LA Times Crossword 12 Sep 26, Saturday

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Constructed by: Doug Peterson

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme: None

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

Bill’s time: 12m 04s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

16A Tragic character in the title of a 2025 Taylor Swift chart-topper : OPHELIA

“The Fate of Ophelia” is the lead single from Taylor Swift’s 2025 album “The Life of a Showgirl”. It spent ten weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, hence becoming her longest-running number-one song. The lyrics reimagine the tragic Shakespearean character escaping her doomed destiny in the play “Hamlet”.

18A Item under a weizen glass : BEER MAT

Hefeweizen is a wheat beer associated with the German state of Bavaria. It is also known as “Weissbier” in Germany, with “Hefeweizen” translating literally as “yeast wheat”, and “Weissbier” as “white beer”. For what it’s worth, true Hefeweizen, with strong banana-clove overtones, is my favorite beer in the world …

19A Lowood attendee of literature : EYRE

In Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 novel “Jane Eyre”, the title character has a grim educational experience at the fictional Lowood Institution. This reflects the author’s own traumatic time at the Clergy Daughters’ School in the north of England. In the book, a deadly typhus epidemic sweeps through Lowood, again mimicking Charlotte’s own experience, as an outbreak at her school claimed the lives of her two older sisters, Maria and Elizabeth.

22A Celtic __ : CROSS

The Celtic cross is a symbol combining a traditional Christian cross with a ring encircling the intersection of its arms. It originated in Ireland and Britain during the Early Middle Ages.

24A Celebrity chef Cat : CORA

Cat Cora is yet another celebrity chef. She appears on the reality shows “Iron Chef America” and “Around the World in 80 Plates”.

28A Bipedal cryptid : YETI

The yeti, also known as the abominable snowman, is a beast of legend. “Yeti” is a Tibetan term, and the beast is fabled to live in the Himalayan regions of Nepal and Tibet. Our equivalent legend in North America is that of Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch. The study of animals whose existence has not yet been substantiated is called cryptozoology, and a cryptid is a creature or plant that isn’t recognized by the scientific community, but the existence of which has been suggested.

30A Entree often garnished with lime : PHO

Pho (pronounced “fuh”) is a noodle soup from Vietnam that is a popular street food, and the nation’s unofficial national dish. It is often ordered with a side of hanh dam, pickled white onions.

33A Hall of Fame wrestler who was a commentator for the first eight Wrestlemanias : GORILLA MONSOON

“Gorilla Monsoon” was the “stage” name of professional wrestler Robert Marella. After retiring from the ring, he spent decades as a commentator with the WWF.

37A Western wear with a clasp : BOLO TIE

I’ve never worn a bolo tie, and was surprised to discover that it is a relatively recent invention. The first bolo tie was apparently produced in Wickenburg, Arizona in the late 1940s by a silversmith. The bolo takes its name from the boleadora, an Argentine lariat.

38A California city where “American Graffiti” was set : MODESTO

The city of Modesto, California, was originally meant to be named after financier William C. Ralston. He politely (modestly) declined the honor. As a result, the city was named “Modesto”, Spanish for “modest”. Modesto is perhaps most famous as home to the E. & J. Gallo Winery, the largest family-owned winery in the world. Modesto-born film director George Lucas used the city as the setting of his 1973 coming-of-age film “American Graffiti”.

The iconic 1973 film “American Graffiti” was directed and co-written by George Lucas. The film cost $775,000 to make, and grossed over $200 million, making it one of the most profitable movies of all time. About 15% of the film’s cost was devoted to licensing the rights to play the songs chosen for the outstanding soundtrack.

43A Con’s decoy : SHILL

A shill is someone planted, perhaps in an audience, with the job of feigning enthusiasm.

49A Menu eponym : TSO

“The Search for General Tso” is a 2014 documentary about the history of Chinese food in the US. Much of the film explores the life of Zuo Zongtang, the Chinese military leader who gave his name to the very American dish known as General Tso’s chicken.

55A Song heard at Rogers Centre : O CANADA

Canada’s national anthem “O Canada” was commissioned in 1880 by the Lieutenant Governor of Quebec, so the original words are in French. The first English translation was made in 1906. The current English lyrics have been revised a few times, but the French version remains the same as it did back in 1880.

O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all of us command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

The Rogers Centre is the current name of the stadium in downtown Toronto that was originally known as the SkyDome, a title it held until its purchase by Rogers Communications in 2005. The 2005 rebranding occurred as part of a package deal when the telecommunications giant acquired both the venue and the baseball team.

59A Lego line that includes a 587-piece Eevee set : POKEMON

The Pokémon species named “Eevee” is the “Evolution” Pokémon, hence the name. Apparently, it can evolve into several different “Eevolutions”, due to an unstable genetic code.

Down

1D Hoopsters : CAGERS

In the early days of basketball, when a ball went out of bounds possession was awarded to the player who first retrieved the ball. This led to mad scuffles off the court, often involving spectators. As the game became more organized, courts were routinely “caged”, largely because of this out of bounds rule, to limit interaction with the crowd. It’s because of these cages that basketball players are sometimes referred to today as “cagers”.

3D Comic book city nicknamed “The Big Apricot” : METROPOLIS

In the world of DC Comics, Metropolis is a city-state in America that is inspired by real-life New York City and is home to Superman, the Man of Steel. And, while New York City is nicknamed “the Big Apple”, fictional Metropolis is nicknamed “the Big Apricot”.

5D Shaggy outback runner : EMU

The emu has had a tough time in Australia since man settled there. There was even an “Emu War” in Western Australia in 1932 when migrating emus competed with livestock for water and food. Soldiers were sent in and used machine guns in an unsuccessful attempt to drive off the “invading force”. The emus were clever, breaking their usual formations and adopting guerrilla tactics, operating as smaller units. After 50 days of “war”, the military withdrew. Subsequent requests for military help for the farmers were ignored. The emus had emerged victorious …

6D Secant, for one : RATIO

In trigonometry, the reciprocal of the cosine function is the secant. The term “secant” comes from the Latin verb “secare” meaning “to cut”, and was coined by Danish mathematician Thomas Fincke in the 1580s.

7D Valkyrie’s weapon : SPEAR

In Norse mythology, the valkyries are beautiful female attendants of Odin who choose those who must die in battle and those who must live. Half of those who die go to Fólkvangr, the “army field” ruled over by the goddess Freyja. The other half of those who perish go to Valhalla, the hall of the slain that is ruled over by the god Odin. The etymology of “valkyrie” is Old Norse for “chooser of the slain”.

9D Dr. Zaius, for one : APE

Dr. Zaius and General Thade are characters in “Planet of the Apes” movies. Both are apemen.

11D Washington who played a Pope : KERRY

Actress Kerry Washington really hit the big time with her lead performances in the political thriller TV series “Scandal” that aired from 2012 to 2018. In 2016, she portrayed Anita Hill in the TV film “Confirmation”. Back in the 1990s, she took dancing lessons in the Bronx. One of her teachers was Jennifer Lopez.

“Scandal” is a political drama TV show centered on a former White House Communications Director named Olivia Pope, played by Kerry Washington. Pope has a complicated relationship with her ex-boss President Fitzgerald Grant, and therefore a complicated relationship with the First Lady. I haven’t seen this one …

13D Rosario relations : TIAS

Rosario is the third most populous city in Argentina, after Buenos Aires and Córdoba. It is perhaps best known internationally as the hometown of two very different Argentine figures: Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara and football legend Lionel Messi.

21D Rudolph of “Loot” : MAYA

Comic actress Maya Rudolph got her break as a regular cast member on “Saturday Night Live”. Rudolph’s mother was singer Minnie Riperton, who had a big hit in 1975 with the single “Lovin’ You”.

27D Lovers’ deity : EROS

As always seems to be the case with Greek gods, Eros and Aphrodite have overlapping spheres of influence. Aphrodite was the goddess of love between a man and a woman, and Eros was the god who stirred the passions of the male. The Roman equivalent of Aphrodite was Venus, and the equivalent of Eros was Cupid.

29D Supermodel born Melissa Miller : EMME

Emme is the highest-paid plus-size model in the world. She was born Melissa Miller in New York City, and was raised in Saudi Arabia.

30D Tacky square : POST-IT NOTE

The Post-it note was invented at 3M following the accidental discovery of a low-tack, reusable adhesive. The actual intent of the development program was to produce a super-strong adhesive.

31D Passport holders, perhaps : HOTEL SAFES

As a result of a League of Nations conference in 1920, passports are usually written in French and one other language. French was specified back then as it was deemed the language of diplomacy. US passports use French and English, given that English is the nation’s de facto national language. Spanish was added as a language for US passports in the late nineties, in recognition of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rico.

32D “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” vocalist : ONO

1971’s “Happy Xmas (War Is Over)” is a holiday classic and peace anthem released by John Lennon and Yoko Ono, backed by the Plastic Ono Band and the Harlem Community Choir. The song grew out of the couple’s 1969 multimedia campaign, in which they rented billboards in major cities worldwide declaring “WAR IS OVER! (If You Want It) – Happy Christmas from John & Yoko”.

34D Miller offerings : LITES

The first light beer was produced by Chicago’s Meister Brau brewery in the sixties. Miller took over Meister Brau, reformulated the light beer using the same process and became the first of the big breweries to come out with a light beer, “Lite Beer from Miller” introduced in 1973. There really wasn’t a serious competitor to Miller Lite until Anheuser-Busch finally came up with a process and a product in 1982 that they called Bud Light.

35D Spanish city or province : LEON

León is a province in the autonomous community of Castile and León in the northwest of Spain. The province’s capital is the city of León, which was founded as a Roman military encampment around 29 BC.

36D Brother of Cain : SETH

According to the Bible, Seth was the third son of Adam and Eve, coming after Cain and Abel. Adam and Eve had several children, but Cain, Abel and Seth are the ones mentioned by name. According to the Book of Genesis, Seth was born after Cain had slain his brother Abel.

37D Company with a museum in Munich : BMW

The initialism “BMW” stands for “Bayerische Motoren Werke”, which translates into Bavarian Motor Works. BMW was making aircraft engines during WWI, but had to cease that activity according to the terms of the Treaty of Versailles. The company then started making motorcycles, and moved into automobile production starting in 1928. BMW moved back into aircraft engine manufacturing during the build-up of the Luftwaffe prior to WWII.

40D “The Pitt” star : WYLE

Noah Wyle is an actor noted for playing Dr. John Truman Carter III on television’s “ER”. He was highly valued by the show’s producers, earning about $400,000 per episode in 2005, a world record for an actor in a TV drama at that time.

“The Pitt” is a medical drama TV show that premiered in 2025. The title refers to the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center. In each episode, we follow the staff through an hour in the emergency department, navigating challenges like staff shortages and underfunding. The show has been praised by the medical community for its realistic portrayal of healthcare workers and the psychological challenges faced in a post-pandemic world.

44D Cottage cheese option : LOW-FAT

Cottage cheese got its name because it was a simple cheese that was made by simple folk living in cottages, using any milk left over from butter production.

47D 1984 “Weird Al” Yankovic hit : EAT IT

The 1984 song “Eat It”, released by “Weird Al” Yankovic, is a parody of Michael Jackson’s 1983 megahit “Beat It”. “Beat It” won the 1984 Grammy for Record of the Year, and “Eat It” won the 1985 Grammy for the Best Comedy Recording.

48D __ + Olivia: clothing brand : ALICE

Alice + Olivia is a New York-based fashion brand launched in 2002 by designers Stacey Bendet and Rebecca Matchett. “Alice” and “Olivia” were the two founders’ mothers.

51D Billboard __ Award : ICON

The Billboard Icon Award has been presented annually during the Billboard Music Awards ceremony since 2011. The first recipient was Neil Diamond.

52D Chum of “Finding Nemo,” for one : MAKO

The shortfin mako shark can appear on restaurant menus, and as a result the species is dying out in some parts of the world. The mako gets its own back sometimes though, as attacks on humans are not unknown. It is the fastest-swimming shark, and has been clocked at speeds of over 40 miles/hour. And the shark in Ernest Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea”, that’s a mako. “Mako” is the Maori word for “shark” or “shark tooth”.

“Finding Nemo” is a 2003 animated blockbuster from Pixar. The film was the winner of the Oscar that year for Best Animated Feature. Believe it or not, “Finding Nemo” is the best-selling DVD of all time. It was also the highest-grossing G-rated movie until 2010’s “Toy Story 3”.

53D Grammy winner Aimee : MANN

Aimee Mann is a rock singer and guitarist from Virginia. Mann is married to Michael Penn, the brother of actor Sean Penn.

54D Pre-coll. exams : GEDS

The General Educational Development (GED) tests are a battery of four tests designed to demonstrate that a student has the academic skills of someone who has graduated from an American or Canadian high school.

58D Chaps : MEN

“Chap” is an informal term meaning “lad, fellow” that is used especially in England. The term derives from “chapman”, an obsolete word meaning “purchaser” or “trader”.