July 10, 2022

Title: HIT IT!

Constructor: Erik Agard

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

X MARKS THE SPOT (23A: Treasure map hint)

COOKING THE BOOKS (42A: Doing some fraudulent accounting)

ALWAYS ON THE ROAD (59A: Constantly traveling)

Theme synopsis: The ends of the theme answers are things that can be figuratively HIT: HIT THE SPOT, HIT THE BOOKS, HIT THE ROAD.

Things I learned:

• LEAH (64A: Actress ___ Sava Jeffries) Percy Jackson and the Olympians is an upcoming Disney+ TV series (filming began this month) based on the book series of the same name by Rick Riordan. Percy Jackson is a 12-year-old demigod (a part-human, part divine being). Percy's best friends are Annabeth Chase, a daughter of the Greek goddess, Athena, and Grover, a satyr (half boy and half goat) disguised as a boy. LEAH Sava Jeffries will play the role of Annabeth Chase in the TV series. Disappointingly (and sadly unsurprisingly), the casting announcement of LEAH Sava Jeffries as Annabeth Chase led to some racist comments on social media. Rick Riordan has a few words to say to the writers of those comments. (Rick Riordan's letter is extremely well-written - he is a best-selling author, after all. I highly recommend taking the time to read it.) LEAH Sava Jeffries will also be seen in the upcoming movie, Beast, a survivor thriller film being released next month. (As a side note, I'm always happy to see LEAH in the puzzle, as that's my daughter's name!)
• YEAST (11D: Ingredient for making anpan) Anpan is a sweet roll made with a YEAST dough, and filled with red bean paste. Anpan originated in Japan.
• KIPPAH (43D: Yarmulke) KIPPAH and yarmulke are both names for the brimless cap traditionally worn by Jewish males. Koppel is another name used for the cap. "KIPPAH" means "dome" in Hebrew.
• NBA (60D: League that Ja Morant plays in) Ja Morant plays basketball for NBA's Memphis Grizzlies. He was named NBA Rookie of the Year in 2020, and was a starter for the 2022 NBA All Star Game.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• PTO (27A: Unlimited ___ (workplace policy)) PTO here stands for "paid time off," and unlimited PTO is exactly what it sounds like. Some companies have adopted an unlimited PTO policy to let employees decide how much time they need to take off, rather than setting a specific number of PTO days per year.
• I'LL (7D: "___ Be Around" (Spinners song) "I'LL Be Around" was initially released in 1972 as the B-side of the single, "How Could I Let You Get Away." Some of you will remember (as I do) when singles were released on 45 rpm records. The A-side was usually the song expected to be a hit. "I'LL Be Around" ended up being more successful than the A-side song, and spent five weeks at the top of the U.S. R&B chart. 
• ROMEO (10D: "___ Must Die") ROMEO Must Die is a 2000 movie about a martial artist and former police officer from Hong Kong traveling to the United States to avenge his brother's death. The movie is loosely a retelling of Shakespeare's ROMEO and Juliet, if that story took place in Oakland, California and the feuding families were African-American and Chinese-American gangs. ROMEO Must Die starred Han Sing as Jet Li, and Aaliyah as Trish O'Day. It was Aaliyah's movie debut.
• GET ME BODIED (22D: Beyonce song co-written by Solange) "GET ME BODIED" is a song from Beyoncé's B'Day album, and, appropriately, the song begins with "9-4-8-1," Beyoncés birthday. The music video features Beyoncé and her former Destiny's Child bandmates, Solange, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams.
• TOY (25D: Birthday present for a cat) Willow approves of this clue, and would like me to

  

  Willow contemplating turning 11

  let you know her birthday is just over a month away, on August 11 (yes, she's a Leo!). It will be her golden birthday, she'll be 11. Willow doesn't really have a favorite TOY; it depends on her mood. She is fond of things that roll, particularly if they make noise, and she is a fan of any TOY filled with catnip.
• LOOP (30D: "A Strange ___") A Strange Loop is a Broadway musical about a Black, queer writer (named Usher) writing a musical about a Black, queer writer writing a musical about a Black, queer writer. Earlier this year, A Strange Loop won the Tony Award for Best Musical.
• ALES (54D: Crowns & Hops brews) Crowns & Hops is a Black-owned craft beer company founded by Beny Ashburn and Teo Hunter. According to their website, Crowns & Hops is "dedicated to preserving culture, expansion of the palate, and community building through world class beer." Crown & Hops sells ALES with delightful names such as Mama's Keys, Freestyle Verses, and We Invented the Fresh.
• TOUR (56D: ___ de France Femmes) TOUR de France Femmes is a women's bicycle race. It is a cycle stage race across France, and is organized by Amaury Sport Organization.

Geography review:

• CALI (53D: The Golden State, for short) "The Golden State" has been the official name of California (or CALI, for short) since 1968. The nickname is likely a reference to the California Gold Rush that began in 1948. California became a state in 1950. Not surprisingly, the state mineral of California is gold.

This is a fun theme with an absolutely delightful set of theme answers! X MARKS THE SPOT is my favorite theme answer, and I was amused to think that someone who HITS THE ROAD frequently is, in fact, ALWAYS ON THE ROAD. I also liked the answers SPORK, WHAT A BIG BOY, MWAH, and RELAX. Thank you, Erik, for this puzzle that was a fabulous way to begin my Sunday. Also, many thanks to guest bloggers Brooke Husic and Shannon Rapp for blogging the last couple of days. I am grateful for my fabulous guest bloggers!