May 28, 2026

Title: THE END OF AN ERA

Constructor: Rebecca Goldstein

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

• BOX OFFICE FLOP (20A: Disaster movie?)
• PANIC AT THE DISCO (40A: Band that released "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (20th Anniversary Deluxe)" in 2026)
• YOUR FLY IS OPEN (58A: "XYZ, buddy")

THE END OF AN ERA: The last word (END) of each theme answer can pair with the word ERA: FLOP ERA, DISCO ERA, and OPEN ERA. 

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• VOS (65D: Marianne known as the GOAT in women's cycling) Marianne VOS is a Dutch cyclist who became World Champion in cyclocross and road racing when she was 19 years old (in 2006). She has since gone on to win the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) Road World Championships three times (2006, 2012, and 2013) and the UCI Cyclo-cross Championships eight times (2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2022). I'm happy to add Marianne VOS to the sports knowledge I've learned from crosswords.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• MAYO (17A: Sando spread) The word "sando" in the clue, a shortened form of sandwich, alerts solvers the answer will be a shortened form of mayonnaise, MAYO.
• ROAR (18A: Lion's sound) My cat, Willow, does not have a mighty ROAR like her big cat cousin, the lion. She does however meow ... a lot. She's also a bit spoiled (surprising nobody, I'm sure), preferring to drink her water straight from the faucet. 

• HELLA (19A: Intensifying adverb that originated in the Bay Area) The word HELLA is often used with the words "good" or "bad" as an intensifying adverb, e.g. "HELLA good" or "HELLA bad." As the clue mentions, the word HELLA originated in San Francisco's Bay Area. More specifically, it may have come from AAVE (African American Vernacular English) in the Oakland area in the 1970s.
• SAO (27A: ___ Paulo FC) SÃO Paulo FC is a professional football club (known as a soccer club in the U.S.) in SÃO Paulo, Brazil. 
• PANIC AT THE DISCO (40A: Band that released "A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (20th Anniversary Deluxe)" in 2026) PANIC! AT THE DISCO was formed in Las Vegas in 2005. The band's original members were still in high school when they sent out their first demo tapes. The band's debut album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, was released in 2005. The 20th anniversary deluxe addition of their debut album was released in January of this year. A Fever You Can't Sweat Out (20th Anniversary Deluxe) contains remastered tracks of the original songs, plus 11 previously unreleased demos and a Live in Denver performance that was recorded during PANIC! AT THE DISCO's first headlining tour in 2006.
• TSAR (44A: Anastasia's father was one) Anastasia, formally Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia (1901-1918), was the youngest daughter of TSAR Nicholas II (1868-1918), who was the last TSAR of Imperial Russia. Anastasia's entire family was murdered by a group of Bolsheviks in 1918, however persistent rumors of her possible survival circulated after her death. Although Anastasia's survival has been conclusively disproven, it has been the subject of multiple movies and a Broadway musical.
• TATA (46A: "Toodle-oo!") and CYA (41D: "gtg") Fun to see these brief goodbyes crossing. The texting abbreviation "gtg" means "got to go."
• ELLIE (62A: "The Last of Us" protagonist) The Last of Us is a TV series based on a 2013 video game of the same name. Joel (Pedro Pascal) is a smuggler tasked with escorting a teenager (ELLIE portrayed by Bella Ramsey) across the country.
• JIM (1D: Pam's husband on "The Office") As with sports, most everything I know about the mockumentary The Office (2005-2013), I have learned from crosswords, as I have never watched the TV show. Jenna Fischer portrays Pam Beesly, who is a receptionist at Dunder Mifflin (a paper distribution company) at the beginning of the series. In the sixth season of The Office, Pam marries JIM Halpert, portrayed by John Krasinski.
• AMA (2D: Reddit event) AMA = ask me anything
• MAYBE DON'T (3D: "Might wanna rethink that") and STRIKE THAT (8D: "Forget what I just said") It occurred to me that these two answers can pair together in a somewhat amusing way.
• COX (22D: Courteney who plays Gale Weathers in the "Scream" franchise) There are seven movies in the Scream franchise. The films are creatively titled Scream (1996), Scream 2 (1997), Scream 3 (2000), Scream 4 (2011), Scream (2022), Scream VI (2023), and Scream 7 (2026). Only Courtney COX, who portrays Gale Weathers, has appeared in all six movies.
• JAPAN (23D: Asian country consisting of over 14,000 islands) This is a fun geographical fact about JAPAN. Of JAPAN's 14,125 islands, approximately 260 are inhabited. The largest and most-populated of JAPAN's islands is Honshu.
• AJA (28D: Wilson who was WNBA MVP and WNBA Finals MVP in 2025) AJA Wilson is a professional basketball player for WNBA's Las Vegas Aces. She has played for the Aces since 2018. During that time, the Aces have been WNBA champions three times (2022, 2023, and 2025).
• DIRTY RICE (33D: Cajun dish named for its aesthetic) DIRTY RICE is a traditional cajun dish of RICE that gets "DIRTY"-looking from being cooked with meat, bell peppers, celery, and onion.
• TIL (47"That is brand-new information" to a texter) TIL = today I learned
• FELIZ (57D: "___ cumpleanos a ti) "FELIZ cumpleaños a ti" is Spanish for "Happy birthday to you."
• SARA (60D: Spanx CEO Blakely) SARA Blakely is the founder and CEO of Spanx. She got the idea for Spanx when she cut off a pair of pantyhose to attend a party in order to get the control-top effect without the unsightly seams across the toes. 
• Other clues and answers I especially enjoyed:
• FORT (14A: Structure that may be built of pillow and sheets)
• IPOD (32A: Nano technology?)
• ACRE (68A: 43,560 square feet)
• IGOR (69A: Name hidden in "rigorous")

I had a couple of possible guesses about the theme from the title, and BOX OFFICE FLOP confirmed which one was correct. By the way, the clue for BOX OFFICE FLOP is excellent. Having the theme in mind helped me come up with PANIC AT THE DISCO. And I giggled at the clue for YOUR FLY IS OPEN. Thank you, Rebecca, for this delightful puzzle.

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