LA Times Crossword Answers 20 Jan 15, Tuesday

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CROSSWORD SETTER: Michael Dewey
THEME: Back in the Game … we have a sports-themed puzzle today. Four of the long answers start with a type of BACK, IN THE GAME of football:

33A. Returning to action, and, on a gridiron, what each first word of 17-, 24-, 47- and 55-Across is BACK IN THE GAME

17A. Soccer scoring opportunity CORNER KICK (giving “cornerback”)
24A. Vice presidential hopeful RUNNING MATE (giving “running back”)
47A. Musical symbol QUARTER NOTE (giving “quarterback”)
55A. Hold that’s illegal in amateur wrestling FULL NELSON (giving “fullback”)

BILL BUTLER’S COMPLETION TIME: 4m 54s
ANSWERS I MISSED: 0

Today’s Wiki-est, Amazonian Googlies
Across

1. PBS science series since 1974 NOVA
“Nova” is an excellent science television series on PBS. “Nova” was created back in 1974, and was inspired by a very similar BBC show called “Horizon”, a show that I grew up with. Many “Nova” episodes are actually co-productions with the BBC with an American narrator used for the PBS broadcasts and a British narrator for the BBC broadcasts.

5. Barton of the Red Cross CLARA
Clara Barton was deeply disturbed by her experiences caring for the wounded during the Civil War. She dedicated herself after the war towards American recognition of the International Committee of the Red Cross. The American Red Cross was inevitably formed, in 1881, and Barton was installed as its first president.

14. Fictional rabbit’s title BR’ER
Br’er Rabbit and Br’er Fox are characters in the Uncle Remus stories, written by Joel Chandler Harris. The Uncle Remus stories are adaptations of African American folktales that Harris collected across the Southern States. “Br’er” is an abbreviated form of “brother”.

15. Persian Gulf tanker OILER
An “oiler” is an oil tanker, an ocean-going vessel used to transport crude oil.

The Persian Gulf is in effect an inland sea although it technically is an offshoot of the Indian Ocean. The outlet from the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean is one of the most famous maritime “choke points” in the world: the Strait of Hormuz. About 20% of the world’s supply of petroleum passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

19. Lang of Smallville LANA
Smallville, Kansas is the town on Earth in which Superman grew up (as Clark Kent). One of Clark’s best friends in Smallville, and the romantic interest of his youth, was Lana Lang.

21. How French dip sandwiches are served AU JUS
The French term “au jus” is usually translated as “with it’s own juice”.

22. Neruda’s “__ to Wine” ODE
Here’s the first verse of Pablo Neruda’s poem “Ode to Wine” …

Day-colored wine,
night-colored wine,
wine with purple feet
or wine with topaz blood,
wine,
starry child
of earth,
wine, smooth
as a golden sword,
soft
as lascivious velvet,
wine, spiral-seashelled
and full of wonder,
amorous,
marine;
never has one goblet contained you,
one song, one man,
you are choral, gregarious,
at the least, you must be shared.

Pablo Neruda was the pen name, and eventually the legal name, used by Chilean writer Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. Basoalto chose the name as a homage to Czech poet Jan Neruda.

27. Cultural no-nos TABOOS
The word “taboo” was introduced into English by Captain Cook in his book “A Voyage to the Pacific Ocean”. Cook described “tabu” (likely imitative of a Tongan word that he had heard) as something that was both consecrated and forbidden.

30. Hamilton opponent BURR
Aaron Burr was the third vice-president of the US, serving under Thomas Jefferson. In the final year of his term in office, Burr fought an illegal duel and killed his political rival Alexander Hamilton. Burr wasn’t brought to justice, but he did pay the price politically. Thomas Jefferson dropped him from his ticket in the election held the following year.

Alexander Hamilton was one of America’s Founding Fathers, chief of staff to General George Washington and the first Secretary of the Treasury. It was Hamilton who founded the nation’s first political party, the Federalist Party. He is also famous for fighting a duel with Vice President Aaron Burr, which resulted in Hamilton’s death a few days later.

31. NFL Hall of Famer Lynn SWANN
After his professional football career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Lynn Swann became a sportscaster and has been very active in Republican politics in recent years. Swann ran unsuccessfully for Governor of Pennsylvania in 2006. He also publicly declared his interest in running for the House of Representatives in 2008, but bowed out of the race early.

40. Whacked arcade critter MOLE
The Whac-A-Mole arcade game was invented in 1976. Players use a mallet to force five plastic moles back into their holes. Whacking the moles can be so frustrating that we sometimes use the term “Whac-a-mole” to describe a repetitive and futile task.

42. Greek markets AGORAE
In early Greece the “agora” was a place of assembly. Often the assemblies held there were quite formal, perhaps for the reading of a proclamation. Later in Greek history, things became less formal as the agora evolved into a market place. Our contemporary word “agoraphobia” comes from these agorae, in the sense that an agoraphobe has a fear of open spaces, a fear of “public meeting places”.

47. Musical symbol QUARTER NOTE (giving “quarterback”)
What little I know about music theory had a major setback when I arrived in the US. What is known as “quarter note” here is called “crotchet” back in Ireland. The term “crotchet” comes from an Old French word for “hook”, because a quarter note looks like a hook when recorded on a musical staff/stave. Arrgh!

50. Disney frame CEL
In the world of animation, a cel is a transparent sheet on which objects and characters are drawn. In the first half of the 20th century the sheet was actually made of celluloid, giving the “cel” its name.

51. Vaulted church areas APSES
The apse of a church or cathedral is a semicircular recess in an outer wall, usually with a half-dome as a roof and often where there resides an altar. Originally apses were used as burial places for the clergy and also for storage of important relics.

52. Singer Newton-John OLIVIA
Olivia Newton-John is an Australian singer and actress, although she was born in Cambridge, England. Newton-John’s father was an officer in the British Security Services and worked on the Enigma code-breaking project during WWII. Through her mother, Olivia is also the granddaughter of Max Born, the atomic physicist and Nobel Prize winner.

54. Table salt, to a chemist NACL
Sodium chloride (NaCl, common salt) is an ionic compound, a crystal lattice made up of large chloride (Cl) ions in a cubic structure, with smaller sodium (Na) ions in between the chlorides.

55. Hold that’s illegal in amateur wrestling FULL NELSON (giving “fullback”)
The full nelson and half nelson are wrestling holds in which one wrestler secures an opponent by encircling the opponent’s arms under the armpits and around the neck. Some say the hold is named after Admiral Nelson, who was renowned for using encircling tactics in battle.

59. “Buenos __” DIAS
“Buenos dias” translates from Spanish as “good day”, but can also be used to say “good morning”.

61. Frustrating toy for Charlie Brown KITE
Charlie Brown is the main character in the long-running comic strip called “Peanuts”, created by Charles Schulz. Charlie has several persistent frustrations in his life, including an inability to fly a kite. The focus of his kite-flying frustration is the dreaded Kite-Eating Tree.

62. “Rule, Britannia” composer Thomas ARNE
Thomas Arne was an English composer from London. Arne wrote some iconic compositions including “Rule, Britannia!” He also wrote a version of “God Save the King” that became the British national anthem.

“Rule Britannia” was a poem by James Thomson, for which Thomas Arne composed the famous music.

Down
2. Guatemala gold ORO
Guatemala in Central America became independent from Spain in 1821, first becoming part of the Mexican Empire, and then completely independent two years later.

3. Spinal bone VERTEBRA
The vertebrae are the individual bones that give strength and flexibility to the spinal column. The word “vertebra” is Latin. The term probably derives from the verb “vertere” meaning “to turn”, the idea being that the individual bones in the back allow turning and twisting.

4. River of Pisa ARNO
The Arno is the principal river in the Tuscany region of Italy, passing through the cities of Florence and Pisa. Famously the Arno flooded in 1966, the worst flood in the region for centuries. There were numerous deaths and extensive destruction of priceless art treasures, particularly in Florence.

The city of Pisa is right on the Italian coast, sitting at the mouth of the River Arno, and is famous for its Leaning Tower. The tower is actually the campanile (bell tower) of the city’s cathedral, and it has been leaning since it was completed in 1173. Just shows you how important good foundations are …

5. Habeas __ CORPUS
The Latin term habeas corpus translates literally as “you are to have the body”, and is a legal action (i.e. a writ) that is used to release a prisoner from unlawful detention.

9. “Raiders of the Lost __” ARK
“Raiders of the Lost Ark” is, in my humble opinion, the best of the Indiana Jones franchise of movies. This first Indiana Jones film was released in 1981, produced by George Lucas and directed by Steven Spielberg. Harrison Ford was Spielberg’s first choice to play the lead, but Lucas resisted as he was concerned that he would be too closely associated with the actor (as Ford played Han Solo in “Star Wars”, and also appeared in Lucas’s “American Graffiti”). Tom Selleck was offered the role but couldn’t get out of his commitments to “Magnum, P.I.” Eventually Spielberg got his way, and that was a good thing I’d say …

10. Op-Ed piece COLUMN
Op-ed is an abbreviation for “opposite the editorial page”. Op-eds started in “The New York Evening World” in 1921 when the page opposite the editorials was used for articles written by a named guest writer, someone independent of the editorial board.

11. Deep into the pub crawl, say ON A JAG
The word “jag” is used to describe periods of unrestrained activity, particularly involving alcohol, and has been in use since the 1800s.

12. Dunkin’ __ DONUTS
Dunkin’ Donuts was founded in 1950 in Quincy, Massachusetts. Now the chain has over 15,000 restaurants in almost 40 different countries. The company’s biggest competitor is actually Starbucks, as over half of Dunkin’ Donuts’ revenue comes from coffee, and not donuts.

18. Currency since 1999 EURO
Euro coins are issued by all of the participating eurozone states. The reverse side is a common design used by all countries, whereas the obverse is a design specific to each nation. For example, the one euro coin issued by Malta features the Maltese Cross. That Maltese euro is legal tender right across the eurozone.

22. Wagering letters OTB
Off-Track Betting (OTB) is the legal gambling that takes place on horse races outside of a race track. A betting parlor can be referred to as an OTB.

25. Potato state IDAHO
Idaho has the nickname the Gem State, mainly because almost every known type of gemstone has been found there. Idaho is also sometimes called the Potato State as potatoes are such a popular crop in the state.

28. Tolkien monster ORC
Orcs are mythical humanoid creatures that appear in the writings of J. R. R. Tolkien. Since Tolkien’s use of orcs, they have also been featured in other fantasy fiction and in fantasy games.

34. Wii game rides for Mario and Luigi KARTS
“Mario Kart” is a go-kart racing video game series from Nintendo.

Mario Bros. started out as an arcade game back in 1983, developed by Nintendo. The more famous of the two brothers, Mario, had already appeared in an earlier arcade game “Donkey Kong”. Mario was given a brother called Luigi, and the pair have been around ever since. In the game, Mario and Luigi are Italian American plumbers from New York City.

35. “Dies __”: hymn IRAE
“Dies Irae” is Latin for “Day of Wrath”. It is the name of a famous melody in Gregorian Chant, one that is often used as part of the Roman Catholic Requiem Mass.

36. Physicians’ org. AMA
American Medical Association (AMA)

37. Soft shoe MOCCASIN
The moccasin is a traditional form of footwear worn by members of many Native American tribes.

38. Sommer of films ELKE
Elke Sommer is a German-born actress who was at the height of her success on the silver screen in the sixties. Sommer won a Golden Globe as Most Promising Newcomer Actress for her role opposite Paul Newman in 1964’s “The Prize”. She also sings and has released several albums. Now Sommer focuses on painting, producing artwork that is strongly influenced by the work of Marc Chagall.

41. Immigrant’s class: Abbr. ESL
English as a Second Language (ESL) is sometimes referred to as English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and English as a Foreign Language (EFL).

42. Live-in nanny AU PAIR
An “au pair” is a domestic assistant from a foreign country working and living as part of a host family. The term “au pair” is French, and means “on a par”, indicating that an au pair is treated as an equal in the host family.

46. Campbell of “Scream” NEVE
Neve Campbell is a Canadian actress whose big break in movies came with the “Scream” horror film series, in which she had a leading role. I don’t do horror films, so I haven’t seen any of the “Scream” movies. Nor have I seen the TV series “Party of Five” which launched the acting careers of both Campbell and Jennifer Love Hewitt in the nineties.

47. Info-gathering exchange Q AND A
Question and answer (Q&A)

48. Ryan with a record seven no-hitters NOLAN
Nolan Ryan is famous for having more career strikeouts that any other baseball pitcher. However, he also holds the record for the most career walks and wild pitches. Another record that Ryan holds is the most no-hitters, a total of seven over his career.

49. Hardy of Laurel & Hardy OLLIE
Oliver Hardy was born Norvell Hardy in 1892 in Harlem, Georgia. Hardy used the stage name “Oliver” as a tribute to his father Oliver Hardy. His early performances were credited as “Oliver Norvell Hardy”, and off camera his nickname was “Babe Hardy”. Hardy appeared in several films that also featured the young British actor Stan Laurel, but it wasn’t until 1927 that they teamed up to make perhaps the most famous double act in the history of movies. The Laurel and Hardy act came to an end in 1955. That year, Laurel suffered a stroke, and then later the same year Hardy had a heart attack and stroke from which he never really recovered.

55. Teleflora rival 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).

56. Sch. in the smallest state URI
The University of Rhode Island (URI) was first chartered as an agricultural school, back in 1888. URI’s main campus today is located in the village of Kingston.

Rhode Island is the smallest state in the union, but is the second most densely populated. (after New Jersey). Rhode Island is known as the Ocean State, largely because about 14% of the state’s area is made up of ocean bays and inlets. Exactly how Rhode Island got its name is a little unclear. What is known is that way back in 1524, long before the Pilgrims came to New England, the Italian explorer Giovanni da Verrazzano likened an island in the area to the Island of Rhodes in the Mediterranean. There were subsequent references to “Rhode Island” in English publications, before the colonists arrived.

57. Oklahoma tribe OTO
The Otoe (also Oto) Native American tribe originated in the Great Lakes region as part of the Winnebago or Siouan tribes. The group that would become the Otoe broke away from the Winnebago and migrated southwestwards ending up in the Great Plains. In the plains the Otoe adopted a semi-nomadic lifestyle dependent on the horse, with the American bison becoming central to their diet.

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For the sake of completion, here is a full listing of all the answers:
Across
1. PBS science series since 1974 NOVA
5. Barton of the Red Cross CLARA
10. Secret language CODE
14. Fictional rabbit’s title BR’ER
15. Persian Gulf tanker OILER
16. __ about: roughly ON OR
17. Soccer scoring opportunity CORNER KICK (giving “cornerback”)
19. Lang of Smallville LANA
20. Hairpiece TOUPEE
21. How French dip sandwiches are served AU JUS
22. Neruda’s “__ to Wine” ODE
24. Vice presidential hopeful RUNNING MATE (giving “running back”)
27. Cultural no-nos TABOOS
29. Goings-on DOINGS
30. Hamilton opponent BURR
31. NFL Hall of Famer Lynn SWANN
33. Returning to action, and, on a gridiron, what each first word of 17-, 24-, 47- and 55-Across is BACK IN THE GAME
39. “Am not!” reply ARE SO!
40. Whacked arcade critter MOLE
42. Greek markets AGORAE
45. Between-meals meals SNACKS
47. Musical symbol QUARTER NOTE (giving “quarterback”)
50. Disney frame CEL
51. Vaulted church areas APSES
52. Singer Newton-John OLIVIA
54. Table salt, to a chemist NACL
55. Hold that’s illegal in amateur wrestling FULL NELSON (giving “fullback”)
59. “Buenos __” DIAS
60. Characteristic TRAIT
61. Frustrating toy for Charlie Brown KITE
62. “Rule, Britannia” composer Thomas ARNE
63. Breaks bread DINES
64. Shoveled precipitation SNOW

Down
1. “Football Night in America” network NBC
2. Guatemala gold ORO
3. Spinal bone VERTEBRA
4. River of Pisa ARNO
5. Habeas __ CORPUS
6. Compare LIKEN
7. From another planet ALIEN
8. Camcorder button REC
9. “Raiders of the Lost __” ARK
10. Op-Ed piece COLUMN
11. Deep into the pub crawl, say ON A JAG
12. Dunkin’ __ DONUTS
13. Take off the board ERASE
18. Currency since 1999 EURO
21. Winery process that can take years AGING
22. Wagering letters OTB
23. Apply haphazardly DAUB
25. Potato state IDAHO
26. __ of the above NONE
28. Tolkien monster ORC
31. Look of disdain SNEER
32. Scale amts. WTS
34. Wii game rides for Mario and Luigi KARTS
35. “Dies __”: hymn IRAE
36. Physicians’ org. AMA
37. Soft shoe MOCCASIN
38. Sommer of films ELKE
41. Immigrant’s class: Abbr. ESL
42. Live-in nanny AU PAIR
43. Stranded motorist’s aid GAS CAN
44. Threat-ending words OR ELSE!
45. Tours of duty STINTS
46. Campbell of “Scream” NEVE
47. Info-gathering exchange Q AND A
48. Ryan with a record seven no-hitters NOLAN
49. Hardy of Laurel & Hardy OLLIE
53. Classes ILKS
55. Teleflora rival FTD
56. Sch. in the smallest state URI
57. Oklahoma tribe OTO
58. Cutting-edge NEW

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7 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 20 Jan 15, Tuesday”

  1. Too much sports. I ignored the theme, and actually knew FULL NELSON, since my dad showed me the full and half-

    I had a blank – SWANN crosses WTS. Otherwise, didn't know NEVE, but got with perpendiculars.

  2. Aack! Didn't "get" the theme, spelled VERTiBRA wrong, giving me ODI
    and could not see QANDA…what?
    Q AND A- shesh I never spot those answers.
    And why wouldn't OLIVER fit?
    I think I took two giant steps backward today.
    Bill, 4min. 54 sec.????
    How can you read and type that fast?
    And it's only Tuesday. (sigh)

  3. Holy petunias, that went quick. My quickest time ever. I needed 2 down crosses to finish the SW corner.

    Lynn SWANN is still considered one of the best athletes to strap on a helmet. His catches in Super Bowl X were incredible. All the better because my cousin, 18 years my senior, is an inveterate Cowboys fan and taunted me through the whole game. Then they lost, and he shut up. Lynn Swann Super Bowl X

  4. @Willie D – Swann ruined the 1980 Super Bowl for me too with his incredible 47 yard TD catch against the LA Rams (not too mention John Stallworth and his acrobatic catch that sealed the deal for the Steelers!). While the Ram's finally won one, they weren't in LA any longer when they did so. Doh!

    This puzzle came together really quickly, but Bill's time is really something. Forget speed reading. How about speed puzzling! ;-D>

    Hope everyone has a great day.

  5. @ Tony, I remember the 1980s Rams, a great team. I always thought Vince Ferragamo had a cameo in the film Heaven Can Wait, but IMDB says no. And don't worry, they'll be back in L.A. real soon.

    The L.A. Times online version makes it real easy to speed through some of these puzzles. It shows the clue you're on and the corresponding cross clue.

  6. Hi solvents! Fun Tuesday puzzle, I thought. I don't know football too well, but still was helped by the theme. @Pookie — agreed on QANDA! That threw me.
    Que tengan buen miercoles amigos!

  7. @Pookie, Tony and Willie,

    As I always say, I wish I solved more slowly. Practice makes for speed. I use what's called the Across Lite version of the puzzle, which I download from the Internet. Typing is quicker than using a pen/pencil, at least for me. The main reason I solve on the computer is that then the solved grid is available for me to use in the blog post.

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