L. A. Times Crossword Wednesday, December 21, 2022 Susan Gelfand

Theme: A Sporting Chance.  In the language phrases are repurposed to indicate an action involving professional sport team players.  In each case, the first word of the phrase is transformed from a modifier to a verb; a clever and unusual kind of word play.   The major U.S. sports, hockey, football, baseball and basketball are all represented.

17 A. Lend San Jose NHL players?: LOAN SHARKS.  A loan shark is a person who offers loans at extremely high interest rates, has strict terms of collection upon failure, and generally operates outside the law.  The San Jose Sharks are currently in 8th place in the Western Conference of the National Hockey League.  Would your team like to borrow one?

23 A. Ring up Los Angeles NFL players?: PHONE CHARGERS.  A phone charger is the accessory you plug into your phone when the battery power is low.  The L.A. Chargers are in 2nd place in the AFC West, behind the Kansas City Chiefs.  Give them a call.

47 A. Improve Los Angeles MLB players?: PERFECT ANGELS.  A perfect angel is an adorable and well behaved child. I cold not find a suitable definition on line, so I made this one up.  The L.A. Angels finished the 1922 season in 3rd place in the Al West division, 33 games behind the 1st place Astros.  There are certainly some opportunities for perfecting their play.

57 A. Videotape Miami NBA players?: RECORD HEAT.  Record heat is the highest temperature reached on a given calendar day at a specific location.  One could record the Miami basketball team with a camera or cell phone - if it's charged.  They are currently in 3rd place in the Eastern conference of the National Basketball Association.

Hi, Gang - JazzBumpa on hand to announce today's game.  I'm quite taken with today's theme. Sadly, though my local Detroit teams are all mired in mediocrity, but the Lions are showing signs of life, and have a slim chance of making the play-offs. On the other hand, I think we all have a sporting chance to get a good solve today.  Let's check it out

Across:

1. Peony part: PETAL.  Each of the segments of the corolla of a flower, which are modified leaves and are typically colored.

6. Tools that can be musical instruments: SAWS.  Here is one.

10. Huge tubs: VATS.  Large tanks or tubs used to hold liquid, especially in industry.

14. Venue for big concerts: ARENA.   A level area surrounded by seats for spectators, in which sports, entertainments, and other public events are held.

15. Discontinued Apple gadget: I-POD.   A portable electronic device for playing and storing digital audio and video files.

16. Cut covered by a SpongeBob bandage, e.g.: OWIE.  Kid's name for a small injury, aka booboo.

19. Bridge pose discipline: YOGA.  A Hindu spiritual and ascetic discipline, a part of which, including breath control, simple meditation, and the adoption of specific bodily postures, is widely practiced for health and relaxation.

20. Twisty curve: ESS.  Shaped similar to the letter.

21. Late tourney game: SEMI.  Short for semi-final.  The winner advances to the final game.

22. Gingerbread person?: BAKER.  Also the cookie person and the cake person, unless I'm misunderstanding.

27. Soothing succulents: ALOES.   Any of several succulent plants, typically having a rosette of toothed fleshy leaves and bell-shaped or tubular flowers on long stems. Native to the Old World tropics, several species are cultivated commercially or as ornamentals.

29. Foray: SORTIE.   An attack made by troops coming out from a position of defense.

30. Like much fall weather: COOL.  At a fairly low temperature.

31. Admits as much: LETS ON.   Reveal or divulges information to someone.

32. Stick (out): JUT.   Extend out, over, or beyond the main body or line of something.

35. Workweek starter, for some: MONDAY.   The day between Sunday and Tuesday. 

37. Minnesota mining range: MESABI.    A mining district in northeastern Minnesota following an elongate trend containing large deposits of iron ore. It is the largest of four major iron ranges in the region collectively known as the Iron Range of Minnesota.

39. First responder's group, for short: EMS.   Emergency Medical Services.

40. Write-ups that still need some work: DRAFTS.   Preliminary versions of pieces of writing.
 
44. "You can say that again!": AMEN.   An Abrahamic declaration of affirmation which is first found in the Hebrew Bible, and subsequently found in the New Testament. It is used in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim practices as a concluding word, or as a response to a prayer.

45. Safe to put away?: EDIBLE.   Suitable to be eaten.

46. Elaborate cake layers: TIERS.   A tiered cake is multiple, differently sized cakes, stacked atop one another to create height and drama that lends itself to becoming a focal point of the party.

51. Steer clear of: AVOID.   Keep away from or stop oneself from doing something.

52. Chance to roll the dice, say: TURN.   An opportunity or responsibility to do or use something before or after other people

53. __ Moines, Iowa: DES.  The capitol city of Iowa.

56. Ancient France: GAUL.   Gaul was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy, and Germany west of the Rhine. 

60. Slight advantage: EDGE.    

61. Jacob's twin in the Book of Genesis: ESAU.   Esau is the elder son of Isaac in the Hebrew Bible.  He was the progenitor of the Edomites and the elder brother of Jacob, the patriarch of the Israelites. Jacob and Esau were the sons of Isaac and Rebecca, and the grandsons of Abraham and Sarah. Of the twins, Esau was the first to be born with Jacob following, holding his heel. Isaac was sixty years old when the boys were born.

62. Give body to, as hair: TEASE.   Teasing, also known as backcombing or ratting, is a combing technique used to create volume at the root of your hair. The technique involves using a fine tooth comb to gently comb the hair downward toward your scalp, causing the hair to slightly tangle and create a voluminous final look.

63. Closing document: DEED.   A legal document by which one person transfers land or buildings to another. 

64. Gen-__: post-boomers: X-ERS.   Generation X is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1960s as starting birth years and the late 1970s to early 1980s as ending birth years, with the generation being generally defined as people born from 1965 to 1980. 

65. 63-Across holder: OWNER.   A person who has legal possession of something.

Down:

1. Lacking color: PALE.  Light in color or having little color.

2. Amorous archer: EROS.  The ancient Greek god of love, identified by the Romans with Cupid.

3. Recipe measures: TEASPOONS.   The teaspoon a unit of measure especially in cookery equal to ¹/₆ fluid ounce or ¹/₃ tablespoon (5 milliliters)

4. "The Dutch House" novelist Patchett: ANN.  Ann Patchett [b. 1963] is an American author. She received the 2002 PEN/Faulkner Award and the Orange Prize for Fiction in the same year, for her novel Bel Canto. Patchett's other novels include The Patron Saint of Liars, Taft, The Magician's Assistant, Run, State of Wonder, Commonwealth, and The Dutch House.

5. Rodeo ropes: LASSOS.   A lasso, also called lariat, riata, or reata (all from Castilian, la reata 're-tied rope'), is a loop of rope designed as a restraint to be thrown around a target and tightened when pulled. It is a well-known tool of the Spanish and Mexican cowboy, then adopted by the cowboys of the United States. 

6. Blue-eyed cat: SIAMESE.   One of the first distinctly recognized breeds of Asian cat. Derived from the Wichianmat landrace, one of several varieties of cat native to Thailand, the original Siamese became one of the most popular breeds in Europe and North America in the 19th century.

7. Yellow-orange fruit: APRICOT.   A fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus Prunus. Usually, an apricot is from the species P. armeniaca, but the fruits of the other species in Prunus sect. Armeniaca are also called apricots. 

8. Stir-fry pan: WOK.   A large, bowl-shaped Chinese pan used for frying food quickly in hot oil:

9. '60s "New Left" gp.: SDS.   Students for a Democratic Society

10. Long journey: VOYAGE.    As defined.

11. Stopped snoozing: AWOKE.   Roused from sleeping.

12. Detroit ballplayer: TIGER.  The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the American League (AL) Central division. One of the AL's eight charter franchises, established in 1901, they are also the oldest continuous one name, one city franchise in the AL

13. Mail-order pioneer: SEARS.   Sears, Roebuck and Co., commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began as a mail ordering catalog company migrating to opening retail locations in 1925, the first in Chicago.

18. Barnyard layer: HEN.   An egg-laying chicken.

22. Corned beef solution: BRINE.   Water with a high concentration of table salt.

24. Gripped: HELD.   

25. Timecard abbr.: HRS.   Hours

26. Molecule makeup: ATOMS.   An atom is the smallest component of an element having the chemical properties of the element, consisting of a nucleus containing combinations of neutrons and protons and one or more electrons bound to the nucleus by electrical attraction; the number of protons determines the identity of the element.

27. Tippy top: ACME.   Apex, peak, summit

28. Weaver's machine: LOOM.    A machine for interlacing at right angles two or more sets of threads or yarns to form a cloth.

31. Line of a song: LYRIC.   The words

32. "Rebel Without a Cause" star: JAMES DEAN.   James Byron Dean [1931 – 1955] was an American actor. He is remembered as a cultural icon of teenage disillusionment and social estrangement, as expressed in the title of his most celebrated film, Rebel Without a Cause (1955), in which he starred as troubled teenager Jim Stark. The other two roles that defined his stardom were loner Cal Trask in East of Eden (1955) and surly ranch hand Jett Rink in Giant (1956).

After his death in a car crash on September 30, 1955, Dean became the first actor to receive a posthumous Academy Award nomination for Best Actor for his role in East of Eden. 

33. App-based car service: UBER.  A platform where those who drive and deliver can connect with riders, eaters, and restaurants. In cities where Uber is available, you can use the Uber app to request a ride. When a nearby driver accepts your request, the app displays an estimated time of arrival for the driver heading to your pickup location.

34. Altoids containers: TINS.  Rectangular hinged metal boxes.

36. Chimed in with: ADDED.  Contributed to the discussion.

38. Move effortlessly (through): SAIL.   Glide.

41. Misty Copeland's dance troupe: Abbr.: ABT.   American Ballet Theater, a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual eight-week season at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center) in the spring and a shorter season at the David H. Koch Theater in the fall; the company tours around the world the rest of the year. 

42. Open freight train unit: FLATCAR.   A flatcar is a piece of rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck mounted on a pair of trucks or bogies, one at each end containing four or six wheels. Occasionally, flat cars designed to carry extra heavy or extra large loads are mounted on a pair of bogies under each end.

43. Flimsy: TENUOUS.   Very weak or slight.

45. Submitted tax returns online: E-FILED.

46. Take care of: TEND TO.   Pay attention, apply oneself. 

47. Flipped (through): PAGED.   Turned the pages of (a book, magazine, etc.) especially in a quick, steady manner. 

48. Steer clear of: EVADE.  Escape or avoid, especially by cleverness or trickery.

49. Color for cheeks: ROUGE.   A red powder or cream used as a cosmetic for coloring the cheeks or lips.

50. Watchdog's warning: GRR.  Growling sound.

54. Simplicity: EASE.   The quality or condition of being easy to understand or do.

55. Hip or tip ender: -STER.  A suffix denoting a person engaged in or associated with a particular activity or thing.

57. Dinosaur voiced by Wallace Shawn in the "Toy Story" films: REX.

58. Opposite of WNW: ESE.  West-north-west and East-south-east.  The latter is the direction or compass point midway between east and southeast.

59. Chop down: HEW.   Chop or cut something, especially wood or coal, with an axe, pick, or other tool.

That wraps up our sports outing.  Hope you enjoyed the game, and that your team wins - unless they are playing mine, of course.

Below the puzzle are some bonus tracks from our Winter Wonders Concert on Monday.

Cool regards!

JzB

Jingle Bells, ala Count Basie

Sleigh Ride, a la Glenn Miller

Christmas Time Is Here

The Jody Grind

That's me with the stop time trombone solo at 3:15