LA Times Crossword 10 Aug 21, Tuesday

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Constructed by: Pat Devlin & Nora Devlin
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Finishing School

Themed answers each FINISH with the name of a SCHOOL:

  • 38A Where one might learn etiquette … or a hint to the answers to starred clues : FINISHING SCHOOL
  • 17A *Where many hockey face-offs happen : CENTER ICE (giving “RICE”)
  • 24A *Physical ability acquired via repetition : MUSCLE MEMORY (giving “EMORY”)
  • 49A *Contest won by the last fighter standing : BATTLE ROYALE (giving “YALE”)
  • 60A *Comics Great Dane : MARMADUKE (giving “DUKE”)

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

Bill’s time: 5m 27s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 4-Across holder : JAW
4 Chewing need : TEETH

The human skull is made up of two parts: the cranium (which encloses the brain) and the mandible (or “jawbone”).

15 Actress Berry of “X-Men” films : HALLE

Actress Halle Berry was the first African-American woman to win a Best Actress Oscar, which she received for her performance in the 2001 movie “Monster’s Ball”. Berry also won a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actress in 2005 for playing the title role in “Catwoman”, and she very graciously accepted that award in person. Good for her!

“X-Men” is a superhero film that kicked off a very successful series of movies featuring the famous Marvel Comics characters. The film’s storyline features a summit of world leaders on Ellis Island. Ellis Island was chosen by the producers as the location of the “X-Men” premier, on July 12th, 2000.

17 *Where many hockey face-offs happen : CENTER ICE (giving “RICE”)

A face-off is a technique used to start or restart play in a number of sports, e.g. hockey. The idea is that one player from each team faces the other and the ball or puck is dropped between them so that they can contest for possession.

Rice University is a private school in Houston, Texas. William Marsh Rice had made a will endowing the funds for the establishment of the school at the time of his death. When he was found dead one morning in his bed, his lawyer announced that his will had been changed, with the bulk of Rice’s estate actually going to the lawyer making the announcement. Upon investigation, it was discovered that the lawyer had paid Rice’s valet to murder his employer using chloroform and a fake will was written. Eventually, the original will was deemed valid and the funds were disbursed so that the school could be built.

19 Kind of acid in proteins : AMINO

Amino acids are essential to life in many ways, not least of which is their use as the building blocks of proteins. Nine amino acids are considered “essential” for humans. These nine must be included in the diet as they cannot be synthesized in the body.

20 Journalist Couric : KATIE

Katie Couric left NBC’s “The Today Show” in 2006 and took over as news anchor for “CBS Evening News”. In doing so, she became the first solo female anchor of a broadcast network evening news program. Couric also has the honor of being the only person to guest-host on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”. In fact she “swapped jobs” on that particular day, and Leno filled in for Couric on “The Today Show”.

24 *Physical ability acquired via repetition : MUSCLE MEMORY (giving “EMORY”)

Emory is a private school in Atlanta, Georgia with a focus on graduate research. The school was named after a Methodist Episcopal bishop called John Emory, who was very popular at the time of the school’s founding in 1836.

32 President after Grant : HAYES

Rutherford B. Hayes (RBH) was the 19th president of the US. Long before we had to endure the dispute over the 2000 presidential election, Rutherford Hayes found himself president after a disputed election in 1876. President Hayes came into office having lost the popular vote to his opponent Samuel Tilden as he was voted into office by one electoral college vote. Hayes was awarded the election in the end because of an informal deal struck between Democrats and Republicans called the Compromise of 1877. Democrats allowed Rutherford to occupy the White House in exchange for removal of federal troops occupying some of the southern states.

Ulysses S. Grant (USG) had risen to commander of all Union armies by the end of the Civil War. He was elected as the 18th president of the US in 1869. Grant served two terms as president, and also made a failed bid for a third term. Grant’s reputation was tarnished by his apparent tolerance of corruption in his administration. On the other hand, Grant worked hard to protect African Americans during Reconstruction after the Civil War, and pursued peaceful relations with Native Americans.

33 Oral health org. : ADA

The American Dental Association (ADA) is the largest and oldest national dental association in the world. Today the ADA is based in Chicago, but the association was founded in Niagara Falls, New York in 1859. The ADA started out as a group of 26 dentists, and it now has more than 152,000 members.

34 Phoenix-to-Albuquerque dir. : ENE

The city of Phoenix is the capital of the state of Arizona. Home to almost 1.5 million people, Phoenix is the most-populous state capital in the whole country.

Albuquerque is the most populous city in the state of New Mexico. The city was founded in 1706 as a Spanish colonial outpost named “La Villa de Alburquerque” (note the extra letter “r”) in honor of Francisco, Duke of Alburquerque, who had been viceroy of New Spain from 1653 to 1669. Alburquerque is a town in the west of Spain, close to the border with Portugal.

35 Malek of “Bohemian Rhapsody” : RAMI

Actor Rami Malek’s big break came with the leading role in the television series “Mr. Robot”. In 2018, Malik gave an Oscar-winning performance playing Freddie Mercury in the hit biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody”. That marked the first time that an actor of Egyptian descent won an Academy Award for Best Actor.

“Bohemian Rhapsody” is an outstanding 2018 film about the life of Freddie Mercury, lead singer with the British rock band Queen. Rami Malek portrayed Mercury, in an Oscar-winning performance. The original choice to play Mercury was Sacha Baron Cohen, the title character in the “Borat” mockumentary films.

36 Amtrak express : ACELA

The Acela Express is the fastest train routinely running in the US, as it gets up to 150 mph at times. The service runs between Boston and Washington D.C. via Baltimore, Philadelphia and New York. Introduced in 2000, the brand name “Acela” was created to evoke “acceleration” and “excellence”.

38 Where one might learn etiquette … or a hint to the answers to starred clues : FINISHING SCHOOL

A finishing school is a school for young women that is designed to teach deportment and etiquette in preparation for entry into society. In the US, such an institution might be called a charm school. The demand for finishing schools has waned dramatically since the 1960s.

42 Does’ mates : STAGS

A male deer is usually called a buck, and a female is a doe. However, the male red deer is usually referred to as a stag. The males of even larger species of deer are often called bulls, and the females called cows. In older English, male deer of over 5 years were called harts, and females of over 3 years were called hinds. The young of small species are known as fawns, and of larger species are called calves. All very confusing …

43 Mardi __ : GRAS

“Mardi Gras” translates from French as “Fat Tuesday”, and gets its name from the practice of eating rich foods on the eve of the fasting season known as Lent. Lent starts on the next day, called Ash Wednesday.

45 Paris’ __ de la Cité : ILE

There are two famous “îles” (islands) in the middle of the River Seine in Paris, one being the Île de la Cité, and the other Île Saint-Louis. Île de la Cité is the most renowned of the two, as it is home to the cathedral of Notre Dame.

46 Peninsular Persian Gulf land : QATAR

Qatar is a sovereign state in the Middle East occupying the Qatar Peninsula, itself located in the Arabian Peninsula. Qatar lies on the Persian Gulf and shares one land border, with Saudi Arabia to the south. Qatar has more oil and gas reserves per capita of population than any other country in the world. In 2010, Qatar had the fastest growing economy in the world, driven by the petrochemical industry. Qatar is scheduled to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, although the nation’s eligibility to do so is under question after a far-reaching bribery scandal was uncovered at the sport’s governing body.

49 *Contest won by the last fighter standing : BATTLE ROYALE (giving “YALE”)

A battle royal is a fight involving many combatants that is fought until one fighter emerges victorious. More recently, the term “battle royale” has become popular following the success of the Japanese film “Battle Royale” released in 2000. There are many, many video games that use the “battle royale” structure.

53 Japanese veggie : UDO

Udo is a perennial plant native to Japan known taxonomically as Aralia cordata. The stems of udo are sometimes boiled up and served in miso soup.

58 River through Rome : TIBER

The Tiber is the principal river in Italy in that it runs through the capital, Rome. It is the third longest river in the country.

60 *Comics Great Dane : MARMADUKE (giving “DUKE”)

Marmaduke is the title character in a newspaper comic strip that has been drawn by Brad Anderson since 1954. Marmaduke is a Great Dane, and the pet dog of the Winslow family.

Duke University was founded in 1838 as Brown’s Schoolhouse. The school was renamed to Trinity College in 1859, and to this day the town where the college was located back then is known as Trinity, in honor of the school. The school was moved in 1892 to Durham, North Carolina in part due to generous donations from the wealthy tobacco industrialist Washington Duke. Duke’s donation required that the school open its doors to women, placing them on an equal footing with men. Trinity’s name was changed to Duke in 1924 in recognition of the generosity of the Duke family. Duke’s athletic teams are known as the Blue Devils.

65 Geometry basic : AXIOM

In the world of mathematics, an axiom is a proposition, one that is taken as basic and self-evident.

66 Cab cousin : ZIN

Zinfandel is one of my favorite red wine varietals. It amazes me that the rich and heavy red Zinfandel comes from the same grape as does the sweet White Zinfandel.

68 Old photo tint : SEPIA

Sepia is that rich, brown-grey color so common in old photographs. “Sepia” is the Latinized version of the Greek word for cuttlefish, as sepia pigment is derived from the ink sac of the cuttlefish. Sepia ink was commonly used for writing and drawing as far back as ancient Rome and ancient Greece. The “sepia tone” of old photographs is not the result of deterioration over time. Rather, it is the result of a deliberate preservation process which converts the metallic silver in the photographic image to a more stable silver sulfide. Prints that have been sepia-toned can last in excess of 150 years.

69 British zoo opening? : ZED

The letter zed has been around since about 1400, and derives from the Greek letter zeta. The spelling and pronunciation “zee”, used in America today, first popped up in the 1670s. The spelling and pronunciation “zed” is still used in Britain and Ireland.

The world’s first zoo opened in Britain in 1820. Now known as “London Zoo”, the facility was referred to back then as the “Gardens and Menagerie of the Zoological Society of London”. The term “zoo” is a shortening of “zoological”.

Down

1 Athletic stereotype : JOCK

The term “jockstrap” supposedly arose in the late 1800s, as a contraction of the term “jockey strap”. A jockey strap was an undergarment designed for messengers and deliverymen who rode bicycles for many hours a day. The original American “jockstrap” was the “Bike Jockey Strap” that was introduced to the market in 1874. It is from the term “jockstrap” that we get “jock”, a word describing a stereotypical athletic type.

4 Brexit target org. : THE EU

The UK held a referendum in June 2016 in which 52% of voters chose to leave the European Union (EU). The term “Brexit” was used for the vote, a portmanteau of “Britain” and “exit”. The vote led to some debate about the future of the UK. The Scottish electorate voted for the UK to stay in the EU, and so that revived speculation about Scotland leaving the UK. There is also some discussion about Northern Ireland’s future in the UK, as the Northern Irish electorate also voted to stay in the EU.

6 Inventor Whitney : ELI

Inventor Eli Whitney is best known for inventing the cotton gin. Whitney also came up with the important concept of “interchangeable parts”. Parts that are interchangeable can be swapped out of equipment or perhaps used in related designs.

7 Attention from Dr. Mom : TLC

Tender loving care (TLC)

9 Hawaii or Alaska : STATE

Alaska became the 49th state to join the United States on January 3rd, 1959. Hawaii became the 50th state just a few months later, on August 21st.

10 Flat hat : TAM

A tam o’shanter is a man’s cap worn traditionally by Scotsmen. “Tams” were originally all blue (and called “blue bonnets”) but as more dyes became readily available they became more colorful. The name of the cap comes from the title character of the Robert Burns poem “Tam O’Shanter”.

12 Lotion ingredient : MINERAL OIL

Many of the oils that we use on a daily basis can be divided into vegetable oils and mineral oils. Chemically similar, vegetable oils come from vegetables; mineral oils come from a mineral source, usually petroleum.

13 __ owl : SNOWY

The snowy owl (also “snow owl”) is such a beautiful-looking creature. Itl has plumage that is thick and white, making it well-adapted for life in its native habitat in the Arctic north.

18 Word with capsule or clock : TIME …

A time capsule is a container of items chosen to help someone in the future understand society at the time the container is sealed. Although time capsules have been around at least from the 18th century, the term “time capsule” wasn’t coined until 1938.

A time clock is a device used to register the start and end time of a work period for an hourly employee.

22 Mantra syllables : OMS

“Om” is a sacred mystic word from the Hindu tradition. “Om” is sometimes used as a mantra, a focus for the mind in meditation.

25 Former Iranian leader : SHAH

The last Shah of Iran was Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was overthrown in the revolution led by Ayatollah Khomeini in 1979. The post-revolution government sought the extradition of the Shah back to Iran while he was in the United States seeking medical care (he had cancer). His prolonged stay in the United States, recovering from surgery, caused some unrest back in Iran and resentment towards the United States. Some say that this resentment precipitated the storming of the US Embassy in Tehran and the resulting hostage crisis.

26 Garment with spaghetti straps, for short : CAMI

A camisole (also “cami”) is a sleeveless undergarment worn by women that extends down to the waist. “Camisole” is a French word that we imported into English that ultimately derives from the Latin “camisia” meaning “shirt, nightgown”.

28 Speed ratio : MACH

The Mach number of a moving object (like say an airplane) is its speed relative to the speed of sound. A plane travelling at Mach 2, for example, is moving at twice the speed of sound. The term “Mach” takes its name from the Austrian physicist Ernst Mach who published a groundbreaking paper in 1877 that even predicted the “sonic boom”.

29 Umps’ counterparts : REFS

Back in the early 17th century, a referee was someone who examined patent applications. We started using the same term for a person presiding over a sporting event in the 1820s. “Referee” is a derivative of the verb “to refer”, and literally describes someone who has the authority to make a decision by “referring to” a book, archive etc.

31 Hockey’s “sin bin,” formally : PENALTY BOX

The penalty box (less formally “sin bin”) is an area used in several sports for a player to serve out a given time penalty. Sin bins are used perhaps most notably in ice hockey, rugby and roller derby.

35 Blog feed letters : RSS

Many websites and blogs publish content in a format known as Rich Site Summary (RSS). The “feed” can be read using an RSS reader. The advantage of using an RSS reader is that the user doesn’t have to check the website for new content. That new material is fed to the RSS reader as soon as it is published.

36 Rm. coolers : ACS

The modern form of air conditioning (AC) that is still used today was invented by Willis Carrier in 1902. He co-founded the Carrier Engineering Corporation in New York in 1915. The Carrier Corporation eventually moved to Syracuse, New York in 1937. Beyond the world of air conditioning, the Carrier name has been associated with Syracuse University’s famous Carrier Dome since it opened in 1980. The Carrier Dome is the largest on-campus basketball stadium in the country.

41 Lee known for desserts : SARA

In 1935, businessman Charles Lubin bought a chain of three bakeries in Chicago called Community Bake Shops, and soon expanded the operation into seven stores. Lubin introduced a cream cheesecake that he named after his daughter who was only 8-years-old at the time, Sara Lee Lubin. The cheesecake was a hit and he renamed the bakeries to Kitchen of Sara Lee. The business was bought out by Consolidated Foods in 1956, but the brand name Sara Lee persists to this day, as does Ms. Sara Lee herself who now goes by the name Sara Lee Schupf.

46 Proof-ending letters : QED

The initialism “QED” is used at the end of a mathematical proof or a philosophical argument. QED stands for the Latin “quod erat demonstrandum” meaning “that which was to be demonstrated”.

51 Animal name starting with a double letter : LLAMA

The wool from a llama is much softer than that from a sheep, and it is also free from lanolin.

56 Tulsa native, e.g. : OKIE

Tulsa is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma (after Oklahoma City). Tulsa started out as a settlement established by the Loachapoka and Creek Native American tribes in 1836. These early settlers called their new home “Tallasi” meaning “old town”, and this name morphed into “Tulsa” that we use today.

63 “Little ol’ me?” : MOI?

“Moi” is the French word for “me”. One might say “Moi?” when feigning innocence.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 4-Across holder : JAW
4 Chewing need : TEETH
9 Comes (from) : STEMS
14 Rock in a vein : ORE
15 Actress Berry of “X-Men” films : HALLE
16 Easy putt : TAP-IN
17 *Where many hockey face-offs happen : CENTER ICE (giving “RICE”)
19 Kind of acid in proteins : AMINO
20 Journalist Couric : KATIE
21 Spicy : HOT
23 Work with a needle : SEW
24 *Physical ability acquired via repetition : MUSCLE MEMORY (giving “EMORY”)
29 Ready to harvest : RIPE
32 President after Grant : HAYES
33 Oral health org. : ADA
34 Phoenix-to-Albuquerque dir. : ENE
35 Malek of “Bohemian Rhapsody” : RAMI
36 Amtrak express : ACELA
38 Where one might learn etiquette … or a hint to the answers to starred clues : FINISHING SCHOOL
42 Does’ mates : STAGS
43 Mardi __ : GRAS
44 Zip : NIL
45 Paris’ __ de la Cité : ILE
46 Peninsular Persian Gulf land : QATAR
48 Depend (on) : RELY
49 *Contest won by the last fighter standing : BATTLE ROYALE (giving “YALE”)
52 Authentic ending? : -ITY
53 Japanese veggie : UDO
54 Birthday process : LABOR
58 River through Rome : TIBER
60 *Comics Great Dane : MARMADUKE (giving “DUKE”)
64 Call to mind : EVOKE
65 Geometry basic : AXIOM
66 Cab cousin : ZIN
67 H.S. health course : SEX ED
68 Old photo tint : SEPIA
69 British zoo opening? : ZED

Down

1 Athletic stereotype : JOCK
2 Region : AREA
3 Left : WENT
4 Brexit target org. : THE EU
5 Canal site : EAR
6 Inventor Whitney : ELI
7 Attention from Dr. Mom : TLC
8 Lighthearted laugh : HEE-HEE
9 Hawaii or Alaska : STATE
10 Flat hat : TAM
11 TV pilot, often : EPISODE ONE
12 Lotion ingredient : MINERAL OIL
13 __ owl : SNOWY
18 Word with capsule or clock : TIME …
22 Mantra syllables : OMS
25 Former Iranian leader : SHAH
26 Garment with spaghetti straps, for short : CAMI
27 Deceiving : LYING TO
28 Speed ratio : MACH
29 Umps’ counterparts : REFS
30 Ambition : INITIATIVE
31 Hockey’s “sin bin,” formally : PENALTY BOX
35 Blog feed letters : RSS
36 Rm. coolers : ACS
37 Friend : ALLY
39 “Oh, now __ it!” : I GET
40 Ethically uncertain : GRAY
41 Lee known for desserts : SARA
46 Proof-ending letters : QED
47 Food court attractions : AROMAS
48 Audition (for) : READ
49 Nibbles : BITES
50 Attracted : LURED
51 Animal name starting with a double letter : LLAMA
55 Fly sound : BUZZ
56 Tulsa native, e.g. : OKIE
57 Tear : REND
59 Just make, with “out” : EKE …
61 Wood-splitting tool : AXE
62 Tear : RIP
63 “Little ol’ me?” : MOI?