June 20, 2026

Title: IT'S HOT IN HERE! (Freestyle)

Constructor: Rafael Musa

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

Theme synopsis:

IT'S HOT IN HERE! (Freestyle): There's no theme today, as this is a freestyle, or themeless, puzzle. The title is a nod to CLIMATE JUSTICE (22A: Social movement addressing the unequal impacts of global warming).

What I learned from today's puzzle:

• LACOSTE (28A: Clothing brand with a crocodile logo) LACOSTE is a French clothing brand. It was founded by tennis player René LACOSTE and entrepreneur André Gillier in 1933. The company's signature green crocodile logo came out of René LACOSTE's nickname of "the Crocodile," earned for his ferociousness on the tennis court. When I read this clue I thought, "Oh I should know this – preppy polo shirts with crocodile logos on them were popular back in the 1980s." When I eventually uncovered the answer with the help of crossing answers, I thought, "That was not what I was thinking of..." I did a little digging, and what I found was interesting. The brand I was thinking of was Izod. It turns out that from 1952 to 1993, Izod and LACOSTE partnered as the brand Izod LACOSTE. While both companies had an equal share in the shirts produced by Izod LACOSTE, they became popularized as simply "Izod shirts," which led to an ongoing misunderstanding that the crocodile logo of LACOSTE is the Izod trademark. Now I know! 
• CEE (40A: British rapper Central ___) Central CEE is a leading figure in British rap, having risen to prominence in 2020 with the singles "Day in the Life" and "Loading." His first studio album, Can't Rush Greatness, was released last year, reaching number one on the U.K. albums chart and number nine in the U.S. on the Billboard 200.

Random thoughts and interesting things:

• ID TAG (5A: Pet collar attachment) My cat, Willow, does not have an ID TAG, since she refuses to wear a collar (as I've previously written). She's an indoor cat and has no interest in going outside, so we don't worry about it too much. She does have a microchip though, just in case. As you can see, she's not at all concerned about not having an ID TAG (or about anything else really).

• NI HAO (14A: "Hello," in Mandarin) NI HAO is an informal Chinese greeting that literally translates to "You good?"
• CLIMATE JUSTICE (22A: Social movement addressing the unequal impacts of global warming) CLIMATE JUSTICE recognizes that people in regions that are less responsible for climate change (due to lower industrialization), as well as poor and marginalized communities tend to suffer the most consequences of global warming. Specifically, CLIMATE JUSTICE focuses on equalizing the burdens of global warming and the responsibility for mitigating its effects. Obviously, this is a topic whose scope goes beyond a single blog post. But if you're interested in learning more, here's a link to the University of California's Center for CLIMATE JUSTICE, which outlines the Six Pillars of CLIMATE JUSTICE. And here's a link to NAACP's website discussing Environmental & CLIMATE JUSTICE.
• CHEROKEE NATION (47A: Tribe headquartered in Tahlequah, Oklahoma) CHEROKEE NATION is located in northeastern, Oklahoma, and is the largest of the CHEROKEE tribes in the U.S. In addition to being the headquarters of CHEROKEE NATION, Tahlequah is also the headquarters of the United Keetoowah Band of CHEROKEE Indians, which is also located in Oklahoma.
• MORELS (49A: Mushrooms with an earthy flavor) MOREL mushrooms are valued for their earthy, umami-rich flavor. It's important to cook MORELS before eating them, as raw MORELS contain toxins that are destroyed by heat (known as thermolabile toxins). Unlike some other mushroom species, efforts to cultivate MORELS on a large scale have been mostly unsuccessful. Instead, most MORELS are harvested in the wild.
• ERIN (51A: News anchor Burnett) ERIN Burnett is the anchor of the CNN program ERIN Burnett OutFront. The news program first aired in 2011. It is broadcast live, either from CNN's studio in New York City or on location. The show has been broadcast from Mali, Afghanistan, Rwanda, the United Arab Emirates, and Israel.
• THAT'S NOT OK (52A: "Unacceptable!") "THAT'S NOT OK!" pretty much sums up my feelings towards individuals, companies, and countries that are ignoring the impacts of global warming.
• GERI (59A: Spice Girl Halliwell) The Spice Girls were an English girl group popular in the 1990s. GERI Halliwell was nicknamed Ginger Spice.
• ORCA (62A: Predator that shares a color scheme with Oreos and crosswords) This is a fabulous clue.
• MEN (1D: "Of Mice and ___") Of Mice and MEN is a 1937 novella by John Steinbeck. It's about two misplaced migrant farm workers, George and Lennie. I remember studying Of Mice and MEN in ninth grade English class, though I honestly can't remember if I read it or just know about the story from group discussions.
• K-DRAMAS (4D: TV shows like "Squid Game") K-DRAMAS are TV shows made in South Korea. Squid Game (2021-2025) is a South Korean TV series about a group of players who risk their lives playing deadly children's games for the chance to win a large cash prize.
• ELASTIGIRL (17D: "The Incredibles" mom) The 2004 animated movie The Incredibles is centered on a superhero couple – Mr. Incredible aka Bob Parr and ELASTIGIRL aka Helen Parr – and their family. In early promotional materials, ELASTIGIRL was referred to as Mrs. Incredible, to avoid confusion with the DC Comics character known as ELASTI-GIRL.
• CITY (22D: Sao Paulo, e.g.) São Paulo is the most populous CITY in Brazil and the most populous Portuguese-speaking CITY in the world. 
• LOWE (23D: "Parks and Recreation" actor Rob) On the TV sitcom Parks and Recreation (2009-2015), Rob LOWE portrayed Chris Traeger. At the beginning of the show, Chris Traeger is the Indiana State Auditor; he eventually becomes the acting City Manager of the fictional city of Pawnee.
• UCLA (26D: Campus near the Getty Museum) The J. Paul Getty Museum is an art museum with two campuses – the Getty Center and the Getty Villa. Like UCLA (the University of California, Los Angeles), the Getty Museum is located in Los Angeles, California. 
• SALK (34D: Polio vaccine developer) Polio is a highly infectious viral disease that mostly affects children under the age of five, and can lead to permanent paralysis. Polio has existed for thousands of years, but thanks to vaccines, in the past 70 years it has been nearly eradicated. Jonas SALK developed one of the first successful polio vaccines. He chose not to patent his vaccine, wanting the price to remain low so the vaccine would be widely used. 
• HOT TO GO (42D: Chappell Roan song whose title is spelled out in its chorus) "HOT TO GO!" is a song from Chappell Roan's 2023 album, The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess. To promote the song, Chappell Roan created a dance for the song's chorus that spells out the song's title with a person's arms (reminiscent of the Village People's "Y.M.C.A."). It always makes me chuckle a bit that the music video for "HOT TO GO" starts out with Chappell Roan teaching the "HOT TO GO" dance to her grandparents.
• NASA (48D: Artemis II org.) I wrote about NASA's Artemis missions on June 9. A week ago, NASA announced the crew for Artemis III, a mission which will complete a series of tests in Earth's orbit in 2027.
• Other clues and answers I especially enjoyed:
• TWISTY (29A: Like a plot with many surprises)
• IT'S ME AGAIN (21D: "I'm back!")
• YOU LOST ME (30D: "I'm not following")

CLIMATE JUSTICE is a great answer and a worthy topic to highlight and lift up. I enjoyed seeing it as an entry in this themeless puzzle. Thank you, Rafa, for this superb puzzle.

A note about comments: I welcome your comments on the blog! For one thing it's nice to know folks are reading what I've written. My goal for this blog has always been for it to be informational, conversational, and kind. I ask that you keep those goals in mind when commenting. Unkind comments will be deleted. Note that I am more likely to delete a negative comment if it is posted anonymously. (P.S. You can point out when I make a mistake – in fact, I appreciate that so I can correct it.)