LA Times Crossword 14 Sep 23, Thursday

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Constructed by: Bill Pipal & Jeff Chen
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: That’s My Jam

Themed answers are all JAMS:

  • 54A “I love this song!,” and what might be said about 17-, 22-, 36-, and 48-Across? : THAT’S MY JAM
  • 17A See 54-Across : GRAPE JELLY
  • 22A See 54-Across : RUSH-HOUR TRAFFIC
  • 36A See 54-Across : SLAM DUNK
  • 48A See 54-Across : A DILLY OF A PICKLE

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

Bill’s time: 8m 23s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

6 Novelist Leon : URIS

Leon Uris is an American writer. Uris’s most famous books are “Exodus” and “Trinity”, two excellent stories, in my humble opinion …

14 “The Bare Necessities” bear : BALOO

“The Bare Necessities” is a popular song from the 1967 Disney animated movie “The Jungle Book”. In the film, it was sung by the character Baloo, an anthropomorphic sloth bear. “The Bare Necessities” was nominated for that season’s Best Original Song Oscar but, appropriately enough, lost out to “Talk to the Animals” from “Doctor Dolittle”.

15 Salade niçoise ingredient : TUNA

A Niçoise salad is known as a “salade niçoise” in its native France, where it was named for the city of Nice in the south of the country. The original contains no cooked vegetables, but here in North America there are almost always included some boiled potatoes.

20 Jag : SPREE

The terms “jag” and “bender” describe periods of unrestrained activity, particularly those involving alcohol. Both words have been in use since the 1800s.

36 See 54-Across : SLAM DUNK

[54A “I love this song!,” and what might be said about 17-, 22-, 36-, and 48-Across? : THAT’S MY JAM]
In basketball, a player makes a slam dunk by jumping up and powering the ball downward into the basket with his or her hands over the rim. The term “slam dunk” was coined by Chick Hearn, an announcer for the L.A. Lakers. The NBA even holds an annual Slam Dunk Contest.

39 Khan who founded Khan Academy : SAL

“Khan Academy” is a not-for-profit organization that aims to provide a “free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere”. Founded by educator Sal Khan in 2006, the academy mainly teaches mathematics and science through the medium of YouTube videos. Check out some of the videos. They are really excellent …

40 Texter’s “My bad” : SRY

Sorry (SRY)

41 Actress Shire : TALIA

Actress Talia Shire is best-known for playing Rocky’s wife Adrian in the “Rocky” series of movies. She also played Connie, the daughter of Don Corleone, in “The Godfather” films. Shire is the sister of movie director Francis Ford Coppola and the aunt of actor Nicolas Cage. Her son is the actor Jason Schwartzman.

42 Tuscany town : PISA

The Italian city of Pisa is home to the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa, which is actually the bell tower of the city’s cathedral. Pisa is also a university town, and is home to one of the oldest universities in Europe, the University of Pisa, which was founded in 1343. The university has produced many notable alumni, including the physicist Galileo Galilei.

Tuscany is a beautiful region in central Italy, the capital of which is the city of Florence. Tuscany is considered to be the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, which was centered around Florence. It was home to great artistic icons such as Dante, Botticelli, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Galileo and Puccini.

43 Cyber Monday sector : E-TAIL

Cyber Monday is the Monday after Thanksgiving, when retailers offer incentives to online shoppers in the hope of boosting sales. The term “Cyber Monday” was coined in 2005 in a press release issued by the website Shop.org. In recent years, consumers have been spending more money online on Cyber Monday than any other day in the year.

45 Presidential advisory group : CABINET

In the Westminster system, the Cabinet is a group of sitting politicians chosen by the Prime Minister to head up government departments and also to participate collectively in major governmental decisions in all areas. In the US system, the Cabinet is made up not of sitting politicians, but rather of non-legislative individuals who are considered to have expertise in a particular area. The Cabinet members in the US system tend to have more of an advisory role outside of their own departments.

51 Black Sea peninsula : CRIMEA

Crimea is a peninsula jutting out into the Black Sea that is almost completely surrounded by water. It is connected to the Ukrainian mainland to the north by the Isthmus of Perekop, and is separated from the nearby Russian region of Kuban by the narrow (less than 10 miles) Kerch Strait. Crimea has been occupied by foreign powers many times over the centuries, and now control of the region is disputed by Ukraine and Russia.

52 Principle : TENET

A tenet is an article of faith, something that is held to be true. “Tenet” is Latin for “holds”.

53 Mandolin kin : LUTES

The lute is a stringed instrument with a long neck and usually a pear-shaped body. It is held and played like a guitar, and was popular from the Middle Ages right through to the late Baroque era. A person who plays the lute can be referred to as a “lutenist”.

A mandolin is a stringed instrument in the lute family. There is also a mandola, a similar instrument that is a little larger. In fact, “mandolin” comes from the Italian word for “little mandola”.

60 Low-carb diet : KETO

A ketogenic (also “keto”) diet is a high-fat, low-carbohydrate diet. When a body consumes insufficient carbohydrates to meet the need for energy, then the liver converts fat into fatty acids and ketone bodies in order to make up the energy deficit. An elevated level of ketone bodies in the bloodstream is known as “ketosis”, a term that gives rise to the name “ketogenic diet”. Medical professionals sometimes prescribe a ketogenic diet in order to control epilepsy in children. A condition of ketosis can reduce the frequency of epileptic seizures.

61 In unison : AS ONE

Our word “unison” means “having the same musical pitch”. The phrase “in unison” is generally used to mean “in perfect agreement”. The term “unison” ultimately comes from the Latin “uni-” meaning “one” and “sonus” meaning “sound”.

62 “Stars on __”: reality show hosted by William Shatner : MARS

“Stars on Mars” is a reality competition TV show presented by William Shatner. Participants live together at a base camp (actually in Australia) that is purportedly on Mars. Each episode involves a mission, at the end of which a competitor is eliminated.

William Shatner is a Canadian actor, one famous for playing Captain James T. Kirk in the original “Star Trek” television series. Shatner was trained as a classical Shakespearean actor, and appeared on stage in many of the Bard’s works early in his career. While playing the Kirk character, he developed a reputation for over-acting, really emphasizing some words in a speech and using an excessive number of pauses. He gave his name to a word “shatneresque”, which describes such a style.

Down

1 “Notorious” SCOTUS justice : RBG

The 2015 book “Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg” was co-written by Shana Knizhnik and Iris Carmon. Knizhnik had previously authored a “Notorious R.B.G” blog. The moniker “Notorious RBG” is reminiscent of the name of rap star the Notorious B.I.G.

Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS)

3 Selma’s st. : ALA

The Alabama city of Selma was settled in 1815. It was named in 1820 by Alabama politician William R. King, who would later serve briefly as US Vice President under President Franklin Pierce. Meaning “high seat, throne”, King chose the city’s name from the Ossianic poem “The Songs of Selma”. Today, the city is perhaps best known for the Selma to Montgomery civil rights marches, which ultimately led to the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

5 Sitcom role for Brandy : MOESHA

“Moesha” is a sitcom that originally aired in the late nineties starring singer Brandy Norwood in the title role, a high school student in LA. “Moesha” may be a sitcom, but it had a reputation for dealing with very real social issues such as teen pregnancy, race relations, and infidelity.

12 Forum top : TUNIC

The Latin “forum” (plural “fora”) translates as “marketplace, town square”. “The Roman Forum” is the most famous example of such a space. The Forum at the heart of the city of Rome is surrounded by the ruins of several ancient government buildings, and has been referred to as the most celebrated meeting place in the world.

13 X-ray __: gadget advertised in classic comic books : SPEX

X-ray specs were a novelty item much advertised in comic books in the 1950s and 1960s. Advertisements suggested that the spectacles allowed one to see through skin and view the underlying bones. In fact, the glasses produced two identical but slightly overlapped images. There was a darker image at the point of the overlap. Especially when one looked at a hand, this gave the illusion of seeing a darker (“bony”) hand within a lighter image. Excellent value for one or two bucks!

16 City with the world’s largest naval complex : NORFOLK

Naval Station Norfolk, in Virginia, is the world’s largest naval base. It is home to four of the nation’s nine carrier strike groups.

18 Genre that’s an element of Kawaii metal : J-POP

“J-pop” is an abbreviation for “Japanese pop”, a genre of music that emerged in the nineties. Although J-pop is rooted in traditional Japanese music, it is heavily influenced by western bands from the sixties such as the Beatles and the Beach Boys.

Kawaii metal is a Japan-based genre of music that blends elements of J-pop with heavy metal. As such, the genre has an appeal to both Eastern and Western audiences. The all-female band Babymetal pioneered Kawaii metal when they formed in 2010. “Kawaii” is a Japanese word meaning “cute, adorable”.

21 Monty Python alum Michael : PALIN

Michael Palin is a marvelously talented comedian and actor, most famous as one of the “Monty Python” team. Palin is well known as a travel writer and has made some outstanding travel documentaries for television. He did one show called “Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days” in which he followed the route called out in the Jules Verne classic, without using airplanes. Palin also made “Pole to Pole”, a journey from the North to South Poles, along the 30 degree line of longitude. Currently, Michael Palin was the President of the Royal Geographical Society for several years.

25 Slugger’s stat : HRS

Home run (HR)

26 Mama’s Special Garden Sauce maker : RAGU

The Ragú brand of pasta sauce was introduced in 1937. The name ”Ragù” is the Italian word for a sauce used to dress pasta, however the spelling is a little off in the name of the sauce. In Italian, the word is “Ragù” with a grave accent over the “u”, but if you look at a jar of the sauce on the supermarket shelf it is spelled “Ragú” on the label, with an acute accent. Sometimes I think we just don’t try …

30 ROTC school near D.C. : VMI

The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is one of the six senior military colleges in the country, and is located in Lexington, Virginia. The sports teams of VMI are known as the Keydets, southern slang for “cadets”.

The Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) is a training program for officers based in colleges all around the US. The ROTC program was established in 1862 when as a condition of receiving a land-grant to create colleges, the federal government required that military tactics be part of a new school’s curriculum.

31 Civil rights pioneer __ B. Wells : IDA

Ida B. Wells was an African-American journalist and leader of the civil rights movement. She published a pamphlet in 1892 called “Southern Horrors: Lynch Law in All Its Phases”, which publicized the horrors of lynching of African Americans by white mobs in the South.

33 Art studio stand : EASEL

The term “easel” comes from an old Dutch word meaning “donkey”, would you believe? The idea is that an easel carries its load (an oil painting, say) just as a donkey would be made to carry a load.

34 Online magazine with a “Dear Prudence” advice column : SLATE

“Dear Prudence” is an advice column that first appeared in the online magazine “Slate” in 1997. The title of the column was inspired by the 1968 Beatles song of the same name.

37 Undefeated boxer Ali : LAILA

Laila Ali is the daughter of the great Muhammad Ali and is a very capable boxer in her own right. Laila’s professional record is an impressive 24 wins, including 21 knockouts. Now retired, she never lost a fight, and nor did she ever draw. One of those victories was against Jackie Frazier-Lyde, daughter of her father’s nemesis Joe Frazier. Laila is not a bad dancer either, coming in third place in the fourth season of “Dancing with the Stars”.

42 Insta upload : PIC

Instagram (often abbreviated to “Insta”, or “IG”) is a photo-sharing application, one that is extremely popular. Instagram started in San Francisco in 2010. Facebook purchased Instagram two years later, paying $1 billion. The billion-dollar Instagram company had just 13 employees at the time of the sale …

47 JPEG alternative : BITMAP

A bitmap is an image file format used to store digital images. Basically, each pixel in a bitmap file is stored as a “bit” of information, hence the name “bitmap”. In 1987, CompuServe introduced a new type of image file called the Graphics Interchange Format (GIF). A GIF image takes the same information as a bitmap and then compresses it, resulting in a smaller file size. However, during compression the image may lose some resolution. The GIF format also handles short video clips, usually animations.

48 Island birthplace of shortstop Xander Bogaerts : ARUBA

Aruba is one of the so-called ABC islands located off the northern coast of Venezuela. “ABC Islands” is a name given to the three westernmost islands of the Leeward Antilles in the Caribbean. The nickname comes from the first letters of the island names: Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao. All three of the ABC islands are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Xander Bogaerts is a professional shortstop who made his MLB debut in 2013, turning out for the Boston Red Sox. He was born on the island of Aruba, and plays for the Netherlands national baseball team in international competition.

51 Happy as a __ : CLAM

Our phrase “happy as a clam” dates back to the mid-1600s. Back then it was a more lengthy expression: “happy as a clam in the mud at high tide”. The idea was that a clam would be happy in its muddy home at high tide, because no one from land could get to it and eat it.

54 Possible UFC match ender : TKO

Technical knockout (TKO)

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is the largest promoter in the world of mixed martial arts competitions. I think the idea is that competitors fight each other in various disciplines to see who is the “best of the best” …

55 Designer label initials : YSL

Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) was an Algerian-born French fashion designer. Saint Laurent started off working as an assistant to Christian Dior at the age of 17. Dior died just four years later, and as a very young man Saint-Laurent was named head of the House of Dior. However, in 1950 Saint Laurent was conscripted into the French Army and ended up in a military hospital after suffering a mental breakdown from the hazing inflicted on him by his fellow soldiers. His treatment included electroshock therapy and administration of sedatives and psychoactive drugs. He was released from hospital, managed to pull his life back together and started his own fashion house. A remarkable story …

56 Java : JOE

Back in 1850, the name “java” was given to a type of coffee grown on the island of Java, and the more general usage of the term spread from then.

57 California’s Santa __ Mountains : ANA

Southern California’s Santa Ana Mountains run southeast of Los Angeles. The range was named by Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolà. Don Gaspar camped below the mountains in 1769 on July 26, the Feast of Saint Anne.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Purview : REALM
6 Novelist Leon : URIS
10 Disapproving noises : TUTS
14 “The Bare Necessities” bear : BALOO
15 Salade niçoise ingredient : TUNA
16 Still abed : NOT UP
17 See 54-Across : GRAPE JELLY
19 Weigh in : OPINE
20 Jag : SPREE
21 Long-winded : PROLIX
22 See 54-Across : RUSH-HOUR TRAFFIC
27 Snares : ENTRAPS
28 Overhead : ALOFT
29 Hubbubs : ADOS
30 Candlelit ceremony, e.g. : VIGIL
32 “Affirmative” : YES
35 Pay-__-view : PER
36 See 54-Across : SLAM DUNK
39 Khan who founded Khan Academy : SAL
40 Texter’s “My bad” : SRY
41 Actress Shire : TALIA
42 Tuscany town : PISA
43 Cyber Monday sector : E-TAIL
45 Presidential advisory group : CABINET
48 See 54-Across : A DILLY OF A PICKLE
51 Black Sea peninsula : CRIMEA
52 Principle : TENET
53 Mandolin kin : LUTES
54 “I love this song!,” and what might be said about 17-, 22-, 36-, and 48-Across? : THAT’S MY JAM
59 “Don’t push that button!” : ABORT!
60 Low-carb diet : KETO
61 In unison : AS ONE
62 “Stars on __”: reality show hosted by William Shatner : MARS
63 About : OR SO
64 Fabric fold : PLEAT

Down

1 “Notorious” SCOTUS justice : RBG
2 Musical gift : EAR
3 Selma’s st. : ALA
4 Prune : LOP
5 Sitcom role for Brandy : MOESHA
6 Embryo’s home : UTERUS
7 Yardstick, e.g. : RULER
8 Small bay : INLET
9 For instance : SAY
10 Fill to the brim : TOP OFF
11 Laundry room convenience : UTILITY SINK
12 Forum top : TUNIC
13 X-ray __: gadget advertised in classic comic books : SPEX
16 City with the world’s largest naval complex : NORFOLK
18 Genre that’s an element of Kawaii metal : J-POP
21 Monty Python alum Michael : PALIN
22 Realizes : REAPS
23 Below : UNDER
24 Production team member who shapes narratives : STORY EDITOR
25 Slugger’s stat : HRS
26 Mama’s Special Garden Sauce maker : RAGU
30 ROTC school near D.C. : VMI
31 Civil rights pioneer __ B. Wells : IDA
33 Art studio stand : EASEL
34 Online magazine with a “Dear Prudence” advice column : SLATE
36 Least original : STALEST
37 Undefeated boxer Ali : LAILA
38 Friend : ALLY
42 Insta upload : PIC
44 Stopwatches : TIMERS
45 “Just watch me!” : CAN TOO!
46 Mimics : APES
47 JPEG alternative : BITMAP
48 Island birthplace of shortstop Xander Bogaerts : ARUBA
49 Catchall check box : OTHER
50 Achievements : FEATS
51 Happy as a __ : CLAM
54 Possible UFC match ender : TKO
55 Designer label initials : YSL
56 Java : JOE
57 California’s Santa __ Mountains : ANA
58 Joined : MET