LA Times Crossword 29 Aug 24, Thursday

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Constructed by: Micah Sommersmith
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: May I Cut In?

Themed answers are common phrases with a letter “I” CUT IN:

• 64A Question on the dance floor, or an apt title for this puzzle : MAY I CUT IN?

• 17A Accumulation on neglected steps? : STAIR DUST (I in “stardust”)
• 24A Institute for invective? : TIRADE SCHOOL (I in “trade school”)
• 51A Shop selling more groanworthy gag gifts? : CORNIER STORE (I in “corner store”)

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

Bill’s time: 7m 08s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Carrie-Anne of “The Matrix” : MOSS

Carrie-Anne Moss is an actress from Canada who is perhaps best known for playing the character Trinity in “The Matrix” trilogy of films.

5 “An octopus has three hearts,” e.g. : FACT

An octopus has three hearts. Its main heart has the role of pumping oxygenated and deoxygenated blood around the body, as well as to a pair of smaller hearts located next to each of its two gills. The two smaller branchial hearts take deoxygenated blood and pump it across the gills, and back to the main heart.

13 Unit of length : INCH

An inch is 1/12 of a foot. The term “inch” comes from the Latin “uncia” meaning “twelfth”.

14 Superfood berry : ACAI

We hear the word “superfood” a lot these days. I think it’s important that we realize that our friends in marketing coined the term to promote foods that have supposed health benefits, even though there’s no obligation to prove those health benefits exist. Since 2007, the European Union (EU) has banned the use of the term “superfood” in marketing of foodstuffs unless there is credible scientific research to back up any health claim. Good for the EU …

20 Netflix’s “__ Kai” : COBRA

“Cobra Kai” is a TV show that premiered in 2018 as a sequel to “The Karate Kid” series of films, the first of which was released in 1984. Actor Ralph Macchio reprises his role from the movies, playing protagonist Daniel LaRusso. William Zabka also reprises his role from the big screen, playing Johnny Lawrence, LaRusso’s rival in karate competitions. The title of the show “Cobra Kai” is the name of the karate dojo in which Johnny Lawrence trained as a youth, and which he decides to reopen 34 years later.

21 Thing of the past : RELIC

A relic is something that has survived from the past, reminding us of that past. In the world of religion, a relic is an object revered due to its association with a saint or martyr.

23 Molecule in some vaccines : RNA

Traditional vaccines typically use weakened or inactivated viruses, or pieces of the virus, to stimulate an immune response. mRNA vaccines use a small piece of genetic material from the virus, called messenger RNA (mRNA), to instruct cells in the body to produce a harmless piece of the virus to trigger the immune response. mRNA vaccines are developed more quickly than traditional vaccines. This was demonstrated during the COVID-19 pandemic, where mRNA vaccines were developed and authorized for emergency use within months of the emergence of the novel coronavirus.

24 Institute for invective? : TIRADE SCHOOL (I in “trade school”)

The term “tirade” describes a long and vehement speech, and is a word that came into English from French. “Tirade” can have the same meaning in French, but is also the word for “volley”. So, a tirade is a “volley” of words.

Invective is abusive language.

27 Actress/activist Milano : ALYSSA

Alyssa Milano is an actress who started her career at a very young age. She played Samantha Micelli on “Who’s the Boss”, the daughter of the character played by Tony Danza.

32 Experts who may recommend rebooting a PC : IT PROS

The verb “to boot”, as used in the world of computers, comes from the phrase “pull oneself up by one’s bootstraps”. The idea is that the software that has to be loaded before a computer can do anything useful is called a “bootstrap load”.

39 “Pale Blue Dot” author Carl : SAGAN

“Pale Blue Dot” is a book about the cosmos by Carl Sagan. The title of the book is taken from the famous “Pale Blue Dot” photograph taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft from almost 4 million miles from the Earth. In the photo, our planet appears as a tiny “pale blue dot”. NASA had Voyager 1 take the photograph, at the request of Carl Sagan.

41 Georgia airport code : ATL

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) is the world’s busiest airport, as measured by passenger traffic. Atlanta has had that distinction since 1998, and was the world’s busiest in terms of take-offs and landings from 2005 until 2013. Over 50% of Atlanta’s traffic comes from Delta Air Lines.

43 Color-changing gem : OPAL

97% of the world’s opals come from Australia, so it’s no surprise perhaps that the opal is the national gemstone of the country. The state of South Australia provides the bulk of the world’s production, i.e. about 80%.

47 Paintballs, e.g. : AMMO

The “paint” in paintball isn’t actually paint, but rather a mix of gelatin and food coloring.

49 National Gallery of Canada locale : OTTAWA

The National Gallery of Canada is the nation’s national art museum. It was established in Ottawa way back in 1880, although its current home opened for visitors in 1988.

71 Star of Life wearers: Abbr. : EMTS

The Star of Life is a symbol used in many regions of the world to identify emergency medical services. The emblem was designed in 1963 by the American Medical Association (AMA). It comprises a blue, six-pointed star with a Rod of Asclepius in the middle. The six branches of the star are used to represent the six principal tasks executed by rescuers in an emergency:

1. Detection
2. Reporting
3. Response
4. On-scene care
5. Care in transit
6. Transfer to definitive care

Down

1 Catchall category, briefly : MISC

Out terms “miscellany” and “miscellaneous” ultimately come from the Latin verb “miscere” meaning “to mix”.

2 Glom __ : ONTO

“Glom” is a slang term meaning “steal”, although it can also be used to mean “latch onto” when used as “glom onto”. The term probably comes from the Scots word “glam” meaning “to snatch at”.

6 Luxury car brand : ACURA

Acura is a luxury vehicle brand produced by the Japanese automaker Honda. Acura was the first Japanese luxury car brand to be introduced to the US, in 1986. The Acura Legend and Acura Integra were the first two models released.

7 Scoped out : CASED

The phrase “to case the joint” is American slang meaning “to examine a location with the intent of robbing it”. The origins of the phrase are apparently unknown, although it dates back at least to 1915.

8 Cagney or Lacey : TITLE ROLE

“Cagney & Lacey” is a police drama that originally aired in the 1980s. The title characters are two NYPD detectives with very different lives off the force. Christine Cagney, portrayed for six seasons by Sharon Gless, is a career-focused single woman. Mary Beth Lacy, portrayed by Tyne Daly, is a working mother. As an aside, Sharon Gless ended up marrying one of the show’s producers in 1991.

9 Rough finish : STUCCO

Stucco is a decorative coating that is applied to walls and ceilings. “Stucco” is the Italian name for the material, and a word that we imported into English.

10 “The Masked Singer” panelist Jeong : KEN

Ken Jeong is an actor from Detroit who is perhaps best known for playing the gangster Leslie Chow in the “The Hangover” series of films. Jeong isn’t only an actor; he has an M.D. degree and is a licensed physician in California.

“The Masked Singer” is a reality TV show in which masked celebrities compete anonymously in a singing competition. Contestants reveal their identities when they are voted off the show by the audience and a panel of judges. The American version of the show is part of an international “Masked Singer” franchise that originated in South Korea.

12 Indigenous Caribbean language : TAINO

The Taíno were, or are, an indigenous people who inhabited many of the Caribbean islands when Europeans made first contact in the area in the late 1600s. There is some debate among anthropologists about whether or not the Taíno people are still around today, or died out after European conquest of the region.

18 Trail mix bit : RAISIN

“Raisin” is the French word for “grape”. The French for “raisin” is “raisin sec”, which translates literally as “dried grape”.

22 Egyptian fertility goddess : ISIS

Isis was the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility, as well as the protector of the dead and the goddess of children. She was the personification of the pharaoh’s power. The name “Isis” translates as “throne”, and she is usually depicted with a headdress shaped like a throne.

26 Code with tags : HTML

The initialism “HTML” stands for HyperText Markup Language. HTML is the language used to write most Internet web pages (including this one).

27 To boot : ALSO

The noun “boot” was once used to describe something of advantage in trying to accomplish a goal. This obsolete term really only exists in the adverb “to boot” meaning “in addition, over and above”, literally “to advantage”.

29 Meditative discipline : YOGA

In the West, we tend to think of yoga as just a physical discipline, a means of exercise that uses specific poses to stretch and strengthen muscles. While it is true that the ancient Indian practice of yoga does involve such physical discipline, the corporeal aspect of the practice plays a relatively small part in the whole philosophy. Other major components are meditation, ethical behavior, breathing and contemplation.

33 Long shots? : PANORAMAS

Panoramic paintings have existed for centuries, but the word “panorama” was coined around 1790 to describe an invention by the artist Robert Barker. He created an apparatus for exhibiting pictures on the inside of a cylindrical surface, allowing the viewer to stand in the middle with access to a 360-degree vista. The term comes from Greek “pan-” meaning “all” and “horama” meaning “sight, spectacle”.

36 “The Music Man” setting : IOWA

“The Music Man” is a musical by Meredith Willson. The show was a big hit on Broadway in 1957. “The Music Man” won the first ever Grammy Award for the “Best Original Cast Album”. The show is set in the fictional River City, Iowa.

38 Poet __ St. Vincent Millay : EDNA

Edna St. Vincent Millay was an American poet and playwright, and the third woman to receive the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry (in 1923 for “The Ballad of the Harp-Weaver”). Millay was noted not only for her work, but also for the open arrangement that she and her husband had in their marriage. Millay took many lovers, including the poet George Dillon for whom she wrote a number of sonnets.

40 Disney composer Menken : ALAN

Alan Menken is a composer from New York City who is best known for scores he produced for Disney movies. Menken won Oscars for the scores for “The Little Mermaid”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Aladdin” and “Pocahontas”.

44 “Peter Pan” pirate : SMEE

In J. M. Barrie’s play and novel about Peter Pan, Smee is one of Captain Hook’s pirates and is Hook’s bosun and right-hand man. Smee is described by Barrie as being “Irish” and “a man who stabbed without offence”. Nice guy! Captain Hook and Smee sail on a pirate ship called the Jolly Roger.

45 San Diego tourist attraction : ZOO

The world-famous San Diego Zoo opened its doors to visitors for the first time in 1916. It was founded in the Balboa Park area of the city, on the site of the Panama-California Exposition that was held the prior year. The zoo was needed to care for the abandoned exotic animal exhibits from the exposition.

48 Sienna of “Horizon: An American Saga” : MILLER

I mainly know actress Sienna Miller from playing the title character, Tippi Hedron, in the excellent TV film “The Girl” alongside Toby Jones as Alfred Hitchcock. Miller is based in the UK, although was born in New York City.

50 Length of service : TENURE

A job in a university that is described as “tenure-track” is one that can lead to a tenured position. A tenured position is a “job for life”. A person with tenure can only be dismissed for cause.

51 Home of Buena Vista Social Club : CUBA

The Buenavista Social Club was a private member’s nightclub in Havana that was active in the 1940s. Back then, clubs in Cuba were segregated into white societies and black societies. The Buenavista Social Club was a black society, frequented by Afro-Cubans. The club was shut down shortly after the Cuban Revolution of 1959.

55 Oregano kin : THYME

In Britain and Ireland, thyme is listed as one of the four essential herbs. And those would be “parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme”.

Oregano is a perennial herb that is in the mint family. Also known as wild marjoram, oregano is very much associated with the cuisine of southern Italy. Oregano’s popularity surged in the US when soldiers returning from WWII in Europe brought with them an affinity for what they called “the pizza herb”.

61 Terro trap targets : ANTS

Terro is a brand of pesticides and traps.