Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Isn't It Ironic?
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Isn't It Ironic?
Constructors: Renee Thomason & Zhouqin Burnikel
Editor: Amanda Rafkin
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
ARIA (13A: Solo for Cecilia Bartoli) Cecilia Bartoli is a Grammy Award-winning opera singer. She is a mezzo-soprano who has been performing since she made her professional opera debut in Italy at the Arena di Verona in 1987. At the beginning of 2023, she became the director of Opéra de Monte-Carlo. She is the first woman to have the position.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
SERB (1A: Person from Belgrade) Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. Serbia is a landlocked country in Europe. Belgrade is located at the juncture of the Danube and Sava rivers.
FATAL ERROR (16A: Cause of a blue screen of death) Not the blue screen of death! Just reading this clue caused me some anxiety.
ASU (19A: Sparky the Sun Devil's sch.) Sparky the Sun Devil is the mascot of Arizona State University (ASU). The abbreviation of the word school in the clue alerts the solver that the answer will be an abbreviation.
EATEN (20A: Like the pizza in a now-empty pizza box) This clue made me smile. It's such a creative and evocative way to clue the word EATEN. Also, pizza is one of my favorite foods, so I am happy when I have EATEN pizza.
IPO (24A: 2019 event for Zoom, for short) IPO stands for initial public offering. During an IPO, shares of a company's stock are offered to individual and institutional investors, thus transforming a privately held company into a public company. Zoom was founded in 2011, and launched its software in 2013. As the clue informs us, Zoom had its IPO in 2019. Not unsurprisingly, Zoom experienced a lot of growth in 2020 in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
OSCAR (28A: Acting award won by Michelle Yeoh in 2023) In 2023, Michelle Yeoh won a Best Actress OSCAR (aka Academy Award) for her role in the movie Everything Everywhere All at Once. She plays the role of Evelyn Quan Wang in the movie, as well as portraying several alternate universe versions of the character.
THANK (31A: "___ You for Being a Friend") The song, "THANK You for Being a Friend," was originally recorded in 1978 by Andrew Gold. It gained further recognition when Cynthia Fee covered it to be used as the theme song for the TV show, The Golden Girls. "THANK you for being a friend / Traveled down a road and back again / Your heart is true, you're a pal and a confidant..." THANK you for this earworm, puzzle!
TROLL (38A: Norwegian souvenir doll) TROLLs are an important part of Norwegian history. In Nordic folklore, the TROLL is a mystical and supernatural being. TROLLs are generally depicted in Norse mythology as being unfriendly to humans, and using their connections with nature to baffle people. This depiction doesn't decrease their appeal as a souvenir.
EVENT (39A: A solar eclipse is one) Were you able to witness the most recent solar eclipse on April 8? My husband and I were on a road trip at the time, and were able to position ourselves in Cleveland, Ohio, which was in the path of totality. It was an amazing and awe-inspiring EVENT.
MOTTO (52A: "L'Etoile du Nord" is Minnesota's) Minnesota's state MOTTO, "L'Etoile du Nord," was adopted in 1861. The phrase is French for "Star of the North." There is certainly a lot of variety in the MOTTOs chosen by U.S. states. Some states have opted for brevity, choosing one word as their MOTTO. California is an example of this, with its MOTTO, "Eureka," which is Greek for "I have found it." The MOTTO for the state of Michigan tickles me. It is, "Si quaeris peninsula amoenam circumspice," which is Latin, and translates to, "If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you."
LIMA (60A: Peru's most populous city) Peru is a country on the western edge of South America. LIMA is the capital of Peru, and its largest city. LIMA is located on the western coast of Peru, near the Pacific Ocean.
ELLEN (61A: "The Out-Laws" star Barkin) The Out-Laws is a 2023 movie. ELLEN Barkin and Pierce Brosnan star as Lilly and Billy McDermott, a couple that pulls off bank heists in costume, and are known as the Ghost Bandits. In the movie, Lilly and Billy's daughter – Parker, portrayed by Nina Dobrev – is preparing to marry a bank manager – Owen, portrayed by Adam DeVine. When Owen's bank is robbed, he suspects his future in-laws.
PET SPA (12D: Where a kitty can get her nails done) This clue reminded me of when my kitty, Willow, was a kitten. When we brought her home from the shelter, she had purple protective caps on her nails, as you can see in this photo. We tried to keep up this practice, but she is not a fan of having her paws messed with! Perhaps we need to take her to a PET SPA.
SEA (14D: Giant kelp's habitat) Despite its appearance, kelp are not plants, but a type of multicellular algae classified as heterokonts. Giant kelp, also known as bladder kelp, grows in dense kelp forests in the SEA near the coast. Individual kelp may grow as much as two feet per day, and reach a height of 150 feet.
KOREAN (21D: Cuisine with kimchi and tteokbokki) Kimchi, salted and fermented vegetables (often napa cabbage and Korean radish) is a staple food in KOREAN cuisine. Tteokbokki, also a part of KOREAN cuisine, is also known as simmered rice cake. Cylinder-shaped rice cakes are paired with other ingredients and seasoned with spicy red chili paste. I learned about tteokbokki from the May 9, 2021 puzzle, and we saw it as a theme answer June 4, 2022.
TRAILS (40D: Yosemite paths) Yosemite National Park is located in central California among the Sierra Nevada mountains. Yosemite National Park was established on October 1, 1890, becoming the third U.S. National Park, behind Yellowstone and Sequoia National Parks. Here's a picture of one of the TRAILS my husband and I have hiked in Yosemite. As you can see, we were there in the fall.
FEMALE (42D: Like four current Supreme Court justices) This clue reminded me of "When there are nine," Ruth Bader Ginsburg's answer to the question, "When will there be enough women on the Supreme Court?" The former Supreme Court justice died in 2020, but her legacy lives on. I found this video of snippets of Ruth Bader Ginsburg speaking at Georgetown University in 2015. It's worth the two minute watch to hear her say, "When there are nine." She also says, "I would be a great diva." I miss her.
SAMUEL (44D: Nick Fury portrayer ___ L. Jackson) SAMUEL L. Jackson has portrayed Nick Fury, the Marvel Comics character who is a master spy and the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division), in 11 movies so far. His first appearance as Nick Fury was in the 2008 movie, Iron Man.
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
FATAL ERROR (16A: Cause of a blue screen of death)
FOOL'S ERRAND (36A: Wild goose chase)
FAIR ENOUGH (58A: "I can accept that")
Each theme answer has the initials FE: FATAL ERROR, FOOL'S ERRAND, and FAIR ENOUGH. FE is the chemical symbol for IRON.
Just yesterday I mentioned that I was glad USA TODAY's puzzles have titles. Today's title is clever and a bit tricky. The word IRONIC is generally used to refer to irony, when words express the opposite of their literal meaning. Today the word is used to hint at IRON, a chemical element represented by the symbol FE. This is played out in the puzzle's theme as three phrases with the initials FE. I was thankful for my science background to help me pick up on this theme. Congratulations to Renee Thomason making a USA TODAY debut! Thank you, Renee and Zhouqin, for this delightful puzzle.
For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for May 9, 2024 by Sally Hoelscher
