LA Times Crossword Answers 19 Mar 13, Tuesday

CROSSWORD SETTER: Pancho Harrison
THEME: OO, OO! … each of today’s themed answers contains two sets of OOs:

17A. Play some b-ball SHOOT HOOPS
25A. Tinted feature of some cars MOONROOF
37A. Infallible, as a scheme FOOLPROOF
51A. “The Hustler” setting POOL ROOM
62A. Cereal with a spokestoucan FROOT LOOPS

COMPLETION TIME: 6m 09s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
1. Al who created Fearless Fosdick CAPP
“Fearless Fosdick” is a comic strip that appears within the Al Capp strip “Li’l Abner”. “Fearless Fosdick” is a parody of the “competing” strip drawn by Chester Gould called “Dick Tracy”.

5. Sign between Virgo and Scorpio LIBRA
The constellation of Libra is named for the scales held by the goddess of justice. Libra is the only sign of the zodiac that isn’t named for a living creature.

14. Trac II successor ATRA
Fortunately for crossword setters, the Atra razor was introduced by Gillette in 1977. The Atra was sold as the Contour in some markets and its derivative products are still around today.

16. “Divine Secrets of the __ Sisterhood” YA-YA
The 2002 film “Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood” was a screen adaptation of the successful novel of the same name by Rebecca Wells. The Ya-Ya Sisterhood is a secret order created by four little girls from Louisiana, all of whom get together in later life to reassure a potential bride of the wonders of marriage and love.

20. Brain scan letters EEG
An electroencephalogram (EEG) is a record of electrical activity caused by the firing of neurons within the brain. The EEG might be used to diagnose epilepsy, or perhaps to determine if a patient is “brain dead”.

23. Tavern game DARTS
Darts is a wonderful game often played in British and Irish pubs, even over here in America. The scoring in a traditional game of darts is difficult to describe in a sentence or two, but the game of darts called “Round the Clock” is simply hitting the numbers 1 through 20 in sequence.

25. Tinted feature of some cars MOONROOF
A sunroof is a panel in the roof of a car that can be pulled back to let in light or air. A moonroof is similar, but in a moonroof there is an option to slide back a fabric-covered panel to expose a glass panel that allows in light, but not air.

28. Motley RAGTAG
“Ragtag and bobtail” is a colorful phrase that’s used to describe the lowest classes, or the rabble. A “bobtail” is a horse that has had its tail cut short, a word that goes back as least as far as Shakespeare as he used it in “King Lear”. A “tag” is a piece of cloth that is torn and hanging, which was readily combined with “rag” in the original phrase “tag, rag and bobtail”. This idiom, perhaps originally quoted from Samuel Pepys in his diary in 1659, referred to the lower classes as “tag, rag and bobtail, dancing, singing and drinking”. The phrase evolved, giving us our contemporary word “ragtag” meaning ragged and unkempt.

32. “OMG, stop with the details already!” TMI
Too Much Information (TMI)!

36. Hamilton’s bill TEN
The US ten-dollar bill features the image of Alexander Hamilton, the first US Secretary of the Treasury. As such, ten-dollar bills are sometimes called “Hamiltons”. By the way, the $10 bill is the only US currency in circulation in which the portrait faces to the left.

43. Pluto, for a time PLANET
Pluto was discovered in 1930, and was welcomed as the ninth planet in our solar system. Pluto is relatively small in size, just one fifth of the mass of our moon. In the seventies, astronomers began to discover more large objects in the solar system, including Eris, a “scattered disc object” at the outer reaches. Given that Eris is actually bigger than Pluto, and other objects really aren’t that much smaller, Pluto’s status as a planet was drawn into question. In 2006 there was a scientific definition for a “planet” agreed for the first time, resulting in Pluto being relegated to the status of “dwarf planet”, along with Eris.

47. The Negev’s nation ISRAEL
The Negev is a desert region in southern Israel.

51. “The Hustler” setting POOL ROOM
The more correct name for the game of pool is pocket billiards. The name “pool” arose after pocket billiards became a common feature in “pool halls”, places where gamblers “pooled” their money to bet on horse races.

“The Hustler” is a 1961 film that tell the story of pool hall hustler named “Fast Eddie” Felson. Felson’s obsession is to play and defeat legendary pool player “Minnesota Fats”. Felson is played by Paul Newman and Fats by Jackie Gleason.

56. __ Linda, California LOMA
Loma Linda is a city in California located not far from Los Angeles. The name Loma Linda translates from Spanish as “Beautiful Hill”.

60. Nutritional no. RDA
Recommended Daily Allowances (RDAs) were introduced during WWII and were replaced by Recommended Daily Intakes (RDIs) in 1997.

61. Smallish iPod NANO
The iPod Nano is the successor to the iPod Mini and was introduced to the market at the end of 2005. There have been five versions of the Nano to date and the current Nano as well as playing tunes is an FM player, records voice memos, and even has a pedometer!

62. Cereal with a spokestoucan FROOT LOOPS
Froot Loops (ugh!) is a breakfast cereal from Kellogg’s that has been around since 1963. The little loops come in different colors, originally red, orange and yellow, but now there are green, purple and blue loops as well. Notice I said “different colors” not “different flavors”. Each loop tastes the same, so I wonder where the color comes from …?

64. Pac-12 team since 2011 UTES
The Runnin’ Utes are the basketball team of the University of Utah. The team was given the nickname the Runnin’ Redskins back when Jack Gardner was the head coach from 1953 to 1971. The “Runnin'” part of the name was chosen because Gardner was famous for playing quick offenses. The “Redskins” name was later dropped in favor of the less controversial “Utes”.

65. Boxer Mike TYSON
The boxer Mike Tyson has said some pretty graphic things about his opponents. For example:

– About Lennox Lewis, “My main objective is to be professional but to kill him.”
– To Razor Ruddock, “I’m gonna make you my girlfriend.”
– About Tyrell Biggs, “He was screaming like my wife.”

66. Run amok RIOT
The phrase “to run amok” (sometimes “to run amuck”) has been around since the 1670s and is derived from the Malay word for “attacking furiously”, “amuk”. The word “amok” was also used as a noun to describe Malay natives who were “frenzied”. Given Malaya’s troubled history, the natives probably had good reason for that frenzy …

67. With 5-Down, Cowardly Lion player BERT
(5D. See 67-Across LAHR)
Bert Lahr’s most famous role was that of the cowardly lion in “The Wizard of Oz”. Lahr had a long career in burlesque, vaudeville and on Broadway. Remember the catch phrase made famous by the cartoon character Snagglepuss, “Heavens to Murgatroyd!”? Snagglepuss stole that line from a 1944 movie called, “Meet the People” in which it was first uttered by none other than Bert Lahr.

68. Big name in farm equipment DEERE
John Deere invented the first commercially successful steel plow in 1837. Prior to Deere’s invention, farmers used an iron or wooden plow that constantly had to be cleaned as rich soil stuck to its surfaces. The cast-steel plow was revolutionary as its smooth sides solved the problem of “stickiness”.

Down
4. Kung __ chicken PAO
Sichuan (also Szechuan) is a province in southwest China. Sichuan is noted for its cuisine, which is hot and spicy as it uses plenty of garlic, chili peppers and the Sichuan peppercorn. A famous Szechuan dish in the US is Kung Pao chicken.

6. “What hump?” lab assistant IGOR
I am not really a big fan of movies made by Mel Brooks, but “Young Frankenstein” is the exception. I think the cast has a lot to do with me liking the film, as it includes Gene Wilder (Dr. Frankenstein), Teri Garr (Inga), Marty Feldman (Igor) and Gene Hackman (Harold, the blind man).

9. ’50s Dem. presidential candidate AES
Adlai Stevenson ran for president unsuccessfully against Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1952 and in 1956. Some years after his second defeat, Stevenson served under President Kennedy as Ambassador to the United Nations. Stevenson was always noted for his eloquence and he had a famous exchange in a UN Security Council meeting during the Cuban missile crisis. Stevenson bluntly demanded that the Soviet representative on the council tell the world if the USSR was installing nuclear weapons in Cuba. His words were “Don’t wait for the translation, answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’!” followed by “I am prepared to wait for my answer until Hell freezes over!”

10. Bionic Woman, for one CYBORG
“Cyborg” is an abbreviation for “cybernetic organism”, a being that is made up of both organic and synthetic parts.

I so much preferred “The Bionic Woman” over the original show, “The Six Million Dollar Man”. That was probably because I was “at that age” in the mid-seventies, when the star Lindsay Wagner was attracting my attention! Wagner played Jaime Sommers who was badly injured in a parachute jump, and she was given robotic implants that gave her speed, strength and exceptional hearing.

22. __ Montoya: “The Princess Bride” role INIGO
“The Princess Bride” is a novel by William Goldman written in 1973. Famously, the book was adapted into a 1987 film of the same name directed by Rob Reiner that has become a cult classic.

24. “About time the week ended!” TGIF
“Thank God It’s Friday” (TGIF) is a relatively new expression that originated in Akron, Ohio. It was a catchphrase used by disk jockey Jerry Healy of WAKR in the early seventies.

29. Hunky Greek god APOLLO
Apollo was the Greek god of light and the sun, although he was also linked to healing, plague, music, poetry and more. Apollo is particularly associated with the lyre, a musical instrument created especially for him by the god Hermes.

30. __ monster: lizard 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.

34. Hosp. staffer LPN
A Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN).

38. “Carmen,” for one OPERA
Georg Bizet was a French composer active in the Romantic era. Bizet’s most famous work has to be his opera “Carmen”. “Carmen” initially received a lukewarm reception from the public, even though his fellow composers had nothing but praise for it. Sadly Bizet died at only 36 years of age, before he could see “Carmen’s” tremendous success.

42. Michael Bublé, e.g. CROONER
Michael Bublé is a singer from Burnaby in British Columbia.

45. Drug banned by most pro sports STEROID
Steroids are found commonly in nature, with familiar examples being cholesterol and testosterone. The controversial class of drugs called anabolic steroids (known informally as “roids” or simply “steroids”) are artificially produced chemicals designed to mimic the effect of the male sex hormone, testosterone. They are termed “anabolic” as they build up cellular tissue (particularly muscle) in a process called anabolism.

50. Writer Roald DAHL
Roald Dahl’s name is Norwegian. Dahl’s parents were from Norway, although Dahl himself was Welsh. Dahl became one of the most successful authors of the twentieth century. Two of his most famous titles are “James and the Giant Peach” and “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”.

52. How pastrami may be served ON RYE
In the US, pastrami was originally called “pastrama”, a dish brought to America by Jewish immigrants from Romania in the second half of the the nineteenth century. The original name may have evolved from the Turkish word “pastirma” meaning “pressed”. “Pastrama” likely morphed into “pastrami”, influenced by the name of the Italian sausage that we call salami.

53. Caribou cousin MOOSE
Caribou is the North American name for reindeer.

59. __ Reader: eclectic magazine UTNE
The “Utne Reader” is known for aggregation and republishing of articles on politics, culture and the environment from other sources in the media. The “Utne Reader” was founded in 1984, with “Utne” being the family name of the couple that started the publication.

61. Much-used pencil NUB
A much-used pencil might be worn down to a nub.

62. Bouquet dely. facilitator FTD
Back in 1910, fifteen florists from around America agreed to fulfill each other’s orders using the telegraph system, setting up what they called the Florists’ Telegraph Delivery. The concept grew so large that in 1965 the group started to offer international service, and changed its name to Florists’ Transworld Delivery (FTD).

63. Gold, in Granada ORO
Granada is a city and province in Andalusia in the south of Spain. Granada is not to be confused with Grenada (different spelling), the island nation in the Caribbean that was invaded by the US in 1983.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Al who created Fearless Fosdick CAPP
5. Sign between Virgo and Scorpio LIBRA
10. Sailboat’s team CREW
14. Trac II successor ATRA
15. See eye to eye AGREE
16. “Divine Secrets of the __ Sisterhood” YA-YA
17. Play some b-ball SHOOT HOOPS
19. Well, in Paris BIEN
20. Brain scan letters EEG
21. What a red “X” may mean ERROR
22. Charged atoms IONS
23. Tavern game DARTS
25. Tinted feature of some cars MOONROOF
28. Motley RAGTAG
31. __ of speech FIGURE
32. “OMG, stop with the details already!” TMI
33. Support column PILING
36. Hamilton’s bill TEN
37. Infallible, as a scheme FOOLPROOF
40. Nervous mannerism TIC
43. Pluto, for a time PLANET
44. Curvy letter ESS
47. The Negev’s nation ISRAEL
49. Put under SEDATE
51. “The Hustler” setting POOL ROOM
54. Spinning dizzily AREEL
56. __ Linda, California LOMA
57. “Like, obviously!” NO, DUH!
60. Nutritional no. RDA
61. Smallish iPod NANO
62. Cereal with a spokestoucan FROOT LOOPS
64. Pac-12 team since 2011 UTES
65. Boxer Mike TYSON
66. Run amok RIOT
67. With 5-Down, Cowardly Lion player BERT
68. Big name in farm equipment DEERE
69. 649,739 to 1 against being dealt a royal flush, e.g. ODDS

Down
1. Looked for security cameras, say CASED
2. In the most basic way AT HEART
3. Usher’s handout PROGRAM
4. Kung __ chicken PAO
5. See 67-Across LAHR
6. “What hump?” lab assistant IGOR
7. Ump’s plate cleaner BROOM
8. Copy, briefly REPRO
9. ’50s Dem. presidential candidate AES
10. Bionic Woman, for one CYBORG
11. Reason for a tarp-covered field RAINOUT
12. Condemned building, maybe EYESORE
13. Pasty-faced WAN
18. Skills evaluation TEST
22. __ Montoya: “The Princess Bride” role INIGO
24. “About time the week ended!” TGIF
26. Deserving attention OF NOTE
27. Wetland FEN
29. Hunky Greek god APOLLO
30. __ monster: lizard GILA
34. Hosp. staffer LPN
35. Ticks off IRES
38. “Carmen,” for one OPERA
39. Phobia FEAR
40. Insider’s hint TIP
41. Cut off from others ISOLATE
42. Michael Bublé, e.g. CROONER
45. Drug banned by most pro sports STEROID
46. Bean container SEEDPOD
48. Nearly ALMOST
50. Writer Roald DAHL
52. How pastrami may be served ON RYE
53. Caribou cousin MOOSE
55. Has a long shelf life LASTS
58. Way in DOOR
59. __ Reader: eclectic magazine UTNE
61. Much-used pencil NUB
62. Bouquet dely. facilitator FTD
63. Gold, in Granada ORO


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4 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 19 Mar 13, Tuesday”

  1. Quick puzzle for me today. Thought No Duh for 57 A was really lame though.
    Young Frankenstein is a favorite of mine, I already linked Inga so here is Igor. Talk about eyesore.

  2. Hi there, Addict.

    As you probably know, Igor was played by Marty Feldman. Feldman was a very successful comedian in the UK years back. He had his own TV show, and appeared in a several UK-produced films. Mostly though, I know him as a comedy writer from the fifties and sixties. I regularly listen to old radio shows that he wrote many moons ago. Fun stuff!

  3. Oh, Did not know some of that info about Marty Feldman.
    Now I'll be researching him the rest of the night. Quite amusing stuff I reckon.

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