LA Times Crossword 3 Aug 25, Sunday

Advertisement

Constructed by: Ella Dershowitz

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: Kinetic Exercises

Themed answers include the names of SPORTS hidden within, but with the order of the letters “SPOILED”:

• 117A Party poopers, or what this puzzle’s circled letters do : SPOILSPORTS

• 22A Series of musical tones that evoke sadness : MINOR SCALES (spoiled “LACROSSE”)
• 24A Weaponized food in a Hitchcock episode : LEG OF LAMB (spoiled “GOLF”)
• 31A Desire to cause harm : MALICIOUS INTENT (spoiled “TENNIS”)
• 37A Mathematical operation that may have a remainder : LONG DIVISION (spoiled “DIVING”)
• 55A Scam : CONFIDENCE TRICK (spoiled “CRICKET”)
• 64A Like some voting systems : WINNER TAKE ALL (spoiled “KARATE”)
• 78A Lip product in a Katy Perry song : CHERRY CHAPSTICK (spoiled “ARCHERY”)
• 92A Lean patty choice : TURKEY BURGER (spoiled “RUGBY”)
• 99A July Fourth : INDEPENDENCE DAY (spoiled “DANCE”)
• 115A Athletic record : SCORECARD (spoiled “SOCCER”)

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

Bill’s time:13m 24s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1A Romantic painter Francisco : GOYA

Goya’s full name was Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes. He was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker, considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He is often called the “last of the Old Masters and the first of the moderns”.

11A Lettuce variety : BIBB

Bibb is a variety of lettuce in the cultivar known as butterhead. All butterhead varieties have loose-leafed heads and a buttery texture.

15A Levy of “Schitt’s Creek” : DAN

Canadian actor Dan Levy’s career really took off with the success of the sitcom “Schitt’s Creek”, which he co-created with his father, fellow actor Eugene Levy. Outside of “Schitt’s Creek”, Levy co-hosted the first two seasons of “The Great Canadian Baking Show”.

22A Series of musical tones that evoke sadness : MINOR SCALES (spoiled “LACROSSE”)

Experts, unlike me, can wax lyrical on the technical differences between major and minor keys and scales. To me, music written in major keys is very strident, often very joyful and “honest”. Music written in minor keys (usually my favorite) is more feminine, more delicate and often quite sad.

Lacrosse is a game very much associated with the cultural tradition of the Iroquois people, and may have originated as early as the 12th century. The original games lasted all day long, and perhaps for two or three days, and were played as part of a ceremonial ritual. In the native language, the activity was referred to as “the Creator’s Game”. It was French Jesuit missionaries who coined the name “lacrosse”. In French, a “crosse” is a “stick with a curved end”.

24A Weaponized food in a Hitchcock episode : LEG OF LAMB (spoiled “GOLF”)

“Lamb to the Slaughter” is a short story by Roald Dahl that was adapted into an episode of “Alfred Hitchcock Presents”. In the story, a pregnant woman murders her husband with a frozen leg of lamb and then cooks it, serving it to the investigating police officers, who unwittingly eat the evidence.

The modern game of golf originated in Scotland in the 15th century. The first written record of golf is actually a banning of the game, by King James II in 1457. King James IV was a fan of golf, and so lifted the ban in 1502. The venerated Old Course at St. Andrews dates back to 1574. The first golf club established in the US was in Yonkers, New York in 1888. That first club was also named St. Andrews.

28A “Elsbeth” network : CBS

Elsbeth Tascioni, played so ably by Carrie Preston, is one of the most unique and charming characters to emerge from the TV shows “The Good Wife” and “The Good Fight”. “Elsbeth” got her own show in 2024, and I thoroughly recommend it …

31A Desire to cause harm : MALICIOUS INTENT (spoiled “TENNIS”)

Our modern sport of tennis evolved from the much older racquet sport known as real tennis. Originally just called “tennis”, the older game was labeled “real tennis” when the modern version began to hold sway. Real tennis is played in a closed court, with the ball frequently bounced off the walls.

34A __ as a pin : NEAT

Apparently, the idiom “neat as a pin” arose in the early 1800s, with the advent of mass production. Up until that time, pins were handmade and so were irregular and relatively flawed. Mass-produced pins were uniform and of consistent quality. So, something that was uniform and of consistent quality came to be described as “neat as a pin”.

51A Inflation no. : PSI

Pounds per square inch (PSI) is a measure of pressure.

53A Gymnast Comaneci : NADIA

Romanian Nadia Comăneci won three golds in the 1976 Summer Olympics and was the first gymnast to be awarded a perfect score of ten in the gymnastics competition. Her life took a dramatic turn in 1989 when, just weeks before the Romanian Revolution, she defected from Communist Romania. She fled under the cover of darkness, crossing the Romanian border into Hungary on foot and eventually seeking asylum in the US.

54A Blood test liquids : SERA

Blood serum (plural “sera”) is the clear, yellowish part of blood i.e. that part which is neither a blood cell nor a clotting factor. Included in blood serum are antibodies, the proteins that are central to our immune system. Blood serum from animals that have immunity to a particular disease can be transferred to another individual, hence providing that second individual with some level of immunity. Blood serum used to pass on immunity can be called “antiserum”.

55A Scam : CONFIDENCE TRICK (spoiled “CRICKET”)

Cricket is the national game of England. The term “cricket” apparently comes from the Old French word “criquet” meaning “goalpost, stick”.

59A Bach production : SONATA

A cantata is a piece of music that is sung, as opposed to a sonata, which is a piece that is played on some instrument, often a piano. A sonatina is in effect a sonata that has been labeled as something lighter and shorter.

Johann Sebastian Bach died when he was 65-years-old, in 1750. He was buried in Old St. John’s Cemetery in Leipzig, and his grave went unmarked until 1894. At that time his coffin was located, removed and buried in a vault within the church. The church was destroyed in an Allied bombing raid during WWII, and so after the war the remains had to be recovered and taken to the Church of St. Thomas in Leipzig.

62A Fairy tale first : ONCE

The stock phrase “Once upon a time …” has been used in various forms as the start of a narrative at least since 1380. The stock phrase at the end of stories such as folktales is often “and they all lived happily ever after”. The earlier version of this ending was “happily until their deaths”.

64A Like some voting systems : WINNER TAKE ALL (spoiled “KARATE”)

A winner-take-all voting system is one in which the candidate who wins the most votes (even if not a majority) wins all the seats or delegates available in that election. This system can lead to less proportional representation compared to voting systems like … proportional representation.

Karate is a martial art that originated in the Ryukyu Kingdom, which is now part of Japan. A practitioner of karate is known as a karateka. The sport of karate was included as an Olympic sport starting with the 2020 Games.

73A Director Kazan : ELIA

Elia Kazan won Oscars for best director in 1948 for “Gentleman’s Agreement” and in 1955 for “On The Waterfront”. He was recognized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences when he was given the 1998 Academy Honorary Award citing his lifetime achievement in the industry. Kazan also directed “East of Eden”, which introduced James Dean to movie audiences, and “Splendor in the Grass” that included Warren Beatty in his debut role.

78A Lip product in a Katy Perry song : CHERRY CHAPSTICK (spoiled “ARCHERY”)

2008’s “I Kissed A Girl” is the debut single released by Katy Perry, and the song launched her into stardom. The song’s provocative lyrics and catchy pop-rock melody resonated widely, making it a massive commercial success, topping the charts in numerous countries.

83A Villainous Count of kid-lit : OLAF

Count Olaf is the antagonist in “A Series of Unfortunate Events”, the collection of children’s novels penned by Lemony Snicket (the pen name of Daniel Handler).

87A German outburst : ACH!

The German exclamation “ach!” is usually translated into English as “oh!”

92A Lean patty choice : TURKEY BURGER (spoiled “RUGBY”)

Rugby is a town in County Warwickshire, England. It is a market town, and is also home to the famous Rugby School, one of the oldest private schools in the country. The school gave its name to the sport of rugby, as the laws of the game were first published by three boys at Rugby School in 1845.

95A State where almost all of U.S. hazelnuts are grown : OREGON

Hazelnuts are the (delicious) fruit of the hazel tree. About a quarter of the world’s supply of hazelnuts is gobbled up by Italian confectioner Ferrero, using it to make Nutella spread (also delicious) and Ferraro Rocher confectioneries (even more delicious).

98A Check in spots? : ATMS

Checks and checking accounts caused me some language trouble when I first came to the US. Back in Ireland (and the UK) we write “cheques” using funds from our “current” accounts.

99A July Fourth : INDEPENDENCE DAY (spoiled “DANCE”)

On 11 June 1776, the Continental Congress appointed a committee of five people to draft a declaration of independence. Included in the five were John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Adams persuaded the other committee members to give Jefferson the task of writing the first draft. A resolution of independence was passed by the Congress on 2 July 1776. The final draft of the declaration was approved by the Congress two days later, on July 4th. John Adams wrote a letter to his wife that included an assertion that July 2nd (the date of the resolution of independence) would become a great American holiday. Adams was wrong, and it was actually the date the Declaration of Independence was finalized that came to be celebrated annually.

112A Half an inning? : ENS

Half of the letters in the word “inning” are letters N (ens).

113A Title for two Beatles : SIR

The ex-Beatles bass player’s full name is Sir James Paul McCartney. “Paul” was knighted for his services to music in 1997. His fellow Beatle Ringo Starr was knighted for his services to music in 2018.

115A Athletic record : SCORECARD (spoiled “SOCCER”)

Soccer (also known as “association football”) is the most popular sport in the world. The term “association football” was introduced in 1863 in England, with the name chosen to distinguish the sport from rugby football. The term “soccer” started to appear about 20 years later in Oxford, as an abbreviation for “association”.

119A Unagi roll fish : EELS

“Unagi” is the Japanese term for” freshwater eel”, and “anago” is the term for “saltwater eel”.

120A First name in whodunits : ERLE

I must have read all of the “Perry Mason” books when I was in college. I think they kept me sane when I was facing the pressure of exams. Author Erle Stanley Gardner was himself a lawyer, although he didn’t get into the profession the easy way. Gardner went to law school, but got himself suspended after a month. So, he became a self-taught attorney and opened his own law office in Merced, California. Understandably perhaps, Gardner gave up the law once his novels became successful.

121A Like chinchillas : ANDEAN

A chinchilla is a rodent found in the Andes in South America. It is a little larger than a squirrel, and has velvet-like fur. It takes its name from the local Chincha people who made clothing out of the fur. Chinchillas are quite rare in the wild now as they have been hunted almost out of existence, but there are plenty of farm-raised chinchillas around supporting the fur industry, sad to say …

122A Olympian with a fighting spirit : ARES

The Greek god Ares is often referred to as the Olympian god of warfare, but originally he was regarded as the god of bloodlust and slaughter. He united with Aphrodite to create several gods, including Phobos (Fear), Deimos (Terror) and Eros (Desire). Ares was the son of Zeus and Hera, and the Roman equivalent to Ares was Mars.

123A 31-Down countdown show : TRL

“Total Request Live” (TRL) is a music video TV show that originally ran on MTV from 1998-2008, and was revived in 2017. The original manifestation of the show included an incredibly popular rundown of the top ten most requested music videos of the day based on votes from viewers.

126A Nick Jr. explorer : DORA

“Dora the Explorer” is a cartoon series shown on Nickelodeon. Part of Dora’s remit is to introduce the show’s young viewers to some Spanish words and phrases. Her constant companion is an anthropomorphic monkey named “Boots”, because he always wears red boots. Dora, full name “Dora Márquez”, also hangs out with Isa, an iguana.

Down

1D Minecraft streamer, e.g. : GAMER

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

3D Streisand musical : YENTL

“Yentl” is a play that opened in New York City in 1975. The move to adapt the play for the big screen was led by Barbra Streisand, and indeed she wrote the first outline of a musical version herself as far back as 1968. The film was eventually made and released in 1983, with Streisand performing the lead role.

6D Actor Cage, to fans : NIC

Actor Nicolas “Nic” Cage was born Nicolas Coppola. Cage is the nephew of director Francis Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, both of whom are Nic Cage’s father’s siblings.

8D Haram counterpart : HALAL

“Halal” is a term describing an action or object that is permissible under Islamic Law. In particular “halal” is used to describe food that can be consumed. Anything that is not allowed is described as “haram”.

9D “Dog Man” voice actress Cheri : OTERI

Cheri Oteri is an actress and comedian who is best known for her work on “Saturday Night Live” (SNL). Before she became a famous comedian, she worked as a cocktail waitress at the comedy club The Improv, where she was inspired to pursue a career in comedy.

10D Director Craven : WES

Wes Craven was a very successful film director and writer specializing in movies of the horror genre, which means that I don’t watch them! He was responsible for “A Nightmare on Elm Street” and the “Scream” films. Craven passed away in August 2015.

11D Fictional boxer for whom Philadelphia’s Rocky Steps are named : BALBOA

The “Rocky Steps” are the iconic 72 stone steps leading up to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. They are famously featured in the “Rocky” film franchise, and so tourists and fans often visit them, running up to recreate Rocky Balboa’s training routine. There is also a Rocky statue, located just “steps” away from the steps …

14D Hot tub chemical : BROMINE

Bromine is a chemical element often used as a disinfectant in hot tubs and swimming pools. It is an alternative to chlorine, favored in hot tubs because it remains more stable at higher temperatures and pH levels.

15D Actress Keaton : DIANE

Diane Keaton’s first major film role was Kay Admas-Corleone, wife of Michael Corleone, in “The Godfather”. Famously, she then appeared as a comic actress in a series of Woody Allen movies in the seventies. Keaton never married, although she was romantically involved with some famous Hollywood names over the years, including Woody Allen, Warren Beatty and Al Pacino.

21D Like hair after removing a beanie : FLAT

Not mine …

28D Diez squared : CIEN

In Spanish, “diez” (ten) squared is “cien” (a hundred).

31D “Unplugged” network : MTV

“MTV Unplugged” is a show on MTV that features performances by popular artists playing acoustic instruments. The term “unplugged” is commonly used for music played on acoustic instruments that is usually played on amplified instruments, often electric guitars.

32D Comic Margaret : CHO

Margaret Cho is a Korean American comedian and actress who was born in San Francisco in 1968. As well as performing as a comedian, Cho has also had a successful acting career, appearing in films such as “Face/Off,” “Bam Bam and Celeste,” and “All About Steve,” as well as TV shows such as “Drop Dead Diva” and “30 Rock.”

33D Genesis hedgehog : SONIC

Sonic the Hedgehog is a title character in a videogame and the mascot of Sega, the computer game developer. Sonic was set up as a rival to Nintendo’s mascot Mario.

35D Element whipped into eggs to make meringue : AIR

Air is incorporated into egg whites when they are whipped to create meringue. The protein in the egg whites traps the air bubbles, forming a foam that expands when heated, resulting in an airy texture.

39D “Too Many Cooks” sleuth Wolfe : NERO

“Too Many Cooks” is a 1938 crime novel by Rex Stout, the fifth in the Nero Wolfe series. In a change to his normal behaviour, the reclusive armchair detective leaves his New York City brownstone to attend a gathering of the world’s greatest chefs in a West Virginia resort. A chef gets murdered, and Nero Wolfe goes into action.

42D U.N. financial arm : IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) was established at the end of 1945 with 29 major economies supporting and funding an effort to stabilize economies across the globe after WWII. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the IMF now has almost 200 member nations.

45D Olympic gold medalist Lipinski : TARA

When American skater Tara Lipinski won the figure skating gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics, she was only 15 years old. To this day, Lipinski is the youngest person to win an individual gold at the Winter Games.

48D Sushi bar drink : SAKE

We refer to the Japanese alcoholic beverage made from rice as “sake”. We’ve gotten things a bit mixed up in the West. “Sake” is actually the word that the Japanese use for all alcoholic drinks. What we know as sake, we sometimes refer to as rice wine. Also, the starch in the rice is first converted to sugars that are then fermented into alcohol. This is more akin to a beer-brewing process than wine production, so the end product is really a rice “beer” rather than a rice “wine”.

52D Giants legend Chris : SNEE

Chris Snee is a former NFLer who played his entire career for the New York Giants. He was a key part of the Giants’ offensive line that won two Super Bowls. Snee is also married to the daughter of former Giants head coach Tom Coughlin, Katie Coughlin.

55D Tuna holder : CAN

There are 15 species of tuna, the size of which varies greatly. The smallest is the bullet tuna, which can grow to about 4 pounds in weight and just over 1½ feet in length. The Atlantic bluefin tuna can weigh over 1,500 pounds, and reach about 15 feet in length. That’s a lot of tuna …

56D Little letters? : IOTAS

Iota is the ninth letter in the Greek alphabet, and one that gave rise to our letters I and J. We use the word “iota” to portray something very small, as it is the smallest of all Greek letters.

57D CSI stuff : DNA

Crime scene investigation (CSI)

58D French fashion magazine : ELLE

“Elle” magazine was founded in 1945 in France and today has the highest circulation of any fashion magazine in the world. “Elle” is the French word for “she”. “Elle” is published monthly worldwide, although you can pick up a weekly edition if you live in France.

60D Nobels, e.g. : AWARDS

The Peace Prize is the most famous of the five prizes bequeathed by Alfred Nobel. The others are for Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature. There is also a Nobel Prize in Economics that is awarded along with the original five, but it is funded separately and is awarded “in memory of Alfred Nobel”. Four of the prizes are awarded by Swedish organizations (Alfred Nobel was a Swede) and so the award ceremonies take place in Stockholm. The Peace Prize is awarded by the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and is presented in Oslo.

65D Peach soda brand : NEHI

Claude A. Hatcher ran a grocery store in Columbus, Georgia. He decided to develop his own soft drink formula when he balked at the price his store was being charged for Coca-Cola syrup. Hatcher launched the Union Bottling Works in his own grocery store, and introduced Royal Crown Ginger Ale in 1905. The Union Bottling Works was renamed to Chero-Cola in 1910, the Nehi Corporation in 1925, and Royal Crown Company in the mid-fifties. The first RC Cola hit the market in 1934.

66D Mideast airline : EL AL

El Al, Israel’s national airline, takes its name from a Hebrew phrase that translates to “To the Skies” or “Heavenwards.” This phrase appears in the biblical Book of Hosea, specifically Hosea 11:7 — “And My people are in suspense about returning to Me; and though they call them upwards, none at all will lift himself up”.

68D Genesis boat : ARK

According to the Bible’s Book of Genesis, Noah was instructed to build his ark 300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide and 30 cubits high. That’s about 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high.

69D Australian rock band : AC/DC

The Heavy Metal band known as AC/DC was formed by two brothers Malcolm and Angus Young in Australia. Malcolm and Angus chose the name “AC/DC” after their sister Margaret noticed them on a sewing machine (the abbreviation for alternating current/direct current). The group is usually called “Acca Dacca” down under.

71D Vessel control post : HELM

In its broadest sense, the term “helm” describes the whole of a ship’s steering mechanism, including the rudder and tiller. In a more specific sense, the helm is the handle, tiller or wheel that is used to control the steering gear.

72D Mise en place : PREP

“Mise en place” is a French term that translates literally as “putting in place”. It is used in culinary circles to describe the laying out of all the ingredients needed prior to cooking.

76D Cassini of fashion : OLEG

French-born American fashion designer Oleg Cassini developed a reputation for designing costumes for films, and dressing numerous film stars. He had two big names particularly associated with his designs. In the sixties he produced the state wardrobe for First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. He was also the exclusive designer for Hollywood’s Gene Tierney, who was Cassini’s second wife.

79D Pile of stones to mark a trail : CAIRN

A cairn is a man-made pile of stones that can have various uses. A cairn might be a prosaic trail marker, or a distinctive landmark or monument. Our term “cairn” derives from the Gaelic “carn” meaning “rocky hill, heap of stones”.

82D Revolutionary Guevara : CHE

Ernesto “Che” Guevara was born in Argentina, and in 1948 he started to study medicine at the University of Buenos Aires. While at school he satisfied his need to “see the world” by taking two long journeys around South America, the stories of which are told in Guevara’s memoir later published as “The Motorcycle Diaries”. While traveling, Guevara was moved by the plight of the people he saw and their working conditions and what he viewed as capitalistic exploitation. In Mexico City he met brothers Raul and Fidel Castro and was persuaded to join their cause, the overthrow of the US-backed government in Cuba. He rose to second-in-command among the Cuban insurgents, and when Castro came to power Guevara was influential in repelling the Bay of Pigs Invasion and bringing Soviet nuclear missiles to the island. Guevara left Cuba in 1965 to continue his work as a revolutionary. He was captured by Bolivian forces in 1967, and was executed. Fidel Castro led the public mourning of Guevara’s death, and soon the revolutionary was an icon for many left-wing movements around the world.

88D NYC dance co. : ABT

The American Ballet Theatre (ABT) was founded in New York City in 1939. ABT was officially recognized by the US Congress as “America’s National Ballet Company” in 2006.

93D Coll. in the Research Triangle : UNC

The University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill started enrolling students way back in 1795, making it the first public university in the country to open its door to students.

“Research Triangle” is the name given to an area in North Carolina defined by the three research universities of North Carolina State, Duke and Chapel Hill. The name really took off in the late fifties when academics in NC State and Duke established Research Triangle Park (RTP), a research park designed to increase innovation in the area. Today, RTP is the largest research park in the United States.

96D English Channel swimmer Gertrude : EDERLE

Gertrude Ederle was an American swimmer from New York City. Ederle became the first woman to cross the English Channel, in 1926. Only five men had made the same swim before Ederle, with the fastest crossing being in 16 hours 33 minutes. Ederle blew that record out of the water (pun!), arriving in Dover in 14 hours 39 minutes.

103D Macabre poet : POE

Edgar Allan Poe (EAP) lived a life of many firsts. Poe is considered to be the inventor of the detective-fiction genre. He was also the first notable American author to make his living through his writing, something that didn’t really go too well for him as he was always financially strapped. In 1849 he was found on the streets of Baltimore, delirious and in dire need of medical help. Poe died a few days later in hospital at 40 years of age.

105D The “D” of LED : DIODE

A light-emitting diode (LED) is a specialized form of semiconductor that when switched on releases photons (light). LEDs were used in early digital watches, and are getting more and more popular even though their use in electronic equipment is fading away. LEDs are used as replacements for the much less-efficient tungsten light bulbs. I replaced all of my tungsten Xmas lights many years ago and saved a lot on my electricity bill.

106D Sign of spring : ARIES

Aries the Ram is the first astrological sign in the Zodiac, and is named after the constellation. Your birth sign is Aries if you were born between March 21 and April 20, but if you are an Aries you would know that! “Aries” is the Latin word for “ram”.

108D Small donkey : BURRO

Our word “burro”, meaning “donkey”, comes from the Spanish word for the same animal, namely “burrico”.

110D Thompson of “Westworld” : TESSA

Tessa Thompson is an actress from Los Angeles who is known for playing the supporting role of Jackie Cook on the TV show “Veronica Mars”, and for playing student leader Diane Nash in the 2014 film “Selma”. She also portrays superheroine Valkyrie in movies based on Marvel Comics characters.

“Westworld” is an HBO series that is based on a 1973 movie of the same name, which was written and directed by novelist Michael Crichton. Westworld is a high-tech theme park populated by androids that interact with the guests.

114D Form W-2 digits : SSNS

Form W-2 is provided by US employers to their employees by January 31 each year. The form reports wages paid to the employees, as well as taxes withheld.

118D Muscle useful in rock climbing : LAT

The muscles known as the “lats” are the “latissimi dorsi”, and are the broadest muscles in the back. “Latissimus” is Latin for “broadest”, and “dorsum” is Latin for “back”.