January 16, 2021

Title: BLOCK PARTY

Constructor: Mark McClain

Editors: Erik Agard & Paolo Pasco

Theme Answers:

GHOST WRITERS (20A: Uncredited authors)

THE MILE HIGH CITY (39A: Nickname for Denver)

TEAM BUILDING (58A: Purpose of some work icebreakers)

Theme synopsis: The last word of each theme answer can be placed in front of the word BLOCK, giving us WRITER'S BLOCK, CITY BLOCK, and BUILDING BLOCK.

Things I learned:

• CHOO (24A: Physician Esther) Esther CHOO is a physician and professor at Oregon Health & Science University. In 2017, following the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, Dr. CHOO tweeted about her experience as an emergency room physician having white patients refuse treatment from her because of her race. The tweet was shared by over 25,000 people, many of whom discussed their own experiences of racism in medicine.
• ESAU (65A: Jenkins whose motto was "Love is progress, hate is expensive") ESAU Jenkins lived on John's Island, one of a chain of islands off the coast of South Carolina. During his lifetime he worked to improve the conditions of island residents. His efforts included establishing a "Citizenship School" on John's Island to teach Black adults to read so they could register to vote.
• KING (1D: "Look at Me Now" singer Emily) Emily KING's song, "Look at Me Now" received a Grammy Award nomination in 2020 for Best R&B Song. Though the song didn't win, another of KING's songs, "See Me" has been nominated for a 2021 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance.
• STORM (32D: Sports journalist Hannah) Hannah STORM is one of the anchors of SportsCenter on ESPN.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• LEAF (35A: Part of Poison Ivy's costume) Poison Ivy is a supervillain in DC Comics, where she is an enemy of Batman. Poison Ivy has supernatural control over plant life and the power to transfer poison through touch. Poison Ivy is typically drawn wearing a costume adorned with leaves and vines.
• EVER (67A: "Have You ___?" (Brandy song)) Brandy's song, "Have You EVER?" reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100 chart in 1999. I've mentioned before that I like this type of clue that uses a song title to clue a common word. Even if you've never heard of the song, the answer is inferable.
• LESS (70A: "Road ___ Traveled (Lauren Alaina song)) Another nice clue of the "song title to clue a common word" type. "Road LESS Traveled" is a 2015 song by country music singer Lauren Alaina. It became her first number one single, topping Billboard's Country Airplay chart.
• LOTR (6D: Frodo/Sam franchise, for short) Frodo Baggins and Sam (Samwise) are, of course, hobbits in The Lord of the Rings franchise.
• OWN (11D: "A Room of One's ___") "A Room of One's OWN" was a 1929 essay by Virginia Wolf. The essay argues for space for women (both literal and figurative) in a literary tradition dominated by men.
• TLC (21D: "Waterfalls" group) "Waterfalls" is sometimes considered the signature song of the hip hop group TLC.
• MAC (31D: "A ___ and cheese is something that can actually be so personal" (Porowski)) Antoni Porowski is the food and wine expert on the Netflix series Queer Eye. In the sixth episode of Queer Eye, "The Renaissance of Remington," Porowski makes a version of MAC and cheese. This episode sparked an online debate about what ingredients do and do not belong in MAC and cheese. It's fascinating what people are passionate about, isn't it? 
• FIRE (37D: Word after "Ring of" or "Supa Hot") "Ring of FIRE" can refer to multiple things, including a Johnny Cash song and a movie about Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash. "Supa Hot FIRE" is a character in a series of satirical YouTube videos which parody rap battles.
• GLACIER (42D: Disappearing features of a Montana National Park) It's estimated that the GLACIERs in Montana's GLACIER National Park will have disappeared completely by the year 2030. 
• AISHA (56D: "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" host Tyler) "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" is an improv comedy TV show. AISHA Tyler has hosted the show since 2013.

Geography review:

• THE MILE HIGH CITY (39A: Nickname for Denver) Denver, Colorado is nicknamed THE MILE HIGH CITY because its official elevation is exactly one mile above sea level.
• HANOI (66A: Capital home to Hoan Kiem Lake) Hoan Kiem Lake, whose name means "Lake of the Returned Sword," is located in HANOI, the capital of Vietnam.
• IDAHO (2D: State home to the Kootenai) The Kootenai are an indigenous people who live in IDAHO, Montana, and British Columbia.
• ISRAELIS (41D: Tel Aviv residents) Tel Aviv is located on the Mediterranean coast of Israel.

Someday it will be safe to gather in large groups again. Until then, we'll have to settle for a crossword puzzle BLOCK PARTY. It's an enjoyable one, too, with three delightful theme answers. I enjoyed the cluing a lot today. Fun clues such as ELOPE [Blow off the big wedding] and SNOWBALL [Possible name for a white cat] made me smile. I also liked learning about Esther CHOO and ESAU Jenkins. This puzzle was a good way to begin my Saturday.