LA Times Crossword Answers 12 Feb 2018, Monday

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Constructed by: Jerry Edelstein
Edited by: Rich Norris

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Today’s Theme: Lincoln’s Opening Words

As today is a holiday honoring Lincoln’s Birthday, themed answers start with a word that often follows “LINCOLN”:

  • 54A. Statesman born 2/12/1809 whose surname can precede the starts of four long puzzle answers : ABRAHAM LINCOLN
  • 16A. Trifling matters : PENNY-ANTE STUFF (giving “Lincoln penny”)
  • 27A. Focal point in a theater : CENTER STAGE (giving “Lincoln Center”)
  • 34A. John Paul Jones was a commander in it : CONTINENTAL NAVY (giving “Lincoln Continental”)
  • 42A. May observance for those who died in military service : MEMORIAL DAY (giving “Lincoln Memorial”)

Bill’s time: 4m 52s

Bill’s errors: 0

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Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9. Partner of Paul and Mary : PETER

Peter Yarrow was the “Peter” in the folk music group Peter, Paul and Mary. Yarrow’s most famous composition is probably “Puff, the Magic Dragon” (co-written with Leonard Lipton).

15. WWII bomber __ Gay : ENOLA

The Enola Gay was the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb, on Hiroshima in August 1945. Enola Gay was the name of the mother of pilot Col. Paul W. Tibbets, Jr.

16. Trifling matters : PENNY-ANTE STUFF (giving “Lincoln penny”)

Penny Ante poker is a game in which bets are limited to a penny, or some other small, friendly sum. The expression “penny-ante” has come to describe any business transaction that is on a small scale.
The US one-cent coin has borne the profile of President Abraham Lincoln since 1909, the centennial of Lincoln’s birth. Fifty years later, a representation of the Lincoln Memorial was added to the reverse side.

18. Iroquois enemies : ERIES

The Erie people lived on lands south of Lake Erie, in parts of the modern-day US states of New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio. The Erie were sometimes referred to as the Cat Nation, a reference to the mountain lions that were ever-present in the area that they lived. The name “Erie” is a shortened form of “Erielhonan” meaning “long tail”, possibly a further reference to the mountain lion or cat, which was possibly used as a totem. The Erie people gave their name to the Great Lake.

19. Editor’s “never mind” : STET

“Stet” is a Latin word meaning “let it stand”. In editorial work, the typesetter is instructed to disregard any change previously marked by writing the word “stet” and then underscoring that change with a line of dots or dashes.

20. IRS form IDs : SSNS

The main purpose of a Social Security Number (SSN) is to track individuals for the purposes of taxation, although given its ubiquitous use, it is looking more and more like an identity number to me. The social security number system was introduced in 1936. Prior to 1986, an SSN was required only for persons with substantial income so many children under 14 had no number assigned. For some years the IRS had a concern that a lot of people were claiming children on their tax returns who did not actually exist. So, from 1986 onward, it is a requirement to get an SSN for any dependents over the age of 5. Sure enough, seven million dependents “disappeared” in 1987.

27. Focal point in a theater : CENTER STAGE (giving “Lincoln Center”)

The Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts takes its name from the neighborhood in which it is situated: Lincoln Square in the Upper West Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan.

32. 18-wheeler : SEMI

A “semi” is a “semi-trailer truck”. The vehicle is so called because it consists of a tractor and a half-trailer. The half-trailer is so called because it only has wheels on the back end, with the front supported by the tractor.

34. John Paul Jones was a commander in it : CONTINENTAL NAVY (giving “Lincoln Continental”)

John Paul Jones was perhaps the most famous naval commander in the American Revolutionary War, and is sometimes referred to as “Father of the American Navy”. After the American Revolution, Jones found himself basically out of a job for several years until he signed up with the Catherine II’s Russian Navy in 1787. He was given the rank of rear admiral, but served just one year with the Russians. Jones left in 1788, having been awarded the Order of St. Anne for his service. He died in 1792 in Paris while serving as US Consul, and was buried at the city’s Saint Louis Cemetery. His remains were exhumed in 1905 and finally re-interred in a sarcophagus at the Naval Academy Chapel in Annapolis in 1913.
The Lincoln Continental series of luxury automobiles was introduced by Ford way back in 1939. The original intent of the “Continental” name was to signify “continental European” exterior styling applied to an American body and chassis. Experts tend to cite the Lincoln Continental as the first personal luxury car.

39. Chevy subcompact : AVEO

The Chevrolet Aveo is a subcompact automobile that has been around since 2002. The Aveo is manufactured by GM Daewoo, the GM subsidiary in South Korea. Although the Aveo name is still used in some markets, here in North America the Aveo has been sold as the Chevrolet Sonic since 2012. By the way, GM Daewoo is the third largest manufacturer of automobiles in South Korea, after Hyundai and Kia.

40. Rowlands of “The Notebook” : GENA

Gena Rowlands is an actress best known for the films made with her husband, actor and director John Cassavetes. More recently, Rowlands played a lead role opposite James Garner in the weepy, weepy 2004 film “The Notebook”. “The Notebook” was directed by her son, Nick Cassavetes. Rowlands was nominated for Oscars for her performances in two films: “Gloria” (1980) and “A Woman Under the Influence” (1974).

41. Originally named : NEE

“Née” is the French word for “born” when referring to a female. The male equivalent is “né”.

42. May observance for those who died in military service : MEMORIAL DAY (giving “Lincoln Memorial”)

The US’s Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for the men and women who fell serving their country in the armed forces. The holiday is held on the last Monday in May. It was originally known as Decorations Day and was established after the Civil War to commemorate both the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in that conflict. Memorial Day is also the traditional start of the summer season, with the end of the season being Labor Day.
The Lincoln Memorial is my favorite place to visit in the whole of Washington D.C. The memorial was designed by Henry Bacon, and the sculptor of the magnificent statue of President Lincoln was Daniel Chester French. I spent a wonderful afternoon a few years ago touring the workshop and home of French, in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The workshop is stunning, with miniature studies for his magnum opus, the Lincoln Statue, as well as many other beautiful works.

52. __ upon a time … : ONCE

The stock phrase “Once upon a time” has been used in various forms as the start of a narrative at least since 1380. The stock phrase at the end of stories such as folktales is often “and they all lived happily ever after”. The earlier version of this ending was “happily until their deaths”.

53. Kate’s TV sidekick : ALLIE

The sitcom “Kate & Allie” ran from 1984 to 1989, starring Susan Saint James as Kate, and Jane Curtin as Allie. Jane Curtin won two Emmy awards for her work on the series, while Susan Saint James … did not.

54. Statesman born 2/12/1809 whose surname can precede the starts of four long puzzle answers : ABRAHAM LINCOLN

Abraham Lincoln was the sixteenth President of the US. There are several stories told about how he earned the nickname “Honest Abe”. One story dates back to early in his career as a lawyer. Lincoln accidentally overcharged a client and then walked miles in order to right the wrong as soon as possible.

59. Señor’s squiggle : TILDE

The tilde (~) diacritical mark is very much associated with the Spanish language. We use the name “tilde” in English, taking that name from Spanish. Confusingly, the word “tilde” in Spanish is used more generally to mean “accent mark, diacritic”, of which a “~” is just one. What we call a “tilde” in English is usually referred to as a “virgulilla” or “tilde de la eñe” in Spanish.

60. Schemed : CONNIVED

To connive is to conspire with, to cooperate in secret. The term comes from the Latin verb “connivere” meaning “to wink”, the idea being that connivers might give each other a sly wink.

Down

1. Lassos : ROPES

Our English word “lasso” comes from the Spanish “lazo”, and ultimately from the Latin “laqueum” meaning “noose, snare”.

2. Activist Medgar : EVERS

Medgar Evers was an African American civil rights activist from Mississippi who was assassinated by the Klu Klux Klan in 1963. A year after the murder, one Byron De La Beckwith was arrested and charged with the crime. Two trials failed to return a decision on Beckwith’s guilt as the juries, composed completely of white males, deadlocked both times. New evidence was unearthed some thirty years later so Beckwith could be retried and he was finally convicted of the murder in 1994. Back in 1963 Evers was buried with full military honors in Arlington National Cemetery. Evers had served in the US Army in France during WWII and left the military with the rank of sergeant.

3. Russian Revolution leader : LENIN

At the second party congress of the Marxist Russian Social Democratic Labour Party in 1903, a split developed. The faction with the most support was led by Vladimir Lenin, and as they were in the majority, they became known as the Bolsheviks, derived from the Russian word for “more” or “majority”. Lenin and the Bolsheviks led the October Revolution of 1917, as a result of which Lenin came to power. He headed the new Soviet State during its formative years.

4. Diving seabirds : ERNES

The ern (sometimes “erne”) is also called the white-tailed eagle or the sea-eagle.

6. Busy __ bee : AS A

A simile is a figure of speech in which a comparison is made between two things that are unalike. For example, a person might be described as “cute as a kitten” or as “busy as a bee”.

7. Bill with Hamilton on it : TEN

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

8. NYC summer hrs. : EDT

Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)

12. North Pole worker : ELF

If you want to send a note to Santa in Canada, he has his own special postal code: “North Pole, HOH OHO”. The US Postal Service suggests that we send mail for Santa to zip code 99705, which directs it to the city of North Pole, Alaska.

13. U.K. flying squad : RAF

The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the oldest independent air force in the world (i.e. the first air force to become independent of army or navy forces). The RAF was formed during WWI on 1 April 1918, a composite of two earlier forces, the Royal Flying Corps (part of the Army) and the Royal Naval Air Service. The RAF’s “finest hour” was the Battle of Britain, when the vastly outnumbered British fighters fought off the might of the Luftwaffe causing Hitler to delay his plan to cross the English Channel. This outcome prompted Winston Churchill to utter the memorable words

Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.

24. Tokyo’s country : JAPAN

The Greater Tokyo Area is the most populous metropolitan area on the planet. 51 of the Fortune Global 500 companies are headquartered in Tokyo. And the residents of Tokyo eat very well. Michelin has awarded more Michelin stars to Tokyo than any other city in the world.

25. Tequila source : AGAVE

Tequila is a spirit made from the blue agave. The drink takes its name from the city of Tequila, located about 40 miles northwest of Guadalajara.

27. TV forensic series : CSI

The “CSI” franchise of TV shows has been tremendously successful, but seems to have finally wound down. “CSI: Miami” (the “worst” of the franchise, I think) was cancelled in 2012 after ten seasons. “CSI: NY” (the “best” of the franchise) was cancelled in 2013 after nine seasons. The original “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation”, set in Las Vegas, hung in there until 2015 when it ended with a two-hour TV movie. The youngest show in the series was “CSI: Cyber”. It lasted for two seasons, before being canceled in 2016.
Something described as forensic is connected with a court of law, or with public discussion or debate. The term comes from the Latin “forensis” meaning “of a forum, of a place of assembly”. We mainly use the word today to mean “pertaining to legal trials” as in “forensic medicine” and “forensic science”.

28. __ Pan Alley : TIN

Tin Pan Alley was originally a specific location, West 28th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenue in Manhattan. The area was associated with the music publishing business from about 1885 to the start of the Great Depression The name itself is possibly a reference to the tinny sound of cheap pianos that were common at the time.

30. Ramshackle home : HOVEL

Our adjective “ramshackle”, meaning “loosely held together, rickety”, seems to be an alteration of the verb “to ransack”, meaning “to search through vigorously, pillage”.

36. Kennedy and Koppel : TEDS

Ted Kennedy was the youngest boy in a family that included older brothers Joseph Jr. (killed in action in WWII), John (assassinated) and Robert (assassinated). Ted went into the US Senate in 1962 in a special election held after his brother became US President. He remained in the Senate until he passed away in 2009, making Ted Kennedy the fourth-longest-serving Senator in history.

37. Gray’s subj. : ANAT

“Gray’s Anatomy” is a very successful human anatomy textbook that was first published back in 1858 and is still in print today. The original text was written by English anatomist Henry Gray, who gave his name to the work. The TV medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy” (note “Grey” vs. Gray”) is centered on the character Dr. Meredith Grey, but the show’s title is a nod to the title of the famous textbook.

48. Legendary Spanish hero : EL CID

Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar was known as El Cid Campeador, which translates as “The Champion” or perhaps “The Lord, Master of Military Arts”. El Cid was a soldier who fought under the rule of King Alfonso VI of Spain (among others). However, he was sent into exile by the King in 1080, after acting beyond his authorization in battle. El Cid then offered his services to his former foes, the Moorish kings, After a number of years building a reputation with the Moors, he was recalled from exile by Alfonso. By this time El Cid was very much his own man. Nominally under the orders of Alfonso, he led a combined army of Spanish and Moorish troops and took the city of Valencia on the Mediterranean coast, making it is headquarters and home. He died there, quite peacefully in 1099.

49. “__ like ours / Could never die … “: Beatles : A LOVE

“And I Love Her” is a lovely ballad recorded by the Beatles in 1964. It is one of my favorite Lennon/McCartney compositions. There’s a lovely rendition of the song in the Beatles movie “A Hard Day’s Night”.

52. Paris airport : ORLY

Orly is on the outskirts of Paris, to the south of the city. It is home to the Paris-Orly Airport, the second busiest international airport for the city after the more recently built Charles de Gaulle Airport. That said, Orly is home to more domestic flights than Charles de Gaulle.

53. Kendrick of “Twilight” : ANNA

Anna Kendrick is a marvelous actress whose big break came when she played the sidekick to George Clooney’s character in the very interesting 2009 film “Up in the Air”. Kendrick can sing as well as act, and played a student a cappella singer in the 2012 movie “Pitch Perfect”.
“The Twilight Saga” is a series of films based on the “Twilight” series of books by Stephenie Meyer. They’re all about vampires. I don’t do vampires …

55. Baby’s spilled food protector : BIB

The word “bib” comes from the Latin “bibere” meaning “to drink”, as does our word “imbibe”. So, maybe it’s less about spilling the food, and more about soaking up the booze …

57. Chaney of horror : LON

Lon Chaney, Sr. played a lot of crazed-looking characters in the days of silent movies. He did much of his own make-up work, developing the grotesque appearances that became his trademark, and earning himself the nickname “the man of a thousand faces”. Most famous were his portrayals of the title characters in the films “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” (1923) and “The Phantom of the Opera” (1925).

58. Bill for mdse. : INV

An invoice is an itemized bill. The term comes from the Middle French “envois” meaning “dispatch (of goods)”. The root verb is “envoyer”, which translates as “to send”.

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1. Send (to), as an inferior place : RELEGATE
9. Partner of Paul and Mary : PETER
14. Trite : OVERUSED
15. WWII bomber __ Gay : ENOLA
16. Trifling matters : PENNY-ANTE STUFF (giving “Lincoln penny”)
18. Iroquois enemies : ERIES
19. Editor’s “never mind” : STET
20. IRS form IDs : SSNS
21. One out on the lake, e.g. : BOATER
24. Cookie holder : JAR
27. Focal point in a theater : CENTER STAGE (giving “Lincoln Center”)
29. That girl : SHE
32. 18-wheeler : SEMI
33. Tablet with Mini and Pro versions : IPAD
34. John Paul Jones was a commander in it : CONTINENTAL NAVY (giving “Lincoln Continental”)
39. Chevy subcompact : AVEO
40. Rowlands of “The Notebook” : GENA
41. Originally named : NEE
42. May observance for those who died in military service : MEMORIAL DAY (giving “Lincoln Memorial”)
46. Two-__ tissue : PLY
47. Troubled state : UNREST
48. Has a midnight snack, say : EATS
52. __ upon a time … : ONCE
53. Kate’s TV sidekick : ALLIE
54. Statesman born 2/12/1809 whose surname can precede the starts of four long puzzle answers : ABRAHAM LINCOLN
59. Señor’s squiggle : TILDE
60. Schemed : CONNIVED
61. Bottomless chasm : ABYSS
62. Ones storming the castle, say : INVADERS

Down

1. Lassos : ROPES
2. Activist Medgar : EVERS
3. Russian Revolution leader : LENIN
4. Diving seabirds : ERNES
5. Fellows : GUYS
6. Busy __ bee : AS A
7. Bill with Hamilton on it : TEN
8. NYC summer hrs. : EDT
9. Be a nuisance to : PESTER
10. Goes in : ENTERS
11. Promote big-time : TOUT
12. North Pole worker : ELF
13. U.K. flying squad : RAF
17. East, to 48-Down : ESTE
21. “__ there, done that” : BEEN
22. “I’ve got this round” : ON ME
23. Prickling with excitement : ATINGLE
24. Tokyo’s country : JAPAN
25. Tequila source : AGAVE
26. Color again, as hair : REDYE
27. TV forensic series : CSI
28. __ Pan Alley : TIN
29. Rascal : SCAMP
30. Ramshackle home : HOVEL
31. Hostile force : ENEMY
35. In addition : TOO
36. Kennedy and Koppel : TEDS
37. Gray’s subj. : ANAT
38. Dismiss from work temporarily, with “off” : LAY
43. Put spots in magazines : RUN ADS
44. Foot’s 12 : INCHES
45. Side squared, for a square : AREA
48. Legendary Spanish hero : EL CID
49. “__ like ours / Could never die … “: Beatles : A LOVE
50. Flooring specialist : TILER
51. Mails : SENDS
52. Paris airport : ORLY
53. Kendrick of “Twilight” : ANNA
54. One step __ time : AT A
55. Baby’s spilled food protector : BIB
56. 1101, to Romans : MCI
57. Chaney of horror : LON
58. Bill for mdse. : INV

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12 thoughts on “LA Times Crossword Answers 12 Feb 2018, Monday”

  1. LAT: 5:29, no errors. Typical Monday. WSJ: I feel totally stupid on the meta that I didn’t see it. But then again I was too busy over the weekend to look at it a whole lot, so I can’t say too much. BEQ to come along with some NYT puzzles…

    1. CHE: 20 minutes, 1 error (on a guess – kinda stupid clue really). BEQ: 42 minutes, DNF, with some errors on bad guesses. Wasn’t too bad overall compared to some of his puzzles, but just too much in some sections that I couldn’t even guess.

  2. LAT: 6:10, no errors. Newsday: 7:22, no errors. WSJ: 7:51, no errors. BEQ: 34:31, no errors, hard. This week’s CHE: 15:26, no errors, very pleasant.

    I spent a lot time on today’s BEQ, staring at three entries that I got, but thought just had to be wrong. 1A: Surely nobody is that stupid? 52A: I’d never heard of this, but okay. And 46A: In March? Really? Is the clue for this deceptive or just plain wrong?

    1. The clue for 46A in the “.puz” for today’s BEQ is correct, but the clue in the “.pdf” is still incorrect.

    2. @Dave
      1A: Actually yes. Teenagers are doing that to get Youtube publicity – it’s viral. There’s stories all over the place. Then there’s children that are getting into them and thinking they’re something edible. It’s a mess.

      52A: Me neither. As I never have heard of so many things that come up in these puzzles. Evidently though, Lululemon and Athleta are both clothing companies that both make yoga and activewear that caters more to women than men.

      46A: I saw this okay. For three letters and the clue, EST was about the only thing that could fit. Daylight Savings Time begins in the middle of March.

      1. @Glenn …

        Thanks for the link shedding light on 1A. I spent a lot of time on that clue, afraid that I understood what my answer implied and refusing to believe it. I’m still astonished. I am somewhat reminded of the “Slender Man” case that has been in the news recently. I’d like to think I was never that stupid. (But then again, I tried tobacco at age 19 and smoked for 17 years, and how stupid was that? ?)

        As for 46A, the clue has now been corrected in BEQ’s PDF file, as well. I probably spent more time puzzling over it than I should have, but I see so few actual errors in crossword puzzle clues that I couldn’t help but think I was missing something.

  3. 7:44. Had to think a little in a few spots which is always taboo on a Monday. It also had ATINGLE just for Carrie.

    The AGAVE and its byproduct, tequila, are also looked upon and worshipped similar to a divinity in some cultures……oh wait, maybe that’s just me.. 🙂

    Best –

  4. Jeff, see ….. I ‘follow’ you again….
    An easy Monday, I too, noticed ‘Atingle’ and then I got Agave, whose great spirit resides with Jeff …. I always think of Jeff, when I see Tequila or Agave … although its been a long time since I had a tequila …. maybe too long.
    Thanks to the puzzle, I was reminded of President’s Day, today. My wife noticed an uptick in kids surgeries, since it is also their day off.

    I first thought of Abraham’s penny ?? then Abraham center ? … then I got the inspiration. Lincoln pennies, with the ‘wheat sheaves’ on the obverse side, in todays numismatic market, go for 60 to 890 cents each, ( low grade quality – ) …. prior to 1909, the Indian Head pennies, go for 9 to 75 dollars each …..

    Btw, the Indian head penny designed by James Longacre, was modeled on a white woman wearing an indian headress, but definitely not his own daughter (Wiki) ….

    Thank you Bill, for the wonderful blog.
    Have a nice day, and a great week, all.

  5. Really???!! ? It’s been a tough day, yet in my downtime I have to see ATINGLE?!!?! Jeez.
    A good puzzle other than that. Fun theme. Maximum kudos on the Beatles mention. ??
    How about those snowboarders? Fun to watch — and they’re so young!! A 17-year-old girl from Torrance won gold!! And another 17-year old American won gold in his event. Wild!!
    Of course, all eyes are on Canada’s mixed-doubles team to medal in curling…. Or maybe it’s just me who’s watching LOL!! ?
    Be well~~™?

  6. FYI – Peter Yarrow did not write “The Wedding Somg (There is Love)” – it was written by Noel Paul Stookey in 1971 for Peter Yarrow’s wedding.

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