July 24, 2021

Title: ON END

Constructor: Brooke Husic

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

DREW A CONCLUSION (19A: Made an inference)

JOINT RESOLUTION (35A: Decision reached as a group)

END OF DISCUSSION (50A: "We are done talking about this")

Theme synopsis: Each theme answer is a phrase that describes an END result, and ENDs with the letters ON.

And now a word from our constructor:

Brooke: I'm not totally sure how to describe this theme (and am looking forward to reading Sally's take) but it was cool that several phrases signifying the end of something also have "ON" at their "END"s. I remember when I was cluing this puzzle I got the song mentioned in 64A stuck in my head for days. And now, looking it back over to send in notes, it's going to happen again! I am here for it. I also like the 1D/2D clues, the 6D clue (not mine!), and cluing OMEN as something positive! See you on Tuesday with a very fun collab!

Things I learned:

• ALLIE (18A: Basketball reporter LaForce) ALLIE LaForce is a sideline reporter for NBA on TNT, broadcasts of NBA games produced by Turner Sports. She played college basketball while attending Ohio University, and was Miss Teen USA in 2005.
• BLU (22A: Bassist DeTiger) BLU DeTiger is a bass player who has over a million followers on TikTok, where she is a frequent poster. From 2017-2019, she was a member of the alt rock band Kitten. Two nights ago she performed on Late Night with Seth Meyers as a guest bassist with the band Bleachers. 
• CARA (54D: Pop star Alessia) Alessia CARA's most recent singles, "Sweet Dream" and "Shapeshifter," were released on July 15. In 2018, Alessia CARA won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, becoming the first Canadian artist to win that award.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• POMP (5A: "___ and Circumstance" (song at a graduation)) The "POMP and Circumstance" we associate with graduations is a section of POMP and Circumstance March No. 1 in D - one of five marches composed by Sir Edward Elgar between 1901 and 1907. The song was first played at a graduation in 1905 at Yale University when Edward Elgar was given an honorary doctorate of music.
• YEAR (17A: ___ of the Ox) In case you are wondering, we are currently in the YEAR of the Ox according to the Chinese calendar. In the Gregorian calendar, the YEAR of the Ox began on February 12, 2021, and lasts through January 31, 2022.
• MAMA (32A: "Uncle" in Hindi or "mom" in Spanish) As I've mentioned before, giving two examples in a clue is a nice way to increase a solver's chances of knowing the answer. This clue is a nice example of that.
• DMZ (39A: Region where no troops are allowed (Abbr.)) DMZ = demilitarized zone
• ANGELA (45A: Bassett who played Tina Turner) Angela Bassett played the starring role of Tina Turner in the 1993 biographical movie, What's Love Got to Do with It. She won Golden Globe and NAACP Image Awards for her performance.
• NAME (64A: "Stop! In the ___ of Love") "Stop! In the NAME of Love" is a song originally recorded by The Supremes. This is indeed a CATCHY (27A: Like a good slogan) tune, and a prime earworm candidate! When I was in 8th grade P.E. class, we were divided into groups and had to come up with movements/ choreography to a song. "Stop! In the NAME of Love" is the song my group chose. I can still remember some of that (truly awful) choreography, and yet I can barely remember what I did last week. Brains are fascinating things. Also, I did not realize this song was released the year I was born. 1965 was a good year!
• OREO (6D: Name for a black-and-white cat) New crossword blogger goal: adopt a black-and-white cat and name it OREO. Willow is not a fan of that idea, so it will be some time before that happens.
• RASTA (26D: Member of an Afrocentric religion) Rastafarianism developed as a religion in Jamaica in the 1930s, and is based on a specific interpretation of the Bible. RASTA beliefs include monotheism, a belief in one God, referred to as Jah.
• CHICA (28D: Synonym for "muchacha") "CHICA" and "muchacha" are both Spanish words meaning "girl."
• ALFRE (44D: Actress/producer Woodard) ALFRE Woodard has numerous TV and movie credits, including the role of Dr. Roxanne Turner on the TV show St. Elsewhere in the 1980s, and the role of Warden Bernadine Williams in the 2019 movie Clemency. 

Geography review:

• ARK (49A: Little Rock's state (Abbr.)) Little Rock is the capital and most populous city of ARKansas.
• CALI (10D: Nevada's western neighbor, for short) CALIfornia is the only western neighbor of Nevada. Both CALIfornia and Nevada are western neighbors of Arizona.
• IOWA (55D: Home state of Simon Estes) Oh, hello from IOWA! Simon Estes is an opera singer. In 2020, he was selected as part of the inaugural class of the newly formed Opera Hall of Fame, and will be inducted in early 2022. Simon Estes was born in Centerville, IOWA. He attended the University of IOWA. I am also an alum of the University of IOWA, but Simon Estes was a student at IOWA before I was born! While at the University of IOWA, Estes sang with the "Old Gold Singers," and was the group's first Black singer. One of the perks of living in IOWA is occasionally getting to hear Simon Estes sing in person. Such a fabulous voice! Here's a Facebook post I made five years ago while attending my son's graduation at Iowa State University.
  
  
  

Great grid-spanning theme answers today. I especially enjoyed that these ENDing phrases seem to progress as we work our way through the puzzle. First the group DREW A CONCLUSION. Then we came to a JOINT RESOLUTION, and so...END OF DISCUSSION. At first I thought the theme might just involve the last words of the theme answers, as CONCLUSION and RESOLUTION are synonyms for END. Fittingly, when I reached END OF DISCUSSION I realized we were looking at the entire phrases. In addition to the theme, I especially liked the answers SLOW BURN, ALL SET, and TALK SHOW. I also enjoyed the trips down memory lane that accompanied some of today's answers. This puzzle was a great way to begin my Saturday.