Tuesday, December 22, 2020 Jake Halperin

There's Nothing to See Here!  The first word of each theme answer is another word for Nothing.

17-Across. "Quiet!": ZIP YOUR LIP.

27-Across. Sinful financial craving: LOVE OF MONEY.  Why Love means nothing in tennis.  Tennis is also a game that has been lethal to royalty.

36-Across. English national anthem originally in French: O CANADA.  Hi, CanadianEh!

46-Across. Exercise involving a push-up position: SQUAT THRUST.

And the unifier:

60-Across. "Just a scratch, really" ... and a hint to the starts of 17-, 27-, 36- and 46-Across: IT'S NOTHING.

Across:

1. Jobs for plumbers: LEAKS.

6. Protein-rich vegan fare: TOFU.

10. "Warts and all" wart: FLAW.

14. Written so as to discourage erasure: IN PEN.  Hand up if your first thought was In Ink.

15. Library ID: ISBN.  This stands for International Standard Book Number.  The ISBN deciphered.

16. Witness' promise: OATH.

19. Pre-performance pitch-setting wind: OBOE.  Did you ever wonder why the Oboe is used to tune the Orchestra?

20. Bible man made from earth: ADAM.  From dust to dust ...

21. "The Matrix" hero: NEO.  The Matrix was a 1999 movie that starred Keanu Reeves (né Keanu Charles Reeves; b. Sept. 2, 1964) as Neo.

22. Chipmunk, e.g.: RODENT.  They are cute little critters.  Everything you wanted to know about Chipmunks, but didn't know to ask.

24. State-sponsored gambling game: LOTTO.

26. Play-calling gatherings: HUDDLES.  Think fútbol, American style.

Geaux Tigers!

29. Ballpark hooter: BOOER.  Meh!

30. Iron mine output: ORE.  A crossword staple.

31. Bacon go-with: EGGS.

35. Form W-2 org.: IRS.  The infamous Internal Revenue Service.

40. Half of dos: UNO.  Today's Italian lesson.

41. Belle's counterpart: BEAU.

43. Fútbol cheer: OLÉ.  The game Americans call Soccer.

44. Clarifying words: I, MEAN.

50. Bigwigs: TOP GUNS.  Top Gun was a 1986 movie about students at the United States Navy elite fighter weapons school competing to be the best in their class.

53. "It __ stopped me yet!": HASN'T.

54. Past the pain of a breakup, say: OVER IT.

55. Have something: AIL.

56. Stop-motion medium: CLAY.  Stop-motion is also known as Claymation.

59. Humans-on-the-moon org.: NASA.  As in the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.  Hi, Gary!

63. Wrinkle remover: IRON.  Ironing in the age of Zoom.

64. Hammer target: NAIL.

65. Simple question type: YES / NO.

66. Skin concern: CYST.

67. Like a cloudy day: GRAY.  We have been having a lot of gloomy and gray days recently.

68. Pencil maze word: ENTER.  Sometimes the word Enter is just implied.

Down:
1. Minnelli of "Cabaret": LIZA.  Liza Minnelli (née Liza May Minnelli; b. Mar. 12, 1946) is the daughter of Judy Garland.

2. Katelyn Nacon's role on "The Walking Dead": ENID.  I have never seen The Walking Dead, and am not familiar with Katelyn Nacon (Katelyn May Nacon; b. June 11, 1999).

3. Horse with a spotted coat: APPALOOSA.  Apparently they come in all sorts of spotted patterns.

4. Decision that clinches the victory: KEY MOVE.

5. __-Caps: candy: SNO.  Yummers!

6. Lose interest in: TIRE OF.

7. Scandinavian capital: OSLO.  Alfred Nobel (Oct. 21, 1833 ~ Dec. 10, 1896) was Swedish, so why is the Nobel Peace Prize awarded in Oslo, Norway and not Stockholm, Sweden where all the other Nobel Prizes are given out?

8. "The Blacklist" agcy.: FBI.  As in the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The Blacklist is a television series starring James Spader (b. Feb. 7, 1960) and Megan Boone (b. Apr. 29, 1983).  The show has been running since 2013.

9. Not cut back, as branches: UNPRUNED.

10. Edible coloring: FOOD DYE.

11. Nutrition info spot: LABEL.  How to decipher the Nutrition label.

12. Make restitution: ATONE.  This is becoming a crossword staple.

13. Arouses: WHETS.

18. "Do __ others ... ": UNTO.  Words in the Golden Rule.  The major religions of the world have a version of the Golden Rule.

23. Emotional poem: ODE.

25. Choreographer Saarinen: TERO.  The only Saarinens I am familiar with are the father (Elie) and son  (Eero) architects, who often make guest appearances in the crossword puzzles.  I don't believe that Tero Saarinen (b. Sept. 7, 1964) is related to the architects.

26. "Hava Nagila" dance: HORA.  Let us rejoice!

27. Passed-on stories: LORE.

28. Painter Claude: MONET.  Claude Monet (né Oscar-Claude Monet; Nov. 14, 1840 ~ Dec. 5, 1926) is sometimes referred to as the Father of Impressionist Painting.  He is probably best known for his series of Water Lilies from his home in Giverny, France.

29. Highchair wear: BIB.

32. Party attendees lineup: GUEST LIST.

33. Irksome insect: GNAT.  Here are a few different types of Gnats.

34. Luke, to Anakin: SON.  A reference to the Star Wars movies.

37. Relying (on): COUNTING.

38. Hooray antonym: ALAS.

39. Goes public with: AIRS.

42. R.E. Lee foe: U.S. GRANT.  As we have previously noted, Ulysses S Grant's given name was Hiram Ulysses Grant (Apr. 27, 1822 ~ July 23, 1885).

45. Third-largest German city, to Germans: MÜNCHEN.  Today's German lesson.  The city was founded by Benedictine monks, hence, the name is derived from Old High German meaning "by the monks' place."

47. Who, in Quebec: QUI.  Today's French lesson.c

48. How carpaccio is sliced: THINLY.  Carpaccio is thinly sliced meat or fish that is generally served raw.  You, too, can make carpaccio.

49. Angelic aura: HALO.

50. Vodka mixer: TONIC.

51. Seed-bearing organ: OVARY.

52. Cuban coins: PESOS.

55. Where Israel is: ASIA.  Sometimes when you go to a restaraunt in Israel, they will tell you they serve Asian food.  What you will get is what we consider middle-eastern food.

57. Diarist Frank: ANNE.  Annelies Marie Frank (June 12, 1929 ~ Feb. 1945) was a Holocaust victim.

58. "Son of Frankenstein" role: YGOR.  Ygor was played by Boris Lugosi in the 1939 movie.

61. Sailor: TAR.  Sailors have been referred to as Tars since at least the 1660s.  It may derive from the word Tarpaulin, which was a cloth covered in tar to make it waterproof.

62. Nautical rope: TYE.  Hi, Spitzboov.  I'll let you explain this word.

Here's the Grid:

חתולה

Merry Christmas, Everyone!