April 15, 2026

Title: BACKTALK

Constructor: Steve Jopek

Editor: Amie Walker

Theme synopsis:

• THROW PILLOW (18A: Decorative accent for a sofa)
• POKER TABLE (38A: Texas Hold 'em surface)
• STARTS SMALL (63A: Heeds the advice "Don't try to do everything at once," say)

BACKTALK: The BACK word of each theme answer can be paired with the word TALK to form a new phrase: PILLOW TALK, TABLE TALK, and SMALL TALK.

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• NOAH (15A: "Northern Attitude" singer Kahan) NOAH Kahan released "Northern Attitude" in 2022. The song is a single from his third studio album, Stick Season. A couple of months after the song's initial release, NOAH Kahan released a duet version of "Northern Attitude" with the Irish musician Hozier.
• ESTHER (33A: "Hot for My Name" comedian Povitsky) ESTHER Povitsky is a stand-up comedian and actress. Hot for My Name is her debut comedy special, which premiered on Comedy Central in 2020.
• ERIKA (41D: "Baywatch" actor Eleniak) The TV series Baywatch, about lifeguards patrolling beaches, originally aired from 1989-2001. From 1989-1992, ERIKA Eleniak portrayed Shauni McClain on Baywatch. Her character left the show during season 3. I know of the show, but haven't watched it, so am not familiar with its cast or characters.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• I RAISE (16A: Bluffer's statement, perhaps) I RAISE pairs nicely with the theme answer POKER TABLE.
• NEPALI (22A: Language in Kathmandu) Nepal is a landlocked country in South Asia. Kathmandu is Nepal's capital and largest city. The official language of Nepal is NEPALI, though the country's constitution allows each province to designate additional official languages.
• ENTS (42A: Docs who treat deviated septum) The nasal septum is the structure that separates the left and right nostrils. It is comprised of bone and cartilage. If the septum is displaced (not straight), that condition is referred to as deviated septum. Fun fact: An estimated 80% of people (including yours truly) have a deviated septum; many are not aware of the fact. Only in the most severe cases does a deviated septum cause issues such as snoring, apnea, or difficulty breathing. For those cases, the docs to see are ear, nose, and throat specialists – ENTS.
• GHANA (56A: Country west of Togo) GHANA is a country in Western Africa. Its southern border is along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean. GHANA's neighbors are the Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, and Togo. Accra is the capital and largest city of GHANA.
• BANANAS (58A: Donkey Kong Jungle Beat fruits) Donkey Kong Jungle Beat is a 2004 Nintendo video game. It's designed to be used with a bongo drum-style controller. Donkey Kong, who is a gorilla, sets out to defeat a series of evil kings in the jungle. Donkey Kong collects a number of items throughout the game, including BANANAS. 
• DEL (68A: Wilmington's state (Abbr.)) Wilmington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware (DEL). The headquarters of DuPont (a chemical company) are located in Wilmington, earning it the nickname, "Chemical Capital of the World." Wilmington is not the capital of Delaware; that's Dover.
• MYERS (1D: ___-Briggs Type indicator (personality test)) As I have previously written, I adore personality tests. (That fits with my personality type, actually.) The MYERS-Briggs assessment relies on self-reported answers to a questionnaire to assign values in four categories: introversion or extroversion (I/E), sensing or intuition (S/N), thinking or feeling (T/F), and judging or perceiving (J/P). Sixteen personality types are defined, each of which has a four-letter label, such as INTJ. The test was designed by a mother and daughter, Katharine Cook and Isabel Briggs MYERS.
• MOHS (5D: Mineral hardness scale name) The MOHS scale of mineral hardness characterizes scratch resistance on a qualitative scale from one to ten. Talc is a one on the MOHS scale. Diamond is a ten. The MOHS scale was created by mineralogist Friedrich MOHS.
• PAR (6D: Birdie plus one) In golf, a birdie is a score of one stroke under PAR. Therefore, a birdie plus one equals PAR. 
• HIPPO (8D: "Hungry Hungry" animal) Hungry Hungry HIPPOs is a classic kids' game in which players attempt to collect marbles using mechanical plastic HIPPOs. The game has been on the market since 1978.
• STAN (30D: Suffix for seven country names) The suffix "STAN" comes from the Persian word for "land." This clue just begs for a Geography Quiz. Can you name the seven countries whose names end with "STAN?" See if you can beat my husband's score: he was only able to name three. The answer to the Geography Quiz will be at the end of this blog post.
• HBO (34D: "The White Lotus" network) I have previously written about the TV series The White Lotus.
• ELMO (35D: Sesame Street resident) I'm always happy to see the furry red Muppet ELMO in the puzzle.
• KIDS' BOOK (40D: "The Very Hungry Caterpillar," for example) The Very Hungry Caterpillar is a KIDS' BOOK written by Eric Carle. It was first published in 1969. I thought the choice of this KIDS' BOOK was a fun tie-in with the HIPPO clue. Also, it's a great BOOK.
• LEGO SET (45D: The 278-brick "Penguins in Love" kit, e.g.) The LEGO SET "Penguins in Love" features two penguins who are presenting each other with gifts of a fish and a pebble. 
• CANADA (49D: Country with a maple leaf on its flag) The flag of CANADA features vertical bands of red on the outer edges, with a white band in the center and a red maple leaf on the band of white. The maple leaf has been used as a symbol of CANADA since the 18th century.
• HUM (57D: Hive sound) and BEE (61D: Hive insect) I enjoyed this clue pairing.
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
• ARIANA (9D: "Wicked: For Good" star Grande)
• WET (19D: Like someone just out of the hot tub)
• FEET (26D: They slip into slip-ons)

As I've mentioned before, I always try to guess what the theme will be after I read the title and before I solve the puzzle. Today my guess was that some synonym of "TALK" would be found going BACKwards in each theme answer. That did not turn out to be a theme, so for any constructors reading this, there's an idea. It didn't take long for me to catch on to the actual theme here. Filling in THROW PILLOW was the "Aha!" moment that allowed me to see PILLOW TALK. Congratulations to Steve Jopek making a USA Today crossword debut! Thank you, Steve, for this enjoyable puzzle.

Answer to Geography Quiz: The seven "STAN" countries are: Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

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