Crossword Blog & Answers for April 26, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher

Constructor: Jasper Davidoff

Editor: Anna Gundlach

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• TESORI (25A: “Fun Home” composer Jeanine) Fun Home is a musical adapted from Alison Bechdel’s graphic memoir of the same name. Jeanine TESORI composed the music for the musical, and Lisa Kron wrote the lyrics. Jeanine TESORI and Lisa Kron won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Original Score for Fun Home. They were the first female team to win that award. I have seen Fun Home, but I couldn’t remember the composer’s name. I’m happy to be reminded of it.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• BADU (4A: R&B artist Erykah) Erykah BADU is a singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Her style is characterized as neo soul, a subgenre of music influenced by contemporary R&B and soul. A few weeks ago, Erykah BADU was presented with the Icon Award at the Billboard Women in Music event, an honor that recognizes women who have significantly impacted music and culture.
• OOMPAH (16A: Tuba onomatopoeia) Such a fun answer! Also, onomatopoeia (a word that imitates a sound it describes) is a delightful word.
• ZIP DRIVE (17A: Outdated data storage device) A ZIP DRIVE uses ZIP disks to store data. ZIP disks are similar to floppy disks (speaking of outdated technology…) but have a larger storage capacity. The ZIP DRIVE was introduced in the mid-1990s. Although ZIP DRIVEs are still used, they have mostly been replaced by newer technology. This clue has me thinking about all the technology that was celebrated as the “next new thing” that is now outdated.
• INERTIA (38A: Concept in Newton’s first law) Newton’s laws of motion were first described by Isaac Newton in his 1687 work Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica. The laws describe the relationship between the movement of an object and the forces acting on it. Newton’s first law concerns INERTIA and is summarized as: An object at rest will remain at rest unless it is acted upon by an outside force. Hooray for science in the crossword!
• TAURUS (58A: Spring zodiac sign) TAURUS is the zodiac sign for those born between April 19 and May 20. That means we’re currently in TAURUS season, making this clue timely. If you’re a TAURUS, happy birthday!
• GOLD RUSH (62A: California era of forty-niners) In January of 1848, GOLD was found in California by James W. Marshall, a carpenter and sawmill operator. The news of the discovery resulted in approximately 300,000 people to California over the next few years, an era that has come to be known as the GOLD RUSH. By the beginning of 1849, the news of the discovery of GOLD was drawing people from around the world to California. The name of “forty-niner” came from the year 1849.
• ALDA (65A: “M*A*S*H” star Alan) On the TV series M*A*S*H (1972-1983), Alan ALDA portrayed Captain Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce, the chief surgeon at the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH) in Korea. Alan ALDA is one of only four actors who were a part of M*A*S*H for its entire 11 season run. The other three are Loretta Swit (Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan), Jamie Farr (Maxwell Q. Klinger), and William Christopher (Father John Patrick Francis Mulcahy). Alan ALDA is the only one of those four who appeared in every M*A*S*H episode.
• PEPSI (3D: Cola with a “globe” logo) PEPSI has been on the market since 1893, when it was introduced as Brad’s Drink. Over the years, PEPSI has revised their logo a number of times. The PEPSI Globe, a round logo with a red, white, and blue color scheme, was adopted in 1973. Every logo update since then, including the most recent one in 2023, has featured some version of the PEPSI Globe.
• ARID (5D: Like the Mojave’s climate) The MOJAVE Desert is located in southern California and southwestern Nevada. Death Valley, with the lowest elevation in North America, is located in the MOJAVE Desert.
• DMV (6D: ID application location) DMV here stands for the Department of Motor Vehicles. The DMV is a government agency that issues driver’s licenses as well as other IDs.
• CONNOR (8D: “Heartstopper” star Kit) Heartstopper (2022-present) is a Netflix TV series adapted from Alice Oseman’s webcomic and graphic novel of the same name. The show tells the story of Nick Nelson (played by Kit CONNOR) and Charlie Spring (played by Joe Locke) and their friends.
• BOIL (30D: Heat to 212 degrees) We’re making some (perfectly reasonable) assumptions here that the liquid being heated is water and it is being heated at sea level under standard pressure. Under those conditions, water will BOIL at 212 ℉, because that is its boiling point. At higher altitudes, the boiling point of water will be lower.
• LENA (31D: “Imagine Me & You” actress Headey) Imagine Me & You is a rom-com about a relationship between two women who meet on the day one of the women is getting married (to a man). LENA Headey and Piper Perabo star in this 2005 movie.
• DIAZ (33D: “Shrek” voice actress Cameron) In the Shrek franchise, Cameron DIAZ voices Princess Fiona.
• NERO (35D: Emperor during the Great Fire of Rome) NERO (37-68) was the Roman emperor from 54 CE until his death in 68 CE. The Great Fire of Rome occurred in July 64 CE, and destroyed nearly three-fourths of Rome. One of the sayings about NERO is that he “fiddled while Rome burned.” While this isn’t exactly true (the fiddle hadn’t been invented yet), NERO is remembered as a sadistic and cruel emperor, who ignored serious matters.
• ARUBA (51D: Island country near Venezuela) ARUBA is an island country in the Caribbean located approximately 18 miles north of Venezuela. ARUBA is a constituent country (administrative region) of the Netherlands, meaning its citizens are Dutch. The capital of ARUBA is Oranjestad.
• ADAM (59D: “Severance” star Scott) Severance is a TV series that premiered in February of 2022. ADAM Scott plays the role of Mark Scout, one of the workers at Lumon Industries who agrees to a “severance” procedure that separates work memories from non-work memories. The second season of Severance premiered in January of this year, and the show has been renewed for a third season.