August 29, 2023

Title: BIG UPS

Constructor: Malaika Handa

Editor: Anna Gundlach

Theme Answers:

GRAND CREW (3D: NBC sitcom starring Nicole Byer)

LARGE PRINT BOOKS (7D: Novels with bigger-than-average font)

MAJORDOMO (35D: Head butler)

Theme synopsis: The UP-most word of each vertical theme answer is a synonym for UP. Today's BIG UPS are GRAND, LARGE, and MAJOR.

Things I learned:

• GRAND CREW (3D: NBC sitcom starring Nicole Byer) GRAND CREW is a TV series that aired for two seasons, from December 2021-April 2023. Nicole Byer and Echo Kellum portray sister and brother, Noah and Nicky Coleman. Each week, Nicky and Noah meet up with their friends at a wine bar to discuss their lives. With the exception of the pilot episode (which is simply titled, "Pilot"), each episode of the show is titled using the format "Wine & ___." Some episode titles: "Wine & Serendipity," "Wine & Pie," "Wine & Traffic," and "Wine & Neighbors."

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• TOAD (50A: Frog and ___ (queer-coded kid-lit pair) Frog and TOAD are the title characters of a series of four children's books written by Arnold Lobel, published between 1970 and 1979. Although Arnold Lobel wasn't publicly out at the time the first book was published, he came out to his family as gay in 1974. His daughter, Adrienne Lobel, has said, "I think Frog and TOAD was really the beginning of him coming out." This Vox article discusses the renewed interest the Frog and TOAD books have experienced fifty years after they were originally published. An animated Frog and TOAD TV series premiered on Apple TV in April of this year.
• AKA (52A: First historically Black sorority, for short) Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) was the first historically Black American sorority. It was founded at Howard University.
• COCKAPOO (59A: Designer dog that's part spaniel) The name COCKAPOO is a portmanteau of "cocker spaniel" and "poodle." 
• NOKIA (68A: Finnish "brick phone" company) In the 2000s, NOKIA phones, in particular the NOKIA 3310, became known as "brick phones" for their virtual indestructibility. A couple of years ago, NOKIA relaunched its brick-style phone as the NOKIA 6310.
• YMCA (69A: Village People hit) Here's a Village People earworm for you: "YMCA" was originally released in 1978.
• AGE (70A: Three, for Elmo) The red Muppet, Elmo, is perpetually three-and-a-half years old. Although Elmo celebrates his birthday on February 3, his AGE remains the same.
• SAREE (4D: The ___ Room (online shop for South Asian fashion)) The SAREE Room was established in 2015. Items ordered online are shipped from a warehouse in Toronto, Canada.
• RYAN (18D: "Only Murders in the Building" actress Amy) Much to my delight, the third season of Only Murders in the Building is currently underway. The show stars Selena Gomez, Steve Martin, and Martin Short as Mabel, Charles, and Oliver, a trio that becomes podcasters covering murders in their apartment building. Amy RYAN played the role of Jan in the first season, and had a recurring role in the second season. Jan was a bassoonist, and a love interest of Charles. No spoilers here, but if you haven't seen this show, I highly recommend it.
• MEG (29D: Jo, Beth and Amy's sister) MEG, Jo, Beth, and Amy are the sisters in Louisa May Alcott's 1860's novel, Little Women.
• GEO (31D: ___ Guessr (game that uses Google Maps)) GEOGuessr is a web-based game in which players guess locations based on Google Street View imagery. The game has both free and paid options. The game was created by Anton Wallén in 2013.
• MAJORDOMO (35D: Head butler) I surprised myself a bit by immediately knowing this answer. This English word has origins in Spanish (mayordomo) and Italian (maiordomo). All three of these words ultimately derived from the Medieval Latin, "MAJOR domus," meaning "chief of the house."
• ASL (39D: Language in the documentary "Deaf Jam") Deaf Jam is a 2011 documentary about Aneta Brodsky, a deaf teenager that becomes involved in American Sign Language (ASL) poetry. 
• KATE (60D: "Hounds of Love" singer Bush) "Hounds of Love" is the title track from KATE Bush's 1985 studio album. The "Hounds of Love" music video was inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's movie, The 39 Steps. 

Geography review:

• STAR (17A: Symbol on the Ghanian flag) Ghana is a West African country that has coastline along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. Its neighbors are Togo, Burkina Faso, and the Ivory Coast, and its capital is Accra. The flag of Ghana features three horizontal stripes of red, gold, and green. A black STAR is in the center of the gold stripe.
• NOHO (44A: NYC or L.A. neighborhood) In NYC, the NOHO neighborhood in Lower Manhattan gets its name from being NOrth of HOuston. In L.A., the NOHO Arts District is in NOrth HOllywood.
• KOREA (53D: Asian peninsular region) The peninsula of KOREA is home to two countries, North KOREA and South KOREA. 

BIG UPS for this delightful puzzle! In addition to the answers I've already highlighted, I enjoyed TRIATHLONS, STRAWBERRY, and GREEN TEA AS WELL. Thank you, Malaika, for this puzzle that was a GRAND way to start my Tuesday.