LA Times Crossword 27 May 23, Saturday

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Constructed by: Tom Pepper & C.C. Burnikel
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 12m 09s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 Big hits, for short : HRS

Home run (HR)

14 Mary Oliver, e.g. : POET

Mary Oliver is a writer, mainly of poetry, who has been described as America’s best-selling poet. Oliver won a Pulitzer for poetry in 1984 for her collection of poems called “American Primitive”.

16 Goddess whose temple on Palatine Hill glowed at night : LUNA

“Luna” is the Latin word for “moon”, and is the name given to the Roman moon goddess. The Greek equivalent of Luna was Selene. Luna had a temple on the Aventine Hill in Rome but it was destroyed during the Great Fire that raged during the reign of Nero. She also had a temple on the Palatine Hill in which a lamp remained lit, illuminating the night.

Supposedly, there were seven separate settlements on the top of seven hills east of the River Tiber, prior to the founding of the city of Rome. Tradition dictates that Romulus founded Rome on one of these hills, namely Palatine Hill, and the city came to encompass all seven existing settlements. The most famous hill in modern-day Rome is probably Vatican Hill, but it lies outside of the ancient, walled city.

17 Wreath that may be stored in a fridge : LEI

Leis are traditional Hawaiian garlands that are made from various types of flowers, leaves, and other materials. They were originally worn by ancient Hawaiians as a symbol of their social status and to signify important events such as weddings and funerals.

20 Look that makes waves? : PERM

“Perm” is the common name given to a permanent wave, a chemical or thermal treatment of hair to produce waves or curls.

23 One of Sue Bird’s WNBA record 3,234 : ASSIST
55A Sue Bird’s WNBA career 6,803: Abbr. : PTS

WNBA player Sue Bird is one of only two basketball players, male or female, to have won five Olympic gold medals. The other is fellow WNBA star Diana Taurasi. Bird became engaged to US soccer phenom Megan Rapinoe in 2020.

28 Paris native : TEXAN

The city of Paris, Texas is in the northeast corner of the state. Residents like to call the city the “Second Largest Paris in the World”. Cute …

29 Shepherd’s greeting : ARF!

The lovely German shepherd breed of dog isn’t one of the older breeds, and only dates back to 1899. German shepherds are the second-most popular breed in the US, after the Labrador retriever.

31 Shoegaze band Yo La __ : TENGO

Yo La Tengo is an indie rock band from Hoboken, New Jersey that formed in 1984 as the husband/wife duo Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley. The band’s name translates from Spanish as “I have it”, and was chosen with reference to a baseball anecdote. Elio Chacon was a baseball player from Venezuela, the seventh person to play in the Majors from that country. There’s a story that Mets center fielder Richie Ashburn was always running into Elio Chacon in the outfield, because he would call for the ball in English, and Chacon only understood Spanish. Ashburn started to call for the ball in Spanish “Yo la tengo!” (I’ve got it!), at which point he’d be run down by left fielder Frank Thomas who only understood English!

32 North Dakota Natives known as the Arikara : REE

The Arikara (also “Ree”) are a Native-American tribe based in North Dakota. In the 2015 film “The Revenant”, the war party that the trappers go up against comprises Arikara warriors.

33 Cory Booker, once : YALIE

Cory Booker has been a US Senator for New Jersey since 2013, having previously served as the Mayor of Newark. Booker is one of the few vegetarians in the US Congress.

35 Med. condition exhibited by Hannah on “Girls” : OCD

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

“Girls” is an HBO comedy-drama series that was created by and stars Lena Dunham. The show follows a group of female friends living their lives in New York City. Good show …

39 Like a golfer who usually shoots around par : SCRATCH

A golfer whose handicap is zero is known as a “scratch golfer”. A player with a handicap of 18, given that there are 18 holes in a full round, is known as a “bogey golfer”.

42 Churlish : COARSE

A churl is a rude, boorish person. The word “churl” comes from the Old English word “ceorl”, meaning a freeman of the lowest class.

43 __ Paragon: large shopping mall in Bangkok : SIAM

Siam was the official name of Thailand up to 1939 (and again from 1945 to 1949).

Bangkok is the capital city of Thailand. The exact etymology of the name “Bangkok” seems unclear, although “bang” is a Thai word for “a village situated on a stream”.

45 En passant pieces : PAWNS

“En passant” is a French term that means “in passing”, and describes a special pawn capture in chess. To make an en passant capture, the capturing pawn moves to the square that the enemy pawn passed over, as if the enemy pawn had only moved one square. The enemy pawn is removed from the board. The en passant rule ensures that a pawn cannot use its two-square move to safely skip past an enemy pawn.

50 Fenty Beauty founder, to fans : RIRI

Singer Rihanna was born and grew up on the island of Barbados and moved to the US when she was 16-years-old to pursue a singing career. “Rihanna” is her stage name, as she was born Robyn Rihanna Fenty. The name “Rihanna” is derived from the Welsh name “Rhiannon”. And, Rihanna sometimes goes by the nickname “RiRi”, which is also the name of her line of beauty products.

51 Coffee break exchange : IDLE GOSSIP

Our word “gossip” comes from the Old English “godsibb” meaning “godparent”. Back then, the term was used for female friends who attended a birth, and later for anyone engaging in idle talk.

54 Haphazardly : WILLY-NILLY

Our word “hap” means chance or fortune. It turns up combined in words like “haphazard” and even “happen”. “To happen” originally meant “to occur by hap, by chance”.

56 Autumn stone : OPAL

The largest opal ever found, and the most valuable, is the Olympic Australis. It was discovered in South Australia in 1956. That same year, the Summer Olympics were being held in Melbourne so the newly discovered stone was given the name “Olympic Australis”.

Down

1 Fat with a very high smoke point : GHEE

Ghee is clarified butter used in South Asian cuisines. “Ghee” comes from Sanskrit, and translates as “sprinkled”.

2 Golfer Thompson : LEXI

Lexi Thompson has been a professional golfer since the age of 15, and won her first LPGA tournament at just 16 years of age, which is a record. Thompson had also qualified for the US Women’s Open when she was the ripe old age of 12 years, making her the youngest golfer to play in that tournament.

3 Std. that starts every March : EDT

On the other side of the Atlantic, daylight saving time (DST) is known as “summer time”. The idea behind summer/daylight-savings is to move clocks forward an hour in spring (“spring forward”), and backwards in the fall (“fall back”) so that afternoons have more daylight. Here in the US, DST starts on the second Sunday of March, and ends on the first Sunday of November.

4 Places for hot shots : ESPRESSO BARS

Espresso is made by forcing extremely hot water, under pressure, through finely ground coffee beans. The result is a thick and concentrated coffee drink that contains quite a lot of solids and a lot of foam. An espresso machine was first patented in 1884 in Italy, although it was a machine to make the beverage in bulk. The first patent for a machine that made individual measures was applied for in 1901, also in Italy.

8 “Power” role for Rotimi : DRE

“Power” is a crime drama TV show that ran for six seasons starting in 2014. It is about a drug dealer (played by Omari Hardwick) who is trying to go straight by running a legitimate nightclub. “Power” is co-produced by rapper 50 Cent, who also plays a leading role.

“Rotimi” is the stage name of actor and singer Olurotimi Akinosho. He played drug dealer Darius Morrison on the police drama show “Boss”, and drug dealer Andre Colman on the crime drama show “Power”.

9 Soup du jour alternative : HOUSE SALAD

The French phrase “du jour” translates as “of the day”.

12 NBC show with more than 950 eps : SNL

NBC first aired a form of “Saturday Night Live” (SNL) in 1975 under the title “NBC’s Saturday Night”. The show was actually created to give Johnny Carson some time off from “The Tonight Show”. Back then “The Tonight Show” had a weekend episode, and Carson convinced NBC to pull the Saturday or Sunday recordings off the air and hold them for subsequent weeknights in which Carson needed a break. NBC turned to Lorne Michaels and asked him to put together a variety show to fill the vacant slot, and he came up with what we now call “Saturday Night Live”.

20 Notify : PING

In the world of computer science, a “ping” is a test message sent over a network between computers to check for a response and to measure the time of that response. We now use the verb “to ping” more generally, meaning to send someone a message, usually a reminder.

22 Molecule studied by Joan A. Steitz : RNA

Joan A. Steitz is a molecular biologist who is best known for her pioneering work studying RNA. She was awarded the National Medal of Science in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan.

25 Beach volleyball spots : SAND COURTS

Indoor volleyball was invented in 1895 and was originally called “mintonette”, a reference to the related game of “badminton”. The variant called beach volleyball originated in 1915 on Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, but was popularized on the beaches of Santa Monica starting in 1920.

28 Exercise that works the upper body : TRICEP DIP

The triceps brachii muscle is found at the back of the upper arm. The muscle’s name translates from Latin to “three-headed arm muscle”, fitting as it is actually made up of three bundles of muscles.

37 Tags someone on Twitter, e.g. : ATS

The “at symbol” (@) originated in the commercial world, as shorthand for “each at, per” and similar phrases. I suppose we see the symbol most commonly these days as part of email addresses.

40 “Groundhog Day” director : RAMIS

Harold Ramis was a real all-rounder; a very successful actor, director and writer. Indeed, in both “Ghostbusters” and “Stripes” he was a co-writer as well as playing a lead character. Ramis worked as writer-director on “Caddyshack”, “National Lampoon’s Vacation”, “Groundhog Day” and “Analyze This”.

“Groundhog Day” is a 1993 comedy film that has already become a classic. The star of the movie is Bill Murray, with Andie MacDowell putting in a great supporting performance. “Groundhog Day” is set in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania although it was actually filmed in the town of Woodstock, Illinois.

46 Pasta __ Norma : ALLA

Pasta alla Norma is an Italian dish from Sicily. It comprises pasta in a tomato sauce covered with slices of fried eggplant. The dish is named for the opera “Norma” by Sicilian composer Vincenzo Bellini.

47 Capital with ferry service to Copenhagen : OSLO

The Norwegian capital of Oslo is located at the northern end of a fjord known as Oslofjord. The fjord is home to 40 islands that lie within the city’s limits. Oslo also has 343 lakes.

Copenhagen is the largest city and the capital of Denmark. I haven’t had the privilege of visiting Copenhagen, but I hear it is a wonderful metropolis with a marvelous quality of life. The city is also very environmentally friendly, with over a third of its population commuting to work by bicycle.

48 Scottish wedding garb : KILT

The Scottish skirt called a “kilt” takes its name from the Middle English word “kilten” meaning “to tuck up”. The idea is that the kilt can be tucked up around the body to give freedom to the legs.

51 __ Jima : IWO

Iwo Jima is a volcanic island located south of Tokyo that today is uninhabited. The name is Japanese for “Sulfur Island”, referring to the sulfur mining on which Iwo Jima’s economy once depended. There were about a thousand Japanese civilians living on the island prior to WWII. In 1944, there was a massive influx of Japanese military personnel in anticipation of the inevitable US invasion. As the Japanese military moved in, the civilians were forced out and no one has lived there since. Control of the island was wrested from the Japanese in the five-week Battle of Iwo Jima in 1945. Said battle was one of the bloodiest in the Pacific theater in WWII.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Up state? : GLEE
5 Had kittens : BRED
9 Big hits, for short : HRS
12 Shows emotion : SHEDS A TEAR
14 Mary Oliver, e.g. : POET
15 Welcome message to a waiter : NEXT, PLEASE!
16 Goddess whose temple on Palatine Hill glowed at night : LUNA
17 Wreath that may be stored in a fridge : LEI
18 “Got everything?” : READY?
19 Benched way too long : RUSTY
20 Look that makes waves? : PERM
21 Places to find temples and bridges : FRAMES
23 One of Sue Bird’s WNBA record 3,234 : ASSIST
26 Hardest to see : TINIEST
27 Runs across : SPANS
28 Paris native : TEXAN
29 Shepherd’s greeting : ARF!
31 Shoegaze band Yo La __ : TENGO
32 North Dakota Natives known as the Arikara : REE
33 Cory Booker, once : YALIE
35 Med. condition exhibited by Hannah on “Girls” : OCD
36 Puts on the line : BAITS
38 Apt rhyme for “quake” : SHAKE
39 Like a golfer who usually shoots around par : SCRATCH
41 Gave title to : DEEDED
42 Churlish : COARSE
43 __ Paragon: large shopping mall in Bangkok : SIAM
44 Jazz combo set : DRUMS
45 En passant pieces : PAWNS
47 Gives clearance : OKS
50 Fenty Beauty founder, to fans : RIRI
51 Coffee break exchange : IDLE GOSSIP
53 Decides : OPTS
54 Haphazardly : WILLY-NILLY
55 Sue Bird’s WNBA career 6,803: Abbr. : PTS
56 Autumn stone : OPAL
57 Bit of trouble : SPOT

Down

1 Fat with a very high smoke point : GHEE
2 Golfer Thompson : LEXI
3 Std. that starts every March : EDT
4 Places for hot shots : ESPRESSO BARS
5 Nonstarters : B-TEAM
6 Interpretation : READ
7 Basic solutions : EASY FIXES
8 “Power” role for Rotimi : DRE
9 Soup du jour alternative : HOUSE SALAD
10 Complex protest? : RENT STRIKE
11 Temporary reprieve : STAY
12 NBC show with more than 950 eps : SNL
13 Vigilant : ALERT
14 Column of smoke : PLUME
19 Wet periods : RAINY SEASONS
20 Notify : PING
22 Molecule studied by Joan A. Steitz : RNA
23 Concerning : AS TO
24 Unsolicited screenplay : SPEC SCRIPT
25 Beach volleyball spots : SAND COURTS
26 Nail biters : TEETH
28 Exercise that works the upper body : TRICEP DIP
30 Network signal : FEED
34 Noise before a break-in : AHEM!
37 Tags someone on Twitter, e.g. : ATS
40 “Groundhog Day” director : RAMIS
41 Shabby : DINGY
43 Balloon : SWELL
44 Go down : DROP
46 Pasta __ Norma : ALLA
47 Capital with ferry service to Copenhagen : OSLO
48 Scottish wedding garb : KILT
49 Plant, for one : SPY
51 __ Jima : IWO
52 Small intake : SIP