LA Times Crossword 13 Feb 23, Monday

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Constructed by: Erik Agard
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Almost Identical

Themed answers are all in the format x-AKE y-OLD:

  • 26A Dessert-shaping aid : CAKE MOLD
  • 33A Inspire fearlessness in : MAKE BOLD
  • 46A Start to have an effect : TAKE HOLD
  • 52A Cheap jewelry material : FAKE GOLD

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

Bill’s time: 7m 25s

Bill’s errors: 2

  • LISA (Lish)
  • KANAKA MAOLI (kanakam holi)

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

10 Bestselling South Korean band : BTS

BTS is a boy band from South Korea with seven members. The initialism “BTS” stands for the phrase “Bangtan Sonyeondan”, which translates literally as “Bulletproof Boy Scouts”. BTS is the best-selling musical act in the history of South Korea.

16 Creature in fantasy stories : ORC

Orcs are mythical humanoid creatures that appear in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien. Since Tolkien’s use of orcs, they have also been featured in other fantasy fiction as well as in fantasy video games.

19 Actress Long : NIA

Nia Long is an American actress who is probably best known for playing Will Smith’s sometime girlfriend and fiancee Lisa Wilkes on the TV show “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”.

36 Spingarn Medal org. : NAACP

The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) awards the Spingarn Medal every year, to honor outstanding achievement by an African American. The award was created in 1914 and is named for Joel Elias Spingarn, the NAACP’s first Chairman of the Board.

40 Bucatini or capellini : PASTA

Bucatini (also “perciatelli”) are pieces of pasta that resemble spaghetti with a hole running through the middle. The term “bucatini” comes from the Italian “buco” meaning “hole”.

Capellini is a pasta that is like thin spaghetti. An even thinner version of the pasta is known as “capelli d’angelo”, which translates as “angel hair”.

44 Studio Ghibli specialty : ANIME

Studio Ghibli is an animation film studio based in Tokyo. The name “Ghibli” was chosen as it is the name of a hot desert wind that occurs in Libya. The idea is that Studio Ghibli, when founded in 1985, would “blow a new wind through the anime industry”.

48 “Que te __, calabaza?” : PASA

“Que te pasa, calabaza” translates from Spanish as “What’s wrong, pumpkin?”

50 Like the main characters in “Fire Island” : GAY

“Fire Island” is a 2022 romantic comedy about a group of gay friends taking a vacation on Fire Island on the South Shore of Long Island. The film’s storyline was inspired by Jane Austen’s classic novel “Pride and Prejudice”. I haven’t seen it yet, but I hear good things …

51 “Help!” letters : SOS

The combination of three dots – three dashes – three dots, is a Morse signal first introduced by the German government as a standard distress call in 1905. The sequence is remembered as the letters SOS (three dots – pause – three dashes – pause – three dots). That said, in the emergency signal there is no pause between the dots and dashes, so “SOS” is really only a mnemonic. Similarly, the phrases “Save Our Souls” and “Save Our Ship” are back-formations that were introduced after the SOS signal was adopted.

56 Woman yelling at a cat, for one : MEME

A meme (from “mineme”) is a cultural practice or idea that is passed on verbally or by repetition from one person to another. The term lends itself very well to the online world where links, emails, files etc. are so easily propagated.

58 NCAA basketball powerhouse : UCONN

The UConn Huskies are the sports teams of the University of Connecticut. I wasn’t able to uncover the derivation of the “Huskies” moniker. Although it is true that “UConn” sounds like “Yukon”, that isn’t the derivation of the “Huskies” nickname. The school didn’t become the University of Connecticut (UConn) until 1939, and the Huskies name has been used since 1933.

59 Basketball great Leslie : LISA

Lisa Leslie is a former professional basketball player who played in the WNBA with the Los Angeles Sparks. Leslie is rather tall, and was the first player to dunk the ball in a WNBA game.

61 LSD : ACID

LSD (known colloquially as “acid”) is lysergic acid diethylamide. A Swiss chemist named Albert Hofmann first synthesized LSD in 1938 in a research project looking for medically efficacious ergot alkaloids. It wasn’t until some five years later when Hofmann ingested some of the drug accidentally that its psychedelic properties were discovered. Trippy, man …

64 GPS stat : ETA

A global positioning system (GPS) might provide one with an estimated time of arrival (ETA).

68 “Gr8 joke!” : LOL!

Gr8 joke! (great joke!); LOL (laugh out loud).

71 Spanish title: Abbr. : SRA

The equivalent of “Mrs.” in French is “Mme.” (Madame), in Spanish is “Sra.” (Señora) and in Portuguese is also “Sra.” (Senhora).

72 __ dish: biologist’s container : PETRI

Julius Richard Petri was a German bacteriologist and was the man after whom the Petri dish is named. The petri dish can have an agar gel on the bottom which acts as a nutrient source for the specimen being grown and studied, in which case the dish plus agar is referred to as an “agar plate”.

Down

6 Prefix with tech : NANO-

Nanotechnology is the study of the manipulation of matter at the atomic and molecular level. Nanotechnology is essential to the electronic and biomaterials industries.

7 Purple flower : LILAC

The ornamental flowering plant known as lilac is native to the Balkans, and is a member of the olive family.

8 Nike competitor : ADIDAS

The Adidas brand dates back to when Adolf “Adi” Dassler started making his own sports shoes in his mother’s laundry room in Bavaria after returning from WWI. With his brother, Adi founded Dassler shoes. The company’s big break came in 1936 at the Berlin Olympics, when Adi persuaded American sprinter Jesse Owens to use his shoes, and with the success of Jesse Owens came success for the fledgling shoe company. After WWII the brothers split, acrimoniously. Adi’s brother, Ru-dolf Da-ssler, formed “Ruda” shoes (later to become Puma), and Adi Das-sler formed “Adidas”.

10 Afro-Cuban drum : BONGO

Bongo drums are Cuban percussion instruments consisting of a pair of drums, one larger than the other. The smaller drum is called the “hembra” (female) and the larger the “macho” (male).

12 Heat to nearly boiling, as milk : SCALD

In cooking, scalding a liquid brings it to just below the boiling point.

15 Montana capital : HELENA

Helena is the capital of the state of Montana, and is known as the Queen City of the Rockies. Helena’s main street has a very colorful name, i.e. Last Chance Gulch.

23 Long punctuation mark : EM DASH

In typography, there are em dashes and en dashes. The em dash is about the width of an “m” character, and an en dash about half that, the width of an “n’ character. An en dash is used, for example, to separate numbers designating a range, as in 5-10 years. The em dash seems to be going out of style, and indeed the application I am using to write this paragraph won’t let me show you one!

25 Experiment site : LAB

Our term “laboratory”, often shortened to “lab”, comes from the Medieval Latin word “laboratorium” meaning “place for labor, work”. This in turn comes from the Latin verb “laborare” meaning “to work”.

27 Native Hawaiians : KANAKA MAOLI

In Hawaiian, the indigenous Polynesian people of Hawaii are known as “Kānaka Maoli”. The term might be translated as “Real Hawaiian”.

28 Morning hrs. : AMS

Something described as “antemeridian” takes place before noon. The related term “ante meridiem” means the same thing, and is abbreviated to “a.m.”

31 __ carte menu : A LA

On a restaurant menu, items that are “à la carte” are priced and ordered separately. A menu marked “table d’hôte” (also called “prix fixe”) is a fixed-price menu with limited choice. “Table d’hôte” translates from French as “table of the host”.

34 Emergency treatment for an allergic reaction : EPIPEN

EpiPen is a brand of epinephrine auto-injector. An EpiPen delivers a measured dose of epinephrine, which is a common treatment for an extreme allergic reaction.

35 Setting not observed by Hawaii: Abbr. : DST

On the other side of the Atlantic, Daylight Saving Time (DST) is known as “summer time”. The idea behind summer/daylight-savings is to move clocks forward an hour in spring and backwards in the fall so that afternoons have more daylight. DST was first observed in the US in 1918, and is observed in all states other than Hawaii and Arizona. Hawaii doesn’t really “need” DST as the length of daylight doesn’t vary much due to the state’s tropical latitude. Arizona’s climate dictates that extra afternoon daylight is an economic burden due to increased use of air conditioning systems.

38 With 17-Across, Silicon Valley city : PALO …
[17A See 38-Down : … ALTO]

The city of Palo Alto, California takes its name from a specific redwood tree called El Palo Alto (Spanish for “the tall stick”) that is located within the bounds of the city. The tree is 110 feet tall and over a thousand years old.

43 Hosp. personnel : MDS

Medical doctor (MD)

47 Retina’s place : EYE

The retina is the tissue that lines the inside of the eye, and is the tissue that is light-sensitive. There are (mainly) two types of cells in the retina that are sensitive to light, namely rods and cones. Rods are cells that best function in very dim light and only provide black-and-white vision. Cones on the other hand function in brighter light and can perceive color.

52 Propane and ethanol : FUELS

Propane is a gas with the formula C3H8. It is an abundant byproduct of the refining of petroleum and is used as a fuel. The gas liquefies readily under pressure, and is usually transported in pressurized containers. However, the containers of “propane” that we purchase in stores are actually a mixture of propane and butane, usually in the ratio of about 50:50.

Ethyl alcohol is more usually known as ethanol. It is the alcohol found in intoxicating beverages, and nowadays is also used as a fuel for cars. Ethanol is also found in medical wipes and hand sanitizer, in which it acts as an antiseptic.

54 Australian marsupial : KOALA

The koala bear really does look like a little bear, but it’s not even closely related. The koala is an arboreal marsupial and a herbivore, native to the east and south coasts of Australia. Koalas aren’t primates, and are one of the few mammals other than primates who have fingerprints. In fact, it can be very difficult to tell human fingerprints from koala fingerprints, even under an electron microscope. Male koalas are called “bucks”, females are “does”, and young koalas are “joeys”. I’m a little jealous of the koala, as it sleeps up to 20 hours a day …

Marsupials are mammals that carry their young in a pouch called a marsupium. Better-known marsupials are kangaroos, koalas, wombats and Tasmanian devils. As you can probably tell from this list, most marsupials are native to the Southern Hemisphere.

55 “__ Cha Know?”: Erykah Badu song : DIDN’T

“Erykah Badu” is the stage name of Erica Wright, an American “neo-soul” singer. Badu gained some notoriety in March of 2010 when she shot a scene for a music video in Dallas. In the scene, she walks to the spot where President Kennedy was assassinated, removing her clothes until she is nude, and then falls to the ground as if she has been shot in the head. For that stunt she was charged with disorderly conduct.

57 Fast snake : MAMBA

Mambas, most famously black mambas, are highly venomous snakes that used to be responsible for a great number of fatalities before anti-venoms became available. Mamba venom is a deadly mix of neurotoxins that attack the nervous system and cardiotoxins that attack the heart. A bite, if left untreated, causes the lungs and the heart to shut down.

60 __ of David : STAR

Magen (also “Mogen”) David is Hebrew for “Shield of David”, and is another name for the Star of David. The use of the distinctive hexagram as a symbol for the Jewish community started in 17th-century Europe, and today the symbol is found at the center of the flag of Israel.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Cut on a cutting board : CHOP
5 Decorative or dental creation : INLAY
10 Bestselling South Korean band : BTS
13 Duration of a massage, typically : HOUR
14 Followed a doctor’s instruction : SAID “AH”
16 Creature in fantasy stories : ORC
17 See 38-Down : … ALTO
18 As opposed to : UNLIKE
19 Actress Long : NIA
20 Assessment : TEST
21 Highway or byway : ROAD
22 Not banned : LEGAL
24 Flag holder : POLE
26 Dessert-shaping aid : CAKE MOLD
28 “Without further __ … ” : ADO
30 “I just got it!” : AHA!
32 Grains that aren’t part of a healthy diet : SAND
33 Inspire fearlessness in : MAKE BOLD
36 Spingarn Medal org. : NAACP
39 Part of a process : STEP
40 Bucatini or capellini : PASTA
42 Criticize : SLAM
44 Studio Ghibli specialty : ANIME
46 Start to have an effect : TAKE HOLD
48 “Que te __, calabaza?” : PASA
50 Like the main characters in “Fire Island” : GAY
51 “Help!” letters : SOS
52 Cheap jewelry material : FAKE GOLD
56 Woman yelling at a cat, for one : MEME
58 NCAA basketball powerhouse : UCONN
59 Basketball great Leslie : LISA
61 LSD : ACID
64 GPS stat : ETA
65 Familiarized with : USED TO
67 Earned : MADE
68 “Gr8 joke!” : LOL!
69 Turn indicator, e.g. : SIGNAL
70 Squander, as cash : BLOW
71 Spanish title: Abbr. : SRA
72 __ dish: biologist’s container : PETRI
73 Enemy’s opposite : ALLY

Down

1 Talk a bit : CHAT
2 Doughnut’s middle : HOLE
3 Very vocal : OUTSPOKEN
4 Prefix with type : PROTO-
5 “Uh, yeah, it better be!” : I SURE HOPE SO!
6 Prefix with tech : NANO-
7 Purple flower : LILAC
8 Nike competitor : ADIDAS
9 Talk a lot : YAK
10 Afro-Cuban drum : BONGO
11 Experiment : TRIAL
12 Heat to nearly boiling, as milk : SCALD
15 Montana capital : HELENA
23 Long punctuation mark : EM DASH
25 Experiment site : LAB
27 Native Hawaiians : KANAKA MAOLI
28 Morning hrs. : AMS
29 Experiment results : DATA
31 __ carte menu : A LA
34 Emergency treatment for an allergic reaction : EPIPEN
35 Setting not observed by Hawaii: Abbr. : DST
37 “Phew!” : CLOSE CALL!
38 With 17-Across, Silicon Valley city : PALO …
41 Word after price or phone : … TAG
43 Hosp. personnel : MDS
45 Name that means “great” in Latin : MAGNUS
47 Retina’s place : EYE
49 Claim : ALLEGE
52 Propane and ethanol : FUELS
53 Cast member : ACTOR
54 Australian marsupial : KOALA
55 “__ Cha Know?”: Erykah Badu song : DIDN’T
57 Fast snake : MAMBA
60 __ of David : STAR
62 Big celebrity : IDOL
63 Description for hydrated skin : DEWY
66 Quick drink : SIP