google.com, pub-2774194725043577, DIRECT, f08c47fec0942fa0 L.A.Times Crossword Corner: Monday August 12, 2024 Zhouqin Burnikel

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Aug 12, 2024

Monday August 12, 2024 Zhouqin Burnikel

  

Happy Monday, everyone! sumdaze here with an entertaining puzzle by our prolific blogmistress, Zhouqin Burnikel. 

Theme:                

Today we have four names of DANCEs hidden in longer words. The letters that spell out the dance names are clumped at the beginnings and ends so one might say they have been broken in two -- giving us the reveal BREAK DANCE. The circles help to identify the letters used to spell the dance names, keeping this puzzle at a Monday level.
Perhaps it is easier to show the grid than to try to explain it.  
The themed clues and answers are:

16 Across. Brass player's recital piece: HORN SONATA.  The HORA is the high-energy circle dance often performed at Jewish wedding receptions.  
      
(L)  HORA            (R)  Beethoven  ~  Horn Sonata in F major, Op. 17  ~  (1800) 

22 Across. Port on the Strait of Gibraltar: TANGIER MOROCCO.  The TANGO is a partner dance which originated in the 1880s along the Río de la Plata in South America.  
      
(L) TANGO                     (R)  Tangier, Morocco tourist video  (6:04 min.)

36 Across. Anise-flavored Italian liqueur: SAMBUCA.  The SAMBA is a lively dance of Afro-Brazilian origin.  
 
(L)  SAMBA                                     (R)  SAMBUCA

46. Classic Chaney horror film: HOUSE OF DRACULA.  HULA is a dance form developed in the Hawaiian Islands.  
      
(L)  HULA                                     (R)  1945 movie trailer

57. Debut sport at the Paris Olympics, or what 16-, 22-, 36-, and 46-Across do to their circled letters: BREAK DANCE.
Breaking (or BREAK DANCing) was voted into the 2024 Games but did not make the cut for the 2028 Games. The competition consists of one-on-one battles. Contestants will be judged by varied criteria that is a mix of artistic expression and athletic power and grace. A huge obstacle is that contestants will not know the music ahead of time, requiring improvisation based on the DJ's tracks.

Next, let's boogie on over to the other clues....  

Across:
1. Wrap party party: ACTOR.  I loved this for a 1A clue! A wrap party is for everyone involved in making a movie or TV show to celebrate the end of filming. The meaning of the second "party" is "a person participating in an action or an affair".

6. C and D in D.C.: STS.  STreetS  Tricky! Tricky!

9. Muscat's country: OMAN.  Muscat is the capital of OMAN. Its population is about 1.7 million people, making it OMAN's largest city.

13. "Say Anything ... " director Cameron: CROWE.  This was a 1989 teen romcom staring John Cusack and crossword personality Ione Skye.
It has the iconic scene where John Cusack stands under his girlfriend's window, holding a boombox over his head playing In Your Eyes by Peter Gabriel; however, that is not my favorite scene. Instead I am giving you this one:  Lloyd Dobler's girlfriend is the class valedictorian. Her dad asks Lloyd about his future career plans.  (1:23 min.) 

14. At the summit of: ATOP.  
Snoopy prefers to sleep ATOP his doghouse.

15. Bring back to health: CURE.  verb

18. "¿Cómo __ usted?": ESTA.

19. Gulp down: EAT.

20. Concave navel: INNIE.  Omphalophobia is the fear of bellybuttons. Some people fear the knot will come undone but (#NewsFlash) there is no knot.

21. Barely known celebs: D-LIST.

25. Worker without lungs: ANT.  I had the T so I first filled in "boT".
Ants take in oxygen through tiny holes all over the body called spiracles. They emit carbon dioxide through these same holes.

26. Pumpkin __: PATCH.  
Essay (569 words):  The Great Pumpkin and Sincerity
"...my Dad told us every year that the TV people changed the ending and
this would be the year that the Great Pumpkin actually showed up."

27. Emails covertly: BCCS.

30. Networking device: MODEM.  Nice. A MODEM is a connecting to the network device.

33. FaceTime platform: IOS.  IOS is the proprietary operating system for iPhones and iPads.

35. Thai language kin: LAO.

38. Digit covered by a sock: TOE.

39. Address in a hyperlink: URL.  Uniform Resource Locator

40. Flannel pattern: PLAID.  

41. NASCAR great Petty: KYLE.  kylepetty.com says he is a "racer, TV personality, musician, philanthropist, author, and speaker".

42. Makes fuzzy: BLURS.  
Sometimes BLURry is beautiful   ...    sometimes it is not.

44. Prefix sometimes paired with "het": CIS-.  I am not sure about this one. It possibly refers to people who are both CISgener and heterogenous.

52. Happen next: ENSUE.  

53. Got out of 63-Across: AROSE.     and     63 Across. Place to sleep: BED.

54. Aircraft carrier letters: USS.  
My brother's grandson is stationed on this aircraft carrier.
We're proud of him.

56. Wild animal's den: LAIR.  Sometimes the clue/answer is "Wild animal's lair:  DEN".

59. Item used onstage: PROP.  
Broadway's 8 Most Iconic PROPs

60. "It's the least __ do!": I CAN.

61. "From the top!": AGAIN.  

62. __ serif: SANS.  SANS means "without". Its etymology is from Middle English's saun or sans, which can be traced back to Latin's sine.

64. Scholarship factor: MERIT.

Down:
1. Post-Pilates pain: ACHE.

2. Dubrovnik native: CROAT.  Today I learned that the Republic of Dubrovnik was the world's first state to recognize the United States of America (in 1776).

3. Mexican sandwich: TORTA.  Several internet sources say that, in Mexico, TORTA is a subcategory of sandwiches because it is made on a roll as opposed to sliced breadTORTA also means "cake" in other Spanish-speaking countries.

4. Utterly dominate: OWN.  I was ready to change the O to a P, if needed. We've had the gaming slang PWN in past puzzles.

5. Quit one's job: RESIGN.  
Uh-huh...yep.

6. Escalator part: STAIR.  Here is a video of people encountering an escalator for the first time.  (1:31 min.) I love their willingness to try out this curious contraption.

7. Symbol carved on a pole: TOTEM.

8. Infrared sauna spot: SPA.

9. Second-largest spotted cat in South America: OCELOT.  
So gorgeous!

10. Nashville nickname: MUSIC CITY.  

11. Drawing class offerer: ART SCHOOL.

12. "Excellent!": NEATO.

14. Hathaway of "Interstellar": ANNE.  She starred with Matthew McConaughey and Jessica Chastain in this 2014 movie.

17. "I'll handle that!": ON IT.

21. Comedy counterpart: DRAMA.  This made me think of the masks.  

23. "That's What I Want" singer Lil __ X: NAS.

24. Oil cartel letters: OPEC.

27. __-ray disc: BLU.

28. Pasta dish with bacon, eggs, and cheese: CARBONARA.  
Yesterday we had "46A Like carbonara:  BACONY."

29. Illegal cooperation: COLLUSION.  Fun word! It means "secret agreement or cooperation especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose". Cue the trailer for The Parent Trap (1961).  

30. UFC fighting style: MMA.  Ultimate Fighting Championship and Mixed Martial Arts

31. __-Wan Kenobi: OBI.  He is the Star Wars character to whom Princess Leia sends the hologram (1977).  

32. Commercial flop: DUD.  Def.:  (noun) one that is ineffectual; failure.

34. "Didn't I warn you?": SEE.  

36. Retail therapy session: SPREE.  Retail therapy is not actual "therapy". It is shopping with the primary purpose of improving the buyer's mood and can lead to financial troubles that will only make matters worse.  
37. In addition: ALSO.

41. Sunflower Showdown sch.: KSU.  Kansas State University
The sunflower is the state flower of Kansas.

43. Takes over by force: USURPS.  Def.:  (verb) to seize and hold (office, place, functions, powers, etc.) in possession by force or without right.

44. Whiskey barrel: CASK.

45. Winter river blockage: ICE DAM.

46. Assists: HELPS.

47. Absurdist comedy: FARCE.  This video explains the differences between parodyFARCE, and satire.  (6:43 min.)

48. Anticipate with fear: DREAD.

49. Multicolored horse: ROAN.  Having been around, ridden, and owned ROAN horses, I always feel like the color of these horses is difficult to capture in a crossword clue.

50. Moon-related: LUNAR.

51. Computer character set: ASCII.  

55. In the mail: SENT.  

57. Tot's dinner garb: BIB.  
Ick!

58. 13.7 billion years, for our universe: AGE.  This puzzle both started and ended with memorable clues.

That's all for today. What do you think? Was this puzzle a waltz in the park?

35 comments:

Subgenius said...

I’d say this puzzle, while certainly solvable, had considerably more ‘crunch’ than the usual Monday puzzle. But, while not the ordinary Monday “walk in the park” it was still a lot of fun to solve, and not all that difficult, in the long run. So, thanks, C.C.! Oh, yes, before I forget: FIR, so I’m happy.

desper-otto said...

Good morning!

Monday's are usually easy, but I needed my Wite-Out today because I RETIREd before I RESIGNed. [Sigh.] To make matters worse, _YLE led me to LYLE, and that first L led me to LSU. Never caught the sunflower reference. Bzzzzzt! Yup, it's a dreaded DNF on a Monday. Thanx, C.C. and sumdaze.

MODEM : A router is a networking device. I guess a MODEM allows a single computer to connect to a network, though. OK, awkward, but no foul.

USS : Many, many years ago I served on a WWII aircraft carrier. It was already almost 30 years old. In foreign ports we'd hear, "Bonnie Dick is an old rust bucket!", hoping to start a bar brawl. I wouldn't rise to the bait: "I'll drink to that!"

Jinx in Norfolk said...

FIR, but erased spice for PATCH and arise for AROSE (read the clue, Jinx!

I toyed with CVN instead of USS. Our newest, the USS Gerald R. Ford, is also CVN-78.

Yesterday's error with that little car model allowed me to get SONATA today.

DNK there was such thing as an infrared sauna, but the Ektorp dictionary said the fill had to be SPA.

I'm betting that the Sunflower Showdown is some kind of game between Kansas and KSU. Those can be notable, like the Florida/FSU and USC/UCLA games.

You can add BREAK DANCE to the list of Olympic events that I won't be watching.

Thanks to CC for the fun Monday outing, except for the het/CIS clue and fill, which (i'm guessing) is our indoctrinationist-in-chief Patti's doing. And thanks to sumdaze for the fun review. Please send my thanks to your grandnephew(?) for his service. Tell him to look up ol' Jinx when (not if) he gets to Norfolk.

Anonymous said...

SWeet puzzle, but took 5:05 today for me to be finishING.

I believe it is technically "breaking," not "break dancing."

I knew today's actress (Anne), but I didn't know the Mexican sandwich or how to spell the Italian dish.

I liked "Interstellar." I love "Say Anything...." It's one of my favorite movies.
And, I didn't have to watch the clip - I know it well. It's definitely a classic.

Irish Miss said...

Good Morning:

I was halfway through the solve before I noticed CC's byline, much to my delight, but I wonder why this wasn't published in a more timely manner, say last week while the Olympics were still going on. The circles, naturally, signaled the theme, and the reveal was easy to guess. There was a bit of a bite for a Monday, but the perps were eminently fair throughout the clean grid, although I did miss seeing some of CC's trademark declarative phrases.

Thanks, CC, for a nice start to the week and thanks, sumdaze, for the fun and facts. Enjoyed all of the dance videos, especially the tango as that always reminds me of the powerful scene from Scent of A Woman, featuring a blind Al Pacino teaching a young girl the beauty of the dance. Snoopy always makes me smile and that plate of Carbonara made my mouth water! Also loved the "Plowed" Snowman!

Have a great day.

YooperPhil said...

Took me 10:06 to TWIST my way through this one, and just as I figured, SS managed to HUSTLE through in half my time. (SS ~ you forgot your tagline today - OJC ! ). Gene Kelly and Fred Astaire sometimes incorporated PROPs as dance partners. And speaking of dance, it is coincidentally the theme of “Strands” today. A Monday Funday sorta romp through this one, thanks C.C. for easing us into the CW week, and to sumdaze for your entertaining run down, especially for allaying my fears that my BELLY button knot would come undone. 😂

The new format is playing havoc with my iPad again 😡

Yellowrocks said...

This was fun and doable, but had crunch, more like a Wednesday puzzle. A puzzle with no dreck. I inferred from the first dance that these would be dances and wondered what the reveal would be. Clever, CC. Sumdaze, I liked your excellent post showing all the dances.
Ice dams around here occur in the eaves.
Whenever we have an internet signal interruption my computer loses connectivity with my printer. Then, I have to turn off the modem, the printer and the computer and turn them all on again every time I print for about two days, even though the signal strength comes back almost immediately.
No obscurities for me. Only Kyle and torta needed perps and wags.
I understand het/cis, put the clue was poorly worded. It seems that some think the mere mention of LGBTQ is propaganda. The realty exists and can't be banned, but there is a right to like it or not.
A shopping spree is not pleasant for me. I shop online and only when I need something.
"Infrared therapy is a light-based treatment that uses specific wavelengths of infrared light to treat pain and inflammation in the body." It usually uses a heat lamp, kind of like sun bathing.

KS said...

FIR, but I found this to be a little crunchy for a Monday. Threw down Lyle before Kyle, didn't know the Mexican sandwich, or the proper name Crowe. And I do not get cis as the prefix clued the way it was, or in any way at all.
I got the theme early on and that helped a lot with the solve. Whether break dancing was part of the Olympics or not was immaterial.
Overall this Monday presentation was less than enjoyable.

Anonymous said...

Quite tough fir a Mondy. Not fun.

RosE said...

Good Morning! What a nice surprise to see CC as our constructor today! Thanks, CC.
What a timely theme! I just read in the news there was a BREAK DANCEr who received 0 (zero) points, so when BREAK appeared, DANCE filled right in.
My downfall was the NW. I had 1A, 1D and 5D, but the director was unknown CROAT and TORTA were depending on the perps, and I was determined that “Hula” was the dance. WO got a workout! Once I googled CROWE, I gave up on hula (see 46A) as HORA appeared (sigh), and it was done!
WO: ave -> STS; ON me -> ON IT; O(kla)SU -> KSU.
ESP for ASCII
Thanks, sumdaze, for sharing your wit and wisdom.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...



Not very Mondayish at all. CC Whaddayah doing to me? 🥹. Lotsa blanks that required perp-aid culminating in an embarrassing DNF: CI_ crossed with L_U. ?

Alla CARBONARA “in the style of the coal miner’s wife” carbone = coal, carbon, and charcoal

Didn’t quite understand “Wrap party party“ for ACTOR. (“It’s a wrap” maybe? If so that’s a more end of the week type clue) Almost put Crane for CROWE. Loved ANNA 1 ANNA2 etc. “wunnerful wunnerful” 😊

Inkovers: awoke/AROSE. USN/USS, actually first put BRIDE OF DRACULA!! 🤣😂 (wait, LIU, Bram Stoker actually wrote a later novel: “Brides of Dracula” so there! 😛)

Knew tragedy was to long 🎭

Did OBI ever dress in Japanese drag and don an OBI? 😃

When my now 42 y o physician son was in HS he was assigned Poe’s “The CASK of Amontillado”. He came to me with a question about the story. I figured something to do with the philosophy of revenge etc. “Dad, what’s a CASK?”

Our visit from our Massachusetts family this week just got cancelled. Covid.😟

Monkey said...

Nice to see Zhouqin’s name. I trusted I would be in good hands. However the NW gave me pause, but I boogied on and found my rhythm. My only guess was the K for KYLE and KSU. I lucked out. I eventually returned NW and found my footing.

I always think of Peanuts when I see pumpkin PATCH. I’ve been to Ceuta and tried that before TANGIER which fit better.

Thanks Sumdaze (spellcheck always capitalizes your name in spite of what I write) for a terrific recap. I liked the FARCE etc video.

unclefred said...

WEES, more a Wednesday level CW. While doing it I keep thinking, "Why am I struggling on a Monday? More CAFFEINE!" I did FIR but in 21 minutes, perhaps the longest time (for me) ever on a Monday. Well, I shouldn't say that, sometimes I get the dreaded DNF or FIW on a Monday. STS filled with perps and left me scratching me head, until Sumdaze 'splained it. I did get the theme with the very first clue, which was a big help. I didn't think I would like the breakdancing in the Olympics, and am still not sure it is really an Olympic sport, but I did find it entertaining to watch, and a surprising mixture of athletic and artistic ability. Fun to watch, but Olympic? Then again, it's kinda like synchronized swimming: athletic + artistic. And how DO they get upside down in the pool and not get water in their noses? Anyway, the CW: fun, clever, crunchy for a Monday but doable, thanx C.C. And thanx too to Sumdaze for the great (as always) write-up, and 'splainin' the bits where I failed to get the V-8 can.

Husker Gary said...

Musings
-A beautiful, day-appropriate construction and review!
-FORE!

unclefred said...

A "Wrap Party" is what they have when a film finally "wraps", or finishes, and the entire crew involved in making the film has a big party to celebrate. A 'party' to that party would be an actor.

AnonymousPVX said...

The swimmers use nose clips.

Anonymous said...

Thanks CC. Fun but isn’t today Monday?

Anonymous said...

No baseball related clue

Acesaroundagain said...

A little more difficult than a normal Monday but a lot of fun. Very appropriate for the close of the Olympics. Well done CC.

Charlie Echo said...

An enjoyable start to the week from CC, with a great write-up from sumdaze. Enjoyed watching the dances, and the clip from "The Parent Trap". I had a tremendous crush on Hayley Mills back then! D-O, was "Bonnie Dick" a nickname for USS Bon Homme Richard? I had a good friend who was a yeoman on the Shangri-La. (Also many moons ago!) I believe both ships have long been turned into razor blades and such.

sumdaze said...

D-Otto@5:33, ET AL. I always enjoy reading your stories from your time in the service.

Anon@7:44. Nice to hear that you like that clip, too.

Monkey@10:16. It's OK with me if you capitalize the S. However, if this is a problem you encounter with other situations, one fix is to right-click on the word then click on "Add to dictionary". After that, your spell check will recognize the word and not try to correct it.

desper-otto said...

@Charlie Echo : Yes, it was officially the Bon Homme Richard (Only Richard is pronounced the French way -- Ree-shard. Bon rhymes with Don, Homme rhymes with Tom and the H is pronounced). In '71, when we returned to San Diego from our final WestPac cruise, we hung a banner on the island : "Bonnie Dick is not a social disease." And, yes, Bonnie Dick went to the scrap heap in '92 after spending 20 years in the mothball fleet at Bremerton.

Misty said...

Delightful Monday puzzle, a special thanks to you, C.C., for this gift. And your commentary was also a big help, Sumdaze--thanks for that too.

As soon as I saw ACTOR, I figured that this was going to be this puzzle's theme. And it was. Right at the start we have that ACTOR going to ART SCHOOL, where they were surely going to give him or her some HELP in the field of DRAMA, with PROPs as well as other aspects of instruction. Let's just hope our ACTOR will stay with DRAMA and comedy, and avoid FARCE.

Well, soon it'll be time to watch some DRAMA on TV. Have a great Monday, everybody.

Ray - O - Sunshine said...

I agree and came to that conclusion just felt that for a simple answer like ACTOR it was more of a Saturday level clue .

Prof M said...

sumdaze@ 12:27 thanks for the right-click tip. But how does one right-click on an iPad?

Charlie Echo said...

Breaking as an Olympic sport is probably not as strange as some that have appeared in the past, such as live pigeon shooting, or stranger still, Croquet at one point! D-O...I once got a tour of the USS Hancock while she was anchored in Sydney Harbor for a liberty on her way to Yankee Station. Included was a stop in one of her fire rooms. If my guide had abandoned me at this point, I'd probably still be trying to find my way out. What a maze! A couple of years later, I saw the Enterprise at Hunters Point, with two Essex class ships tied up next to her. Huge! And the new ones are bigger yet. Amazing.

sumdaze said...

Prof M @12:27. Hmmmm..... Good question! I googled "how to right-click on an iPad" and saw several responses that looked viable. One said, "Whenever you tap with two fingers on the trackpad, it will function as a right-click and enable according to it." I am a PC user so I cannot test any of the suggestions I read. (Several years ago I had a Mac laptop issued to me by a company I worked for but I do not remember enough about it now.) Perhaps you can do some investigating and help Monkey out with this?

Monkey said...

sumdaze @12:27. Thanks. Since I use an iPad, I went to Settings and entered your uncapitalized name into text replacement, and as you can see it worked. Thanks for the reminder.

Lucina said...

Hola!
It's Monday count day which always makes me late to the party and also, I needed a nap when I came home. When I got to the puzzle it filled very quickly . Thank you, C.C. TANGIER, MOROCCO always recalls my memories of a visit there. Most of you know or may recall that I was almost not allowed to return to the ferry. I believe the guards mistook me for a native but when I questioned them they realized their mistake.
KSU. Any mention of Kansas reminds me of the acres and acres of sunflowers on both sides of the road we passed through when my brother and I went for my aunt's funeral. It is a stunning sight!
Thanks to crosswords I am familiar with names like LIL Nas, etc.
I used to love going on a shopping SPREE but these days if I need anything I shop online. D-otto, I also enjoy your stories of your time in service and I'm grateful to you and all who have served our country.
Have a wonderful rest of the day, everyone!

Jayce said...

I rather enjoyed this puzzle. It was not exactly a waltz in the park. Filling in the across answers prefilled some of the down answers so I didn't even see them. Frankly, I held my nose at Prefix sometimes paired with "het": CIS.
Pumpkin EATER --> SPICE --> PATCH.
The Spanish word for sandwich is TACO.
Hand up for hesitating on what letter crossed -YLE and -SU.
Good reading you all.

Big Easy said...

I didn't watch the Break Dance either. And I didn't file an insurance claim yet. I just noticed TODAY that neither of my doorbells is working. Damn snake.

Big Easy said...

First things first. Congratulations C.C. on your 'dance puzzle'.

I didn't notice the circles of the BREAK DANCES but they were obvious after the reveal. The HORN SONATA was an easy fill but I'd never heard the term. It sounded like a baritone horn accompanied by piano. Or was it JazzB (Ron) playing on his trombone?

SAMBUCA was an unknown filled by perps. So were Cameron CROWE, CIS, TORTA, ANNE, CARBONARA . Tougher than the usual Monday fare.

Yesterday was my granddaughter's 25th birthday and where did she go the previous week? Dubrovnik, CROATia. where Delta left didn't have her suitcase. Left it in Paris, which Jenna located with her Apple Air Tag.

Monkey said...

Wow! Big Easy @6:30 pm. I’ll have remember about the Apple Air tag. HB to your granddaughter. Ah! To be 25 again.

Lucina said...

Yes, TACO can mean sandwich but if you order one expecting a sandwich with two pieces of bread and some meat between them, be forewarned: that is not what you'll get!

Prof M said...

sumdaze @2:26 thank you for the deeper dive into the right-click on an iPad. I lost the use of my iPad yesterday (Monday), long story, thus my late gratitude.