LA Times Crossword 29 Mar 23, Wednesday

Constructed by: Chase Dittrich & Jeff Chen
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: TL;DR

The first part of themed clues might be described as, in text-speak, TL;DR (too long; didn’t read). The second part is a more succinct, and alternative, pointer to the answer. And, the opening letter of the themed answers spell out “TLDR”:

67A “I lost interest” acronym spelled out by the starts of four answers in this puzzle : TL;DR

17A Like an amazing and fortuitous circumstance that can’t possibly exist, despite an initial promising appearance [67-Across: Suspiciously awesome] : TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
26A Metaphor for the legal system that implies a criminal cannot hide or escape from that system’s vast resources and unparalleled authority [67-Across: Police jurisdiction] : LONG ARM OF THE LAW
42A Was as successful and enjoyable as early conjecture and predictions suggested it would be [67-Across: Met expectations] : DIDN’T DISAPPOINT
51A Declaration from a person playing poker in a situation where the opponents think they have it in the bag [67-Across: “I win!”] : READ ‘EM AND WEEP!

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Bill’s time: 6m 00s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

4 Biblical saying : PROVERB

The Book of Proverbs is in the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. The original Hebrew title for the book translates as “Proverbs of Solomon”. It was likely compiled by multiple authors over a long period of time, with some proverbs back to the time of King Solomon in the 10th century BCE.

11 Fave pal : BFF

Best friend forever (BFF)

14 Sushi-grade tuna : AHI

Ahi tuna is also known as yellowfin tuna and is a popular fish for sushi and sashimi. However, due to overfishing, ahi tuna populations are at risk.

16 Hoppy brew : ALE

The foodstuff that we call “hops” are actually the female flowers of the hop plant. The main use of hops is to add flavor to beer. The town in which I used to live here in California was once home to the largest hop farm in the world. Most of the harvested hops were exported all the way to the breweries of London, where they could fetch the best price.

23 Actress Vardalos : NIA

Nia Vardalos is an actress and screenwriter whose biggest break came with the 2002 film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”, which she wrote and in which she starred. The film tells the story of a Greek-American woman marrying a non-Greek Caucasian American who converts to the Greek Orthodox Church to facilitate the marriage. The storyline reflects the actual experiences of Vardalos and her husband, actor Ian Gomez. Vardalos and Gomez appeared together as hosts for two seasons of the reality competition “The Great American Baking Show”.

25 24/7 cash source : ATM

ATMs are Automated Teller Machines, and are called “cashpoints” back in Britain and Ireland. Well, as students we also called them “drink links”, for obvious reasons …

36 Director Kubrick : STANLEY

Stanley Kubrick was a film director from New York who worked mainly in the UK. Kubrick directed “Spartacus” in Hollywood in 1960, and then relocated to the UK to shoot “Lolita” in 1962. His next film was “Doctor Strangelove”, which also had to be shot in the UK. At that point, Kubrick decided to make England his home.

37 Wall St. debut : IPO

An initial public offering (IPO) is a significant event for a company as it marks the first time it becomes a publicly traded company. IPOs are often accompanied by a so-called “lock-up period.” This is a period of time, typically 90 to 180 days after the IPO, during which company insiders, such as executives and early investors, are not allowed to sell their shares on the open market. The purpose of the lock-up period is to prevent a flood of shares from hitting the market and potentially driving down the price of the stock.

47 Mogul : TYCOON

Our term “tycoon” meaning powerful business person was originally used by foreigners to describe the shogun of Japan. “Tycoon” is an anglicization of the Japanese “taikun” meaning “great lord or prince”.

48 South Seas wrap : SARONG

“Sarong” is the Malay word for “sheath”. The term originally described a garment worn by Malay men and women around their waists. The Malay sarong is actually a tube of fabric, about a yard wide and two-and-a-half yards long. Many variations of the sarong are worn all over South Asia and the Pacific Islands. I had occasion to wear one in Hawaii many years ago, and found it very … freeing!

The term “South Sea” was coined in Spanish (“Mar del Sur”) by Spanish conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa when describing what we know today as the Pacific Ocean. We tend to use the term “South Seas” in modern times to refer to that part of the Pacific that lies below the equator.

49 WC : LAV

Our word “lavatory” (sometimes “lav”) originally referred to a washbasin, and comes from the Latin “lavatorium”, a place for washing. In the 1600s, “lavatory” came to mean a washroom, and in the 1920s a toilet.

58 Game show creator Griffin : MERV

Merv Griffin was quite the entertainer, and truly a mogul in the business. He started his career as a singer on the radio during the big band era. In the sixties he hosted his own talk show, and then famously developed such great game shows as “Jeopardy!” and “Wheel of Fortune”.

59 Pesto herb : BASIL

The Italian term “pesto” applies to anything made by pounding. What we tend to know as pesto sauce is more properly called “pesto alla genovese”, i.e. pesto from Genoa in northern Italy. I love, love pesto sauce …

64 Bailiwick : AREA

“Bailiwick” is a word dating back to the mid-1600s. The term originally meant “district of a bailiff”.

65 WCs : LOOS

It has been suggested that the British term “loo”, meaning “toilet”, comes from “Waterloo” (water closet … water-loo), but no one seems to know for sure. Another suggestion is that the term comes from the card game of “lanterloo”, in which the pot was called the loo!

67 “I lost interest” acronym spelled out by the starts of four answers in this puzzle : TL;DR

Too long, didn’t read (TL;DR)

Down

1 Actor Damon : 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.

3 Designer Christian : DIOR

Christian Dior was a highly influential fashion designer who is widely credited with revolutionizing women’s fashion in the post-World War II era. Before he became a fashion designer, Dior worked as an art dealer, and he even ran his own art gallery for a time. There, he and a friend sold works by Pablo Picasso and others.

5 Kia sedan : RIO

The Kia Rio is a subcompact that has been in production since 1999, and has undergone several updates and redesigns over the years. The Rio was designed by Kia’s chief design officer, Peter Schreyer, who previously worked for Audi and is credited with designing the iconic Audi TT.

South Korean automaker Kia has been making the subcompact model called the Rio since 2000.

6 Cutlass sedan, e.g. : OLDS

Oldsmobile introduced the Cutlass in 1961, and used the name on a succession of models right up to 1999. It was one of the best-selling cars in the US during the 1970s, and it helped to establish the popularity of the mid-size car segment.

7 Corleone patriarch : VITO

Mario Puzo created the Corleone Mafia family in his 1969 novel “The Godfather”. The head of the family is Vito Corleone (whose birth name was Vito Andolini), a native of Corleone in Sicily. He was given the name Corleone by immigration officers at Ellis Island. Don Corleone was played so very memorably, with a distinctive rasping voice, by Marlon Brando in the 1972 movie adaptation directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

8 Henry VI’s school : ETON

Eton College near Windsor in the south of England was founded way back in 1440 by King Henry VI. Originally known as “The King’s College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor”, the school was intended to provide free education to poor boys. Free education today at Eton? Not so much …

9 Hoops stat : REB

In basketball, a rebound (REB) is retrieval of the ball after it “rebounds” (usually off the backboard) following a missed field goal or free throw. If the offensive side recovers the ball, it’s known as an offensive rebound. If the defensive side recovers it, it is a defensive rebound.

11 Poet : BARD

The original bards were storytellers, poets and composers of music in medieval Britain and Ireland, with the term coming from the Old Celtic word “bardos” that described a poet or singer. I guess the most famous bard was William Shakespeare, the Bard of Avon.

12 Fireplace shaft : FLUE

The flue in a chimney is a duct that conveys exhaust gases from a fire to the outdoors. An important feature of a flue is that its opening is adjustable. When starting a fire, the flue should be wide open, maximizing airflow to get help ignition.

19 Proctor’s shout : TIME

A proctor is a supervisor, and especially a person overseeing a school examination or a dormitory. The word “proctor” originated in the late 1500s, and is a contraction of the word “procurator”, the name given to an official agent of a church.

24 Graffiti, e.g. : ART

Graffiti is the plural of “graffito”, the Italian for “scribbling”. The word was first used to describe ancient inscriptions on the walls in the ruins of Pompeii.

27 Footnote kin of ibid. : OP CIT

“Op. cit.” is short for “opus citatum”, Latin for “the work cited”. Op. cit. is used in footnotes to refer the reader to an earlier citation. It is similar to ibid, except that ibid refers the reader to the last citation, the one immediately above.

Ibid. is short for the Latin word “ibidem” and is typically found in footnotes and bibliographies. Ibid. is used to refer the reader to the prior citation, instead of giving the same information all over again (title, author etc.).

29 Cheech of Cheech & Chong : MARIN

The comedy duo Cheech & Chong are made up of Richard “Cheech” Marin and Tommy Chong. Cheech and Chong worked together from 1971 to 1985, and have been back working together again since 2002. A lot of the duo’s comedy was based on their being stoned on cannabis.

31 Canine pests : FLEAS

An endoparasite is one that lives inside the host, an example being a parasitic worm. Parasites living outside the host, such as fleas and lice, are known as ectoparasites.

34 Saint-John’s-__: herbal remedy : WORT

St. John’s wort is a herb that is used by some as a treatment for depression. Extracts are available as over-the-counter purchases here in the US, but back in my homeland of Ireland, one needs a prescription.

39 Closed-off districts : ENCLAVES

An enclave is a portion of a country, or sometimes a whole country, that is completely surrounded by another. Examples are Vatican City and San Marino, both enclaved by Italy, and Lesotho enclaved by South Africa.

43 Pond critter : TOAD

Toads are a type of frog. The main difference between them is that toads have dry, warty skin, while frogs have smooth, moist skin.

44 Option for soap or ice cream : DOVE BAR

Dove is a brand of personal care products made by Unilever. The brand originated in the UK, back in 1955.

The Dove Bar is an ice cream bar that was distributed locally in Chicago from 1956 until 1985, when Mars purchased the brand and made it available nationally.

45 Ping-Pong and canoeing needs : PADDLES

Ping-Pong is called table tennis in the UK, where the sport originated in the 1880s. Table tennis started as an after-dinner activity among the elite, and was called “wiff-waff”. To play the game, books were stacked in the center of a table as a “net”, two more books served as “”rackets” and the ball used was actually a golf ball. The game evolved over time with the rackets being upgraded to the lids of cigar boxes and the ball becoming a champagne cork (how snooty is that?). Eventually the game was produced commercially, and the sound of the ball hitting the racket was deemed to be a “ping” and a “pong”, giving the sport its alternative name. The name “Ping-Pong” was trademarked in Britain in 1901, and eventually sold to Parker Brothers in the US.

The boat known as a canoe takes its name from the Carib word “kenu” meaning “dugout”. It was Christopher Columbus who brought “kenu” into Spanish as “canoa”, which evolved into our English “canoe”.

55 Giza’s river : NILE

Giza is located on the west bank of the Nile, about 20 km southwest of Cairo. The nearby Giza Plateau is home to some of the most amazing ancient monuments on the planet, including the Great Pyramid of Giza and the Great Sphinx.

56 __ Grey tea : EARL

The Earl Grey blend of tea is supposedly named after Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey who was Prime Minister of the UK from 1830 to 1834. Earl Grey tea has a distinctive flavor that is largely due to the addition of oil from the rind of the bergamot orange.

58 Country singer Tillis : MEL

Mel Tillis was a country music singer who was also known for his stuttering speech. He was not born with a stutter; he developed it after a childhood bout of malaria. Tillia learned to use his stutter as part of his performances and even wrote a song about it called “Stutterin’ Boy”. Tillis also used his fame to raise awareness about stuttering and served as the spokesperson for the Stuttering Foundation of America for many years.

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Complete List of Clues/Answers

Across

1 Wet dirt : MUD
4 Biblical saying : PROVERB
11 Fave pal : BFF
14 Sushi-grade tuna : AHI
15 Pen with bright ink : HI-LITER
16 Hoppy brew : ALE
17 Like an amazing and fortuitous circumstance that can’t possibly exist, despite an initial promising appearance [67-Across: Suspiciously awesome] : TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE
20 Pulsate : THROB
21 Junior : SON
22 Gave a leg up to : AIDED
23 Actress Vardalos : NIA
25 24/7 cash source : ATM
26 Metaphor for the legal system that implies a criminal cannot hide or escape from that system’s vast resources and unparalleled authority [67-Across: Police jurisdiction] : LONG ARM OF THE LAW
35 Unlock, poetically : OPE
36 Director Kubrick : STANLEY
37 Wall St. debut : IPO
38 Plot portion : ACRE
40 Feel bad about : RUE
41 Successor : HEIR
42 Was as successful and enjoyable as early conjecture and predictions suggested it would be [67-Across: Met expectations] : DIDN’T DISAPPOINT
47 Mogul : TYCOON
48 South Seas wrap : SARONG
49 WC : LAV
50 “i” topper : DOT
51 Declaration from a person playing poker in a situation where the opponents think they have it in the bag [67-Across: “I win!”] : READ ‘EM AND WEEP!
58 Game show creator Griffin : MERV
59 Pesto herb : BASIL
60 Broad valley : DALE
62 Brink : EDGE
63 Joint above a foot : ANKLE
64 Bailiwick : AREA
65 WCs : LOOS
66 Stands : RISES
67 “I lost interest” acronym spelled out by the starts of four answers in this puzzle : TL;DR

Down

1 Actor Damon : MATT
2 “Yikes!” : UH-OH!
3 Designer Christian : DIOR
4 Fears : PHOBIAS
5 Kia sedan : RIO
6 Cutlass sedan, e.g. : OLDS
7 Corleone patriarch : VITO
8 Henry VI’s school : ETON
9 Hoops stat : REB
10 Whispery in tone : BREATHY
11 Poet : BARD
12 Fireplace shaft : FLUE
13 Farm store bagful : FEED
18 Large flat bell : GONG
19 Proctor’s shout : TIME
24 Graffiti, e.g. : ART
25 Dined : ATE
26 Laundry batch : LOAD
27 Footnote kin of ibid. : OP CIT
28 Geeky : NERDY
29 Cheech of Cheech & Chong : MARIN
30 Obligation : ONUS
31 Canine pests : FLEAS
32 Occupy, as a bed : LIE IN
33 Copying : APING
34 Saint-John’s-__: herbal remedy : WORT
39 Closed-off districts : ENCLAVES
41 Derided from the stands : HOOTED AT
43 Pond critter : TOAD
44 Option for soap or ice cream : DOVE BAR
45 Ping-Pong and canoeing needs : PADDLES
46 Boat’s front : PROW
51 Ctrl+Y action : REDO
52 “By that logic … ” : ERGO …
53 __-pedi : MANI
54 Requests : ASKS
55 Giza’s river : NILE
56 __ Grey tea : EARL
57 Implored : PLED
58 Country singer Tillis : MEL
61 Musician’s gift : EAR

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