LA Times Crossword 2 Oct 19, Wednesday

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Constructed by: Jeffrey Wechsler
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Reveal Answer: Inclined Plane

The grid includes circled letters on an INCLINE. Those letters spell out types of PLANES:

  • JET
  • FIGHTER
  • GLIDER
  • TURBOPROP

  • 45A Ramp, and what’s found in each set of circles : INCLINED PLANE

Bill’s time: 7m 19s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 “Happy Days” actress Erin : MORAN

Erin Moran was a lovely actress most famous for playing Joanie Cunningham on “Happy Days” and on the resulting (short-lived) spin-off sitcom called “Joanie Loves Chachi”. Long before she got her big break in “Happy Days”, Moran played Jenny Jones on the children’s drama “Daktari” from the late sixties.

15 Texter’s “As I see it” : IMO

In my opinion (IMO)

16 Defunct defense gp. : SEATO

The Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) was set up in 1954, a defense organization with the mission to block communist influence growing in Southeast Asia. The driving force behind the organization’s creation was President Eisenhower’s Secretary of State, John Dulles. The list of SEATO members included Australia, France, the Philippines, the UK and the US. The organization was never really considered effective and it fell apart in 1977 largely due to a lack of interest by the members.

17 Pear variety : ANJOU

The Anjou pear is a cultivar of the European Pear. The Anjou is thought to have originated in Belgium or France (Anjou is a province in the Loire Valley of western France).

18 Opening setting of “Madagascar” : ZOO

“Madagascar” is an animated film released in 2005. It’s a story about zoo animals, used to “the easy life” in captivity, getting shipwrecked on the island of Madagascar off the African coast.

20 Fort Worth sch. : TCU

Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private school in Fort Worth, Texas. TCU used to be called AddRan Male & Female, named after an AddRan Clark, the son of Addison Clark who died at the age of 3-years-old from diphtheria. Poor young AddRan was named after his father and his brother, Addison and Randolph.

21 RR stop : STA

A station (“stn.” or “sta.”) is a railroad (RR) or bus stop.

23 Giuseppe’s god : DIO

In Italian, “Dio” (God) is the enemy of the “Diavolo” (Devil).

25 “S” on an invitation : S’IL

“RSVP” stands for “répondez s’il vous plaît”, which is French for “answer, please”.

26 NFL’s Gronk and others : TES

In American football, a quarterback (QB) might throw to a tight end (TE).

Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski is an NFL tight end who was drafted by the New England Patriots in 2010. Gronk is one of five brothers, all of whom have played professional sports.

30 1999 Ron Howard satire : EDTV

“EDtv” is a comedy film directed by Ron Howard starring Matthew McConaughey that was released in 1999. The plot has a “Big Brother” feel to it, as it is about a TV show broadcasting someone’s life, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

32 Easy-to-spot jigsaw pieces : EDGES

Jigsaws are saws designed for the cutting of irregular curves by hand. The original jigsaw puzzles were created by painting a picture on a sheet of wood and then cutting the picture into small pieces using a jigsaw, hence the name. Today, almost all jigsaw puzzles are pictures glued onto cardboard. The puzzle pieces are now die-cut, and so there’s no jigsaw involved at all.

36 Hundred Acre Wood joey : ROO

Hundred Acre Wood is where Winnie the Pooh lives with his friends. According to a map illustrating the books by A. A. Milne, Hundred Acre Wood is part of a larger forest, with Owl’s house sitting right at the center. Piglet also lives in the Hundred Acre Wood, in a beech tree next to a sign that says “TRESPASSERS W”. Piglet says this is short for Trespassers William, which is his grandfather’s name.

In Australia, male kangaroos are known by several names including bucks, boomers, jacks or old men. Females are called does, flyers, or jills. There seems to be just the one name for young kangaroos, i.e. joeys. A group of kangaroos might be called a mob, troop or court.

37 Egyptian Christians : COPTS

The Copts make up the largest minority religious group in Egypt. Copts are Christians, with most adhered to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, and others practicing Coptic Catholicism or Coptic Protestantism. The term “Copt” ultimately derives from a Greek word for Egyptian.

38 Word from Robin preceding headache, homework, and hamstrings, among others : HOLY …

Batman’s partner Robin is known for his very creative “Holy …!” exclamations. Here are few worth repeating from the original “Batman” TV show:

  • “Holy Tintinnabulation!”
  • “Holy Knit One, Purl Two!”
  • “Holy Oleo!”
  • “Holy Hole in a Doughnut!”

40 “Beetle Bailey” dog : OTTO

Sgt. Snorkel (“Sarge”) is Beetle Bailey’s nemesis in the cartoon strip that bears the latter’s name. Snorkel has a dog called Otto that he dresses up to look just like himself. Otto started off as a regular dog, but artist Mort Walker decided to draw him more like his owner, and soon Otto became a big hit.

42 __ monster : GILA

A Gila monster is a venomous lizard found in the southwestern US and northern Mexico, and is the only venomous lizard native to America. Gila monsters move along at a snail’s pace so aren’t normally a danger to humans. The name “Gila” is a reference to the Gila River Basin in the American Southwest, where the Gila monster was prevalent.

54 Iconic lemon : EDSEL

Edsel Ford was the only child of automobile manufacturing pioneer Henry Ford. Edsel became president of Ford Motors, as Henry’s sole heir, and served in that capacity from 1919 until his death in 1943. Henry’s name is very much associated with the Model T, the Tin Lizzie. Edsel was the man behind the subsequent development of the more fashionable Model A. However, despite Edsel’s many successes, his name is inextricably linked with the highly unsuccessful Edsel line of cars.

56 “Live With Kelly and Ryan” network : ABC

When Kelly Ripa secured the co-host spot on morning television with Regis Philbin, she was still acting in “All My Children” in a role she had been playing for over ten years. After a year of holding down two jobs, she eventually gave up the acting gig. Ripa has acted as spokeswoman for several brands over the years, most recently for Electrolux and Rykä.

Radio and television personality Ryan Seacrest is best known as the host of the talent show “American Idol”. Seacrest has also been hosting “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” on ABC since 2005, and co-hosting “Live with Kelly and Ryan” since 2017. He is also a producer, and is the man behind the show “Keeping Up with the Kardashians”. Ryan has a lot to answer for …

57 Big name in whisky : DEWAR

Dewar’s is a blended Scotch whisky introduced to the market in 1846 by John Dewar. Dewar’s White Label is the company’s most popular Scotch. It was first sold in 1899, and with a taste that is described as “heather and honey”. Dewar’s also make some single malts, under the labels Aberfeldy 12 and Aberfeldy 21. Today, Dewar’s is owned by Bacardi.

58 Small songbird : TIT

The birds known as chickadees or titmice in North America, are usually called simply “tits” in the rest of the English-speaking world.

62 Corp. tech boss : CIO

Chief Information Officer (CIO)

63 Action film gun : UZI

The first Uzi submachine gun was designed in the late 1940s by Major Uziel “Uzi” Gal of the Israel Defense Forces, who gave his name to the gun.

64 Privately : SUB ROSA

“Sub rosa” is a Latin term that translates literally as “under the rose”. The term is used to denote confidentiality, as the rose has been a symbol of secrecy since ancient times.

65 Journalist Curry : ANN

Television journalist Ann Curry is perhaps best known for the time she spent as co-host on NBC’s “Today” show. NBC executives asked Curry to resign from the “Today” show because ratings were low. I just read online that Curry was also pushed out because of the way she insisted on dressing and because she refused to dye her gray hair. I hope that isn’t true …

68 Charles of R&B : RAY

Ray Charles came up with his stage name by dropping the family name from his real moniker “Ray Charles Robinson”. His life was a wild ride, and was well-represented in the excellent 2004 biopic called “Ray” starring Jamie Foxx in the title role. Ray Charles was married twice and fathered 12 children with nine different women. As I said, a wild ride …

69 Macaw, for some : PET

Macaws are beautifully-colored birds native to Central and South America that are actually a type of parrot. Most species of macaws are now endangered, with several having become extinct in recent decades. The main threats are deforestation and illegal trapping and trafficking of exotic birds.

Down

6 Potter’s specialty : WIZARDRY

The incredibly popular “Harry Potter” films make up one of the highest-grossing film franchises of all time, up there with the “Marvel Comics”, “Star Wars” and “James Bond” movies series.

7 Angsty rock genre : EMO

The emo musical genre originated in Washington D.C. in the 80s, and takes its name from “emotional hardcore”. “Emo” is also the name given to the associated subculture. Not my cup of tea …

9 Early PC platform : MS-DOS

MS-DOS (short for “Microsoft Disk Operating System”) was the main operating system used by IBM-compatible PCs in the eighties and for much of the nineties.

22 With 48-Down, Time Lord played by various performers : THE … (48 See 22-Down : … DOCTOR)

The Time Lords are an alien race on the BBC sci-fi show “Doctor Who”. The title character, known as “the Doctor”, is in fact a Time Lord.

24 They, in Calais : ILS

Calais is a major ferry port in northern France that overlooks the Strait of Dover, which is the narrowest point in the English Channel. The strait is just over 20 miles wide, making Calais the nearest French town to England.

37 PC 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.

41 Solemn bugle solo : TAPS

“Taps” is played nightly by the US military, indicating “lights out”. It’s also known as “Butterfield’s Lullaby” as it is a variation of an older bugle call named the “Scott Tattoo”, arranged during the Civil War by the Union Army’s Brigadier General Daniel Butterfield. The tune is called “Taps”, from the notion of drum taps, as it was originally played on a drum, and only later on a bugle. The whole tune comprises just 24 notes, with there only being four different notes within the 24, i.e. “low G”, C, E and “high G”. Minimalism at its best …

42 Early Christian : GNOSTIC

“Gnosis” is a Greek word meaning “knowledge”. The related term “Gnosticism” describes a religious movement that espouses the belief that only a few people can have special knowledge or insight into the central tenets of that religion.

44 Kilimanjaro topper : SNOWCAP

Kilimanjaro is a dormant volcano in Tanzania, and is the highest mountain in the whole of Africa.

45 Treat, as table salt : IODIZE

Potassium iodide is an important nutrient, and is the most common additive used in iodized table salt. The addition of a source of iodine to table salt is a public health measure taken prevent iodine deficiency. Additional iodine in the diet isn’t really necessary for those who eat a reasonable amount of seafood, as there is a lot of iodine in the oceans.

47 Put in prison : EMBAR

“To embar” is to hinder or stop, to perhaps hinder with bars, to imprison. The related term “embargo” describes the action of barring vessels from entering or leaving a nation’s ports.

49 TV pal of Jerry and George : ELAINE

The character Elaine Benes, unlike the other lead characters (Jerry, Kramer and George), did not appear in the pilot episode of “Seinfeld”. NBC executives specified the addition of a female lead when they picked up the show citing that the situation was too “male-centric”.

50 Womb occupant : FETUS

The word “fetus”, used for an unborn young animal, comes from Latin as one might expect. “Fetus” is the Latin word for the act of hatching or bringing forth a young animal or child. The mistaken spelling “foetus” is seen occasionally, but there’s no historical basis for adding that “o”.

53 Weather map feature : FRONT

A cold front is the leading edge of a relatively cold mass of air, and a warm front is the leading edge of a warm mass of air. Both warm and cold fronts can bring rain to the land below.

57 June 6, 1944 : D-DAY

The most famous D-Day in history was June 6, 1944, the date of the Normandy landings in WWII. The term “D-Day” is used by the military to designate the day on which a combat operations are to be launched, especially when the actual date has yet to be determined. What D stands for seems to have been lost in the mists of time although the tradition is that D just stands for “Day”. In fact, the French have a similar term, “Jour J” (Day J), with a similar meaning. We also use H-Hour to denote the hour the attack is to commence.

61 That, in Tijuana : ESA

Tijuana is the largest city in the Mexican state of Baja California, and lies just across the US-Mexico border from San Diego. Tijuana is also the most westerly of all Mexican cities. A lot of Tijuana’s growth took place in the twenties as tourists flocked south of the border during the days of prohibition in the US. One of the many casinos and hotels that flourished at that time was Hotel Caesar’s in the Avenida Revolución area. Hotel Caesar’s claims to be the birthplace of the now ubiquitous Caesar Salad.

Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Barely enough : SCANT
6 Like a pooch’s smooch : WET
9 “Happy Days” actress Erin : MORAN
14 Software writer : CODER
15 Texter’s “As I see it” : IMO
16 Defunct defense gp. : SEATO
17 Pear variety : ANJOU
18 Opening setting of “Madagascar” : ZOO
19 Be carried by the current : DRIFT
20 Fort Worth sch. : TCU
21 RR stop : STA
23 Giuseppe’s god : DIO
25 “S” on an invitation : S’IL
26 NFL’s Gronk and others : TES
27 Roller coaster experiences : THRILLS
29 Previously, to a poet : ERE
30 1999 Ron Howard satire : EDTV
32 Easy-to-spot jigsaw pieces : EDGES
33 Ado : FUSS
34 Turn back to zero : RESET
36 Hundred Acre Wood joey : ROO
37 Egyptian Christians : COPTS
38 Word from Robin preceding headache, homework, and hamstrings, among others : HOLY …
40 “Beetle Bailey” dog : OTTO
42 __ monster : GILA
43 Song and dance : ARTS
45 Ramp, and what’s found in each set of circles : INCLINED PLANE
50 Con : FOOL
51 Floor models : DEMOS
52 Putting game : GOLF
54 Iconic lemon : EDSEL
56 “Live With Kelly and Ryan” network : ABC
57 Big name in whisky : DEWAR
58 Small songbird : TIT
59 Reevaluated favorably : UPRATED
62 Corp. tech boss : CIO
63 Action film gun : UZI
64 Privately : SUB ROSA
65 Journalist Curry : ANN
66 Brief time : SEC
67 Taste : TRY
68 Charles of R&B : RAY
69 Macaw, for some : PET

Down

1 Disperse : SCATTER
2 Admit having lost : CONCEDE
3 Fiddles with : ADJUSTS
4 Fresh start? : NEO-
5 Estate manager’s suggestion : TRUST
6 Potter’s specialty : WIZARDRY
7 Angsty rock genre : EMO
8 “Ta-ta!” : TOODLE-OO!
9 Early PC platform : MS-DOS
10 Above, to a bard : O’ER
11 Elevate : RAISE UP
12 Initially : AT FIRST
13 Qualifier for a minimum price : NOT LESS
22 With 48-Down, Time Lord played by various performers : THE …
24 They, in Calais : ILS
28 “Need __ on?” : I GO
31 Jam ingredient? : VEHICLE
33 Cinematographer’s compilation : FOOTAGE
35 Temporary usage fee : TOLL
37 PC key : CTRL
39 __-back: relaxed : LAID
41 Solemn bugle solo : TAPS
42 Early Christian : GNOSTIC
44 Kilimanjaro topper : SNOWCAP
45 Treat, as table salt : IODIZE
46 At hand : NEARBY
47 Put in prison : EMBAR
48 See 22-Down : … DOCTOR
49 TV pal of Jerry and George : ELAINE
50 Womb occupant : FETUS
53 Weather map feature : FRONT
55 Unbridled desire : LUST
57 June 6, 1944 : D-DAY
60 Water filter brand : PUR
61 That, in Tijuana : ESA