There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further!
Constructor: Hannah Slovut-Einertson
Editor: Amie Walker
What I Learned from Today's Puzzle
- TEWA (57D: Language spoken in Ohkay Owingeh) The TEWA people live in New Mexico near the Rio Grande River. They share the Pueblo culture and speak the TEWA language. This much I knew, having previously learned it from crosswords. Today I learned about Ohkay Owingeh, a pueblo in New Mexico. Ohkay Owingeh is one of the largest TEWA-speaking pueblos.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
- ALL STARS (1A: "RuPaul's Drag Race ___" (season with previous winners)) So far there have been ten seasons of RuPaul's Drag Race ALL STARS (2012-present). Drag queens from former seasons are invited by RuPaul to return and compete in ALL STARS. The winner of each series is given a spot in the Drag Race Hall of Fame.
- CROSSTALK (28A: Unwanted radio interference) CROSSTALK is the term used to describe unwanted signals picked up by a communication channel such as a phone, radio, or computer. The term is somewhat inferable, which means that even solvers unfamiliar with this term have a chance of figuring it out with a little help from crossing answers.
- ETS (32A: Beings that never appear in "Battlestar Galactica," for short) Battlestar Galactica is a sci-fi franchise that began with a TV show of the same name that originally aired from 1978-1979. The premise of the show is that a group of humans are fleeing their homeworlds on the titular spacecraft, having lost a war with the Cylons (warrior robots). In contrast to many sci-fi series, Battlestar Galactica never included any humanoid extraterrestrials (ETS). Instead, the show's creator opted to focus on conflict and drama between humans.
- TRADESIES (39A: "Wanna swap?") This answer made me think of childhood and brought a smile to my face.
- TAIL (43A: Part of an Asian grass lizard that might be three times its body length) Found throughout Southeast Asia, the Asian grass lizard is also - appropriately - known as the long-TAILed grass lizard. Like other lizard species, this lizard can drop its TAIL and grow a new one if attacked.
- NOTARO (55A: Comedian Tig) Tig NOTARO is a stand-up comedian and podcaster known for her deadpan comedy. She currently co-hosts the podcast Handsome, with Mae Martin and Fortune Feimster. For each episode, the three co-hosts field a question from a friend and attempt to answer it together. On a recent episode, Bowen Yang asked about diner orders.
- LAMAR (3D: "Not Like Us" artist Kendrick) "Not Like Us" (2024) is a diss track by Kendrick LAMAR that is part of his highly publicized feud with the rapper Drake. The song won five Grammy Awards, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year.
- AVA (9D: Palindromic protagonist in "Hacks") Hacks is a TV series that premiered in 2021 on HBO Max. Jean Smart portrays Deborah Vance, a comedy diva needing to reinvent her aging act to remain relevant in Las Vegas. Hannah Einbinder portrays AVA Daniels, a young comedy writer down on her luck, who is sent to work as Deborah's head writer.
- SWEDE (12D: Person from Stockholm) Stockholm is the capital and most populous city of Sweden. One of the city's nicknames is "Venice of the North."
- SHAME (21A: "Fool me once, ___ on you; fool me twice, ___ on me") I like the use of this proverb to clue the word SHAME. The exact origin of the saying, "Fool me once, SHAME on you; fool me twice, SHAME on me," is unknown; though a similar saying appeared in print, attributed to the Italians, in the 1600s
- SERB (29D: Belgrade resident) Belgrade is the capital of Serbia, a landlocked country in Europe. Belgrade is located at the junction of the Sava and Danube Rivers.
- TEAMSTERS (36D: Labor union representing some Costco employees, for short) The TEAMSTERS was founded in 1903 and is one of the largest labor unions in the world. TEAMSTERS represents workers in a number of professions including over 18,000 Costco employees.
- TINA (42D: "Bob's Burgers" daughter seen in "Latin America") Bob's Burgers is an animated sitcom centered on Bob and Linda Belcher and their children - TINA, Gene, and Louise. As the name of the show suggests, the Belchers own a burger restaurant. TINA isn't actually traveling to Latin America, but her name is found in the words "Latin America."
- BOOP (52D: "Touched your nose!") My cat, Willow, was sitting on my desk while I was writing this, so of course I had to BOOP her nose!
- BOP (60D: Jazz style) The BOP or bebop style of jazz developed in the 1940s. Unlike the earlier dance-oriented swing music-style of jazz, BOP was not intended for dancing. The freedom from this constraint meant musicians could play at faster tempos and include complex chord progressions. It was fun to see the words BOOP and BOP close to each other in the grid.
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
TELL THE TRUTH (Freestyle): There's no theme today, as this is a freestyle, or themeless, puzzle. The title is a nod to TO BE HONEST (59A: "Truth is...")
Okay, I will TELL THE TRUTH ... I enjoyed this puzzle! In addition to the answers I've highlighted above, there were plenty of other great answers, such as TIGHT-KNIT (10D: Like a group of close friends) and DON'T START (25D: "I'm in no mood to argue with you"). Thank you, Hannah, for this great puzzle.
One more thing today: This is the last "Off the Grid" article, at least for the time being. USA Today has decided to pause "Off the Grid." Before I began writing "Off the Grid," I wrote about the USA Today crosswords on my own blog site, Sally's Take on the USA Today Crossword. Whether you followed me to "Off the Grid" from Sally's Take, or you discovered these articles when they began to appear in USA Today, I appreciate you taking the time to read my musings. Writing this blog brings me great joy, and I'm always honored when folks take the time to read what I've written. I will be continuing to blog about the USA Today crosswords on my own site; I hope you'll check it out.