There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solve today’s puzzle before reading further! Too Many Mornings

Constructor: Amie Walker

Editor: Amanda Rafkin

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• ZOSIA MAMET (14A: She played Shoshanna Shapiro on “Girls”) The TV series Girls was created by Lena Dunham, and originally aired on HBO for six seasons from 2012 to 2017. The show centers on the lives of four young women living in New York City. One of those women is Shoshanna Shapiro, portrayed by ZOSIA MAMET.
• TEAM AMERICA (32A: Puppet squad in a 2004 satire by the “South Park” creators) TEAM AMERICA: World Police is a 2004 movie co-written by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, (the creators of South Park) along with Pam Brady (who wrote for South Park). The movie uses puppetry and miniature effects, and is a satire of action films, militarism, and U.S. foreign policy.
• TEA (3D: Throat Coat drink) Throat Coat is a brand of herbal TEA. The original Throat Coat TEA contains licorice root and slippery elm, but the company has other varieties as well including Throat Coat Eucalyptus TEA and Throat Coat Lemon Echinacea TEA. This brand of TEA is new to me, but the answer was fairly inferable.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• HORA (12A: Circle dance at a wedding) The HORA is a circle dance performed at some Jewish weddings. During the HORA, the wedding couple is lifted into the air (while seated in chairs) while their family and friends dance circles around them. Often the couple holds opposite ends of a napkin to signify their union. The HORA is often danced to the Jewish folk song, “Hava Nagila.”
• LIRA (13A: Turkish currency) Turkey is a country mostly located in West ASIA (though a part of Turkey extends into Southeast Europe). The capital of Turkey is Ankara, and its currency is the Turkish LIRA.
• YEET (16A: Throw forcefully) Videos of people doing a dance referred to as YEET made the rounds on Vine and YouTube in 2014. Although YEET began as a dance, the term has evolved to mean “launching something at high velocity,” and/or “an exclamation made while throwing something.” According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, the word YEET predates the dance craze, as it was first used as an interjection in 2007. YEET didn’t acquire the meaning of “throwing forcefully,” however, until 2017.
• TURTLE (19A: Crush in “Finding Nemo,” for one) In the 2003 animated movie, Finding Nemo, the character of Crush is a green sea TURTLE voiced by Andrew Stanton. I’m going to need a minute to think about the fact that the movie Finding Nemo is 22 years old.
• ANN (21A: Novelist ___ M. Martin) ANN M. Martin is the author of The Baby-Sitters Club series of children’s books. The books were published by Scholastic and are about a group of friends who run a babysitting service. The series is set in the fictional town of Stoneybrook, Connecticut. The Baby-Sitters Club has been adapted into graphic novels, a TV series, and a movie.
• LOOP (26A: Incredicoaster feature) The Incredicoaster is a roller coaster at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim, California. The ride has a theme inspired by The Incredibles film franchise. The Incredicoaster is the only roller coaster with a LOOP at the Disneyland Resort.
• ARE (48A: “You ___ so gorgeous it makes me so mad”) “You ARE so gorgeous it makes me so mad,” is a lyric from Taylor Swift’s 2017 song, “Gorgeous,” which appeared on the album Reputation. I am a fan of using song lyrics to add interest to clues for common words such as ARE.
• TYRA (51A: Model Banks) In 2003, TYRA Banks created the reality TV series America’s Top Model. She hosted the show for each of its 24 seasons except one. (On season 23, she was a guest host and Rita Ora was the main host.) TYRA Banks also had her own talk show – The TYRA Banks Show – from 2005 to 2010.
• IOWA (57A: “The Music Man” state) Meredith Wilson’s musical, The Music Man, premiered on Broadway in 1957. The musical is set in the fictional town of River City, IOWA, which was inspired by the real IOWA town of Mason City, where Meredith Wilson grew up.
• ORE (6D: 7 Wonders resource) The board game 7 Wonders is themed around the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Players attempt to build a city – using resources such as ORE – and construct an architectural wonder.
• IRELAND (9D: Country in many Emma Donoghue novels) Irish Canadian writer Emma Donoghue is the author of the 2010 novel Room, which was adapted into a 2015 movie of the same name. She has written a number of other novels, many of which are set in IRELAND, where she was born. Emma Donoghue has a new novel coming out next month (which is not set in IRELAND). It’s titled The Paris Express, and is a thriller inspired by an 1895 French railway disaster.
• ASIA (22D: Biggest continent) ASIA is the biggest continent in terms of land mass, accounting for about 30% of the Earth’s total land area. ASIA also heads the list if you look at the population of continents. About 60% of the world’s population lives in ASIA. This is the first appearance this month for our crossword friend ASIA, and its third appearance this year.
• IRON (34D: Its symbol is Fe) Fe is the chemical symbol for IRON, which is a nod to the Latin word for IRON, ferrum.
• HUMAN (46D: “You’re my favorite ___” (Valentine’s Day sentiment)) This clue made me say, “Awww.”
• A few other clues I especially enjoyed:
  • POSING (1D: Preparing for a mirror selfie)
  • SHAVE (4D: Do the hair removal step of an “everything shower”)
  • MATEYS (10D: “My pirate pals!”)
  • TADA (51D: “Hooray for me!”)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• ZOSIA MAMET (14A: She played Shoshanna Shapiro on “Girls”)
• TEAM AMERICA (32A: Puppet squad in a 2004 satire by the “South Park” creators)
• DRAMA MAJOR (53A: Student pursuing a theater career, often)

TOO MANY MORNINGS: Each theme answer contains the letter string -AMAM-, which is the abbreviation for MORNING (AM) two times: ZOSIA MAMET, TEAM AMERICA, and DRAMA MAJOR.

This is a fun theme. As a MORNING person, the idea of TOO MANY MORNINGS doesn’t scare me, but I know plenty of people who think even one MORNING a day is TOO MANY. As an added bonus, I notice that the word break appears in a different part of the MORNINGS in each theme answer: A/MAM, AM/AM, and AMA/M. That doesn’t affect the theme at all, but I enjoyed seeing the progression. Thank you, Amie, for this delightful puzzle.

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