LA Times Crossword 6 Jul 22, Wednesday

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Constructed by: Kent Smith
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Player Lists

Themed answers are common phrases with “ER” inserted, to give terms starting with a baseball PLAYER:

  • 61A Game rosters, one of which is formed by the starts of three long answers in this puzzle? : PLAYER LISTS
  • 17A Catching fly balls, turning double plays, etc.? : FIELDER WORK (from “fieldwork”)
  • 26A Like an ace who throws a no-hitter? : PITCHER PERFECT (from “pitch perfect”)
  • 44A “Protect the plate,” “Don’t drop the ball,” e.g.? : CATCHER PHRASES (from “catchphrases”)

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

Bill’s time: 7m 27s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Construction rod : REBAR

A steel bar or mesh used to reinforce concrete is called “rebar”, which is short for “reinforcing bar”.

6 1960s Israeli deputy prime minister : EBAN

Abba Eban was an Israeli diplomat and politician. He was born Aubrey Solomon Meir Eban in Cape Town, South Africa. While working at the United Nations after WWII, Eban changed his given name to “Abba”, the Hebrew word for “father”. Reportedly, he made this change as Eban saw himself as the father of the nation of Israel.

13 “Five Feet of Fury” pro wrestler Bliss : ALEXA

“Alexa Bliss” is the ring name of professional wrestler Alexis Cabrera. Bliss married musician Ryan Cabrera in 2022.

14 Alfa __: sports car : ROMEO

The “Alfa” in “Alfa Romeo” is actually an acronym, one standing for Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (“Lombard Automobile Factory, Public Company”). ALFA was an enterprise founded in 1909 and which was taken over by Nicola Romeo in 1915. In 1920 the company name was changed to Alfa Romeo.

16 Jack Reacher creator __ Child : LEE

Lee Child is the pen name of British thriller writer Jim Grant. The hero of Child’s stories is an American ex-military policeman named Jack Reacher. The novel “One Shot” was adapted for the big screen as “Jack Reacher”, which was released in 2012 with Tom Cruise in the title role.

20 Epic featuring the Trojan Horse : AENEID

Aeneas was a Trojan hero of myth who traveled to Italy and became the ancestor of all Romans. Aeneas’s story is told in Virgil’s epic poem “The Aeneid”.

The story of the Wooden Horse of Troy is told in Virgil’s poem “The Aeneid”. According to the tale, the city of Troy finally fell to Greeks after a siege that had lasted for ten years. In a ruse, the Greeks sailed away in apparent defeat, leaving behind a large wooden horse. Inside the horse were hidden 30 crack soldiers. When the horse was dragged into the city as a victory trophy, the soldiers sneaked out and opened the city’s gates. The Greeks returned under cover of night and entered the open city.

21 Yann Martel novel adapted into an Oscar-winning film : LIFE OF PI

The 2012 movie “Life of Pi” is based on a 2001 novel of the same name by Yann Martel. The “Pi” in the title is an Indian boy named Pi Patel who finds himself adrift for 227 days in a small boat with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

23 “Chandelier” singer : SIA

“Chandelier” is a 2014 song by Australian singer Sia. I don’t know the song myself, but it sounds like it’s a bit of a downer, dealing with alcoholism, addiction and excessive hedonism.

25 Tonsillectomy MD : ENT

The palatine tonsils are located at the back of the human throat. The exact role that tonsils play isn’t completely understood, but it is known that they are in the first line of defense in the body’s immune system. They provide some level of protection against pathogens that are ingested and inhaled.

34 Job safety org. : OSHA

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

35 River craft : CANOE

The boat known as a canoe takes its name from the Carib word “kenu” meaning “dugout”. It was Christopher Columbus who brought “kenu” into Spanish as “canoa”, which evolved into our English “canoe”.

39 Intro to economics? : MACRO-

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.

40 Kunis of “Bad Moms” : MILA

Mila Kunis is a Ukrainian-born, American actress who plays Jackie Burkhart on “That ’70s Show”. Fans of the cartoon series “Family Guy” might recognize her voicing the Meg Griffin character. In ”Black Swan”, Kunis plays a rival ballet dancer to the character played by Natalie Portman. In her personal life, Kunis dated Macaulay Culkin for 8 years, but married Ashton Kutcher, her co-star from “That 70s Show”, in 2015.

“Bad Moms” is a 2016 comedy movie about three stressed-out mothers who go on a fling, shirking their maternal responsibilities for a few days. Those “bad moms” are played by Mila Kunis, Kristen Bell and Kathryn Hahn.

41 Astronaut Jemison : MAE

Mae Jemison was a crew member on the Space Shuttle Endeavour on a 1992 mission, and as such became the first African-American woman to travel in space. She is also a big fan of “Star Trek” and appeared on an episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation”. That made Jemison the first real astronaut to appear on any of the “Star Trek” shows.

42 Reason for a sleep mask, perhaps : APNEA

Many people suffering from sleep apnea use a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine while sleeping. The patient wears a mask that supplies air to the upper respiratory tract at a pressure greater than atmospheric pressure. This positive pressure can prevent the collapse of the upper airway, which is the cause of obstructive sleep apnea.

43 __ 500 : INDY

The Indianapolis 500 race is held annually at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The race is run around a 2.5 mile oval, hence requiring 200 laps for completion. The first Indy 500 race was held on Memorial Day in 1911. The winner that day was one Ray Harroun. Harroun had seen someone using a rear view mirror on a horse-drawn vehicle, and decided to fit one on his Marmon “Wasp” motor car. Supposedly, that was the first ever use of a rear-view mirror on a motor vehicle.

48 Hanukkah mo. : DEC

The term “Hanukkah” (also “Chanukah”) comes from the Hebrew for “to dedicate”. Hanukkah is a holiday lasting eight days that commemorates the rededication of the Holy Temple of Jerusalem after a successful Jewish revolt against the Seleucids in the 2nd-century BCE. The story of Hanukkah includes the miracle of the one-day supply of oil that kept the menorah alight for eight days.

55 Rhine wine region : ALSACE

Of the 27 regions of metropolitan France (i.e. the territory of France within Europe), the smallest is Alsace. Alsace sits at the very east of the country, right on the border with Germany. The political status of Alsace was disputed by France and Germany for over three centuries, and was formally handed over to French control after Germany’s defeat in WWII.

61 Game rosters, one of which is formed by the starts of three long answers in this puzzle? : PLAYER LISTS

Our word “roster”, meaning “list, register”, actually comes from the same root as our word “roast”, would you believe. “Roster” came into English from the Dutch “rooster”, meaning “table, list”. An alternative use of the Dutch “rooster” was “gridiron”, from the “roosten” meaning “to roast”. The connection is that a roster of names is often listed on a sheet of paper that has grid lines resembling the marks left by a gridiron on roasted meat. Quite interesting …

63 Links goal : PAR

The oldest type of golf course is a links course. The name “links” comes from the Old English word “hlinc” meaning “rising ground”. “Hlinc” was used to describe areas with coastal sand dunes or open parkland. As a result, we use the term “links course” to mean a golf course that is located at or on the coast, often amid sand dunes. The British Open is always played on a links course.

64 Big cat : TIGER

Tigers are the largest of all the cat species. They are referred to as “apex predators” (as are lions and humans, for example), meaning that tigers are at the top of the food chain and aren’t the prey of any other animal.

68 Forms puddles : POOLS

We’ve been using the word “puddle” to mean “small pool of muddy water” since the 15th century. The term ultimately comes from the the German “pudeln” meaning “to splash in water”. “Pudelm” is also the derivation of “poodle”, a breed of dog that was used in hunting waterfowl. So, “poodle” and “puddle” are cousins. Quite interesting …

Down

1 Nickname for tennis’s Nadal : RAFA

Rafael “Rafa” Nadal is a Spanish tennis player. He is noted for his expertise on clay courts, which earned him the nickname “The King of Clay”.

2 “Night” writer Wiesel : ELIE

Elie Wiesel was a holocaust survivor, and is best known for his book “Night” that tells of his experiences in Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Wiesel was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986. He was also the first recipient of the US Holocaust Memorial Museum Award, which was later renamed the Elie Wiesel Award in his honor.

5 Salad slice : RADISH

Radishes are edible root vegetables that are commonly grown for use in salads. Gardeners also use radishes as companion plants as the odor given off can deter pests such as aphids, ants and cucumber beetles.

8 French possessive : A MOI

“À moi” (literally “to me”) is French for “mine”.

9 Soft toy brand : NERF

Nerf is a soft material used in a whole series of toys designed for “safe” play indoors. The Nerf product is used to make darts, balls and ammunition for toy guns. “NERF” is an acronym, standing for Non-Expanding Recreational Foam.

12 Mysterious Himalayan : YETI

The yeti, also known as the abominable snowman, is a beast of legend. “Yeti” is a Tibetan term, and the beast is fabled to live in the Himalayan regions of Nepal and Tibet. Our equivalent legend in North America is that of Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch. The study of animals whose existence have not yet been substantiated is called cryptozoology, and a cryptid is a creature or plant that isn’t recognized by the scientific community, but the existence of which has been suggested.

15 “The Great Santini” Oscar nominee Michael : O’KEEFE

Actor Michael O’Keefe played young Danny Noonan in the film “Caddyshack” (I’m not a big fan of that movie). He also appeared in the George Clooney film “Michael Clayton”. O’Keefe was married for several years to singer Bonnie Raitt.

“The Great Santini” is a 1979 film adaptation of a novel of the same name by Pat Conroy. The film stars Robert Duvall as a Marine officer in the early days of the Vietnam War.

18 Falco of “Nurse Jackie” : EDIE

Actress Edie Falco won three Emmy Awards for playing Carmela Soprano on HBO’s outstanding drama series called “The Sopranos”. Falco also won an Emmy in 2010 for playing the title role in “Nurse Jackie”, an excellent black comedy.

24 Esoteric : ARCANE

Something that is arcane is understood by only a few, something that might be described as mysterious.

27 “Moon Knight” star Oscar __ : ISAAC

Oscar Isaac is an actor from Guatemala who was raised in Miami. Before acting, Isaac played lead guitar in his own band called the Blinking Underdogs. Isaac portrayed X-wing pilot Poe Dameron in several of the “Star Wars” movies.

“Moon Knight” is a TV miniseries featuring the Marvel Comics character of the same name, played by Oscar Isaac.

30 Indiana cager : PACER

The Indiana Pacers are a professional basketball team based in Indianapolis, who play in the NBA. The name was chosen when the team was formed in 1967. “Pacers” is a homage to harness racing pacers (famed in Indiana) and the pace car used in the Indianapolis 500.

32 “Christopher Robin” joey : ROO

“Christopher Robin” is a 2018 movie inspired by A. A. Milne’s series of “Winnie-the-Pooh” children’s books. The title character is Milne’s son, who features in the stories. In the film, Christopher Robin has grown up, and lost touch with his sense of imagination, but is ultimately reunited with the characters created by his father. Christopher Robin is portrayed by Scottish actor Ewan McGregor.

33 Squiggly diacritic : TILDE

The tilde diacritical mark (~) is very much associated with the Spanish language. We use the name “tilde” in English, taking that name from Spanish. Confusingly, the word “tilde” in Spanish is used more generally to mean “accent mark, diacritic”, of which a “~” is just one. What we call a “tilde” in English is usually referred to as a “virgulilla” or “tilde de la eñe” in Spanish.

40 “Mamma __! Here We Go Again” : MIA

“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again” is a 2018 sequel to the hit 2008 movie “Mamma Mia!” I am an unashamed fan of the original film, and really loved both the original and the sequel. I especially enjoyed Cher’s rendition of a couple of ABBA hits at the end of the second movie, and happily received Cher’s 2018 album “Dancing Queen” for Christmas that year …

45 __ Aviv : TEL

The full name of Israel’s second largest city is Tel Aviv-Yafo. “Tel Aviv” translates into “Spring Mound”, and is a name that was chosen in 1910. Tel Aviv was founded in 1909 as a housing development outside the port city of Jaffa. Tel Aviv and Jaffa merged in 1950.

46 Icy coating : HOAR

The Old English word “har” meant “gray, venerable, old”, and came into English as “hoar” (and later “hoary”) with the same meaning. The term “hoar-frost” dates back to the 13th century, and reflects the similarity of the white feathers of frost to the gray/white of an old man’s beard.

50 Kibble brand : ALPO

Alpo is a brand of dog food introduced by Allen Products in 1936, with “Alpo” being an abbreviation for “Allen Products”. Lorne Greene used to push Alpo in television spots, as did Ed McMahon and Garfield the Cat, would you believe?

“To kibble” is to crush or grind coarsely. This verb evolved into the noun “kibble” meaning meat and/or grain that is ground into small pellets, especially when it is used for pet food.

51 Honeyed brew : MEAD

Mead is a lovely drink that’s made from fermented honey and water.

53 Shakespearean villain : IAGO

Iago is the schemer in Shakespeare’s “Othello”. He is a soldier who fought alongside Othello and feels hard done by, missing out on promotion. Iago hatches a plot designed to discredit his rival Cassio by insinuating that Cassio is having an affair with Desdemona, Othello’s wife.

54 Russian denial : NYET

“Nyet” is Russian for “no”, and “da” is Russian for “yes”.

56 Grain storage site : SILO

“Silo” is a Spanish word that we absorbed into English. The term ultimately derives from the Greek “siros”, which described a pit in which one kept corn.

58 PC keyboard key : CTRL

The Control (CTRL) key on a PC keyboard is used to modify the function of other keys. For example, pressing CTRL+C copies a selection to the clipboard, and CTRL+V pastes the contents of the clipboard to a location defined by the cursor. Control keys were introduced on teletypewriters to generate “control characters”, which are non-printing characters that instruct a computer to do something like print a page, ring a bell etc.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Construction rod : REBAR
6 1960s Israeli deputy prime minister : EBAN
10 Shed tears : CRY
13 “Five Feet of Fury” pro wrestler Bliss : ALEXA
14 Alfa __: sports car : ROMEO
16 Jack Reacher creator __ Child : LEE
17 Catching fly balls, turning double plays, etc.? : FIELDER WORK (from “fieldwork”)
19 Have lunch : EAT
20 Epic featuring the Trojan Horse : AENEID
21 Yann Martel novel adapted into an Oscar-winning film : LIFE OF PI
23 “Chandelier” singer : SIA
25 Tonsillectomy MD : ENT
26 Like an ace who throws a no-hitter? : PITCHER PERFECT (from “pitch perfect”)
34 Job safety org. : OSHA
35 River craft : CANOE
36 Trendy : HIP
38 Take in : EARN
39 Intro to economics? : MACRO-
40 Kunis of “Bad Moms” : MILA
41 Astronaut Jemison : MAE
42 Reason for a sleep mask, perhaps : APNEA
43 __ 500 : INDY
44 “Protect the plate,” “Don’t drop the ball,” e.g.? : CATCHER PHRASES (from “catchphrases”)
48 Hanukkah mo. : DEC
49 Extra : TOO
50 Enters nonchalantly : AMBLES IN
55 Rhine wine region : ALSACE
60 Grassy expanse : LEA
61 Game rosters, one of which is formed by the starts of three long answers in this puzzle? : PLAYER LISTS
63 Links goal : PAR
64 Big cat : TIGER
65 Extreme : ULTRA
66 Laudatory verse : ODE
67 Reusable bag : TOTE
68 Forms puddles : POOLS

Down

1 Nickname for tennis’s Nadal : RAFA
2 “Night” writer Wiesel : ELIE
3 “__ waiting long?” : BEEN
4 Bridge toll unit : AXLE
5 Salad slice : RADISH
6 Make a mistake : ERR
7 Many a New Year’s Day football game : BOWL
8 French possessive : A MOI
9 Soft toy brand : NERF
10 Dimpled facial features : CLEFT CHINS
11 Collect in return : REAP
12 Mysterious Himalayan : YETI
15 “The Great Santini” Oscar nominee Michael : O’KEEFE
18 Falco of “Nurse Jackie” : EDIE
22 United : ONE
24 Esoteric : ARCANE
26 66-Across, for one : POEM
27 “Moon Knight” star Oscar __ : ISAAC
28 Worn through, as carpeting : THREADBARE
29 Put up preserves : CAN
30 Indiana cager : PACER
31 Spellbound : ENRAPT
32 “Christopher Robin” joey : ROO
33 Squiggly diacritic : TILDE
37 Grabs the check : PAYS
39 Speed letters : MPH
40 “Mamma __! Here We Go Again” : MIA
42 Go along with : ACCEPT
45 __ Aviv : TEL
46 Icy coating : HOAR
47 Opposite of unfurl : ROLL UP
50 Kibble brand : ALPO
51 Honeyed brew : MEAD
52 Narrow cut : SLIT
53 Shakespearean villain : IAGO
54 Russian denial : NYET
56 Grain storage site : SILO
57 On the topic of : AS TO
58 PC keyboard key : CTRL
59 Those, in Spanish : ESAS
62 Bard’s before : ERE