LA Times Crossword 21 Apr 25, Monday

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Constructed by: Hannah Slovut-Einertson
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Adverbially Adjectival

Themed answers are rhyming phrases, and themed clues are each a pairing of the adjectival and adverbial form of the same word. Very elegant …

• 17A Haphazard, haphazardly : WILLY-NILLY
• 27A Casual, casually : LOOSEY-GOOSEY
• 44A Nonsensical, nonsensically : PHONY-BALONEY
• 57A Mushy, mushily : LOVEY-DOVEY

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

Bill’s time: 6m 04s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

10 Scrabble piece : TILE

The game of Scrabble has been produced in many international versions, and each of these editions has its own tile distribution to suit the local language. For example, in English we have two tiles worth ten points: one “Q” and one “Z”. If you play the game in French then there are five tiles worth ten points: one “K”, one “W”, one “X”, one “Y” and one “Z”.

16 Another name for the Roman god Cupid : AMOR

Cupid was the god of love in Roman mythology. Cupid’s name comes from the Latin verb “cupere” meaning “to desire”. Cupid’s Latin name was “Amor”, and his Greek counterpart was Eros.

17 Haphazard, haphazardly : WILLY-NILLY

The term “willy-nilly” is generally believed to stem from a contraction of “will I, nill I”, where “nill” is an archaic form of “will not”. So, “will I, nill I” essentially meant “whether I want to or not”, indicating a lack of control or a haphazard approach. Over time, the phrase condensed into “willy-nilly”, and evolved to describe actions or events that are random, unplanned, or disorderly.

Our word “hap” means chance or fortune. It turns up combined in words like “haphazard” and even “happen”. “To happen” originally meant “to occur by hap, by chance”.

19 Mascara smudger, maybe : TEAR

Variants of mascara have been around a long time, and certainly there was a similar substance in use in ancient Egypt. “Mascara” is a Spanish word meaning “stain, mask”.

20 “I Can’t Let Go” singer Sands : EVIE

Evie Sands is a singer from Brooklyn, New York. She is also a noted songwriter, having penned songs that have been recorded by the likes of Barbra Streisand, Gladys Knight, Karen Carpenter, Linda Ronstadt and Dusty Springfield.

“I Can’t Let Go” is a song recorded by several artists, perhaps most notably by Evie Sands, in 1965. The song also gained significant popularity in the UK with a 1966 version released by the Hollies. The most successful American recording was in 1980, by Linda Rondstat,

22 Olympians’ predecessors : TITANS

The Titans were a group of twelve older deities in Greek mythology, the twelve children of the primordial Gaia and Uranus, Mother Earth and Father Sky. In the celebrated Battle of the Titans, they were overthrown by the Olympians, who were twelve younger gods. We use the term “titan” figuratively to describe a powerful person, someone with great influence.

24 Far side of a zero-entry pool : DEEP END

Zero-entry pools, also known as beach-entry pools, are designed with a gradual, sloping entrance that mimics the natural shoreline of a beach. Instead of steps or ladders, the pool floor gently inclines from the deck or surrounding area into the water, creating a seamless transition.

26 B in chemistry class? : BORON

Here is a list of all the single-letter element symbols:

• B = boron
• C = carbon
• F = fluorine
• H = hydrogen
• I = Iodine
• K = potassium
• N = nitrogen
• O = oxygen
• P = phosphorus
• S = sulfur
• U = uranium
• V = vanadium
• W = tungsten
• Y = yttrium

27 Casual, casually : LOOSEY-GOOSEY

Something described as loosey-goosey is extremely relaxed, very loose.

31 Homo sapiens : HUMANS

The literal translation of “Homo sapiens” from Latin is “wise or knowing man”. The Homo genus includes the species Homo sapiens (modern humans), and we’re the only species left in that genus. The last known species related to humans was Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthal Man) that died off about 24,000 years ago. However, another species was discovered in Indonesia in 2003 that has been dubbed Homo floresiensis (Flores Man … sometimes called “hobbit”), and it may possibly have lived as recently as 12,000 years ago.

34 Earth orbiter : MOON

The Earth’s moon is the largest satellite in the Solar System, relative to the size of the planet it orbits. The Moon is believed to have formed after a huge collision between Gaia (the early Earth) and a planet-size object referred to as Theia.

35 Actress Thurman in a Fall Out Boy hit : UMA

“Uma Thurman” is a 2015 song released by the band Fall Out Boy that pays homage to the actress and her iconic film roles. Uma Thurman herself gave the band permission to use her name, adding a layer of authenticity to the tribute.

36 Bosun’s greeting : AHOY!

“Ahoy!” is a nautical term used to signal a vessel. When the telephone was invented by Alexander Graham Bell, he suggested that “ahoy” be used as a standard greeting when answering a call. However, Thomas Edison came up with “hello”, and we’ve been using that ever since.

A boatswain works on the deck of a boat. He or she is unlicensed, and so is not involved in the navigation or handling of the vessel, and instead is in charge of the other unlicensed workers on the deck. “Boatswain” is pronounced “bosun” and this phonetic spelling is often used interchangeably with “boatswain”. The contraction “bo’s’n” is also very popular.

38 Like an etiquette coach, perhaps : PRIM

Our word “etiquette”, meaning “prescribed behavior” comes from French. “Étiquette” developed in French from the older “estiquette” meaning “label, ticket”. It is suggested that this term came from the use of small cards or “tickets” that were printed with instructions defining the prescribed behavior at the French court.

39 Turn from yellow to brown, as a banana : ROT
47 Turn from green to yellow, as a banana : RIPEN

The banana is actually a berry, botanically speaking. And, bananas don’t really grow on trees. The “trunk” of the banana plant is in fact a pseudostem. The pseudostem is a false stem comprising rolled bases of leaves, and it can grow to 2 or 3 meters tall.

40 Springtime Hindu festival : HOLI

Holi is a Hindu festival, one celebrated in spring, that is also known as the Festival of Colours.

44 Nonsensical, nonsensically : PHONY-BALONEY

Something or someone described as phony (sometimes “phoney”) is not genuine or real. There is a suggestion that the term “phony” comes from “fawney”, which was a gold-plated brass ring used by swindlers in place of a one made of pure gold.

“Baloney” is an American English variant of “Bologna” as in the sausage. The term came to be used to mean “nonsense” in the 1920s. “Baloney” was popularized in the 1930s by New York Governor Alfred E. Smith as he used the term quite often.

54 DOJ branch : ATF

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) today is part of the Department of Justice (DOJ). The ATF has its roots in the Department of Treasury dating back to 1886 when it was known as the Bureau of Prohibition. “Explosives” was added to the ATF’s name when the bureau was moved under the Department of Justice (DOJ) as part of the reorganization called for in the Homeland Security Act of 2002.

55 Nonsharp part of a sword : HILT

The hilt of a weapon is its handle. One might push in the blade of a knife to the hilt, to the maximum degree.

65 Spotify Wrapped figures : STATS

Spotify Wrapped is a feature offered to Spotify users annually, early in December. It allows them to view their listening activity for the past ten months, showing the most-often listened to musicians, songs and genres.

Down

3 “Kate & __”: 1980s sitcom : ALLIE

The sitcom “Kate & Allie” ran from 1984 to 1989, starring Susan Saint James as Kate, and Jane Curtin as Allie. Jane Curtin won two Emmy awards for her work on the series, while Susan Saint James … did not.

4 Participate in a D&D campaign : ROLE-PLAY

Dungeons & Dragons (D&D, DnD) is a complex role-playing game (RPG) introduced in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules Incorporated (TSR). Dungeons & Dragons was probably the first of the modern role-playing games to be developed, and the most successful. It is still played by lots of people today, including my youngest son …

7 One of 18, in golf : HOLE

There’s an urban myth that the standard number of holes on a golf course is 18 because it takes 18 shots to polish off a fifth of scotch whisky. However, the truth is that the standard number of holes in the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland happened to settle down over time at 18, and that standard was adopted all around the world.

10 Permanent art : TATTOO

According to a 2019 survey, about 30% of Americans have at least one tattoo, and the tattoo industry is estimated to be worth over $1 billion in the United States alone. Me? Not into pain, so one of the 70% …

23 Nutrient in spinach : IRON

Heme (also “haem”) is an organic structure containing iron, and is a component of hemoglobin, the protein that transports primarily oxygen around the body. It is the “heme” in “hemoglobin” that binds the oxygen atoms. A plant-derived version of heme is the magic ingredient in the famous Impossible Burger that has become so popular on vegetarian menus.

26 “We’re not providing alcohol,” initially : BYOB

Bring Your Own Beer/Bottle/Booze (BYOB, and sometimes just “BYO”)

28 Slack alternative : EMAIL

Slack is a messaging app aimed at businesses. At its core, Slack is an instant messaging system. Slack also provides tools designed to increase collaboration within teams.

30 Orange root vegetables : YAMS

Although in the US we sometimes refer to sweet potatoes as “yams”, the yam is actually a completely different family of plants. True yams are more common in other parts of the world than they are in this country, and are especially common in Africa.

31 Logo on a pint of Guinness : HARP

Guinness trademarked its famous harp logo way back in 1862. The harp is also a symbol of Ireland. When Ireland became a Free State from the United Kingdom in 1922, the new Irish government had to come up with a different symbol so as not to infringe trademark laws. That’s why Ireland’s harp points in the opposite direction of Guinness’ harp. ‘Tis true, ‘tis true …

37 Custardy dessert : FLAN

Flan (also “crème caramel”) is a delicious dessert comprising a molded custard topped with a clear caramel sauce. The related crème brûlée is a dessert made from molded custard with a hard, burnt caramel layer on top.

41 Ohio college whose mascot is an albino squirrel : OBERLIN

Oberlin College was established way back in 1833 as Oberlin Collegiate Institute. It was named for J. F. Oberlin, a pastor from Alsace in France who also loaned his name to the Ohio city of Oberlin that grew up around the college. Oberlin was the first school in the US to permanently open its doors to women, doing so in 1837.

Albino squirrels are rare variants of common squirrel species, characterized by their white fur and pink eyes due to a genetic lack of melanin. This absence of pigment makes them stand out in their natural habitats and can make them more vulnerable to predators.

49 Wife of Augustus : LIVIA

Livia Drusilla (aka “Julia Augusta”) was the third wife of the Emperor Augustus, and a powerful woman in the Roman Empire. In the exceptional fictional work “I, Claudius” by Robert Graves, Livia doesn’t come across at all well. She is portrayed as quite the schemer, and very much the key individual who led to her grandson Claudius winning the imperial throne.

Gaius Octavius Thurinus (often called “Octavian”) was the adopted son of Gaius Julius Caesar. After Julius Caesar was assassinated, Octavian came to power in Rome and teamed up with Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus in what was called the Second Triumvirate. When the triumvirate fell apart, especially after Antony’s defeat at Actium, Octavian became more powerful within the Roman Republic. Several years later he wrested sufficient power from the Roman Senate to end the Republic and begin the Roman Empire. As the first Emperor of Rome, Octavian was given the name Caesar Augustus. The month of August, originally called “Sextilis” in Latin, was renamed in honor of Augustus.

51 Eye sores : STYES

A stye is a bacterial infection of the sebaceous glands at the base of the eyelashes, and is also known as a hordeolum.

58 Denominator of a whole number : ONE

In mathematics, the whole numbers are the natural, counting numbers (1, 2, 3, etc), with the important inclusion of the number zero. Zero is usually excluded from the list of “natural numbers”.

In a fraction, the number above the line is the numerator, and the number below the line is the denominator. A common numerator is the number one, as in ½, ¼, ⅓ etc.

59 FM radio hosts : DJS

In telecommunications, a radio signal is transmitted using a sinusoidal carrier wave. Information is transmitted using this carrier wave in two main ways, by varying (modulating) the instantaneous amplitude (signal strength) of the carrier wave, and by modulating the instantaneous frequency of the carrier wave. The former is referred to as an AM signal (“amplitude modulation”), and the latter as an FM signal (“frequency modulation”).