LA Times Crossword 27 Dec 24, Friday

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Constructed by: Gary Larson & Amy Ensz
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): … Obviously

Themed answers all start with a synonym of “OBVIOUSLY”:

  • 15A Casino employee, obviously? : PLAIN DEALER
  • 23A Natural pillow stuffing, obviously? : MARKED DOWN
  • 34A Actor Jude’s offspring, obviously? : PATENT LAW
  • 48A Honorific, obviously? : CLEAR TITLE
  • 58A Convenient excuse, obviously? : STRIKING OUT

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

Bill’s time: 8m 04s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Made-up band : KISS

KISS is a hard rock band from New York City. They are the group whose band members use all that scary face paint and wear wacky outfits on stage.

12 Native of Pre-Columbian Peru : INCA

The Inca Empire was known as the Tawantinsuyu, which translates as “land of the four quarters”. It was a federal organization with a central government that sat above four “suyu” or “quarters”, four administrative regions.

14 T. follower : REX

The Tyrannosaurus rex (usually written “T-rex”) was a spectacular looking dinosaur. “Tyrannosaurus” comes from the Greek words “tyrannos” (tyrant) and “sauros” (lizard) and “rex” the Latin for “king”. They were big beasts, measuring 42 feet long and 13 feet tall at the hips, and weighing 7.5 tons.

17 Red block in Minecraft : TNT

Minecraft is a video game that was released in 2011. It is the most popular video game of all time, with well over 200 million units sold.

18 Retinol Correxion skin care brand : ROC

RoC is a manufacturer of skincare products that was founded by a Parisian pharmacist in 1957.

20 Manitoba people : CREE

Manitoba is the Canadian province that borders the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota. Even though Manitoba has an area of over 250,000 square miles, 60% of its population resides in the province’s capital city of Winnipeg.

23 Natural pillow stuffing, obviously? : MARKED DOWN

Down feathers are the very fine feathers found under the tougher exterior feathers of a bird. There is fossil evidence that some non-avian dinosaurs had down-like feathers.

28 Rejected : VETOED

The verb “veto” comes directly from Latin and means “I forbid”. The term was used by tribunes of ancient Rome to indicate that they opposed measures passed by the Senate.

29 Pirouetting, perhaps : ON TOE

We took our word “pirouette” directly from French, in which language it has the same meaning, i.e. a rotation in dancing. “Pirouette” is also the French word for “spinning top”.

34 Actor Jude’s offspring, obviously? : PATENT LAW

Jude Law is a wonderful English actor, and a big name in Hollywood these days. He makes a great romantic lead, witness his performance in 2006’s “The Holiday” in which he starred opposite Cameron Diaz. He and Diaz were nominated by MTV for the best onscreen kiss that year!

41 “Up in Smoke” co-star : CHONG

Cheech & Chong’s very first feature-length movie was 1978’s “Up in Smoke”. The film is usually regarded as the first in the “stoner comedy” genre of movie.

45 New Jersey city : CAMDEN

Camden, New Jersey is a suburb of Philadelphia that is located on the opposite side of the Delaware river from the center of Philly.

47 Black eye : SHINER

A shiner is something that shines. The term “shiner” has been used to mean “black eye” since 1904.

52 Cacio e __ pasta : PEPE

Cacio e pepe is a pasta dish that originated in Rome. The dish’s name can be translated from Italian dialects as “cheese and pepper”. The recipe is quite simple, comprising grated Pecorino Romano cheese, black pepper and spaghetti.

62 Filch : SWIPE

“Filch” is a slang word meaning “steal”. One suggestion is that the term derives from the German “filzen” meaning “comb through”.

64 Leb. neighbor : SYR

The Levant is the geographic region that lies east of the Mediterranean, covering modern-day Turkey, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Egypt. The term is sometimes also used synonymously with the Near East. Syria and Lebanon, when under French rule, were called the Levant States, a name still used at times for the two nations. As one might expect, the word Levant comes from French and was the Middle French word for “the Orient”. The term was used for the Orient as it described lands to the east, where the sun rises (from “lever”, the French word meaning “to rise”). Really, quite interesting …

65 Schnoz : NOSE

“Schnoz(z)” is a slang term describing a nose, particularly a large one.

Down

6 “Bohemian Rhapsody” Best Actor Oscar winner : MALEK

Actor Rami Malek’s big break came with the leading role in the television series “Mr. Robot”. In 2018, Malik gave an Oscar-winning performance playing Freddie Mercury in the hit biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody”. That marked the first time that an actor of Egyptian descent won an Academy Award for Best Actor.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” is an outstanding 2018 film about the life of Freddie Mercury, lead singer with the British rock band Queen. Rami Malek portrayed Mercury, in an Oscar-winning performance. The original choice to play Mercury was Sacha Baron Cohen, the title character in the “Borat” mockumentary films.

7 Lode load : ORE

A lode is a metal ore deposit that’s found between two layers of rock or in a fissure. The mother lode is the principal deposit in a mine, usually of gold or silver. “Mother lode” is probably a translation of “veta madre”, an expression used in mining in Mexico.

8 Neighbor of Aus. : GER

The country that we know in English as “Germany” is known as “Deutschland” in German. The name “Germany” comes from “Germania”, which is the Latin name that Julius Caesar gave to the peoples located east of the Rhine. The name “Deutschland” comes from an Old High German word meaning “land belonging to the people”.

The name “Austria” is a Latin variant of the German name for the country, “Österreich”. “Österreich” itself means “Eastern borderlands”, a reference to the country’s history as a prefecture of neighboring Bavaria to the west.

13 “Buona __” : SERA

“Buona sera” is Italian for “good evening”.

15 Barilla rival : PREGO

The Prego brand of pasta sauce is owned by the Campbell Soup Company. It is actually based on the family recipe of one of the company’s chefs. “Prego” literally means “I pray” in Italian, but it translates best in English as “you’re welcome” when it is used after a “thank you” (“grazie”, in Italian).

Barilla is a supplier of Italian foods that is headquartered in Parma, Italy. It was founded as a bakery shop in Parma back in 1877, and now supplies almost 50% of the pasta sold in Italy, and about 15% of pasta sold in the US.

16 Expo presentation : DEMO

The first World’s Fair was held in 1851, known back then as the Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations. The fair was the idea of Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria. It was held in a magnificent glass and cast-iron structure called the Crystal Palace that was purpose-built for the occasion. The Great Exhibition spawned a tradition of what became known as World’s Fairs, expositions that feature national pavilions created by participating countries. The term “Expo” was coined for Expo 67, a 1967 World’s Fair held in Montreal. Since then, we’ve been using “expo” to describe any large exposition or trade show.

38 Home of the Stampede : CALGARY

The Calgary Stampeders are the CFL franchise based in Calgary, Alberta. The town was founded in 1945, and named for the annual rodeo and festival held in the city.

39 Place of refinement? : SMELTER

Metals are found in ore in the form of oxides. In order to get pure metal from the ore, the ore is heated and the metal oxides within are reduced (i.e. the oxygen is removed) in the chemical process known as smelting. The oxygen is extracted by adding a source of carbon or carbon monoxide which uses up the excess oxygen atoms to make carbon dioxide, a waste product of smelting (and, a greenhouse gas).

43 Planet with the Great Dark Spot : NEPTUNE

Neptune is the farthest planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The existence of Neptune was predicted as early as the 1820s by mathematics based on observations of the orbit of Uranus. The planet was actually first observed in 1846.

49 Actor Elba : IDRIS

Idris Elba is a British actor and DJ. He was born in London to a Sierra Leonean father and a Ghanaian mother. Elba’s breakthrough role came in 2002, when he was cast as Stringer Bell in the HBO series “The Wire”.

50 Drivel : TRIPE

“Tripe” is an informal term meaning “rubbish, of little value”. Tripe is actually the rubbery stomach lining of an animal such as a cow. It is also a traditional dish in British cuisine, prepared by poaching it with onions in milk.

55 Celebrity chef Burrell : ANNE

Anne Burrell is co-host of the show “Worst Cooks in America” that airs on the Food Network. Here’s a Burrell quote:

I always use my “Holy Trinity” which is salt, olive oil and bacon. My motto is, ‘”bacon always makes it better”. I try to use bacon and pork products whenever it can.

60 Indian state whose capital is Panaji : GOA

Goa is the smallest state in India, and is located in the southwest of the country. The Portuguese landed in Goa in the early 1500s, at first peacefully carrying out trade, but then took the area by force creating Portuguese India. Portugal held onto Portuguese India even after the British pulled out of India in 1947, until the Indian Army marched into the area in 1961.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Made-up band : KISS
5 EPA concern : SMOG
9 “Rules __ rules” : ARE
12 Native of Pre-Columbian Peru : INCA
13 Gaze : STARE
14 T. follower : REX
15 Casino employee, obviously? : PLAIN DEALER
17 Red block in Minecraft : TNT
18 Retinol Correxion skin care brand : ROC
19 Hair-raising : EERIE
20 Manitoba people : CREE
21 “Plus some other folks” abbr. : ET AL
23 Natural pillow stuffing, obviously? : MARKED DOWN
26 Leave the band, perhaps : GO SOLO
28 Rejected : VETOED
29 Pirouetting, perhaps : ON TOE
30 Call on : VISIT
33 Physicians, briefly : MDS
34 Actor Jude’s offspring, obviously? : PATENT LAW
37 Coolers, briefly : ACS
40 A mile a minute : SIXTY
41 “Up in Smoke” co-star : CHONG
45 New Jersey city : CAMDEN
47 Black eye : SHINER
48 Honorific, obviously? : CLEAR TITLE
52 Cacio e __ pasta : PEPE
53 Not pretty : UGLY
54 Plays : DRAMA
56 GPS display : RTE
57 Was on the bottom? : SAT
58 Convenient excuse, obviously? : STRIKING OUT
61 Before, before : ERE
62 Filch : SWIPE
63 Nature or nurture : NOUN
64 Leb. neighbor : SYR
65 Schnoz : NOSE
66 Ill at __ : EASE

Down

1 Unit of explosive force : KILOTON
2 Plastered? : IN A CAST
3 __-fi : SCI
4 Sensible : SANE
5 Step : STAIR
6 “Bohemian Rhapsody” Best Actor Oscar winner : MALEK
7 Lode load : ORE
8 Neighbor of Aus. : GER
9 Creative venue : ART ROOM
10 Like some library books or contracts : RENEWED
11 Stretches out : EXTENDS
13 “Buona __” : SERA
15 Barilla rival : PREGO
16 Expo presentation : DEMO
20 Chi. summer setting : CDT
22 Aerial maneuver : LOOP
24 Malicious : EVIL
25 Rip off : DETACH
27 Landlord : LEASER
30 Bother : VEX
31 Abbr. on a bank statement : INT
32 Mud hole : STY
35 Shade : TINT
36 Blender setting : WHIP
37 Charges : ACCUSES
38 Home of the Stampede : CALGARY
39 Place of refinement? : SMELTER
42 Burdensome : ONEROUS
43 Planet with the Great Dark Spot : NEPTUNE
44 Welcome : GREET
46 Same-__ delivery : DAY
47 Formal introduction? : SEMI-
49 Actor Elba : IDRIS
50 Drivel : TRIPE
51 Camp sight : LAKE
55 Celebrity chef Burrell : ANNE
58 Digits from the government : SSN
59 Wee hour : TWO
60 Indian state whose capital is Panaji : GOA