LA Times Crossword 7 Jun 21, Monday

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Constructed by: John R. O’Brien
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Cycle

Themed answers each start with an element in a baseball CYCLE:

  • 38A With “the,” rare batting feat whose components begin the answers to starred clues : … CYCLE
  • 17A *Selling point for a used car : SINGLE OWNER
  • 28A *Going out with another couple : DOUBLE-DATING
  • 44A *High club in a deli : TRIPLE-DECKER
  • 58A *Metaphor for the perfect person for the job : HOME-RUN HIRE

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

Bill’s time: 5m 55s

Bill’s errors: 2

  • ROSEN (Rosan)
  • EFREM (Efram)

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 10-year-old Oscar winner O’Neal : TATUM

Tatum O’Neal is the youngest actress to win a competitive Oscar. She won the Best Supporting Actress Award in 1974 when she was just 10 years old, for her role as Addie in “Paper Moon”. The youngest person to win an honorary Academy Award was Shirley Temple, who was only 5 years old when she was presented with an Oscar in 1934.

11 Title for Lee or Grant :Abbr. : GEN

Robert E. Lee was perhaps the most famous southern officer in the Civil War. Lee was a somewhat reluctant participant in the war in that he opposed the secession of his home state of Virginia from the Union. At the beginning of the war, President Lincoln invited Lee to take command of the whole Union Army but he declined, choosing instead to stay loyal to his home state. During the Civil War, Lee’s men referred to him affectionately as “Marse Robert”, with “marse” being slang for “master”.

US President Ulysses S. Grant was born Hiram Ulysses Grant. Ohio Congressman Thomas Hamer nominated a young Grant to attend West Point, and gave the candidate’s name as “Ulysses S. Grant” in error. Grant tried to fix the error while studying at the military academy, but bureaucracy won out and the future president eventually embraced the inaccurate name as his own.

14 The Colosseum, e.g. : ARENA

The Colosseum of Rome was the largest amphitheater in the whole of the Roman Empire in its day, and could seat about 50,000 people. The structure was originally called the “Amphitheatrum Flavium” but the name changed to “Colosseum” after a colossal statue of Emperor Nero was located nearby.

16 Messenger molecule : RNA

Ribonucleic acid (RNA) is an essential catalyst in the manufacture of proteins in the body. The genetic code in DNA determines the sequence of amino acids that make up each protein. That sequence is read in DNA by messenger RNA, and amino acids are delivered for protein manufacture in the correct sequence by transfer RNA. The amino acids are then formed into proteins by ribosomal RNA.

19 Homer’s “rosy-fingered” dawn goddess : EOS

In Greek mythology, Eos was the goddess of the dawn who lived at the edge of the ocean. Eos would wake each morning to welcome her brother Helios the sun. The Roman equivalent of Eos was Aurora. Rather delightfully, Homer referred to Eos as “rosy-fingered dawn” in both “Iliad” and “Odyssey”.

20 Jacob’s twin : ESAU

Esau was the grandson of Abraham and the twin brother of Jacob, the founder of the Israelites. When Esau was born to Isaac and Rebekah, the event was described with “Now the first came forth, red all over like a hairy garment”. Esau is portrayed later in life as being very different from his brother Jacob, as a hunter and someone who loves the outdoor life.

21 “Young Sheldon” network : CBS

“Young Sheldon” is a spinoff prequel to the hit sitcom “The Big Bang Theory” that follows the life of a 9-year-old Sheldon Cooper. The title character is played by child actor Iain Armitage. Jim Parsons, who plays Sheldon on “The Big Bang Theory”, is the narrator for the spinoff, and is also an executive producer. In another link between the shows, young Sheldon’s Mom is played by actress Zoe Perry. Perry is the real-life daughter of Laurie Metcalf, who plays “old” Sheldon’s mom in the original series.

22 Beauty’s beau : BEAST

“Beauty and the Beast” is a fairy tale that was written by novelist Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont. Titled “La belle et la bête” in French, the story was first published in 1756. The “beauty” in the tale is named “Belle”.

35 Lena of “Alias” : OLIN

Lena Olin is a Swedish actress, and clearly someone who had acting in her blood. Her mother was the actress Britta Holmberg and her father the actor and director Stig Olin. Olin had a very successful career in Sweden, often working with the great Ingmar Bergman. Olin’s breakthrough international and English-speaking role was playing opposite Daniel Day-Lewis in “The Unbearable Lightness of Being” released in 1988. Way back in 1974, Miss Olin was crowned Miss Scandinavia in a beauty pageant for Nordic women held in Helsinki, Finland. Olin’s most famous performance was in “Chocolat” released in 2000, and then she won an Emmy in 2003 for Best Supporting Actress in the TV show “Alias”.

“Alias” is an action show that was aired by ABC from 2001 to 2006. Star of the show is Jennifer Garner. Garner plays a CIA agent named Sydney Bristow who must adopt multiple aliases over the series for her missions, while concealing her real career from family and friends. Sydney’s mother is a former Russian spy played by the marvelous Lena Olin.

38 With “the,” rare batting feat whose components begin the answers to starred clues : … CYCLE

In baseball, a player is said to “hit for the cycle” by hitting a single, double, triple and home run in the same game. The cycle is rare enough, and even rarer is the “natural cycle”, collecting the hits in the order from single to home run.

41 Villain Luthor : LEX

Lex Luthor is the nemesis of Superman in comics. Luthor has been portrayed in a number of guises in the comic world as well in movies and on the small screen. For example, he appeared as Atom Man in the 1950 film series “Atom Man vs. Superman”, and was played by actor Lyle Talbot, opposite Kirk Alyn’s Superman.

43 Former Swedish cars : SAABS

“SAAB” stands for Svenska Aeroplan AB, which translates into English as Swedish Aeroplane Limited. Although we usually think of SAAB as an auto manufacturer, it is mainly an aircraft manufacturer. If you take small hops in Europe you might find yourself on a SAAB passenger plane. The SAAB automotive division was acquired by General Motors in the year 2000, who then sold it to a Dutch concern in 2010. However, SAAB (automotive) finally went bankrupt in 2011. A Chinese consortium purchased the assets of SAAB Automotive in 2012, and so SAAB vehicles are in production again. The new vehicles are using the SAAB name, but cannot use the SAAB griffin logo, the rights to which have been retained by the mother company.

44 *High club in a deli : TRIPLE-DECKER

The club sandwich is a double-decker affair with three layers of bread and two layers of filling. This style of sandwich has been around since the end of the 19th century, and some say it was invented at an exclusive gambling “club” in Saratoga Springs, New York.

48 Krall of jazz : DIANA

Diana Krall is a jazz singer and piano player from Nanaimo, British Columbia. Krall is married to English rock musician Elvis Costello.

53 Former senator Lott : TRENT

Trent Lott is a political figure who first went to Washington to work as an administrative assistant to Representative William M. Colmer, from Mississippi. After four years working for Colmer, Lott ran for the House seat that Colmer was to leave vacant on his retirement. Colmer endorsed Lott in that election, even though Colmer was a Democrat and Lott ran as a Republican. Lott won the race very handily, launching a 35-year career representing his home state of Mississippi in both the House and the Senate. Lott eventually ran into trouble for remarks he made that were interpreted as being racially motivated, and ended up resigning in 2007.

55 Bad firecracker : DUD

A firecracker is a noisemaker usually comprising a small amount of explosive in a paper tube with a fuse. Prior to the invention of fireworks in China, the equivalent of firecrackers were made by exposing bamboo to continuous heat, until it exploded with a loud crack. Indeed, the Chinese name for gunpowder firecrackers translates literally as “exploding bamboo”, a reference to the older devices.

57 Anthem contraction : O’ER

The words “o’er the ramparts we watched” come from “The Star Spangled Banner” written by Francis Scott Key.

The word “anthem” used to describe a sacred song, especially one with words taken from the Scriptures. The British national anthem (“God Save the Queen/King”) technically is a hymn, and so it came to be described as “the national hymn” and later “the national anthem”. The use of the word “anthem” extended from there to describe any patriotic song.

63 Chris of “Captain America” : EVANS

Chris Evans’ Hollywood career really took off when he was cast as the Human Torch in the “Fantastic Four” movies starting in 2005. He portrayed another superhero in 2011, playing the title role in “Captain America: The First Avenger”.

64 Arnie __, Don Draper’s neighbor on “Mad Men” : ROSEN

“Mad Men” was the flagship show on the AMC television channel for several seasons. Set in the sixties, it’s all about an advertising agency located on Madison Avenue in New York (hence the title). “Mad Men” became the first show created by a basic cable channel to win an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series.

67 Wind: Pref. : ANEMO-

“Anemo-” is a combining form meaning “wind”, coming from “anemos”, the Greek word for “wind”. An example of its use is in the word “anemoscope”, a device that shows the direction of the wind.

Down

1 Uses a stun gun on : TASES

Victor Appleton wrote a novel for young adults called “Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle”. The company that developed the TASER electroshock weapon partly named its product as a homage to the novel. The acronym “TASER” stands for “Thomas A. Swift’s Electric Rifle”.

5 Prefix with ware : MAL-

Malware is software and program code that is created to intentionally disrupt and exploit computer systems. Viruses, worms, trojan horses and spyware are all covered by the term. “Malware” is short for “malicious software”.

6 Pair of shillings, in British slang : TWO BOB

Here are some slang terms used for old British coins, coins that became obsolete after the UK moved to decimal currency in 1971:

  • Coppers: farthing, halfpenny, penny coins
  • Tanner: sixpence
  • Bob: shilling

10 Belgrade native : SERBIAN

Belgrade is the capital city of Serbia. The name “Belgrade” translates into “White City”.

12 Grandson of Adam : ENOS

Enos was the son of Seth, and therefore the grandson of Adam and Eve, and nephew of Cain and Abel. According to the ancient Jewish work called the Book of Jubilees, Enos married his own sister Noam.

13 Creator of the GOP elephant : NAST

Thomas Nast was an American caricaturist and cartoonist. He was the creator of the Republican Party elephant, the Democratic Party donkey, Uncle Sam and the image of the plump and jocular Santa Claus that we use today.

The Republican Party has had the nickname Grand Old Party (GOP) since 1875. That said, the phrase was coined in the “Congressional Record” as “this gallant old party”. The moniker was changed to “grand old party” in 1876 in an article in the “Cincinnati Commercial”. The Republican Party’s elephant mascot dates back to an 1874 cartoon drawn by Thomas Nast for “Harper’s Weekly”. The Democrat’s donkey was already an established symbol. Nast drew a donkey clothed in a lion’s skin scaring away the other animals. One of the scared animals was an elephant, which Nast labeled “The Republican Vote”.

18 Hosiery hue : ECRU

The color ecru is a grayish, yellowish brown. The word “ecru” comes from French and means “raw, unbleached”. “Ecru” has the same roots as our word “crude”.

The word “hose” meaning “covering for the leg” has the same roots as the contemporary German word “Hose” meaning “trousers, pants”.

26 Satan’s realm : HELL

Satan is the bringer of evil and temptation in the Abrahamic religions. The name “Satan” is Hebrew for “adversary”.

27 “Garfield” canine : ODIE

“Garfield” is a comic strip drawn by Jim Davis since 1978. The title character is an orange tabby cat. Davis named his cartoon hero Garfield after his own grandfather.

29 Age of Reason philosopher John : LOCKE

John Locke was an English philosopher whose most famous work was “Essay Concerning Human Understanding”. Locke’s position was that at birth the mind is a blank slate, a “tabula rasa”, and that knowledge is determined by experiences perceived through our senses.

The Age of Enlightenment (also known as “the Age of Reason”) was an era bridging the 17th and 18th centuries in which rationalism and scientific method started to hold sway against ideas grounded in tradition and faith. Key figures in the Age of Enlightenment were the likes of John Locke, Isaac Newton and Voltaire.

31 Most ’90s Prizms : GEOS

Geos were small vehicles manufactured by General Motors mainly in the nineties. They were designed to compete head-to-head with the small imports that were gaining market share at the time in the US. Some Geo models that you might remember are the Metro, the Prizm and the Storm. The cars were actually built as joint-ventures with Japanese manufacturers. The Prizm was a GM/Toyota project, the Metro was GM/Suzuki, and the Storm was GM/Isuzu.

34 Wildlife preservation method : TAXIDERMY

Taxidermy is the practice of stuffing and mounting the skins of animals. The word “taxidermy” originates in Greek. “Taxis” means “arrangement” (and is also the root of “tactics”) and “derma” means “skin”. A gruesome practice, if you ask me, but you didn’t …

38 Either “Fargo” director : COEN

I think it’s great to see two brothers working together and being so successful. Joel and Ethan Coen are two movie producers and directors who both live in New York City. The Coen brothers do love the movie-making business and they even married industry “insiders”. Ethan’s wife is film editor Tricia Cooke, and Joel is married to one of my favorite actresses, the talented Frances McDormand.’

“Fargo” is one of my favorite films of all time, and stars perhaps my favorite actress, Frances McDormand. “Fargo” was directed by the Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan. Frances McDormand is Joel’s wife.

39 Film wise man with his own grammar : YODA

In the “Star Wars” series of films, the character named Yoda has a unique speech pattern. He often uses the word order object-subject-verb. For example:

  • Patience you must have …
  • Truly wonderful, the mind of a child is.
  • To answer power with power, the Jedi way this is not.

40 Very long race : MARATHON

The marathon commemorates the legendary messenger-run by Pheidippides from the site of the Battle of Marathon back to Athens, and is run over 26 miles and 385 yards. The first modern Olympic marathon races were run over a distance that approximated the length of the modern-day Marathon-Athens highway, although the actual length of the race varied from games to games. For the 1908 Olympics in London, a course starting at Windsor Castle and ending in front of the Royal Box at White City Stadium was defined. That course was 26 miles and 385 yards, the standard length now used at all Olympic Games. Organizers of subsequent games continued to vary the length of the race, until a decision was made in 1921 to adopt the distance used in London in 1908.

42 Nonsense : BLATHER

Our term “blather” meaning “nonsensical talk” probably came to us via Scottish, and ultimately perhaps from an Old Norse word for “mutter”.

43 Wimbledon unit : SET

The Wimbledon Championships of tennis are held at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club located in Wimbledon, a district of London. The Wimbledon Championships started in 1877, and have been played on grass since day one.

45 Bowling target : PIN

Bowling has been around for an awfully long time. The oldest known reference to the game is in Egypt, where pins and balls were found in an ancient tomb that is over 5,000 years old. The first form of the game to come to America was nine-pin bowling, which had been very popular in Europe for centuries. In 1841 in Connecticut, nine-pin bowling was banned due to its association with gambling. Supposedly, an additional pin was added to get around the ban, and ten-pin bowling was born.

46 Golfing venue : COURSE

There’s an urban myth that the standard number of holes on a golf course is 18 because it takes 18 shots to polish off a fifth of scotch whisky. However, the truth is that the standard number of holes in the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland happened to settle down over time at 18, and that standard was adopted all around the world.

47 Spiral-horned antelope : KUDU

The kudu is a type of antelope. There are two extant species: the lesser kudu of eastern Africa, and the greater kudu of eastern and southern Africa. The kudu horn is used as a musical instrument, as a horn.

51 Zimbalist Jr. of “77 Sunset Strip” : EFREM

Efrem Zimbalist was a prominent concert violinist from Russia. Zimbalist was married to the famous American soprano Alma Gluck. The couple had a son called Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. who became a well-known actor (co-star on “77 Sunset Strip”). Zimbalist, Sr. was therefore also the grandfather of actress Stephanie Zimbalist (co-star on “Remington Steele”).

I used to watch “77 Sunset Strip” as a lad growing up in Ireland. It is an American show that ran from 1958 to 1964. Two of the central characters are former government secret agents, now working as private detectives. Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. plays Stu Bailey, and Roger Smith plays Jeff Spencer. And who can forget Kookie, played by Edd Byrnes? Years later, Byrnes played smooth-talking TV dance show host Vince Fontaine in the 1978 movie “Grease”.

52 Shorthand pro : STENO

Stenography is the process of writing in shorthand. The term comes from the Greek “steno” (narrow) and “graphe” (writing).

53 WWII Japanese general : TOJO

Hideki Tojo was a general and the Prime Minister of Japan during most of WWII. Although the attack on Pearl Harbor was planned before he took office, Tojo was the Prime Minister who made the decision to declare war on the US. After Japan surrendered, General MacArthur ordered Tojo’s arrest. Tojo attempted to commit suicide by shooting himself in the heart, but missed. There is a story that while recovering, Tojo was given a set of replacement dentures that were made by an American dentist. Apparently the dentist drilled the message “Remember Pearl Harbor” into the teeth in Morse code. Tojo was hanged for war crimes in 1948.

61 New Deal agcy. : NRA

The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was one of the first agencies set up under President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal program. On the one hand, the NRA helped set minimum wages and maximum working hours for workers in industry, and on the other hand it helped set minimum prices for goods produced by companies. The NRA was very popular with the public, and businesses that didn’t opt to participate in the program found themselves boycotted. The NRA didn’t survive for long though, as after two years of operation it was deemed to be unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court and so it ceased operations in 1935.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 10-year-old Oscar winner O’Neal : TATUM
6 Head lock : TRESS
11 Title for Lee or Grant :Abbr. : GEN
14 The Colosseum, e.g. : ARENA
15 Beyond bad : WORSE
16 Messenger molecule : RNA
17 *Selling point for a used car : SINGLE OWNER
19 Homer’s “rosy-fingered” dawn goddess : EOS
20 Jacob’s twin : ESAU
21 “Young Sheldon” network : CBS
22 Beauty’s beau : BEAST
24 Part-time player : SEMIPRO
26 Raise, as sails : HOIST
28 *Going out with another couple : DOUBLE-DATING
32 In the stars : FATED
35 Lena of “Chocolat” : OLIN
36 Expected in : DUE
37 Old-school “OMG!” : EGAD!
38 With “the,” rare batting feat whose components begin the answers to starred clues : … CYCLE
40 Note to the staff : MEMO
41 Villain Luthor : LEX
42 Work bound to sell? : BOOK
43 Former Swedish cars : SAABS
44 *High club in a deli : TRIPLE-DECKER
48 Krall of jazz : DIANA
49 Power failures : OUTAGES
53 Former senator Lott : TRENT
55 Bad firecracker : DUD
56 Hair clump : TUFT
57 Anthem contraction : O’ER
58 *Metaphor for the perfect person for the job : HOME-RUN HIRE
62 Printer problem : JAM
63 Chris of “Captain America” : EVANS
64 Arnie __, Don Draper’s neighbor on “Mad Men” : ROSEN
65 Suffix with direct : -ORY
66 Dentist’s request : RINSE
67 Wind: Pref. : ANEMO-

Down

1 Uses a stun gun on : TASES
2 Come about : ARISE
3 Coffee break hr. : TEN AM
4 Like a tour without a leader : UNGUIDED
5 Prefix with ware : MAL-
6 Pair of shillings, in British slang : TWO BOB
7 Uses oars : ROWS
8 West end? : -ERN
9 Fresno-to-L.A. dir. : SSE
10 Belgrade native : SERBIAN
11 “Wish I’d thought of that!” : GREAT IDEA!
12 Grandson of Adam : ENOS
13 Creator of the GOP elephant : NAST
18 Hosiery hue : ECRU
23 Approx. number : EST
25 Whale group : POD
26 Satan’s realm : HELL
27 “Garfield” canine : ODIE
29 Age of Reason philosopher John : LOCKE
30 Anesthetized : NUMB
31 Most ’90s Prizms : GEOS
32 Pool table surface : FELT
33 Stress or worry, it’s said : AGER
34 Wildlife preservation method : TAXIDERMY
38 Either “Fargo” director : COEN
39 Film wise man with his own grammar : YODA
40 Very long race : MARATHON
42 Nonsense : BLATHER
43 Wimbledon unit : SET
45 Bowling target : PIN
46 Golfing venue : COURSE
47 Spiral-horned antelope : KUDU
50 Pretense : GUISE
51 Zimbalist Jr. of “77 Sunset Strip” : EFREM
52 Shorthand pro : STENO
53 WWII Japanese general : TOJO
54 Raise, as kids : REAR
55 Animal lairs : DENS
59 Egg: Pref. : OVI-
60 __ cave : MAN
61 New Deal agcy. : NRA