Today's Entertainment

December 6 - 12, 2021 Page 3 ACROSS 1. "America's __ __" 8. "The Sun __ Rises"; Tyrone Power film 9. Bread spread 10. Series for Kody Brown (2) 14. Calf-length skirt 15. Actress Charlotte __ 16. Suffix for exist or differ 17. "Zip-__-__-Doo-Dah" 18. Highways: abbr. 19. His and __ 20. Pleased 24. Actress Gardner 27. Los Angeles team 28. Actor Cariou 29. Role on "The Waltons" 32. Stoltz or Stonestreet 33. Actor on "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" (2) 36. "__ Season"; 2006 Ashton Kutcher movie 37. Popular Irish singer 38. Actor on "Bob Hearts Abishola" (2) DOWN 1. Motorless aircraft 2. Davis and others 3. "Sesame Street" fan 4. Actor Rob 5. "The Book of __"; Denzel Washington film 6. "Tomorrow __ Dies"; 007 movie 7. From end __ __; reaching across 8. __ from; in addition to 11. George Clooney series 12. Acuff's initials 13. Nov. 1 honorees 14. __-jongg 20. Actor on "Bonanza" 21. King & Hagman 22. Female friend in Spain 23. Distinguished Service Cross: abbr. 24. Nat King Cole's state of birth: abbr. 25. 2018 movie for Tom Hardy 26. "Ma __ __ Kettle Go to Town" 29. "__ She Great"; Bette Midler film 30. Kirstie's initials 31. Role in "The Wizard of Oz" 34. "Are We There __?"; film for Ice Cube 35. Role on "The Waltons" Solution is on page 2. CoverStory By George Dickie It may have the title "Welcome to Earth," but the new Disney+ docu- mentary series might well be subtitled, "Phenomena in Nature You Never Con- sidered." Because it's that eye-opening. Premiering Wednesday, Dec. 8, on the streaming service, the series from National Geographic fol- lows host Will Smith as he embarks on an awe-inspir- ing journey to reveal the secrets behind some of the most extraordinary and un- explained events in nature. So in the six episodes, viewers will learn how swarms of hundreds of thousands of birds or honeybees can move as a single unit without any apparent communication; how smell, the most pow- erful of the senses, leads sea turtles back to an is- land in the South Pacific to lay eggs; and how deserts move slowly beyond hu- man perception. Smith, who had previ- ously worked on the Nat- Geo series "One Strange Rock," acts as the eyes and the ears of the viewer here, taking in the action as it unfolds before him and speaking wide-eyed in narration and to the camera. "He doesn't pretend to be a scientist or a volca- nologist or an expert in anything," explains Jane Root, an executive produc- er of the series for her pro- duction company Nutopia. "(His attitude is,) 'I'm the person who's there seeing what you can see about the planet.' And the thing he also talks about (is) what you can see about the planet on the other side of fear. He says his grandmother always said to him that the best things in life are (discovered) once you get through be- ing scared of them." Fear certainly played a role in the opening episode "The Silent Roar," in which Smith, explorer Erik Wei- henmayer and the crew went to Tanna Island in the South Pacific near Vanu- atu to film and listen to the active volcano of Mount Yasur rumble. But the group actually got more than they expected when it erupted, spewing forth lava and boulders. Needless to say, it was one of those life experienc- es that all who witnessed it will never forget. "Some of the boulders were the size of, you know, small cars and they're kind of just explod- ing out of the ground," Root says. "And you see Will joking about it, like 'I'm wearing this helmet but that's not really going to help, is it?' "We had probably at the top of that volcano like 12 different safety people and every safety precaution we could take but this is still really challenging stuff to film," she continues. "You know, there's still a sense of, 'Wow! Am I actually here while this is going on? That's incredible.' " 'Welcome to Earth' spotlights the subtle awesomeness of nature on Disney+ The identity of the featured celebrity is found within the answers in the puzzle. In order to take the TV Challenge, unscramble the letters noted with asterisks within the puzzle. InFocus "Being the Ricardos" (Amazon — movie premiere, Dec. 21) Aaron Sorkin ("The West Wing") wrote and created this original biographical drama that gives a revealing look at the romantic life and professional relationship of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz (Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem) during one critical production week of their groundbreaking sitcom "I Love Lucy." J.K. Simmons and Nina Arianda play William Frawley and Vivian Vance. I FOUND IT! Whether you are looking for the latest garage sale bargain, a reliable car, a home or a new job. You are sure to find what you want in the classified section of … Nobody Covers Your Hometown Better!

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