LA Times Crossword 4 Feb 23, Saturday - LAXCrossword.com (2023)

Today's Wiki-est Amazonian Googlies

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1 British cartoon whose logo shows a curly tail: PEPPA PIG

Peppa Pig is a children's animated series produced in the UK and broadcast around the world. There's even a Peppa Pig World theme park in Hampshire, England.

9 Viewliner Bedroom Providers : AMTRAK

Amtrak began phasing in Superliner railcars in 1979 with the replacement of its Heritage fleet of rolling stock. Superliner cars are a two-level design with most of the passenger compartments on the upper level and windows on both sides. Superliner cars were used on routes east of Chicago and could not be used on eastern routes due to narrow tunnel spacing. Amtrak began introducing single-deck Viewliner vehicles on long-haul routes east of Chicago in 1994.

15 Cape Canaveral's 321, for example: AREA CODE

The famous Florida headland called Cape Canaveral was named by Spanish explorers in the early 16th century. Because the Cape acts as a launch station for many NASA rockets, NASA's facility on nearby Merritt Island was renamed the Kennedy Space Center after President Kennedy's assassination in 1963, and President Johnson went so far as to rename all of Cape Canaveral to the Cape to rename Kennedy. However, the name change for the cape did not go down well in Florida, as the headland had been called Cape Canaveral for over 400 years. So the name was restored in 1973 and Cape Kennedy no longer exists.

16 Worship time : NOVENA

In the Roman Catholic tradition, a novena is a series of prayers or services repeated for nine consecutive days. "Novena" derives from the Latin "novem" which means "nine".

20 shelters named after a Senator: ROTH IRA

Roth Individual Retirement Accounts (Roth IRAs) were introduced in 1997 under a bill sponsored by Senator William Roth of Delaware, hence the name.

21 Soybeans? : IDEA

Slang terms for "head" are "bean," "coconut," "pumpkin," "noodle," and "noggin."

22 Printer color: CYAN

"Cyan" is short for "cyan blue". The term comes from the Greek word "kyanos" meaning "dark blue, the color of lapis lazuli".

Four color printing uses four different color inks: cyan, magenta, yellow and black. The black ink is also known as the "key". The first letter of the colors (with black being the "key") gives the more common name for four-color printing, which is CMYK.

24 subject art student : ANAT

Anatomy (anat.)

25 Orthodox leader? : NEO

Neo-Orthodox is a 20th-century Protestant movement that emphasizes certain older, traditional teachings. It arose after World War I, largely in response to the more liberal theology that developed in the 19th century.

26 Relative hedgehog: shrew

Shrews are mammals that look like little moles or long-nosed mice. They are the only terrestrial mammals known to echolocate, using a series of ultrasonic squeaks to probe their close surroundings.

Hedgehogs are spiny mammals that have adapted to a nocturnal life. Although they have quills, hedgehogs are not related to porcupines. The term "hedgehog" originated in the 15th century. They are often found in hedges and have pig-like snouts, hence the name "hedgehog".

29 1993 Jack Lemmon comedy: GRUMPY OLD MEN

Grumpy Old Men is a wonderful 1993 romantic comedy starring Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau and Ann-Margret, and has an excellent supporting cast. Grumpy Old Man marked the sixth on-screen collaboration between Lemmon and Matthau, but the first in over a decade.

Great actor Jack Lemmon was born in a hospital elevator in suburban Boston in 1925. The long list of Jack Lemmon films on my favorite list includes Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Irma La Douce, The Odd Couple and Grumpy Old Men.

35 Top-40-Hits im Soundtrack zu „A Charlie Brown Christmas“: LINUS AND LUCY

Linus and Lucy is a jazz instrumental composed by pianist Vince Guaraldi and released on Guaraldi's 1964 album Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown. It was included on the soundtrack of the TV special "A Charlie Brown Christmas" in 1965 and has been the signature tune of the "Peanuts" franchise ever since. The title refers to the "Peanuts" characters Linus and Lucy van Pelt.

37 single bed : FUTON

Anyone lucky enough to have visited Japan may be familiar with the traditional Japanese futon. In contrast to what we tend to call futon in this country, the Japanese original is a padded mattress and quilt. Japanese futons are usually rolled up in the morning so the sleeping area can be converted during the day.

41 "My__": Duet Usher/Alicia Keys: BOO

"My Boo" is a 2004 duet co-written and recorded by Usher and Alicia Keys. In the song, Usher and Keys play the role of an ex-couple who talks about remaining feelings for each other after the breakup.

42 tofu nutrient: IRON

"Tofu" is a name for bean curd and a Japanese word that means just that... bean that's curdled. Tofu is made by coagulating soy milk using either salt or some acid. Once the protein has coagulated, the quark is pressed into the known blocks. I personally love tofu, but my wife absolutely hates it...

44 Bobby of R&B’s Famous Flames: BYRD

Bobby Byrd was an R&B singer and founder of the singing group The Famous Flames. Byrd is credited with spotting the talents of soul icon James Brown, who Byrd brought on as lead singer for the Famous Flames in the mid-1950s.

50 nickname in Paris? : PERE NOEL

A central character on Christmas Day is Santa Claus, also known as "Father Christmas" and "Père Noël" in French.

52 Venetian market place : RIALTO

Rialto is the financial and commercial center of Venice and has been for centuries. One of the area's most famous features is the Rialto Bridge, which spans the Grand Canal.

53 An MCU character: UNIVERSE

Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)

Marvel Comics was founded in 1939 as Timely Comics before becoming Atlas Comics in 1951 and finally Marvel Comics in 1961. The Marvel brand existed from day one and Timely Comics' first publication was Marvel Comics #1 in October 1939. This first comic featured the superhero Human Torch.

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4 Arctic Hunters Clothing: PARKA

A parka is a hooded jacket, often lined with fur, worn in cold weather. The original parka was a sweater design, but these days it's usually zipped up the front. “Parka” is the Russian name for the garment and was adopted into English via the Aleutian language in the late 17th century.

7 documents with date of birth, often: IDS

Identity document (ID)

date of birth (date of birth)

9 Actor Mount who plays Captain Pike in the recent Star Trek series: ANSON

Actor Anton Mount landed the role of Captain Christopher Pile on the TV show Star Trek: Discovery in 2018. He reprized the role in several episodes of sister series Star Trek: Short Treks and then led the cast as Captain an Pike in the TV series Star Trek: Strange New Worlds beginning in 2022.

10 Name on some Magnums: MOET

Moët & Chandon is a French winery and one of the world's largest champagne producers. The company was founded in 1743 by the wine merchant Claude Moët. The name was changed to Moët & Chandon in the 1830s when Pierre-Gabriel Chandon, a brother-in-law of the Moët family, became a co-owner. Moët & Chandon owns the famous Dom Pérignon brand name in honor of the Benedictine monk who did so much to improve the quality of champagne.

The list of standard wine bottle sizes is long. The main ones to be encountered would be:

• 187.5ml: a "split" often used for a single serving of champagne
• 375 ml: a "half"
• 750 ml: the standard size
• 1.5 L: a "Magnum", twice the standard size
• 3.0 L: a "double magnum" and also a "standard size" for wine cases

11 remote possibility? : TV CHANNEL

The first television remote control was introduced by Zenith Radio Corporation in 1950. This remote control was hardwired to the TV and marketed as "Lazy Bones". Personally, my first 'remote control' was a broomstick, which I used by pressing large mechanical buttons that selected each of the three channels then available on the east coast of Ireland...

12 Kegelhalter: RETINA

The retina is the tissue that lines the inside of the eye and is the light-sensitive tissue. There are (mainly) two types of cells in the retina that are sensitive to light, namely rods and cones. Rods are cells that work best in very low light, providing only black and white vision. Cones, on the other hand, function in brighter light and can perceive color.

13 Arctic hunter's clothing: ANORAK

Anoraks really aren't very popular here in America. Everyone has one in Ireland! An anorak is a heavy hooded jacket, often lined with fur (or faux fur), and is an Inuit invention.

14. 2021 Summer Olympics debut: KARATE

Karate is a martial art that originated in the Ryukyu Kingdom, now part of Japan. A karate practitioner is known as a karateka. The sport of karate was included as an Olympic sport from the 2020 games.

22 sources of saffron : CROCUSES

The crocus (plural "Croci") is a genus of flowering plants in the iris family. The term "crocus" ultimately derives from the Sanskrit word for "saffron". The saffron spice comes from Crocus sativus, the "saffron crocus".

26 Tenerife Country: SPAIN

Tenerife is the largest of the seven Canary Islands off the coast of Morocco in North Africa. Tenerife belongs to Spain and is the most populous island in the country with almost 900,000 inhabitants. It receives about five million visitors annually, making it one of the top tourist destinations in the world.

27 Mass Performance: Anthem

The most important service in the Roman Catholic tradition is the Mass. The term "mass" comes from the late Latin word "missa", which means "dismissal". This word is used at the end of the Latin Mass in "Ite, missa est", which literally means "Go, it is the dismissal".

30 pieces of summer salad : MELON BALL

Melons are plants with edible, fleshy fruits that are usually sweet. The fruit of a melon is actually a berry.

33 Likörwein: RUBY PORT

The Portuguese city of Oporto (“Porto” in Portuguese) gave port its name in the late 17th century. Porto was the seaport through which most of the region's fortified red wines were exported.

34 filmmaker who helped launch the African Film Heritage Project: SCORSESE

Film director Martin Scorsese is a native New Yorker and is known for directing films set in the Big Apple. Scorsese's great films include Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Casino and The Departed.

38 Muse on the Seal of the U.S. Naval Observatory: URANIA

In Greek mythology, Urania was the goddess and muse of astronomy. She is usually depicted with a cloak embroidered with stars and with her eyes turned to the heavens.

The US Naval Observatory was founded in 1830 as a depot for maps and instruments. It is responsible for creating data for the Department of Defense for navigation, geopositioning and timekeeping. The US Naval Observatory campus in northwest Washington, D.C., is home to an astronomical observatory and the official residence of the US Vice President (located at Number One Observatory Circle).

44 Curses: BANES

Today we usually use the word "curse" in the sense of "anthema, source of enduring trouble". A few centuries ago a curse was a cause of harm or death, perhaps a deadly poison.

46 Hound of Whodunits: ASTA

Asta is the adorable little dog in the amazing film series The Thin Man, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy (as Nick and Nora Charles). In Dashiell Hammett's original story, Asta was a female schnauzer, but on screen, Asta was played by a wire-haired fox terrier named "Skippy." Skippy was also the dog in Bringing Up Baby starring Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn who kept stealing the dinosaur bone. Skippy retired in 1939, so Asta was played by other dogs in the rest of The Thin Man movies.

47 Verdict of the Paris instigator: ERIS

In Greek mythology, the Judgment of Paris is the story of Paris being commissioned by Troy to decide which of the goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite was the fairest. Aphrodite gave Paris the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, as a bribe to win the competition. Paris abducted Helen to TroyThe Judgment of Paris started the Trojan War.

48 “The Periodic Table” author Primo: LEVI

"The Periodic Table" is a collection of 21 short stories by Primo Levi. The stories are mostly autobiographical and each is named after an element on the periodic table. Each story is connected to the title element in some way.

50 Brita-Alternative: PUR

Pur is a brand of water filters and related products that was sold to Procter & Gamble in 1999 and then back to Helen of Troy Limited.