LA Times Crossword 22 Nov 18, Thursday

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Constructed by: Robin Stears
Edited by: Rich Norris

Today’s Theme (according to Bill): A-Nother Anagram

Themed answers each end with the letters N-O-T-H-E-R rearranged:

  • 17A. “Shake It Up” star who won a 2015 Teen Choice Award for her role in “The DUFF” : BELLA THORNE
  • 27A. “Monster” Oscar winner : CHARLIZE THERON
  • 47A. Another name for the Romanov Empire : IMPERIAL THRONE
  • 62A. Masked hero who partners with Kato : GREEN HORNET

Bill’s time: 6m 28s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1. Electrically flexible : AC/DC

Anyone with a laptop with an external power supply has an AC/DC converter, that big “block” in the power cord. It converts the AC current from a wall socket into the DC current that is used by the laptop.

5. Mammals who hold hands while sleeping : OTTERS

Sea otters actually hold hands while sleeping on their backs so that they don’t drift apart. When sea otter pups are too small to lock hands, they clamber up onto their mother’s belly and nap there.

11. Cy Young Award stat : ERA

Earned run average (ERA)

Cy Young was a pitcher in the major leagues from 1890-1911. Young is remembered for pitching the first perfect game of baseball’s modern era. Soon after he died in 1955, the Cy Young Award was created and is presented to the best pitcher in each baseball season.

15. Persona non grata : PARIAH

“Pariah” is an anglicized version of the Tamil word “Paraiyar”. The Paraiyar are a social group of about 9 million people found in some Indian states and in Sri Lanka. The term “pariah” came to be a general term for members of the lowest caste in society, outcasts.

A persona non grata (plural “personae non gratae”) is someone who is not welcome. The phrase is Latin for “an unacceptable person”. The opposite phrase is “persona grata”, meaning “acceptable person”.

16. Hula hoop? : LEI

“Lei” is the Hawaiian word for “garland, wreath”, although in more general terms a lei is any series of objects strung together as an adornment for the body.

The hula is a native dance of Hawaii that uses arm movements to relate a story. The hula can be performed while sitting (a noho dance) or while standing (a luna dance).

17. “Shake It Up” star who won a 2015 Teen Choice Award for her role in “The DUFF” : BELLA THORNE

Bella Thorne is an actress who seems to appear in movies and shows that I tend not to watch. One exception is the drama series “Big Love”, in which Thorne played one of the daughters in the main “family” in the show.

“The DUFF” is a teen comedy movie from 2015. The film is based on a young adult novel titled “The Duff” by Kody Keplinger. I haven’t been a teen in quite a while …

19. __ Bernardino : SAN

San Bernardino, California is located about 60 miles east of Los Angeles. The city was named for the Italian priest and Franciscan missionary Bernardino of Siena. One of San Bernardino’s claims to fame is that was home to the world’s first McDonald’s. It is now home to the McDonald’s Museum, which is located on the site of that first restaurant.

20. Helicopter part : ROTOR

Our term “helicopter” was absorbed from the French word “hélicoptère” that was coined by Gustave Ponton d’Amécourt in 1861. d’Amécourt envisioned aircraft that could fly vertically using rotating wings that “screwed” into the air. He combined the Greek terms “helix” meaning “spiral, whirl” and “pteron” meaning “wing” to give us “helicopter”.

21. Mineral suffix : -ITE

Physically speaking, a mineral differs from a rock in that the former has on chemical composition and the later is an aggregate of several minerals. The study of mineral is known as mineralogy.

26. Sport-__ : UTE

A utility vehicle is often called a “ute” for short. Nowadays one mainly hears about sport-utes and crossover-utes.

27. “Monster” Oscar winner : CHARLIZE THERON

Charlize Theron is an actress from South Africa who has played leading roles in Hollywood films such as “The Devil’s Advocate”, “The Cider House Rules” and my personal favorite “The Italian Job”.

“Monster” is a pretty disturbing crime drama released in 2003. The film’s storyline is based on the real-life story of Aileen Wuornos (played by Charlize Theron), a serial killer who was eventually caught and executed in 2002.

34. Yellow Teletubby : LAA-LAA

“Teletubbies” is a children’s television show produced by the BBC in the UK and shown over here on PBS. The show attracted a lot of attention in 1999 when Jerry Falwell suggested that one of the Teletubbies characters (Tinky Winky) was a homosexual role model for children.

36. Like old records : MONO

Monophonic sound (“mono”) is sound reproduced using just one audio channel, which is usually played out of just one speaker. Stereophonic sound is reproduced using two audio channels, with the sound from each channel played out of two different speakers. The pair of stereo speakers are usually positioned apart from each other so that sound appears to come from between the two. Quadraphonic sound (4.0 surround sound) uses four audio channels with the sound played back through four speakers often positioned at the corners of the room in which one is listening.

37. Returns home? : IRS

Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

41. ATM maker : NCR

NCR is an American company that has been in business since 1884 and was originally called the National Cash Register Company. The company has done well in a market where new technologies seem to be constantly disrupting the status quo.

44. Narc’s org. : DEA

“Narc” is a slang term for a law enforcement officer who tracks down criminals associated with illegal drugs. “Narc” is short for “narcotics officer”. Narcs might work for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

45. Element used in atomic clocks : CESIUM

Cesium is a chemical element with the element symbol Cs. It is a metal that is liquid at room temperature, just like mercury. Cesium was discovered by German scientists Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff in 1860. They noted bright blue lines in its emission spectrum, and so named it for the Latin word “caesius” meaning “sky-blue”.

An atomic clock is the most accurate tool known for keeping track of time. Most clocks work using some sort of an oscillation that takes place at a regular interval, like a pendulum. In the case of an atomic clock, the oscillation that is measured is between the nucleus of an atom (usually a cesium atom) and its surrounding electrons.

47. Another name for the Romanov Empire : IMPERIAL THRONE

In recent years, there has been a proposal floated to recreate the Russian monarchy. Known as the “Romanov Empire” (also “Imperial Throne” and “Russian Empire”), the proposed leader would be Prince Karl Emich of Leiningen, a descendent of Emperor Alexander II of Russia. Prince Karl Emich’s appointment to the Imperial Throne is supported by the Monarchist Party of Russia that was founded in 2012. One has to wonder what Mr. Putin has to say about all that …

51. A/C units : BTUS

In the world of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC), the power of a heating or cooling unit can be measured using the British Thermal Units (BTU). This dated unit is the amount of energy required to heat a pound of water so that the water’s temperature increases by one degree Fahrenheit.

55. “Ballers” network : HBO

“Ballers” is an HBO comedy-drama about a retired NFL player who now works as a financial manager for other NFL players. Dwayne Johnson plays the lead character.

61. Binary digit : ONE

We use a base-ten numbering system, with ten digits (0 – 9). The binary system, or base two, uses just two digits (0 & 1). The binary system is used at a fundamental level in computing, because the number 0 and 1 can be represented by microcircuits being switched “on” or “off”.

62. Masked hero who partners with Kato : GREEN HORNET

The Green Hornet is a masked crime-fighter who first appeared in a radio show in 1936. The alter ego of newspaper publisher Britt Reid, the Green Hornet fights crime in a long, green overcoat, green fedora hat and green mask. He also drives around in a hi-tech car called the Black Beauty that is driven by his masked partner Kato.

67. Avis adjective : RARA

A “rara avis” is anything that is very rare. The Latin term translates as “rare bird”.

68. Medium strength? : ESP

Extrasensory perception (ESP)

70. “Son of Frankenstein” role : YGOR

1939’s “Son of Frankenstein” is the third in the series of classic horror films featuring Boris Karloff as the Monster. The prior titles are “Frankenstein” and “Bride of Frankenstein”. Dr. Frankenstein’s assistant Ygor is played by Bela Lugosi.

Down

1. This ans. is one : ABBR

This answer (ans.) is ABBR, which is an abbreviation (abbr.) for “abbreviation”.

2. Ancient queen, familiarly : CLEO

Cleopatra was the last pharaoh to rule Egypt. After she died, Egypt became a province in the Roman Empire.

3. Bench press muscle : DELT

The deltoid “muscle” is actually a group of muscles, the ones that cover the shoulder and create the roundness under the skin. The deltoids (delts) are triangular in shape resembling the Greek letter delta, hence the name.

4. __ hydrate: sedative : CHLORAL

Chloral hydrate is a relatively simple chemical compound that can be used as a sedative. It was discovered way back in 1832, and its sedative properties have been exploited since at least 1869. The knockout drops used to make the infamous Mickey Finn are a drops of chloral hydrate dissolved in ethanol.

6. South Pacific island : TAHITI

Tahiti is the most populous island in French Polynesia, which is located in the central Southern Pacific. Although Captain Cook landed in Tahiti in 1769, he wasn’t the first European to do so. However, Cook’s visit was the most significant in that it heralded a whole spate of European visitors, who brought with them prostitution, venereal disease and alcohol. Included among the subsequent visitors was the famous HMS Bounty under the charge of Captain Bligh.

8. Word on an Irish euro : EIRE

“Éire”, is the Irish word for “Ireland”. The related “Erin” is an anglicized version of “Éire” and actually corresponds to “Éirinn”, the dative case of “Éire”.

Euro coins are issued by all the participating European 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. The Irish euro features a harp.

13. “If it __ broke … ” : AIN’T

… don’t fix it.

18. Where Noah landed : ARARAT

Mount Ararat is in Turkey. Ararat is a snow-capped, dormant volcano with two peaks. The higher of the two, Greater Ararat, is the tallest peak in the country. Ararat takes its name from a legendary Armenian hero called Ara the Beautiful (or Ara the Handsome). According to the Book of Genesis, Noah’s ark landed on Mount Ararat as the Great Flood subsided.

25. Strong praise : PLAUDIT

Plaudits are enthusiastic expressions of approval. The term comes from the Latin word “plaudite!”, which was an appeal made by actors for “applause” at the end of a performance.

26. Netherlands city near Amsterdam : UTRECHT

Utrecht is the fourth largest city in the Netherlands (after Amsterdam, Rotterdam and the Hague). It is the nation’s religious center, and is also home to the country’s largest university, Utrecht University.

27. Billiards bounce : CAROM

A carom is a ricochet, the bouncing of some projectile off a surface. Carom has come to mean the banking of a billiard ball, the bouncing of the ball off the side of the table.

31. Masterless samurai : RONIN

In feudal Japan, a samurai who lost his master, perhaps through death or loss of favor, was known as a ronin. The term “ronin” is also used in contemporary Japan for a salaried worker between jobs.

34. Actress Virna : LISI

Virna Lisi is an Italian film actress who made a few movies in Hollywood in the sixties. Lisi appeared opposite Jack Lemmon in the fun movie “How to Murder Your Wife” in 1965, and with Frank Sinatra in “Assault on a Queen” in 1966.

39. Stephen who plays Inspector Bucket on “Dickensian” : REA

Stephen Rea is an Irish actor from Belfast. Rea’s most successful role was Fergus in 1992’s “The Crying Game”, for which performance he was nominated for the Best Actor Oscar. In “The Crying Game”, Fergus was a member of the IRA. In real life, Rea was married to IRA bomber and hunger striker Dolours Price at the time he made the movie.

“Dickensian” sounds like a clever drama from the BBC. All of the characters in the show are drawn from various novels by Charles Dickens, and they interact with each other as they reside in the same neighborhood in Victorian London. The central plot is the investigation of the murder of Ebenezer Scrooge’s partner Jacob Marley (characters from “A Christmas Carol”) by Inspector Bucket (from “Bleak House”).

40. “Talk Dirty” singer Jason : DERULO

“Jason Derulo” is the stage name of singer Jason Desrouleaux from Miramar, Florida.

43. 100 centavos : PESO

The coin called a “peso” is used in many Spanish-speaking countries around the world. The coin originated in Spain where the word “peso” means “weight”. The original peso was what we know in English as a “piece of eight”, a silver coin of a specific weight that had a nominal value of eight “reales”.

“Centavo” is a Spanish and Portuguese word, and is used for the coin that represents 1/100 of the basic monetary unit of quite a few countries, including Cuba. “Centavo” comes from the Latin “centum” meaning “one hundred” and “-avo” meaning “portion, fraction”.

49. Sizzler choices : T-BONES

The T-bone and porterhouse are related cuts of meat, with the latter being a larger version of the former, and both being cut from the short loin.

Sizzler is a restaurant chain that was launched in 1958 as in Culver City, California as Del’s Sizzler Family Steak House. For many years, Sizzler was known for offering reasonably priced steaks and an extensive salad bar.

52. Knight times : YORE

We use the word “yore” to mean “time long past” as in “the days of yore”. “Yore” comes from the Old English words for “of years”.

54. Like a basso profundo voice : DEEP

The basso profondo (also “contrabass”) is the voice with the lowest vocal range. “Basso profonda” is Italian for “deep bass”.

55. Berlin mister : HERR

In German, a “Herr” (Mr.) is married to a “Frau” (Mrs.), and they live together in a “Haus” (house).

56. N.B. part : BENE

“Nota bene” is Latin for “note well”.

58. Glitch : SNAG

“Glitch” comes into English from German via Yiddish. The original German word is “glitschen” meaning “to slip”. It is a relatively new term, generally applied to computer software bugs.

59. Architect Saarinen : EERO

Eero Saarinen was a Finnish-American architect who was renowned in this country for his unique designs for public buildings such as Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Dulles International Airport Terminal, and the TWA building at JFK. The list of his lesser-known, but still impressive, works includes several buildings erected on academic campuses. For example, the Chapel and Kresge Auditorium on the MIT campus, the Emma Hartman Noyes House at Vassar College, the Law School building at the University of Chicago, and Yale’s David S. Ingalls Rink.

63. “This Is India” novelist Santha Rama __ : RAU

Santha Rama Rau was a travel writer from India who lived much of her life in the US. As well as writing her own books, Rau also adapted the E. M. Forster novel “A Passage to India” for the stage.

64. Billing nos. : HRS

Hour (hr.)

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Electrically flexible : AC/DC
5. Mammals who hold hands while sleeping : OTTERS
11. Cy Young Award stat : ERA
14. “So gross” : BLEH
15. Persona non grata : PARIAH
16. Hula hoop? : LEI
17. “Shake It Up” star who won a 2015 Teen Choice Award for her role in “The DUFF” : BELLA THORNE
19. __ Bernardino : SAN
20. Helicopter part : ROTOR
21. Mineral suffix : -ITE
22. Crackerjack : ADEPT
24. All ears : RAPT
26. Sport-__ : UTE
27. “Monster” Oscar winner : CHARLIZE THERON
34. Yellow Teletubby : LAA-LAA
35. Rower’s need : OAR
36. Like old records : MONO
37. Returns home? : IRS
38. Blush or flush : TURN RED
41. ATM maker : NCR
42. Thick fog : SOUP
44. Narc’s org. : DEA
45. Element used in atomic clocks : CESIUM
47. Another name for the Romanov Empire : IMPERIAL THRONE
50. Lay unused : SAT
51. A/C units : BTUS
52. “‘Sup, homie” : YO, DOG
55. “Ballers” network : HBO
57. Gets rid of : LOSES
61. Binary digit : ONE
62. Masked hero who partners with Kato : GREEN HORNET
65. Feel badly about : RUE
66. Income recipient : EARNER
67. Avis adjective : RARA
68. Medium strength? : ESP
69. Arm-twisting : DURESS
70. “Son of Frankenstein” role : YGOR

Down

1. This ans. is one : ABBR
2. Ancient queen, familiarly : CLEO
3. Bench press muscle : DELT
4. __ hydrate: sedative : CHLORAL
5. Decide : OPT
6. South Pacific island : TAHITI
7. Easy pace : TROT
8. Word on an Irish euro : EIRE
9. Hightailed it : RAN
10. Tight-fitting dress : SHEATH
11. “Is there something __?” : ELSE
12. Cut the crop : REAP
13. “If it __ broke … ” : AIN’T
18. Where Noah landed : ARARAT
23. Consider : DEEM
25. Strong praise : PLAUDIT
26. Netherlands city near Amsterdam : UTRECHT
27. Billiards bounce : CAROM
28. Invites to the skybox : HAS UP
29. Divided into districts : ZONAL
30. Corn unit : EAR
31. Masterless samurai : RONIN
32. Perfectly timed : ON CUE
33. It’s to be expected : NORM
34. Actress Virna : LISI
39. Stephen who plays Inspector Bucket on “Dickensian” : REA
40. “Talk Dirty” singer Jason : DERULO
43. 100 centavos : PESO
46. “A thousand pardons” : SO SORRY
48. Uneven : RAGGED
49. Sizzler choices : T-BONES
52. Knight times : YORE
53. Obligation : ONUS
54. Like a basso profundo voice : DEEP
55. Berlin mister : HERR
56. N.B. part : BENE
58. Glitch : SNAG
59. Architect Saarinen : EERO
60. Have the lead : STAR
63. “This Is India” novelist Santha Rama __ : RAU
64. Billing nos. : HRS

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