LA Times Crossword 21 Oct 23, Saturday - LAXCrossword.com (2024)

Today’s Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

Across

9 Nintendo console with a GamePad : WII U

The Wii U video game console is the successor to Nintendo’s Wii. I’m wondering if “Wii U” is some sort of play on the pronouns “we” and “you”? Maybe I just think too much …

14 Huevos __ : RANCHEROS

The popular breakfast dish huevos rancheros consists mainly of fried eggs served on tortillas and topped with salsa. The dish’s name translates as “eggs ranch-style”.

17 Neural transmitters : AXONS

A nerve cell is more correctly called a neuron. The long nerve fiber that conducts signals away from the neuron is known as the axon. The axon is surrounded by a myelin sheath, which acts as an electrical insulator and which increases the rate the impulses pass along the axon.

19 Lectures featured on NPR’s “Radio Hour” podcast : TED TALKS

“TED Radio Hour” is an NPR podcast hosted by Guy Raz that uses excerpts from prior TED Talks to examine various subjects of interest.

21 Some WrestleMania venues : ARENAS

“WrestleMania” is a pay-per-view professional wrestling event that was first produced in 1985. I really don’t do wrestling …

23 Japanese stir-fried noodles : YAKISOBA

Yakisoba is a dish from Japanese cuisine comprising fried noodles with chopped pork and vegetables. “Yakisoba” translates as “fried noodle”. Even though soba noodles are usually made from buckwheat flour, the soba noodles in yakisoba are made from wheat flour.

28 Org. that might need to resolve wedge issues? : LPGA

The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) was founded in 1950 by a group of 13 lady golfers, and today it is the oldest ongoing women’s sports professional organization in the US.

32 Take turns before everyone else? : PLAYTEST

Video game designers employ playtesters to check for bugs and design flaws in a new game, before it is released to the market.

34 Koteas of “Chicago P.D.” : ELIAS

Actor Elias Koteas is perhaps best known for playing undercover detective Al Olinsky in the show “Chicago P.D.” In fact, he has also appeared as that character in the other shows of the “Chicago” franchise, i.e. “Chicago Fire” and “Chicago Med”.

42 Designer of Uma Thurman’s iconic 1995 lavender chiffon Oscar gown : PRADA

Uma Thurman was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Award at the Oscar ceremony held in 1995, for her performance in “Pulp Fiction”. She didn’t win (Dianne Wiest did, for “Bullets Over Broadway”), but Thurman did make her mark on the ceremony. She wore a lavender chiffon gown by Prada that attracted a lot of attention. It is credited with launching Prada as a mainstream clothier in America.

49 Home of Venta Rapid, Europe’s widest waterfall : LATVIA

Venta Rapid is a waterfall on the Venta River in western Latvia. Varying in width between 800 and 900 feet, it is the widest waterfall in the whole of Europe.

52 Mythical birds without feet that fly continuously from birth until death : MARTLETS

The martlet is a small bird from English mythology that is widely used in heraldry. The name “martlet” means “little martin”, with the martin being a bird in the swallow family. The mythical creature has no legs, and supposedly remains continuously on the wing from birth until death. As such, it is commonly used on a coat of arms to symbolize continuous and persistent effort.

57 Right hand : FIRST MATE

On a merchant ship, the first mate (sometimes “first officer, chief mate”) is the highest-ranking deck officer, and reports directly to the captain.

Down

1 Tapers off : ABATES

I used to think that the word “taper” was used for a slender candle because said candle was “tapered” in shape, but it’s exactly the opposite. It turns out that our word “tapered” comes from the candle. “Taper” and “tapur” are Old English words meaning “candle”. From these nouns arose the verb “to taper” meaning “shoot up like flame”. This meaning evolved into “become slender” from the idea that a candle’s flame has such a shape.

4 Flat fee : RENT

“Flat”, describing an apartment or condominium, is a word more commonly used in Britain and Ireland than on this side of the pond. The term “flat” is Scottish in origin, in which language it used to mean “floor in a house”.

6 “Live long and prosper” speaker, perhaps : TREKKIE

The Vulcan salute is the hand gesture devised and introduced by Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock on the original “Star Trek” TV series. The salute is made by raising the hand with the palm forward and with the fingers parted between the middle and ring finger. The gesture is often accompanied with the words “live long and prosper”.

8 Larynx-examining doc : ENT

The voice box or larynx is where pitch and volume of sound are manipulated when we talk. The structure called the Adam’s apple that protrudes from the human neck is formed by the thyroid cartilage that surrounds the larynx. The Adam’s apple of males tends to increase in size during puberty, so the feature tended to be associated more with males in days gone by, perhaps leading to the name “Adam’s” apple. A doctor specializing in treating the larynx is a laryngologist.

11 Home of the NCAA’s Gaels : IONA

Iona College is a Roman Catholic school run by Christian Brothers in New Rochelle, New York. The Brothers named the college for the island of Iona off the west coast of Scotland on which is located Iona Abbey, which was founded by St. Columba. The school’s sports teams are called the Iona Gaels, and the team mascot goes by the name “Killian”.

16 Catnip, e.g. : HERB

About 50% of all cats are affected in some way by the plant catnip. There is a terpenoid in the oil of the plant called nepetalactone that the cat inhales and that can cause anything from drowsiness to anxiety.

26 Computer-based civil disobedience : HACKTIVISM

Anonymous is a network of Internet activists (known as “hacktivists”). Formed around 2003, the group has been responsible for several attacks on government, corporate and religious websites over the years. When members of Anonymous (known as “Anons”) appear in public, they do so wearing Guy Fawkes masks.

29 Crash pad? : PIED-A-TERRE

A pied-à-terre is a secondary living space or temporary accommodation, often somewhere to live in a big city that is some distance away from a primary residence. “Pied-à-terre” is French for “foot on the ground”.

35 Coverage plan abbr. : SPF

In theory, the sun protection factor (SPF) is a calibrated measure of the effectiveness of a sunscreen in protecting the skin from harmful UV rays. The idea is that if you wear a lotion with say SPF 20, then it takes 20 times as much UV radiation to cause the skin to burn than it would take without protection. I say just stay out of the sun …

42 Mass number : PSALM

The Greek word “psalmoi” originally meant “songs sung to a harp”, and gave us the word “psalms”. In the Jewish and Western Christian traditions, the Book of Psalms contains 150 individual psalms, divided into five sections.

50 Cognac confidante : AMIE

Cognac is a famous variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac in the very west of France. To be called “Cognac”, the brandy must be distilled twice in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in very specific French oak barrels.

51 Stanford basketball coach VanDerveer : TARA

Tara VanDerveer is the only coach in NCAA history to win 1,000 games. She is also the all-time winningest coach in women’s college basketball, with 1,157 wins. Tara’s sister Heidi is also a very successful college and professional basketball coach.

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