LA Times Crossword 31 Jul 26, Friday

Advertisement

Constructed by: Betsy Ochester & Andrew Gutelle

Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Around the Corner

Themed answers are all at the CORNERS of the grid, and need to add the word “CORNER” to finish them off:

• 37A Not far off, or where to look to make this puzzle’s starred clues match their answers? : AROUND THE CORNER

• 1A *Executive space with great views : CORNER OFFICE
• 7A *Area in Westminster Abbey where Chaucer is buried : POETS’ CORNER
• 65A *Place to find a date? : CORNERSTONE
• 66A *Stop sign locale : STREET CORNER
• 12D *Scoring opportunity in soccer : CORNER KICK
• 14D *Defensive player who’s often the fastest on the football field : CORNERBACK
• 47D *Eeyore’s home : POOH CORNER
• 53D *Challenging stretch at Augusta National : AMEN CORNER

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

Bill’s time: 7m 50s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

7A *Area in Westminster Abbey where Chaucer is buried : POETS’ CORNER

Poets’ Corner is an area in Westminster Abbey in London that earned its name from the high number of poets buried and commemorated there, as well as playwrights and authors. The first poet interred there was Geoffrey Chaucer. Also in Poets’ Corner are the remains of Edmund Spenser, Robert Browning, Charles Dickens, John Dryden, George Frideric Handel, Thomas Hardy, Samuel Johnson, Rudyard Kipling, Laurence Olivier and Alfred, Lord Tennyson. Wow!

The actual name for the Gothic church we know as Westminster Abbey is the Collegiate Church of St. Peter at Westminster. The Abbey is a favored location for coronations and royal weddings and burials.

Geoffrey Chaucer was an English author. He is often referred to as the father of English literature because he established vernacular English as a legitimate language for artistic works, as up to that point authors used French or Latin. Chaucer’s most famous work is actually unfinished, a collection of stories called “The Canterbury Tales” that were all written at the end of the 14th century.

12A Quaint term for “patella” : KNEEPAN

The patella is the kneecap. The bone’s Latin name “patella” is a diminutive form of “patina”, the word for “pan”. The idea is that the kneecap is pan-shaped.

15A Björk’s country : ICELAND

Björk is a rather eccentric singer-songwriter from Iceland who is a big hit in the UK in particular. Björk is the daughter of a nationally recognized union leader in her home country.

16A Ferrera of “Ugly Betty” : AMERICA

America Ferrera is an actress best known for playing the title role in the TV comedy “Ugly Betty”. She is a smart lady and earned herself a presidential scholarship to study at the University of Southern California. However, Ferrera dropped out just one semester shy of graduating when she decided to turn her full attention to her role in “Ugly Betty”.

17A Winnow : CULL

We use the verb “to winnow” in a figurative sense to describe the separation of something good from a collection of worthless things. The more literal meaning is the freeing of grain from the lighter chaff by blowing on the mixture, or by throwing it in the air.

20A Rat (on) : NARC

Back in the 1800s, “to nark” was “to act as a police informer”. The spelling of the term has started to evolve into “to narc”, due to the influence of the noun “narc”, slang for a narcotics officer. The “nark” spelling is still used on the other side of the Atlantic.

21A “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” novelist : KESEY

Ken Kesey wrote the novels “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and “Sometimes a Great Notion”. He was one of a group of friends who called themselves the “Merry Pranksters”, a bunch of guys who were associated with the likes of Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg and Timothy Leary, all icons of the Beat Generation.

Ken Kesey’s 1962 novel “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” is set in a psychiatric hospital in Salem, Oregon. The novel was adapted into a stage play in 1963 starring Kirk Douglas, who had purchased the rights to produce it on stage and screen. The film version was finally made in 1975, with Kirk Douglas’s son Michael Douglas as co-producer.

24A Albanian currency : LEK

The official currency of Albania is the lek. The first lek was introduced in 1926, and was apparently named after Alexander the Great.

25A “Tubular!” : RAD!

“Tubular” is a slang from the 1980s meaning “awesome, excellent”. Apparently, the term has its roots in surfers using “tube” as slang for a hollow and curling wave considered best for surfing.

29A Texter’s “Just a sec” : BRB

Be right back (brb)

30A Atlanta-based health agcy. : CDC

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is based in Atlanta, Georgia. The CDC started out life during WWII as the Office of National Defense Malaria Control Activities. The CDC worries about much more than malaria these days …

33A String of dried chile peppers : RISTRA

A ristra (also “sarta”) is a traditional string of dried chile peppers, garlic pods or other vegetables. Beyond the practical use of the arrangement for sun-drying, the ristra has become symbolic of the Southwestern culture, and a decorative design element.

40A Jazz singer Sylvia : SYMS

Sylvia Syms was a jazz singer from New York. Frank Sinatra called Syms the “world’s greatest saloon singer”, and gave her the nickname “Buddha”. Syms actually died on stage, suffering a heart attack at the age of 74.

42A “A Boy Named __”: Johnny Cash hit : SUE

“A Boy Named Sue” is a classic song by Shel Silverstein that was popularized by Johnny Cash. Famously, Cash recorded the song at a live concert he gave in 1969 at San Quentin State Prison.

43A Navy noncom : CPO

A Chief Petty Officer (CPO) is a non-commissioned officer (NCO) in the Navy (USN) and Coast Guard (USCG). The “Petty” is derived from the French word “petit” meaning “small”.

47A Kung __ chicken : PAO

Kung Pao chicken (or sometimes shrimp or tofu) is a Sichuan stir-fry dish that includes peanuts, vegetables and chili peppers. The name “Kung Pao” is thought to come from a governor of the Sichuan province whose title was “Gongbao”, meaning “Palace Guardian”.

48A Trippy drug : LSD

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 …

50A Molten rock : MAGMA

Magma is the molten material below the Earth’s surface. When magma cools, it forms igneous rock. “Magma” is a Greek term that describes a thick ointment.

54A Luxury hotel chain : OMNI

Omni Hotels was founded in 1958 as Dunfey Hotels, a regional business established by three brothers in New England. The company changed its name to Omni in 1983, when it acquired a small Atlanta-based chain of hotels that used the “Omni International” moniker.

63A “House __”: longtime HGTV series : HUNTERS

“House Hunters” is an HGTV show that follows individuals who are searching for a new home with the help of a real estate agent. Supposedly, three houses are presented to the potential buyer, and the buyer chooses one of the three. However, reality is that the buyer is already in escrow with the favored house before filming starts. The other two houses presented are those that were considered and already rejected. There are several spin-offs to the show, including “Tiny House Hunters” in which participants are looking to downsize to a house smaller than 600 square feet.

64A “Airplane!” star Leslie : NIELSEN

Leslie Nielsen was a Canadian actor, one famous for playing the zany Sergeant Frank Drebin in “The Naked Gun”. Nielsen’s big break in comedy films came in the innovative movie “Airplane!”

The 1980 movie “Airplane!” has to be one of the zaniest comedies ever made. The lead roles were Ted Striker (played by Robert Hays) and Elaine Dickinson (played by Julie Hagerty). But it was Leslie Nielsen who stole the show, playing Dr. Barry Rumack. That’s my own humble opinion of course …

65A *Place to find a date? : CORNERSTONE

In practical terms, a cornerstone is the first stone set during the construction of a building with a masonry foundation. Also known as the foundation stone or setting stone, the cornerstone determines the final position of the final structure, as all other stones are laid with reference to that first stone. For some time, we’ve also used the term “cornerstone” in a ceremonial sense. A ceremonial cornerstone is set in a prominent position at the corner of a wall, and usually bears significant information such as date of construction and names of the architect and builder.

66A *Stop sign locale : STREET CORNER

The first stop sign appeared in Detroit in 1915, though it looked quite different than today. It was a simple square with black letters on a white background. In 1923, the Mississippi Valley Association of State Highway Departments recommended the octagonal shape we know today. This helped drivers recognize it from a distance or even from behind. Reflective materials were added in 1935 for better nighttime visibility, and the red color with white lettering was standardized in 1954 to make it even more noticeable.

Down

3D Hall of Fame pitcher Bob who won the World Series in 1948 with Cleveland : FELLER

Bob Feller was a major league baseball player who turned out for the Cleveland Indians for all of his playing career. Feller played for the Indians from 1936 to 1956, with a four-year interruption for military service as a Chief Petty Officer on the USS Alabama during WWII.

4D Bitter brew, briefly : IPA

Hops are what give beer its bitterness, and IPAs are relatively bitter because extra hops are used when brewing. Different types of hops have different levels of bitterness, and brewers can choose how much to add to make their IPA more or less bitter.

5D Jargon : CANT

Cant is insincere language, or the language associated with a particular group. Back in the 1600s, the term described the whining of beggars.

7D Tennis player Shriver and actress Grier : PAMS

Pam Shriver is a former professional tennis player who was especially respected for her abilities as a doubles player. Most of her success came with playing partner Martina Navratilova. Shriver was married for several years to James Bond actor George Lazenby, with whom she has three children.

Pam Grier is an actress whose most acclaimed performance was in the 1997 Quentin Tarantino film “Jackie Brown”, in which she played the title role.

11D French cry of surprise : SACRE BLEU!

French speakers don’t really use the profanity “sacré bleu”, at least not anymore, but we see it a lot in English literature featuring native French speakers. Most famously it is uttered by Agatha Christie’s delightful Belgian detective Hercule Poirot. There is some dispute about the origins of “sacré bleu” (sacred blue), but French dictionaries explain that it is a “softening” of the alternative “sacré Dieu” (Holy God).

12D *Scoring opportunity in soccer : CORNER KICK

A corner kick is awarded in soccer when the ball completely crosses the goal line, having last touched a defending player, without a goal being scored. It was adopted in 1872 to prevent defensive players from deliberately kicking the ball out of bounds to waste time.

13D Spoke rapidly : PATTERED

The use of the term “patter”, meaning “recite rapidly”, comes from the Lord’s Prayer (“Pater Noster” in Latin). Congregations in English Christian churches tended to rush through the prayer in Latin, reciting it in Latin.

30D __ in Charlie : C AS

The NATO phonetic alphabet was actually developed by the International Civil Aviation Organization in the 1950s. It was introduced to prevent catastrophic misunderstandings in post-WWII global air traffic. Its final twenty-six words feature deliberate spelling quirks designed specifically to accommodate international accents. For example, “Alfa” uses an “f” instead of a “ph” to prevent non-English speakers from pronouncing it with a hard “p”, and “Juliett” gains an extra “t” so French operators won’t treat the final consonant as silent.

34D Pittsburgh team : STEELERS

The Pittsburgh Steelers football team was founded in 1933, making it the oldest franchise in the AFC. Back in 1933, the team was known as the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates name was chosen as the Pittsburgh baseball team was the Pirates. The name was changed to the Steelers in 1940, and then the Steagles in 1943 when the team merged with the Philadelphia Eagles. There was a further merger in 1944, with the Chicago Cardinals to form Card-Pitt. The Steelers name was resurrected in 1945.

38D GI show gp. : USO

The United Service Organizations (USO) was founded in 1941 at the request of President Franklin D. Roosevelt “to handle the on-leave recreation of the men in the armed forces”. A USO tour is undertaken by a troupe of entertainers, many of whom are big-name celebrities. A USO tour usually includes troop locations in combat zones.

39D Leslie __ Jr. of “Hamilton” : ODOM

Leslie Odom Jr. is the actor and singer who originated the role of Aaron Burr in “Hamilton” on Broadway. More recently, he played Dr. Arbuthnot in the 2017 movie adaptation of Agatha Christie’s “Murder on the Orient Express”.

46D Turkey appendage : WATTLE

A wattle is that ugly (at least I think it’s ugly) appendage hanging below the neck of some birds, like say a turkey.

47D *Eeyore’s home : POOH CORNER

“The House at Pooh Corner” is the second volume of stories written by A. A. Milne about the wonderful Winnie-the-Pooh. The collection marks the first time we meet the bouncy character called Tigger. Pooh Corner is the specific location where Winnie-the-Pooh and Piglet rebuilt Eeyore’s house of sticks.

51D Gaggle birds : GEESE

A collection of geese is referred to as a “gaggle” when on the ground. When geese are in V-formation in flight, they are referred to collectively as a “skein”.

52D Mascot Hall of Fame inductee from Queens : MR MET

Mr. Met is the mascot of the New York Mets. He is a guy with a large baseball as a head. There’s also a Mrs. Met, a mascot who was previously known as Lady Met.

The Mascot Hall of Fame was founded in 2005 by David Raymond, the original Phillie Phanatic. It operated as an online museum for over a decade, before opening a physical, 25,000-square-foot interactive children’s museum in Whiting, Indiana in 2018. That facility shut down in 2024, so the Hall of Fame reverted to an online-only presence. To be eligible for induction, a costumed character must have performed at the collegiate or professional level for a minimum of ten years and demonstrated a profound charitable impact on their local community.

53D *Challenging stretch at Augusta National : AMEN CORNER

“Amen corner” is the name given to that location in a church where the congregation is particularly vocal in responding to the preacher. It’s a term that arose in Southern Baptist churches.

57D Spunk : GRIT

The word “spunk” began as a Scottish term meaning “spark, match, flammable tinder”. It wasn’t until the late 1700s that this firestarter was metaphorically adapted to describe a person’s pluck, courage, or mettle.

60D “Severance” director Stiller : BEN

Ben Stiller is the son of comic actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Ben is perhaps as well-known as a director as he is an actor. He made his debut as a director in the film “Reality Bites” in 1994.

“Severance” is a fascinating TV show about employees at a company who undergo a surgical procedure that completely separates their memories between their work lives and their personal lives. The show stars Adam Scott, and is executive-produced and mainly directed by Hollywood actor Ben Stiller.