LA Times Crossword 28 Aug 20, Friday

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Constructed by: Jeffrey Wechsler
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): Axis Added

Themed answers are common phrases with the letter sequence AX inserted:

  • 19A False claim about one’s pioneer ancestors? : WESTWARD HOAX (from “Westward ho!”)
  • 25A Medieval German spendthrift? : PRODIGAL SAXON (from “Prodigal Son”)
  • 41A Transmitted documents with Red Riding Hood’s location? : FAXED TO THE WOLVES (from “fed to the wolves”)
  • 52A Beauty treatment for poultry? : CHICKEN WAXING (from “chicken wing”)
  • 63A Big-screen entertainment for angels? : IMAX IN HEAVEN (from “I’m in heaven”)

Bill’s time: 8m 16s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

4 Weary worker’s sigh : TGIF

“Thank God It’s Friday” (TGIF) is a relatively new expression that apparently originated in Akron, Ohio. It was a catchphrase used first by disk jockey Jerry Healy of WAKR in the early seventies. That said, one blog reader wrote to me to say that he had been using the phrase in the fifties.

15 4 x 4, briefly : UTE

A utility vehicle is often called a “ute” for short. Nowadays one mainly hears about sport-utes and crossover-utes.

16 Six-ton predator : ORCA

The taxonomic name for the killer whale is “Orcinus orca”. The use of the name “orca”, rather than “killer whale”, is becoming more and more common. The Latin word “Orcinus” means “belonging to Orcus”, with Orcus being the name for the Kingdom of the Dead.

17 Leopard spot : ROSETTE

The spots on spotted animals such as leopards and jaguars are arranged in groups. Those grouped spots are termed “rosettes”. The spotted patterns on such animals are unique to each individual.

18 ICU staffer : LPN

Licensed practical nurse (LPN)

23 Crest box abbr. : ADA

American Dental Association (ADA)

Crest is a Procter & Gamble brand of toothpaste that was introduced in 1953.

25 Medieval German spendthrift? : PRODIGAL SAXON (from “Prodigal Son”)

Germanic tribes invaded Great Britain from the early 5th century and created the nation that we now call England. The Anglo-Saxons (sometimes simply “Saxons”), as these tribes came to be called, held sway in the country until the Norman Conquest in 1066. The Anglo-Saxons were descendants of three Germanic tribes:

  • The Angles, from Angeln in Northern Germany (and the tribe that gave the name “England”).
  • The Saxons, from Lower Saxony and Holland.
  • The Jutes, from the Jutland peninsula in Denmark.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son is related in the Gospel of Luke. Someone who is prodigal is wasteful or extravagant. The parable tells of a man with two sons. The youngest asks for and receives his share of the family estate, and then spends it all unwisely. The prodigal son returns, to an unwelcoming older brother. The father, however, declares happily that his son “was lost and now is found”.

30 Honey, in slang : BAE

“Bae” is a contemporary term of endearment. It is a pet name that is an abbreviation of “babe, baby”, although I’ve also read that it is an acronym standing for “before anyone else”.

32 Lot choice : SEDAN

The American sedan car is the equivalent of the British and Irish saloon car. By definition, a sedan car has two rows of seating and a separate trunk (boot in Britain and Ireland), although in some models the engine can be at the rear of the car.

36 Wall St. event : IPO

An initial public offering (IPO) is the very first offer of stock for sale by a company on the open market. In other words, an IPO marks the first time that a company is traded on a public exchange. Companies have an IPO to raise capital to expand (usually).

38 Enforcer of some ACA provisions : IRS

The correct name for what has been dubbed “Obamacare” is the “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” (ACA).

39 Vague unease : MALAISE

A malaise is a general but undefined feeling of discomfort or illness. The term “malaise” ultimately comes from Old French with the prefix “mal-” meaning “bad” and “aise” meaning “ease”.

41 Transmitted documents with Red Riding Hood’s location? : FAXED TO THE WOLVES (from “fed to the wolves”)

The Big Bad Wolf is a character in many folklore stories, including “Little Red Riding” and “Three Little Pigs”. Walt Disney’s version of the Big Bad Wolf is called Zeke Wolf, and has a son called Li’l Bad Wolf, or just “Li’l Wolf” to his friends.

“Little Red Riding Hood” is a fairy tale that originated in Europe and was first published in France by Charles Perrault in 1697. The title translates into French as “Le Petit Chaperon Rouge”.

45 Bending movement : FLEXION

In anatomical terms, flexion are two opposing motions that apply to say a joint. Flexion decreases the angle between bones meeting at the joint, and extension increases that angle. So, bending a leg at the knee is flexion, whereas straightening the leg is extension.

49 It was precious to conquistadores : ORO

“Conquistador” is the Spanish for “conqueror”.

50 Oliver Twist or Tiny Tim : BOY

“Oliver Twist” is an 1838 novel by Charles Dickens. The title character is an orphan who escapes from an oppressive apprenticeship with an undertaker. He gets drawn into the criminal underworld of London, where he meets up with some colorful characters such as the Artful Dodger, Fagin and Bill Sykes. Television, stage and film adaptations of “Oliver Twist” tend to lift the overall mood of the story, which in the novel is pretty bleak.

“Tiny Tim” is the nickname of Timothy Cratchit, a character in the Charles Dickens novella “A Christmas Carol”. Tiny Tim is the son of Ebenezer Scrooge’s underpaid clerk Bob Cratchit, and is a sickly child. Famously, the child utters the words “God bless us, every one!” at Christmas dinner, which words are repeated by the author at the end of the story.

63 Big-screen entertainment for angels? : IMAX IN HEAVEN (from “I’m in heaven”)

The IMAX Corporation, which is behind the IMAX film format, is a Canadian company. The impetus for developing the system came after Expo ’67 in Montreal. Back then large format screenings were accomplished using multiple projectors with multiple screens, with images basically stitched together. The team behind the IMAX technology set out to simplify things, and developed a single-camera, single-projector system.

68 Hurdle for srs. : GRE

Passing the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is usually a requirement for entry into graduate school here in the US.

69 First religious leader of his title to be called “The Great” : POPE LEO

The first Pope Leo led the church from 440-461 AD and is now known as Pope Saint Leo the Great. Leo I is famous for having met with the feared Attila the Hun, and persuading him to turn back his invading force that was threatening to overrun Western Europe. The last Pope Leo reigned from 1878-1903. Leo XIII died at the age of 93, making him the oldest of all popes.

70 Guy : MALE

Even when I was a kid living in England in the 1960s, we would make up an effigy of Guy Fawkes to parade around the streets in the runup to Guy Fawkes Day, November 5th. Guy Fawkes was the man who led the Gunpowder Plot to blow up the British king and Parliament on November 5, 1605. We kids would use the effigy to raise money from strangers by approaching them with the phrase “penny for the guy”. The money collected was used to buy fireworks that we’d shoot off on Bonfire Night, the name given to the evening of Guy Fawkes Day. The effigy known as “the guy” gave rise in the UK to the use of “guy” to describe a poorly-dressed man. By the mid-1800s, the term “guy” was adopted into American-English to mean simply “fellow”.

71 Charlottesville sch. : UVA

The University of Virginia (UVA) was founded by Thomas Jefferson, who then sat on the original Board of Visitors alongside former US Presidents James Madison and James Monroe. In fact, the original UVA campus was built on land near Charlottesville that was once a farm belonging to President Monroe.

The city of Charlottesville, Virginia was named for Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, the wife of King George III. George’s queen consort also lent her name to the city of Charlotte, North Carolina.

72 Tools for some crossword solvers : ERASERS

Arthur Wynne is generally credited with the invention of what we now known as a crossword puzzle. Wynne was born in Liverpool, England and emigrated to the US when he was 19-years-old. He worked as a journalist and was living in Cedar Grove, New Jersey in 1913 when he introduced a “Word-Cross Puzzle” in his page of puzzles written for the “New York World”. The first book of crossword puzzles was published by Shuster & Shuster, in 1924. The collection of puzzles was a huge hit, and crosswords were elevated to the level of “a craze” in 1924 and 1925.

73 500-mile race : 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.

Down

1 Derby cocktail : JULEP

A mint julep is a bourbon-based cocktail that is associated with the American South, and with the Kentucky Derby in particular. If you’d like to make yourself a mint julep, one recipe is:

  • 3 oz of Bourbon
  • 4-6 sprigs of mint
  • granulated sugar to taste

Our use of the word “derby” to mean a race started in 1780 with the English Derby horse race, which was founded then by the 12th Earl of Derby. Ultimately, the term “derby” derives from the old English shire of “Deorby”, a word meaning “deer village”.

2 For face value : AT PAR

In days gone by, when companies first issued a stock, each share would be given a face value (called “par value”). In effect, the company was making a commitment not to issue any more stock under that par value, giving investors confidence that there was no better deal to be had. Nowadays, most stock is issued without such a “guarantee” and is called “no-par stock”.

3 Japanese takeout orders : BENTO BOXES

A bento is a single-person meal that is eaten quite commonly in Japan. A bento can be purchased as a take-out meal, or it may be packed at home. A bento is usually sold as a “bento box”.

5 An Allman brother : GREGG

The Allman Brothers Band has to be one of the most unlucky bands in the business. Soon after the group had its big break with the 1971 album “At Fillmore East”, one of the two Allman brothers, Duane, was killed in a motorcycle accident. One year later, bassist Berry Oakley was killed, also in a motorcycle accident. The second brother, Gregg Allman, passed away in his home in 2017.

8 Fendi rival : PRADA

Prada started out in 1913 as a leather-goods shop in Milan, one established by the two Prada brothers. One of the brothers, Mario Prada, prevented the female members of his family participating in the company as he didn’t believe women should be involved in business (!). When the sexist brother died, his son had no interest in the business so it was his daughter who took over and ran the company for about twenty years, handing it over to her own daughter. I’d say the devil loved that …

Fendi is an Italian fashion house that was founded in 1925 by Adele Casagrande. Fendi started out as a fur and leather shop in Rome, and these days is famous for its line of handbags.

9 Seuss activist : LORAX

“The Lorax” is a children’s book written by Dr. Seuss. It is an allegorical work questioning the problems created by industrialization, and in particular its impact on the environment. At one point in the story, the Lorax “speaks for the trees, for the trees have no tongues”. “The Lorax” was adapted into an animated film that was released in 2012, with Danny DeVito voicing the title character.

10 Amer. capital : USD

The dollar sign ($) was first used for the Spanish-American peso, in the late 18th century. The peso was also called the “Spanish dollar” (and “piece of eight”). The Spanish dollar was to become a model for the US dollar that was adopted in 1785, along with the dollar sign.

11 Bk. before Esther : NEH

In the Bible, the Book of Nehemiah is preceded by the Book of Ezra, and followed by the Book of Esther.

12 Classic muscle cars : GTOS

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.

20 With 35-Down, papery construction best left alone : WASP …
(35D See 20-Down : … NEST)

While the wasp is considered to be a nuisance by many, the insect is very important to the agricultural industry. Wasps prey on many pest insects, while having very little impact on crops.

22 Filmmaker Lupino : IDA

Actress Ida Lupino was also a successful director, in the days when women weren’t very welcome behind the camera. She had already directed four “women’s” shorts when she stepped in to direct the 1953 drama “The Hitch-Hiker”, taking over when the original director became ill. “The Hitch-Hiker” was the first film noir movie to be directed by a woman, and somewhat of a breakthrough for women in the industry.

26 Blacksmith wear : APRON

A blacksmith is someone who forges and shapes iron, perhaps to make horseshoes. A farrier is someone who fits horseshoes onto the hooves of horses. The term “blacksmith” is sometimes used for one who shoes horses, especially as many blacksmiths make horseshoes and fit them as well.

28 Capital on a fjord : OSLO

The Norwegian capital of Oslo is located at the northern end of a fjord known as Oslofjord. The fjord is home to 40 islands that lie within the city’s limits. Oslo also has 343 lakes.

29 Patricia of “Hud” : NEAL

Patricia Neal won her Best Actress Oscar relatively late in her career, for playing a middle-aged housekeeper in 1963’s “Hud”. A few years’ later, she was offered the role of Mrs. Robinson in “The Graduate” but turned it down. Famously, Neal had an affair with Gary Cooper who was married at the time. She became pregnant with his child, but he persuaded her to have an abortion. Not long afterwards Neal married British writer Roald Dahl (of “Willy Wonka” fame) and the couple had five children together before divorcing in 1983.

I don’t like many westerns, to be honest, but the 1963 movie “Hud” is a classic. It stars Paul Newman and Patricia Neal and is an adaptation of a novel by Larry McMurtry called “Horseman, Pass By”. Patricia Neal’s role in the film was relatively small, yet her performance was enough to earn her an Academy Award for Best Actress.

37 Part of IPA : PALE

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.

38 Midori in a rink : ITO

Midori Ito is a Japanese figure skater. Ito was the first woman to land a triple/triple jump and a triple axel in competition. In fact, she landed her first triple jump in training when she was only 8 years old. Ito won Olympic silver in 1992, and was chosen as the person to light the Olympic cauldron at the commencement of the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, Japan.

39 Gourd fruit : MELON

Melons are plants with edible, fleshy fruits that are usually sweet. The fruit of a melon is actually a berry.

43 Share juicy details : DISH

To dish the dirt is to talk about someone or something without regard to veracity. The phrase comes from “dish” (in the sense of dishing out food) and “dirt” (in the sense of negative information). To be dishy is to be given to gossip.

44 Fabled braggart : HARE

“The Tortoise and the Hare” is perhaps the most famous fable attributed to Aesop. The cocky hare takes a nap during a race against the tortoise, and the tortoise sneaks past the finish line for the win while his speedier friend is sleeping.

49 Dust Bowl migrant : OKIE

“Okies” is a derogatory term used during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s for farming families who migrated from Oklahoma (hence the name), Arkansas, Kansas and Texas in search of agricultural jobs in California. The road used by many of these migrant families was Route 66, which is also called “Mother Road”.

The Dust Bowl was a period in which severe dust storms ravaged the American and Canadian Prairies in the thirties. A major factor in the storms was the loss of the deep-rooted grasses native to the land that had been displaced by intensive farming. Without the grasses, the topsoil was blown away in a period of drought.

50 Dancing dinosaur : BARNEY

Barney the purple dinosaur is the title character in the young children’s TV show “Barney & Friends”.

51 Kitchen gadget maker : OXO

The OXO line of kitchen utensils and housewares is designed to be ergonomically superior to the average household tools. The intended user of OXO products is someone who doesn’t have the normal range of motion or strength in the hands e.g. someone suffering from arthritis.

54 Pacific salmon : COHOS

The Coho salmon is dark blue with silver along the side of its body, but only during the phase of its life while it is in the ocean. When spawning and heading up into a freshwater river, the Coho has bright red sides.

60 California tourist valley : NAPA

The first commercial winery in Napa Valley, California was established way back in 1858. However, premium wine production only dates back to the 1960s, with the region really hitting the big time after its success at the Paris Wine Tasting of 1976. The story of that famous blind wine tasting is told in the entertaining 2008 film “Bottle Shock”.

65 Paris’ __ de la Cité : ILE

There are two famous “îles” (islands) in the middle of the River Seine in Paris, one being the Île de la Cité, and the other Île Saint-Louis. Île de la Cité is the most renowned of the two, as it is home to the cathedral of Notre Dame.

67 FedEx fleet member : VAN

FedEx began operations in 1973 as Federal Express, but now operates very successfully under it’s more catchy, abbreviated name. Headquartered in Memphis with its “SuperHub” at Memphis International Airport, FedEx is the world’s largest airline in terms of tons of freight flown. And due to the presence of FedEx, Memphis Airport has the largest-volume cargo operation of any airport worldwide.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Quick blow : JAB
4 Weary worker’s sigh : TGIF
8 Dives : PLUNGES
15 4 x 4, briefly : UTE
16 Six-ton predator : ORCA
17 Leopard spot : ROSETTE
18 ICU staffer : LPN
19 False claim about one’s pioneer ancestors? : WESTWARD HOAX (from “Westward ho!”)
21 Taking courses? : EATING
23 Crest box abbr. : ADA
24 Crafty : SLY
25 Medieval German spendthrift? : PRODIGAL SAXON (from “Prodigal Son”)
30 Honey, in slang : BAE
31 Zip : PEP
32 Lot choice : SEDAN
36 Wall St. event : IPO
38 Enforcer of some ACA provisions : IRS
39 Vague unease : MALAISE
41 Transmitted documents with Red Riding Hood’s location? : FAXED TO THE WOLVES (from “fed to the wolves”)
45 Bending movement : FLEXION
46 __ clear : ALL
47 Large receptacle : VAT
48 Nods, maybe : YESES
49 It was precious to conquistadores : ORO
50 Oliver Twist or Tiny Tim : BOY
52 Beauty treatment for poultry? : CHICKEN WAXING (from “chicken wing”)
58 Half-hearted : WAN
61 “There’s __ in team” : NO I
62 Laundry employee : IRONER
63 Big-screen entertainment for angels? : IMAX IN HEAVEN (from “I’m in heaven”)
68 Hurdle for srs. : GRE
69 First religious leader of his title to be called “The Great” : POPE LEO
70 Guy : MALE
71 Charlottesville sch. : UVA
72 Tools for some crossword solvers : ERASERS
73 500-mile race : INDY
74 Furry friend : PET

Down

1 Derby cocktail : JULEP
2 For face value : AT PAR
3 Japanese takeout orders : BENTO BOXES
4 Many an off-campus local : TOWNIE
5 An Allman brother : GREGG
6 Suffix with robot : -ICS
7 Budgetary excess : FAT
8 Fendi rival : PRADA
9 Seuss activist : LORAX
10 Amer. capital : USD
11 Bk. before Esther : NEH
12 Classic muscle cars : GTOS
13 Shorthand for unlisted items : ET AL
14 Alluring : SEXY
20 With 35-Down, papery construction best left alone : WASP …
22 Filmmaker Lupino : IDA
26 Blacksmith wear : APRON
27 For fear that : LEST
28 Capital on a fjord : OSLO
29 Patricia of “Hud” : NEAL
33 Tending to, as the loot : DIVVYING UP
34 Like pirates, often : ASEA
35 See 20-Down : … NEST
36 Uncertain : IFFY
37 Part of IPA : PALE
38 Midori in a rink : ITO
39 Gourd fruit : MELON
40 Piercing tool : AWL
42 Corner off. occupant : EXEC
43 Share juicy details : DISH
44 Fabled braggart : HARE
49 Dust Bowl migrant : OKIE
50 Dancing dinosaur : BARNEY
51 Kitchen gadget maker : OXO
53 __ circle : INNER
54 Pacific salmon : COHOS
55 Brandish : WIELD
56 Guts : NERVE
57 “That’s what I’m talking about!” : GREAT!
58 Sanitizing cloth : WIPE
59 Latin love : AMOR
60 California tourist valley : NAPA
64 Kisses, in love letters : XES
65 Paris’ __ de la Cité : ILE
66 “What __ missing?” : AM I
67 FedEx fleet member : VAN