LA Times Crossword 26 Apr 25, Saturday

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Constructed by: Marshal Herrmann
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 24m 40s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

15 Green energy source? : MATCHA TEA

Matcha is a powder made by grinding dried, green tea leaves. The selected tea bushes are heavily shaded for several weeks prior to harvest, which stimulates the production of chlorophyll resulting in darker green leaves. Matcha is used in East Asian cuisines to prepare tea for drinking, and also as an ingredient in dishes such as ice cream, cakes and sushi rolls.

16 Colorful discovery on some Egyptian mummies : HENNA

Henna has been used for centuries as a dye, for leather and wool as well as hair and skin. In modern days, henna is often used for temporary tattoos.

We use the word “mummy” for a dead body that has been embalmed in preparation for burial, especially if done so by the ancient Egyptians. The term “mummy” comes from the Persian word “mumiyah” meaning “embalmed body”.

17 Some bespoke accessories : STATEMENT PIECES

The adjective “bespoke”, meaning “custom-made”, has for centuries been mainly used with reference to tailoring, as in a “bespoke” suit.

19 Sound from a La-Z-Boy, perhaps : SNORE

La-Z-Boy is a furniture manufacturer based in Monroe, Michigan. Although the company makes furniture for every room in the house, it is famous for its recliner chairs found in family rooms all over the country.

20 Authority figures? : TOP DOGS

The most dominant person in a situation is the “top dog”. The person likely to be beaten is the “underdog”.

21 Beats by __ : DRE

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

24 Ergo : THUS

“Ergo” is a Latin word meaning “hence, therefore”, and one that we absorbed directly into English.

26 Patron saint of lost causes : JUDE

Saint Jude was one of the twelve apostles, and one who went by the name Thaddeus. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Jude is the patron saint of lost causes and desperate cases.

27 Diner fare : HASH

Hash, beef and vegetables mashed together, is a very American dish and one that really surprised me when I first came across it. “Hash” just seems like such an unappetizing item, but I soon found out how delicious it was. The name “hash” in this context comes from the French “hacher” meaning “to chop”. Back in the early 1900s the dish called “hashed browned potatoes” was developed, which quickly morphed into “hash browns”. From there the likes of corned beef hash was introduced.

29 Alley-__ : OOP

An alley-oop is a play in basketball in which one player lobs the ball close to the basket for a teammate who usually scores with a slam dunk.

31 Twisted part of an Impala? : GAS CAP

The Chevrolet Impala was introduced in 1957. “Impala” is the Zulu word for “gazelle”.

35 Lap top covers : NAPKINS

Our word “napkin” dates back to the 1300s, when it had the same meaning as today. The term comes from the old French word “nape” meaning “tablecloth” and the Middle English suffix “-kin” meaning “little”. So, a napkin is a little tablecloth.

36 Curling devices : BROOMS

I think curling is such a cool (pun!) game. It’s somewhat like bowls, but played on a sheet of ice. The sport was supposedly invented in medieval Scotland, and is called curling because of the action of the granite stone as it moves across the ice. A player can make the stone take a curved path (“curl”) by causing it to slowly rotate as it slides.

39 Legislative body reestablished after the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis : DUMA

A duma is a representative assembly in Russia. The related Russian word “dumat” means “to think, consider”.

45 Craft that may utilize old phonograph records : SPIN ART

Spin art is a creative process that involves dripping paint onto a spinning surface, typically a piece of paper or cardboard, to create abstract and colorful designs. The centrifugal force generated by the spinning motion causes the paint to spread and blend in relatively unpredictable patterns. Often, repurposed materials like old vinyl records are used as the spinning surface.

47 Elitists : SNOBS

Back in the 1780s, a snob was a shoemaker or a shoemaker’s apprentice. By the end of the 18th century the word “snob” was being used by students at Cambridge University in England to refer to all local merchants and people of the town. The term evolved to mean one who copies those who are his or her social superior (and not in a good way). From there it wasn’t a big leap for “snob” to include anyone who emphasized their superior social standing and not just those who aspired to rank. Nowadays a snob is anyone who looks down on those considered to be of inferior standing.

49 Blissful stretch before reality sets in : HONEYMOON PERIOD

The concept of a honeymoon vacation only started in the early 1800s. In Britain, wealthy couples would take a “bridal tour” together after the wedding, visiting those friends and relatives who could not attend the ceremony. The etymology of “honeymoon” isn’t very clear, and may even have a negative derivation as it might suggest that the sweetness (honey) of love is doomed to wane like a passing phase of the moon. The equivalent terms in other languages are “moon of honey” (French), “honey month” (Welsh) and “tinsel week” (German).

53 Genre for composer Terence Blanchard : OPERA

Terence Blanchard is a trumpeter and composer. He is a frequent collaborator with movie director Spike Lee, for whom he writes film scores. When New York’s Metropolitan Opera staged his opera “Fire Shut Up in My Bones”, Blanchard became the first African-American composer to have a work performed by the company.

55 South Asian crepes : DOSAS

A dosa is a thin, savory pancake from South Indian cuisine. Dosas are made using a fermented batter consisting of ground black lentils and rice. They are usually served hot, and often with chutney and sambar, a lentil-based vegetable stew.

Down

1 Slack lines, for short? : IMS

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.

5 Hite whose major work is subtitled “A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality” : SHERE

Shere Hite is a German sex educator, although she was born in the US. She married German concert pianist Friedrich Höricke in 1985 and renounced her US citizenship in favor of German nationality in the mid-nineties. Hite’s work focuses on sexual experience and what meaning it holds for an individual.

8 Driver role : REN

Adam Driver is an actor perhaps best known to TV audiences for playing Adam Sackler on the show “Girls” that airs on HBO. Driver’s movie career got a huge boost in 2015 when he played villain Kylo Ren in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”.

13 Rare blood type, for short : B-NEG

Here is an approximate distribution of blood types across the US population:

• O-positive: 38 percent
• O-negative: 7 percent
• A-positive: 34 percent
• A-negative: 6 percent
• B-positive: 9 percent
• B-negative: 2 percent
• AB-positive: 3 percent
• AB-negative: 1 percent

23 “Beats me,” in a text : IDK

I don’t know (IDK)

24 The Taj Mahal, for one : TOMB

The most famous mausoleum in the world has to be the Taj Mahal in Agra, India. It was built after the death of the fourth wife of Shah Jahan, Mumtaz Mahal (hence the name of the mausoleum). The poor woman died in childbirth delivering the couple’s 14th child. When Shah Jahan himself passed away 35 years later, he was buried beside his wife Mumtaz, in the Taj Mahal.

28 Youngest recipient of AFI’s Life Achievement Award : HANKS

The American Film Institute (AFI) introduced its annual Life Achievement Award in 1973. Notable recipients have been:

• John Ford in 1973: the first recipient
• Bette Davis in 1977: the first female recipient
• Lillian Gish in 1984: the only recipient from the silent film era
• Tom Hanks in 2002: the youngest recipient, at 45 years of age
• John Williams in 2016: the first composer to receive the award

30 High points of a trip to Asia : HIMALAYAS

The magnificent Himalaya range of mountains in Asia takes its name from the Sanskrit for “abode of snow”. Geographically, the Himalaya separates the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau to the north.

32 Sibilant summons : PSST!

“Sibilant” is a lovely word that describes a sound of speech, i.e. the sound of an “s” or “z”, a hissing sound. The word “sissies”, for example, has three sibilant sounds.

34 When I was one? : ROMAN ERA

In Roman numerals, the first ten integers are I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X.

40 Like Taylor Swift for most of 2023 and 2024 : ON TOUR

The Eras Tour by singer-songwriter Taylor Swift began on Saint Patrick’s Day 2023. Having not toured for her studio albums “Lover”, “Folklore”, and “Evermore” due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Swift pulled together the Eras Tour in support of all of her albums.

41 Liftoff sensation : G-FORCE

The force of gravity (g-force) that we all feel is referred to as “one G”. As gravity is an accelerating force, acceleration is measured relative to that force of gravity. So, if we are sitting in a vehicle that accelerates at 3G, then we are experiencing a force that is three times that which we feel from the gravitational pull of the earth. Zero G is weightlessness that is experienced when in space, and outside the influence of the earth’s gravity.

46 Five-O : PO-PO

“Po-po” is a slang term meaning “police”.

“Five-O” has become urban slang for a police officer, or the police force in general. The term is rooted in the 1970s TV Show “Hawaii Five-O”. Hawaii Five-O was a totally fictional police force created for the television show. The name recognizes that Hawaii was the 50th state to join the union. Steve McGarrett in the original show was played by Jack Lord, and “Danno” Williams was played by James MacArthur.

50 “Imagine” co-producer : ONO

John Lennon’s magnus opus is his song “Imagine”, released in 1971. “Imagine” was quite successful at the time of its release, but sadly, it only became a number one hit after Lennon was murdered in 1980. According to Lennon, the message behind the song is very simple: a world without countries or religion would be a peaceful place. Love that song …

51 Doc in some severance packages : NDA

Non-disclosure agreement (NDA)

52 Deg. for one who faces oral exams : DDS

Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS)