Off the Grid: Sally breaks down Paste BN's daily crossword puzzle, Up-dating
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Up-dating
Constructor: Jay Silverman
Editor: Jared Goudsmit
Comments from Today’s Crossword Constructor
Jay: I pitched this one to the USA Today team with the title of "Get Up To Date," which falls into the general range of "phrases that I probably overheard somewhere and thought it would make a fun title" puzzles that I occasionally create. But after a little bit of reworking and retitling, I'm really happy with how "Up-Dating" came out. My thanks, as always, to Amanda and Jared at the USAT team for giving me an opportunity to build something fun and put it out into the world. Good luck and happy solving, folks!
What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle
- ELI (50A: Alan Cumming's role in "The Good Fight") The Good Fight is a TV series that originally aired from 2017 to 2022. The show, which is a spin-off from and standalone sequel to The Good Wife, stars Christine Baranski as Diane Lockhart, an attorney who loses her savings in a financial scam, and joins a Chicago law firm to start over. Sarah Steele portrays Marissa Gold, Diane Lockhart's assistant. Alan Cummings joined the cast of The Good Fight in season 6, portraying Marissa's father, ELI Gold. The character of ELI Gold originated on The Good Wife.
- GATES (17D: "Finding Your Roots" host Henry Louis ___ Jr.) Finding Your Roots is a documentary TV series that premiered in 2012. Its 11th season will begin January 7, 2025. Professor, historian, and filmmaker Henry Louis GATES Jr. hosts the show. On each episode, celebrity guests are presented with a "book of life" that contains information about their ancestors. Professional genealogists spend hours researching each guest.
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things
- RAH (1A: Sports fan's syllable) and OLE (13A: Futbol fan's shout) It's fun to see these related answers stacked in the upper corner of the grid.
- EAT (4A: Have some gambas al ajillo) and TAPAS (6D: Appetizers such as gambas al ajillo) Here's another enjoyable pair of clues. TAPAS are a variety of appetizers or snacks popular in Spanish cuisine. Gambas al ajillo are peeled shrimp cooked with oil and garlic.
- EMMA (20A: "Love Actually" actress Thompson) Some people adore the 2003 movie Love Actually, while others consider it one of the worst Christmas movies ever made. I quite enjoy an occasional watching of Love Actually (with the exception of one story line I find cringey). Whichever side of this debate you fall on, it is timely to see a reference to this Christmas movie in December. The movie is set during the six weeks prior to Christmas and features multiple interconnecting story lines. EMMA Thompson portrays the character of Karen, who is married to Harry (Alan Rickman). The story line also involves Harry's secretary, Mia (Heike Makatsch).
- GRU (30A: Character with an army of Minions) GRU and his army of Minions – his childlike yellow assistants – were introduced to the world in the 2010 animated movie Despicable Me. GRU (voiced by Steve Carell), and his Minions have appeared in all six movies in the Despicable Me franchise.
- SAN JOSE (40A: "Capital of Silicon Valley") Silicon Valley is a term applied to the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of California that is home to many high-tech corporations. Silicon Valley encompasses the cities of Palo Alto, SAN JOSE, Menlo Park, and Sunnyvale, as well as a number of other cities. In 1988, the mayor of SAN JOSE adopted "Capital of Silicon Valley" as the city's motto. SAN JOSE is home to the headquarters of several companies including eBay, PayPal, and Zoom.
- PETE (44A: ___ the Cat (kid-lit character)) PETE the Cat is a character created by artist James Dean. The first PETE the Cat book, PETE the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, was published in 2008. So far there have been 87 books featuring PETE the Cat, as well as TV shows and musicals. I do not have a cat named PETE, but I do have a cat named Willow.
- CASINO (52A: Place to play baccarat) Baccarat is a game between two hands, the "player" and the "banker" (which is not necessarily the house). The highest possible score for a hand in baccarat is nine. Each hand begins with two cards, and in some variations of baccarat, there are rules about when a hand is able to (or must) receive more cards. Bets are placed about which hand will come closer to nine. At least, that's my understanding from reading about the game. I've never played baccarat – at a CASINO or elsewhere. Another game played in CASINOs is poker, and we have a pair of poker clues in the puzzle: I CALL (48D: "Gonna match your bet," in poker) and ANTE (58D: Opening poker stake). (I have played poker ... but not at a CASINO.)
- LABOR (57A: U.S. Department of ___ (org. with an anvil on its seal)) and ENERGY (64A: U.S. Department of ___ (org. with a windmill on its seal)) I really enjoyed the parallel clueing of these two answers that are stacked in the lower corner of the grid. The seal for the U.S. Department of LABOR features an eagle atop a crest. On the crest are various symbols, including an anvil, which represents industry. The seal for the U.S. Department of ENERGY also features an eagle (in this case just the head) atop a crest. A windmill is one of the symbols on the crest.
- STALLION (66A: Megan Thee ___) Megan Thee STALLION is a rapper and songwriter. Her first full-length mixtape, Fever, was released in 2019. In 2020 Megan Thee STALLION won a Grammy Award for Best New Artist.
- EAR (4D: The "E" of ENT) ENT stand for EAR, nose, and throat.
- LEGO SET (9D: The 386-piece Arc de Triomphe, for example) I really liked the inclusion of a specific example in this clue. According to LEGO's website, the Arc de Triomphe LEGO SET is a retired product. Might I interest you in a 3,792-piece Botanical Garden LEGO SET instead?
- HINGE JOINTS (18D: Ankles, elbows, etc.) and KNEE (63D: An athlete may take one in protest) HINGE JOINTS are so named because they allow movement only in one plane, similar to the HINGE that allows a door to swing forward and back. The KNEE is the largest HINGE JOINT in humans.
- SCONE (56D: Pastry sometimes eaten at elevenses) In the United Kingdom, elevenses – a midmorning snack taken around eleven a.m., hence the name – typically consist of tea or coffee, and sometimes SCONEs.
- A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
- AHA (14A: "Finally, I get it!")
- NUGGET (19A: Piece of chicken or information)
- OCTET (54D: Trio + quintet)
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis
- HER MAJESTY (3D: Title for a queen)
- HINGE JOINTS (18D: Ankles, elbows, etc.)
- MATCH POINT (32D: Crucial moment in tennis)
UP-DATING: The top (or UP-most) word of each theme answer is the name of a DATING app: HER, HINGE, and MATCH.
It has been quite some time since I have been in need of a DATING app, and when I might have been in need of one, they didn't exist! Fortunately, I have previously written about the dating apps HER and HINGE, and that enabled me to guess that MATCH is also the name of a DATING app. There was a nice "AHA!" moment when I recognized the theme. Thank you, Jay, for this excellent puzzle.