In 1986, she was Miss OHIO, and was first runner-up in the Miss USA pageant. CANDACE (10D ... In 2023 we saw CANDACE PARKER as a theme answer in a puzzle by Claire Rimkus. ANI (29D: "My IQ ...

ATLAS (19A: Book of maps) An appropriate answer to find in a grid with three geographical references in the puzzle's first six answers! IAN (36A: Actor McKellen) Sir IAN McKellen has been acting ...

Will: When I considered a Talking Heads theme, and I thought about USA Today, I realized this must be the place for my puzzle! I asked Amanda if she'd be interested... and she was! Making this ...

That puzzle had a slightly different theme. I always enjoy seeing different ways a theme can be interpreted. Congratulations to Greg Snitkin making a USA Today debut! Thank you, Greg, for this ...

The USA Today crossword is run by Erik Agard — a graduate in African American studies. As a crossword editor, Agard claims in an interview, “My job is to help elevate their puzzle by making ...