LA Times Crossword 4 Oct 18, Thursday

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Constructed by: Wendy L. Brandes & Martha Jones
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Double-Parked

Themed answers are comprise two models of cars:

  • 53A. Like a delivery truck blocking your car, maybe … and a hint to 20-, 28- and 47-Across : DOUBLE-PARKED
  • 20A. Spotify category for courageous Motown lovers? : INTREPID SOUL (Dodge Intrepid & Kia Soul)
  • 28A. One hiking in a Maine national park? : ACADIA EXPLORER (GMC Acadia & Ford Explorer)
  • 47A. Weekend in the Hamptons, say? : SUBURBAN ESCAPE (Chevrolet Suburban & Ford Escape)

Bill’s time: 7m 11s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1. Abruptly end a relationship with by ignoring texts, calls and such : GHOST

A rather insensitive person might break off a relationship simply by cutting off all communication with his or her partner, without any warning. Such a move is referred to as “ghosting” in modern parlance, particularly when the relationship relies heavily on online interaction.

6. European airline : SAS

SAS was formerly known as Scandinavian Airlines System and is the flag carrier of three countries: Denmark, Norway and Sweden. SAS is based at Stockholm Arlanda Airport located just north of the Swedish capital.

9. Uninspiring : VAPID

We use the adjective “vapid” today to describe something that is dull, that lacks liveliness. Back in the 1600s, the term was used to describe drinks that were flat. “Vapid” comes from the Latin “vapidus”, which translates literally as “that has exhaled its vapor”.

14. Pizazz : OOMPH

Pizazz (also “pizzazz”) is energy, vitality. There’s a kind of cool thing about the “pizzazz” version. It is the only 7-letter word in English that cannot be played in Scrabble. You can get close by using the Z-tile with the two blank tiles to get to three of the required four Zs, but there’s no way to get to the fourth Z.

15. Flightless bird : EMU

The large flightless birds called emus make sounds by manipulating inflatable neck-sacs. The sac is about a foot long, has a thin wall and allows the bird to emit a booming sound. The type of sound emitted is the easiest way to differentiate between male and female emus.

17. Prickly shrub : BRIAR

“Briar” is a generic name for several plants that have thorns or prickles, including the rose. Famously, Br’er Rabbit lives in a briar patch.

20. Spotify category for courageous Motown lovers? : INTREPID SOUL (Dodge Intrepid & Kia Soul)

The Dodge Intrepid is a saloon car that was produced by Chrysler from 1993 to 2004.

The Kia Soul is a compact car produced in South Korea, although it was designed by Kia here in the US, in Irvine, California. Yep, the Kia Soul is made in Seoul …

23. Alpine lake : TARN

A tarn is a mountain lake that has been formed by glacial excavation.

24. Fair-hiring initials : EOE

Equal Opportunity Employer (EOE)

25. “The Waste Land” monogram : TSE

T. S. Eliot (TSE) was born in New England but grew up in St. Louis, Missouri. Much of Eliot’s college education was at Oxford, and clearly he became comfortable with life in England. In 1927 he became a British citizen and lived the rest of life in the UK.

T. S. Eliot (TSE) wrote his poem called “The Waste Land” in 1922. “The Waste Land” opens with the famous line, “April is the cruellest month …”

28. One hiking in a Maine national park? : ACADIA EXPLORER (GMC Acadia & Ford Explorer)

Acadia National Park in Maine was created in 1919, although back then it was called Lafayette National Park in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette who famously supported the American Revolution. The park was renamed to Acadia in 1929.

The GMC Acadia is an SUV made by General Motors that was introduced in 2006.

The Ford Explorer SUV was introduced in 1990, and is still going strong.

32. Org. for the Williams sisters : WTA

The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) is an organization that looks out for the interests of male tennis professionals. The equivalent organization for women is the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).

Serena Williams is the younger of the two Williams sisters playing professional tennis. Serena has won more prize money in her career than any other female athlete.

Venus Williams is the older of the two Williams sisters playing professional tennis. In 2002, Williams became the first African-American woman to earn the World No. 1 ranking by the Women’s Tennis Association in the Open Era.

33. Blood fluids : SERA

Blood serum (plural “sera”) is the clear, yellowish part of blood i.e. that part which is neither a blood cell or a clotting factor. Included in blood serum are antibodies, the proteins that are central to our immune system. Blood serum from animals that have immunity to some disease can be transferred to another individual, hence providing that second individual with some level of immunity. Blood serum used to pass on immunity can be called “antiserum”.

34. Damascus native : SYRIAN

Damascus is the second largest city in Syria (after Aleppo), and is the country’s capital. Damascus has the distinction of being the oldest, continuously-inhabited city in the world, having been settled in the 2nd millennium BC. Also, it has the nickname “City of Jasmine”.

37. Octane Booster brand : STP

STP is a brand name for automotive lubricants and additives. The name “STP” is an initialism standing for “Scientifically Treated Petroleum”.

The difference between a premium and regular gasoline is its octane rating. The octane rating is measure of the resistance of the gasoline to auto-ignition i.e. its resistance to ignition just by virtue of being compressed in the cylinder. This auto-ignition is undesirable as multiple-cylinder engines are designed so that ignition within each cylinder takes place precisely when the plug sparks, and not before. If ignition occurs before the spark is created, the resulting phenomenon is called “knocking”. We sometimes use the adjective “high-octane” to mean “intense, dynamic, high-powered”

39. Loan figs. : APRS

Annual percentage rate (APR)

40. “Field of Dreams” actor : LIOTTA

The actor Ray Liotta is best known for playing Shoeless Joe Jackson in the movie “Field of Dreams” and Henry Hill in “Goodfellas”.

“Field of Dreams” is a fantasy drama about baseball, released in 1989 and starring Kevin Costner. The movie is an adaptation of a 1982 novel titled “Shoeless Joe” by Canadian author W. P. Kinsella. Shoeless Joe Jackson was a real baseball player, and someone associated with the Black Sox Scandal that allegedly affected the outcome of the 1919 World Series. Jackson was portrayed by Ray Liotta in the movie. “Field of Dreams” was also the last film in which Burt Lancaster made an appearance. The baseball stadium that was built for the movie can be visited in Dubuque County, Iowa.

43. Cy Young stats : ERAS

Earned run average (ERA)

Cy Young was a pitcher in the major leagues from 1890-1911. Young is remembered for pitching the first perfect game of baseball’s modern era. Soon after he died in 1955, the Cy Young Award was created and is presented to the best pitcher in each baseball season.

46. Final: Abbr. : ULT

Ultimate (ult.)

47. Weekend in the Hamptons, say? : SUBURBAN ESCAPE (Chevrolet Suburban & Ford Escape)

The Hamptons are a group of villages on the South Fork of Long Island, New York. The area has been a fashionable summer resort and home to many members of New York’s high society since the late 1800s. “The Hamptons” name comes from the main town of Southampton and East Hampton. The term “hampton” has been used for centuries in England to mean “little town” or “hamlet”.

The Suburban is an SUV made by Chevrolet starting in 1935. That makes “Chevrolet Suburban” the longest continuous use nameplate in the automobile history.

The Ford Escape is an SUV that was developed jointly with Mazda and introduced in the 2001 model year. The Mazda version of the same vehicle is known as the Tribute.

50. Pinafore letters : HMS

“H.M.S. Pinafore” is one of my favorite of the Gilbert & Sullivan comic operas (a production we staged at high school, many moons ago). “Pinafore” was one of the first big hits for Gilbert & Sullivan (in their native Britain, and in America), and they followed it up with “The Pirates of Penzance” and “The Mikado”.

58. Gulf States inlet : BAYOU

A bayou is a marshy inlet or outlet of a lake or river, usually with stagnant or slow-moving water. The exact origins of the term “bayou” is uncertain, but it is thought perhaps to come from the Choctaw (a Native American people from the southeast) word “bayuk”, meaning “small stream”.

61. Bagel go-with : LOX

Lox is brine-cured salmon fillet that is finely sliced. The term “lox” comes into English via Yiddish, and derives from the German word for salmon, namely “Lachs”.

64. Cooperstown winter hrs. : EST

Cooperstown is a village in New York that is famous as the home to the Baseball Hall of Fame. The village was named for Judge William Cooper, the founder of Cooperstown and the father of the noted writer James Fenimore Cooper.

65. Legally bar : ESTOP

The term “estop” means to block or stop by using some legal device. “Estop” comes from Old French, in which “estopper” means “to stop up” or “to impede”.

67. Rehab issue : DTS

The episodes of delirium that can accompany withdrawal from alcohol are called delirium tremens (the DTs). The literal translation of this Latin phrase is “trembling madness”.

68. Angioplasty implant : STENT

In the world of medicine and surgery, a stent is an artificial tube inserted inside a vessel in the body, say an artery, so that it reduces the effects of a local restriction in the body’s conduit.

Angioplasty is a mechanical widening of a narrowed artery. In the surgical procedure, a balloon catheter is inflated at the point of the obstruction to open up the artery. A stent may then be inserted to make sure the vessel remains open.

Down

1. Mongolian desert : GOBI

The large desert in Asia called the Gobi lies in northern China and southern Mongolia. The Gobi desert is growing at an alarming rate, particularly towards the south. This “desertification” is caused by increased human activity. The Chinese government is trying to halt the desert’s progress by planting great swaths of new forest, the so called “Green Wall of China”. The name “Gobi” is Mongolian for “waterless place, semidesert”.

4. Ancient Peloponnesian state : SPARTA

Sparta was a city-state in ancient Greece that was famous for her military might. Spartan children had a tough upbringing, and newborn babies were bathed in wine to see if the child was strong enough to survive. Every child was presented to a council of elders that decided if the baby was suitable for rearing. Those children deemed too puny were executed by tossing them into a chasm. We’ve been using the term “spartan” to describe something self-disciplined or austere since the 1600s.

The Peloponnese is a peninsula in southern Greece that was once home to the ancient city-state Sparta. Technically, the Peloponnese has been an island since 1893, when the Corinth Canal was completed, separating the peninsula from the mainland.

6. Some advanced college courses : SEMINARS

A seminar is a meeting called for the exchange of information, especially in a university. The term comes from the Latin “seminarium” meaning “breeding ground, plant nursery”, which is also the root of our word “seminary”.

8. Prince Harry’s dukedom : SUSSEX

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex is the younger of the two sons of Charles and Diana, Prince and Princess of Wales. Famously, Prince Harry married American actress Meghan Markle in 2018. The groom’s name was Prince Henry of Wales until the marriage, at which time his name changed officially to “Prince Harry”.

10. MPs’ concern : AWOL

The Military Police (MPs) often track down personnel who go AWOL (absent without leave).

13. German article : DER

The definite article in German is der, die or das, for masculine, feminine and neuter nouns. The indefinite article is ein, eine or ein, again depending on the gender of the noun. A further complication, relative to English, is that the masculine form (and only the masculine form) of the article changes when used in the accusative case, when used with the object of a sentence. The accusative forms are “den” and “einen”.

21. __-dieu : PRIE

“Prie-dieu” means literally “pray (to) God” in French. A prie-dieu is basically a padded kneeler, with an armrest in front and a shelf on which one placed books of prayer.

26. NutraSweet developer : SEARLE

NutraSweet is a brand name for the artificial sweetener aspartame. Aspartame was discovered by a chemist working for Searle in 1965, but it took 15 years for the company to be granted approval for its sale. I wonder why …???

27. Accounting giant __ & Young : ERNST

Ernst & Young is one of the Big Four accountancy firms, alongside Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Ernst & Young is headquartered in London. The company was founded in 1989 with the merger of Ernst & Whinney with Young & Co.

28. Courtyard that may feature glass elevators : ATRIUM

In modern architecture an atrium (plural “atria” or “atriums”) is a large open space usually in the center of a building and extending upwards to the roof. The original atrium was an open court in the center of an Ancient Roman house. One could access most of the enclosed rooms of the house from the atrium.

29. Pod-bearing trees : CAROBS

The carob is a tree or shrub in the pea family that is mainly grown for its seed pods. The carob seeds are dried or roasted, and when powdered or chipped make a good substitute for chocolate.

31. 60 minuti : ORA

In Italian, there are “sessanta minuti” (sixty minutes) in an “ora” (hour).

32. __ corgi : WELSH

The Welsh corgi is a herding dog that originated in Britain, with two recognized breeds: the Pembroke and Cardigan. Corgis aren’t speedy enough to do their job by running around livestock like collies, and instead nip at the heels.

42. “__ Ben Adhem” : ABOU

Abou Ben Adhem, also known as Ibrahim Bin Adham, was an Arab Muslim saint. He was made famous in the western world with the publication in 1838 of the poem “Abou Ben Adhem” that was composed by the English poet James Henry Leigh Hunt.

55. “This Is Us” role for Chrissy Metz : KATE

“This Is Us” is a television drama that debuted in 2016. The storyline centers on three siblings and their parents. Two of the siblings are the surviving members of a triplet pregnancy. The parents decide to adopt a child born on the same day as the surviving siblings. The adopting family is white, and the adopted child is black.

Chrissy Metz is an actress best known for portraying Kate Pearson in the drama TV show “This Is Us”.

56. Micro or macro subj. : ECON

Macroeconomics is the study of economies as a whole, rather than individual markets. Microeconomics is focused on the actions of individual entities like companies or individuals, and how these actions impact specific markets.

57. Cabinet div. : DEPT

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.

58. __ Bath & Beyond : BED

Bed Bath & Beyond is a retailer of domestic merchandise that was founded in 1971 as Bed ‘n Bath. During one of the few visits I’ve ever made to a Bed Bath & Beyond store, I said to my wife, “I honestly cannot understand why this store even exists”. Not my cup of tea …

59. “Selma” director DuVernay : AVA

Ava DuVernay is a filmmaker who became the first African-American woman to win the Best Director Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, a feat she achieved in 2012 for her feature film “Middle of Nowhere”. “Middle of Nowhere” tells the story of a woman who drops out of medical school to focus on husband when he is sentenced to 8 years in prison. DuVernay also directed the 2014 film “Selma” about the 1965 voting rights marches from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama.

“Selma” is a 2014 film about the Selma to Montgomery marches of 1965. Directed by Ava DuVernay, the movie stars David Oyelowo as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Tom Wilkinson as President Lyndon B. Johnson.

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Abruptly end a relationship with by ignoring texts, calls and such : GHOST
6. European airline : SAS
9. Uninspiring : VAPID
14. Pizazz : OOMPH
15. Flightless bird : EMU
16. Not in the dark : AWARE
17. Prickly shrub : BRIAR
18. Prefix with match or fire : MIS-
19. One with no hope : GONER
20. Spotify category for courageous Motown lovers? : INTREPID SOUL (Dodge Intrepid & Kia Soul)
23. Alpine lake : TARN
24. Fair-hiring initials : EOE
25. “The Waste Land” monogram : TSE
28. One hiking in a Maine national park? : ACADIA EXPLORER (GMC Acadia & Ford Explorer)
32. Org. for the Williams sisters : WTA
33. Blood fluids : SERA
34. Damascus native : SYRIAN
35. Says 22-Down, perhaps : ERRS
37. Octane Booster brand : STP
39. Loan figs. : APRS
40. “Field of Dreams” actor : LIOTTA
43. Cy Young stats : ERAS
46. Final: Abbr. : ULT
47. Weekend in the Hamptons, say? : SUBURBAN ESCAPE (Chevrolet Suburban & Ford Escape)
50. Pinafore letters : HMS
51. Hebrew for “day” : YOM
52. Small fruit pie : TART
53. Like a delivery truck blocking your car, maybe … and a hint to 20-, 28- and 47-Across : DOUBLE-PARKED
58. Gulf States inlet : BAYOU
61. Bagel go-with : LOX
62. Flower child’s greeting : PEACE
63. Track meet part : EVENT
64. Cooperstown winter hrs. : EST
65. Legally bar : ESTOP
66. Sees regularly : DATES
67. Rehab issue : DTS
68. Angioplasty implant : STENT

Down

1. Mongolian desert : GOBI
2. Traffic sound : HORN
3. Jump over : OMIT
4. Ancient Peloponnesian state : SPARTA
5. Winds (one’s way) through : THREADS
6. Some advanced college courses : SEMINARS
7. Surrounded by : AMID
8. Prince Harry’s dukedom : SUSSEX
9. Without much detail : VAGUELY
10. MPs’ concern : AWOL
11. Bad review : PAN
12. Steam : IRE
13. German article : DER
21. __-dieu : PRIE
22. Unwelcome word from a barber : OOPS!
25. Catch in a lie, say : TRIP UP
26. NutraSweet developer : SEARLE
27. Accounting giant __ & Young : ERNST
28. Courtyard that may feature glass elevators : ATRIUM
29. Pod-bearing trees : CAROBS
30. Consumed : EATEN
31. 60 minuti : ORA
32. __ corgi : WELSH
36. R-V link : STU
38. Excuses : PRETEXTS
41. Casting calls : TRYOUTS
42. “__ Ben Adhem” : ABOU
44. “Stat!” : ASAP!
45. Skins, as a knee : SCRAPES
48. Strolled : AMBLED
49. Taking it easy : AT REST
53. Finished : DONE
54. In need of guidance : LOST
55. “This Is Us” role for Chrissy Metz : KATE
56. Micro or macro subj. : ECON
57. Cabinet div. : DEPT
58. __ Bath & Beyond : BED
59. “Selma” director DuVernay : AVA
60. Nevertheless : YET

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