LA Times Crossword 16 Jun 22, Thursday

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Constructed by: Robert Wemischner & Mark McClain
Edited by: Patti Varol

Today’s Reveal Answer: Rough Patch

Themed answers each include a letter string that is a ROUGH (an anagram of) “PATCH”:

• 66A Difficult time, or what is hidden in each of the answers to the starred clues? : ROUGH PATCH

• 18A *Supply on a gift wrap station : SCOTCH TAPE
• 27A *Messaging app : SNAPCHAT
• 39A *”Some Enchanted Evening” musical : SOUTH PACIFIC
• 54A *Second game of a doubleheader : NIGHTCAP

Read on, or jump to …
… a complete list of answers

Bill’s time: 7m 07s

Bill’s errors: 0

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

17 Old Scottish landholder : THANE

Thanes were Scottish aristocrats. The most famous thanes have to be the Shakespearean characters Macbeth (Thane of Glamis, later “Thane of Cawdor”, and still later “King of Scotland”) and MacDuff (Thane of Fife). Other thanes in “Macbeth” are Ross, Lennox and Angus, as well as Menteith and Caithness.

18 *Supply on a gift wrap station : SCOTCH TAPE

Scotch Tape is a brand of adhesive tape made by 3M. “Scotch Tape” is one of those brand names that has become a generic term for the product. The equivalent brand name of the product that we use over in Ireland is Sellotape. This British brand also has become a generic term, and so is our equivalent to “Scotch tape”.

22 Cratchit boy : TINY TIM

“Tiny Tim” is the nickname of Timothy Cratchit, a character in the Charles Dickens novella “A Christmas Carol”. Tiny Tim is the son of Ebenezer Scrooge’s underpaid clerk Bob Cratchit, and is a sickly child. Famously, the child utters the words “God bless us, every one!” at Christmas dinner, which words are repeated by the author at the end of the story.

24 Drink that may cause brain freeze : ICEE

A slushie is a flavored frozen drink. The brand names Slurpee and ICEE are examples of the genre.

27 *Messaging app : SNAPCHAT

Snapchat is a messaging system that allows users to send photos and video clips to a limited list of recipients. The photos and clips, called “snaps”, can be viewed for only a few seconds before they are deleted from the recipient’s device, and from the Snapchat servers.

29 Verne captain : NEMO

In the 1954 movie “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea”, Captain Nemo goes down with his ship. In the novel by Jules Verne (1869-1870), the fate of Nemo and his crew isn’t quite so cut and dry, although the inference is perhaps that they did indeed head for Davy Jones’ Locker.

30 “Lion” Oscar nominee Patel : DEV

Dev Patel is an actor from Harrow in England who is perhaps best known for playing the lead in the hit movie “Slumdog Millionaire”. He also stars in a lovely 2012 film called “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” alongside an incredible cast that included Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Maggie Smith and Tom Wilkinson. Patel also had a regular role in the marvelous HBO drama series called “The Newsroom”.

“Lion” is a 2016 film based on the autobiographical book “A Long Way Home” by Saroo Brierley. Brierley is an Indian-born Australian who was accidentally separated from his mother when he was 5 years old, ending up stranded on a train that took the young boy nearly 1,500 km from his home. The excellent film adaptation stars Dev Patel as the older Brierley, who searches for his birth-family. Excellent movie …

33 Zesty Twirls maker : ORE-IDA

Ore-Ida frozen foods are all made using potatoes. The company is located in Oregon, just across the border from Idaho. “Ore-Ida” is a melding of the two state names.

34 Constellation near Ursa Minor : DRACO

The constellation Draco is said to resemble a dragon or serpent. The name “Draco” is Latin for “dragon”. It is located in the northern sky right beside the constellation Ursa Minor.

36 Chicago suburb : CICERO

Cicero is a town in Cook County, Illinois that is now a suburb of Chicago. Named for the Roman scholar and orator, Cicero was once home to notorious gangster Al Capone. Capone moved from Chicago to Cicero in order to escape the jurisdiction of the Chicago Police Department.

39 *”Some Enchanted Evening” musical : SOUTH PACIFIC

“South Pacific” is a stage musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein that premiered in 1949. It is based on the Pulitzer-winning 1947 book “Tales of the South Pacific” by James A. Michener. The storyline centers on a young American nurse named Nellie Forbush who falls in love with an expatriate French planter named Emile de Becque. The show tackles racism in America head on, as Nellie struggles to accept Emile’s mixed-race children.

“Some Enchanted Evening” is a wonderful song from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical “South Pacific”. Andrew Lloyd Webber, who knows a thing or two about the genre, once referred to “Some Enchanted Evening” as the “greatest song ever written for a musical”.

43 Mato __: third-largest state of Brazil : GROSSO

Mato Grosso is one of the 26 Brazilian states, and the third largest in area. In 1977, the southern portion of the state was separated, to form the neighboring state of Mato Grosso do Sul. The capital of Mato Grosso is Cuiabá, which is located not far from the geographical center of Brazil.

47 First name in mysteries : AGATHA

Agatha Christie is the best-selling novelist of all time, having sold about 4 billion copies worldwide in total. The only books to have sold in higher volume are the works of William Shakespeare and the Bible.

51 GPS heading : ENE

Global positioning system (GPS)

60 Barbecue spot : TERRACE

It is believed that our word “barbecue” (BBQ) comes from the Taíno people of the Caribbean in whose language “barbacoa” means “sacred fire pit”.

63 The way things are usually done, for short : SOP

Standard operating procedure (SOP)

64 Learned league? : MENSA

Mensa is a high-IQ society that was founded in Oxford, England in 1946. The founders were two lawyers: Australian Roland Berrill and Englishman Lancelot Ware. Apparently, the elitist founders were unhappy with the development of Mensa, given that most members came from the working and lower classes.

68 Wood used in guitar-making : ALDER

There appears to be heated debate by those in the know, about whether or not the type of wood used in the construction of electric guitars makes a difference to the sound quality. However, amongst those that value choice of wood, alder is the clear favorite.

71 Paper for a pad : LEASE

Back in the 16th century a pad was a bundle of straw to lie on. “Pad” came to mean “place for sleeping” in the early 1700s. The term was revitalized in the hippie era.

Down

2 “The Lorax” voice role for Ed Helms : ONCE-LER

The Once-ler is the antagonist in the Dr. Seuss book “The Lorax”.

“The Lorax” is a 1971 children’s book written by Dr. Seuss. It is an allegorical work questioning the problems created by industrialization, and in particular its impact on the environment. At one point in the story, the Lorax “speaks for the trees, for the trees have no tongues”. “The Lorax” was adapted into an animated film that was released in 2012, with Danny DeVito voicing the title character.

He was shortish, and oldish, and brownish and mossy. And he spoke with a voice that was sharpish and bossy.

3 Grade school exhibits : DIORAMAS

A diorama is a full-scale or small-scale replica of a scene. We mostly see full-size dioramas in museums, whereas our kids might create small-scale dioramas as homework projects. The original diorama was a picture-viewing device that was invented in 1822 by Louis Daguerre and Charles Marie Bouton. These historic dioramas were quite large, and featured scenes that appeared to change as the lighting was manipulated.

4 NFL passing stat : ATT

In football, one statistic (stat) used to track the performance of a quarterback (QB) is attempts (ATT).

6 Env. directive : ATTN

Attention (attn.)

8 Egyptian Christians : COPTS

The Copts make up the largest minority religious group in Egypt. Copts are Christians, with most adhered to the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, and others practicing Coptic Catholicism or Coptic Protestantism. The term “Copt” ultimately derives from a Greek word for Egyptian.

9 Biergarten vessel : STEIN

A stein is a type of beer glass. The term “stein” is German in origin, and is short for “Steinkrug” meaning “stone jug”. “Stein” is German for “stone”.

In German, one might go for a “Bier” (beer) in a “Biergarten” (beer garden).

In German, one might drink a “Bier” (beer).

10 Off-rd. rig : ATV

All-terrain vehicle (ATV)

12 “Meditation in motion” discipline : TAI CHI

More correctly called “t‘ai chi ch‘uan”, tai chi is a martial art that is mostly practiced to improve overall health and increase longevity.

13 Like zombies : UNDEAD

A zombie is a corpse that has been brought back to life by some mystical means. Our modern use of the term largely stems from the undead creatures featured in the 1968 horror movie called “Night of the Living Dead”. Now that film I haven’t seen, and probably never will …

14 Coin replaced by the euro : PESETA

The peseta is a former currency of Spain and was also the de facto currency of Spain’s neighbor, the Principality of Andorra. The peseta was replaced by the euro in 2002.

23 Haka dancers of New Zealand : MAORI

The haka is a war dance used by the Maori people of New Zealand. Famously, the New Zealand rugby team performs a haka before each of their matches.

26 A bit, in music : POCO

“Poco” is an Italian word for “little”, and is used in musical notation to mean “a little, slightly”.

28 Faculty figs. : PROFS

“Professor” is a Latin word describing someone who “professes” to be an expert in an art or science.

31 Amazon gadget : ECHO

Amazon Echo is a voice-controlled hardware device that can be used to provide several services including playing radio programs and music, recording of shopping lists, and managing a calendar. The device just sits in the home listening, until it hears a “wake up” command.

37 Word in many Encyclopedia Brown titles : CASE

The “Encyclopedia Brown” series of children’s books feature the exploits of boy detective Leroy Brown. The books were written by Donald J. Sobol, starting in 1963.

38 MBA course : ECON

The world’s first Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree was offered by Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration, in 1908.

42 Keyboard instruments that sound like glockenspiels : CELESTAS

A celesta (also “celeste”) is a keyboard instrument in which the keys operate hammers that strike a set of metal plates. The resulting sound is similar to that from a glockenspiel, although it is much softer in tone as the celesta’s plates are suspended over wooden resonators. I’d say that the most famous musical work featuring a celesta is Tchaikovsky’s “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” from his ballet “The Nutcracker”.

The glockenspiel and xylophone are similar instruments, the main difference being the material from which the keys are made. Xylophone keys are made from wood, and glockenspiel keys are made from metal.

45 “Casablanca” setting : MOROCCO

The fictional Rick’s Café Américain is the main setting used in the movie “Casablanca”, with the café owner played by Humphrey Bogart. Should you ever visit Morocco, you might try visiting Rick’s Café Casablanca, an establishment opened in 2004 that largely recreates the look and feel of the memorable movie set.

Casablanca is a major city in western Morocco that sits on the Atlantic coast in Northern Africa. It is the country’s largest city (although the capital is Rabat), and the country’s largest port.

46 Composer Sondheim : STEPHEN

Stephen Sondheim won more Tony Awards than any other composer, a total of eight. He had a long list of stage (and big screen) successes including “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum”, “A Little Night Music”, “Sweeney Todd” and “Into the Woods”. Sondheim was a big fan of crosswords and had a whole series of cryptic crosswords published in “New York” magazine in the sixties.

48 Supermodel Bündchen : GISELE

Gisele Bündchen is a fashion model from Brazil. Bündchen does quite well for herself as she has been the highest-paid model in the world for several years now and has amassed a fortune of about $150 million. She was romantically involved with Leonardo DiCaprio for about five years and now is married to Tom Brady, the NHL quarterback.

49 Board meeting outline : AGENDA

“Agenda” is a Latin word that translates as “things to be done”, coming from the verb “agere” meaning “to do”.

55 American Eagle Outfitters loungewear brand : AERIE

Aerie (stylized as “aerie”) is a retailer of lingerie and general undergarments that was founded in 2006. Aptly enough, Aerie was initially a sub-brand of American Eagle. The name “Aerie” comes from “American Eagle lingerie”).

67 Coach Parseghian : ARA

Ara Parseghian coached the Notre Dame football team from 1964 to 1974, a period known alliteratively as “The Era of Ara”.

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