November 20, 2020

Title: EASE IN

Constructor: Brooke Husic

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

THREE EGG OMELETS (23A: Savory brunch orders)

PAD SEE EW (38A: Dish of rice noodles fried with soy sauce)

TRACEE ELLIS ROSS (8D: She played Joan Clayton, Esq.)

BEE EMOJI (36D: Symbol used by 36-Across fans)

Theme synopsis: Each theme answer contains the letter string E-E-E spanning two words.

And now a word from our constructor:

Brooke: Glad to be back in the USAT more regularly for a bit! I'm fond of this puzzle and really happy to release it into the world. Looking back over it, I noticed the adjacency of the 18A and 19A clues + answers kind of comprises an intense micro-story. Past Brooke, are you okay?

Things I learned:

• PAD SEE EW (38A: Dish of rice noodles fried with soy sauce) PAD SEE EW is a Thai stir fried noodle dish. Its name translates to "fried with soy sauce." This dish is new to me, but I imagine the combination of rice noodles stir-fried with soy sauce, Chinese broccoli, eggs, and meat is delicious.
• O'NEAL (59A: Poet Charlotte Hill ___) Charlotte Hill O'NEAL, also known as Mama C, has authored two books of poetry: Warrior Woman of Peace and Life Slices...a Taste of Magic. She and her husband, Pete O'NEAL, are former Black Panther Party members. Together they founded and co-direct the United African Alliance Community Center in Tanzania, an organization promoting community development in rural Africa. Mama C's Facebook page lists one of her favorite quotes (attributed to her mama) as, "If you gonna be a bear...be a grizzly." 
• OSCAR (2D: Filmmaker Micheaux) From 1919 to 1948, OSCAR Micheaux produced over 44 films, including The Homesteader, Harlem After Midnight, and The Betrayal. Micheaux was a prominent producer of race films, a genre of movies featuring Black casts and produced for Black audiences in the 1920s to 1950s.
• SHAW (28D: Movie mogul Run Run) Run Run SHAW was an entertainment mogul and philanthropist. He founded the SHAW Brothers Studio, one of the largest Hong Kong film production companies. In 2002, SHAW established the SHAW Prize. The prize, described as the "Nobel of the East," is awarded to scientists in astronomy, mathematics, and life science.
• ELSA (34D: Swedish model Hosk) ELSA Hosk has modeled  for Victoria's Secret and is currently a Victoria's Secret Angel. Prior to modeling, Hosk played professional basketball in Sweden for two years. 
• FRED (41D: Civil rights legend Korematsu) FRED Korematsu objected to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. In 2011, the state of California observed "FRED Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution" for the first time on January 30, which would have been FRED's 92nd birthday. FRED Korematsu Day was honored with a Google doodle on January 30, 2017. 
• NNEKA (46D: WNBPA president Ogwumike) NNEKA Ogwumike is a basketball player for WNBA's LOS Angeles Sparks (Nice tie-in with 1-Across). In 2016, she was elected president of the WNBA Players Association (WNBPA).

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• TACO (14A: It might be filled with nopales) Nopales are the edible pads of prickly pear cacti.
• ORCA (16A: Whale with a saddle patch) The saddle patch refers to the grey or white area around the dorsal fin. An individual ORCA can be identified by its unique saddle patch coloring.
• SCARS (19A: Signs of healing) I had SCABS at first, which made SPARE KEYS difficult to discover. (SPABE_EY_ was not making any sense!)
• KEKE (26A: Palmer with the EP "Virgo Tendencies, Pt. 1) "Virgo Tendencies, Pt. 1" was released on August 28 of this year. 
• BEY (36A: Nickname for the singer of "Get Me Bodied") and BEE EMOJI (36D: Symbol used by 36-Across fans) and REGAL (9D: Like a queen) There's a little Beyoncé mini-theme here.
• FLEETS (41A: Naval assemblies) This is a timely clue, as FLEETS are currently being widely discussed on Twitter. After seeing many references, I finally looked up what they were. Apparently Twitter has joined the ranks of social media apps offering "stories," and they have named theirs FLEETS. Unfortunately, as a former pharmacist, all I think of when I hear FLEETS are enemas. Yikes.
• MOOD RINGS (52A: Some thermochromic jewelry) When we were children, my sister and I bought MOOD RINGS. So fascinating...until they ceased to change color.
• TRACEE ELLIS ROSS (8D: She played Joan Clayton, Esq.) Joan Clayton, Esq. was TRACEE ELLIS ROSS's role on the TV series, Girlfriends. She won two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series for the role.
• MOM (25D: ___ jeans) Well, here I sit in my MOM jeans...

Geography review:

• ASIA (63A: Ipoh's continent) Ipoh is the capital city of the state of Perak in the country of Malaysia. Today is the third November appearance of ASIA in the crossword puzzle.
• ERIE (39D: Lakeside city northeast of Cleveland) The lake on which ERIE, Pennsylvania sits (northeast of Cleveland, Ohio) is, of course, Lake ERIE. Just a week after our crossword friends ERIE and ASIA made their second joint appearance since I began blogging, they make their third. 

Now let's EASE IN to an overview of the puzzle... Sorry, it was too good of an opportunity to pass up! All of those E's sitting together are quite a visual, aren't they? A nice theme with a solid set of theme answers. The puzzle features diagonal symmetry. It is symmetrical along a diagonal line running from the top right corner to the lower left corner. This results in the especially striking intersection of the EEE's in PAD SEE EW and BEE EMOJI. There were quite a few names in today's puzzle, and as you can see, many of them were new (or not immediately recognizable) to me. I always appreciate expanding my horizons and my knowledge base and that was true today. Nonetheless, I was also thankful for crossing answers that helped me fill in some of the names and did not leave me in the LURCH. The cluing of NOT TODAY made me smile. This puzzle was definitely a delightful way to EASE IN to Friday.