LA Times Crossword 10 Jul 20, Friday

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Constructed by: Kevin Salat
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Kneecaps

Themed answers sound like common phrases with a “KNEE”-sound added:

  • 37A Joint protection … or, in a way, creators of four puzzle puns? : KNEECAPS
  • 18A Embrace Love? : HOLD COURTNEY (from “hold court”)
  • 57A Is unable to sign the top-billed star for an “Ocean’s 13” sequel? : HAS NO CLOONEY (from “has no clue”)
  • 12D Casual topper for Elizabeth II? : QUEEN BEANIE (from “queen bee”)
  • 25D Consume some deli meat? : DOWN BOLOGNA (from “down below”)

Bill’s time: 9m 16s

Bill’s errors: 2

  • STAMOS (Stavos)
  • MONAE (Vonae)

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6 “Fuller House” actor : STAMOS

On the sitcom “Full House”, the character Jesse Katsopolis is played by John Stamos. Stamos reprises the role occasionally on the Netflix sequel “Fuller House”.

12 Proof letters : QED

The initialism “QED” is used at the end of a mathematical proof or a philosophical argument. QED stands for the Latin “quod erat demonstrandum” meaning “that which was to be demonstrated”.

15 Perfume name : ESTEE

“Estée” is the signature fragrance from the Estée Lauder Company. “Estée” was the second fragrance developed by Estée Lauder herself, and was introduced in 1968. Lauder’s first fragrance was “Youth Dew”, introduced in 1953.

16 IdeaPad maker : LENOVO

Lenovo is a Chinese manufacturer of computers. Lenovo was founded as “Legend” in 1984. The name was changed to “Lenovo” in 2002. “Lenovo” is a portmanteau of “Le” (from “Legend”) and “novo” (Latin for “new”). IBM sold off its personal computer division to Lenovo in 2005.

17 Sch. in Charlotte : UNC

The University of North Carolina (UNC) Charlotte was founded in 1946 as a center of education for veterans returning home after WWII. The center merged with the UNC system in 1965.

Charlotte is the largest city in North Carolina. The area was settled in 1755, and incorporated in 1768. The city was named for Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, then queen consort of Great Britain and Ireland, and wife of King George III. As a result, Charlotte has the nickname “Queen City”. Charlotte also earned the nickname “the Hornet’s Nest”. During the Revolutionary War, British forces led by General Charles Cornwallis were driven out of the city by residents, prompting Cornwallis to describe Charlotte as “a hornet’s nest of rebellion”.

18 Embrace Love? : HOLD COURTNEY (from “hold court”)

Courtney Love is a singer-songwriter who was the co-founder of the alternative rock band Hole. Love was married to Kurt Cobain, the lead singer of Nirvana, until his death in 1994.

23 Rental garage array : SEDANS

The American sedan car is the equivalent of the British and Irish saloon car. By definition, a sedan car has two rows of seating and a separate trunk (boot in Britain and Ireland), although in some models the engine can be at the rear of the car.

29 Anxious med. condition : OCD

Apparently, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is the fourth most commonly diagnosed mental disorder, making it about as prevalent as asthma.

32 Iberian capital, locally : LISBOA

In Portuguese, “Lisboa” (Lisbon) and “Porto” (Oporto) are the two largest cities in Portugal.

The Iberian Peninsula in Europe is largely made up of Spain and Portugal. However, also included is the Principality of Andorra in the Pyrénées, a small part of the south of France, and the British Territory of Gibraltar. Iberia takes its name from the Ebro, the longest river in Spain, which the Romans named the “Iber”.

36 Writer Rand : AYN

“The Fountainhead” by Ayn Rand was first published in 1943, and was her first novel to achieve public success. The story focuses on an idealistic architect named Howard Roark. Roark is uncompromising in his designs, refusing the give the public what it wants, staying doggedly loyal to his own vision.

37 Joint protection … or, in a way, creators of four puzzle puns? : KNEECAPS

The patella is the kneecap. The bone’s Latin name is “patella”, which is a diminutive form of “patina”, the word for “pan”. The idea is that the kneecap is pan-shaped.

38 Civil War prez : ABE

Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the US, elected in 1860 as the first president from the Republican Party. Lincoln’s electoral support came almost exclusively from the north and west of the country, winning only 2 out of 996 counties in the Southern slave states. Lincoln led the country through the Civil War, and then was assassinated in 1865 just a few days after Robert E. Lee surrendered his army of Northern Virginia. President Lincoln was succeeded in office by Vice President Andrew Johnson.

44 Hybrid utensils : SPORKS

“Spork” is the more common name for the utensil that is a hybrid between a spoon and a fork. The same utensil is less commonly referred to as a “foon”.

46 Nevada copper town : ELY

Ely is a city in eastern Nevada. The city was founded as a Pony Express stagecoach station, and then experienced a mining boom after copper was discovered locally in 1906. One of Ely’s former residents was First Lady Pat Nixon, who was born there in 1912.

47 Bizet opera priestess : LEILA

“The Pearl Fishers” (“Les Pêcheurs de Perles”) is the second-most famous Georges Bizet opera, after “Carmen”. “The Pearl Fishers” is about two Ceylon fishermen, Nadir and Zurga, who are lifelong friends. Their friendship is threatened when the two fall in love with the same woman, a priestess named Leila.

50 Virgil epic : AENEID

Aeneas was a Trojan hero of myth who traveled to Italy and became the ancestor of all Romans. Aeneas’s story is told in Virgil’s epic poem “The Aeneid”.

51 Love god : EROS

The name of Eros, the Greek god of love, gives rise to our word “erotic” meaning “arousing sexual desire”. Eros was referred to in Latin as both “Amor” (meaning “love”) and “Cupid” (meaning “desire”).

52 Snobs : ELITISTS

Back in the 1780s, a snob was a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. By the end of the 18th century the word “snob” was being used by students at Cambridge University in England to refer to all local merchants and people of the town. The term evolved to mean one who copies those who are his or her social superior (and not in a good way). From there it wasn’t a big leap for “snob” to include anyone who emphasized their superior social standing and not just those who aspired to rank. Nowadays a snob is anyone who looks down on those considered to be of inferior standing.

56 Hosp. test : EKG

An EKG measures the electrical activity in the heart. Back in my homeland of Ireland, an EKG is known as an ECG (for electrocardiogram). We use the German name in the US, Elektrokardiogramm, giving us EKG. Apparently the abbreviation EKG is preferred, as ECG might be confused (if poorly handwritten, I guess) with EEG, the abbreviation for an electroencephalogram.

57 Is unable to sign the top-billed star for an “Ocean’s 13” sequel? : HAS NO CLOONEY (from “has no clue”)

Actor George Clooney’s breakthrough role was playing Dr. Doug Ross on TV’s “ER”, although before that he had a fairly regular role on the sitcom “Roseanne”. George’s aunt was the singer and actress Rosemary Clooney.

“Ocean’s 11” is a great film from 1960, starring Frank Sinatra as Danny Ocean. The original storyline is updated for the excellent 2001 remake, with George Clooney playing the lead. In the 1960 movie, the love interest is a character called Beatrice Ocean, played by Angie Dickinson. In the 2001 version, the love interest gets a new name, Tess Ocean, and is played by Julia Roberts. The 2001 remake (titled “Ocean’s Eleven”, note the spelling) spawned two sequels: “Ocean’s Twelve” in 2004 and “Ocean’s Thirteen” in 2007.

61 It may not be intended : PUN

Here are some of my favorite puns:

  • A man died today when a pile of books fell on him. He only had his shelf to blame.
  • I hate negative numbers and will stop at nothing to avoid them.
  • I wasn’t going to get a brain transplant, but then I changed my mind.
  • I should have been sad when my flashlight batteries died, but I was delighted.

62 Melodious : ARIOSE

A tune that is “ariose” is song-like, characterized by melody as opposed to harmony.

64 Springs for a vacation? : SPA

The word “spa” migrated into English from Belgium, as “Spa” is the name of a municipality in the east of the country that is famous for its healing hot springs. The name “Spa” comes from the Walloon word “espa” meaning “spring, fountain”.

65 __ fly : TSETSE

The tsetse fly is responsible for the transmission of sleeping sickness, a disease that is more correctly called African trypanosomiasis. The disease is only observed in humans who have been bitten by a tsetse fly that is infected with the trypanosome parasitic protozoan.

66 Nikon setting : F-STOP

Varying the f-stop in a lens varies how big the lens opening (the aperture) is when a photograph is taken. Smaller apertures (higher f-stop values) admit less light, but result in a greater depth of field (more of the photograph is in focus).

Down

2 Spanish bear : OSO

In Spanish, an “oso” (bear) might be found in “un zoológico” (a zoo).

3 CDC headquarters city : ATL

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is based in Atlanta, Georgia. The CDC started out life during WWII as the Office of National Defense Malaria Control Activities. The CDC worries about much more than malaria these days …

4 Soccer ejection indicator : RED CARD

A series of colored penalty cards is used by referees and umpires in several sports, most notably in soccer. The cards were first used in the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico, after language difficulties created confusion during the prior competition in 1966. The main cards used are a yellow card indicating a caution, and a red card indicating expulsion from the game.

6 Swing around : SLUE

To slue (also “slew) is to turn sharply, or to rotate on an axis.

7 Gull relative : TERN

Terns are a family of seabirds. They are similar to gulls, but are more slender and more lightly built. Many species of tern are known for their long-distance migrations, with the Arctic tern migrating so far that it is believed to see more daylight in a year than any other animal.

9 Janelle of “Moonlight” : MONAE

Janelle Monáe is a singer and actress. I’m not familiar with her as a singer, but did see Monáe play NASA engineer Mary Jackson in the excellent 2016 film “Hidden Figures”.

“Moonlight” is a 2016 semi-autobiographical film based on an unpublished play by Tarell Alvin McCraney titled “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue”. “Moonlight” won the season’s Best Picture Oscar, thus becoming the first film to do so with an all-black cast, and the first with an LGBT storyline.

11 __ milk : SOY

What are known as soybeans here in the US are called “soya beans” in most other English-speaking countries. So, I drink soy milk here in America, but when I am over in Ireland I drink “soya milk”.

12 Casual topper for Elizabeth II? : QUEEN BEANIE (from “queen bee”)

Princess Elizabeth became queen Elizabeth II in 1952 when her father, King George VI died. The Princess was on an official visit to Kenya when her husband broke the news to her; that she had become queen. When she was crowned in 1953 in Westminster Abbey, it was the first coronation to be televised. Queen Elizabeth’s reign is longest in the history of the UK.

A beanie is a knitted, close-fitting hat with no brim. The name probably comes from the slang term “bean” meaning “head”.

A queen bee has a stinger, just like worker bees. When a worker bee stings, it leaves its stinger in its victim. The worker bee dies after losing its stinger as the loss rips out part of its insides. However, a queen bee can sting with impunity as her stinger’s anatomy is different.

13 Tenor Caruso : ENRICO

Enrico Caruso was an Italian tenor from Naples, famous as one of the first opera singers to embrace the phonograph technology of the early 1900s. He made 290 recordings that were released between 1902 and 1920, and today they’re all available on CD or as digital downloads.

14 Takoma Park, Md., is part of it : DC AREA

Takoma Park is a city in Maryland that is a suburb of Washington, DC. In 2013, Takoma Park became the first city in the US to reduce the voting age to 16 (for municipal elections).

19 Yoga chants : OMS

“Om” is a sacred mystic word from the Hindu tradition. “Om” is sometimes used as a mantra, a focus for the mind in meditation.

22 Gas company with toy trucks : HESS

Hess Corporation is an oil company based in New York City. In 1964, the company started selling toy trucks with the Hess logo on them, in Hess gas stations. The company has been selling them every since, bringing out new models just before Christmas. Hess toy trucks have become quite collectible and the old ones can fetch a pretty penny.

24 Site with PowerSellers : EBAY

There have been some notable things sold on eBay over the years. For example:

  • Ad space on a guy’s forehead, in the form of a temporary tattoo – $37,375
  • William Shatner’s kidney stone – $25,000
  • A cornflake shaped like Illinois – $1,350
  • A single corn flake – $1.63
  • A box of 10 Twinkies – $59.99
  • The original Hollywood sign – $450,400
  • The meaning of life – $3.26

25 Consume some deli meat? : DOWN BOLOGNA (from “down below”)

The deli meat known as “baloney”, i.e. “Bologna sausage”, is an American invention. It was given the name “baloney” because it resembles Italian mortadella sausage, which originated in the city of Bologna in northern Italy.

29 Washington’s bills? : ONES

The nation’s first president, George Washington, is on the US one-dollar bills produced today. When the original one-dollar bill was issued in 1863, it featured a portrait of Salmon P. Chase, President Abraham Lincoln’s Secretary of the Treasury.

30 __ fraîche: dairy product : CREME

The French term “crème fraîche” translates as “fresh cream”, although the cream itself is soured with a bacterial culture.

31 Helmet sticker : DECAL

A decal is a decorative sticker. “Decal” is a shortening of “decalcomania”. The latter term is derived from the French “décalquer”, the practice of tracing a pattern from paper onto glass or perhaps porcelain.

37 Gorilla who learned modified 50-Down : KOKO
(50D Syst. with hand signals : ASL )

Koko was a female Lowland Gorilla that lives in Woodside, California. Researcher Penny Patterson taught Koko to speak a modified form of American Sign Language (ASL) that she called Gorilla Sign Language. Koko could apparently use over a thousand signs.

39 Hanes brand : BALI

The Bali brand of lingerie started out as Fay-Miss in 1927, before becoming the Bali Brassiere Company in 1969.

40 “Jiminy cricket!” : EGAD!

“Jiminy cricket!” is a minced oath used to express consternation or surprise. Walt Disney had the dwarfs utter said oath in the 1937 animated feature “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. And in 1939, Just Garland had the line “Oh! Oh! Jiminy crickets!” in “The Wizard of Oz”. Disney used the name “Jiminy Cricket” for the Talking Cricket when adapting Carlo Collodi’a 1883 children’s book “The Adventures of Pinocchio” for the big screen in 1940.

42 Tolkien beasts : ORCS

Orcs are mythical humanoid creatures that appear in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien. Since Tolkien’s use of orcs, they have also been featured in other fantasy fiction as well as in fantasy video games.

49 Commercial cow : ELSIE

Elsie the Cow is the mascot of the Borden Company. Elsie first appeared at the New York World’s Fair in 1939, introduced to symbolize the perfect dairy product. She is so famous and respected that she has been awarded the degrees of Doctor of Bovinity, Doctor of Human Kindness and Doctor of Ecownomics. Elsie was also given a husband named Elmer the Bull. Elmer eventually moved over to the chemical division of Borden where he gave his name to Elmer’s Glue.

50 Syst. with hand signals : ASL

It’s really quite unfortunate that American Sign Language (ASL) and British Sign Language (BSL) are very different, and someone who has learned to sign in one cannot understand someone signing in the other.

55 Brand written in frosty letters : ICEE

Icee and Slurpee are brand names of slushy drinks. Ugh …

58 __ Geo : NAT

The National Geographic Channel (Nat Geo) is jointly owned by Fox and the National Geographic Society, and was launched in 2001.

59 Angsty genre : EMO

The emo musical genre originated in Washington D.C. in the 80s, and takes its name from “emotional hardcore”. “Emo” is also the name given to the associated subculture. Not my cup of tea …

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Stockpile : HOARD
6 “Fuller House” actor : STAMOS
12 Proof letters : QED
15 Perfume name : ESTEE
16 IdeaPad maker : LENOVO
17 Sch. in Charlotte : UNC
18 Embrace Love? : HOLD COURTNEY (from “hold court”)
20 Time often named for a philosophy : ERA
21 Approached : CAME NEAR
22 Estate beneficiary : HEIR
23 Rental garage array : SEDANS
26 Basic nature : ESSENCE
28 “Cancel the mission!” : ABORT!
29 Anxious med. condition : OCD
32 Iberian capital, locally : LISBOA
33 “Lawdy!” : GAWD!
34 Ready to go back? : IN REVERSE
36 Writer Rand : AYN
37 Joint protection … or, in a way, creators of four puzzle puns? : KNEECAPS
38 Civil War prez : ABE
41 Educated in the classroom as opposed to the street : BOOK-SMART
43 Wrinkle : SNAG
44 Hybrid utensils : SPORKS
46 Nevada copper town : ELY
47 Bizet opera priestess : LEILA
48 Friendly greeting : WELCOME
50 Virgil epic : AENEID
51 Love god : EROS
52 Snobs : ELITISTS
56 Hosp. test : EKG
57 Is unable to sign the top-billed star for an “Ocean’s 13” sequel? : HAS NO CLOONEY (from “has no clue”)
61 It may not be intended : PUN
62 Melodious : ARIOSE
63 Physique : FRAME
64 Springs for a vacation? : SPA
65 __ fly : TSETSE
66 Nikon setting : F-STOP

Down

1 “Very cute” : HEH
2 Spanish bear : OSO
3 CDC headquarters city : ATL
4 Soccer ejection indicator : RED CARD
5 Pour to purify : DECANT
6 Swing around : SLUE
7 Gull relative : TERN
8 Start-up money? : ANTE
9 Janelle of “Moonlight” : MONAE
10 Stayed out too long? : OVERSLEPT
11 __ milk : SOY
12 Casual topper for Elizabeth II? : QUEEN BEANIE (from “queen bee”)
13 Tenor Caruso : ENRICO
14 Takoma Park, Md., is part of it : DC AREA
19 Yoga chants : OMS
22 Gas company with toy trucks : HESS
23 Long story : SAGA
24 Site with PowerSellers : EBAY
25 Consume some deli meat? : DOWN BOLOGNA (from “down below”)
27 Gentlemen : SIRS
29 Washington’s bills? : ONES
30 __ fraîche: dairy product : CREME
31 Helmet sticker : DECAL
34 Concern for lefty writers : INK SMEARS
35 Change : VARY
37 Gorilla who learned modified 50-Down : KOKO
39 Hanes brand : BALI
40 “Jiminy cricket!” : EGAD!
42 Tolkien beasts : ORCS
43 They may pick up speed : SENSORS
44 Cleans, in a way : SWEEPS
45 Get excited : PERK UP
47 Allow to go free : LET OFF
49 Commercial cow : ELSIE
50 Syst. with hand signals : ASL
53 “What am __ getting?” : I NOT
54 Chuck : TOSS
55 Brand written in frosty letters : ICEE
57 Uniform part, maybe : HAT
58 __ Geo : NAT
59 Angsty genre : EMO
60 “For sure” : YEP

23 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword 10 Jul 20, Friday”

  1. 2 errors.. 47D I had GET OFF which meant 47A was GEILA.. sorry, didn’t know the opera priestess.. Now that I see it, it makes sense.
    Thought the theme was a stretch.. But ok.
    How about KNEE ENDS for the theme??

    Took me about 30 minutes.. Standard for my Friday..

    Be safe

  2. Humm, ok puzzle but the theme is a bit out there, like Mars. Had no clue what some of these answers were. Just tried to work around them. Oh well.

  3. No errors, five write-overs.
    For 34A had INRE …..
    Jumped on ‘In retreat’. Changed it to ‘In regress’ when I saw I needed HESS before finally settling on IN REVERSE.
    Talk about a setback!

  4. 12:45, no errors. Briefly had “RED FLAG” before “RED CARD” and the “L” at the intersection of “BALI” and “LEILA” was an educated guess; otherwise, no problems.

  5. No errors, but a challenging puzzle because of the proper and brand names which I didn’t know. Had it all, but admit to looking up the Janelle
    surname before everything fit together. I was a good guesser on the
    rest.

  6. Clooney and Courtney are fine, Beanie a little stretch, Bologna a major stretch, IMO.
    I’m impressed with how fast some of you go (Glenn!). I’m very leisurely with this, trying to relax after reading all the lousy news in the paper — even when I’m fast, I’m slow, haha. (About 20 today.)
    Bill, thanks for your work on the site. One small note: trust me when I tell you that nobody in this (DC metro) area would ever say Takoma Park is in Southern Maryland.
    Stay safe and well.

    1. Okay, Clay. I changed that “southern Maryland” to just “Maryland”. Will that work?

  7. Got the puzzle but not the theme which I thought was way out there. So I would have to say the puzzle was baloney….(not beloney). Yes, I know I’m nitpicking,

  8. Didn’t notice the theme, but maybe that was good.
    Googled for STAMOS, LEILA and MONAE. Also didn’t know LENOVO and HEH (really? must be a young people thing).

    I never finished yesterday’s since I was too busy with Ultrasounds and Geek Squads.

  9. 28:58 no errors…after the horrid NYT 0603 I needed this to restore a bit of confidence…as for 33A I guess the rule for setters is “if it fits its ok”.
    Stay safe.

    1. Thanks, Robert. I’ve updated the post, and my database of “factoids”. Thank you!

  10. Same error as Anon Mike, with GET OFF producing GEILA. I also had REDFLAG for a brief time, until a crossing word had me realize my mistake.
    I had a bit of confusion trying to find the fourth pun with the KNEE sound, until I mentally switched to the American pronunciation for BOLOGNA.
    Thanks for sharing your puns today, Bill. I love puns, they are my favorite form of humor. The “groanier”, the better.

  11. 16:56, and 5 errors, all in the NW corner.

    This was a TERRIBLE puzzle. The clues are inexcusable. “Very cute” as a clue for “HEH”? H*U*H? is more like it. The “theme” is just too frickin’ much. Beyond stupid. And totally forced, since “KNEE” is not the same as NEY anyway (besides a soundalike). Of course, it’s simply inconvenient that NEYCAPS wouldn’t work for 37A, right? Give me a break.

    Somebody should take a bat to both the setter and the editor on this one … **figuratively speaking**, of course.

  12. DNF. Don’t know enough about it to comment any further.

    Stay safe, everybody.

  13. No errors. I thought this was a clever grid and a good Friday level of difficulty. I had a one letter error on the WSJ where two (IMO) naticks crossed. 41Down whose clue was “Word found carved at Roanoke’s Lost Colony” and 69 Across whose clue was “Resident of Washington’s ‘City of Destiny'”. Never heard of either and crossing them made my eyes go crossed and a bad word escape my lips…

    1. I thought the Friday WSJ was pretty fun (10:15ish, 1 good error). Good example that something can be hard yet use language that makes complete sense when all is revealed, as opposed to some other things that just set out to be confusing.

    2. @Tony … For me, “CROATOAN” was an unknown (though I remember reading the story in grade school), and so was “City of Destiny”, but I knew the latter referred to a city in Washington, so “TACOMA” came to mind and “TACOMAN” was only a small extra step. Did you work out the answer to the meta?

      @Glenn … I suppose I shouldn’t waste my time trying to make this point yet again, but tomorrow’s “Stumper”, which I just finished after 58 minutes and 23 seconds, with no errors, is another example of “something hard” that uses “language that makes complete sense when all is revealed”. And it was fun. Such judgments are entirely subjective.

  14. 8:53 no errors, thanks to one lookup and one lucky guess.

    I didn’t understand the theme until after I completed the puzzle.

    SLUE is not a spelling I’ve seen before.

    By the way, there are roughly 20,000 species of bees in the world, but only the worker caste of honeybees has a stinger that remains lodged in the victim’s body. All other female bees can sting as often as they need to. Fortunately for us, most bees will fly away, and/or they are too small for their stingers to penetrate human skin. Male bees do not have stingers.

  15. Moderately difficult Friday; took me 30 minutes with 2 stupid errors: SIRe and SaY. I was so stuck on figuring out Stamos and Monae that I goofed on Lenovo…sigh. No explanation for KNEECAPe. Also had to change amAss to HOARD and INKStainS.

    I looked up Janelle Monae and she’s a very talented singer and dancer. I also noticed she has a smile that is uncannily like Jody Comer’s from “Killing Eve.”

    Hi Pam! I was looking at your logo and thought it might be a bee. Are you a beekeeper as well or just a fan? To add to your info – worker bees don’t really want to sting you, because they die in the process. So if you treat your bees really nicely, like I try to, they won’t want to sting you.

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