa and plywood. No wonder they called it “The Wooden Wonder” and “The Timber Terror”.

57 Shannon’s county : CLARE

Shannon Airport in the West of Ireland was the first place in the world to offer duty-free shopping. Shannon was also where the Irish Coffee originated, despite many claims to the contrary …

58 Townshend of The Who : PETE

The musician Pete Townshend is best known as guitarist for the Who. Townshend also served as the main songwriter for the band, composing over one hundred songs that the Who recorded. Sadly, Townshend has paid the price for his exposure to loud rock music and had severe hearing problems. Because of this ailment, he provided the initial funding for a hearing advocacy group called Hearing Education and Awareness for Rockers (HEAR).

60 When Juliet says, “Go ask his name” : ACT I

Early in William Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet”, Juliet espies Romeo for the first time, and says to her nurse, “Go ask his name.—If he be married / My grave is like to be my wedding bed. The nurse replies, “His name is Romeo, and a Montague, / The only son of your great enemy.” Things don’t go well …

62 Frequent winner : ACE

That might be tennis.

63 British jazz element? : ZED

There are two letters Z (zeds) in the word “jazz”.