QOD: Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Tuesday, 8 December 2020

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

QOD: Everyone has a photographic memory; some just don’t have the film. ~ Steven Wright (né Steven Alexander Wright; b. Dec. 6, 1955), American comedian

The Third Rock from the Sun. The circles spell out the word EARTH.

17-Across. Creator of unique gallery pieces: NICHE ARTIST.

24-Across. "Louder, please": I CAN'T HEAR YOU.

51-Across. Free on request: FOR THE ASKING.

63-Across. Motorcyclist's state-of-the-art gear: SMART HELMET.

And the Unifier:

39-Across. TV soap for 54 years ... and a hint to the puzzle circles: AS THE WORLD TURNS.

The unifier was my last fill. I don't know soap operas. My grandmother used to watch The Young and the Restless, so that is the only one I am familiar with. I had heard of As The World Turns, however. The circled letters spell the word HEART, so I was trying to come up with a soap opera that includes some reference to a heart. I laughed when I realized that letters in the circles also spell EARTH.

Across:

1. Pete Seeger's instrument: BANJO. Pete Seeger (May 3, 1919 ~ Jan. 27, 2014) was an American folk singer and social activist. You can learn to play the Banjo with Pete Seeger.

6. Biblical song: PSALM. The biblical Book of Psalms is made up of religious verses and songs, many of which are attributed to the biblical King David.

11. Chocolate dog: LAB. The Labrador Retriever, not the candy.

14. Hunter in the night sky: ORION. When you connect the stars, it is easy to see the constellation.

15. Radio station, e.g.: AIRER.

16. Physicians' gp.: AMA. As in the American Medical Association.

19. Jake Tapper's channel: CNN. Jack Tapper (né Jacob Paul Tapper; b. Mar. 12, 1969) is the Chief Washington correspondent for CNN. He is also the host of a weekly show on the channel.

20. Adam's first home: EDEN.

21. Neptune's domain: SEA. In addition to being the name of a planet, Neptune was the Roman god of the sea. The Greek counterpart was known as Poseidon.

22. "Amen": SO BE IT.

27. Cry out loud: SOB.

30. Make a choice: OPT.

31. Ctrl+Z, in Windows: UNDO.

32. Ruin's companion: WRACK.

34. Blonde or pale beverage: ALE. Your guide to Beers and Ales and a CSO to Lemonade's son.

35. Slime: GOOP. Also the name of a company founded by Gwyneth Paltrow.

43. Mug for a selfie: POSE.

44. Nile viper: ASP. Legend has it that an ASP killed Cleopatra.

45. Race prelims: HEATS. Ever wonder why the term Heat?

46. Behaves: ACTS.

48. One of two for a downhill run: SKI. Because just 1 ski would be a snowboard.

50. Movie filming site: LOT.

56. Playground bully, e.g.: ABUSER.

57. Butter square: PAT. How much is a Pat of Butter?

58. Waikiki Beach location: OAHU. I would really like to be on the beach about now.

62. "Little Birds" author Anaïs: NIN. Her full name was Angela Anaïs Juana Antolina Rosa Edelmira Nin y Culmel (Feb. 21, 1903 ~ Jan. 14, 1977). She was a French-Cuban diarist and novelist. She is best known for her short stories and erotica. Little Birds falls into the latter category. It is a collection of short stories. Although the book was published in 1979, it was written in the 1940 when she was known for writing pornography.

66. First day of spring, in Hanoi: TET.

67. Conical plains shelter: TEPEE.

68. Car alarm sound: BLARE.

69. Biblical beast of burden: ASS.

70. Scornful look: SNEER.

71. Modern storage units: BYTES.

Down:

1. Tibia or humerus: BONE. One from the leg and the other in the arm.

2. Dry as a desert: ARID. I love this photograph. If you look closely, you will see that the "camels" are actually their shadows. The photo is looking directly down on the camels.

3. Naughty's opposite, to Santa: NICE. A NICE CSO to our dear Argyle.

4. First of 21 Popes: JOHN I. Apparently, there is considerable confusion as to the actual number of Popes named John. The number varies according to how one counts, and there were numbering errors in the middle ages.

5. Number that's its own square root: ONE. When was the last time you needed to know the square root of a number?

6. Mother or grandmother, e.g.: PARENT.

7. Occupy, as a desk: SIT AT.

8. Phoenix MLB team, on scoreboards: ARI. The team is known as the Diamond Backs.

9. Eased: LESSENED.

10. "The Wind in the Willows" amphibian: MR. TOAD. The Wind in the Willows is a classic children's novel. It was written in 1908 by Kennety Grahame (Mar. 8, 1859 ~ July 6, 1932). The novel focuses on 4 anthropomorphised animals: Mr. Toad, Rat, Mole and Mr. Badger.

11. Cagney's TV partner: LACEY. Mary Beth Lacey and Chris Cagney were NYPD officers in a detective serise that ran in the 1980s. Lacey was played by Tyne Daly (née Ellen Tyne Daly; b. Feb. 21, 1946). Cagney was actually played by several actresses, but for most of the series, was portrayed by Sharon Gless (née Sharon Marguerite Gless; b. May 31, 1943).

12. OB/GYN procedure: AMNIO. As in an amniocentesis, which is a medical procedure used to diagnose chromosomal abnormalities, fetal infections and sex determination.

13. African language group: BANTU.

18. "Instantly!" letters: ASAP.

23. Irish accent: BROGUE. You, too, can learn to speak with an Irish Brogue.

25. Pepsi rival: COKE. I don't drink much soda, but I would go with Coke.

26. Main body of the Constitution?: HULL. My favorite clue of the puzzle. The USS Constitution, also known as Old Iron Sides

, is sitting in Boston Harbor.

27. Give and take: SWAP.

28. Thereabouts: OR SO.

29. Ones hanging out in caves: BATS.

33. Ignores the rules: CHEATS.

34. Dada co-founder: ARP. Our old friend Jean Arp (né Hans Peter Wilhelm Arp; Sept. 16, 1886 ~ June 7, 1966) is back. We haven't seen him in quite a while.