LA Times Crossword 7 Jul 24, Sunday - LAXCrossword.com (2024)

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

7 Like many cagers : TALL

In the early days of basketball, when a ball went out of bounds possession was awarded to the player who first retrieved the ball. This led to mad scuffles off the court, often involving spectators. As the game became more organized, courts were routinely “caged”, largely because of this out of bounds rule, to limit interaction with the crowd. It’s because of these cages that basketball players are sometimes referred to today as “cagers”.

11 Cries during a Real Madrid vs. Barcelona match : OLES

Real Madrid is a professional soccer team based in Madrid, Spain. The team name translates as “Royal Madrid”. Real Madrid is often ranked as the world’s most valuable soccer team, and is one of the most widely supported sports teams on the planet.

“Barça” is the nickname of the soccer club FC Barcelona (Futbol Club Barcelona). Barcelona is one of the most financially successful football clubs in the world in terms of revenue, along with the likes of Manchester United, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.

18 Flammable gas : ETHANE

Ethane is the second largest component of natural gas after methane. Ethane’s main use is in the production of ethylene, a compound that is widely used in the chemical industry.

19 Southernmost Great Lake : ERIE

Lake Erie borders four US states (Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Michigan) and one Canadian province (Ontario).

22 Cards, on scoreboards : ARI

The Arizona Cardinals were founded in 1898 as the Chicago Cardinals. That makes the Cardinals the oldest, continuously-run, professional football team in the whole country.

27 Place to check out : TILL

What we usually call a cash register here in North America, we mostly call a “till” in Ireland and the UK. I haven’t heard the word “till” used much here in that sense …

28 Buckwheat noodle : SOBA

Soba is a thin Japanese noodle made from buckwheat flour. In Japan, the word “soba” tends to describe any thin noodle, in contrast with the thicker noodle called “udon”.

29 NorCal neighbor : ORE

Northern California (NorCal)

30 Forced (open), as a pistachio : PRIED

The pistachio is a small tree that produces some very tasty seeds. We see the seeds in grocery stores labeled as “nuts”, but botanically they are termed “drupes”. Drupe or nut, they’re delicious …

32 Tijuana toast : SALUD

“Salud” is Spanish for “health”, and is used as a toast. Salud!

Tijuana is the largest city in the Mexican state of Baja California, and lies just across the US-Mexico border from San Diego. Tijuana is also the most westerly of all Mexican cities. A lot of Tijuana’s growth took place in the twenties as tourists flocked south of the border during the days of prohibition in the US. One of the many casinos and hotels that flourished at that time was Hotel Caesar’s in the Avenida Revolución area. Hotel Caesar’s claims to be the birthplace of the now ubiquitous Caesar Salad.

34 *Camden Yards player : BALTIMORE ORIOLE

Oriole Park is home to the Baltimore Orioles baseball team. The full name of the stadium is Oriole Park at Camden Yards. The name “Camden Yards” is used because the ballpark is built on land that was once used as the rail yard for B&O Railroad’s Camden Station.

39 Phrase on some menus : NO MSG

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of a naturally-occurring,non-essential amino acid called glutamic acid. It is used widely as a flavor enhancer, particularly in many Asian cuisines. Whether or not it is harmful seems to be still under debate. I say that anything produced in a test tube shouldn’t be in our food …

43 Savanna tree : ACACIA

Acacia is a genus of trees and shrubs that is also known as thorntree, whistling thorn and wattle. The acacia is the primary food source for the giraffe in the wild, with the animal eating the leaves high in the tree, leaves that are inaccessible to competing species. The natural gum from two species of acacia tree is known as gum arabic, which is used in the food industry as a stabilizer.

A savanna (also “savannah”) is a grassland. If there are any trees in a savanna, by definition they are small and widely spaced so that light can get to the grasses allowing them to grow unhindered.

51 *”Star Wars” action sequence : LIGHTSABER BATTLE

The famous lightsaber weapons in the “Star Wars” series of films were updated for the seventh episode “Star Wars: The Force Awakens”. The newer lightsabers have energy crossguards just above the grip.

58 Animal sidekick in “Frozen” : SVEN

“Sven” is a Scandinavian name. “Sven” is derived from the Old Norse word for “young man” or “young warrior”.

59 Some tree snakes : BOAS

Tree boas are a genus of snakes with exceptionally long anterior teeth. Like all boas, they are nonvenomous snakes. The long teeth are used to penetrate layers of feathers so that they better grip birds, which make up most of their diet.

60 Paintball cry : I’M HIT!

The “paint” in paintball isn’t actually paint, but rather a mix of gelatin and food coloring.

67 Woodward of “The Long, Hot Summer” : JOANNE

Joanne Woodward is perhaps best-known for her Oscar-winning performance in 1957’s “The Three Faces of Eve”, and for being married to Paul Newman. While in her 50s, Woodward spent ten years working towards a bachelor[s degree, and eventually graduated in 1990 from Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York alongside her daughter Clea.

68 *Sports car introduced in 1953 : CHEVROLET CORVETTE

The Chevrolet Corvette was introduced to the world in 1953, and was named after the small maneuverable warship called a corvette. The “Vette” has legs. It is the only American sports car that has been around for over 50 years.

72 NBA star Wade : DWYANE

Dwyane Wade is a basketball player who started his NBA career with the Miami Heat in 2003. “D-Wade” was chosen as the “Sports Illustrated” Sportsman of the Year in 2006.

75 Doing some lawn work : AERATING

Lawn aeration is the process of creating holes in the soil to aid in the growth of the grass. The spiking of the soil severs the roots of the existing grass, which causes the blades to multiply and hence thickening the lawn.

79 Friendly nudge at a green light : TOOT

The first traffic lights date back to 1868 when they were installed outside the Houses of Parliament in London. They resembled the signals already in use for trains, with semaphore arms and red and green gas lamps for nighttime use. That first system was operated manually, by a policeman at the base. Sadly, one police officer was killed just one year after the light’s installation, when the gas system exploded.

82 Actor Daniel __ Kim : DAE

Daniel Dae Kim is an American actor who is famous for playing Jin-Soo Kwon on “Lost”. Kim moved on to play one of the leads on the CBS remake of “Hawaii Five-O”, portraying the character Chin Ho Kelly.

94 Christmas carol : NOEL

“Noël” is the French word for the Christmas season, and ultimately comes from the Latin word for “birth” (natalis). “Noel” has come to be used as an alternative for “Christmas carol”.

104 “Shrinking” star Jason : SEGEL

Actor Jason Segel is best known for playing Marshall on the sitcom “How I Met Your Mother”. He is an ordained minister with the Universal Life Church, and performed a wedding ceremony on “The Tonight Show” in 2010.

“Shrinking” is a comedy-drama series co-created by and starring Jason Segel. He plays a therapist who breaches ethical principles by intervening in their lives in order to help them solve their problems. Segal’s character works with a senior therapist played by Harrison Ford. Good stuff, I thought …

108 Spindrift ingredient : PUREE

Spindrift is a beverage company that uses real fruit juices to flavor its products. The name “Spindrift” is the term used for sea spray that is blown from waves in high winds.

109 __ Paulo, Brazil : SAO

São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil. It is also the city with the highest number of helicopters in the world. This is partly driven by the horrendous traffic jams in São Paulo, but also by the wealthy having a very real fear of being kidnapped on the city’s streets.

112 Hello, in Oaxaca : HOLA

Oaxaca (officially “Oaxaca de Juárez”) is the capital city of the Mexican state of Oaxaca, which is located in the south of the country.

122 Superlative acronym : GOAT

Greatest of all time (GOAT)

124 FDR’s party : DEM

The modern-day Democratic Party was founded in 1828, when supporters of Andrew Jackson broke away from the former Democratic-Republican Party during the presidency of John Quincy Adams. That date makes the Democratic Party the oldest voter-based political party in the world. Andrew Jackson became the first Democratic US president, in 1829.

126 Chromosome subsection : GENE

A gene is a section of a chromosome that is responsible for a particular characteristic in an organism. For example, one gene may determine eye color and another balding pattern. We have two copies of each gene, one from each of our parents, with each copy known as an allele.

127 City south of Yosemite National Park : FRESNO

Fresno is the largest inland city in the state of California. It was named for the many ash trees that lined the San Joaquin River, as “fresno” is the Spanish for “ash tree”.

Down

1 Arrears : DEBTS

To be in arrears is to have an unpaid obligation or debt. The term “arrears” came into English from the Old French “ariere” meaning “behind”.

3 Scammer’s aide : SHILL

A shill is someone planted, perhaps in an audience, with the job of feigning enthusiasm.

6 Loch for monster hunters : NESS

Scotland’s Loch Ness is famous for its fabled “monster”, referred to affectionately as “Nessie”. The loch is the second-largest lake in the country (Loch Lomond is the largest). Loch Ness takes its name from the River Ness that flows from the loch’s northern end.

9 Tupperware top : LID

Back in the 1930s, Earl Tupper was working at the DuPont Chemical Company, and from DuPont obtained inflexible pieces of polyethylene slag. Tupper purified the slag and shaped it into unbreakable containers. He added airtight lids with a “burping seal” that provided tight seals similar to that provided by the lids on paint cans. He called his new product Tupperware.

11 Shakespeare’s king of the fairies : OBERON

Oberon and Titania are the King and Queen of the Fairies in Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.

12 __ tag : LASER

The name “Laser Tag” is really a misnomer as lasers are rarely used in the game. The “guns” actually send out infrared light, and not laser light, that is picked up by infrared detectors worn by the players.

14 “That’s all __ wrote” : SHE

No one seems to be very certain of the origin of “that’s all she wrote”, meaning “there’s nothing more to be said”. One popular story is that it stems from the unfortunate “Dear John” letters that some soldiers received during WWII.

16 Disney princess with six sisters : ARIEL

In the 1989 Disney animated film “The Little Mermaid”, the title character is given the name “Ariel”. In the original fairy tale by Hans Christian Andersen that dates back to 1836, the Little Mermaid is given no name at all. There is a famous statue of the unnamed Little Mermaid sitting in Copenhagen Harbor, in Andersen’s homeland of Denmark.

17 The “D” of LED : DIODE

A light-emitting diode (LED) is a specialized form of semiconductor that when switched on releases photons (light). LEDs were used in early digital watches, and are getting more and more popular even though their use in electronic equipment is fading away. LEDs are used as replacements for the much less-efficient tungsten light bulbs. I replaced all of my tungsten Xmas lights many years ago and saved a lot on my electricity bill.

25 Where all roads lead, proverbially : ROME

The expression “all roads lead to Rome” is used to mean “whatever way we do this, we’ll get the same result”. The phrase has been used since the 1100s and probably even earlier than that. The expression arises because the ancient Roman road system had all major roads radiating from Rome like spokes on a wheel.

31 Baptism, e.g. : RITE

Baptism is a rite in many Christian traditions, one in which a candidate is admitted to the Church. The ceremony usually uses water as a sign of purification. Water may be poured on the head, or the candidate may be totally immersed.

36 Film trivia source : IMDB

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) website was launched in 1990, and is now owned by Amazon.com. It’s a great site for answering questions one has about movies and actors.

38 Woodwind simulated in “Happy Together” : OBOE

“Happy Together” is a 1967 song released by the Turtles. It was destined to become the group’s biggest hit, and their only US number-one.

46 Platt of “Dear Evan Hansen” : BEN

Actor and singer Ben Platt’s biggest break came when he originated the title role in the Broadway musical “Dear Evan Hansen”. He played the same role in the 2021 big-screen adaptation, which was co-produced by Ben’s father Marc Platt.

47 “Licorice Pizza” director, to fans : PTA

Filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson goes by his initials “PTA”. One of his most famous films is 2007’s “There Will Be Blood”, which he both wrote and directed. PTA has been in a relationship with comedian and actress Maya Rudolph since 2001, and the couple have four children together.

48 Landlord in the “One Day at a Time” reboot : SCHNEIDER

“One Day at a Time” is a sitcom that started airing in 2017. It is a reboot of an original sitcom with the same title that aired from 1975 to 1984. Norman Lear served as executive producer for both versions of the show.

50 Venue : SITE

A venue is a specified locale used for an event. The term “venue” came into English via French from the Latin “venire” meaning “to come”. So, a “venue” is a place to which people “come” for an event.

53 Spanish X : BESO

In Spanish, a “beso” (kiss) is an “indicación de afecto” (display of affection).

61 Damon of “Oppenheimer” : MATT

Actor Matt Damon was a Harvard University student before he dropped out to pursue his acting career. He was just 12 credits shy of graduating when he left to star in the movie “Geronimo: An American Legend”. Despite not having completed his degree, Harvard later awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2013 for his humanitarian work through his co-founding of Water.org, an organization that provides clean water and sanitation to people in developing countries.

“Oppenheimer” is an epic 2023 film starring Cillian Murphy in the title role. The movie follows J. Robert Oppenheimer, “the father of the atomic bomb”, from his student days right through World War II and beyond. Directed by Christopher Nolan, the film has an amazing ensemble cast that includes:

• Matt Damon (General Leslie Groves)
• Robert Downey Jr. (Lewis Strauss)
• Josh Hartnett (Ernest Lawrence)
• Kenneth Branagh (Niels Bohr)
• Tom Conti (Albert Einstein)
• Gary Oldman (Harry S. Truman)

63 Tom yum cuisine : THAI

Tom yum is a delicious spicy soup served in Thai restaurants. It is usually described as “hot and sour”, and I love it …

65 __ box : BENTO

A bento is a single-person meal that is eaten quite commonly in Japan. A bento can be purchased as a take-out meal, or it may be packed at home. A bento is usually sold as a “bento box”.

67 Some uniform tops : JERSEYS

We use the word “jersey” for a sports shirt worn by a particular team member, one that usually bears the player’s name and team number. Back in the mid-1800s, the term was used for a knitted shirt or close-fitting tunic. The item of clothing was named for Jersey in the Channel Islands off the coast of France. The island was famous for its knitting trade during the Middle Ages.

70 The Boston Marathon, for one : RACE

The Boston Marathon is the world’s oldest annual marathon, outside of the Olympic event. The first Boston Marathon was held way back in 1897 to celebrate Patriots’ Day, which commemorates the Battles of Lexington and Concord at the start of the American Revolution.

72 Queen’s garb : DRAG

The etymology of the term “drag”, as used in the transvestite world, seems to be unclear. It perhaps relates to the tendency of a transvestite’s skirts to drag along the ground in days of old (although why they just didn’t hitch up their skirts is beyond me!).

76 Bread served with butter chicken : NAAN

Several dishes in Indian cuisine bear the name “makhani”. “Makhani” is a Punjabi word meaning “butter”. A popular example is murgh makhani, which also goes by the English name “butter chicken”.

79 Sheer fabric : TOILE

Toile fabric can be used as upholstery, as wallpaper, or even as a fabric for clothing. The name “toile” comes from the French word for “canvas, linen cloth”.

80 Tolkien beast : ORC

According to Tolkien, Orcs are small humanoids that live in his fantasy world of Middle-earth (also called “Mordor”). They are very ugly and dirty, and are fond of eating human flesh.

84 Masticate : CHEW

Mastic is a resin taken from the mastic tree. The resin can be dried then chewed like a gum. It is this characteristic that gave the tree its name, as the Greek verb “mastichein” means “to gnash the teeth”. This is the same Greek root that gives us our word “masticate” meaning to chew. Mastic is also used in varnishes that might perhaps protect an oil painting. It is from this usage that the name “mastic” was applied to commercial preparations used as protective coatings or adhesives.

86 Verdi tragedy : AIDA

“Aida” is a celebrated opera by Giuseppe Verdi that is based on a scenario written by French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette. Mariette also designed the costumes and stages for the opening performance. The opera was first staged in 1871 in an opera house in Cairo. In the storyline, Aida is an Ethiopian princess brought into Egypt as a slave. Radamès is an Egyptian commander who falls in love with her, and then complications arise!

90 Plié joint : KNEE

The French word for “bent” is “plié”. In the ballet move known as a plié, the knees are bent. A “demi-plié” is a similar move, but with less bending of the knees. A fondu is similar to a plié, except that only one leg remains on the ground.

98 Part of QED : ERAT

The initialism “QED” is used at the end of a mathematical proof or a philosophical argument. QED stands for the Latin “quod erat demonstrandum” meaning “that which was to be demonstrated”.

103 Wonder __: role for Lynda Carter : WOMAN

“Wonder Woman” is a superhero TV show starring Lynda Carter in the title role. The first season was set during World War II, and aired on ABC. The second and third seasons moved to CBS, and was set in the late seventies. The show title was also modified, to “The New Adventures of Wonder Woman”.

Lynda Carter is perhaps best known for playing the title role in the TV show “Wonder Woman” that originally aired in the 1970s. Prior to landing the part, Carter had won the Miss World USA beauty pageant in 1972, representing her home state of Arizona.

106 Pompeo who plays Dr. Grey : ELLEN

Actress Ellen Pompeo is perhaps best known for playing the title character in the TV medical drama “Grey’s Anatomy”. That gig has paid well. Pompeo was ranked third in the “Forbes” list of highest-paid TV actresses in 2017, with Sofia Vergara (from “Modern Family”) and Kaley Cuoco (from “The Big Bang Theory”) holding the first and second spots respectively.

107 Coach Beard’s colleague : LASSO

“Ted Lasso” is a marvelous sports-comedy TV show about an American college football coach who moves to the UK to manage an English soccer team. The title character is played very admirably by Jason Sudeikis. Sudeikis first played Lasso in a series of TV commercials commissioned to promote NBC’s coverage of the British Premier League. The character became so popular that he inspired a whole TV series. Great stuff, and highly recommended …

Actor, comedian and writer Brendan Hunt plays Coach Beard on the hit TV show “Ted Lasso”. Hunt is also a co-creator of the show, and writes for it.

111 Canadian flag icon : LEAF

The current design of the Canadian National Flag, known as “the Maple Leaf”, has been in place since 1965. The design made its first appearance on February 15th of that year, and so that date is celebrated annually as National Flag of Canada Day.

117 Big Green __: backyard smoker : EGG

The Big Green Egg is a range of charcoal barbecue grills that have been produced since 1974. The Big Green Egg company is based in Atlanta, and hosts an annual “Eggtoberfest” barbeque festival just outside the city.

118 Buck’s counterpart : DOE

A male deer is usually called a buck, and a female is a doe. However, the male red deer is usually referred to as a stag. The males of even larger species of deer are often called bulls, and the females called cows. In older English, male deer of over 5 years were called harts, and females of over 3 years were called hinds. The young of small species are known as fawns, and of larger species are called calves. All very confusing …

119 Time off, for short : R’N’R

Rest and relaxation/recuperation/recreation (R&R, R‘n’R)