Christmas

FIND CROSSWORD PUZZLE ON PAGES A4-A5

More than 200 clues in the 2020 Annual Mammoth Crossword reflect news events, anniversaries and pop culture occurrences of the past year. In 2020, we met a Tiger King, witnessed a private space flight arrive at the International Space Station and said farewell to celebs including The Gambler, Spartacus and the Black Panther. We saw the iPad turn 10, the boys of NSync hit their 40s and Dirty Harry turn 90. These are just a few of the events that inspired clues in this puzzle from crossword creator Monica Zurowski. Sharpen your pencil and enjoy! ACROSS

1 The virus that changed, well, everything (6) 4 Fab Four who permanently broke up 50 yrs ago (7) 9 Influential guitarist, with namesake band, who died at age 65 (5,3,5) 16 Adhesive bandage turned 100 (4-3) 21 NBA champs were Los Angeles ___ (6) 26 Jude ___ reprised role in The New Pope (3) 28 The room where surgeries occur (2) 29 One, in German (4) 31 This photo sharing network turned 10 (9) 33 His SpaceX co. took astronauts to the Int’l Space Station (4,4) 35 The U.K. left the European ___ in Jan. (5) 36 Probst-hosted reality show debuted 20 yrs ago (8) 37 This Pulp Fiction director racked up another Oscar nomination (9) 39 Opposite of off (2) 40 Pronoun referring to oneself (2) 41 Popular cooking spray (3) 42 Branch processing unit; abbr. (3) 44 A typographic unit, half the width of an ‘em’ unit (2) 45 What a green light means (2) 46 AC/__ released 1st album in six years (2) 47 Doing up buttons on a coat (9) 51 One of five on each foot (3) 53 One who consumes food (5) 54 Apparition (6) 57 Hellenic Republic got its 1st female prez (6) 60 Young French heroine, from 1400s, became a saint (4,2,3) 63 A common prefix for a ship’s name (2) 64 This Is __ started season with COVID & BLM themes (2) 65 Organization that said moon may have more water (4) 67 A paid-for message (2) 68 Large American news agency (2) 70 Our continent, abbr. (2) 72 One thousandth of a gram, abbr. (2) 73 One of the states devastated by wildfires, abbr. (2) 74 Continent south of us, abbr. (2) 75 Fictional singing family debuted on TV 50 yrs ago (9) 79 Beloved talk & game show host passed at 88 (5,7) 84 Female singer who swept Grammys (6,6) 89 McDonald’s introduced Shamrock ___ 50 yrs ago (5) 92 A four-member Japanese idol group formed this year (4) 93 Common conjunction (3) 94 Abbreviation editors use to mark a spelling error (2) 96 Show the way (4) 97 Out’s opposite (2) 98 The word for the 13th letter of the alphabet (2) 99 A series of solemn or religious actions done in a prescribed order (6) 100 Dark comic film about a mobile army hospital released 50 yrs ago (4) 102 This Lady won five MTV Video Music Awards this year (4) 103 Slang for microwaving something (6) 105 ___ the Explorer premiered 20 yrs ago (4) 107 Saint, abbr. (2) 109 Birth control 1st approved in N.A. 60 yrs ago (3,4) 111 Tampa Bay ___ won hockey’s Stanley Cup (9) 113 Jewelry for the finger (4) 115 Prescriptions (4) 116 A small dome adorning a roof (6) 118 Best of the best (5) 120 Gridiron official, for short (3) 121 A large lemur (5) 124 Dig in! (3) 125 Symbol for the element Neodymium (2) 126 Hay bundle (4) 128 A group of mountain people in Uganda (2) 130 Slangy assent (4) 132 Swiss city started museum exhibit about denim (5) 134 Feathery scarves (4) 136 Sporty Pontiac, old muscle car (3) 137 24-hour news channel turned 40 (3) 138 Boorish (4) 140 Oregon won the ___ Bowl (4) 141 Another name for gym class (2) 142 It was year of the ___ in Chinese zodiac (3) 144 Ruins a plan (8) 146 NYC’s state, abbr. (3) 148 World’s largest continent (4) 149 Floral necklace (3) 151 Actor William H. ___ turned 70 (4) 153 A doctor asks you to say this word (2) 154 The Bachelor’s ___ Higgins got engaged (3) 155 For better ___ for worse (2) 157 Shoelace problem (4) 158 A short play (4) 160 Fleeced (5) 163 Approaches (5) 165 Amount of medicine (4) 166 Actor ___ Damon turned 50 (4) 168 Rat pack member ___ Martin died 25 yrs ago (4) 169 Discourage (5) 172 Snare (4) 174 Cain’s brother (4) 176 Done with great effort (11) 177 Professionals (4) 178 Sitcom ___ & Grace ended, again (4) 179 Travolta lost wife ___ Preston to cancer (5) 180 Chinese calendar shows 2021 is year of the ___ (2) 181 This animal got a brain chip implanted by Elon Musk’s team (3) 183 Grander than grand (4) 185 RuPaul’s ___ Race was Emmy’s best reality competition show (4) 187 Actor Orson ___ died in Feb. (4) 188 Singer ___ Withers passed away in March (4) 189 Wyoming saw 3 hot ___ balloons crash (3) 190 Jr.’s dad (2) 192 Reality show ___ Brother debuted in N.A. 20 yrs ago (3) 194 Children’s author Blyton (4) 196 Halt (4) 198 Material Girl announced movie about her life was being written (7) 201 ___ Carey was the llama in The Masked Singer (4) 202 Former CEO of GE ___ Welch died in March (4) 203 Claire ___ finished her lead role on Homeland (5) 205 Reverse, neutral or drive (4) 208 Talk on and on (3) 210 Mix, especially food (4) 212 Airplane assignment (4) 214 ___ Zellweger was Oscar’s best actress (5) 215 Feb. had 29 days so it was a ___ year (4) 216 ___ Ruffalo won an acting Emmy (4) 217 A fan’s cheer of encouragement (3) 218 Elvis, ___ of rock ‘n’ roll, left army’s active duty 60 yrs ago (4) 220 Fond of (5) 222 Tennis high ball (3) 224 Isaac’s eldest son (4) 226 Look over (4) 228 Keen intelligence, aptitude for jokes (3) 229 Bit of sweat (4) 230 Billboard’s top touring artist was this female singer (4) 231 ___ Story 4 was Oscar’s best animated film (3) 233 Bow or neck (3) 234 Jeopardy host who passed away in Nov. (4,6) 237 Warm-hearted (4) 239 Instant message, abbr. (2) 241 Sean Connery, who played James ___, passed away (4) 242 Scientists discovered a new black ___ (4) 243 30 yrs ago, ___ Marley’s birthday became a holiday in Jamaica (3) 244 Earth’s oldest asteroid ___ was found in Australia (6) 245 Audiovisual, abbr. (2) 246 Toot one’s horn (4) 248 Fashion house created pandemic-inspired loungewear collection (4) 250 Bluish green (4) 252 Graze (4) 253 Gardener’s need (4) 254 What you put on the fire (3) 255 ___ Brady joined the Buccaneers (3) 257 Slow reply, texting abbr. (2) 258 Extent (6) 260 Miffed; ___ off (4) 262 Comedy legend Jerry ___ (Ben’s dad) passed at 92 (7) 264 The ___ Dance, about the Chicago Bulls, was huge hit (4) 265 Magicians’ word (11) 269 Gait between walk and canter (4) 272 Prefix for data or physics (4) 274 Nose-in-the-air type (4) 276 A dog biscuit (5) 277 To move into a sloping position (4) 278 TV’s The Crown introduced its Lady __ (2) 279 German word for grandma (3) 280 Goldman Sachs’ stock exchange symbol (2) 282 Stuck on a sharp instrument (7) 283 Igneous rock formed from lava (6) 285 Not us (4) 287 Simon Cowell missed finale of this show, due to broken back (3) 288 Ding, in a car (4) 289 Board game decided OK was a real word (8) 292 ___ Thompson appeared in Back to the Future 35 yrs ago (3) 293 A unit of absorbed radiation (2) 294 The new album from K-pop sensation BTS (2) 295 The cover for a pot (3) 297 Moby-Dick captain (4) 299 Hours, minutes and seconds (4) 300 Goals against, abbr. (2) 301 Ghost’s cry (3) 302 Second World ___ ended 75 yrs ago (3) 304 Defensive tackle, abbr. (2) 305 Billboard’s top group was Jonas ___ (8) 309 Batman sidekick made debut 80 yrs ago (5) 310 ___ & terminer; historical court terms (4) 311 Packing product Bubble ___ introduced 60 yrs ago (4) 312 I Am Woman singer ___ Reddy died at age 78 (5) 314 A variation of the common Korean surname Lee (2) 316 The Prime Minister quit in this Land of the Rising Sun (5) 318 Road, abbr. (2) 319 The country code for Senegal (2) 320 Abbr. for the enzyme thyroid peroxidase (3) 322 Victory (3) 323 NBA star who died in helicopter crash (4) 325 Choir part (4) 327 A thin layer of cells acting as a boundary (8) 330 Comedian ___ Reiner died at 98 (4) 332 An expectant mom’s doc: __-GYN (2) 334 This Clinton turned 40 (7) 336 TV show Party of ___ rebooted (4) 337 Letters of distress (3) 339 Back-to-school month, abbr. (4) 341 Sports mag announced partnership with The Curling News (2) 342 Actor ___ Tucci turned 60 (7) 345 This tablet turned 10 (4) 348 Actor Ted Lange is AKA ___, the Love Boat’s bartender (5) 349 A Russian brand of cigarettes now owned by Japan Tobacco (2) 350 Religious ceremony, act of passage (4) 351 The traffic ___ was invented 100 yrs ago (5) 353 Challenge someone to do something (4) 355 Scotland’s Firth of ___ (3) 357 Electrocardiogram, for short (3) 358 The first three vowels (3) 360 Martial arts expert Chuck ___ turned 80 (6) 362 Astronauts started staying here, long term, 20 yrs ago (3) 364 Carol Burnett Show actor ___ Waggoner died in March (4) 365 Officials who examine movies, books for unacceptable content (7) 367 Allows (4) 369 Apple released its 1st wrist device 5 yrs ago (5) 371 Animated show Family ___ had 350th episode (3) 373 Internet code for Lithuania (2) 374 Standardized units (7) 376 Ranch newborn (4) 377 He founded analytical psychology (4) 378 Dog sound (4) 380 Reverberate (4) 382 Ignited (3) 383 Internal affairs, abbr. (2) 384 Tom Selleck’s show ___ Bloods turned 10 (4) 386 One more time (5) 387 Lil __ X won Grammy for Old Town Road (3) 388 Existing as a result of birth (4) 389 Civil wrong (4) 391 ___ Earnhardt Jr. was voted into motorsports’ hall of fame (4) 393 Wolf’s sound (4) 395 Mount, abbr. (2) 397 Actor ___ Harris turned 70 (2) 400 Roll call reply (4) 401 Aluminum or tin (4) 402 Slang word for criticize (3) 404 Food for sea urchins (4) 406 Sitcom Man With a ___ ended (4) 408 Popular Sunday dinner feature (5,4) 411 One of the first celebs to get COVID-19 (3,5) 413 Watered-down (4) 414 This Dead Man Walking actor turned 60 (4) 415 Oct. hurricane (5) 417 It’s thrown at a bullseye (4) 419 Improvising in jazz (4) 421 Guilty or not guilty (4) 422 ___ Danson’s series The Good Place wrapped (3) 423 It may be raised at a party (4) 424 Rabbit relative (4) 425 Murder ___, a type of stinging wasp, arrived (7) 427 Not far (4) 429 Compass direction opposite of west (4) 431 Abominable Snowman (4) 433 Third note of a major scale (2) 434 Versus, abbr. (2) 436 Rocker ___ Stewart turned 75 (3) 437 The last name of The Incredibles (4) 438 Actress Goldie ___ turned 75 (4) 439 Go left or right (4) 440 Basic unit of a chemical element (4) 442 Implored (4) 444 Himalayan spikenard (4) 445 ___ Johnson was world’s No.1 golfer (6) 447 Early anesthetic (5) 449 Clods (4) 450 Farm building (4) 451 What spiders spin (4) 452 A person taking part in a sport or game (6) 454 Mickey Mouse ___ debuted on TV 65 yrs ago (4) 456 The smallest American state, abbr. (2) 458 Vote into office (5) 459 United Arab Emirates sent a rover to this planet (4) 460 Coal site (4) 461 Gone With the ___ won best picture some 80 yrs ago (4) 462 Evergreen (3) 463 Short word for agricultural (2) 464 Afraid (6) 465 Notion (4) 467 Casual conversation (4) 469 We hear with these (4) 470 ___ Garfunkel turns 80 next year (3) 471 Be bedridden (3) 472 A person, place or ___ is a noun (5) 474 Kids’ song: The Farmer in the ___ (4) 477 A type of record album (2) 478 Symbol for the element helium (2) 479 Loathsome (4) 481 Golf ball support (3) 483 Decay (3) 484 Reset, abbr. (2) 485 Hallucinogenic drug used in new trials to treat adult ADHD (3) 486 Regarding, abbr. (2) 487 Needle-shaped, as pine leaves (7) 489 Bro’s counterpart (3) 491 Price (4) 493 Tina ___ turned 50 (3) 495 A triathlon of running, swimming and cycling (7) 497 Opposite of yes (2) 498 Popular expression, showing a lack of interest (3) 499 ___ Tyler Moore got her own show 50 yrs ago (4) 501 Spheres (4) 502 A Thai unit of measurement (2) 503 Steals (5) 505 Operating system, abbr. (2) 507 Yellow, Black or Red (3) 508 An address assigned to every computer connected to a network (2) 509 Regrets only, abbr. (2) 511 Latin word found in footnotes (4) 513 District attorney, abbr. (2) 514 A bomb deployed in ways other than traditional military action (3) 515 Transactions per second, abbr. (3) 517 Schulz comic strip that ended 20 yrs ago (7) 519 Someone who imitates another’s dress or ideas (7) 520 Varieties (5) 522 Baseball Hall of Famer ___ Morgan died at 77 (3) 524 A lacrosse league in North America (3) 525 A sea that is an arm of the Mediterranean (6) 528 Sense of self (3) 529 Chris Hemsworth said he’ll be back as ___ in upcoming superhero film (4) 530 A restroom in the U.K. (3) 532 ___ vera (4) 534 Nanosecond, abbr. (2) 535 International sporting event postponed (8) 537 Emmy’s best drama series (10) 540 Show that swept all comedic Emmy categories (7,5) 544 Oscar’s best film of the year (8) 547 10 actress __ Derek is about to become a senior citizen (2) 549 This catch phrase turned 25: __ infinity and beyond (2) 550 Regional sports network, abbr. (3) 551 A smaller-sized newspaper (7) 552 ___ Eliot’s Cats was adapted into a movie (2) 553 Clears after expenses (4) 555 Occupational therapist, abbr. (2) 556 Opposite of NW on a compass (2) 558 Music genre popular at raves (3) 560 Joaquin ___ won Oscar’s best actor (7) 563 Identify (4) 564 India’s Mayurakshi River is also known by this name (3) 565 Card game in the rummy family (7) 568 The Social Contract philosopher (8) 570 Internal rate of return, abbr. (3) 572 Morning (2) 573 Back muscle, for short (3) 575 Pa’s counterpart (2) 576 Early 20th-century art movement (4) 579 Pirate’s call (2)