LA Times Crossword Answers 6 Aug 13, Tuesday

CROSSWORD SETTER: Victor Barocas
THEME: Artist and Subjects … today’s themed answers are ANDY WARHOL and some of the famous subjects that he painted:

17A. “A revolution is not a dinner party” leader MAO TSE TUNG
28A. It’s “M’m! M’m! Good!” CAMPBELL’S SOUP
46A. Actress born Norma Jeane Mortenson MARILYN MONROE
60A. Artist born 8/6/1928 who painted 17-, 28- and 46-Across ANDY WARHOL

BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 5m 33s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across
10. “Survivor” host Probst JEFF
Jeff Probst is of course the highly successful host of the US version of the reality show “Survivor”. He is obviously a friendly guy, and ended up in a 3-year relationship with Julie Berry, one of the contestants from “Survivor: Vanuatu”.

14. Attending a Lakers home game, briefly IN LA
The Los Angeles Lakers basketball team started out in 1947 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The team chose the Lakers name in honor of the nickname of Minnesota, “Land of 10,000 Lakes”. The Lakers moved to Los Angeles in 1960.

15. Indian coin RUPEE
The rupee is a unit of currency, used in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Pakistan.

17. “A revolution is not a dinner party” leader MAO TSE-TUNG
Mao Zedong (also “Mao Tse-tung”) was born on December 16, 1893 in the Hunan Province of China. As Mao was the son of a peasant farmer, his prospects for education were limited. Indeed he left school at age 13 to work on the family farm but did eventually get to secondary school in Changsha, the provincial capital. In the years following, Mao continued his education in Beijing and actually turned down an opportunity to study in France.

20. Bird Down Under EMU
The emu has had a tough time in Australia since man settled there. There was even an “Emu War” in Western Australia in 1932 when migrating emus competed with livestock for water and food. Soldiers were sent in and used machine guns in an unsuccessful attempt to drive off the “invading force”. The emus were clever, breaking their usual formations and adopting guerrilla tactics, operating as smaller units. After 50 days of “war”, the military withdrew. Subsequent requests for military help for the farmers were ignored. The emus had emerged victorious …

21. Philosopher __-tzu LAO
Lao Tse (also Lao-Tzu) was a central figure in the development of the religion/philosophy of Taoism.

22. Month named for an emperor AUGUST
Gaius Octavius Thurinus (often called Octavian) was the adopted son of Gaius Julius Caesar. After Julius Caesar was assassinated, Octavian came to power in Rome and teamed up with Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus in what was called the Second Triumvirate. When the triumvirate fell apart, especially after Antony’s defeat at Actium, Octavian became more powerful within the Roman Republic. Several years later he wrested sufficient power from the Roman Senate to end the Republic and begin the Roman Empire. As the first Emperor of Rome, Octavian was given the name Caesar Augustus. The month of August, originally called “Sextilis” in Latin, was renamed in honor of Augustus.

24. Word in “The Shining” with two mirror-image letters REDRUM
In the 1980 movie “The Shining”, there is a young boy called Danny who has the gift of ESP and who has a bad feeling about the hotel where he and his family are to live. Danny starts called out the word “redrum” and then goes into a trance. “Redrum” is of course “murder” spelled backwards.

The letters U and M are mirror-image letters in the word “MURDER”.

28. It’s “M’m! M’m! Good!” CAMPBELL’S SOUP
The Campbell’s Soup company is named for one of the enterprise’s two founders, Joseph A. Campbell. He and Abraham Anderson started the business in 1869. The iconic design of the Campbell’s can was introduced in 1989 and has hardly changed since then. The gold seal in the design comes from the 1900 Paris Exhibition.

33. Out of control AMOK
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 …

35. Granny Smith, e.g. APPLE
The Granny Smith apple originated in Australia, a chance propagation by Maria Ann Smith in 1868. Ms. Smith was in her late sixties at the time, so the new cultivar of apple was called a Granny Smith. We’ve only been eating Granny Smiths in the US since 1972.

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

42. Big diamond ACE
The ace of diamonds is a “big” card in the diamond suit in many card games.

43. Spring Zodiac sign ARIES
Aries the Ram is the first astrological sign in the Zodiac, and is named after the constellation. Your birth sign is Aries if you were born between March 21 and April 20, but if you are an Aries you would know that!

45. “__ the night …” ‘TWAS
The poem “A Visit from St. Nicholas” was published anonymously in 1823, and is better known today by its first line “‘Twas the night before Christmas”. Most scholars believe that the poem was written by Clement Clarke Moore, a theologian from New York City. Others say that it was written by Henry Livingston, Jr. a poet from Upstate New York.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash …

46. Actress born Norma Jeane Mortenson MARILYN MONROE
Marilyn Monroe was born in 1926 in LA County Hospital, the child of Gladys Pearl Baker. The young girl was given the name of Norma Jeane Mortenson on her birth certificate, but her mother changed this to Norma Jeane Baker almost immediately. She and her estranged husband, Martin Edward Mortensen, had separated before Baker became pregnant so it is suggested that the Mortensen name was used just to give Norma Jeane “legitimacy”. Norma Jeane married a Jim Dougherty when she 16 years old, and took his name to become Norma Jeane Dougherty in 1932. During WWII she was discovered by a photographer and became quite a successful model. The modelling earned her a screen test, at which time it was suggested that Norma Jean change her name yet again. The first name chosen for her by studio executives was Carole Lind (after Carole Lombard and Jenny Lind), but then Norma Jeane chose “Jeane Monroe” for herself, using her mother’s maiden name. It didn’t take long before the studio intervened again, suggesting that they had too many “Jeans” already. The name Marilyn Monroe was floated as it had a nice ring to it. Along with the new name, Marilyn changed from a brunette to a blonde, and a star was born …

60. Artist born 8/6/1928 who painted 17-, 28- and 46-Across ANDY WARHOL
Andy Warhol went through a period of painting iconic American products, including Coca-Cola bottles and Campbell’s tomato soup cans. In 1964 he participated in a gallery show called “The American Supermarket”. Along with other pop artists he contributed works including a painting of a can of Campbell’s tomato soup. He priced the painting at $1,500, and sold autographed cans of soup for $6 a piece.

64. “Whip It” rockers DEVO
Devo is a band from Akron, Ohio formed back in 1973. The band’s biggest hit is “Whip It” released in 1980.

65. Youngest of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” IRINA
Olga, Masha and Irina were the “Three Sisters” in the play by Anton Chekhov.

Anton Chekhov was a Russian writer of short stories and a playwright, as well as a physician. He wrote four classic plays that are often performed all around the world, namely “The Seagull”, “Uncle Vanya”, “Three Sisters” and “The Cherry Orchard”. All the time Chekhov was writing, he continued to practice medicine. He is quoted as saying “Medicine is my lawful wife, and literature is my mistress.”

67. Hand measurement SPAN
A span is a measurement equal to the width of a hand. The span is measured from the tip of the thumb to the top of the little finger when the fingers and thumb are splayed.

68. Skater Kerrigan NANCY
Nancy Kerrigan is a US Olympic figure skater. It was Kerrigan who was attacked with a club in 1994 at the US Figure Skating Championships, the qualifying event for the Olympic Games. The attack was planned by the ex-husband of Kerrigan’s skating rival, Tonya Harding. Seven weeks later, Kerrigan won the silver medal in the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer.

Down
5. Stereo system signal booster PREAM
PIn a home audio system, one might have a preamplifier (preamp) and a power amplifier. In such an arrangement, the preamp isn’t really an amplifier at all as it does not amplify a signal or sound. The amplification task is left to the power amplifier, and the preamp serves as a switch between signal sources (cable box, CD player, DVD player etc.).

6. “Car Talk” topic AUTO
“Car Talk” is a very entertaining radio show aired on NPR at weekends. The show is hosted by brothers Tom and Ray Magliozzi (aka “Click and Clack”). The hosts spend most of their airtime giving advice on automotive repair, and do a lot of kidding around as well. Click and Clack have announced their retirement from radio, after 35 years on the air.

7. PC brain CPU
The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is the main component on the “motherboard” of a computer. The CPU is the part of the computer that carries out most of the functions required by a program. Nowadays you can get CPUs in everything from cars to telephones.

9. General for whom a Paris airport is named DE GAULLE
Charles de Gaulle was a Brigadier General early in WWII and led one of the few successful counter-attacks against invading German forces during the Battle of France in 1940. He escaped to Britain, and from there encouraged the French populace to resist the occupation. By the end of the war he was leading the French government in exile, and when France was retaken he was named Prime Minister in the French Provisional Government. He resigned his position in 1946. Over a decade later he was elected as Prime Minister in 1958, and then President in 1959, an office he held until 1969. The main airport of Paris is named in his honor, as is the French navy’s only nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.

11. Jacob’s twin ESAU
Esau, was the grandson of Abraham and the twin brother of Jacob, the founder of the Israelites. When Esau was born, the event was described, “Now the first came forth, red all over like a hairy garment”. Esau is portrayed later in life as being very different from his brother, as a hunter and someone who loves the outdoor life.

12. T-men and G-men FEDS
A T-man is a law-enforcement agent of the US Treasury (T is for Treasury).

The nickname “G-men” is short for “Government Men” and refers to agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

13. Toga party setting FRAT
In Ancient Rome the classical attire known as a toga (plural “togae”) was usually worn over a tunic. The tunic was made from linen, and the toga itself was a piece of cloth about twenty feet long made from wool. The toga could only be worn by men, and only if those men were Roman citizens. The female equivalent of the toga was called a “stola”.

18. Skid row area SLUM
The term “skid row” is used to describe a run-down urban neighborhood. “Skid row” appears to have originated in the Pacific Northwest where a “skid road” was a wooden pathway used for “skidding” logs through forests and over bogs. The terms “skid road” and “skid row” came to be used for logging camps and mills, and then somehow was applied to run-down areas in cities up and down the west coast of North America.

23. Racing family name UNSER
The Unser family seems to have racing cars in its blood. Al Unser, Sr. won the Indy 500 on four occasions. Al’s brother Jerry was the first of the Unsers to compete at Indianapolis. Al’s other brother Bobby, won the Indy three times. Al’s son, Al Junior, won the Indy twice. Al Junior’s son is also a racing driver who competes at the Indy Speedway.

27. Texas border city EL PASO
The Mexican city sitting across the border from El Paso is more correctly called Ciudad Juarez. Juarez used to be called El Paso del Norte (the North Pass). It was to be the younger settlement on the northern side of the Rio Grande which would retain the “El Paso” name.

31. Eye part containing the iris UVEA
The uvea is the middle of the three layers that make up the eyeball.

The iris is the colored part of the eye with an aperture in the center that can open or close depending on the level of light hitting the eye.

33. Sandler of “Spanglish” ADAM
Adam Sandler’s big break was with “Saturday Night Live”. He then went on to make several successful movies and has his own movie and television production company. Personally, I am not a fan of Adam Sandler, nor his movies …

“Spanglish” is a 2004 comedy film starring Adam Sandler, Téa Leoni and Paz Vega. Vega plays a poor Mexican single mother who is hired as a housekeeper by a couple played by Sandler and Leoni. Hilarity ensues, I am told …

34. Isinglass MICA
Mica is a mineral, a sheet silicate. Thin sheets of mica are transparent and are used in place of glass in certain applications. This form of mica is called isinglass, and as it has a better thermal performance than glass it is a great choice for “peepholes’ in boilers and lanterns. Mica is also used in the electronics industry, making use of its unique electrical and thermal insulating properties.

38. Place to get a perm SALON
“Perm” is the name given to a permanent wave, a chemical or thermal treatment of hair to produce waves or curls. I don’t worry about such things as it’s a number-one all over for me …

44. CPR expert EMT
Emergency medical technician (EMT)

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) has for decades involved the simultaneous compression of the chest to pump blood using the heart, and artificial respiration by blowing air into the lungs. Nowadays emergency services are placing more emphasis on heart compressions, and less on artificial respiration.

47. Like some decals IRON-ON
A decal is a decorative sticker, short for “decalcomania”. The term is derived from the French “décalquer”, the practice of tracing a pattern from paper onto glass or perhaps porcelain.

48. Ibsen’s country NORWAY
Norway has been ranked as the country in the world with the highest standard of living almost every year since 2001. Norway is rich in natural resources and has a relatively low population. The people benefit from a comprehensive social security system, subsidized higher education for all citizens and universal health care.

Henrik Ibsen was a Norwegian playwright, considered by many to be the greatest playwright since William Shakespeare. Ibsen was famous for shocking his audiences by exploring subjects that offended the sensibilities of the day (the late 1800s).

49. Alabama-born activist Parks ROSA
Rosa Parks was one of a few brave women in days gone by who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white woman. It was the stand taken by Rosa Parks on December 1, 1955 that sparked the Montgomery, Alabama Bus Boycott. President Clinton presented Ms. Parks with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1996. When she died in 2005, Rosa Parks became the first ever woman to have her body lie in honor in the US Capitol Rotunda.

53. Israel’s Meir GOLDA
Golda Meir was known as the “Iron Lady” when she was Prime Minister of Israel, long before the term came to be associated with British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. Golda Meir was born Golda Mabovitch in Kiev (in modern-day Ukraine), and when she was a young girl she moved with her family to the United States and settled in Milwaukee. As a teenager she relocated to Denver where she met and married Morris Meyerson, at the age of 19. She and her husband joined a kibbutz in Palestine in 1921, when she was in her twenties. Meir had been active in politics in the US, and continued her political work in Palestine. She was very influential during WWII, and played a leading role in negotiations after the war leading to the setting up of the state of Israel. By the time she was called on to lead the country, Meir had already retired, citing exhaustion and ill health. But serve she did, and led Israel during turbulent times (e.g. the massacre at the Munich Olympics, and the Yom Kippur War). She eventually resigned in 1974, saying that was what the people wanted.

61. Second Amendment org. NRA
The National Rifle Association (NRA) used the slogan “I’ll give you my gun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands”. These words became quite famous when they were used at an NRA convention in 2000 by Charlton Heston, who was then president of the NRA. Heston ended a speech he made with the words “From my cold, dead hands!” while holding up into the air a replica of a Sharps rifle.

The Second Amendment of the US Constitution was adopted in 1791 as part of the Bill of Rights. The actual text of the amendment is:
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
I hear that the wording and punctuation in the original text has led to some controversy over the years, some debate over the original intent …

63. Sac fly result RBI
A sac(rifice) fly, in baseball.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Snack in a shell TACO
5. Walked the floor PACED
10. “Survivor” host Probst JEFF
14. Attending a Lakers home game, briefly IN LA
15. Indian coin RUPEE
16. __-friendly USER
17. “A revolution is not a dinner party” leader MAO TSE-TUNG
19. Mama’s guy, to baby DADA
20. Bird Down Under EMU
21. Philosopher __-tzu LAO
22. Month named for an emperor AUGUST
24. Word in “The Shining” with two mirror-image letters REDRUM
26. Get the whole family together REUNE
28. It’s “M’m! M’m! Good!” CAMPBELL’S SOUP
33. Out of control AMOK
35. Granny Smith, e.g. APPLE
36. Sch. founded by Jefferson UVA
37. Strips (of), as property DIVESTS
40. Made bubbly AERATED
42. Big diamond ACE
43. Spring Zodiac sign ARIES
45. “__ the night …” ‘TWAS
46. Actress born Norma Jeane Mortenson MARILYN MONROE
50. Sunday dinner entrée ROAST
51. Leaking slowly OOZING
54. Football field shape OBLONG
57. Last year’s jrs. SRS
58. Icky stuff GOO
59. Educator with an elite list DEAN
60. Artist born 8/6/1928 who painted 17-, 28- and 46-Across ANDY WARHOL
64. “Whip It” rockers DEVO
65. Youngest of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters” IRINA
66. Road curve BEND
67. Hand measurement SPAN
68. Skater Kerrigan NANCY
69. Hunch, say IDEA

Down
1. Hourglass or stopwatch TIMER
2. Make __ for oneself A NAME
3. Sun blocker CLOUD COVER
4. Feed bag morsel OAT
5. Stereo system signal booster PREAMP
6. “Car Talk” topic AUTO
7. PC brain CPU
8. Twilight, to a bard E’EN
9. General for whom a Paris airport is named DE GAULLE
10. Bench warmers? JUDGES
11. Jacob’s twin ESAU
12. T-men and G-men FEDS
13. Toga party setting FRAT
18. Skid row area SLUM
23. Racing family name UNSER
25. Leaf-gathering tool RAKE
26. Sales staff member REP
27. Texas border city EL PASO
29. Sinks BASINS
30. Was more important than OUTWEIGHED
31. Eye part containing the iris UVEA
32. Goalie equipment PADS
33. Sandler of “Spanglish” ADAM
34. Isinglass MICA
38. Place to get a perm SALON
39. “Give it another shot” TRY AGAIN
41. Encyclopedia range A TO Z
44. CPR expert EMT
47. Like some decals IRON-ON
48. Ibsen’s country NORWAY
49. Alabama-born activist Parks ROSA
52. Dismal turnout for a party NO ONE
53. Israel’s Meir GOLDA
54. Bookie’s offering ODDS
55. Answering machine alert BEEP
56. Eruption output, perhaps LAVA
57. Together, after “in” SYNC
61. Second Amendment org. NRA
62. Clamor DIN
63. Sac fly result RBI

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7 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 6 Aug 13, Tuesday”

  1. Hmm,Granny Smith like Grandma Moses found success later in life. Maybe I should add Granny to my name and there will be hope for me yet. 🙂

    Today was a piece of cake. I like your style, Victor Barocas!

  2. Hi there, Brooke.

    Yes, a little more like a Monday puzzle, I thought. But I think we all see the difficulty level a little differently. Probably a good thing 🙂

    I think this is the first time I've noticed a Victor Barocas puzzle on a Tuesday. I seem to recall that puzzles from Victor tend to appear later in the week. But, I could be wrong!

  3. Hi Bill and Addict- is it true then that the puzzles increase in difficulty throughout the week?

    Also, I can only find the Merle Reagle puzzle in my Sunday Times. Is there somewhere to find the smaller puzzle?
    (Sorry if this is a dumb question. I love a good Reagle but sometimes prefer a quicker solve.)

  4. Hi Brooke,
    Yes The La times Xword get more difficult as the week progresses.
    It is on of the allures of the puzzle.

    Most Sunday puzzles are the larger version. The LA one can be found at the mensa site
    Here online.
    Its all kinda confusing why.

    A smaller puzzle can be found at the
    Washington post site that also publishes Merl's Sunday puzzle.
    Washington Post
    Hope this helps

  5. Hi there, Addict/Brooke.

    Thanks for answering Brooke's questions.

    I've been asked by quite a few people to work the Merle Reagle puzzle on a Sunday and provide an additional post, but I just don't have the time. Sunday puzzles take a long time to write up.

    Maybe one day 🙂

Comments are closed.