LA Times Crossword Answers 15 Jul 16, Friday




LA Times Crossword Solution 15 Jul 16







Constructed by: Samuel A. Donaldson

Edited by: Rich Norris

Quicklink to a complete list of today’s clues and answers

Quicklink to comments

Theme: Tea for Two

Today’s themed answers are common phrases, but a TEA sound has been swapped out FOR a TWO sound:

  • 60A…”No, No, Nanette” song, and a homophonic hint to 17-, 24-, 36- and 51-Across..TEA FOR TWO
  • 17A…What Fey does in a mushy moment?..TINA MELTS (from “tuna melts”)
  • 24A…Ornamental ducks?..GARDEN TEALS (from “garden tools”)
  • 36A…Model high schoolers?..FINE TEENS (from “fine-tunes”)
  • 51A…Park statue that might have the real things perched on it?..STEEL PIGEON (from “stool pigeon”)

Bill’s time: 14m 24s

Bill’s errors: 0




Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies

Across

1…Quads with wheels..ATVS

All-terrain vehicle (ATV)

5…Perry of pop..KATY

Katy Perry is an American singer who grew up listening to and singing gospel music, as she was the daughter of two Christian pastors. In fact, her first musical release was a gospel album in 2001. She has branched out since then. Her first successful single was “Ur so Gay”, followed by “I Kissed A Girl”. She was married (only for a year) to the British comedian Russell Brand, until 2012.

9…Two-iron, before golf club numbering..CLEEK

Most of the irons in a golf bag had non-numerical names in days gone by:

  • 2 Iron … Cleek
  • 3 Iron … Mid Mashie
  • 4 Iron … Mashie Iron
  • 5 Iron … Mashie
  • 6 Iron … Spade Mashie
  • 7 Iron … Mashie Niblick
  • 8 Iron … Pitching Niblick
  • 9 Iron … Niblick

14…Orator’s prowess: Abbr…RHET

Rhetoric (rhet.)

15…Der Spiegel article..EINE

“Der Spiegel” is a very successful German magazine found on newsstands all over Europe. The name “Der Spiegel” translates from German into “the Mirror”.

16…Modicum..OUNCE

Our term “ounce” comes from the Latin “uncia”, which was 1/12 of a “libra”, the Roman “pound”.

A modicum is a small portion, with “modicum” coming into English from Latin, via Scottish. “Modicum” is Latin for “a little”.

17…What Fey does in a mushy moment?..TINA MELTS (from “tuna melts”)

Comic actress Tina Fey has a scar on her face a few inches long on her left cheek, which I was shocked to learn was caused by a childhood “slashing” incident. When she was just five years old and playing in the front yard of her house, someone just came up to her and slashed her with a knife. How despicable!

24…Ornamental ducks?..GARDEN TEALS (from “garden tools”)

The beautiful color of teal takes it name from the duck called a “teal”, which has dark greenish-blue (teal) markings on its head and wings.

30…Beefcake subjects..HUNKS

It’s not really clear how the “cheesecake” came to be used for a provocative picture of a woman. It is known that the term arose in the 1930s, and originally applied to to the covers of “pulp” magazines that used the images of the attractive young females to attract a largely male audience. One theory is that during the depression years, the luscious cheesecake dessert was unattainable, as were the “luscious” models depicted on the magazine covers. The male equivalent of cheesecake is “beefcake”.

32…Polo of “The Fosters”..TERI

Teri Polo’s most prominent role on the big screen was Pam Focker in “Meet the Fockers” and its sequel. Pam is the wife of the character played by Ben Stiller. Polo also played the wife of Presidential candidate Matt Santos in “The West Wing”.

“The Fosters” is a teen drama TV show about a lesbian couple raising a blended family of biological, adopted and foster children. Jennifer Lopez is involved in the show as an executive producer.

33…Provençal possessive..SES

“Ses” is the French word for “his”, “her” or “its”, when referring to a group of items.

Provence is a geographical region in France, in the south of the country. The region was once a Roman province called Provincia Romana, and was the first Roman province beyond the Alps. It is this Roman name “Provincia Romana” that gives Provence its name.

34…1974 #1 country hit for Dolly Parton..JOLENE

I must admit that I am not a big fan of country music, but I do like the 1974 hit “Jolene” written and performed by Dolly Parton. Dolly Parton tells the story that the song was inspired by a red-headed bank teller who was frequently flirting with her husband.

39…__ Pie..ESKIMO

An Eskimo Pie is a chocolate-covered ice cream bar. The dessert was created in 1920, and first sold under the name “I-Scream Bar”.

42…Slowing, on scores: Abbr…RIT

Rit. (or sometimes ritard.) is the abbreviation for “ritardando”, a musical direction to slow down the tempo.

43…Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego..ALI G

Sacha Baron Cohen is a comedian and comic actor from England. Baron Cohen is perhaps most famous for playing the characters Borat and Ali G on the small and large screens. I’m not a fan …

50…Number on a clapperboard..TAKE

Clapperboards are used in filmmaking as a device to help synchronize audio and video tracks, as well as to keep track of scene and take numbers.

51…Park statue that might have the real things perched on it?..STEEL PIGEON (from “stool pigeon”)

Stoolies, also called canaries, will sing to the cops given the right incentive. “Stoolie” is short for “stool pigeon”. A stool pigeon was a decoy bird tied to a stool so as to lure other pigeons. Originally a stoolie was a decoy for the police, rather than an informer, hence the name.

55…Sylvan Tolkien creature..ENT

Ents are those tree-like creatures that live in J. R. R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth in his series of books “The Lord of the Rings”. “Ent” is an Old English word for “giant”.

A sylvan area is wooded, covered in trees. “Silva” is the Latin word for “forest”.

60…”No, No, Nanette” song, and a homophonic hint to 17-, 24-, 36- and 51-Across..TEA FOR TWO

The 1925 musical “No, No, Nanette” spawned two famous songs: “Tea for Two” and “I Want to Be Happy”.

65…Der Spiegel rejection..NEIN

“Nein” is the German for “no”.

68…Where el sol rises..ESTE

In Spanish, “el sol” (the sun) rises in the “este” (east).

Down

3…Avenue next to Monopoly’s Water Works..VENTNOR

Ventnor Avenue is a property in the game of Monopoly. The street names in the US version of Monopoly are locations in or around Atlantic City, New Jersey.

7…Big blowup cause..TNT

TNT is an abbreviation for trinitrotoluene. Trinitrotoluene was first produced in 1863 by the German chemist Joseph Wilbrand, who developed it for use as a yellow dye. TNT is relatively difficult to detonate so it was on the market as a dye for some years before its more explosive properties were discovered.

8…Sycophants..YES MEN

A sycophant is a selfish person, one who flatters. The term comes from the Greek “sykophantes” which originally meant “one who shows the fig”. This phrase described a vulgar gesture made with the thumb and two fingers.

11…Subjugate..ENSLAVE

“To subjugate” is to bring under control, to enslave. The term comes from the Latin “subiugare”, which has the same meaning. A more literal translation of the Latin is bring under (“sub”) the yoke (“iugum”).

12…Command level..ECHELON

We use the word “echelon” (ech.) to describe a rank or level, particularly in the military. The term comes from French, in which language it has the same meaning, although the original meaning in Old French is “rung of a ladder”.

18…GQ or SI..MAG

The Men’s magazine known today as “GQ” used to be titled “Gentlemen’s Quarterly”, and before that was called “Apparel Arts” when it was launched in 1931.

“Sports Illustrated” (“SI”) is a weekly sports magazine that first hit the newsstands in 1954.

22…HP product..INKJET

Inkjet is a very accurate and descriptive name for the type of printer. Printing is done by shooting fine jets of ink onto the page.

25…South Korea’s first president..RHEE

Syngman Rhee was born in Korea, but received much of his education in the US, including a Ph.D. from Princeton. The very much westernized Rhee returned to Korea in 1910, a Korea that by then had been annexed by Japan. Soon after he found himself President of a Provisional Government of Korea based in Shanghai, but was eventually ousted for misuse of power. After WWII, Rhee was installed as President, heavily backed by the United States. However, Rhee’s rule proved to be more like tyranny and during the Korean War his relationship with the US Government became very strained. He stayed in power until 1960 when student revolts became popular enough to force him out of office. The CIA flew him out of the country and he went into exile in Hawaii, where a few years later he died of a stroke.

27…Baltic Sea country: Abbr…SWE

The country of Sweden emerged during the Middle Ages, and became one of the great powers of Europe in the days of the Swedish Empire in 17th and early 18th century. Since then Sweden’s influence has waned. What was the eastern part of Sweden was lost to Russia in the early 1800s, and is now modern-day Finland. In the 20th century Sweden has adopted a very non-aggressive stance and was neutral in both World Wars.

The Baltic is a sea in northern Europe that is much less saline than the oceans. The lower amount of salt in the Baltic partially explains why almost half of the sea freezes over during the winter. In fact, the Baltic has been known to completely freeze over several times in recent centuries.

29…Airport connection..WI-FI

“Wi-Fi” is nothing more than a trademark, a trademark registered by an association of manufacturers of equipment that use wireless LAN (Local Area Network) technology. A device labeled with “Wi-Fi” has to meet certain defined technical standards, basically meaning that the devices can talk to each other. The name “Wi-Fi” suggests “Wireless Fidelity”, although apparently the term was never intended to mean anything at all.

33…Joe Cool, sans shades..SNOOPY

When cartoon beagle Snoopy adopts his “Joe Cool” alias, he puts on sunglasses and just leans against a wall doing nothing.

35…Exam for a would-be atty…LSAT

Law School Admission Test (LSAT)

38…The Emerald Isle..EIRE

Ireland is called the “Emerald Isle” (and described as “green”) because of all that green grass that grows due to the seemingly non-stop rain.

39…Text tweakers, briefly..EDS

Editor (ed.)

41…Patella protector..KNEEPAD

The patella is the kneecap. “Patella” is the Latin term for the bone, and is a diminutive form of “patina”, the word for “pan”. The idea is that the kneecap is pan-shaped.

44…Ophelia’s avenger..LAERTES

In William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet”, Laertes is the son of Polonius and brother of Ophelia. It is Laertes who kills Hamlet using a poisoned sword..

In William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”, Ophelia is courted by Hamlet, the man himself. Ophelia is the daughter of nobleman Polonius. She dies …

49…Being handled by a broker..LISTED

That would be a property listed by a real estate broker.

In the world of law, there are two main classes of property: personal property and real property. Personal property is basically movable property. Real property is immovable, such as land or buildings and related assets.

52…What Spanish Olympians go for..EL ORO

In Spanish, an athlete in the Olympics goes for “el oro” (the gold).

54…Con beginning..NEO-

By definition, a neoconservative (neocon) is a former left-aligned politician who has moved to the right and supports the use of American power and military to bring democracy, liberty, equality and human rights to other countries.

58…Former Education secretary Duncan..ARNE

Long before Arne Duncan became Secretary of Education he was a professional basketball player, but not in the NBA. Duncan played for the National Basketball League of Australia, for the Eastside Spectres in Melbourne.

59…Original D&D co…TSR

Dungeons & Dragons is a complex role-playing game (RPG) first published in 1974, by Tactical Studies Rules Incorporated (TSR). Dungeons & Dragons was probably the first of the modern role-playing games to be developed, and the most successful. It is still played by lots of people today, including my nerdy son …

Return to top of page

Complete List of Clues and Answers

Across

1…Quads with wheels..ATVS

5…Perry of pop..KATY

9…Two-iron, before golf club numbering..CLEEK

14…Orator’s prowess: Abbr…RHET

15…Der Spiegel article..EINE

16…Modicum..OUNCE

17…What Fey does in a mushy moment?..TINA MELTS (from “tuna melts”)

19…Forward..UNSHY

20…Sandal feature..T-STRAP

21…Work the room..MINGLE

23…Long time..EON

24…Ornamental ducks?..GARDEN TEALS (from “garden tools”)

28…Blanket in a belt..SNOW

30…Beefcake subjects..HUNKS

31…One given at a wedding..VOW

32…Polo of “The Fosters”..TERI

33…Provençal possessive..SES

34…1974 #1 country hit for Dolly Parton..JOLENE

36…Model high schoolers?..FINE TEENS (from “fine-tunes”)

39…__ Pie..ESKIMO

42…Slowing, on scores: Abbr…RIT

43…Sacha Baron Cohen alter ego..ALI G

47…Home office, maybe..DEN

48…Quite cold..POLAR

50…Number on a clapperboard..TAKE

51…Park statue that might have the real things perched on it?..STEEL PIGEON (from “stool pigeon”)

55…Sylvan Tolkien creature..ENT

56…Airport snags..DELAYS

57…Dreaded..FEARED

59…Hit lightly..TAP ON

60…”No, No, Nanette” song, and a homophonic hint to 17-, 24-, 36- and 51-Across..TEA FOR TWO

63…Sudden jerk..START

64…Way off the highway..EXIT

65…Der Spiegel rejection..NEIN

66…Second chances..REDOS

67…”__ arigato”: Japanese “thank you very much”..DOMO

68…Where el sol rises..ESTE

Down

1…”Draw me” challenge..ART TEST

2…Selective words..THIS ONE

3…Avenue next to Monopoly’s Water Works..VENTNOR

4…Headliner..STAR

5…__ straight face..KEEP A

6…Come down with a bug..AIL

7…Big blowup cause..TNT

8…Sycophants..YES MEN

9…Has faith in..COUNTS ON

10…Sudden movement..LUNGE

11…Subjugate..ENSLAVE

12…Command level..ECHELON

13…Exam marking aid..KEY

18…GQ or SI..MAG

22…HP product..INKJET

25…South Korea’s first president..RHEE

26…Cleaning aid..DUST RAG

27…Baltic Sea country: Abbr…SWE

29…Airport connection..WI-FI

33…Joe Cool, sans shades..SNOOPY

35…Exam for a would-be atty…LSAT

37…Surgical installations..IMPLANTS

38…The Emerald Isle..EIRE

39…Text tweakers, briefly..EDS

40…Appointment..SET DATE

41…Patella protector..KNEEPAD

44…Ophelia’s avenger..LAERTES

45…”Aha!”..I KNEW IT!

46…Finish..GET DONE

49…Being handled by a broker..LISTED

52…What Spanish Olympians go for..EL ORO

53…Heading for..OFF TO

54…Con beginning..NEO-

58…Former Education secretary Duncan..ARNE

59…Original D&D co…TSR

61…Outer: Pref…EXO-

62…Intent..AIM




Return to top of page