OBSERVER CROSSWORD PUZZLER

ACROSS 1. Biblical beast 4. In Arabic, superlative or comparative 11. Wombs 16. Dovely talk 17. Newfangled picture taker 18. Turn quickly! 19. From water, plants 21. Brings in 22. Goal for type of life 23. African antelope 24. Bing, bang or boom 25. A Southern racist, e.g. 31. Sickly coordinated 34. Streaming over the top 35. ___ Appia 36. Former French coin 37. Churchill’s “so few”: Abbr. 38. Arrest 41. Mountainous Balkan nation 44. Time span 45. Bias 46. “Gotcha” 48. 15-ball cluster 52. An end to sex? 55. Demanualize 58. DJ spinner 62. “___ the season ...” 63. Calendar square 64. Charlotte-to-Raleigh direction 65. “Act your ___!” 66. Names 68. Allowing latitude, no preference in creed 72. Arabic valley 73. Affirmative action 74. “Pumping ___” 78. Simulacra 79. Expressing an attribute 83. Bird crown 84. Split 85. Monster, inland, Irish 86. Coppers 87. Pampers 88. “To ___ is human ...” DOWN 1. Old age ill, often unexplained 2. ___ bean 3. Lays down the lawn 4. Tokyo, once 5. Back talk 6. “Give it ___!” 7. Tainted with 8. Cake topper 9. Nature abhorring more than one 10. First responders 11. Puller of weeds 12. Link 13. Avoiding the truth 14. Lassos steers 15. “___ alive!” 20. Medical advice, often 24. Saltpetre 26. Ireland 27. F.B.I. operative 28. Allude 29. Tee, e.g. 30. Bit 31. Doctrines 32. ___, listen and learn 33. Crescent 38. Bicker 39. Keats, for one 40. ___ 2 ____. (80’s TV) 42. Identical sibling 43. Good shot 47. Chopper blade 49. To help is the person 50. Anti-drug lord 51. Custodian’s collection 53. Advocate central state control 54. Sorcerer 56. Peewee 57. ___ Minor 58. ___ el Amarna, Egypt 59. Napping, so to speak 60. Conquered again 61. Fourposter, e.g. 66. Spicy curry powder 67. Jersey, e.g. 69. That is, in Latin 70. Foreword, for short 71. Jottings 75. Acclivity 76. “Your turn” 77. Warm, so to speak 78. TV monitor? 79. “20/20” network 80. Little Isaac 81. Except 82. Bull markets