LA Times Crossword 17 Feb 23, Friday

Constructed by: Jeff Stillman
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Born Losers

Themed answers are brand names with an abbreviation removed in the center. Those abbreviations are B, O, R and N:

36A Ones fated to fail, or what the starred entries are, initially? : BORN LOSERS or B-O-R-N LOSERS

18A *Children’s apparel company : OSHKOSH GOSH (B from “OshKosh B‘gosh”)
27A *Candy with a bee on its wrapper : BIT HONEY (O from “Bit-O-Honey”)
51A *Superstore for new parents : BABIES US (R from “Babies “R” Us”)
61A *Snack brand with Buttery Toffee and Almond Supreme flavors : CRUNCH MUNCH (N from “Crunch ‘n Munch”)

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Bill’s time: 9m 02s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

1 Metric unit : GRAM

Today, the gram is defined as one thousandth of a kilogram, with the kilogram being equal to the mass of a physical sample preserved by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (well, up until 2019, when it became more hi-tech than I can explain!). Prior to 1960, the gram was defined as the weight of a cubic centimeter of pure water (at the temperature of melting ice).

14 “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” detective Diaz : ROSA

Argentine-American actress Stephanie Beatriz is best known for her role on the comedy show “Brookly Nine-Nine”, playing Detective Rosa Diaz.

17 Pre-stereo : 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 that are often positioned at the corners of the room in which one is listening.

18 *Children’s apparel company : OSHKOSH GOSH (B from “OshKosh B’gosh”)

OshKosh B’gosh is a company that produces and sells children’s clothes. The trademark OshKosh bib-overalls remind us of the company’s roots, as it was originally a manufacturer of adult work clothes based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

20 Swivel around : SLUE

To slue (also “slew) is to turn sharply, or to rotate on an axis.

21 Avenue that’s the eastern border of Midway Airport : CICERO

Midway Airport (MDW) started off with just one cinder runway in 1923, and was called Chicago Air Park. By 1927 the airport had expanded and earned the name Chicago Municipal Airport. In 1932 Midway was the world’s busiest airport, a title it held for thirty years. In 1949, in honor of the WWII Battle of Midway, the airport was renamed again to Chicago Midway Airport. Then in 1955, along came Chicago International Airport and all the major airlines started moving their operations over to the newer facility. Today, Midway is a major hub for Southwest.

22 Basilica recesses : APSES

In its modern usage, the term “basilica” applies to a Roman Catholic church that has been given special ceremonial rights by the Pope.

27 *Candy with a bee on its wrapper : BIT HONEY (O from “Bit-O-Honey”)

Bit-O-Honey is a candy bar consisting of pieces of almond in a honey-flavored taffy. Bit-O-Honey has been around since 1924.

29 Russo of “Thor” : RENE

The talented actress Rene Russo is a native of Burbank, California. Russo went to high school (with actor/director Ron Howard), but dropped out in tenth grade. At seventeen, she was given the opportunity to train as a model and within a very short time appeared on the cover of “Vogue”. As her modeling jobs slowed down in her early thirties, Russo made a career change and studied theater and acting.

The 2011 movie “Thor” is yet another film based on a comic book hero. Even though I won’t be seeing it (I don’t do comics), I must admit it does have an impressive cast. Chris Hemsworth plays Thor, supported by Natalie Portman, Rene Russo, Idris Elba and Anthony Hopkins. And to crown it all, Kenneth Branagh is the director.

30 Shampoo ad buzzword : BODY

Back in the 1760s, the verb “to shampoo” was an Anglo-Indian word meaning “to massage”. A century later we started to shampoo our hair.

32 Campus security? : TENURE

A job in a university that is described as “tenure-track” is one that can lead to a tenured position. A tenured position is a “job for life”. A person with tenure can only be dismissed for cause.

33 QB stats : YDS

In football, a goal of the quarterback (QB) is to gain yards (yds.).

34 Sunday seating : PEWS

A pew is a church bench, usually one with a high back. The original pews were raised and sometimes enclosed seats in the church used by women and important men or families. “Pew” comes from the Old French “puie” meaning “balcony, elevation”.

40 Like some diets : VEGAN

A vegan is someone who stays away from animal products. A dietary vegan eats no animal foods, not even eggs and dairy that are usually eaten by vegetarians. Ethical vegans take things one step further by following a vegan diet and also avoiding animal products in other areas of their lives e.g. items made from leather or silk.

44 Half of cuatro : DOS

In Spanish, “cuatro” (four) is “dos y dos” (two plus two).

47 Roma locale : ITALIA

In Italian, “Roma” (Rome) is the “capitale” (capital) of “Italia” (Italy).

51 *Superstore for new parents : BABIES US (R from “Babies “R” Us”)

Babies “R” Us was a chain of stores owned by Toys ”R” Us that sold specialty baby products.

53 Herbal drink : SAGE TEA

In Britain and Ireland, sage is listed as one of the four essential herbs. And those would be “parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme”.

55 Kid : RIB

“To rib”, meaning “to tease”, is a term dating back to 1930 and is probably an extension from “poking someone in the ribs”.

56 Math functions : SINES

The most familiar trigonometric functions are sine, cosine and tangent (abbreviated to “sin, cos and tan”). Each of these is a ratio: a ratio of two sides of a right-angled triangle. The “reciprocal” of these three functions are cosecant, secant and cotangent. The reciprocal functions are simply the inverted ratios, the inverted sine, cosine and tangent. These inverted ratios should not be confused with the “inverse” trigonometric functions e.g. arcsine, arccosine and arctangent. These inverse functions are the reverse of the sine, cosine and tangent.

59 “C’est la vie” : ALAS

“C’est la vie” is French for “that’s life”.

61 *Snack brand with Buttery Toffee and Almond Supreme flavors : CRUNCH MUNCH (N from “Crunch ‘n Munch”)

Crunch ‘n Munch is a snack food that has been on sale since 1966. It comprises a mixture of popcorn and peanuts coated in caramel.

63 Jamboree shelter : TENT

A jamboree is a very large gathering of scouts from around the country, and sometimes from around the world. The exact etymology of “jamboree” is much debated, but it is likely to be a term coined by Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of the scouting movement. Baden-Powell lived in Africa for many years and so many think that the term is based on “jambo”, the Swahili word for “hello”. A smaller, more local gathering is referred to as a “camporee”.

65 French 101 verb : ETRE

The verb “to be” translates into German as “sein”, and into French as “être”.

67 Jumps up and down to music : POGOS

In the pogo dance, dancers jump up and down with torsos stiff, arms by their sides, and with legs close together. As one might expect, the dance is named for the pogo stick, the use of which results in a similar motion.

Down

2 Prepared for use, as a violin bow : ROSINED

Rosin is a solid form of resin derived from plant sources. Rosin is formed into cakes that players of stringed instruments use to rub along the hairs of their bows to help improve sound quality. The rosin increases the degree of friction between the strings and the bow. That same friction-increasing property comes into play when baseball pitchers use rosin to get a better grip on the ball, or when dancers apply rosin to the soles of their shoes.

3 Depth charges, in navy slang : ASHCANS

Depth charges, especially older ones used during WWII, are metallic cylindrical devices resembling ashcans, and so they are known familiarly as “ashcans”.

7 “Young Frankenstein” role : INGA

I am not really a big fan of movies by Mel Brooks, but “Young Frankenstein” is the exception. I think the cast has a lot to do with me liking the film, as it includes Gene Wilder (Dr. Frankenstein), Teri Garr (Inga), Marty Feldman (Igor) and Gene Hackman (Harold, the blind man).

9 2022 World Cup Golden Ball winner Lionel : MESSI

Lionel “Leo” Messi is a soccer player from Argentina. Messi has been awarded FIFA’s Ballon d’Or (Golden Ball) award more times than any other player. The Ballon d’Or is presented to the player who is considered the best in the world in the prior year.

10 Texting letters : SMS

Short Message Service (SMS) is the name for the text messaging service that many of us still use on our cell phones to contact friends and family.

11 Caffeine source for some soft drinks : KOLA NUT

The nut of the kola tree has a bitter taste, and is loaded with caffeine. Despite the taste, the nut is habitually chewed in some cultures, especially in West Africa where the tree is commonly found in the rainforest. Here in the US we best know the kola nut as a flavoring used in cola drinks.

12 Prenatal : IN UTERO

“In utero” is a Latin term meaning “in the uterus”. The Latin “uterus” (plural “uteri”) translates as both “womb” and “belly”. “Uterys” comes from the Greek “hystera” that also means “womb”, which gives us the words “hysterectomy”, and “hysterical”.

16 “Country Again” Grammy nominee Thomas : RHETT

Thomas Rhett is a country singer=songwriter. “Thomas Rhett” is a stage name used by Thomas Rhett Atkins Jr., son of country singer Rhett Atkins.

31 ISP option : DSL

An Internet service provider (ISP) is just what the name indicates, a company that provides its customers with access to the Internet. One way that ISPs differentiate themselves from each other is in the way in which end users are connected to the ISP’s network. So, there are cable ISPs, DSL ISPs, dial-up ISPs and satellite ISPs.

36 Island east of Java : BALI

Bali is both an island and a province in Indonesia. It is a popular tourist spot, although the number of visitors dropped for a few years as a result of terrorist bombings in 2002 and 2005 that killed mainly tourists. Bali became more popular starting in 2008 due to a significant and favorable change in the exchange rate between the US dollar and the Indonesian rupiah.

37 Redstone in Minecraft, e.g. : ORE

Minecraft is a video game that was released in 2011. It has been cited as one of the most influential video games of all time.

38 __-serif : SANS

Serifs are details on the ends of characters in some typefaces. Typefaces without serifs are known as sans-serif, using the French word “sans” meaning “without” and “serif” from the Dutch “schreef” meaning “line”. Some people say that serif fonts are easier to read on paper, whereas sans-serif fonts work better on a computer screen. I’m not so sure though …

39 Punctuation marks that set off a series within a phrase : EM DASHES

In typography, there are em dashes and en dashes. The em dash is about the width of an “m” character, and an en dash about half that, the width of an “n’ character. An en dash is used, for example, to separate numbers designating a range, as in 5-10 years. The em dash seems to be going out of style, and indeed the application I am using to write this paragraph won’t let me show you one!

40 Singer’s wavering tone : VIBRATO

The vibrato musical effect is a regular, pulsating change of pitch. A tremor in the diaphragm or larynx can give rise to vibrato in a singing voice. On a stringed instrument, the vibrato effect is usually achieved by wobbling the finger while stopping a string on a keyboard.

41 Entity with net income? : E-TAILER

The Internet (uppercase letter I) is a system of interconnected networks that use the Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) to link devices around the world. In common usage, the word “internet” (lowercase letter I) is often used interchangeably with “World Wide Web”, although “the Web” is just one of many services and applications that uses the Internet.

42 Dolce & __ : GABBANA

Dolce & Gabbana is an Italian fashion house based in Milan, It was founded by Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana in 1985.

44 Cold War warmup : DETENTE

“Détente” is a French word meaning “loosening, reduction in tension” and in general it is used to describe the easing of strained relations in a political situation. In particular, the policy of détente came to be associated with the improved relations between the US and the Soviet Union in the seventies.

The term “Cold War” was coined by novelist George Orwell in a 1945 essay about the atomic bomb. Orwell described a world under threat of nuclear war as having a “peace that is no peace”, in a permanent state of “cold war”. The specific use of “cold war” to describe the tension between the Eastern bloc and the Western allies is attributed to a 1947 speech by Bernard Baruch, adviser to Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

48 #LiveUplifted sneakers brand : ASICS

ASICS is a Japanese company based in Kobe that produces athletic gear, including running shoes. The company name comes from the first letters of the Latin phrase “anima sana in corpore sano”, which translates to “a healthy soul in a healthy body”.

49 Not genuine : PSEUDO

A pseudo (or “pseud”) is an artificial or pretentious person.

50 Some Broadway fare : REVUES

“Revue” is the French word for “review”.

52 General Assembly figure, for short : UN REP

The United Nations was established right after the end of WWII, and was a replacement for the ineffective League of Nations that had been formed after the end of WWI. The US was at the forefront of the founding of the United Nations, led by President Franklin Roosevelt just prior to the start of WWII. The UN’s headquarters is in international territory in New York. There are three regional UN headquarters, also located in international territory, in Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi.

54 Whale group : GAM

A group of whales can be called a gam, as well as a pod.

60 Mo. city whose MLS team will play its first game in 2023 : STL

St. Louis City SC is a Major League Soccer (MLS) team that will be joining the league as an expansion team in 2023. The club was formed in 2019, and will play in their own stadium, the Citypark, that opened in 2022.

62 Exec at a gaming startup, e.g. : CTO

Chief Technology Officer (CTO)

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Metric unit : GRAM
5 Some workplace discrimination : AGISM
10 Icy street risk : SKID
14 “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” detective Diaz : ROSA
15 Good-natured teasing : BANTER
17 Pre-stereo : MONO
18 *Children’s apparel company : OSHKOSH GOSH (B from “OshKosh B’gosh”)
20 Swivel around : SLUE
21 Avenue that’s the eastern border of Midway Airport : CICERO
22 Basilica recesses : APSES
24 Consumed : ATE
25 Bewitches : ENAMORS
27 *Candy with a bee on its wrapper : BIT HONEY (O from “Bit-O-Honey”)
29 Russo of “Thor” : RENE
30 Shampoo ad buzzword : BODY
32 Campus security? : TENURE
33 QB stats : YDS
34 Sunday seating : PEWS
35 Dealer’s inventory : AUTOS
36 Ones fated to fail, or what the starred entries are, initially? : BORN LOSERS or B-O-R-N LOSERS
40 Like some diets : VEGAN
43 Barrels into : RAMS
44 Half of cuatro : DOS
47 Roma locale : ITALIA
49 Remain undecided : PEND
50 Landlord’s income : RENT
51 *Superstore for new parents : BABIES US (R from “Babies “R” Us”)
53 Herbal drink : SAGE TEA
55 Kid : RIB
56 Math functions : SINES
58 File menu option : SAVE AS
59 “C’est la vie” : ALAS
61 *Snack brand with Buttery Toffee and Almond Supreme flavors : CRUNCH MUNCH (N from “Crunch ‘n Munch”)
63 Jamboree shelter : TENT
64 Put under : SEDATE
65 French 101 verb : ETRE
66 Verbal : ORAL
67 Jumps up and down to music : POGOS
68 Origin : SEED

Down

1 Grub hub? : GROCERY
2 Prepared for use, as a violin bow : ROSINED
3 Depth charges, in navy slang : ASHCANS
4 Defiant response : MAKE ME!
5 Shock __ : ABSORBER
6 “This is a disaster!” : GAH!
7 “Young Frankenstein” role : INGA
8 Visit : STOP BY
9 2022 World Cup Golden Ball winner Lionel : MESSI
10 Texting letters : SMS
11 Caffeine source for some soft drinks : KOLA NUT
12 Prenatal : IN UTERO
13 Makeup technique that imparts an innocent look : DOE EYES
16 “Country Again” Grammy nominee Thomas : RHETT
19 Spanish gold : ORO
23 Shrub cutters : SHEARS
26 Scattered, as seeds : SOWN
28 Heavy load : ONUS
31 ISP option : DSL
34 Stable figures : PONIES
36 Island east of Java : BALI
37 Redstone in Minecraft, e.g. : ORE
38 __-serif : SANS
39 Punctuation marks that set off a series within a phrase : EM DASHES
40 Singer’s wavering tone : VIBRATO
41 Entity with net income? : E-TAILER
42 Dolce & __ : GABBANA
44 Cold War warmup : DETENTE
45 Plot size, perhaps : ONE ACRE
46 Hidden : STASHED
48 #LiveUplifted sneakers brand : ASICS
49 Not genuine : PSEUDO
50 Some Broadway fare : REVUES
52 General Assembly figure, for short : UN REP
54 Whale group : GAM
57 Hitch : SNAG
60 Mo. city whose MLS team will play its first game in 2023 : STL
62 Exec at a gaming startup, e.g. : CTO

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