LA Times Crossword Answers 20 Apr 14, Sunday

Frequently Asked Question: Why isn’t the puzzle in my paper the same as the one shown on your blog?
If the puzzle in your paper doesn’t match the one that I solved, it is probably a Sunday crossword. On Sundays, the “LA Times” chooses to publish Merl Reagle’s excellent crossword, and not their own “LA Times” Crossword. The “LA Times” puzzle is still sent out in syndication, and is also published in the “LA Times” online. I’ve been asked to blog about Merl Reagle’s crossword, but frankly I don’t have the time. Sunday puzzles have lots of clues!

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Matt Skoczen
THEME: I’ll Be Waiting … the clues marked with an asterisk have answers that need the words CALL ME in front, in order to make sense. Each of these CALL ME answers then acts as the clue for another answer in the grid:

27A. See 47-Across BROADWAY MUSICAL
47A. *Source of the song “The Hostess With the Mostes’ on the Ball” (CALL ME) MADAM

34A. See 71-Across OPENING OF MOBY-DICK
71A. *Memorable 1851 novel line (CALL ME) ISHMAEL

58A. See 91-Across DO KEEP IN TOUCH
91A. *Parting request (CALL ME) LATER

65A. See 119-Across AM I NUTS?
119A. *”This is going to sound dumb …” (CALL ME) CRAZY

98A. See 25-Across CARLY RAE JEPSEN HIT
25A. *2012 Hot 100 #1 song in both the U.S. and Canada (CALL ME) MAYBE

110A. See 78-Across SINATRA STANDARD
78A. *Van Heusen/Cahn classic (CALL ME) IRRESPONSIBLE

122A. 1980 Blondie chart-topper, and what’s needed to make sense of the answers to starred clues CALL ME

BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 24m 03s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 3 … CARLY RAE JEPSEN HIT (Carly Dee Jepsen hit), RNA (DNA), KATNISS (Ketniss)

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

7. Angler’s quarry BASS
We use the verb “to angle” to mean “to fish” because “angel” was an Old English word for a hook.

11. Suffix with einstein -IUM
Einsteinium is an artificially produced element with the atomic number 99. It was discovered in the debris of the first explosion of a hydrogen bomb in 1952, and of course was named for the great physicist Albert Einstein. That same debris also contained the previously undiscovered element with an atomic number of 100, which was named Fermium in honor of nuclear physicist Enrico Fermi.

20. Kinshasa-to-Cairo dir. NNE
Kinshasa is the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The city was formerly known as Léopoldville. Kinshasa is the third largest city in Africa, after Cairo in Egypt and Lagos in Nigeria.

Cairo is the capital city of Egypt. It is the largest city on the continent of Africa and is nicknamed “The City of a Thousand Minarets” because of its impressive skyline replete with Islamic architecture. The name “Cairo” is a European corruption of the city’s original name in Arabic, “Al-Qahira”, which translates as “the Vanquisher” or “the Conqueror”.

22. Cherubim, e.g. ANGELS
A cherub (plural “cherubim”) is an angel, with the term ultimately deriving from the Hebrew “kerubh” (plural “kerubhim”) meaning “winged angel”.

24. HCH successor FDR
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) was the only child of Sara Delano and James Roosevelt Sr. The Delano family history in America goes back to the pilgrim Philippe de Lannoy, an immigrant of Flemish descent who arrived at Plymouth, Massachusetts in 1621. The family name “de Lannoy” was anglicized here in the US, to “Delano”.

President Herbert Clark Hoover (HCH) was born in West Branch, Iowa, the only president to have been born in that state. His birthplace is now a National Landmark, and President Hoover and his wife are buried there, in the grounds of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum. President Hoover died at the age of 90 years old in 1964, outliving his nemesis Franklin Delano Roosevelt by almost 20 years.

25. *2012 Hot 100 #1 song in both the U.S. and Canada (CALL ME) MAYBE
“Call Me Maybe” was released as a single in 2011 by Canadian singer-songwriter Carly Rae Jepsen.

30. Golfer Aoki ISAO
Isao Aoki is one of Japan’s greatest golfers, now playing on the senior circuit. Aoki’s best finish in a major tournament was runner-up to Jack Nicklaus in the 1980 US Open.

33. Some airport displays, briefly LEDS
A light-emitting diode (LED) is a specialized form of semiconductor that when switched on releases photons (light). LEDs are getting more and more popular and have moved from use in electronic equipment to use as a replacement for the much less efficient tungsten light bulb. I replaced all of my tungsten Xmas lights last year and saved a lot on my electricity bill.

34. See 71-Across OPENING OF MOBY-DICK
[71A. *Memorable 1851 novel line (CALL ME) ISHMAEL]
Ishmael is the narrator and protagonist in the Herman Melville novel “Moby-Dick”.

41. “I Guess __ Rather Be in Colorado”: John Denver song HE’D
Singer John Denver’s real name was Henry John Deutchendorf, Jr. Denver was a great singer and he had many other passions. He was an excellent photographer, and an avid skier and golfer. He also loved flying and collected vintage biplanes. He flew himself to concerts in his own Learjet and had a handful of other planes that he would take out for spin when he could. One of his planes was an Experimental Rutan Long-EZ, a homebuilt aircraft noted for its fuel efficiency and tremendous range. Denver took the Rutan Long-EZ up in the middle of October 1997 not having much experience with the plane, even though he had logged over 2,700 hours of flying time in other aircraft. The plane crashed into the ocean near Pacific Grove, California in an accident that Denver did not survive.

47. *Source of the song “The Hostess With the Mostes’ on the Ball” (CALL ME) MADAM
“Call Me Madam” is a stage musical by Irving Berlin that was adapted into a 1953 movie starring Ethel Merman. The show is about a Washington, D.C. hostess, and was inspired by real-life socialite Perle Mesta.

51. Actress Joanne DRU
The actress Joanne Dru’s most famous roles were in the movies “Red River” and “All the King’s Men”. Dru had a celebrity younger brother, Peter Marshall, who was the original host of “Hollywood Squares”.

54. Chiwere speakers OTOES
Chiwere is a Siouan language spoken by the Otoe people, as well as by the Missouria and Iowa.

56. Most clichéd STALEST
“Cliché” is a word that comes from the world of printing. In the days when type was added as individual letters into a printing plate, for efficiency some oft-used phrases and words were created as one single slug of metal. The word “cliché” was used for such a grouping of letters. It’s easy to see how the same word would become a term to describe any overused phrase. Supposedly, “cliché” comes from French, from the verb “clicher” meaning “to click”. The idea is that when a matrix of letters was dropped in molten metal to make a cliché, it made a clicking sound.

62. Literary hodgepodge ANA
An ana (plural “anas”) is a collection, perhaps of literature, that represents the character of a particular place or a person. Ana can be used as a noun or as a suffix (e.g. Americana).

63. Pod-bearing tree ACACIA
Acacia is a genus of tree and shrub, also known as thorntree, whistling thorn and wattle.

69. It may be false LABOR
Braxton Hicks contractions are experienced by some expectant mothers in the second and third trimester of a pregnancy. Incorrectly termed “false labor”, it is thought these uterine contractions are thought to be a sign that the body is preparing itself for childbirth. The contractions are named for English doctor John Braxton Hicks who first described them, in 1872.

75. Of last month ULTIMO
“Ultimo” is the Italian for “last” and is a term used in English to mean “in the last month”.

77. Energizer choice AAA
These days in the US we are fairly familiar with the Energizer Bunny. In fact, the Energizer Bunny was introduced in 1989 to promote Energizer batteries by parodying the Duracell Bunny who had been introduced in 1973.

78. *Van Heusen/Cahn classic (CALL ME) IRRESPONSIBLE
“Call Me Irresponsible” is a 1962 song composed by Jimmy Van Heusen with lyrics by Sammy Cahn. Apparently the song was originally written for either Judy Garland or Fred Astaire (there are conflicting stories), but today the song is most associated with Frank Sinatra.

87. Wintry mix component SLEET
Apparently “sleet” is a term used to describe two weather conditions. One is a shower of ice pellets, smaller than hail, and the second is a mixture of rain and snow, with the snow melting as it falls. It’s the second definition that I have always used …

89. Henriette, to Henri AMIE
A male friend in France is “un ami”, and a female friend is “une amie”.

92. Lakota tribe OGLALA
The Oglala are a sub-tribe of the Lakota Native American people.

95. Rapscallions KNAVES
We’ve been using “knave” to mean a cad since about 1200, and as an alternative name for the jack in a deck of cards since the mid-1500s. “Knave” comes from the Old English word “cnafa”, a “boy, male servant”.

We might call a little imp a rapscallion, an evolution from “rascallion”, which in turn comes from “rascal”.

97. X, to Xanthippe CHI
The Greek letter “chi” is the one that looks like our “X”.

Xanthippe was the wife of Socrates in Ancient Athens. Stories written about Xanthippe sometimes portray as a bit of a nag or a shrew. In fact, William Shakespeare describes his title character Katherina “as Socrates’ Xanthippe or a worse” in “Taming of the Shrew”.

98. See 25-Across CARLY RAE JEPSEN HIT
Carly Rae Jepsen is a singer/songwriter from Mission, British Columbia. Jepsen got her start on TV’s “Canadian Idol” when she placed third in the show’s fifth season.

120. Courtroom VIPs DAS
District Attorneys (DAs)

121. Emilia’s husband IAGO
Emilia and Iago are characters in William Shakespeare’s play “Othello”. Emilia and Iago are a married couple, although Iago kills Emilia late in the play.

122. 1980 Blondie chart-topper, and what’s needed to make sense of the answers to starred clues CALL ME
“Call Me” is a fabulous song performed by new wave band Blondie. The song was written as the main theme song for the 1980 movie “American Gigolo”. Great stuff …

130. Group doctrines TENETS
A tenet is an article of faith, something that is held to be true. “Tenet” is Latin for “he holds”.

Down
1. Adult cygnet SWAN
An adult male swan is called a “cob”, and an adult female is a “pen”. Young swans are called “swanlings” or “cygnets”.

2. Conga formation LINE
The conga line is a dance that originated as a Cuban carnival march. It became popular in the US starting in the thirties. The dance is apparently named after the Congo region of Africa, and it was originated by slaves who were brought from there to Cuba.

3. Actress Kurylenko of “Oblivion” OLGA
Olga Kurylenko is a Ukrainian actress and model. Kurylenko played the Bond girl Camille Montes in “Quantum of Solace”.

“Oblivion” is a 2013 science fiction film starring Tom Cruise and Olga Kurylenko as two of the last few humans on Earth.

4. Cobbler holder PIE TIN
The dessert called “cobbler” originated in colonial America when settlers invented it as a substitute for suet pudding as they didn’t have the necessary ingredients to make the more traditional dish. Instead, they stewed fruit and covered it with a layer of uncooked scones or biscuits, creating a surface that resembled a “cobbled” street, hence the name.

5. Hastert’s successor PELOSI
Nancy Pelosi is a former Speaker of the House, the 60th person to hold that position. Ms. Pelosi represents a district not far from here, which covers most of San Francisco. She is the first Californian, the first Italian-American and the first woman to be Speaker of the House. As Speaker, she was also second in line, after the Vice President, to take over if President Obama could not finish his term. That made Nancy Pelosi the highest-ranking female politician in US history.

Dennis Hastert served as Speaker of the House from 1999 to 2007, making him the longest-serving Republican in history to hold the office. Hastert resigned his seat in 2007 and now works as a lobbyist.

8. 2012 political thriller ARGO
“Argo” is a 2012 movie that is based on the true story of the rescue of six diplomats hiding out during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis. The film was directed by and stars Ben Affleck and is produced by Grant Heslov and George Clooney, the same pair who produced the excellent “Good Night, and Good Luck”. I saw “Argo” recently and recommend it highly, although I found the scenes of religious fervor pretty frightening …

9. Poet Teasdale SARA
Sara Teasdale was a poet from St. Louis, Missouri although she spent much of her adult life in New York City. Examples of Teasdale’s most famous poems are “There Will Come Soft Rains” and “I Shall Not Care”. Teasdale committed suicide in 1933 by taking an overdose of sleeping pills.

10. Iditarod critter SLED DOG
The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race covers a massive 1,161 miles, from Anchorage to Nome in Alaska. The race starts every year on the first Saturday in March, with the first race having been held in 1973. The fastest finishing time was set in 2002 at just under 9 days. The first few races only used a northern route, but then a southern route was added to the roster every second year. It’s kind of a good thing, because when the racers take the northern route they don’t even pass through the town of Iditarod!

11. “… a date which will live in __”: 24-Across INFAMY
The Infamy Speech was delivered by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on December 8, 1941, the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The speech takes its name for the opening line:
Yesterday, December 7, 1941 — a date which will live in infamy — the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.
The phrase “a date which will live in infamy” is often misquoted as “a day which will live in infamy”. The term “infamy” was inserted in the speech just before it was delivered. A previous version read “… a date which will live in world history”.

13. Siren relative MERMAID
In Greek mythology, the Sirens were seductive bird-women who lured men to their deaths with their song. When Odysseus sailed closed to the island home of the Sirens he wanted to hear their voices, but in safety. He had his men plug their ears with beeswax and then ordered them to tie him to the mast and not to free him until they were safe. On hearing their song Odysseus begged to be let loose, but the sailors just tightened his bonds and and the whole crew sailed away unharmed.

14. Holy quest vessel GRAIL
The Holy Grail is theme found throughout Arthurian legend. The grail itself is some vessel, with the term “grail” coming from the Old French “graal” meaning “cup or bowl made of earth, wood or metal”. Over time, the legend of the Holy Grail became mingled with stories of the Holy Chalice of the Christian tradition, the cup used to serve wine at the Last Supper.

15. Rolls partner ROYCE
Henry Royce founded the Rolls-Royce company in 1904 with his partner, Charles Rolls. Royce died at 70 years of age in 1933. His last words were, reportedly, “I wish I had spent more time in the office …”

21. Cameron and Blair of Eng. PMS
10 Downing Street is one of the most famous street addresses in the world and is the official London residence of the British Prime Minister. Although it may not look it on television, it’s a spacious pad, actually a larger house made by combining three older houses back in the 1700s. Although Number 10 has over one hundred rooms, they are mostly offices and reception rooms and the actual residence itself is quite modest. It was so modest that when Tony Blair came to power he opted to move himself and his family into the more spacious residence next door at Number 11, an apartment traditionally reserved for the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the UK equivalent of the Secretary of the Treasury). The succeeding Prime Minister, David Cameron, seemed to like the idea, because he now lives in Number 11 as well.

27. Spade player BOGART
The classic detective novel “The Maltese Falcon” was written by Dashiell Hammett and first published in 1930. The main character if of course Sam Spade, famously played by Humphrey Bogart in the third movie adaptation of the book, released in 1941.

28. www word WEB
The World Wide Web was effectively the invention of British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee. The key to Berner-Lee’s invention was bringing together two technologies that already existed: hypertext and the Internet. I for one am very grateful …

29. Donald Duck, to his nephews UNCA’
Donald Duck’s nephews are identical triplets called Huey, Dewey and Louie, and they first appeared on the screen in 1938. Once in awhile due to errors in production, a fourth duck can be seen in the background. This little “mistake” is affectionately called “Phooey Duck” by folks in the industry.

31. Luanda is its cap. ANG
Luanda is the capital city of Angola. Luanda is a large seaport that was founded by the Portuguese in 1576. For centuries, Luanda served as the main center of the slave trade from Africa to the Portuguese colony of Brazil.

34. Electrician’s units OHMS
The unit of electrical resistance is the ohm (with the symbol omega) named after German physicist Georg Simon Ohm. Ohm was the guy who established experimentally that the amount of current flowing through a circuit is directly proportional to the voltage applied, (V=IR) a relationship that every school kid knows as Ohm’s Law.

35. Three-__: consecutive sports titles PEAT
A “three-peat” is the winning of a sports championship three seasons in a row.

36. Historic Icelandic work EDDA
The Poetic Edda and Prose Edda are two ancient works that are the source for much of Norse mythology. Both Eddas were written in the 13th century, in Iceland.

37. Corvallis sch. OSU
Corvallis is a city in western Oregon that is home to Oregon State University. Corvallis was the capital of the Oregon Territory before Salem was selected as the seat of government.

39. WWII Italian river MORO
The Moro River Campaign of WWII was fought in December 1943 between British and German forces in the vicinity of the Moro River in eastern Italy.

45. March composer SOUSA
John Philip Sousa was a composer and conductor from Washington, D.C. Sousa was well known for his patriotic marches and earned himself the nickname “The American March King”. He served as a member of the US Marine Band from 1868 to 1875, and after leaving the Marines learned to conduct and compose. One of the Sousa compositions that is well-known around the world is called “The Liberty Bell”, a tune used as the musical theme for BBC Television’s “Monty Python’s Flying Circus”. Sousa also wrote “Semper Fidelis”, which is the official march of the US Marine Corps.

46. Leigh’s counterpart in the 1998 version of “Psycho” HECHE
My favorite movie starring the actress Anne Heche is “Six Days Seven Nights”, a romantic comedy in which she plays opposite Harrison Ford. Heche is noted for her difficult private life. She wrote that her father had molested her as a child and gave her a sexually transmitted disease (he later revealed that he was homosexual, and died of AIDS). Heche dated comedian Steve Martin for two years, and then lived with comedian Ellen DeGeneres for three. Soon after breaking up with DeGeneres, she started exhibiting eccentric behavior for a while, claiming that she was the daughter of God, and that she would take everyone back to heaven in her spaceship. Happily, I think things have calmed down for her in recent years.

The classic Alfred Hitchcock suspense film “Psycho” released in 1960 is based on a 1959 novel of the same name by Robert Bloch. The Bloch novel in turn is loosely based on actual crimes committed by murderer and grave robber Ed Gein. When “Psycho” was making its initial run in theaters, latecomers were not granted admission, a policy instigated by Hitchcock himself. He felt that anyone missing the opening scenes would not enjoy the film. “Psycho” was remade in 1998 by Gus Van Sant. The remake is closer to the original than is usual in a remake, with Van Sant even copying some of Hitchcock’s camera angles.

48. Shepard in space ALAN
Alan Shepard was the first American in space. Shepard’s flight was originally scheduled for October 1960 but a series of delays pushed it out till May 5, 1961. Yuri Gagarin made his celebrated flight on April 12, 1961, just one one month earlier, winning that part of the Space Race for the Soviets.

53. Bars in stores UPC
UPC stands for Universal Price Code or Universal Product Code. The first UPC-marked item to get scanned in a store was on June 26, 1974 at 08:01 a.m. at Marsh’s supermarket in Troy, Ohio. It was a 10-pack of Wrigley’s Juicy Fruit chewing gum …

55. Silverstein of kid-lit SHEL
Author Shel Silverstein had a varied career and did a lot more than write books. Silverstein was a poet, composer, cartoonist and screenwriter among other things. One of his successful children’s books is “The Giving Tree”, which was first published in 1964. “The Giving Tree” tells of a young boy who has a special relationship with a tree in a forest. The message of the book seems to be that the tree provides the little boy with everything he needs.

59. Skewered dish KABOB
The name “kebab” (also “kabob”) covers a wide variety of meat dishes that originated in Persia. In the West, we usually use “kebab” when talking about shish kebab, which is meat (often lamb) served on a skewer. “Shish” comes from the Turkish word for “skewer”.

60. Shakespeare’s “Richard __” III
“Richard III” is one of the more famous of William Shakespeare’s historical plays. A well-known 1955 version of the play was made for the big screen with Laurence Olivier playing the title role. The most oft-quoted words from “Richard III” are probably the opening lines “Now is the winter of our discontent/Made glorious summer by this sun of York”, and Richard’s plea at the climax of battle “A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!”

65. Novelist Kingsley AMIS
Kingsley Amis (what a great name!) was a very successful English writer, famous for producing entertaining, comedic novels. His most famous novel probably is his first, “Lucky Jim” published in 1954, although he won a Booker Prize for a later novel, “The Old Devils” published in 1986. He passed on some of his talent through his genes, it seems, as his son Martin Amis is a very successful novelist too.

66. Actress Thomas MARLO
Marlo Thomas’s most famous role was playing the title character in the television sitcom “That Girl”. Thomas is also well known as a spokesperson for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

69. “Mona __” LISA
Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece that we know in English as the “Mona Lisa” is called “La Gioconda” in Italian, the language of the artist. It’s also known as “La Joconde” by the Government of France which owns the painting and displays it in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The title comes from the name of the subject, almost certainly Lisa Gherardini, wife of Francesco del Giocondo. Giocondo was a wealthy silk merchant in Florence who commissioned the painting for the couple’s new home to celebrate the birth of their second son.

73. Bear whose porridge was too cold MAMA
The story of “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” was first recorded in 1837, in England, although the narrative was around before it was actually written down. The original fairy tale was rather gruesome, but successive versions became more family-oriented. The character that eventually became Goldilocks was originally an elderly woman, and the three “nameless” bears became Papa Bear, Mama Bear and Baby Bear.

76. “We Know Drama” network TNT
TNT stands for Turner Network Television. The TNT cable channel made a big splash in the eighties when it started to broadcast old MGM movies that had been “colorized”, not something that was a big hit with the public. In recent years, the TNT programming lineup is touted with the tagline “We Know Drama”, and includes shows like “Judging Amy”, “ER” and “Cold Case”.

79. Unadon fish EEL
Unagi is the Japanese word for freshwater eel, and unadon is the Japanese word for “eel bowl”. Unadon is actually a contraction of “unagi no kabayaki” (grilled eel) and “donburi” (rice bowl dish).

80. Opp. of legato STAC
Staccato is a musical direction signifying that notes should be played in a disconnected form. The opposite of staccato would be legato, long and continuous notes played very smoothly.

82. Key of Haydn’s Symphony No. 29 E MAJ
Josef Haydn was an Austrian composer, often called the “Father of the Symphony” due to his prolific output of symphonies that helped define the form. This is one of the reasons that he was known, even in his own lifetime, as “Papa Haydn”. Haydn was also the father figure among “the big three” composers of the Classical Period: Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. Hayden was a good friend to Mozart, and a teacher of Beethoven.

85. Classic pop NEHI
The brand of Nehi cola has a name that sounds like “knee-high”, a measure of a small stature. Back in the mid-1900’s, the Chero-Cola company that owned the brand went for a slightly different twist on “knee-high” in advertising. The logo for Nehi was an image of a seated woman’s stockinged legs, with her skirt pulled up to her knees, to hint at “knee-high”.

94. Large fleets ARMADAS
The most famous Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England in order to overthrow Queen Elizabeth I in 1588. It failed in its mission, partly due to bad weather encountered en route. Ironically, the English mounted a similar naval attack against Spain the following year, and it failed as well.

95. “The Hunger Games” heroine KATNISS
Katniss Everdeen is a protagonist in “The Hunger Games” trilogy by Suzanne Collins. Her name is taken from the edible plant called katniss. On the big screen, Everdeen is played by actress Jennifer Lawrence.

96. FICA funds it SSA
The Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax (FICA) was introduced in the 1930s as part of President Roosevelt’s New Deal. FICA payments are made by both employees and employers in order to fund Social Security and Medicare.

99. “Gil Blas” novelist LESAGE
Alain-René Lesage was a novelist and playwright from France. Lesage is best known for his novels “The Devil upon Two Sticks” (1707) and “Gil Blas” (1715-1735).

100. China’s Sun __ YAT-SEN
Sun Yat-sen is known as the “Father of the Nation” in China, and is uniquely revered in both the mainland of China and on the island of Taiwan. During his rule as president of the country he promoted his political philosophy known at the Three Principles of the People, namely nationalism, democracy and the people’s livelihood.

101. Genetic code carrier RNA
Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) is an essential catalyst in the manufacture of proteins in the body. The genetic code in DNA determines the sequence of amino acids that make up each protein. That sequence is read in DNA by messenger RNA, and amino acids are delivered for protein manufacture in the correct sequence by what is called transfer RNA. The amino acids are then formed into proteins by ribosomal RNA.

103. Kevin of “SNL” NEALON
Off screen, Kevin Nealon is friends with fellow “Saturday Night Live” alumna Dana Carvey. When Carvey landed a spot on SNL, he recommended Nealon to the show’s producers and both stand-up comedians joined the cast in the same year, 1986.

104. Cravat cousin ASCOT
An Ascot tie is that horrible-looking (I think!) wide tie that narrows at the neck, which these days is only really worn at weddings. The tie takes its name from the Royal Ascot horse race at which punters still turn up in formal wear at Ascot Racecourse in England.

The cravat originated in Croatia and was an accessory used with a military uniform. Cravats were introduced to the fashion-conscious French by Croatian mercenaries enlisted into a regiment of the French army. The English placed a lot of emphasis on the knot used for the cravat, and in the period after the Battle of Waterloo the cravat came to be known as a “tie”. What we now call a tie in English is still called a “cravate” in French.

105. Sign of the maiden VIRGO
The astrological sign of Virgo is associated with the constellation of the same name. The Virgo constellation is related to maidens (virgins), purity and fertility.

107. Confused partner? DAZED
“Dazed and confused”

111. Burrell and Pennington of TV TYS
The character Phil Dunphy on the sitcom “Modern Family” is played by actor Ty Burrell. Phil is a real estate agent and refers to his role in his family as “cool Dad”.

Ty Pennington is a TV personality and carpenter, the host of the reality show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”. Pennington’s break came when he was cast as the carpenter on the earlier makeover show called “Trading Spaces”.

112. Spanish surrealist DALI
The famous surrealist painter Salvador Dalí was born in Figueres, Spain. I had the privilege of visiting the Dalí Museum in Figueres some years ago, just north of Barcelona. If you ever get the chance, it’s a “must see” as it really is a quite magnificent building with a fascinating collection.

114. Van Halen’s David Lee __ ROTH
Van Halen is a heavy metal band formed in Pasadena, California back in 1972. Brothers Eddie and Alex Van Halen originally called the band Mammoth, changing the name to Van Halen in 1974 when they found out there was another Mammoth playing the circuit. Early on, the brothers were renting a sound system from David Lee Roth, and they decided to save some money by bringing him into the band and saving on the rental fee!

116. Lille girl: Abbr. MLLE
Señorita (Srta.) is Spanish and mademoiselle (Mlle.) is French for “Miss”.

Lille is a large city in the very north of France sitting right on the border with Belgium. The name “Lille” is a derivation of the term “l’isle” meaning “the island”.

118. Bordeaux, e.g. REDS
Bordeaux is perhaps the wine producing capital of the world. Wine has been produced in the area since the eighth century. Bordeaux has an administrative history too. During WWII, the French government relocated from Paris to the port city of Bordeaux when it became clear that Paris was soon to fall to the Germans. After the German’s took France, the capital was famously moved to Vichy.

122. Ala. clock setting CST
Alabama (Ala.) is on Central Standard Time (CST)

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. Hardly orderly SLOPPY
7. Angler’s quarry BASS
11. Suffix with einstein -IUM
14. Clench GRIP
18. More arch WILIER
19. Type of exam ORAL
20. Kinshasa-to-Cairo dir. NNE
21. Inclined (to) PRONE
22. Cherubim, e.g. ANGELS
23. Storybook meanie OGRE
24. HCH successor FDR
25. *2012 Hot 100 #1 song in both the U.S. and Canada (CALL ME) MAYBE
26. “Cool!” NEATO!
27. See 47-Across BROADWAY MUSICAL
30. Golfer Aoki ISAO
32. Humble DEMEAN
33. Some airport displays, briefly LEDS
34. See 71-Across OPENING OF MOBY-DICK
41. “I Guess __ Rather Be in Colorado”: John Denver song HE’D
42. Bogus blazer GAS LOG
43. Breakfast pastry DANISH
47. *Source of the song “The Hostess With the Mostes’ on the Ball” (CALL ME) MADAM
50. Regretful one RUER
51. Actress Joanne DRU
54. Chiwere speakers OTOES
56. Most clichéd STALEST
58. See 91-Across DO KEEP IN TOUCH
62. Literary hodgepodge ANA
63. Pod-bearing tree ACACIA
64. Ship substitute SHE
65. See 119-Across AM I NUTS?
69. It may be false LABOR
71. *Memorable 1851 novel line (CALL ME) ISHMAEL
74. Blot MAR
75. Of last month ULTIMO
77. Energizer choice AAA
78. *Van Heusen/Cahn classic (CALL ME) IRRESPONSIBLE
83. Hurling goo at SLIMING
87. Wintry mix component SLEET
88. Small bit TAD
89. Henriette, to Henri AMIE
91. *Parting request (CALL ME) LATER
92. Lakota tribe OGLALA
95. Rapscallions KNAVES
97. X, to Xanthippe CHI
98. See 25-Across CARLY RAE JEPSEN HIT
104. Serious, as a reader AVID
108. Clarifier beginning I MEANT …
109. Fluency EASE
110. See 78-Across SINATRA STANDARD
115. Lion __ TAMER
119. *”This is going to sound dumb …” (CALL ME) CRAZY
120. Courtroom VIPs DAS
121. Emilia’s husband IAGO
122. 1980 Blondie chart-topper, and what’s needed to make sense of the answers to starred clues CALL ME
123. Eyes a little too long OGLES
124. Bracketing criterion AGE
125. Place for a coin SLOT
126. Apathetic STOLID
127. Ratted (on) TOLD
128. Many a pol. talk show guest SEN
129. Voiced relief SIGH
130. Group doctrines TENETS

Down
1. Adult cygnet SWAN
2. Conga formation LINE
3. Actress Kurylenko of “Oblivion” OLGA
4. Cobbler holder PIE TIN
5. Hastert’s successor PELOSI
6. Jr. and sr. YRS
7. Philistine BOOR
8. 2012 political thriller ARGO
9. Poet Teasdale SARA
10. Iditarod critter SLED DOG
11. “… a date which will live in __”: 24-Across INFAMY
12. Staying gray, say UNDYED
13. Siren relative MERMAID
14. Holy quest vessel GRAIL
15. Rolls partner ROYCE
16. __ shape: not well IN BAD
17. Preps, as potatoes PEELS
21. Cameron and Blair of Eng. PMS
27. Spade player BOGART
28. www word WEB
29. Donald Duck, to his nephews UNCA’
31. Luanda is its cap. ANG
34. Electrician’s units OHMS
35. Three-__: consecutive sports titles PEAT
36. Historic Icelandic work EDDA
37. Corvallis sch. OSU
38. Ran away FLED
39. WWII Italian river MORO
40. Tie feature KNOT
44. “Was __ blame?” I TO
45. March composer SOUSA
46. Leigh’s counterpart in the 1998 version of “Psycho” HECHE
48. Shepard in space ALAN
49. Bill of fare MENU
51. Art __ DECO
52. Raise REAR
53. Bars in stores UPC
55. Silverstein of kid-lit SHEL
57. Ate in bed, say SAT UP
59. Skewered dish KABOB
60. Shakespeare’s “Richard __” III
61. Sounding stuffy NASAL
65. Novelist Kingsley AMIS
66. Actress Thomas MARLO
67. Like some marked-down mdse. IRREG
68. __-mo SLO
69. “Mona __” LISA
70. Enclosed in AMID
72. Thunderstorm formation, perhaps HAIL
73. Bear whose porridge was too cold MAMA
76. “We Know Drama” network TNT
79. Unadon fish EEL
80. Opp. of legato STAC
81. Climbing or fast follower LANE
82. Key of Haydn’s Symphony No. 29 E MAJ
83. Oozed SEEPED
84. Hard-to-reach problem, at times ITCH
85. Classic pop NEHI
86. Backbone GRIT
90. “__ been had!” I’VE
93. Private retreat LAIR
94. Large fleets ARMADAS
95. “The Hunger Games” heroine KATNISS
96. FICA funds it SSA
99. “Gil Blas” novelist LESAGE
100. China’s Sun __ YAT-SEN
101. Genetic code carrier RNA
102. Big spread ESTATE
103. Kevin of “SNL” NEALON
104. Cravat cousin ASCOT
105. Sign of the maiden VIRGO
106. Counting everything IN ALL
107. Confused partner? DAZED
111. Burrell and Pennington of TV TYS
112. Spanish surrealist DALI
113. All excited AGOG
114. Van Halen’s David Lee __ ROTH
116. Lille girl: Abbr. MLLE
117. Discharge EMIT
118. Bordeaux, e.g. REDS
122. Ala. clock setting CST

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