Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Luce, Clare Boothe, 1903–87, American playwright and diplomat, whose name originally was Anne Clare Boothe, b. New York City. Witty, outspoken, glamorous, and an articulate political conservative, L...

(Encyclopedia) McLean, John məklānˈ [key], 1785–1861, American political figure and jurist, b. Morris co., N.J. His family moved to Ohio, where he studied law, was admitted (1807) to the bar, and practiced in L...

(Encyclopedia) Vandenberg, Arthur Hendrick, 1884–1951, American politician, b. Grand Rapids, Mich. He was editor and publisher of the Grand Rapids Herald from 1906 to 1928, when he was appointed to fill a U.S. Sen...

(Encyclopedia) Bingham, George Caleb, 1811–79, American painter and politician, b. Augusta co., Va. His family moved (1819) to Missouri, which was the site of most of Bingham's activities. In 1837 he studied for a...

(Encyclopedia) Blair, Francis Preston, 1791–1876, American journalist and politician, b. Abingdon, Va. Through the Frankfort, Ky., journal Argus of Western America, which he edited with Amos Kendall, Blair was an ...

(Encyclopedia) Kubrick, Stanley ko͞oˈbrĭk, kyo͞oˈ– [key], 1928–99, American film director, writer, and producer, b. New York City. His visually stunning, thematically daring, boldly idiosyncratic, and darkl...

(Encyclopedia) Doctorow, E. L. (Edgar Lawrence Doctorow) dŏkˈtərōˌ [key], 1931–2015, American novelist, b. New York City. The author of a dozen novels, Doctorow is known for his skillful blending of fiction a...

(Encyclopedia) Martin, Agnes (Agnes Bernice Martin), 1912–2004, American painter, b. Macklin, Canada. She moved to the United States in 1931, began painting in 1942,...

(Encyclopedia) United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), agency of the United Nations, with headquarters in Amman, Jordan and Gaza City, Gaza Strip. Established in 1949,...

(Encyclopedia) shell, in zoology, hard outer covering secreted by an animal for protection. It is also called the test, crust, or carapace. The term usually refers to the calcareous shells of the many species of mol...