L.A. Times CrossWord Wednesday March 22, 2023 Alexander Liebeskind

Theme:  I get a CHARGE from this puzzle.  How about you?

Each theme entry includes a CHARGER of a different sort.  Let's see how many we can find.

18 A. Animal that may be on the verge of an attack: RAGING BULL.  Boxing fans and movie mavens might be thinking about Jake La Motta.  But this is more literal - an infuriated bovine, intent on wreaking havoc.  Here, the CHARGE is physical action with intent to do bodily harm.

 24 A. Laptop accessory: POWER CORD.  This is an electrical cable that temporarily connects an appliance to the main electricity supply via a wall socket or extension cord.   It will keep your lap top operating, and provide a CHARGE to its internal battery.

52 A. Body that investigates potential criminal conduct: GRAND JURY.    A group that examines accusations against persons charged with crime and, if the evidence warrants, makes formal CHARGES on which the accused persons are later tried.  This type of CHARGE is a formal accusation that a crime has been committed.

59. Person who likely has a high credit card balance: BIG SPENDER.  This assumes s/he is not using cash, but rather using an account to pay later for a good or service provided today, thus CHARGING that item. 

And, at last, here is the unifier:   36. Los Angeles NFL team, and an apt name for 18-, 24-, 52-, and 59-Across, collectively?: THE CHARGERS.  They were 10-7 last season, finished in 2nd place in the AFC, behind the 14-3 Chiefs.   In the Wild Card round, despite amassing a 27–0 lead during the second quarter, the Chargers collapsed in the second-half of the game, losing to the Jacksonville Jaguars 30–31 on a last-second field goal. Sad.

This sense of CHARGER most closely matches that of the  RAGING BULL, but is a bit more abstract.  Usually I put the unifier first to clarify the concept, but that didn't seem necessary today.  Also, it's rare to have two [or more] word theme entries that use the whole phrase rather than a chosen word.  So this theme stands out in a couple ways.

Hi Gang, JazzBumpa here, all het up to lead the CHARGE through today's puzzle.  Let's get to it.

Across:

1. Wall Street inits.: NYSE.  New York Stock Exchange, one of the world’s largest marketplaces for securities and other exchange-traded investments. .

5. Spring time: MARCH.  A month that is a time in which Spring begins - this year it was on Monday, the 20th.

10. Nadal of tennis, familiarly: RAFA.  Rafael Nadal Parera [b. 1986] is a Spanish professional tennis player. He is currently ranked world No. 9 in singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals. He has been ranked world No. 1 for 209 weeks, and has finished as the year-end No. 1 five times.

14. Tries to win over: WOOS.  Seeks the favor, affection, or love of someone.

15. "Welcome to Maui!": ALOHA.   Hawaiian greeting.

16. Rapper born Tracy Marrow: ICE-T.   Tracy Lauren Marrow (b. 1958), better known by his stage name Ice-T, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and producer. He began his career as an underground rapper in the 1980s and was signed to Sire Records in 1987, when he released his debut album Rhyme Pays. The following year, he founded the record label Rhyme $yndicate Records (named after his collective of fellow hip-hop artists called the "Rhyme $yndicate") and released another album, Power, which would go platinum. He also released several other albums that went gold.

17. Rolaids rival: TUMS.  These medications, taken orally, are used to treat symptoms caused by too much stomach acid such as heartburn, upset stomach, or indigestion. They work by lowering the amount of acid in the stomach.

20. German camera brand: LEICA.  a German company that manufactures cameras, optical lenses, photographic lenses, binoculars, rifle scopes and microscopes. The company was founded by Ernst Leitz in 1869, in Wetzlar, Germany.  In 1986, the Leitz company changed its name to Leica, due to the fame of the Leica trade-name. The name Leica is derived from the first three letters of the founder's surname (Leitz) and the first two of the word camera

22. Disney princess voiced by Idina Menzel: ELSA.

She's actually the Queen

23. Coastal inlet: RIA.   A coastal inlet formed by the partial submergence of an unglaciated river valley. It is a drowned river valley that remains open to the sea.

26. Depends (on): LEANS.   Derive support from someone or something, either literally or figuratively.

28. Incinerator residue: ASH.   The powdery residue left after the burning of a substance.

29. Tuber in the Nigerian dish asaro: YAM.  The edible starchy tuber of a climbing plant that is widely grown in tropical and subtropical countries.

30. Complete collection, perhaps: BOX SET.   A set of related items, typically books or recordings, packaged together in a box and sold as a unit.

31. Spring: LEAP.   Move or jump suddenly or rapidly upward or forward.   Fortunately, the extra day in. leap year occurs before Spring, or it would be too confusing.

33. 2007 Nobel Peace Prize co-recipient: AL GORE.   Albert Arnold Gore Jr. (b.1948) is an American politician, businessman, and environmentalist who served as the 45th vice president of the United States from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. Gore was the Democratic nominee for the 2000 presidential election, losing to George W. Bush in a very close race after a Florida recount.    His work in climate change activism earned him (jointly with the IPCC) the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. 

40. Like someone with a hit single?: ON BASE.  Nice misdirection.  Not a pop music reference, but a successful at bat in a baseball game.

41. StarKist product: TUNA.  

44. Angles: SLANTS.  Leans, in. a different sense of the word.

47. Luggage-screening gp.: TSA.   Transportation Security Administration

50. Ballerina's hairdo: BUN.  Buns are made to keep hair out of your face. In a performance, it would be distracting for an audience member to constantly see a dancer tossing hair out of their face. It's also a problem for the dancer.  

Learn how to do it.

51. National animal of Malaysia: TIGER.   A tiger from a specific population of the Panthera tigris tigris subspecies that is native to Peninsular Malaysia. This population inhabits the southern and central parts of the Malay Peninsula and has been classified as critically endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2015. As of April 2014, the population was estimated at 80 to 120 mature individuals with a continuous declining trend.

55. Many a craft beer: ALE.    Fermented malt beverage, full-bodied and somewhat bitter, with strong flavor and aroma of hops. 

56. Region: AREA.  The extent of space or surface having some common definable characteristic and flexible boundaries.

58. Baking soda targets: ODORS.   Most unpleasant smells have an acidic nature.  Baking soda is basic, and will react with the odor causing molecules, thus neutralizing them.  Chemistry, peeps!

62. Long-billed wader: IBIS.    A group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word for this group of birds. 

64. Roof problem: LEAK.  A hole or crack that allows unintended water to enter a structure.

65. Like a paddling surfer: PRONE.   A body position in which the person lies flat with the chest down and the back up.

66. Muse count: NINE.    In ancient Greek religion and mythology, the Muses are the inspirational goddesses of literature, science, and the arts.   their functions are as follows: Calliope (epic poetry), Clio (history), Euterpe (flutes and music), Thalia (comedy and pastoral poetry), Melpomene (tragedy)

Terpsichore (dance), Erato (love poetry and lyric poetry), Polyhymnia (hymns and sacred poetry), Urania (astronomy)

67. Award for very good plays?: ESPY.   Another clever clue, relating not to theater productions, but to excellence in sporting contests.  The ESPY Awards, the Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly, is an event honoring the top athletes and sport performances of the year.

68. Transmits: SENDS.  Causes something to pass on from one place or person to another.

69. Epic story: SAGA.   A long story of heroic achievement, especially a medieval prose narrative in Old Norse or Old Icelandic.

Down:

1. Region above Sask.: NWT.   NorthWest Territory.   The Northwest Territories of Canada include the regions of Dehcho, North Slave, Sahtu, South Slave and Inuvik. Their remote landscape encompasses forest, mountains, Arctic tundra and islands in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. 

2. "Checkmate!": YOU LOSE.   A winning move in chess, and, by extension, any dramatic winning maneuver.

3. A bit: SOMEWHAT.  Diminishing modifier.

4. Nail polish brand: ESSIE.  They offer over 300 colors.

5. Shaken percussion item: MARACA.  

6. Chicken __ king: ALA.    A dish consisting of diced chicken in a cream sauce, often with sherry, mushrooms, and vegetables, generally served over rice, noodles, or bread. 

7. "Copy that": ROGER.   I Heard and Understood the Message.

8. "The French Chef" host Julia: CHILD.   Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams (1912 –  2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and her subsequent television programs, the most notable of which was The French Chef, which premiered in 1963.

9. Film score composer Zimmer with four Grammys: HANS.   Hans Florian Zimmer [b. 1957] is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Oscars and four Grammys, and has been nominated for two Emmys and a Tony. Zimmer was also named on the list of Top 100 Living Geniuses, published by The Daily Telegraph.

10. Part of a cage: RIB.   One of the series of curved bones of the chest of most vertebrates that are joined to the spinal column in pairs and help to support the body wall and protect the organs inside.  Sneaky clue.   BAR also fits.

11. High-end Hondas: ACURAS.   Acura  is the luxury and performance division of Japanese automaker Honda, based primarily in North America.  The brand was launched in the United States on March 27, 1986,

12. Catlike: FELINE.   Appearing or behaving like a cat:

13. Finally: AT LAST.   Said of something has happened after you have been hoping for it for a long time. 

19. In abundance: GALORE.  A veritable plethora.

21. Shout: CRY.  Shout or scream, typically to express fear, pain, or grief.

24. Bud: PAL.  A friend.

25. Home of Creighton University: OMAHA.  Omaha is a city in the U.S. state of Nebraska, on the Missouri River close to the Iowa border. A stop on the Lewis & Clark National Historic Trail, it's known for its pioneer history, museums and cultural centers. 

27. Wield, as influence: EXERT.   Apply or bring to bear a force, influence, or quality.

30. Marsh: BOG.  Wet muddy ground too soft to support a heavy body.

32. Conversation piece?: PHONE.  Another mis-directing clue.  A device used for conversation [or posting feline pics], not the expected object whose unusual quality makes it a topic of conversation.

34. Part of UNLV: LAS.  University of Nevada at LAS Vegas.

35. Environmental activist Thunberg: GRETA.   Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg FRSGS is a Swedish environmental activist who is known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action for climate change mitigation. Thunberg's activism began when she persuaded her parents to adopt lifestyle choices that reduced their own carbon footprint.    FRSGS indicates a Fellow of the Royal Scottish Geographical Society.

37. Snare: ENTRAP.   Catch (someone or something) in or as in a trap.

38. Network with an eye logo: CBS.   Columbia Broadcasting System

39. "WandaVision" backdrop: SUBURBIA.   an American television miniseries created by Jac Schaeffer for the streaming service Disney+, based on Marvel Comics featuring the characters Wanda Maximoff / Scarlet Witch and Vision. It is the first television series in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) produced by Marvel Studios, sharing continuity with the films of the franchise, and is set after the events of the film Avengers: Endgame (2019). 

42. Healthcare major: NURSING.   A profession within the healthcare sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. 

43. "__ takers?": ANY.   Questing for someone who would accept or buy some object to condition.

44. Straw-strewn shelter: STABLE.   A building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. 

45. Funnel-shaped flowers: LILIES.   A genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are native to the northern hemisphere and their range is temperate climates and extends into the subtropics.

46. One year, for Venus and Serena Williams: AGE GAP.   Th difference in ages between two people.  This term is not generally used pertaining to siblings.  More typically it refers to the age difference between romantic partners.

48. Naps noisily: SNORES.   Produces a hoarse or harsh sound from nose or mouth that occurs when breathing is partially obstructed while sleeping.

49. Solve KenKen, say: ADD.  Determine the total when two numbers are combined.  KenKen ia a trademarked name for a style of arithmetic and logic puzzle invented in 2004 by Japanese math teacher Tetsuya Miyamoto, who intended the puzzles to be an instruction-free method of training the brain. The name derives from the Japanese word for cleverness. 

52. Category: GENRE.  A category of artistic composition, as in music or literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject matter.

53. Home health hazard: RADON.   An odorless, invisible, radioactive gas naturally released from rocks, soil, and water. Radon can get into homes and buildings through small cracks or holes and build up in the air. Over time, breathing in high levels of radon can cause lung cancer.

54. Puts together: JOINS.  Combines.

57. Workout count: REPS.   Repetitions of a particular exercise or movement.

60. What's up?: SKY.  The phrase generally means, "what's happening?"  Here it is more literal, indicating the firmament.

61. Finale: END.   The last part of a piece of music, a performance, or a public event, especially when particularly dramatic or exciting.

63. Porthole view: SEA.  A ship's window looks out at the ocean.

That wraps up another Wednesday.  Hope you enjoyed it - as always, free of charge.

Cool regards!

JzB