Title: RUN BEHIND
Constructor: Hannah Slovut
Editor: Erik Agard
Theme Answers:
ANKLE BRACE (18A: Post-sprain support)
SOCIAL BUTTERFLY (39A: Someone skilled at networking)
CANDY CRUSH (57A: Match-three puzzle game with sugary pieces)
FOUND ART (14D: Crafts made from nontraditional materials)
MISPRINT (32D: It might lead to an editorial correction)
Theme synopsis: A synonym for RUN can be found in the last letters of each theme answer: RACE, FLY, RUSH, DART, SPRINT.
Things I learned:
- THE CW (7D: "The 100" and "Batwoman" channel) THE CW television network's name is an abbreviation formed from the first letters of the names of its parent companies, CBS and Warner Brothers. It's common to clue TV networks using the shows that air on them. This makes sense, but rarely helps me since I don't have a TV. (I do know that Sesame Street airs on PBS!) It's okay though. I simply skip these clues and wait to be enlightened by the crossing answers. It's important to remember that if you solve enough crossword puzzles you are going to encounter things not in your knowledge base. The nature of the puzzle means this isn't a deal breaker since there's always another path to figuring out the correct letters.
Random thoughts and interesting things:
- STAR (43A: A gold one might be given for a job well done) This was a fun clue. If you finished this puzzle, give yourself a gold STAR.
- DADS (70A: Parenting pair, perhaps) I appreciate a clue acknowledging the reality that there isn't a mold.
- HIPPO (9D: Animal whose full name means "river horse") I enjoy this fun fact about the HIPPO - river horse is such a silly description of this huge animal. Also, did you know that the closest living relative of the HIPPO is a whale? My favorite HIPPO is Fiona at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. Fiona the HIPPO was born prematurely and had to be bottle fed and cared for by zoo staff. Here's a link to FIONA demonstrating her relationship to whales.
- HOHO (13A: Cream-filled chocolate snack) Did you think this clue was talking about the crossword-friendly OREO? Turns out there's more than one cream-filled chocolate snack! Nice to then find OREOS (10D: Cream-filled chocolate snacks).
- FOUND ART (14D: Crafts made from nontraditional materials) This is a delightful answer. FOUND ART is exactly what it sounds like - art made with discovered objects. The term FOUND ART can encompass a variety of artistic expression, from displaying a discarded urinal in a gallery, like Marcel Duchamp did in 1917, to using items discovered in nature to construct elaborate temporary designs.
- PANDA (53D: Black-and white bear) Hello, PANDA! It's the second day in a row that this black-and-white bear has found its way into our black-and-white puzzle.
Geography review:
- OMAN (63A: Yemen's neighbor) OMAN is on the southeastern coast of the Arabian peninsula. There is another country that fits the clue, but Yemen's other neighbor, Saudi Arabia, doesn't fit in the puzzle.
- KOREA (65A: Seoul's peninsula) Seoul is the capital of South KOREA, which shares the KOREAn peninsula with North KOREA. The area of KOREA also encompasses Jeju Island and several other minor islands.
This puzzle was fun to solve. Lots of interesting answers, like WET NOSE, FOUND ART, and MOOCH. SOCIAL BUTTERFLY is a great grid-spanning entry. I must admit that discovering the puzzle's theme was a challenge for me. I saw RACE in ANKLE BRACE and RUSH in CANDY CRUSH, but doubted myself because I wasn't sure if FLY in SOCIAL BUTTERFLY fit the pattern. Crossword Twitter came to my aid once again! Thank you to Ross Trudeau and Matthew Stock for confirming my instinct was correct, and to Ross for helping me discover DART in FOUND ART and SPRINT in MISPRINT. Once again thankful to have a community to help me figure these things out.
Yesterday Time magazine ran an article about USA Today crossword puzzle editor, Erik Agard, titled,
"The Crossword Revolution is Upon Us." If you haven't read it yet, I recommend doing so. The article explains many of the reasons I am a fan of the USA Today crossword (and of Erik). SALLY'S TAKE received an anonymous mention in the article: "One solver even started a blog devoted to the puzzle, a type of zealous oversight typically reserved for the likes of the New York Times." I'm not sure I would describe the intent of my blog as "zealous oversight," but I do like the phrase!
Interesting, Sally, your comment about not having a television. I do...but don’t have a smart phone. I guess we’re even, in a way, in terms of the need to find other ways to come up with answers outside our wheelhouses. There are so many crossword clues and answers about apps which can be tough for me. I get frustrated sometimes when certain crosswords seems to indicate that nobody does anything but watch television all day long or stare into their smart phone for hours at a time. Such puzzles make me growl. I guess I’d feel better if more television-related clues and answers were to do with Turner Classic Movies kind of fare and PBS programs. Classical music, too, could be more frequently clued, for that matter. Thus, I reveal my prejudices. ;-)
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