Today's Entertainment

January 17 - 23, 2022 Page 3 ACROSS 1. __ Nolan; role on "The Rookie" 5. "__ Man Standing" 9. Actress Bello 10. "__ __ Practice" (2005-06) 12. "__ Age"; blockbuster 2002 animated film 13. "My Three __" 16. Web address, for short 17. Initials for late newsman Kuralt 18. "Life as __ __"; Kevin Kline movie 20. Ending for cook, book or rook 21. "Outside the Lines" network 23. "Win, Lose or __" 25. "Grumpy __ Men"; Lemmon/Matthau film 26. "Minute to __ It" 27. "What __ to Wear" 28. Tally up 29. School subject 30. Donna or Rex 32. "Star Trek __: The Voyage Home" 33. "The __ __ I"; Fred MacMurray movie 38. Prefix for pay or play 39. Berry or Jennings 41. __ May Clampett 42. "Love __ __ Many Splendored Thing" 43. Orange Muppet 45. "Body of __" (2011-13) 47. "The Seven __ Itch"; Marilyn Monroe film 48. Actor Florek DOWN 1. Role on "Grey's Anatomy" (2) 2. Miner's find 3. Friendly greeting 4. "__ Bridges" (1996-2001) 5. Gambler's woe 6. Symbol for gold 7. "The __ Erwin Show" (1950-55) 8. Actress on "NCIS: Hawai'i" (2) 9. "Of __ and Men"; 1992 Gary Sinise film 11. "One __ Over the Cuckoo's Nest" 14. Initials for Sharon Osbourne's hubby 15. Letter from Greece 18. "Jake __ __ Fatman" 19. Actor __ James Olmos 22. Cemetery space 24. "Ticket to __"; Beatles song 29. "All in the Family" role 31. Turn a __ ear to; ignore 34. Grandpa Walton's portrayer 35. Lollobrigida's initials 36. "United States of __" 37. "__ Blue" (1993-2005) 40. 90 degrees from WNW 42. Electrified particle 44. John Wayne's state of birth: abbr. 46. Actress Arquette's initials Solution is on page 2. CoverStory By Jay Bobbin After his long run on "Criminal Minds," Joe Man- tegna's new series is quite a switch for him ... and he brings part of his own family background to it. A parent of an autis- tic daughter, the Tony Award-winning actor also addresses the subject in "As We See It," Amazon's ad- aptation of an Israeili drama series that begins streaming Friday, Jan, 21. Mantegna portrays the father of Jack (Rick Glassman), one of sev- eral young-adult roommates on the autism spectrum who are supported by their fam- ilies and each other. Albert Rutecki and Sue Ann Pien play the other members of the central trio, with Sosie Bacon (daughter of Kevin Bacon and Kyra Sedgwick) as their main aide. "I've been involved in it since its inception," Man- tegna says of the show developed by Emmy-winning executive producer Jason Katims ("Friday Night Lights," "Parenthood"). "They came to me shortly after 'Criminal Minds' stopped, and when I read the (pilot) script, I was really knocked out by it ... for a lot of reasons. Jason is such a wonderful, beautiful writer, and it had a very per - sonal impact on me." Mantegna isn't sure whether his eldest daughter Gia's condition was known to Katims. "I never asked," he reveals. "Jason might have thought that might be an interesting layer, but I know that it's also a personal thing for him. They really thought it out to the point where, besides that the three main actors were identified as be- ing on the autism spectrum, they were going to hire 12 (autistic) people on the crew — which is really unheard of. You have to go through the unions and all that, and they did that. I hope it's a sign of the times, in terms of where we're going with inclusion." In "As We See It," Man- tegna's character Lou faces a health challenge of his own. "My watchword for a good part of my life has been, 'Everybody's got a sto- ry, and nobody gets a free ride,' " reflects Mantegna. "To me, this is an example of that. Each of us has a personal story, and some of those are things we would not have chosen. And so be it." Gia Mantegna is a make- up artist who almost ended up working on "As We See It" along with her father, but ultimately didn't. However, her dad has enjoyed acting with Glassman as his on- screen son, deeming him "a wonderful young man. Most people in the world would think of him as just a smart, sunny, quirky guy, yet being sensitive to that world, I could tell there's a reason for that quirkiness. He's a stand- up comic, so he has those certain savant abilities, just like my daughter has." Joe Mantegna helps portray autism 'As We See It' in Amazon series 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 "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" (Bravo — sea- son premiere, Feb. 1) New friend Traci Johnson joins familiar Housewives Te- resa Giudice, Melissa Gorga, Margaret Josephs, Dolores Catania, Jackie Goldscheider and Jennifer Aydin as this long-running reality series opens Season 12. After years of marital turmoil, a resilient Teresa is pondering moving in with boyfriend Luis and blending their families. Else- where, Margaret is dealing with some guilt after reveal- ing an Aydin family secret, causing pain to Jennifer. Meanwhile, Jackie finally is forced to confront her eating disorder.

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