March 30, 2022

Title: LEFT AND RIGHT

Constructor: Zhouqin Burnikel

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

ALONE TIME (16A: Period to focus on yourself)

OVER HERE (28A: "This way!")

OPEN CALL (45A: Public audition)

HANGING ON (64A: Not giving up)

Theme synopsis: The LEFT part of each theme answer can follow the word LEFT, and the RIGHT part of each theme answer can follow the word RIGHT. We have LEFT ALONE and RIGHT TIME, LEFT OVER and RIGHT HERE, LEFT OPEN and RIGHT CALL, and LEFT HANGING and RIGHT ON.

Things I learned:

• FAST (1A: Like Atanarjuat) Atanarjuat is the title character in the 2001 movie Atanarjuat: The FAST Runner. The Canadian film was the first feature film to be written, directed, and filmed entirely in the Inuktitut language.
• SGT (5D: Waters' rank in "A Soldier's Story" (Abbr.)) A Soldier's Story is a 1984 movie that deals with racism in a segregated regiment of the U.S. Army located in the southern U.S. at the time of the Jim Crow laws. Adolph Caesar played the role of SGT. Vernon Waters, who is murdered outside of Fort Neal. The movie centers on the investigation into Waters' death.
• ALICE (6D: Olympic gold medalist Coachman) ALICE Coachman was the first Black woman to win an Olympic medal, which she did representing Team USA in the high jump in 1948. ALICE Coachman was inducted into the United States Olympic Hall of Fame in 2004. She died in 2014, at the age of 90. I did not know about ALICE Coachman, and I am happy to learn about her. 

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• EXPO (13A: ___ 2020 (world's fair held in Dubai)) In spite of its name, EXPO 2020 is actually happening right now, although tomorrow is its last day. Originally scheduled for October 2020 to April 2021, like many things, EXPO 2020 was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The World EXPO began October 1, 2021, with the theme of "Connecting Minds, Creating the Future." The EXPO has had three subthemes: Sustainability, Mobility, and Opportunity.
• PESTO (27A: Sauce for capellini) Capellini, Italian for "little hairs," is a thin, spaghetti-like pasta.
• LOLA (42A: "American Woman" actress Kirke) In the 2019 movie American Woman, LOLA Kirke plays the role of Yvonne, a member of the militia that has kidnapped the granddaughter of a wealthy newspaper magnate. American Woman is based on Susan Choi's 2003 novel of the same name about the 1974 kidnapping of Patty Hearst by the Symbionese Liberation Army. 
• SUSHI (56A: Kappa maki or tekka maki) Kappa maki is also known as cucumber SUSHI rolls. Tekka maki is a tuna SUSHI roll.
• NIECE (58A: Jo or Amy, to Aunt March) In Louisa May Alcott's novel, Little Women, Aunt Josephine March is a rich widow who is vocal about the things she disapproves of, including many of the actions of her NIECEs, the March sisters - Meg, Jo, Beth, and Amy.
• YOWL (24D: More attention-grabbing version of a meow) and
  
  CATS (53A: Scratching post visitors) Oh, look, not just one, but two clues about CATS today. Willow will not YOWL about that. 
• CLUE (54D: Crossword hint) I'm not sure about this one...I'm searching for a CLUE to the answer.

Geography review:

• INDIANA (39A: "The Crossroads of America") Since 1937, "The Crossroads of America" has been the official motto of the state of INDIANA. The state capital, Indianapolis, is unofficially nicknamed "Crossroads of America," in reference to the junction of four major Interstates there: I65, I69, I70, and I74. 
• DES (50A: ___ Moines) There are two state capital buildings in the United States that feature five domes. One of those buildings is the Iowa State Capital, located in DES Moines. The building has a central gold-leafed dome surrounded by four smaller domes. The other five-domed capital building is the Rhode Island State House.
• SRI (9D: ___ Lanka) Would you know where the country of SRI Lanka is if you did not solve crosswords? The island country of SRI Lanka is in the Indian Ocean, southeast of the Indian subcontinent. SRI Lanka has two capitals: SRI Jayawardenepura Kotte (legislative) and Colombo (executive and judicial).

It's been a while since we've had a theme that included both parts of a theme answer, and it was fun to see that today. In addition to the theme, I liked the answers ANCESTRY, SPONGE CAKE (I'd actually like to eat some SPONGE CAKE), OLD HAND, and GUMDROP. This puzzle was a great way to begin my Wednesday.