LA Times Crossword 15 Sep 21, Wednesday

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Constructed by: Stephanie Lesser
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Delighted

Themed clues are all the same, namely “Delighted”:

  • 17A Delighted : OVER THE MOON
  • 36A Delighted : GLEEFUL
  • 53A Delighted : BEYOND HAPPY
  • 11D Delighted : TICKLED PINK
  • 25D Delighted : ON CLOUD NINE
  • Read on, or jump to …
    … a complete list of answers

    Bill’s time: 6m 00s

    Bill’s errors: 0

    Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

    Across

    11 5 mL, in some recipes : TSP

    For the purpose of cooking and dosing medicines, a teaspoon (tsp.) is 5 mL and a tablespoon (tbsp.) is 15 mL.

    14 Big state : TEXAS

    The single star on the state flag of Texas is a reminder of the “lone star” on the 1836 National Standard of Texas. The single white star on a blue background symbolizes Texas as an independent republic and its struggle for independence from Mexico.

    15 Believer in karma : HINDU

    Karma is a religious concept with its basis in Indian faiths. Karma embraces the notion of cause and effect. Good deeds have good consequences at some later point in one’s life, one’s future life, or one’s afterlife. And, bad deeds have bad consequences.

    16 Order from a stool, maybe : IPA

    India pale ale (IPA) is a style of beer that originated in England. The beer was originally intended for transportation from England to India, hence the name.

    19 Cartoon collectible : CEL

    In the world of animation, a cel is a transparent sheet on which objects and characters are drawn. In the first half of the 20th century the sheet was actually made of celluloid, giving the “cel” its name.

    26 Folklore cave dwellers : TROLLS

    “Troll” is a term that comes from Norse mythology. Trolls are less-than-helpful creatures that tend to live on isolated mountains, in caves and under bridges.

    27 Jipijapa hat, familiarly : PANAMA

    Panama hats are traditional headgear from Ecuador, and have never been made in volume in Panama. The “panama” moniker came about as many of the hats were shipped to the Isthmus of Panama for transportation by sea to the rest of the world. Authentic panama hats are made from the leaves of a palm-like plant known locally as the jipijapa palm.

    30 Stephen Hawking’s journalist daughter : LUCY

    Lucy Hawking is a British journalist and author. She is the daughter of famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking and his first wife Jane Wilde Hawking. Lucy and her father wrote a 2007 children’s book together titled “George’s Secret Key to the Universe”. The book was a hit, and spawned several sequels.

    32 Forest female : DOE

    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 …

    35 Not online, briefly : IRL

    In real life (IRL)

    38 Bit of wordplay : PUN

    Here are some of my favorite puns:

    • A man died today when a pile of books fell on him. He only had his shelf to blame.
    • I hate negative numbers and will stop at nothing to avoid them.
    • I wasn’t going to get a brain transplant, but then I changed my mind.
    • I should have been sad when my flashlight batteries died, but I was delighted.

    39 Eastern principle : TAO

    The name of the Chinese character “tao” translates as “path”, but the concept of Taoism signifies the true nature of the world.

    44 The “P” in TAFKAP : PRINCE

    The singer Prince was born in Minneapolis, and he lived there most of his life. Born Prince Rogers Nelson, his given name honored his father, a jazz musician who used the stage name Prince Rogers. Starting in 1993, he changed his stage name (adopting an unpronounceable symbol) and was often referred to as “The Artist Formerly Known as Prince” (TAFKAP). He died in 2016 due to an accidental fentanyl overdose at his home and recording studio located just southwest of Minneapolis. The home and studio, known as Paisley Park, is now a museum that is open to the public.

    48 Kept from leaking, in a way : CAULKED

    CAULK

    49 Spun flax fabric : LINEN

    Flax is mainly grown for its seeds (to make oil) and for its fibers. Flax fibers have been used to make linen for centuries, certainly back as far as the days of the ancient Egyptians. Flax fibers are soft and shiny, resembling blond hair, hence the term “flaxen hair”.

    59 Math calculations : AREAS

    Here’s another term that catches me out all the time, having done my schooling on the other side of the Atlantic. The term “mathematics” is shortened to “math” in the US, but to “maths” in Britain and Ireland.

    63 Stick-on decoration : DECAL

    A decal is a decorative sticker. “Decal” is a shortening of “decalcomania”. The latter term is derived from the French “décalquer”, the practice of tracing a pattern from paper onto glass or perhaps porcelain.

    Down

    1 Trailblazer in the muscle car category : GTO

    The initialism “GTO” was used on several touring cars (including a famous Pontiac) and stands for “Gran Turismo Omologato”. Italian car manufacturers started the tradition of calling their luxury performance cars “Gran Turismo”, and calling those cars they approved for racing “Gran Turismo Omologato”. The phrase “gran turismo omologato” translates as “grand touring homologated”, “homologated” being a technical term signifying official approval.

    7 Margarita garnish : LIME

    No one seems to know for sure who first created the margarita cocktail. The most plausible and oft-quoted is that it was invented in 1941 in Ensenada, Mexico. The barman mixed the drink for an important visitor, the daughter of the German ambassador. The daughter’s name was Margarita Henkel, and she lent her name to the new drink. The basic recipe for a margarita is a mixture of tequila, orange-flavored liqueur (like Cointreau) and lime juice.

    8 Ten-time all-star Slaughter : ENOS

    Enos Slaughter has a remarkable playing record in Major League Baseball over a 19-year career. Slaughter’s record is particularly remarkable given that he left baseball for three years to serve in the military during WWII.

    9 It may be about nothing : ADO

    “Much Ado About Nothing” is a play by William Shakespeare, and a favorite of mine. It is a comedic tale of two pairs of lovers with lots of mistaken identities and double meanings. I once saw it performed in the fabulous Globe Theatre in London … by an all-female cast. Such a performance was somewhat ironic, given that in Shakespeare’s day the practice was to use an all-male cast.

    12 Be in a bee : SPELL

    Back in 18th-century America, when neighbors would gather to work for the benefit of one of their group, such a meeting was called a bee. The name “bee” was an allusion to the social nature of the insect. In modern parlance, a further element of entertainment and pleasure has been introduced, for example in a quilting bee, or even a spelling bee.

    22 Word on a French passport : NOM

    In French, one might look up a “nom” (name) in “un annuaire” (a directory).

    As a result of a League of Nations conference in 1920, passports are usually written in French and one other language. French was specified back then as it was deemed the language of diplomacy. US passports use French and English, given that English is the nation’s de facto national language. Spanish was added as a language for US passports in the late nineties, in recognition of Spanish-speaking Puerto Rico.

    24 Dern or Linney : LAURA

    Actress Laura Dern is the daughter of actors Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd. Among her many notable roles, Laura Dern played the Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris in the 2008 movie “Recount”, and Dr. Ellie Sattler in the 1993 blockbuster “Jurassic Park”.

    The wonderfully talented actress Laura Linney is a native New Yorker from Manhattan. The performances of hers that I most admire are in “The Truman Show” and “Love Actually” on the big screen, and in “John Adams” and “Ozark” on the small screen.

    25 Delighted : ON CLOUD NINE

    I don’t think that anyone is really certain of the etymology of the term “on cloud nine” meaning “elated”, but I do like the following explanation. The 1896 “International Cloud-Atlas” was a long-standing reference used to define cloud shapes that was based on a classification created by amateur meteorologist Luke Howard some decades earlier. The biggest and fluffiest of all cloud shapes (and most comfortable-looking to lie on) is cumulonimbus. And you guessed it, of the ten cloud shapes defined in the atlas, cumulonimbus was cloud nine …

    28 One of the deadly sins : GREED

    The cardinal sins of Christian ethics are also known as the seven deadly sins. The seven sins are:

    • Wrath
    • Greed
    • Sloth
    • Pride
    • Lust
    • Envy
    • Gluttony

    31 Sandwich seller : DELI

    Meats placed between slices of bread was first called a sandwich in the 18th century, named after the Fourth Earl of Sandwich. The earl was fond of eating “sandwiches” while playing cards at his club.

    36 Packers home : GREEN BAY

    The city of Green Bay is the third-largest in the state of Wisconsin, after Milwaukee and Madison. The city is located on an arm of Lake Michigan called Green Bay. People in the area refer to the city as “Green Bay” and the body of water as “the Bay of Green Bay” in order to avoid confusing one with the other.

    When Curly Lambeau founded his small-town football team in Green Bay in 1919, he was working for the Indian Packing Company. Lambeau went to his employers looking for sponsorship and was given $250 provided that the team was named for the company. And so, the team was originally referred to as the Green Bay Indians, but by the time they took to the field for their first game it had changed to the Packers, and Lambeau was $250 richer. Curly Lambeau passed away in 1965, and two months later the Packers renamed their City Stadium to Lambeau Field in his memory.

    37 Voldemort’s title : LORD

    Lord Voldemort (born “Tom Marvolo Riddle”) is the main “bad guy” in the “Harry Potter” series of books. I heard the author, J. K. Rowling, on the radio some time back and she tells us that “Voldemort” is supposed to be pronounced with a silent “t” on the end, so it sounds kind of French. But when the movies came out the actors went with the hard “t”, and that’s the pronunciation that seems to prevail now. It seems to be generally accepted that Rowling chose the name from the French “vol de mort” meaning “flight of death”.

    46 Comedian Glazer : ILANA

    Ilana Glazer is a comedian from Long Island, New York. Glazer is the co-creator of the Comedy Central sitcom “Broad City” along with comedian Abbi Jacobson.

    47 Longtime Shatner co-star : NIMOY

    Leonard Nimoy played the logical Mr. Spock in the original “Star Trek” television series. Spock has to be the most popular character on the show, and he kept popping up in “Star Trek” spin offs. Nimoy first worked alongside William Shatner (Captain Kirk) in an episode of “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” (I loved that show as a kid!), with Nimoy playing a bad guy and Shatner playing an U.N.C.L.E. recruit.

    50 Tourney passes : BYES

    “Tourney” is another word for “tournament”. The term comes from the Old French word “tornei” meaning “contest of armed men”, from “tornoier” meaning “to joust, jilt”.

    51 Horse of a certain color : ROAN

    A roan horse has an even mixture of white and colored hairs on the body with the head, lower legs, mane and tail having a more solid color.

    55 Ms. __-Man : PAC

    The Pac-Man arcade game was first released in Japan in 1980, and is as popular today as it ever was. The game features characters that are maneuvered around the screen to eat up dots and earn points, while being pursued by ghosts named Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde. The name of the game comes from the Japanese folk hero “Paku”, who is known for his voracious appetite. The spin-off game called Ms. Pac-Man was released in 1981.

    56 Acronym for unabashed intimacy : PDA

    Public display of affection (PDA)

    57 DKNY competitor : YSL

    Yves Saint Laurent (YSL) was an Algerian-born French fashion designer. Saint Laurent started off working as an assistant to Christian Dior at the age of 17. Dior died just four years later, and as a very young man Saint-Laurent was named head of the House of Dior. However, in 1950 Saint Laurent was conscripted into the French Army and ended up in a military hospital after suffering a mental breakdown from the hazing inflicted on him by his fellow soldiers. His treatment included electroshock therapy and administration of sedatives and psychoactive drugs. He was released from hospital, managed to pull his life back together and started his own fashion house. A remarkable story …

    Donna Karan is an American fashion designer, creator of the Donna Karan New York (DKNY) clothing label. Karan was very much raised in the fashion industry, as her mother was a model and her stepfather a tailor.

    Complete List of Clues/Answers

    Across

    1 Wine, with “the” : … GRAPE
    6 Athletic gripper : CLEAT
    11 5 mL, in some recipes : TSP
    14 Big state : TEXAS
    15 Believer in karma : HINDU
    16 Order from a stool, maybe : IPA
    17 Delighted : OVER THE MOON
    19 Cartoon collectible : CEL
    20 Back-combs : TEASES
    21 __ sock : ANKLE
    23 Last one in, competitively : SLOWEST
    26 Folklore cave dwellers : TROLLS
    27 Jipijapa hat, familiarly : PANAMA
    28 Call it a day : GO HOME
    30 Stephen Hawking’s journalist daughter : LUCY
    31 Mouth-watering reaction? : DROOL
    32 Forest female : DOE
    35 Not online, briefly : IRL
    36 Delighted : GLEEFUL
    38 Bit of wordplay : PUN
    39 Eastern principle : TAO
    40 Theater parts : ROLES
    41 Listen to : MIND
    42 Log-in need : USER ID
    44 The “P” in TAFKAP : PRINCE
    46 “No doubt” : INDEED
    48 Kept from leaking, in a way : CAULKED
    49 Spun flax fabric : LINEN
    50 Sear and simmer : BRAISE
    52 “__ dreaming?” : AM I
    53 Delighted : BEYOND HAPPY
    58 Prefix with dairy or fat : NON-
    59 Math calculations : AREAS
    60 Mild oath : EGADS
    61 “Affirmative, cap’n” : AYE
    62 Like survey questions with two boxes : YES/NO
    63 Stick-on decoration : DECAL

    Down

    1 Trailblazer in the muscle car category : GTO
    2 Gun for a race : REV
    3 Tool that’s swung : AXE
    4 At some point during a trip, say : PARTWAY
    5 Great regard : ESTEEM
    6 Storage furniture : CHEST
    7 Margarita garnish : LIME
    8 Ten-time all-star Slaughter : ENOS
    9 It may be about nothing : ADO
    10 Sushi choice : TUNA ROLL
    11 Delighted : TICKLED PINK
    12 Be in a bee : SPELL
    13 Doesn’t measure up : PALES
    18 “It __ familiar ring to it” : HAS A
    22 Word on a French passport : NOM
    23 Took off : SPLIT
    24 Dern or Linney : LAURA
    25 Delighted : ON CLOUD NINE
    26 Bank heist unit : THOU
    28 One of the deadly sins : GREED
    29 Comics punch lines? : OOFS
    31 Sandwich seller : DELI
    33 Unit of perfume : OUNCE
    34 Wrapped up : ENDED
    36 Packers home : GREEN BAY
    37 Voldemort’s title : LORD
    41 It’s unlimited with some rentals : MILEAGE
    43 Take in : SEE
    44 Forked over : PAID
    45 Didn’t dawdle : RUSHED
    46 Comedian Glazer : ILANA
    47 Longtime Shatner co-star : NIMOY
    48 Affirmative playground retort : CAN SO!
    50 Tourney passes : BYES
    51 Horse of a certain color : ROAN
    54 Old-timey “before” : ERE
    55 Ms. __-Man : PAC
    56 Acronym for unabashed intimacy : PDA
    57 DKNY competitor : YSL