LA Times Crossword 10 Dec 22, Saturday

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Constructed by: Tony Caruso & C.C. Burnikel
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 13m 25s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 Literary heroine who had “very little to distress or vex her” : EMMA

Here is the opening paragraph of the novel “Emma”, by Jane Austen:

Emma Woodhouse, handsome, clever, and rich, with a comfortable home and happy disposition, seemed to unite some of the best blessings of existence; and had lived nearly twenty-one years in the world with very little to distress or vex her.

13 Bad link indicator : ERROR PAGE

An HTTP 404 error is one of the common errors encountered when browsing the World Wide Web. The error is returned when a user accesses a site successfully, but cannot find the page that is requested. Usually, this 404 Not Found error is encountered when clicking on a broken or dead link. As an aside, I’d appreciate it if any reader could contact me or leave a comment if a broken link is encountered on this web site. Thank you!

15 “Sacred __”: Bocelli album : ARIAS

“Sacred Arias” is a 1999 studio album recorded by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The album sold well … it is the biggest selling classical album ever, by a solo artist.

Andrea Bocelli is a classically-trained tenor from Italy who sings popular music, and hence is a so-called cross-over artist. Bocelli was born with poor eyesight and then became totally blind at the age of 12 when he had an accident playing soccer.

17 __ Hall : MONTY

Monty Hall is the stage name of Canadian-born television personality Monte Halperin. Hall is perhaps best known as the longtime host of the game show “Let’s Make a Deal”.

18 Grift : SCAM

Grift is money made dishonestly, especially as the result of a swindle. The term is perhaps an alteration of the word “graft”, which can have a similar meaning.

19 Quaker’s parent : PEPSICO

The Quaker Oats Company was founded in 1901 when four oat mills merged, including the Quaker Mill Company of Ravenna, Ohio. Quaker Mill’s owner Henry Parsons Crowell played the key role in creating the new company and remained at the helm until 1943.

21 One-named singer who co-wrote Rihanna’s “Diamonds” : SIA

“Sia” is the stage name of Australian singer Sia Furler from Adelaide. She is a cousin of Australian Christian Rock musician Peter Furler. Sia is a very private person, and even covers her face with a blond wig while performing.

Singer Rihanna was born and grew up on the island of Barbados and moved to the US when she was 16-years-old to pursue a singing career. The name “Rihanna” is derived from the Welsh name “Rhiannon”. And, Rihanna sometimes goes by the nickname “RiRi”, which is also the name of her line of beauty products.

26 “Guilty Crown” protagonist __ Ouma : SHU

“Guilty Crown” is an anime TV series from Japan. It is about a schoolboy who develops a superpower, a superpower that I don’t really understand (after reading a little about it) …

30 Sea-__ : TAC

Sea-Tac Airport (SEA) is more fully known as Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Sea-Tac is the main hub for Alaska Airlines.

31 Edible pockets : PITAS

Pita is a lovely bread from Middle-Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. Pita is usually round, and has a “pocket” in the center. The pocket is created by steam that puffs up the dough during cooking leaving a void when the bread cools.

32 Cycle starter? : UNI-

In 2007, a student rode a unicycle for 24 hours around the athletic track at Aberystwyth University. In so doing, the young man broke the record for the longest ride on a unicycle without feet touching the ground, a distance of 105.57 miles. He also covered a total distance of 282 miles over the full 24-hour period.

33 __ Burger : BOCA

The Boca Burger first hit grocery store shelves in 1979 (marketed as the “Sun Burger”), making it one of the first veggie burgers to be mass produced. They are soy-based meat alternatives.

34 Rough landings? : ETAS

Estimated time of arrival (ETA)

35 Stimulates, in a way : WHETS

The words “whet” and “pique” can both be used in the sense of sharpening, or awakening one’s interest or desire.

37 Azadi Tower country : IRAN

The Azadi Tower is a magnificent gateway that marks the entrance to the city of Tehran. The tower was completed in 1971 to commemorate the 2,500th anniversary of the Persian Empire and was named the Shahyad Tower, or “King’s Memorial”. This was changed to Azadi Tower after the Iranian Revolution of 1979. “Azadi” translates into English as “freedom”.

41 Ox with soft wool : YAK

The English word “yak” is an Anglicized version of the Tibetan name for the male of the species. Yak milk is much prized in Tibetan culture. It is made into cheese and butter, and the butter is used to make a tea that is consumed in great volume by Tibetans. The butter is also used as a fuel in lamps, and during festivals the butter is even sculpted into religious icons.

43 Rice porridge often topped with slices of century egg : CONGEE

Congee is an Asian dish. It is a gruel prepared by cooking rice in water for an extended period, long enough for the grains to practically disintegrate.

44 Velshi of MSNBC : ALI

Ali Velshi is a television journalist from Canada who joined MSNBC in 2016, after having worked with CNN and Al Jazeera America.

48 Remote access? : CHANNEL

The first television remote control was introduced by Zenith Radio Corporation, in 1950. That remote was hard-wired to the TV, and was marketed as “Lazy Bones”. Personally, my first “remote” was a broomstick that I used by pushing in large mechanical buttons that selected each of the three channels that were available back then on the east coast of Ireland …

50 Arendelle snowman : OLAF

In the 2013 animated film “Frozen”, Olaf is a happy-go-lucky snowman who provides a lot of comic relief in the movie. He is voiced by actor and comedian Josh Gad.

52 “Jesus Christ Superstar” king : HEROD

Herod Antipas was a ruler of Galilee and Perea in the 1st century CE. Even though he never held the title of “king”, he is referred to in the New Testament of the Christian Bible as “King Herod”. So, it was Herod Anitipas who was so instrumental in the executions of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth.

“Jesus Christ Superstar” is a rock opera that was first released in album form in 1970, before being adapted for the stage in 1971. The music was composed by Andrew Lloyd Weber and the lyrics by Tim Rice.

60 Bering Sea barker : SEAL

The Bering Sea, in the very north of the Pacific Ocean, is named for the Danish navigator Vitus Bering, who was the first European to systematically explore the area in 1728. Many believe that the first humans arrived in the Americas from Asia when the waters of the Bering Sea were lower during the last ice age, over what is known as the Bering land bridge.

Down

1 NCAA division : SEC

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an athletic conference composed mainly of schools in the southeastern US. The SEC was founded back in 1932 with a roster of thirteen schools, ten of which are still members of the conference.

2 Not prone to crushes, for short : ARO

Someone described as aromantic (“aro”, for short) experiences little or no romantic attraction. The opposite of aromanticism is a alloromanticism.

4 “Daughters and __”: intergenerational tale by Ivy Compton-Burnett : SONS

Ivy Compton-Burnett was an English author who wrote novels mainly dealing with domestic situations in large households. The titles of many of her novels do fit a pattern:

• “Brothers and Sisters” (1929)
• “Men and Wives” (1931)
• “Daughters and Sons” (1937)
• “Parents and Children” (1941)
• “Mother and Son” (1955)

6 __ d’Or : PALME

The “Palme d’Or” (or “Golden Palm” in English) is the highest award given at the Cannes Film Festival. The Palme d’Or goes to the director of the film that is selected as the best shown at the festival that year. The palm was selected as an emblem for the award as there is a palm featured on the coat of arms of the Commune of Cannes.

7 Nwodim of “SNL” : EGO

Actress and comedian Ego Nwodim joined the cast of “Saturday Night Live” in 2018. She was a biology major at the University of Southern California, a classic foundation for a successful comedian …

9 God who took a bow : EROS

The name of Eros, the Greek god of love, gives rise to our word “erotic” meaning “arousing sexual desire”. Eros was referred to in Latin as both “Amor” (meaning “love”) and “Cupid” (meaning “desire”).

11 Green tea treats : MATCHA CAKES

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.

14 Break : RECESS

To recess is to go back, to retreat. The use of the noun “recess” to mean “period of stopping from usual work” dates back to the early 1600s. This usage might stem from the action of parliamentarians “recessing” into, returning to private chambers.

20 Tupelo-born singer : ELVIS

Elvis Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi and moved to Memphis, Tennessee with his family when he was 13-years-old. Once he had achieved fame, Elvis purchased Graceland, the famous Memphis home that he used for himself and his family. I visited Graceland many years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Tupelo is a city in Mississippi. It has a few claims to fame, one being that it was the birthplace of Elvis Presley. It was also the first city to benefit from electric power produced by the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), earning it the nickname “The First TVA City”.

21 “Below Deck” vessels : SUPERYACHTS

“Below Deck” is a reality TV show that features crew members living and working on a superyacht during the charter season. It’s a popular show, one that spawned several spinoffs, for example:

• “Below Deck Mediterranean”
• “Below Deck Sailing Yacht”
• “Below Deck Down Under”
• “Below Deck Adventure”

23 Winter destination in the Wasatch Mountains : ALTA SKI AREA

Alta ski resort actually lies within the Salt Lake City Metropolitan Area. The first ski lift in the resort was opened way back in 1939. Today, Alta is one of only three ski resorts in the country that prohibits snowboarding (along with Deer Valley, Utah and Mad River Glen, Vermont). The ski resort of Snowbird, located next to Alta, has been in operation since 1971.

25 Delaware’s state bird : BLUE HEN

The Delaware Blue Hen has been the state bird of Delaware since 1939. As a result, the athletic teams of the University of Delaware are known as the Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens.

33 “Très __” : BIEN

“Very good” is written as “sehr gut” in German, and as “très bien” in French.

36 Coffee flavor : HAZELNUT

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).

43 Glitterati : CELEBS

“Glitterati” is a melding of the words “glitter” and “literati”.

Literati are men and women of letters, learned people. The Latin “literatus” means “lettered”.

46 “Doom Patrol” actor Matt : BOMER

Actor Matt Bomer’s first TV acting roles were on the soaps “All My Children” and “Guiding Light”. His breakthrough role was playing con artist Neal Caffrey in the cop show “White Collar”.

“Doom Patrol” is a superhero TV series based on the superhero team of the same name in the DC Comics universe.

49 Sydelle of Netflix’s “GLOW” : NOEL

“GLOW” is a comedy-drama TV show about the women’s professional wrestling promotion known as Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling (GLOW).

54 Actor Butterfield : ASA

Asa Butterfield is an actor from London whose breakthrough came with the title role in the 2008 Holocaust movie “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas”. More recently, he starred in the excellent Netflix comedy-drama series “Sex Education”, alongside Gillian Anderson.

55 Astronaut Jemison who was the first Black woman in space : MAE

Mae Jemison was a crew member on the Space Shuttle Endeavour on a 1992 mission, and as such became the first African-American woman to travel in space. She is also a big fan of “Star Trek” and appeared on an episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation”. That made Jemison the first real astronaut to appear on any of the “Star Trek” shows.