January 15, 2021

Title: ALL THAT'S LEFT

Constructor: Rachel Fabi

Editors: Erik Agard & Amanda Rafkin

Theme Answers:

FULL HOUSE (16A: Hand composed of a pair and a three-of-a-kind)

COMPLETE SETS (25A: Collector's goals)

TOTAL ECLIPSE (41A: Full alignment of the Earth, moon, and sun)

WHOLE MILK (56A: Dairy product that's actually less than 4% fat)

Theme synopsis: The LEFTmost word of each theme answer is a synonym for ALL: FULL, COMPLETE, TOTAL, and WHOLE.

Things I learned:

• EXPO (13A: "___ '86" (Death Cab song)) "EXPO '86" is a song from the 2003 album Transatlanticism by the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie. EXPO 86 is also the name of a 2010 album by Canadian indie rock band Wolf Parade. The 1986 World's Fair held in Vancouver, British Columbia is also referred to as EXPO 86.
• SPLOTCH (23D: Mark in a Krasner painting) Lee Krasner was an abstract expressionist painter. She sometimes cut apart her drawings and paintings for collage. Six months after Krasner died in 1984 (at the age of 75), the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York City held a retrospective exhibit of her work. Lee Krasner's husband was Jackson Pollack.
• HELGA (48D: Pigtailed "Hey Arnold" character) Hey Arnold! is an animated TV series about a fourth grader named Arnold who lives with his grandparents. HELGA, voiced by Francesca Marie Smith, is a cynical, academically-gifted girl who is often portrayed as the bully of the series.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• SCUBA (8A: Diving apparatus) SCUBA = Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus
• MASH (45A: Show title with stars) On air from 1972 to 1983, the TV series, M*A*S*H ran for more than three times as long as the Korean war which it chronicled. (The Korean War lasted from 1950-1953.) My most recent memories of M*A*S*H are not of watching it directly, but of listening to my husband and daughter watch it together in the next room. The soundtrack of M*A*S*H accompanied by their comments and laughter are good memories indeed. 
• WHOLE MILK (56A: Dairy product that's actually less than 4% fat) Cow's MILK naturally contains an average of 3.6% fat. The percentage of MILK fat varies by cow breed. MILK from Jersey cows contains approximately 5.2% fat, while MILK from Holstein-Friesian cows contains approximately 3.6% fat. Aren't you glad you now know that?
• MELTS (62A: Makes like Olaf in the summer) Ah, poor Olaf, the lovable, philosophical snowman from the movies Frozen and Frozen II. This was a fun clue.
• PHD (63A: Degree held by Rachel Maddow) I like that this clue referenced a specific person with the degree instead of cluing it generically. Bonus points for using a woman with a PHD as the example, given the recent undervaluing of women with doctorate degrees. PHD is also a degree held by the constructor of this puzzle and the writer of this blog. Rachel Maddow's PHD is in political science. Rachel Fabi's PHD is in Health Policy and Management. My PHD is in Pharmacology.
• LE FAY (1D: Morgan of Arthurian legend) Morgan LE FAY is a powerful enchantress in King Arthur legends. I remember the name of Morgan LE FAY from reading Mary Pope Osborne's Magic Tree House books to my kids. 
• EXUDE (2D: Give off) and SPLIT (3D: Take off) and SOLD (4D: Auctioned off) This was a nice set of consecutive "___ off" clues.
• COATES (9D: "We Were Eight Years in Power" author Ta-Nehisi) We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy is a collection of essays by Ta-Nehisi COATES. The essays were originally published in The Atlantic magazine from 2008 to 2016. 
• CAT (25D: Roommate that may leave litter everywhere) I have one of these roommates, and she certainly does leave litter everywhere. It's a good thing she's cute and cuddly.
  
• EMMA (27D: Novel that inspired "Clueless") The 1995 movie, Clueless, was loosely based on the 1815 Jane Austen novel, Emma.
• POET (32D: Adrienne Rich or Nikki Giovanni) Adrienne Rich was a POET, essayist and feminist. In 1997, she declined the National Medal of Arts to protest a House of Representatives' vote to end the National Endowment for the Arts. Nikki Giovanni is a POET, activist, and educator who was one of the foremost authors of the Black Arts Movement in the late 1960s. Funny story: I made a typo entering the word USE at 38-Across, which meant that when I filled in TAPAS I had the word PORT for 32-Down. POET makes much more sense!
• PAULI (44D: Civil rights activist Murray) PAULI Murray was the first Black woman to be ordained as an Episcopal priest.  
• WAP (56D: Cardi B single ft. Megan Thee Stallion) Cardi B released "WAP" - featuring Megan Thee Stallion - in August 2020. The song, probably not unexpectedly, received both acclaim and criticism. It received kudos for its sex-positive message, while some commentators criticized its explicitness. You can't please everyone.

Geography review:

• TETONS (20A: "Grand" mountain range) The TETONS are a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains. Most of the east side of the range is located in Grand TETON National Park in Wyoming. Grand TETON is also the name of the range's highest mountain peak. 

I enjoyed ALL of this puzzle, not only the LEFT side, but the right side, too! All of the theme answers were fun, solid entries. If I had to pick a favorite, it would be TOTAL ECLIPSE. (Of course, now I have the Bonnie Tyler song, "TOTAL ECLIPSE of the Heart" as an earworm.) I was amused to imagine the clues for 10-Down and 11-Down being reversed: "How've you BEEN?" "UP TO no good." I appreciated learning about Lee Krasner, and liked seeing Ta-Nehisi COATES in the grid. This puzzle is FULL of great stuff. I also want to note that today is Amanda Rafkin's first credit as co-editor. We've seen Amanda as a constructor, and it's great to see her in this role! Solving this puzzle was a delightful way to begin my Friday.