Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Split
- - - Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Split
Sally Hoelscher, USA TODAYJune 28, 2025 at 6:00 AM
There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Split
Constructor: Erik Agard
Editor: Amanda Rafkin
June 28, 2025Comments from Today's Crossword Constructor
Erik: I'm a big fan of stacked theme answers – the earliest example I can remember encountering is a Merl Reagle puzzle called "Gridlock," but it was Will Nediger, a master of the technique, who's really gotten me into them in the last few years. I hope you enjoyed the puzzle! Happy Pride!
Random Thoughts & Interesting Things -
ADAM (1A: Scott who plays Mark Scout (and Mark S.) on "Severance") Severance is a TV series that premiered in February of 2022. ADAM Scott plays the role of Mark Scout / Mark S, one of the workers at Lumon Industries who agrees to a "severance" procedure that separates work memories from non-work memories. After the procedure, Mark S is the work self, referred to as the "innie," and Mark Scout is the home self, or "outie."
NINA SIMONE (14A: "Baltimore" and "Mississippi Goddam" singer) NINA SIMONE (1922-2003) was a singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist. The song "Baltimore" was the title track of her fourteenth studio album, released in 1978. NINA SIMONE wrote "Mississippi Goddam" in 1963 in response to the racially motivated killings of Emmet Till and Medgar Evers in Mississippi, and the bombing of a Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama that killed four black children. The song was included on her 1964 album, NINA SIMONE in Concert.
ERIE (16A: Lake southwest of Lake Ontario) Lake ERIE is the southernmost of the Great Lakes. It is southwest of Lake Ontario, which is the easternmost Great Lake. This is the second appearance of our crossword friend ERIE this month, and its tenth appearance this year.
KEY LIME PIE (17A: Dessert that often has a graham cracker crust) Although the KEY LIME gained its name because of its association with the Florida KEYs – where the recipe for KEY LIME PIE originated – this variety of LIME is native to tropical Southeast Asia. KEY LIMEs are smaller and more acidic than many other LIME varieties. KEY LIME PIE, as the clue informs us, is traditionally made with a graham cracker crust. In 2006, KEY LIME PIE was designated as the official Florida state PIE.
SYLVIA PLATH (31A: "The Bell Jar" author) SYLVIA PLATH (1932-1963) was a poet, novelist, and short story writer. SYLVIA PLATH struggled with depression for much of her life, and many of her writings explore mental anguish. The Bell Jar is a semi-autobiographical novel. It was published in 1963, shortly before SYLVIA PLATH died of suicide.
SECOND PERSON (35A: What Rebecca Roanhorse's "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience(TM)" is written in) Rebecca Roanhorse writes science fiction and fantasy novels and short stories. Her 2017 short story "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience(TM)" was published in Apex Magazine. The story won both Hugo and Nebula Awards. (Hugo and Nebula Awards are annual literary awards for science fiction and fantasy writing.) The story is written in SECOND PERSON, a literary device in which the narrator tells of their experience while addressing the reader directly, using the pronoun "you." This often has the effect of making the reader feel like they are a character in the story. I'm not sure I can do an adequate job describing "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience(TM)," but you can read it online at Apex Magazine.
SELECTED POEMS (37A: Title of some literary compilations) When I first read this clue I thought, "Well this could be anything." With the help of crossing answers, SELECTED POEMS emerged as the answer, which turned my thoughts to "Oh, I see, that makes sense." SELECTED POEMS is the title of a number of poetry collections, including one by SYLVIA PLATH (published in 1985).
MRS (38A: "Mr & ___ Smith) Mr & MRS. Smith is a TV series that premiered in February of last year. Donald Glover and Maya Erskine star in the series as spies who, although they are strangers, team up to live undercover as a married couple, the titular Mr & MRS. Smith. The series is inspired by the 2005 movie of the same name.
SARA (47A: Tegan's twin) The members of the pop duo Tegan and SARA are identical twin sisters, SARA Keirsten Quin and Tegan Rain Quin. Tegan and SARA have been active in advocating for LGBTQ equality. In 2016, they founded the Tegan and SARA Foundation whose mission is "to invest in the potential of 2SLGBTQ+ communities."
SINGSONG (53A: Rhythmically repetitive) I recently learned the word "ablaut," which refers to a variation of vowels in the same root, as seen in the word SINGSONG, and in the words ding dong. I learned the word from a midi puzzle by Alex Rossell Hayes that was published by Lil AVCX. If you're interested in checking out "Well, It's Ablaut Time" – which I highly recommend – you can purchase it for $1.00. (Or you can purchase an AVCX subscription and get this puzzle and many more.)
MATTEL (62A: Corporate setting in 2023's "Barbie") MATTEL has been making Barbie dolls since 1959. The company definitely featured in the 2023 movie Barbie, as did Ruth Handler, the doll's creator, who was portrayed by Rhea Perlman.
ANKH (1D: Ancient Egyptian symbol of life) An ANKH has a cross shape, but the upper vertical bar is replaced with a loop: ☥. In ancient Egypt, the symbol was used to represent life.
AMEN (6D: "Absolutely!") and NOPE (7D: "Absolutely not") What a lovely pairing. This made me laugh, and also made me want to say, "Puzzle, make up your mind!"
SELMA (10D: Alabama city home to Brown Chapel AME Church) The Brown Chapel AME Church in SELMA, Alabama is a U.S. National Historic Landmark. The church was a starting point for the SELMA to Montgomery marches held in 1965. These marches, which highlighted the desire of Black citizens to vote, contributed to the passage of the Voting Rights Act.
AI SLOP (12D: Computer-generated junk) If you are online at all, you've probably encountered AI SLOP, also referred to as "digital clutter." Just yesterday some crossword constructor friends and I were discussing the questionable use of AI (artificial intelligence) by some companies to make crosswords, and the term AI SLOP did come up. (Spoiler alert: AI is not good at making crosswords, in my opinion.)
DOLCE (23D: "La ___ Vita" (1960 movie whose title means "The Sweet Life")) "La DOLCE vita" is an Italian phrase meaning "the sweet life." La DOLCE Vita is also the title of a 1960 satirical movie about a tabloid journalist in search of love and happiness. The film won the Palme d'Or at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival.
INTS (33D: Mistakes by QBs (Abbr.)) In football, INTS are interceptions. I am highlighting this answer for myself, because I recently realized, after coming across a few while solving other crosswords, that I am not familiar with football abbreviations.
HAVA (51D: "___ Nagila") "HAVA Nagila" is a Jewish folk song. It is often the song played during the hora, a circle dance performed at some Jewish weddings. This answer brought back some memories for me. When I was growing up my family had a Harry Belafonte record, and "HAVA Nagila" was one of the songs he sang. My sister and I enjoyed blasting the song and singing and dancing around the house.
Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis -
SYLVIA PLATH (31A: "The Bell Jar" author)
SECOND PERSON (35A: What Rebecca Roanhorse's "Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience(TM)" is written in)
SELECTED POEMS (37A: Title of some literary compilations)
SPLIT: Each theme answer is a literature (LIT)-related phrase with the initials S.P.: SYLVIA PLATH, SECOND PERSON, and SELECTED POEMS.
The key to understanding today's theme is to realize that the title needs to be read not as SPLIT, but as S. P. LIT. I admit that I stared at the completed puzzle for quite some time before I caught on. I could see that the theme answers all had the initials S.P., but what did that have to do with SPLIT? There was a nice "Aha!" moment when I caught on. Tricky! It's fun to see the theme answers stacked up in the middle of the grid. It's also impressive from a construction standpoint. Thank you, Erik, for this excellent puzzle.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Crossword Blog & Answers for June 28, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
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