December 17, 2025

Title: BEDHEAD

Constructor: Max Schlenker

Editor: Amie Walker

Theme synopsis:

• TWIN ENGINE (3D: Like most commercial airplanes)
• FULL STEAM AHEAD (8D: "Let's go as fast as possible!")
• QUEEN ANNE'S LACE (14D: Plant said to be named after an English monarch who loved fine needlework)
• KING COBRAS (26D: Hooded snakes that primarily eat other snakes)

BEDHEAD: A BED size is found at the HEAD of each vertical theme answer: TWIN, FULL, QUEEN, and KING.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• REBA (4A: "Fancy" singer McEntire) I wrote about REBA McEntire's song "Fancy" a few months ago.
• QATAR (14A: Doha's country) QATAR is a country in West Asia, and Doha is its capital. QATAR is located on a peninsula in the Persian Gulf, and its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia.
• ULTRA (15A: "Super Graphic ___ Modern Girl" (Chappell Roan song)) "Super Graphic ULTRA Modern Girl" is a song from Chappell Roan's 2023 debut album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess.
• ION (19A: What's never free of charge?) I do enjoy a science joke! An ION, by definition, has a net electrical charge – either positive or negative – so it is "never free of charge."
• MEGAN (42A: ___ Thee Stallion) MEGAN Thee Stallion is the professional name of rapper and songwriter MEGAN Jovon Ruth Pete. A documentary about her, MEGAN Thee Stallion: In Her Words, was released in 2024.
• AMC (46A: Theater chain with a Nicole Kidman ad campaign) I have previously written about AMC's ad campaign featuring Nicole Kidman. The campaign, which featured the line, "Heartbreak feels good in a place like this," became a meme and was spoofed by Saturday Night Live. 
• AGITA (57A: Anxious feeling) Earlier this month when we saw AGITA clued as [Feeling of anxiety], I was sure the answer was "angst." Today I was prepared and relied on crossing answers to help me figure out which of these five-letter words was the correct answer.
• ANA (62A: SNL alum Gasteyer) ANA Gasteyer was a cast member on Saturday Night Live (SNL) from 1996 to 2002. One of the things she became known for on the show was her Martha Stewart impressions.
• TAHOE (2D: Largest alpine lake in North America) Located in the Sierra Nevada mountain range, Lake TAHOE is located near Reno, Nevada on the California-Nevada border.
• QUEEN ANNE'S LACE (14D: Plant said to be named after an English monarch who loved fine needlework) QUEEN ANNE'S LACE is a flowering plant – also known as European wild carrot – whose flower heads contain many tiny white flowers that together resemble LACE. It's not known definitively how the plant came to be called QUEEN ANNE'S LACE, though as the clue informs us,  one theory is that it was named after England's QUEEN ANNE (1665-1714). 
• PUMA (14D: Big cat) The PUMA is also called a mountain lion, cougar, catamount, or panther. Whatever name you choose to use, my cat, Willow, is always happy to see a big cat cousin in the puzzle.

• KING COBRAS (26D: Hooded snakes that primarily eat other snakes) and ASIA (29D: Continent home to 28-Down) KING COBRAS are a venomous snake species native to ASIA. Our crossword friend ASIA is having a good December – this is its third appearance this month. Will we see it again before the end of the year? Keep puzzling to find out!
• TOON (30D: Kim Possible, e.g.) Kim Possible is the title TOON of the animated TV series, Kim Possible. Ron Stoppable is Kim's friend, neighbor, and accident-prone sidekick. The two are spies that fight crime while also dealing with adolescent issues.
• ACTS (41D: There are five in "King Lear") There are indeed five ACTS in William Shakespeare's 1606 play, The Tragedy of King Lear. It's a tragedy, so not unexpectedly, a number of the play's central characters die in ACT V.
• ISABEL (45D: "The House of the Spirits" author Allende) ISABEL Allende has published 27 books that have been translated into more than 42 languages. Her first book, The House of the Spirits (La casa de los espiritus), published in 1982, began as a letter to her dying grandfather. Her most recent book, published this year, is titled My Name is Emilia Del Valle. In addition to her writing, ISABEL Allende is known for her activism in supporting and empowering women and girls.
• CASA (52D: ___ Amor (alternative villa in "Love Island")) Love Island is a dating reality show franchise. The U.S. version of the show, which premiered in 2019, is based on the British version with the same name. The premise of the show is that a group of contestants live in a villa, isolated from the outside world and under video surveillance. On the first day the islanders (as the contestants are called) couple up based on their initial chemistry. CASA Amor is a twist that is introduced sometime during the series. It involves the group being split into two groups, with either the males or females staying at the original villa, and the other group moving to a second residence called "CASA Amor." New contestants are then introduced to each group, in an effort to test loyalties and produce drama. (The last half of that sentence is my take on it.)
• NINA (54D: Singer Simone) NINA Simone (1933-2003) was a singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. NINA Simone's autobiography, I Put a Spell on You: The Autobiography of NINA Simone, was published in 1992. "I Put a Spell on You" is the title track from NINA Simone's 1965 studio album. NINA Simone described "I Put a Spell on You" as "the kind of song that no one can ignore."
• GILA (55D: ___ monster (large lizard)) The GILA monster is a species of venomous lizard native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. 
• TBT (58D: Hashtag for an old pic) TBT = throwback Thursday
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
• SCHOOLS (48A: Places with line leaders)
• MAYO (31D: Siracha ___ (spicy, creamy condiment)
• CLINK (49D: Sound of touching champagne flutes)

From the title of today's puzzle, I guessed the theme was going to be in the Down answers. That guess was correct. My other guess was that the theme answers would start with the letters B-E-D; well, you can't win them all! I had a nice "Aha!" moment with TWIN ENGINE, and it was fun to then uncover the other BEDs. Thank you, Max, for this enjoyable puzzle.