June 19, 2020

Title: START A FOUR-DAY WEEKEND

Constructor: Gail Grabowski

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

FRIED FOODS (17A: Pakora and medu vada, e.g.)

SATIN SHEETS (30A: Luxurious bedding items)

SUNKEN SHIPS (48A: Submerged wrecks)

MONEY CLIPS (65A: Bill holders)

Theme synopsis: The first three letters (START) of each theme answer are an abbreviation for a day of the week. Put them together in order and you have a FOUR-DAY WEEKEND: FRI-SAT-SUN-MON. 

Things I learned:

• OTTO (1A: Actress Miranda) Miranda OTTO is an Australian actress. She played Éowyn in The Lord of the Rings movies.
• FRIED FOODS (17A: Pakora and medu vada, e.g.) Pakora is a fried fritter that is a popular snack in India. Pakora can be made from a variety of ingredients such as eggplant, potato, plantain, cauliflower, and spinach, which are dipped in a batter made from chickpea flour and deep-fried. Medu vada is a South Indian fritter made from black lentils. Medu vada is often made in a doughnut shape.
• OPERA (4D: Leontyne Price performance) Mary Violet Leontyne Price was the first Black leading performer at the Metropolitan Opera. 

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• SOTHEBY'S (21A: Auction house where the original Rosie the Riveter painting was sold in 2002) SOTHEBY'S is one of the world's largest brokers of art, jewelry, real estate and collectibles. It was founded in London in 1744 by Samuel Baker, George Leigh, and John SOTHEBY. Norman Rockwell's painting of Rosie the Riveter was sold for $4.96 million.
• OFF (5D: Taking a personal day, say) This was a nice bonus tie-in with the theme.
• HINDU (28D: Like the Bhagavad Gita, say) The Bhagavad Gita is the best known of the HINDU scriptures. The title Bhagavad Gita has been translated as "the Song of God," "the Song of the Lord," "the Divine Song," or the "Celestial Song." In Indian tradition, authorship of the Bhagavad Gita has been attributed to Vyasa.
• SALAD (55D: Word after "fruit," "pasta" or "Snickers") Snickers salad is a dessert made of Snickers bars, apples, and whipped topping. Its name is an unsuccessful attempt to make it sound healthy!

Geography Review:

• ARAB: (11D: The "A" in UAE) You may recall that UAE was an answer in yesterday's puzzle. The United ARAB Emirates is a country on the Persian Gulf in Western Asia. It borders Oman and Saudi Arabia.
• IRISH (31D: Belfast residents) Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland.

This was a delightful puzzle and appropriately placed on a FRIday. I guessed the theme as I entered the answer FRIED FOODS. It's unusual for me to pick up on a theme that early, but it in no way detracted from the enjoyment of working the puzzle. In fact, it was helpful to know the first three letters of each theme answer.