LA Times Crossword 20 Feb 24, Tuesday

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Constructed by: Eric Rollfing
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Downsizing

Themed answers each start with a SIZE, and that SIZE gets smaller as we move DOWN the grid:

• 60A Cornerstone of the Konmari method, and the progression found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues : DOWNSIZING

• 18A *Many stadium screens : JUMBOTRONS
• 24A *Seven-star pattern in Ursa Major : BIG DIPPER
• 39A *Curly-haired dogs : STANDARD POODLES
• 53A *Skimpy garment credited to fashion designer Mary Quant : MINISKIRT

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

Bill’s time: 5m 20s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

10 Garçon’s workplace : CAFE

The term “garçon” is still sometimes used in French to describe a waiter, as it is an abbreviated form of the more complete “garçon de café” (meaning “café boy”). My sense is that older Francophones might still use the term, but it has fallen out of favor for obvious reasons. It is considered extremely rude to attempt to attract the attention of male waiter by shouting out “Garçon!” A polite “S’il vous plait, monsieur!” is much more appropriate.

14 Actress Kendrick : ANNA

Anna Kendrick is a marvelous actress whose big break came when she played the sidekick to George Clooney’s character in the very interesting 2009 film “Up in the Air”. Kendrick can sing as well as act, and played a student a cappella singer in the 2012 movie “Pitch Perfect”.

17 Folk singer Joan : BAEZ

Joan Baez is an American folk singer and a prominent activist in the fields of non-violence, civil rights, human rights and environmental protection. Baez has dated some high-profile figures in her life including Bob Dylan, Steve Jobs (of Apple) and Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead.

18 *Many stadium screens : JUMBOTRONS

A Jumbotron is a big-screen television system that is often seen in sports stadiums. The brand name “JumboTron” was introduced by Sony in 1985. “Jumbotron” is used pretty generically now for any big-screen system in such venues as Sony exited the business in 2001.

20 GI field fare : MRES

The Meal, Ready-to-Eat (MRE) comes in a lightweight package that’s easy to tote around. The MRE replaced the more cumbersome Meal, Combat, Individual (MCI) in 1981, a meal-in-a-can. In turn, the MCI had replaced the C-ration in 1958, a less sophisticated meal-in-a-can with a more limited choice.

22 Phoenix suburb : MESA

The city of Mesa, Arizona is in effect a suburb of Phoenix. The original settlement of non-Native Americans was founded by Daniel Webster Jones who led a Mormon group from St. George, Utah. The settlement was first called Jonesville, then Fort Utah and eventually Lehi. A second group of Mormons arrived and formed a settlement on top of a nearby mesa. It was this use of a mesa that eventually gave the city its current name.

23 Fannie __: federal mortgage agency : MAE

The Federal National Mortgage Association is commonly called “Fannie Mae”, a play on the initialism “FNMA”. Fannie Mae was founded during the Great Depression as part of President Roosevelt’s New Deal.

24 *Seven-star pattern in Ursa Major : BIG DIPPER

The constellation Ursa Major (Latin for “Larger Bear”) is often just called “the Big Dipper” because of the resemblance of its main stars to a ladle or dipper. Those stars also resemble a plow, and that’s what we usually call the same constellation back in Ireland the “Plough”.

31 Fr. holy woman : STE

“Sainte” (ste.) is French for “saint”, when referring to a “femme” (woman).

32 Ballet garb : TUTU

The word “tutu”, used for a ballet dancer’s skirt, is actually a somewhat “naughty” term. It came into English from French in the early 20th century. The French “tutu” is an alteration of the word “cucu”, a childish word meaning “bottom, backside”.

36 Insensitive, in a way : NON-PC

Non-politically correct (non-PC)

39 *Curly-haired dogs : STANDARD POODLES

The standard poodle breed of dog is considered by many to be the second-most intelligent breed, after the border collie. The name “poodle” comes from a Low German word meaning “to splash about”, reflecting the original use of the breed as a water retriever.

43 Spreadsheet software : EXCEL

Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet program included in the Microsoft Office suite of applications. Microsoft’s first spreadsheet program was introduced back in 1982 and called Multiplan. Multiplan’s popularity waned due to the success of the competing product Lotus 1-2-3. Microsoft then introduced Excel, initially just for the Macintosh. When Excel was extended to Windows, Lotus was slow to respond and Microsoft took over the market.

44 “Low” rapper __ Rida : FLO

Tramar Dillard is better known as rapper Flo Rida. As you might have guessed, Flo Rida was born in the state of Florida.

45 “Smooth Operator” singer : SADE

“Smooth Operator” is a 1984 song written and performed by English band Sade. The song’s lyrics tell the story of a smooth-talking, charming man who is able to charm women effortlessly.

46 Actor Pacino and singer Green : ALS

Al Pacino seems to be best known for playing characters on both sides of the law. Pacino’s big break in the movies came when he played Michael Corleone in “The Godfather”, a role that grew for him as the series of films progressed. But, his Oscar-winning role was that of a blind ex-military officer in “Scent of a Woman”.

Al Green is a gospel and soul music singer. He was born in Arkansas, where he started out as a gospel singer and moved into R&B. In 1974, Green was assaulted by a girlfriend who burned him badly on much of his body by pouring boiling grits over him (and then she committed suicide). The incident changed Green’s life and he turned to the church, becoming a pastor in Memphis in 1976. He continued to record music, but never really enjoyed the same success that he had in the early seventies with hits like “Let’s Stay Together” and “I’m Still In Love With You”.

50 Nile Valley country : EGYPT

Africa’s River Nile has two main tributaries, the Blue Nile and White Nile, with the White Nile deemed to be the headwaters of the Nile itself. The most distant source of the White Nile is unknown, so I suppose one might argue that the “source of the Nile” is a mystery.

53 *Skimpy garment credited to fashion designer Mary Quant : MINISKIRT

English fashion designer Mary Quant was a major figure in the Swinging Sixties culture of London. Her name is inextricably linked to two styles of clothing: the miniskirt and hotpants.

56 Summer sign : LEO

Leo is the fifth astrological sign of the Zodiac. People born from July 23 to August 22 are Leos.

57 “Firefly” actor Tudyk : ALAN

American actor Alan Tudyk is from El Paso, Texas. He is perhaps best known to audiences for playing Hoban “Wash” Washburne in the TV show “Firefly”. Tudyk also plays Eric Morden (aka “Mr. Nobody”) on the superhero TV series “Doom Patrol”.

“Firefly” is a sci-fi TV show that originally aired in 2002 and 2003. Set in the distant future, the show follows a group of humans who arrive in a new star system in a firefly-class spaceship named Serenity. “Firefly” only ran for 14 episodes, but creator Joss Whedon parlayed the storyline into a 2005 movie titled “Serenity” with basically the same cast.

59 Brad of “Moneyball” : PITT

Brad Pitt’s first major role was the cowboy hitchhiker in the 1991’s “Thelma & Louise”. Pitt’s life offscreen garners as much attention as his work onscreen, it seems. The tabloids revel in the series of high-profile relationships in which he has been involved. He was engaged to Gwyneth Paltrow for a while, married to Jennifer Aniston and then to Angelina Jolie.

Michael Lewis wrote his book “Moneyball” about the way Billy Beane built up the Oakland Athletics baseball team by bringing on board players who were “undervalued”, getting the maximum benefit from his limited payroll budget. I must admit I know nothing about baseball, but I thoroughly enjoyed reading “Moneyball”, as well as the film adaptation with Brad Pitt playing Beane.

60 Cornerstone of the Konmari method, and the progression found at the starts of the answers to the starred clues : DOWNSIZING

Marie Kondo (also known as “Konmari”) runs a very successful organizing consulting business that she founded when she was 19 years old, and while a student at Tokyo Woman’s Christian University. She wrote an extremely successful book titled “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing” that was first published in 2011. I’ve read it, and acted on at least some of the advice given therein …

66 Nurse Jackie portrayer Falco : EDIE

Actress Edie Falco won three Emmy Awards for playing Carmela Soprano on HBO’s outstanding drama series called “The Sopranos”. Falco also won an Emmy in 2010 for playing the title role in “Nurse Jackie”, an excellent black comedy.

“Nurse Jackie” is a comedy-drama series centered on an emergency room nurse at a hospital in New York City. The lead character is played by Edie Falco, who also played Tony Soprano’s wife on “The Sopranos”. I binge-watched “Nurse Jackie” a while back and found it to be a very well-written show …

Down

1 R&D setting : LAB

Research and development (R&D)

5 “The Big Bang Theory” chum of Sheldon and Leonard : RAJ

Raj Koothrappali is a character on the sitcom “The Big Bang Theory” who is played by British-Indian actor Kunal Nayyar. Nayyar is married to Neha Kapur, a former Miss India.

6 6-foot Aussie bird : EMU

The large flightless birds called emus make sounds by manipulating inflatable neck-sacs. The sac is about a foot long, has a thin wall and allows the bird to emit a booming sound. The type of sound emitted is the easiest way to differentiate between male and female emus.

7 WWI battle site in France : SOMME

WWI’s Battle of the Somme took place between July and November 1916, and was fought in the upper reaches of the River Somme in France. The first day of the Somme offensive marked the worst day in the history of the British Army, suffering 57,470 casualties. The Somme was also the first battle in which tanks were used.

9 Low-budget hotels, for short : SROS

Single room occupancy (SRO) housing is usually designated as affordable housing. As such, it is often aimed at people with minimal incomes, or at single people who embrace a minimalist lifestyle. An SRO differs from an apartment in that the tenant rents just a single room, and may share other facilities, such as a kitchen or bedroom.

10 Mustang or Pinto : CAR

The Ford Mustang car was introduced in 1964. Back then the Mustang wasn’t a brand new design, but was based on the Ford Falcon. The Mustang was the first of the “pony cars”, American models that are compact and affordable, as well as sporty in image and performance.

The Pinto is a small car that was made by the Ford company from 1971 to 1980. The Pinto was named for the type of horse. Allegations were made in 1997 that the neck of the car’s fuel tank could easily break off in a collision leading to a deadly fire. However, the allegations were never really shown to be valid.

13 Equipment used in oil production? : EASEL

The term “easel” comes from an old Dutch word meaning “donkey”, would you believe? The idea is that an easel carries its load (an oil painting, say) just as a donkey would be made to carry a load.

19 Result of some needlework : TATTOO

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”.

31 “Jersey Shore” nickname : SNOOKI

Nicole Polizzi is quite the celebrity, known by her nickname of Snooki on the MTV reality television show “Jersey Shore”. Polizzi gets her nickname from the character Snooki in the film “Save the Last Dance”, a nickname she was given in middle school because she was the first in her group of friends to kiss a boy.

“Jersey Shore” is yet another reality TV series, one that ran on MTV from 2009 until 2012. The first season featured a group of eight friends sharing a house on the Jersey shore, and the second season had the same cadre warming themselves in a house down in Miami.

35 Adobe creation : PDF

Adobe Acrobat is the software used to create .pdf files. Most of us are more familiar with the associated application called Adobe Reader, because that’s what we use to read those .pdf files.

37 Insipid remark : PLATITUDE

A platitude is a banal or stale remark. The term “platitude” comes from the Old French “plat” meaning “flat”.

Something that is sapid is tasty, savory. The opposite to “sapid” is “insipid”, meaning “without taste, bland”.

38 Source of fragrant wood : CEDAR TREE

Cedar is used for the manufacture of some wardrobes and chests as it has long been believed that the fragrant oil in the wood is a moth-repellent. However, whether or not cedar oil is actually effective at keeping moths away seems to be in doubt.

40 Triangular river formations : DELTAS

A river delta is a triangular landform at the mouth of a river created by the deposition of sediment. The use of the term “delta” in this context comes from the triangular shape of the Greek letter delta. The Nile Delta in Northern Egypt is one of the world’s largest river deltas, and covers 150 miles of coastline on the Mediterranean. The most famous “delta” in the United States isn’t actually a delta at all. The Mississippi Delta is an alluvial plain that lies 300 miles north of the river’s actual delta, yet it is known as the “Mississippi River Delta”. Very confusing …

41 Strategy : PLAN

The terms “strategy” and “tactic” are often confused. In the original frame of reference, namely war, strategy is decided prior to battle. Tactics are implemented during the battle, and are consistent with the strategy.

51 Rock with inner beauty : GEODE

A geode is a rock in which there is a cavity that is lined or filled with crystal formations. The crystals inside a geode form when mineral-rich water seeps into a cavity in a rock, leaving behind dissolved minerals that gradually build up over time. Some of the largest geodes ever discovered have been as big as a room and can take millions of years to form.

55 Metric weights : KILOS

Today, the gram is defined as one thousandth of a kilogram, with the kilogram being equal to the mass of a physical sample preserved by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (well, up until 2019, when it became more hi-tech than I can explain!). Prior to 1960, the gram was defined as the weight of a cubic centimeter of pure water (at the temperature of melting ice).

58 Middle Simpson kid : LISA

Lisa Simpson is Bart’s brainy younger sister on TV’s “The Simpsons”. She is voiced by actress Yeardley Smith. In a 2008 episode of the show, Lisa enters a crossword tournament. Crossword celebrities Merl Reagle and Will Shortz make appearances in that episode, basically playing cartoon versions of themselves.

61 Actor Beatty : NED

Actor Ned Beatty is possibly best remembered for the rather disturbing “squeal like a pig” scene in the movie “Deliverance”. Beatty also earned an Academy Award nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the 1976 movie “Network”.

62 Snack, in slang : NOM

“Om Nom Nom Nom” is a slang expression that indicates satisfied eating.

63 Higher ed hurdle : GRE

Passing the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is usually a requirement for entry into graduate school here in the US.

65 Telepath’s claim : ESP

Extrasensory perception (ESP)