There are spoilers ahead. You might want to solvetoday's puzzlebefore reading further!Suitcase Constructors:Rachel Fabi & Jill Brufsky Editor:Amanda Rafkin PASTRAMI (9D: Meat in Langer's famous #19 sandwich)Langer'sis a kosher-style deli in Los Angeles. Al Langer opened his namesake deli in 1947. Al Langer died in 2007; his son, Norm, has been running the deli since the early 1990s. As the clue informs us, Langer's is known for its "World-Famous #19 PASTRAMI Sandwich." The late Nora Ephron wrote about the #19 PASTRAMI sandwich in a2002New Yorkerarticle, describing the sandwich as "an exquisite combination of textures and tastes ... It's a symphony orchestra, different instruments brought together to play one perfect chord." I'm so hungry for this #19 PASTRAMI sandwich now! ASIA (15A: Uzbekistan's continent) Uzbekistan is a landlocked country in Central ASIA. It is one of only two doubly landlocked countries on Earth (the other is Liechtenstein). A doubly landlocked country is one that is surrounded by countries that are themselves all landlocked. In this case, Uzbekistan's landlocked neighbors are Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, and Turkmenistan. The capital of Uzbekistan is Tashkent. This is the second appearance of our crossword friend ASIA this month. ANGER (16A: Red "Inside Out" character) As I have mentioned previously, Pixar's 2015 movie,Inside Out, is one of my two favorite animated movies. (Meet the Robinsonsis my other favorite.) The movie centers on the emotions of a young girl named Riley, and each emotion is a different color: Joy (yellow), Sadness (blue), Fear (purple), ANGER (red), and Disgust (green). Lewis Black voices ANGER inInside Outand in the 2024 sequelInside Out 2. STL (23A: Cardinals, on a scoreboard) TheSt. Louis Cardinalsare a Major League Baseball team. They happen to be the team I root for when I do watch baseball, since I grew up in Missouri. On scoreboards, the Cardinals are denoted by the letters STL; Those letters are also on their caps. MII (27A: Customizable Nintendo avatar) A MII is the customizable avatar used on some Nintendo game consoles and apps. HRT (58A: Gender-affirming treatment) HRT stands for hormone replacement therapy. SURVIVAL KIT (59A: Emergency supply stash) There are many types of SURVIVAL KITs, and the contents vary depending on the purpose. If you don't have a personal SURVIVAL KIT for emergency events such as a hurricane, earthquake, or flood (also called a go-bag or disaster bag), the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) hassuggestions on what such a SURVIVAL KIT should contain. TYSON (71A: "Fried Green Tomatoes" actress Cicely)Fried Green Tomatoesis a 1991 movie based on Fannie Flagg's 1987 book,Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. The show centers on a middle-aged woman (Evelyn Couch, portrayed by Kathy Bates) who befriends an elderly woman in a nursing home (Ninny Threadgoode, portrayed by Jessica Tandy). Cicely TYSON portrays Sipsey, a cook and the mother of Big George (Stan Shaw), who is known for his excellent barbecue. ACLU (2D: Org. that protects legal rights) I'm always happy to highlight theAmerican Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)and the work they do to protect the rights of all people in the United States. AGASSI (11D: Tennis great Andre) Andre AGASSI is a retired tennis player. He has won the Australian Open four times, the US Open twice, and the French Open and Wimbledon one time each. He represented Team USA at the 1996 Olympics, winning a gold medal. During his career, Andre AGASSI was ranked as the number one tennis player in men's singles for 101 weeks. OSAKA (26D: 2020 US Open winner Naomi) In addition to winning the US Open in 2020, Naomi OSAKA also won it in 2018. She has won the Australian Open twice as well, in 2019 and 2021.As I have previously written, I admire Naomi OSAKA not only for her sports ability, but for the way she uses her platform to raise awareness and advocate for others. DEMON (34D: "Sweeney Todd: The ___ Barber of Fleet Street")Sweeney Todd: The DEMON Barber of Fleet Streetis a 1979 Stephen Sondheim musical based on a 1970 play of the same name by Christopher Bond. It occurs to me that there's a connection betweenSweeney Todd: The DEMON Barber of Fleet StreetandFried Green Tomatoes, but in case you haven't seen them, I'll leave it at that to avoid spoilers. LANGSTON (39D: "Mother to Son" poet Hughes) LANGSTON Hughes (1901-1967) was a poet, social activist, and novelist. You can read his 1922 poem,"Mother to Son"on thePoetry Foundationwebsite. E-TICKETS (41D: They may be emailed to you before a show) Filling in this answer made me realize that I am thankful for the convenience of E-TICKETS. I am old enough to remember paper TICKETS, and I have experienced forgetting those TICKETS at home (and at other times being extremely anxious about doing so). Now I just have to remember my phone! NORWAY (48D: Northernmost Scandinavian country) The Scandinavian countries are the northern European countries of Denmark, NORWAY, and Sweden. Finland is sometimes considered Scandinavian due to its economic and cultural similarities to the other Scandinavian countries. As the clue informs us, NORWAY is the northernmost Scandinavian country. TITANS (49D: Tennessee NFL team) The Tennessee TITANS are an NFL team that plays their home games at Nissan Stadium in Nashville. NBA (52D: Timberwolves' org.) TheMinnesota Timberwolvesare an NBA team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A few other clues I especially enjoyed: PIANO (9A: Instrument that may be upright) ANTONYM (47A: Big, to small) SANDO (68A: Japanese loanword for PBJs and BLTs) SNARKIER (3D: More sarcastic) SURPRISE HIT (20A: Unexpected chart-topper) SURE LOOKS LIKE IT (38A: "Seems pretty clear to me!") SURVIVAL KIT (59A: Emergency supply stash) SUITCASE: Each theme answer is contained within the word SUIT:SURPRISE HIT,SURE LOOKS LIKEIT, andSURVIVAL KIT. This is an enjoyable set of theme answers and a fun theme. Each SUIT is a CASE containing a theme answer. One other thing I noticed is that there's a number of different sports represented today. There are clues about baseball (STL), tennis (AGASSI and OSAKA), football (TITANS), and basketball (NBA) – a wide representation. Congratulations to Jill Brufsky making aUSA Todaycrossword debut! Thank you, Rachel and Jill, for this delightful puzzle. USA TODAY's Daily Crossword Puzzles Sudoku & Crossword Puzzle Answers This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Crossword Blog & Answers for June 16, 2025 by Sally Hoelscher
