LA Times Crossword 22 Aug 23, Tuesday

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Constructed by: Patti Varol
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Who Buys There?

Themed answers are each common phrases reinterpreted as places where someone specified in the corresponding clue might buy something:

• 17A Place where a contractor buys sheet rock? : WALL OUTLET
• 27A Place where Uncle Sam buys his red, white, and blue garb? : NATIONAL MALL
• 45A Place where the military buys silver stars? : GENERAL STORE
• 59A Place where Paddington buys marmalade sandwiches? : BEAR MARKET

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

Bill’s time: 5m 53s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

17 Place where a contractor buys sheet rock? : WALL OUTLET

Drywall (also “sheet rock”) is a panel made primarily from gypsum sandwiched between sheets of paper. The use of drywall sheets is a labor-saving alternative to applying wet plaster on laths to construct internal walls in a building.

19 Dejected mood : FUNK

The phrase “in a blue funk” has two different meanings, depending on what side of the Atlantic you are. Here in North America, to be in a blue funk is to be in a state of gloom. Over in Britain and Ireland, it is to be in a state of anxiety.

20 Civil rights org. with Image Awards : NAACP

The NAACP Image Awards are presented annually to recognise people of color in the worlds of film, television, music and literature. The first awards were presented in 1967, and the ceremony usually takes place in Los Angeles.

21 Write off over time, as an initial cost : AMORTIZE

In a literal sense, the verb “to amortize” means “to make dead”, coming from the Latin “ad” meaning “to” and “mortus” meaning “dead”. We use “amortizing” to describe the gradual writing off of the value of an asset, “killing off” the value over time.

23 Vapor trail locale : SKY

We talk so often about global warming these days but there is another fascinating phenomenon that is related, and known as “global dimming”. Global dimming is the reduction in the amount of heat that radiates daily from the planet due to the insulating effect of pollution and vapor trails (contrails) from aircraft that are present in the atmosphere. The effect has been touted as a theory for decades but dramatic empirical data became available in the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Planes were grounded and the skies over America were clear for three days. There was a stark change in the temperature range measured across the US for these three days, demonstrating the impact that air travel has on our climate.

27 Place where Uncle Sam buys his red, white, and blue garb? : NATIONAL MALL

The Uncle Sam personification of the United States was first used during the War of 1812. The “Uncle Sam” term was so widely accepted that even the Germans used it during WWII, choosing the code word “Samland” for “America” in intelligence communiques.

32 Grow molars, e.g. : TEETHE

Molars are grinding teeth. The term “molar” comes from the Latin “mola” meaning “millstone”.

35 Tennis great Sampras : PETE

Pete Sampras is a retired Greek-American tennis professional. Sampras was rated number one in the world rankings for six years in a row in the nineties.

36 Soccer great Hamm : MIA

Mia Hamm is a retired American soccer player. She played as a forward on the US national team that won the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1991. Hamm scored 158 international goals, which was more than any other player in the world, male or female, until the record was broken in 2013. Amazingly, Hamm was born with a clubfoot, and so had to wear corrective shoes when she was growing up.

40 Way to the www : ISP

An Internet service provider (ISP) is just what the name indicates, a company that provides its customers with access to the Internet. One way that ISPs differentiate themselves from each other is in the way in which end users are connected to the ISP’s network. So, there are cable ISPs, DSL ISPs, dial-up ISPs and satellite ISPs.

In essence, the World Wide Web (WWW) is a vast collection of documents that is accessible using the Internet, with each document containing hyperlinks which point to other documents in the collection. So the “Web” is different from the Internet, although the terms are often used interchangeably. The Web is a collection of documents, and the Internet is a global network of computers on which the documents reside. The Web was effectively the invention of British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee. The key to Berner-Lee’s invention was bringing together two technologies that already existed: hypertext and the Internet. I, for one, am very grateful …

43 “I, Tonya” Oscar winner Allison : JANNEY

Allison Janney is a favorite actress of mine, and one whom I first saw on “The West Wing” TV show. Janney went on to play one of the moms on the sitcom “Mom”. She won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her portrayal of the title character’s abusive mother in the 2017 biopic “I, Tonya”.

“I, Tonya” is a 2017 comedy biopic about the life of figure skater Tonya Harding, with a focus on the 1994 attack on Harding’s rival Nancy Kerrigan. Harding is played by Australian actress Margot Robbie. I haven’t seen this one, but it’s on my list as I hear good things …

48 Obama-era immigration policy, familiarly : DACA

The acronym “DACA” stands for “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals”, which is a US immigration policy giving some relief to illegal immigrants brought into the country as children. Essentially, DACA provides such persons with a renewable two-year period of deferred action from deportation, during which time an applicant becomes eligible for a work permit. The policy was introduced by President Obama in 2012.

56 State known as Down East : MAINE

The coast of Maine is often referred to as “Down East” by the people of New England. There is even a monthly magazine aimed at the people of Maine called “Down East”, which is published in Camden, Maine.

58 French cheese with a rind : BRIE

Brie is a soft cheese that is named for the French region in which it originated. Brie is similar to the equally famous (and delicious) Camembert. Brie is often served baked in puff pastry with fig jam.

59 Place where Paddington buys marmalade sandwiches? : BEAR MARKET

Paddington Bear is a character from a series of books written by Michael Bond. Paddington is an immigrant from Peru who is found sitting on his suitcase in Paddington Railway Station in London. He is a beloved character in the UK. When the two sides of the Channel Tunnel were linked in 1994 during construction, the first item passed by the British to the French was a Paddington Bear soft toy.

61 House of Lords title : EARL

The UK Parliament is divided into two houses, with the upper house known as the House of Lords and the lower house as the House of Commons. The members of the House of Commons (MPs) are elected, but most new members of the House of Lords are appointed. Historically, a large proportion of the membership of the upper house were hereditary peers, but recent legislative changes are reducing the numbers who can sit in the House of Lords by virtue of birthright.

62 “Rizzoli & Isles” actress Harmon : ANGIE

“Rizzoli & Isles” is a detective drama that is inspired by the “Maura Isles/Jane Rizzoli” series of novels by Tess Gerritsen. In the show, Angie Harmon plays detective Jane Rizzoli and Sasha Alexander plays medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles.

66 Every 12 mos. : YRLY

Yearly (yrly.)

Down

2 “Wicked Game” singer Chris : ISAAK

Chris Isaak’s 1991 hit “Wicked Game” is taken from his 1989 album “Heart Shaped World”. The song took a couple of years to become a hit after release on the album. “Wicked Game” received a boost in popularity after it was featured in the 1990 David Lynch film “Wild at Heart”.

4 Very soft mineral : TALC

Talc is a mineral, hydrated magnesium silicate. Talcum powder is composed of loose talc, although these days “baby powder” is also made from cornstarch.

5 D.C. school named for a president : GWU

The George Washington University (aka GW or GWU) is located in Washington, D.C. The school was founded in 1821 as the Columbian College in the District of Columbia. The school changed its name to the George Washington University in 1904.

6 MVP pitcher/hitter Shohei : OHTANI

Shohei Ohtani is a baseball pitcher from Japan who started his professional career in 2013 playing for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He was signed by the Los Angeles Angels in 2017, and in 2018 was named the American League’s Rookie of the Year.

11 Santa __, California : CRUZ

Santa Cruz is a city on Monterey Bay in Northern California. The city is home to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk which is the state’s oldest amusement park. The Boardwalk is designated as a State Historic Landmark.

12 Russo of “Thor” : RENE

The talented actress Rene Russo is a native of Burbank, California. Russo went to high school (with actor/director Ron Howard), but dropped out in tenth grade. At seventeen, she was given the opportunity to train as a model and within a very short time appeared on the cover of “Vogue”. As her modeling jobs slowed down in her early thirties, Russo made a career change and studied theater and acting. Her breakout role was in the 1989 film “Major League.”

The 2011 movie “Thor” is yet another film based on a comic book hero. Even though I won’t be seeing it (I don’t do comics), I must admit it does have an impressive cast. Chris Hemsworth plays Thor, supported by Natalie Portman, Rene Russo, Idris Elba and Anthony Hopkins. And to crown it all, Kenneth Branagh is the director.

18 Media mogul with a book club : OPRAH

“Oprah’s Book Club” was a segment that started in 1996 on “The Oprah Winfrey Show”. Each book reviewed was a personal recommendation by Winfrey herself. The first book reviewed was “The Deep End of the Ocean” by Jacquelyn Mitchard. The original book club ended in 2011, but there’s now a reboot known as “Oprah’s Book Club 2.0” that focuses on digital media now that “The Oprah Winfrey Show” is no more.

28 Australian gems : OPALS

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”.

30 Old Italian coins : LIRE

The word “lira” is used in a number of countries for currency. “Lira” comes from the Latin for “pound” and is derived from the British pound sterling, the value of a Troy pound of silver. For example, the lira (plural “lire”) was the official currency of Italy before the country changed over to the euro in 2002.

31 “Poker Face” singer __ Gaga : LADY

“Poker Face” is a 2008 song co-written and recorded by Lady Gaga. Having sold over 14 million copies, it is one of the best-selling singles ever released. You know, I don’t think I’ve ever heard it …

34 “College GameDay” channel : ESPN

There are several sports shows on ESPN called “College GameDay”, the oldest of which is the one covering college football.

38 Pungent pepper : JALAPENO

The jalapeño is a chili pepper, and a favorite of mine. The pepper’s name translates from Spanish as “from Xalapa”. Xalapa (also “Jalapa”) is the capital of the Mexican state of Veracruz, and the traditional origin of the jalapeño pepper. A smoke-dried jalapeño, called a chipotle, is used for seasoning.

41 The “E” of Q.E.D. : ERAT

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”.

46 Unpopular Fords of the late 1950s : EDSELS

The Edsel brand of automobile was named for Edsel Ford, son of Henry. Sadly, the name “Edsel” has become synonymous with “failure”, which was no fault of Edsel himself who had died several years before the Edsel line was introduced. When the Ford Motor Company introduced the Edsel on 4 September 1957, Ford proclaimed the day to be “E Day”.

47 2023 biopic about the creation of a video game : TETRIS

“Tetris” is a 2023 thriller film, based on real events, that covers the maneuvers around licensing and patenting of the Tetris video game. Difficulties arise because the game was developed by a Russian programmer who worked for an organization owned by the Soviet Union.

51 Actress Tatum : O’NEAL

Tatum O’Neal is the youngest actress to win a competitive Oscar. She won the Best Supporting Actress Award in 1974 when she was just 10 years old, for her role as Addie in “Paper Moon”. The youngest person to win an honorary Academy Award was Shirley Temple, who was only 5 years old when she was presented with an Oscar in 1934.

52 Los Angeles museum, with “The” : … GETTY

The J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles is one of the most-visited museums in the country. Like many museums in developed countries these days, the Getty has been embroiled in disputes about ownership of artifacts. The curators of the Getty have gone so far as to repatriate some items in recent years, especially to Greece and Italy. The J. Paul Getty Museum has two locations. The Getty Center is the primary location, and houses art from the Middle Ages to the present. The associated (and beautiful) Getty Villa displays art from ancient Greece, Rome and Etruria.

53 __-B: dental brand : ORAL

The Oral-B toothbrush was introduced to the world in 1950, designed by a California periodontist. The first “model” was the Oral-B 60, a name given to reflect the 60 tufts in the brush. In 1969, the Oral-B was the first toothbrush to get to the moon as it was the toothbrush of choice for the crew of the Apollo 11 spacecraft.

55 Othello’s false friend : IAGO

Iago is the schemer in Shakespeare’s “Othello”. He is a soldier who fought alongside Othello and feels hard done by, missing out on promotion. Iago hatches a plot designed to discredit his rival Cassio by insinuating that Cassio is having an affair with Desdemona, Othello’s wife.

58 Actress Arthur : BEA

Bea Arthur an American actress and comedian who rose to fame in the 1970s with her iconic roles in the hit TV shows “Maude” and “The Golden Girls.” Prior to launching her acting career, Arthur served in the US military. In 1943, at the age of 21, she joined the US Marine Corps Women’s Reserve, where she worked as a typist and truck driver.