July 18, 2022

Title: TOP HATS

Constructor: Rafael Musa

Editor: Erik Agard

Theme Answers:

HATERS GONNA HATE (4D: Adage popularized by 3LW's "Playas Gon' Play")

HATHA YOGA (7D: Practice involving pranayama)

HATTIE MCDANIEL (10D: Actress who feuded with Walter White)

Theme synopsis: Each vertical theme answer begins with the letters H-A-T, resulting in a TOP HAT.

Things I learned:

• DANA (46A: "Kindred" protagonist) Kindred is a 1979 novel by Octavia E. Butler. In the book, the protagonist and narrator, DANA Franklin, time-travels between her home in 1970s California and the pre-Civil War South. Kindred has been adapted into an audio play and a graphic novel, and is being adapted into a TV series. 
• MORTADELLA (64A: Lunch meat that can contain pistachios) MORTADELLA is an Italian luncheon meat made of finely hashed pork and cubes of pork fat. Traditionally it is flavored with black pepper, but it may, as the clue tells us, contain pistachios. I was familiar with MORTADELLA, but was interested to learn about the pistachios.
• HATTIE MCDANIEL (10D: Actress who feuded with Walter White) HATTIE MCDANIEL (1893-1952) was an actress, singer-songwriter, and comedian perhaps best known for her role as Mammy in the 1939 movie, Gone With the Wind. For that role, HATTIE MCDANIEL won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress, becoming the first Black person to win an Oscar. The hotel hosting the 1939 Academy Awards had a no-Blacks policy, but let HATTIE MCDANIEL in as a favor. However, she was not allowed to sit with the rest of the Gone With the Wind cast, but was seated at the edge of the room. (Ugh. This infuriates me and saddens me, and this was less than 100 years ago.) Some people, including Walter White, the leader of the NAACP from 1929-1955, felt that Black actors who played roles of stereotyped characters such as Mammy, were not helpful to efforts to increase the roles available to Black actors. This Vanity Fair article talks about the feud between HATTIE MCDANIEL and Walter White, if you're interested in learning more.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• ETHOS (5A: ___, pathos and logos) ETHOS, pathos, and logos are modes of persuasion, ways a speaker or writer can appeal to their audience. ETHOS is an appeal to authority, convincing the audience the person is qualified to address the subject at hand. Pathos is an appeal to the audience's emotions, and logos is a logical appeal.
• STORM (23A: "X-Men" character who can generate lightning) STORM, who is able to control the weather and atmosphere, has been portrayed by Halle Berry in the X-Men movies.
• STORES (24A: 99 Ranch and Forever 21, for two) This is a fun clue, using STORES that contain numbers in their names. 99 Ranch is a supermarket chain, and Forever 21 is a clothing store.
• ATHEISTS (26A: People associated with the atomic whirl) The atomic whirl is the logo of the organization, American ATHEISTS. 
• HATERS GONNA HATE (4D: Adage popularized by 3LW's "Playas Gon' Play") "Playas Gon' Play" is a 2000 song from the girl group 3LW (3 Little Women). The song is the first use of the phrase "HATERS GONNA HATE" in song lyrics.
• HATHA YOGA (7D: Practice involving pranayama) HATHA YOGA is an umbrella term used for multiple YOGA styles including Vinyasa and Iyengar. HATHA YOGA practices focus on attaining balance by pranayama (focusing on breath) and asana (body posture).
• TERMS (13D: "I agree to the ___ and conditions") This clue made me laugh. We've all checked that box multiple times, haven't we? How many of us have actually read the TERMS and conditions?
• SEXES (23D: Battle of the ___ (1973 tennis match)) The Battle of the SEXES was an internationally-televised tennis match held at the Houston Astrodome in 1973 between Bobby Riggs and Bille Jean King. The match was won by Billie Jean King in three sets.
• CODE (35D: Black Girls ___ (tech nonprofit)) Black Girls CODE is an organization working to provide opportunities for young women of color to excel in the tech marketplace.

Geography review:

• LIMA (14A: Peru's capital) Peru is a country in western South America. LIMA, its capital and largest city, is located on the western edge of the country, along the Pacific Ocean. LIMA is home to the oldest continuously operating university in the Americas, the National University of San Marcos, established in 1551.
• NINER (47A: Bay Area NFL player, for short) The nine county area surrounding the San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, and Suisun Bay in California is often referred to the Bay Area. The San Francisco 49ers, or NINERs, are an NFL team based in the Bay Area.
• NIGER (59A: Country west of Chad) In addition to Chad, NIGER borders Libya, Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Algeria. Chad and NIGER (in that order) are the two largest landlocked countries in Africa. The capital of NIGER is Niamey.
• IRAN (36D: Nasir al-Mulk Mosque's country) The Nasir al-Mulk Mosque in Shiraz, IRAN is sometimes referred to as the "Pink Mosque" due to the abundance of pink-colored tiles on its ceiling. The mosque, built between 1876-1888 during the Qatar Dynasty, features many stained glass windows. 

I was going to call this a straightforward theme, but it's really more of a straight-downward theme - ha! A great set of theme answers here providing a row of HATS at the TOP of the grid. Other enjoyable answers: BIOCHEMIST (hooray for science in crosswords - see also, AMINO), CARNE ASADA, and CRAIG'S LIST. A fun thing is that we've seen this title - TOP HATS - before, with a different theme approach. Thank you, Rafa, for this puzzle that was a fabulous way to start my Monday.