January 13, 2024

Title: DOWN BAD

Constructor: Amanda Rafkin

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme Answers:

SCUBA DIVER (3D: Person in a shark cage)

YABBA DABBA DOO (15D: Fred Flintstone's catchphrase)

WEB ADDRESS (31D: "It's also known as a URL)

Theme synopsis: The word BAD is found going DOWN in each vertical theme answer.

• SCUBA DIVER
• YABBA DABBA DOO
• WEB ADDRESS

Things I learned:

• TAUB (45A: "Suffs" composer Shaina) Suffs is a musical based on the women's suffrage movement in the United States. Shaina TAUB composed the music and wrote the lyrics for Suffs. The show is scheduled to open on Broadway this spring. The production team for Suffs includes Hilary Clinton and Malala Yousafzai.
• EMO (61A: Something Corporate genre) Something Corporate, also known as SoCo, is an EMO and alt rock band formed in 1998. Their album, North, was released just over 20 years ago, in 2003. The band has been on hiatus for over 10 years, but held a reunion show on December 31, 2023 in Anaheim, California.
• ANNA (55D: "The House Bunny" actress Faris) The House Bunny is a 2008 movie starring ANNA Faris as a former Playboy bunny who signs up to be the house mother of a sorority. I have previously written about ANNA Faris's roles on the TV show Mom, and in the Scary Movie films, but The House Bunny movie was new to me.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• KFC (13A: Fast-food chain with secret herbs and spices) The recipe for the "11 herbs and spices" that season KFC's fried chicken is a trade secret. Interestingly, the recipe is not patented, because patent applications are public information, and also come with an expiration date. As a trade secret, the recipe remains the intellectual property of KFC in perpetuity.
• SARA (18A: "Amidst the Chaos" artist Bareilles) Amidst the Chaos is a 2019 album by SARA Bareilles, whose song writing for the album was motivated by the 2016 election. The album includes the songs "No Such Thing" (an ode to president Barack Obama) and "Armor" (a response to the #MeToo Movement).
• CNBC (22A: "Fast Money" channel) Fast Money is a CNBC show that discusses financial stock trading. The show airs Monday through Friday, one hour after the closing of the New York Stock Exchange.
• LIMES (24A: Fruits in caipirinhas) Caipirinhas are cocktails made with cachaça (a distilled spirit made from sugarcane), sugar, and LIMES. Caipirinha is the national cocktail of Brazil.
• STATUE (25A: Grand Buddha at Ling Shan, e.g.) Grand Buddha at Ling Shan, as its name suggests, is a large STATUE of Buddha. The STATUE, located on the shore of Taihu Lake in the Jiangsu province in China, depicts a standing Buddha. Grand Buddha weighs over 700 tons, and is 289 feet tall. The STATUE was built in 1996. 
• GIVE (38A: "___ Me One Reason" (Tracy Chapman song)) Tracy Chapman's 1995 song, "GIVE Me One Reason," won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song. 
• BEER SNOBS (41A: People who might discuss International Bitterness Units) I learned about International Bitterness Units (IBU) from the May 11, 2023 puzzle. This clue made me chuckle. No offense to BEER SNOBS (everyone has their own interests!), but if I'm in a conversation that turns to the discussion of IBUs, I'm going to look for a way to change the subject.
• REID (46A: "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" actress Daphne) Daphne REID played the role of Vivian Banks on the TV sitcom "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" from 1993 to 1996.
• SCUBA DIVER (3D: Person in a shark cage) I wrote about shark cage diving last month.
• ITALIAN (8D: Like tiramisu and risotto) I now find myself in the mood for an ITALIAN meal of risotto (a creamy rice dish) and tiramisu (a coffee-flavored dessert). Yum! In fact, I don't have a set supper plan yet, and I do have Arborio rice (a short grain rice used for risotto) in the pantry, so this could happen. The tiramisu will have to wait for another day.
• TESS (12D: Author Gerritsen) TESS Gerritsen is an author and a retired physician. Her medical thrillers with the central characters of homicide detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Dr. Maura Isles inspired the TV series Rizzoli & Isles.
• YABBA DABBA DOO (15D: Fred Flintstone's catchphrase) A question I didn't know I would be asking myself this morning, "How many Bs in YABBA DABBA DOO?" The animated sitcom The Flintstones originally aired from 1960-1966. That means when I was watching it in the early 1970s, it was already in reruns. It was probably the 1970s or 1980s when I last saw The Flintstones, yet I immediately recognized Fred Flintstone's catchphrase as "YABBA DABBA DOO!" This is my favorite theme answer today, and it's nice that it contains BAD twice, which feels like a bonus.
• RHYMES (46D: "Cat" and "hat," for two) Why, yes, "cat" and "hat" are RHYMES,

  

  Cat in a hat

  and fine examples at that. I happen to have a photo of a cat in a hat. This picture is from 2014, so I think Willow might have forgiven me by now.
• EMORY (50D: Atlanta school) EMORY University is located in Atlanta, Georgia. My dad was an alumnus of EMORY.

Geography review:

• IGBO (34D: Nigerian people) Nigeria is a country in West Africa. Its capital is Abuja. The IGBO people are an ethnic group that is indigenous to several states in eastern Nigeria. There are also IGBO communities in Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea.

In spite of its name, this is a good puzzle! In addition to the answers I've highlighted above, I also enjoyed I DO INDEED, TIDBIT, and I WOULD. Thank you, Amanda, for this puzzle that was an excellent way to start my Saturday.