LA Times Crossword 16 Nov 21, Tuesday

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Constructed by: Sam Acker
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Prime-Time Listing

Themed answers are common phrases starting with a number followed by a unit of TIME. As we descend the grid, the numbers used are the first four PRIME numbers, in order. Clever …

  • 62A Large-audience schedule item .. and what the four other longest answers comprise? : PRIME-TIME LISTING
  • 18A Automatic time-out near the end of each NFL half : TWO-MINUTE WARNING
  • 29A Guided sightseeing event in the “Gilligan’s Island” theme : THREE-HOUR TOUR
  • 37A Food-dropped-on-the-floor “policy” : FIVE-SECOND RULE
  • 47A 1955 Marilyn Monroe film, with “The” : SEVEN YEAR ITCH

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

Bill’s time: 6m 43s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 Type of bagel : SESAME

The bagel was invented in the Polish city of Kraków in the 16th century. Bagels were brought to this country by Jewish immigrants from Poland who mainly established homes in and around New York City.

15 “Wuthering Heights” setting : MOOR

“Wuthering Heights” is the only novel written by Emily Brontë, and one that she published using the pen name Ellis Bell. “Wuthering Heights” was published in December of 1847, a date chosen to take advantage of the wave of success enjoyed by Charlotte Brontë’s “Jane Eyre” that had been published just two months earlier.

23 Medium-sized apple : GALA

Gala is the second-most popular apple cultivar in the US, after red delicious. The gala apple tree originated in New Zealand in 1930, and is a cross between a golden delicious and a Kidd’s orange red.

26 Dance named for a horse’s gait : GALOP

A galop is a type of dance that was especially popular in Parisian society in the 1800s. It is a fast-paced dance named after the fastest running gait of a horse (a gallop). The most famous exponent of the form was Johann Strauss II.

28 Here-there in-between : NOR

Neither here nor there …

29 Guided sightseeing event in the “Gilligan’s Island” theme : THREE-HOUR TOUR

The iconic sitcom “Gilligan’s Island” ran for only three seasons, although that added up to a total of 98 episodes. The show is about a small band of castaways who are trying to escape their island and return to Hawaii. The last episode originally aired in 1967. The castaways did eventually get off the island in a 1978 TV movie called “Rescue from Gilligan’s Island”, but ended up back on the island at the end of the film.

Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale,
A tale of a fateful trip
That started from this tropic port
Aboard this tiny ship.

The mate was a mighty sailing man,
The skipper brave and sure.
Five passengers set sail that day
For a three hour tour, a three hour tour.

The weather started getting rough,
The tiny ship was tossed,
If not for the courage of the fearless crew
The Minnow would be lost, the Minnow would be lost.

The ship set ground on the shore of this uncharted desert isle
With Gilligan
The Skipper too,
The millionaire and his wife,
The movie star
The Professor and Mary Ann,
Here on Gilligan’s Isle.

33 Paleozoic __ : ERA

The Paleozoic Era (with “Paleozoic” meaning “ancient life”) was a geologic era from roughly 542 to 251 million years ago. Notably in the Paleozoic Era, fish populations thrived and vast forests of primitive plants covered the land. Those forests were the source material for the coal which we dig out of the ground now in Europe and the eastern parts of North America. The end of the Paleozoic Era was marked by the largest mass extinction in the history of the Earth, killing off 96% of all marine species and 70% of all terrestrial vertebrates. Causes of the extinction have been suggested, with one hypothesis being gradually accelerating climate change (scary!).

37 Food-dropped-on-the-floor “policy” : FIVE-SECOND RULE

There’s a myth that food dropped on the floor that is picked up within five seconds is free from contamination. The myth goes by the name “five-second rule”, or sometimes “ten-second rule”.

43 Pulitzer author Jennifer : EGAN

Jennifer Egan is an author who grew up in San Francisco. Egan’s 2010 work “A Visit from the Goon Squad” won the 2011 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Usually termed a novel, “A Visit from the Goon Squad” is structured in such a way that it is sometimes described as a collection of linked short stories.

44 Reuben bread : RYE

There are conflicting stories about the origin of the Reuben sandwich. One such story is that it was invented around 1914 by Arnold Reuben, an immigrant from Germany who owned Reuben’s Deli in New York.

45 LGBT History Mo. : OCT

LGBT History Month has been celebrated annually since 1994. The month of October was chosen so that it coincided with the already-existing National Coming Out Day, which is observed annually on October 11th.

47 1955 Marilyn Monroe film, with “The” : SEVEN YEAR ITCH

“The Seven Year Itch” is a 1955 movie by Billy Wilder that is based on a stage play of the same name by George Axelrod. The film stars Marilyn Monroe, and Tom Ewell as the guy with “the itch”. Perhaps the most famous scene in the film is the one with Monroe standing over a subway grate allowing the updraft to billow the skirt of her white dress above her knees. The manoeuvre was meant to cool her down, but I think it had the opposite effect on some in the audience! The phrase “seven year itch” had been used by psychologists to describe declining interest in staying monogamous after seven years of marriage.

Marilyn Monroe was born in 1926 in LA County Hospital, the child of Gladys Pearl Baker. The young girl was given the name of Norma Jeane Mortenson on her birth certificate, but her mother changed this to Norma Jeane Baker almost immediately. She and her estranged husband, Martin Edward Mortensen, had separated before Baker became pregnant so it is suggested that the Mortensen name was used just to give Norma Jeane “legitimacy”. Norma Jeane married Jim Dougherty when she was 16 years old, and took his name to become Norma Jeane Dougherty in 1942. During WWII she was discovered by a photographer and became quite a successful model. The modelling earned her a screen test, at which time it was suggested that Norma Jeane change her name yet again. The first name chosen for her by studio executives was Carole Lind (after Carole Lombard and Jenny Lind), but then Norma Jeane chose “Jeane Monroe” for herself, using her mother’s maiden name. It didn’t take long before the studio intervened again, suggesting that they had too many “Jeans” already. The name Marilyn Monroe was floated as it had a nice ring to it. Along with the new name, Marilyn changed from a brunette to a blonde, and a star was born …

56 Pricey watch : ROLEX

My most-prized possession is a beautiful stainless steel Rolex watch that my uncle bought while serving with the RAF in Canada during WWII. Rolex watches were made available to the Canadian servicemen at that time as they were shipping overseas. My uncle brought his Rolex home to Ireland after the war. He needed money one weekend and so sold the watch to my Dad, for five pounds. My Dad gave it to me just before he died, as he knew I loved the watch, and my brothers weren’t interested in it all. Not so long ago I had the watch appraised ($3,000), and my brothers suddenly took a liking to it! Still, it’s not something that will ever be sold, that’s for sure …

58 Nagano noodle : SOBA

Soba is a thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. In Japan, the word “soba” tends to describe any thin noodle, in contrast with the thicker noodle called “udon”.

Nagano is a city on Japan’s largest island, Honshu. Nagano hosted the 1998 Winter Olympic Games.

61 Noodle shape : ELBOW

In many cases, the name given to a type of pasta comes from its shape. However, the name macaroni comes from the type of dough used to make the noodles. Here in the US, macaroni is usually elbow-shaped, but it doesn’t have to be.

62 Large-audience schedule item .. and what the four other longest answers comprise? : PRIME-TIME LISTING

In the world of television, prime time is that part of the day when networks and advertisers maximize revenues due to the high number of viewers. Prime time is often defined as 7-10 p.m. Mountain and Central Time, and 8-11 p.m. Pacific and Eastern Time.

69 Golfer Aoki : ISAO

Isao Aoki is one of Japan’s greatest golfers. Aoki’s best finish in a major tournament was runner-up to Jack Nicklaus in the 1980 US Open.

70 Fenway team : RED SOX

The Boston Red Sox are one of the most successful Major League Baseball teams and so command a large attendance, but only when on the road. The relatively small capacity of Boston’s Fenway Park, the team’s home since 1912, has dictated that every game the Red Sox have played there has been a sell-out from May of 2003 to April 2013. I recently had the pleasure of touring Fenway Park. It’s quite a place …

71 Viral internet item : 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.

72 “bye 4 now” : TTYL

Talk to you later (ttyl)

Down

1 Defib expert : EMT

A defibrillator (defib) might be operated by an emergency medical technician (EMT).

2 The “D” in DJIA : DOW

Dow Jones & Company was founded as a publishing house in 1882 by three newspaper reporters, Charles Dow, Edward Jones and Charles Bergstresser. Today, the company’s most famous publication has to be “The Wall Street Journal”. In 1884, Charles Dow started reporting the average dollar value of the stock of eleven companies, an index which spawned a whole host of metrics that carry the Dow Jones name to this day. The most famous of these metrics is the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), also known as “the Dow 30” or simply “the Dow”.

4 Ferret’s cousin : ERMINE

The stoat has dark brown fur in the summer, and white fur in the winter. Sometimes the term “ermine” is used for the animal during the winter when the fur is white. Ermine skins have long been prized by royalty and are often used for white trim on ceremonial robes.

8 Law exam, familiarly : THE BAR

“The bar” is a term often used for “the legal profession”. It is a reference to the “bar” that separates spectators from participants in a courtroom.

9 Jet Ski rival : SEA-DOO

Sea-Doo is a brand name of personal watercraft (PWC). Other well-known brands are Jet Ski and WaveRunner.

10 Drop a fly, e.g. : ERR

That would be baseball.

11 Did a number : SANG

The use of the term “number” for a song or musical selection dates back to the days of vaudeville. Vaudeville acts were listed by number in theater programs.

12 Lai or Thai : ASIAN

The Lai are an ethnic group found mainly in India and Myanmar. Some believe that the Lai migrated from China, passing through the mountains of Tibet, and are direct descendants of the Qin Dynasty.

The Thai people are an ethnic group found mainly in Central and Southern Thailand. That said, the term “Thai people” is also used to describe all people from Thailand.

13 __ Park: Edison lab site : MENLO

Menlo Park, New Jersey is noted as the home to the laboratory belonging to Thomas Edison (TAE). We also have a pretty well-known Menlo Park out here in California, home to many of the venture capital companies that tend to make a lot of money out of Silicon Valley businesses.

14 Mystery writers’ award : EDGAR

The Edgar Allan Poe Awards (“Edgars”) are presented annually by the Mystery Writers of America. There are several categories of awards. For example, the Ellery Queen Award honors “writing teams and outstanding people in the mystery-publishing industry”. The Raven Award is presented to non-writers, who contribute to the mystery genre.

24 Mo. metropolis : STL

The city of St. Louis, Missouri was settled by French explorers in 1763. Sitting on the Mississippi River, it grew into a very busy port. By the 1850s, it was the second busiest port in the country, with only New York moving more freight. St. Louis was named for Louis IX of France. Louis was canonized in 1297 by Pope Boniface VIII, and was the only French king to be declared a saint.

26 Chip dip, casually : GUAC

Guacamole is one of my favorite dishes. It is prepared by mashing avocados and perhaps adding the likes of tomato, onion and lime juice. The guacamole recipe dates back as early as the 16th century, to the time of the Aztecs. “Guacamole” translates as “avocado sauce”.

31 India-born author Santha Rama __ : RAU

Santha Rama Rau was a travel writer from India who lived much of her life in the US. As well as writing her own books, Rau also adapted the E. M. Forster novel “A Passage to India” for the stage.

38 Mil. hospitals : VAS

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) was formed in 1930 to manage pre-existing government benefits for war veterans. Some of those benefits dated back to the Continental Congress. Today, the most visible benefit is probably the network of VA medical centers that provide comprehensive healthcare services to veterans.

39 Part of DOE: Abbr. : ENER

The US Department of Energy (DOE) came into being largely as a result of the 1973 oil crisis. The DOE was founded in 1977 by the Carter administration. The DOE is responsible for regulating the production of nuclear power, and it is also responsible for the nation’s nuclear weapons. The official DOE seal features a lightning bolt and symbols denoting five sources of energy: the sun, an atom, an oil derrick, a windmill and a dynamo.

40 African antelope : ORYX

The oryx is a large antelope species, mainly found in Africa but also in the Arabian Peninsula. One species was introduced by man into the White Sands Missile Range. As a result, the oryx is now considered an invasive species in the neighboring White Sands National Monument.

41 “Bill __ the Science Guy”: ’90s TV show : NYE

That would be “Bill Nye the Science Guy”. Bill’s show ran on PBS for four years, from 1993-97.

42 When the story is due : DEADLINE

Our use of the term “deadline”, to mean “point in time before something must be done”, arose as jargon in the American newspaper industry in the 1920s. During the Civil War, a deadline was a do-not-cross line drawn on the ground in Confederate prisons.

46 ” … hallowed be __ name” : THY

“Hallowed be thy name” is a phrase from the Lord’s Prayer.

The Lord’s Prayer is a central prayer in Christian religions, and is found in two places in the New Testament. In the version in the Gospel of Matthew, the last line of the prayer is “deliver us from evil”. In the Gospel of Luke, the last line is “lead us not into temptation”. The last words of the prayer most often used today are:

For thine is the kingdom,
The power, and the glory,
For ever and ever,
Amen

49 “The Time Machine” race : ELOI

In the 1895 novella by H. G. Wells called “The Time Machine”, there are two races that the hero encounters in his travels into the future. The Eloi are the “beautiful people” who live on the planet’s surface. The Morlocks are a domineering race living underground who use the Eloi as food.

52 “Eureka!” : I GOT IT!

“Eureka” translates from Greek as “I have found it”. The word is usually associated with Archimedes, uttered as he stepped into his bath one day. His discovery was that the volume of water that was displaced was equal to that of the object (presumably his foot) that had been submerged. He used this fact to determine the volume of a crown, something he needed in order to determine if it was made of pure gold or was a forgery.

54 Michaels of “SNL” : LORNE

Lorne Michaels is a television producer who is best known as the creator of “Saturday Night Live” (SNL). We can get some insight into Michaels’ character and demeanor by watching the show “30 Rock”. The character Jack Donaghy, played by Alec Baldwin, is inspired by Michaels.

55 “Thelma & Louise” car : T-BIRD

Ford manufactured the Thunderbird (T-Bird) from 1955 to 2005. Originally a two-seater sporty convertible, the T-Bird was introduced as a competitor to Chevrolet’s new sports car, the Corvette. The “Thunderbird” name is a reference to a legendary creature from the culture of several Native-American peoples. There’s also a story that the name is a direct reference to the Thunderbird Country Club in Rancho Mirage, California of which the then chairman of Ford’s board was a member.

“Thelma & Louise” is a much-respected 1991 movie starring Geena Davis as Thelma and Susan Sarandon as Louise. Brad Pitt has a supporting role, and indeed “Thelma and Louise” was the film that gave Pitt his big break.

59 Amo, __, amat … : AMAS

“Amo, amas, amat” translates from Latin as “I love, you love, he/she/it loves”.

61 S, Am, Ac, K or Er : ELEM

Here are some chemical elements and their symbols:

  • Sulfur (S)
  • Americium (Am)
  • Actinium (Ac)
  • Potassium (K)
  • Erbium (Er)

64 Ill-fated fruit eater : EVE

In the Christian tradition, the “fall of man” took place in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve succumbed to the temptation of eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This went against the bidding of God, and was at the urging of the serpent. As a result, Adam and Eve were banished from Eden to prevent them from becoming immortal by eating from the tree of life. The first humans had transitioned from a state of innocent obedience to a state of guilty disobedience.

66 Score in fútbol : GOL

In Spanish, a “fútbol” (football) announcer might shout “gol!” (goal!).

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Outer border : EDGE
5 Soft “Hey, you!” : PSST!
9 Type of bagel : SESAME
15 “Wuthering Heights” setting : MOOR
16 “I have a bad feeling about this” : UH-OH
17 Removed, as a pencil mark : ERASED
18 Automatic time-out near the end of each NFL half : TWO-MINUTE WARNING
21 Pay a call on : VISIT
22 Auction offer : BID
23 Medium-sized apple : GALA
24 Parts of an act : SCENES
26 Dance named for a horse’s gait : GALOP
28 Here-there in-between : NOR
29 Guided sightseeing event in the “Gilligan’s Island” theme : THREE-HOUR TOUR
32 Biotech room : LAB
33 Paleozoic __ : ERA
34 Knocks firmly : RAPS
37 Food-dropped-on-the-floor “policy” : FIVE-SECOND RULE
43 Pulitzer author Jennifer : EGAN
44 Reuben bread : RYE
45 LGBT History Mo. : OCT
47 1955 Marilyn Monroe film, with “The” : SEVEN YEAR ITCH
53 __-rock: music : ALT
56 Pricey watch : ROLEX
57 Pooch’s plaything : DOG TOY
58 Nagano noodle : SOBA
60 Worksheet line : ROW
61 Noodle shape : ELBOW
62 Large-audience schedule item .. and what the four other longest answers comprise? : PRIME-TIME LISTING
67 Anger to the max : ENRAGE
68 Baker’s appliance : OVEN
69 Golfer Aoki : ISAO
70 Fenway team : RED SOX
71 Viral internet item : MEME
72 “bye 4 now” : TTYL

Down

1 Defib expert : EMT
2 The “D” in DJIA : DOW
3 Succeed impressively : GO OVER BIG
4 Ferret’s cousin : ERMINE
5 Grounds for bad behavior, say : PUNISHES
6 Close : SHUT
7 Drunkard : SOT
8 Law exam, familiarly : THE BAR
9 Jet Ski rival : SEA-DOO
10 Drop a fly, e.g. : ERR
11 Did a number : SANG
12 Lai or Thai : ASIAN
13 __ Park: Edison lab site : MENLO
14 Mystery writers’ award : EDGAR
19 “That makes sense” : I SEE
20 Become limp : WILT
24 Mo. metropolis : STL
25 Rub the wrong way : CHAFE
26 Chip dip, casually : GUAC
27 Run smoothly, as an engine : PURR
30 Tram load : ORE
31 India-born author Santha Rama __ : RAU
35 Story line surprise : PLOT TWIST
36 Italian for “dry” : SECCO
38 Mil. hospitals : VAS
39 Part of DOE: Abbr. : ENER
40 African antelope : ORYX
41 “Bill __ the Science Guy”: ’90s TV show : NYE
42 When the story is due : DEADLINE
46 ” … hallowed be __ name” : THY
48 Whirlpool : VORTEX
49 “The Time Machine” race : ELOI
50 One raising her first child : NEW MOM
51 Takes badly? : ROBS
52 “Eureka!” : I GOT IT!
53 In accordance with : AS PER
54 Michaels of “SNL” : LORNE
55 “Thelma & Louise” car : T-BIRD
59 Amo, __, amat … : AMAS
61 S, Am, Ac, K or Er : ELEM
63 It may be inflated : EGO
64 Ill-fated fruit eater : EVE
65 Vote of opposition : NAY
66 Score in fútbol : GOL