LA Times Crossword 13 Jan 25, Monday

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Constructed by: Robbie Cottom
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: League Leaders

Themed answers all LEAD with a kind of LEAGUE:

  • 39A Many championship-bound teams, or what the starts of 17-, 20-, 58-, and 64-Across are : LEAGUE LEADERS
  • 17A Musical interval that spans four semitones : MAJOR THIRD (Major League)
  • 20A One of two Supreme Court members appointed by 5-Across : JUSTICE KAGAN (Justice League)
  • 58A Relatively cool period of European history? : LITTLE ICE AGE (Little League)
  • 64A Drag performer who won Miss Congeniality on Season 5 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” : IVY WINTERS (Ivy League)

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

Bill’s time: 5m 09s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Overconfident racer of fable : HARE

“The Tortoise and the Hare” is perhaps the most famous fable attributed to Aesop. The cocky hare takes a nap during a race against the tortoise, and the tortoise sneaks past the finish line for the win while his speedier friend is sleeping.

5 Barack who was the 44th U.S. president : OBAMA

President Obama’s first name Barack is Swahili with roots in an old Arabic word meaning “blessed”. Barack was the President’s father’s name. President Obama’s middle name is Hussein, an Arabic word meaning “good” or “handsome one”. Hussein was the name of the President’s grandfather on the paternal side. His surname, Obama, doesn’t really have a translation, but is common among the Luo tribe of Kenya.

16 “Video Games” singer Del Rey : LANA

“Video Games” is a 2011 song recorded by Lana Del Rey that served as her debut single. According to Del Rey, the title refers to the “World of Warcraft” video game.

20 One of two Supreme Court members appointed by 5-Across : JUSTICE KAGAN (Justice League)
[5A Barack who was the 44th U.S. president : OBAMA]

Elena Kagan was the Solicitor General of the United States from 2009 until 2010, when she replaced Justice John Paul Stevens on the US Supreme Court. That made Justice Kagan the first female US Solicitor General and the fourth female US Supreme Court justice. Kagan also served as the first female dean of Harvard Law School from 2003 to 2009.

The Justice League is a team of superheroes in the DC Comics universe. The team first appeared in 1960, as the Justice League of America. Membership of the league changed over the years, but the original lineup was:

  • Aquaman
  • Batman
  • The Flash
  • Green Lantern
  • Martian Manhunter
  • Superman
  • Wonder Woman

27 Actress Longoria : EVA

Eva Longoria is a fashion model and actress who had a regular role on TV’s “Desperate Housewives”, playing Gabrielle Solis. Her travel and food show “Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico” premiered on CNN in 2023.

28 Meeting, informally : SESH

Session (abbreviated to “sess.” formally, and “sesh” informally)

34 Acorn producers : OAKS

These days, we don’t usually consider acorns (the fruit of the oak tree) as a foodstuff. But in days past, many cultures around the world have used acorns as food. Usually, bitter tannins that occur in acorns need to be leached out in water. Acorn meal can be a substitute for grain flour, which can then be used to make bread. Acorns have also been used as a substitute for coffee, especially when coffee was rationed. Notably, acorn coffee was brewed up by Confederates during the American Civil War, and by Germans during World War II.

36 Stags and does : DEER

A male deer is usually called a buck, and a female is a doe. However, the male red deer is usually referred to as a stag. The males of even larger species of deer are often called bulls, and the females called cows. In older English, male deer of over 5 years were called harts, and females of over 3 years were called hinds. The young of small species are known as fawns, and of larger species are called calves. All very confusing …

38 Gp. for physicians : AMA

American Medical Association (AMA)

47 Strangers, slangily : RANDOS

“Rando” is a slang term describing a “random person”. It tends not to be used flatteringly.

53 Music producer Brian : ENO

Brian Eno is a musician, composer and record producer from England who first achieved fame as the synthesizer player with Roxy Music. As a producer, Eno has worked with David Bowie, Devo, Talking Heads and U2.

58 Relatively cool period of European history? : LITTLE ICE AGE (Little League)

The Little Ice Age was a period of cooler temperatures that spanned roughly from the 14th to the 19th century. While not a true ice age, it brought colder winters and shorter growing seasons to many parts of the world, particularly Europe and North America. The term “Little Ice Age” was introduced by geologist François E. Matthes in 1939. The exact causes of the Little Ice Age are still debated, but likely included factors like volcanic eruptions, decreased solar activity, and changes in ocean currents.

Little League Baseball was founded in 1939 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania by Carl Stotz. Back then, Little League was limited to boys. Participation was opened up to girls in 1974, although it took a lawsuit by the National Organization for Women for that to happen.

63 Kuwaiti ruler : EMIR

The State of Kuwait sits at the northern tip of the Persian Gulf, sharing a border to the north with Iraq. After WWI, Kuwait was a Protectorate within the British Empire and then gained independence from the UK in 1961. Iraq annexed Kuwait in 1990, which led to the Gulf War of 1990-1991.

64 Drag performer who won Miss Congeniality on Season 5 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” : IVY WINTERS (Ivy League)

Ivy Winters, whose real name is Dustin Winters, is an American drag performer, singer, and actor, best known for her appearance on the fifth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race. While she didn’t win the competition, she was named that season’s Miss Congeniality title.

The term “Ivy League” originally defined an athletic conference, but now it is used to describe a group of schools of higher education that are associated with both a long tradition and academic excellence. The eight Ivy League Schools are: Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, the University of Pennsylvania, and Yale.

68 Tuesday treat : TACO

Taco Tuesday is a promotion run by many American restaurants, especially in Southern California. Participating establishments offer deals on tacos, and perhaps other Mexican dishes served in tortillas. Apparently, “Taco Tuesday” is a trademark owned by Wyoming-based fast-food restaurant Taco John’s.

73 Like Cheerios : OATY

Cheerios breakfast cereal has the distinction of being the first oat-based cereal introduced into the market, hitting the grocery store shelves in 1941. Back then, Cheerios were known as CheeriOats.

Down

2 Roadside aid org. : AAA

The American Automobile Association (AAA) is a not-for-profit organization focused on lobbying, provision of automobile servicing, and selling of automobile insurance. The AAA was founded in 1902 in Chicago and published the first of its celebrated hotel guides back in 1917.

3 Koothrappali on “The Big Bang Theory” : 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 Thai currency : BAHT

The baht is the currency of Thailand. One baht is subdivided into 100 satang.

7 Et __: and others : ALII

“Et alii” (et al.) is the equivalent of “et cetera” (etc.), with “et cetera” being used in place of a list of objects, and “et alii” used for a list of names. In fact, “et al.” can stand for “et alii” (a group of males, or males and females), “et aliae” (a group of women) and “et alia” (a group of neuter nouns, or a group of people where the intent is to retain gender-neutrality).

10 Opposite of baja : ALTA

In Spanish, “baja” is “low” and “alta” is “high”.

13 Swaying hip-hop dance : NAE NAE

The Nae Nae is a hip hop dance that is named for the 2013 song “Drop that NaeNae” recorded by We Are Toon. The main move in the dance involves swaying with one hand in the air and one hand down, with both feet firmly planted on the dancefloor. Go on, do it. You know you want to …

22 Cable’s Nat __ Wild : GEO

The National Geographic Channel (Nat Geo) is jointly owned by Fox and the National Geographic Society, and was launched in 2001. Nat Geo has a sister channel known as National Geographic Wild (Nat Geo Wild) that focuses on programming about wildlife.

33 Marvel Comics mutants : X-MEN

In the Marvel Comics universe, mutants are beings with an X-gene. Such mutants are humans who naturally develop superhuman powers. The most celebrated of these mutants are known as the X-Men.

40 Dave of the Foo Fighters : GROHL

Drummer Dave Grohl is perhaps best known as the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters. Prior to his time with the band, he was the drummer with Scream, and then with Nirvana. Grohl has made some money over the years, and at one point was listed as the world’s third richest drummer, after Ringo Starr and Phil Collins.

42 Poultry herb : SAGE

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

47 Puts on Airbnb again : RELETS

Airbnb is a website-based service that matches people wanting to rent out short-term living quarters to people seeking accommodation. The company was founded in 2008 as AirBed & Breakfast. The original concept was renting out an “air bed” and providing “breakfast” to someone looking for cheap, temporary accommodation. That’s right; the “Air” in “Airbnb” has nothing to do with “air” travel …

61 Actor McGregor : EWAN

Ewan McGregor is a very talented Scottish actor, one who got his break in the 1996 film “Trainspotting”. McGregor’s first big Hollywood role was playing the young Obi-Wan-Kenobi in the “Star Wars” prequels. Less known is his televised marathon motorcycle journey from London to New York via central Europe, Ukraine, Siberia, Mongolia and Canada. The 2004 trip was shown as “Long Way Round” on TV. McGregor did a similar trip in 2007 called “Long Way Down”, which took him and the same traveling companion from the north of Scotland to Cape Town in South Africa.

65 Clean water org. : EPA

The main legislation governing water pollution in the US is the Clean Water Act (CWA), which became law in 1972.

66 Tattletale : RAT

Something described as tattletale is revealing, it gives away a secret. The term is a combination of “tattle” and “tale”, and is probably patterned on the similar word “telltale”. “To tattle” means “to tell secrets”, and the noun “tattletale” applies to someone who tells secrets and informs.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Overconfident racer of fable : HARE
5 Barack who was the 44th U.S. president : OBAMA
10 Shedloads : A TON
14 “My good lady” : MA’AM
15 More peaked : PALER
16 “Video Games” singer Del Rey : LANA
17 Musical interval that spans four semitones : MAJOR THIRD (Major League)
19 Family chart : TREE
20 One of two Supreme Court members appointed by 5-Across : JUSTICE KAGAN (Justice League)
22 “Now I’m with you” : GOT IT
25 Overnight stop : INN
26 Historical period : ERA
27 Actress Longoria : EVA
28 Meeting, informally : SESH
32 Smartphone user’s “Keep in touch” : TEXT ME
34 Acorn producers : OAKS
36 Stags and does : DEER
38 Gp. for physicians : AMA
39 Many championship-bound teams, or what the starts of 17-, 20-, 58-, and 64-Across are : LEAGUE LEADERS
43 “My good man” : SIR
44 Scheme : PLAN
45 “Sweet!” : NEAT!
47 Strangers, slangily : RANDOS
50 __ and ends : ODDS
52 In the past : AGO
53 Music producer Brian : ENO
54 Feminine pronoun : HER
56 “All good, thanks” : I’M SET
58 Relatively cool period of European history? : LITTLE ICE AGE (Little League)
63 Kuwaiti ruler : EMIR
64 Drag performer who won Miss Congeniality on Season 5 of “RuPaul’s Drag Race” : IVY WINTERS (Ivy League)
68 Tuesday treat : TACO
69 Birth-related : NATAL
70 Milky white gem : OPAL
71 Snow coaster : SLED
72 Narrow valleys : GLENS
73 Like Cheerios : OATY

Down

1 “Let me see … ” : HMM …
2 Roadside aid org. : AAA
3 Koothrappali on “The Big Bang Theory” : RAJ
4 Symbol such as Exploding Head : EMOJI
5 Goes (for) : OPTS
6 Thai currency : BAHT
7 Et __: and others : ALII
8 French “Thank you” : MERCI
9 Passionate : ARDENT
10 Opposite of baja : ALTA
11 Focus of some campaigns : TARGET AREAS
12 Like difficult pushups : ONE-ARM
13 Swaying hip-hop dance : NAE NAE
18 Dull routines : RUTS
21 Work, as dough : KNEAD
22 Cable’s Nat __ Wild : GEO
23 Not quite round : OVAL
24 Pays attention : TAKES NOTICE
29 End of a dean’s email address : EDU
30 Ooze : SEEP
31 “Mornin’!,” in the morning : HELLO!
33 Marvel Comics mutants : X-MEN
35 Spoken : SAID
37 Crack a book : READ
40 Dave of the Foo Fighters : GROHL
41 Furthermore : AND
42 Poultry herb : SAGE
46 Tater bite : TOT
47 Puts on Airbnb again : RELETS
48 Neither vegetable nor mineral : ANIMAL
49 Dating : SEEING
51 Talk, as with a deaf person : SIGN
55 Challenger : RIVAL
57 “Ditto” : ME TOO
59 Walked (on) : TROD
60 Suffix meaning “cell” : -CYTE
61 Actor McGregor : EWAN
62 Feels sick : AILS
65 Clean water org. : EPA
66 Tattletale : RAT
67 Sneaky : SLY