August 7, 2025

Title: JOB OPENINGS

Constructor: Dena R. Verkuil

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

• DIRTY LAUNDRY (20A: Personal affairs, preferably kept private)
• DREAM SEQUENCE (39A: Storytelling technique that may consist of a fantasy or vision)
• DESK CALENDAR (58A: Analog planner)

JOB OPENINGS: The first word (the OPENING) of each theme answer can be placed in front of the word JOB to create a new phrase: DIRTY JOB, DREAM JOB, and DESK JOB.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• PEPPA (14A: "___ Pig" (British cartoon)) PEPPA Pig is an animated TV series centering on an anthropomorphic piglet, her family, and friends. PEPPA Pig first aired in 2004 and is currently in its ninth season.
• HELL (16A: Setting for Dante's "Inferno") Dante (c. 1265-1321) was an Italian writer and philosopher. Inferno is the first part of The Divine Comedy, a narrative poem Dante wrote between 1308 and 1321. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. In Inferno, HELL is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment. A fictionalized version of Dante journeys through HELL, guided by the Roman poet Virgil.
• IPO (28A: NYSE launch) IPO stands for "initial public offering" and refers to a company's stock launch. The abbreviation of New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in the clue alerts solvers that the answer will be an abbreviation.
• YAP (29A: Sound from a chihuahua) I had "yip" here at first instead of YAP. I should have checked the crossing answer before I filled it in.
• LUNA (35A: Moth species named after a moon goddess) The lime-green colored LUNA moth can have a wing span of over 7 inches, making it one of the largest moths in North America. It is named for the "moon-like" spots on its wings. Fun fact: In their adult form, LUNA moths do not eat. They rely on energy stored during the caterpillar stage and only live about a week. Their sole purpose is to reproduce.
• TIG (38A: "One Mississippi" star Notaro) One Mississippi (2015-2017) is a semi-autobiographical TV series created by TIG Notaro and Diablo Cody. TIG Notaro stars as TIG Bavaro, a radio host who temporarily moves home to Mississippi from Los Angeles following the death of her mother. 
• PINTS (47A: Ben & Jerry's units) Now I'm hungry for some Ben & Jerry's ice cream. Maybe I'll buy a PINT of Chunky Monkey (banana ice cream with fudge chunks and walnuts)? Or perhaps a PINT of Cherry Garcia (cherry ice cream with cherries and fudge flakes)? Wait ... maybe I'm feeling in the mood for a PINT of Oat of This Swirled (brown sugar ice cream with fudge flake and oatmeal cinnamon cookie swirls)? Such decisions!
• KIT (51A: Baby ferret) In addition to ferrets, the young of raccoons, civets, badgers, beavers, skunks, weasels, and squirrels are also called KITs.
• DUKE (61A: Pianist Ellington) DUKE Ellington (1899-1974) was a jazz pianist, composer, and band leader. From 1923 until his death, he was the leader of the DUKE Ellington Orchestra.
• KITE (62A: Toy often lost by Charlie Brown) I'm always happy to see a "Peanuts" reference. This clue reminds me of a jigsaw puzzle my husband and I put together last year that featured Charlie Brown and the KITE-eating tree.

• COSMO (63A: Pink drink order) A cosmopolitan, or COSMO for short, is a pink cocktail made with vodka, Cointreau, cranberry juice, and lime juice. This clue reminds me of the August 4 puzzle that featured (a different and nonalcoholic) PINK DRINK as a theme answer.
• DODO (70A: Extinct bird) The DODO was a flightless bird that lived on Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar. DODOs have been extinct since the 1600s. Their extinction was a result of being hunted by sailors and invasive species, as well as destruction of habitat.
• LEO (2D: Name of 14 popes) There have indeed been 14 popes named LEO. Pope LEO I, also known as LEO the Great, was Bishop of Rome (the pope's title) from 440-461. Pope LEO XIV (that's 14th in case your Roman numerals are rusty) is the current Bishop of Rome and the head of the Catholic Church. He became the pope on May 8 of this year. Pope LEO XIV was born in Chicago, Illinois. He is the first U.S.-born pope.
• OP-EDS (4D: Angled columns?) The question mark in this clue alerts solvers to a bit of trickery. The clue is not referring to the columns of a building that are leaning. The columns here are OP-EDS, newspaper columns written from a specific angle.
• FAMILY (5D: What "ohana" means in Hawaiian) The Hawaiian term "ohana" means FAMILY in an extended sense of the word, and includes blood-related, adoptive, and intentional family.
• BEALE (8D: Memphis street with a rich music history) BEALE Street is located in Memphis, Tennessee, and is the street that the song "BEALE Street Blues" took its name from. The song, in turn, is referenced by the title of James Baldwin's 1974 novel, If BEALE Street Could Talk. The Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum is located on BEALE Street. 
• PLAYS (13D: "Stereophonic" and "Fat Ham," for two) Stereophonic is a 2023 PLAY by David Admji. It is about a fictional rock band on the cusp of stardom. Will Butler (a member of the indie rock band Arcade Fire) wrote the PLAY's music. Stereophonic won five Tony awards, including Best PLAY. Fat Ham, a PLAY written by James Ijames, is a modern-day adaptation of William Shakespeare's Hamlet. Fat Ham won the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
• GINS (32D: Juniper berry spirits) GINS are flavored with juniper berries and other herbal ingredients. GINS were originally produced for medicinal purposes – as long ago as the 11th century – thus the addition of the medicinal herb juniper. GIN has come a long way since the 11th century, and there are hundreds of varieties of GIN.
• OLIVE (54D: Tidbit in mortadella) Mortadella is an Italian lunch meat made of finely hashed pork and cubes of fat. Mortadella is traditionally flavored with peppercorns. Some varieties of mortadella contain OLIVEs. 
• PETER (55D: "Sledgehammer" musician Gabriel) "Sledgehammer" is a 1986 song by PETER Gabriel. The song's music video, which features claymation, pixilation, and stop motion animation, won nine MTV Video Music Awards, the most awards won by a single video.
• KENO (59D: Lotterylike gambling game) KENO is played at casinos, and is also a lottery option in some states. A player buying a KENO ticket chooses a set of numbers and places a wager. Players win based on the number of matches between their chosen numbers and a set of randomly selected numbers.
• NERF (60D: Soft ball brand?) Note that "soft ball" is two words here. This means the clue is not asking for a brand that makes softballs (like Rawlings or Wilson), but rather NERF, which makes soft balls.
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
• HASSLE (23A: Pain in the you-know-what)
• AGE (49A: It's "just a number")
• APT (1D: Like the name Matt, for a gymnast)

A great set of theme answers today. My favorite might be DIRTY LAUNDRY. I notice that entry pairs well with SORRY I ASKED (25D: "Shouldn't have brought that up"). Interestingly (well, to me, anyway), we saw DIRTY LAUNDRY as a theme answer on May 11. In that puzzle, it was LAUNDRY that figured into the theme, rather than DIRTY. Thank you, Dena, for this excellent puzzle.