LA Times Crossword 15 Jun 24, Saturday

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Constructed by: Rich Norris
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 11m 07s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Hustle : MAKE TRACKS

Back in the 1680s, “to hustle” meant “to shake to and fro”. The term particularly referred to shaking money in a cap as part of the game “hustle-cap”. “Hustle” seems to have evolved from the Dutch “hutselen” meaning “to shake”. Byt the end of the 1820s, to hustle was to bustle, to move quickly.

16 Rock, paper, or scissors : NOUN

Rock-paper-scissors is a hand game played by two people, at least here in North America. Back in Ireland we called the game “scissors-paper-stone”, and another name encountered around the English-speaking world is “roshambo”. The game is often used as a way to choose between two options or two individuals.

20 Online service since April 1, 2004 : GMAIL

Gmail users (like me) have the advantage of a 10-send grace period in which one can decide to undo the send command for a specific email. I like that “undo send” feature …

22 Woodstock performer between Melanie and Joan : ARLO

Singer Arlo Guthrie is known for his protest songs, just like his father Woody Guthrie. The younger Guthrie only ever had one song in the top 40: a cover version of “City of New Orleans”. He has lived for years in the town of Washington, just outside Pittsfield, Massachusetts. His 1976 song “Massachusetts” has been the official folk song of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts since 1981.

“Melanie” is the stage name of singer-songwriter Melanie Safka. Her biggest hit recording is 1971’s “Brand New Key”. Melanie also wrote and recorded the megahit “What Have They Done to My Song Ma”, which is perhaps better known for the song’s cover versions. Two of Melanie’s children had a hit of their own when they were just 6 and 7 years old. They recorded a version of “There’s No One Quite Like Grandma” that charted in Canada.

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.

The 1969 Woodstock Music & Art Fair was held on Max Yasgur’s dairy farm located 43 miles southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York. 400,000 young people attended, and saw 32 bands and singers perform over three days.

24 Chemistry suffix : -ENE

An alkene is an organic compound made up of carbon and hydrogen atoms. It differs from an alkane in that it has at least one C=C double bond. The simplest alkene is the gas ethylene, a major raw material used in the manufacture of plastics (like polyethylene).

31 __ Dei : AGNUS

“Agnus Dei” is Latin for “Lamb of God”, The expression is used in Christian traditions to describe Jesus Christ, hence symbolizing his role as a sacrificial offering (sacrificial lamb) to atone for the sins of man. The extended term “Ecce Agnus Dei” translates as “Behold the Lamb of God”.

33 Beats Electronics co-founder : DRE

Beats Electronics is a company that was co-founded by rapper Dr. Dre. Apple bought Beats for $3 billion in 2014, which is the largest acquisition in Apple’s history.

34 Classic CIA-vs.-KGB spoof : S*P*Y*S

“S*P*Y*S” is a 1974 comedy starring Elliott Gould and Donald Sutherland as two men mistaken as spies and targeted by the KGB. With all those asterisks in the film’s title, one has to assume the movie was intended to capitalize on the success of the 1970 Gould/Sutherland vehicle called “M*A*S*H”.

36 Some 1990s GM subcompacts : GEOS

Geos were small vehicles manufactured by General Motors, mainly in the nineties. They were designed to compete head-to-head with the small imports that were gaining market share at the time in the US. Some Geo models that you might remember are the Metro, the Prizm and the Storm. The cars were actually built as joint-ventures with Japanese manufacturers. The Prizm was a GM/Toyota project, the Metro was GM/Suzuki, and the Storm was GM/Isuzu.

38 Continent with aardvarks: Abbr. : AFR

The aardvark is the oddest looking of creatures, a nocturnal burrowing animal that is native to Africa. Even though it is sometimes called the African ant bear, the name “aardvark” is Afrikaans for “earth pig”. Aardvarks are noted, among other things, for their unique teeth. Their teeth have no enamel and wear away quite readily, but continuously regrow. The aardvark feeds mainly on ants and termites.

43 Gulf of Guinea capital : ACCRA

Accra sits on Ghana’s coast and is a major seaport as well as the country’s capital city. The name “Accra” comes from a local word “Nkran” meaning “ants”, a name chosen because of the large number of anthills found in the area when the city was founded.

The Gulf of Guinea is a large gulf that forms part of the Atlantic Ocean on the west coast of Africa. One of the gulf’s claims to fame is that it is home to the intersecting point between zero degrees of latitude and zero degrees of longitude, i.e. where the Equator and Prime Meridian cross.

50 Barrel racing events : RODEOS

Barrel racing is an event featured in rodeos. Competitors on horses race around barrels in a cloverleaf pattern, each trying to complete the course in the fastest time. The event tends to be confined to male and female youths, and to women riders.

51 “Crocodile Rock” label : MCA

MCA Records was a record label that was founded in 1934 as Decca Records.

“Crocodile Rock” is a 1972 song co-written and recorded by Elton John. Like so many fans of his songs, I love “Crocodile Rock”, but Elton himself, he apparently does not. He has stated that he performed it in concerts because the audiences enjoy it, but he has vowed never to play it again now that he has retired from touring.

53 __ of Maine : TOM’S

Tom’s of Maine is a brand of personal-care products that emphasizes the use of natural ingredients and that does not test products on animals. The brand was introduced when Tom and Kate Chappell started their own company in Kennebunk, Maine in 1970. I’m a big fan of Tom’s lavender-scented deodorant …

55 “WarGames” org. : NORAD

The North American Defense Command (NORAD) isn’t just a US operation but is a cooperative arrangement between Canada and the United States. The two countries entered into an agreement to establish NORAD in 1958, mainly due to the concern that there would be little or no warning of a missile attack from the Soviet Union that came over the North Pole. NORAD also tracks Santa Claus coming from the North Pole every Christmas, and these days publishes Santa’s location on Christmas Eve on its website. The tracking of Santa started into 1955 when a local Sears store placed an advertisement in a Colorado Springs newspaper with a phone number that could be used to call Santa Claus. The newspaper accidentally printed the number for the Continental Air Defense Command (a precursor to NORAD). The officer on duty instructed his staff to give all children who called a “current location” for Santa. Today, NORAD gets about 120,000 phone queries about Santa’s location every year, and the website gets about 20 million visitors.

“WarGames” is a really fun 1983 movie starring Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. There was a sequel that was released in 2008 called “WarGames: The Dead Code”. I haven’t seen it, and I fear I might be disappointed …

57 Santa __ winds : ANA

The Santa Ana winds are the very dry air currents that sweep offshore late in the year in Southern California. Because these air currents are so dry, they are noted for their influence over forest fires in the area, especially in the heat of the fall. The winds arise from a buildup of air pressure in the Great Basin that lies between the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada. Under the right conditions, that air spills over the peaks of the Sierra Nevada and basically “falls” down the side of the Sierra range, heading for the ocean. As the air falls it becomes drier and heats up so that relative humidity can fall to below 10% by the time it hits the coast.

61 Inverse of nano- : GIGA-

The prefix “giga-” implies 10 to the power of 9, as in a “billion”. The prefix “nano-” implies 10 to the power of -9, as in a “billionth”.

62 Convenience one can bank on, familiarly : ATM MACHINE

ATMs are Automated Teller Machines, and are called “cashpoints” back in Britain and Ireland. Well, as students we also called them “drink links”, for obvious reasons …

Down

1 L’Oreal product : MASCARA

L’Oréal is a French cosmetics company, the largest cosmetics and beauty company in the world. Here in the US, L’Oréal runs a “Women of Worth” program that honors women who volunteer in their communities. The phrase “Women of Worth” underlines the longstanding L’Oréal slogan “Because I’m worth it”, which evolved into “Because you’re worth it” and eventually “Because we’re worth it”.

3 Russian government metonym : KREMLIN

I was lucky enough to visit the Moscow Kremlin as a tourist a few decades ago. It sits right on Red Square, along with Saint Basil’s Cathedral and the famed GUM department store. “Kremlin” is a Russian word meaning “fortress”.

A metonym is a word that is used for something that is closely associated with that word. For example, “Broadway” is a metonym for “American theater” and “Washington” is a metonym for “the US government”.

4 Fast break for millions : EID

Eid al-Fitr is a religious holiday in the Muslim tradition that is known in English as the “Festival of Breaking the Fast”. It marks the end of Ramadan, a period of dawn-to-sunset fasting.

5 Letters to alert moms and dads : TV-PG

TV Parental Guidelines (TV-PG, TV-MA, etc.) were introduced in the US in 1997. Use of the rating system by broadcasters is entirely voluntary.

6 Bawled (out) : REAMED

I must admit that I find the slang term “to ream out”, with its meaning “to scold harshly”, to be quite distasteful. The usage of the word as a reprimand dates back to about 1950.

7 Highway through Whitehorse : ALCAN

The Alaska Highway is also known as the Alaska-Canadian Highway or ALCAN Highway. A highway connecting the contiguous United States to Alaska was proposed in the twenties, but the Canadian authorities didn’t believe the project had much merit as the road would be used by very few of its citizens. The perceived importance of the route increased during WWII and President Roosevelt deemed the road a strategic necessity so he made a deal with Canada. The cost of construction would be borne by the US, but the road and related facilities were to be handed over to Canada at the end of the war. The project was accelerated when the Japanese invaded and occupied Kiska and Attu Islands in the Aleutians. The road of course has been improved and is still in use today. The ALCAN Highway forms part of what is popularly known as the Pan-American Highway, which runs from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska to the south of Argentina or Chile depending on how the route is defined.

Whitehorse is the capital city of Canada’s Yukon Territory. It sits at the head of the Yukon River and its location made it an important supply center during the Klondike Gold Rush.

9 “Power Hits” series record co. : K-TEL

K-Tel was founded in 1962 in Winnipeg, Manitoba by one Philip Kives. K-Tel’s recipe for success was the sale of inexpensive goods with a simple sales pitch and mail-order distribution.

14 Informal alliance : ENTENTE

An entente cordiale (sometimes just “entente”) is a friendly understanding, usually between two nations. The term, which translates from French as “cordial agreement”, was first used to describe a set of agreements between the UK and France that were put in place in 1904.

23 “Drinks are __” : ON US

Great!

28 Married hombre : ESPOSO

In Spanish, a married “hombre” (man) is an “esposo” (husband).

37 Macbeth, for one : SCOT

There is a superstition in the theatrical world that uttering the name “Macbeth” in a theater will bring disaster of some sort. To avoid this, the euphemism “the Scottish Play” is used instead.

38 Shorten : ABRIDGE

The words “abridge” and “abbreviate” both come from the same Latin root “abbreviare”, meaning to “make short”.

44 Dalmatian’s home : CROATIA

The Republic of Croatia is a Balkan country. The Croats declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991. Croatia became a member of NATO in 2009, and a member of the European Union in 2013.

Dalmatia is a historical region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea, with most of its area falling in modern-day Croatia.

45 Leftover : REMNANT

A remnant is a small part that’s left over from something larger. The term comes from the Latin “remanour” meaning “to remain”. So, a “remnant” is something “remaining”.

49 Traveler’s aid : AAA MAP

“TripTik” is the brand name for customized travel maps provided by AAA for its members.

52 Rajas topping : CREMA

“Rajas con crema” (“slices with cream”, in Spanish) is a dish from Mexican cuisine in which the main ingredients are sliced poblano peppers and cream.

55 First country to legalize same-sex marriage: Abbr. : NETH

In 2001, the Netherlands became the first nation to legalize same-sex marriage. Legalization was accomplished by passing a law in the country’s House of Representatives and Senate. In 2015, Ireland became the first nation in the world to legalize same-sex marriage by popular vote. A referendum was needed in order to amend the Irish constitution.

59 Jake and Amy’s baby, on “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” : MAC

“Brooklyn Nine-Nine” is a sitcom set in the 99th precinct of the NYPD in Brooklyn. Star of the show is “Saturday Night Live” alum Andy Samberg, who plays Detective Jake Peralta.

60 MLB scoreboard heading : RHE

On baseball scoreboards we see the letters RHE, standing for Runs, Hits and Errors.