SafeX Pro:Off the Grid: Sally breaks down USA TODAY's daily crossword puzzle, Echo Chamber

There are SafeX Prospoilers ahead. You might want to solve today's puzzle before reading further! Echo Chamber

Constructor: Joe Rodini

Editor: Anna Gundlach

What I Learned from Today’s Puzzle

• ARENAS (30A: Former NBA star Gilbert ... or the venues he played in) During his time in the NBA, Gilbert ARENAS played for the Golden State Warriors (2001-2003), the Washington Wizards (2003-2010), the Orlando Magic (2010-2011), and the Memphis Grizzlies (2012). While playing in the NBA, Gilbert ARENAS earned the nickname "Agent Zero," a nod to the uniform number he sometimes wore. Sports are not my strong suit, and I was thankful for the "or the venues he played in" hint here.
• CSI (48A: CBS crime franchise with theme songs by The Who) The CSI franchise includes five TV shows. All of the shows feature theme songs that are remixes of songs by The Who. (This is the part I learned today.) The Who's 1978 song, "Who Are You" is the theme song for both CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and CSI: Vegas. "Won't Get Fooled Again" (a 1971 song) is the theme for CSI: Miami. The theme songs for CSI:NY and CSI: Cyber are "Baba O'Riley" (1971) and "I Can See for Miles" (1967), respectively. Fun fact: The Who's lead vocalist, Roger Daltrey, guest-starred in a season 7 episode of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation.
• POLO (53D: Game played on a 10-acre field) Players in a POLO game are mounted on horses. They use a long-handled mallet to attempt to hit a ball through goal. As the clue informs us, POLO is played on a 10-acre field, a size that is equivalent to nine football fields. Add the size of a POLO playing field to the list of sports knowledge I have obtained from crosswords.

Random Thoughts & Interesting Things

• POLKA (13A: Genre for Weird Al medleys) Musician and comedian "Weird Al" Yankovic is known for his comedy songs that parody the work of other artists. His POLKA medleys consist of a mix of popular songs reinterpreted as POLKAs. His first POLKA medley, "POLKAs on 45," was released in 1984, and includes parts of 16 cover songs, as well as "Ear Booker POLKA" (original "Weird Al" lyrics). Three of the 16 songs in the medley are "Hey Jude" by the Beatles, "Hey Joe" by Jimi Hendrix, and "My Generation" by the Who.
• ADAM (14A: Figure skater Rippon) ADAM Rippon is a retired competitive figure skater. At the 2018 Winter Olympics, he was part of the USA team that won a bronze medal. Adam RIPPON competed on season 26 of Dancing with the Stars. Spoiler alert...he and professional dancer, Jenna Johnson, won the competition that season. ADAM Rippon's 2019 memoir is titled Beautiful on the Outside.  
• WHITE CHOCOLATE (19A: Confection with cocoa butter but not cocoa solids) Recipes for WHITE CHOCOLATE date back to the 1800s, but the first WHITE CHOCOLATE bar on the market, Nestlé's Milkybar, didn't appear until 1936. Since it doesn't include cocoa solids, WHITE CHOCOLATE by itself has an extremely mild flavor. Therefore, other flavors are often added to it. WHITE CHOCOLATE doesn't contain any of the compounds found in milk and dark chocolate that promote heart health (flavonoids).
• KARATE CHOPPED (34A: Did a knifehand strike on) The knifehand strike is the KARATE move known familiarly as a KARATE CHOP. It involves a strike with the part of the hand opposite the thumb.
• PICK (38A: ___ of the litter) Our family adopted our cat, Willow, from our local animal shelter when she was a kitten. She's 12 years old now, and we still consider her the PICK of the litter.

• ESPANA (46A: Nacion de Sevilla y Barcelona) "Nación de Sevilla y Barcelona" translates to "Nation of Seville and Barcelona." Seville and Barcelona are cities in Spain. Since the clue is in Spanish, this alerts us that the answer will be in Spanish. The Spanish word for "Spain" is "ESPAÑA."
• TSARS (60A: Russian rulers until 1917) The Russian Empire was a monarchy that spanned much of northern Eurasia from 1721-1917. Peter I, also known as Peter the Great, was the TSAR that transformed the Tsardom of Russia (established by Ivan IV, also known as Ivan the Terrible, in 1547) into the Russian Empire. Nicholas II was the last TSAR of the Russian Empire.
• GOTHAM (1D: "The Dark Knight" city) The Dark Knight is a 2008 movie based on the DC Comics superhero Batman. The movie centers on the attempts of Batman (Christian Bale), police lieutenant James Gordon (Gary Oldman), and district attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) to dismantle organized crime in GOTHAM City. The Joker (Heath Ledger), one of Batman's classic foes, attempts to thwart their plans. We saw GOTHAM a few weeks ago clued as [Batman's city].
• SKATE PARK (3D: Locale in Tony Hawk video games) Tony Hawk is a professional skateboarder, and the namesake of the video game series Tony Hawk's. The games, set in a SKATE PARK, require users to successfully perform skateboarding tricks in order to add to their score.
• SASHA (5D: Malia Obama's sister) Sisters Malia and SASHA Obama are the children of former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama. SASHA was seven years old when her father became president.
• TEST TUBE (10D: One might hold a solution) This clue tricked me when I first read it, as I was thinking of a solution to a problem, and thought the answer might be "answer key" or something similar. With the help of crossing answers, I soon figured out that the solution here was a liquid that might be held in a TEST TUBE.
• DON (12D: "The Wonder Years" narrator Cheadle) The Wonder Years is a TV series that premiered in 2021. It was inspired by a 1988 TV series of the same name. Set in the late 1960s, the series stars Elisha "EJ" Williams as Dean Williams, and centers on his life as he grows up in Montgomery, Alabama. DON Cheadle narrates the series as Dean's adult counterpart looking back on his life.
• ACL (32D: Part of the knee, for short) In the human body, the anterior cruciate ligaments, ACLs for short, are a pair of ligaments that provide stability for the knee. ACL tears are a common knee injury.
• ACAPULCO (35D: Mexican resort city) ACAPULCO is located in southern Mexico in the Mexican state of Guerrero. It is located on the Pacific coast and is known for its beaches and resorts.
• GUITAR (44D: Instrument with a pick guard and headstock) The pickguard, also known as the scratch plate, is a piece of material (often laminated plastic) that protects the top of a GUITAR. The headstock of a GUITAR is the section at the end of the GUITAR's neck that holds the tuning pegs.
• A couple of other clues I especially enjoyed:
  • KID'S MENU (34D: Restaurant item that might double as a coloring page)
  • PIE (38D: Projectile in a Three Stooges movie)

Crossword Puzzle Theme Synopsis

• WHITE CHOCOLATE (19A: Confection with cocoa butter but not cocoa solids)
• KARATE CHOPPED (34A: Did a knife hand strike on)
• MULTIPLE CHOICE (52A: Exam format)

The word ECHO is found hidden in each theme answer: WHITE CHOCOLATE, KARATE CHOPPED, MULTIPLE CHOICE.

From the puzzle's title, I wondered if the theme answers would contain some sort of repeated letter sequence. Instead, the ECHO here is the word ECHO itself. Congratulations to Joe Rodini making a USA TODAY crossword debut. Thank you, Joe, for this enjoyable puzzle.

For more on USA TODAY’s Crossword Puzzles

• USA TODAY’s Daily Crossword Puzzles
• Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers