Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Scott, George C. (George Campbell Scott), 1927–99, American actor, b. Wise, Va. Fiery and intense, Scott played his first major roles in Richard III, The Merchant of Venice, and As You Like It for t...

(Encyclopedia) Tarkington, Booth (Newton Booth Tarkington), 1869–1946, American author, b. Indianapolis. His most characteristic and popular works were his genial novels of life in small Middle Western towns, incl...

(Encyclopedia) Wenders, Wim, 1945–, German filmmaker, b. Düsseldorf. During the late 1960s he attended film school and worked as a film critic in Munich. Wenders first attracted attention with The Goalie's Anxiet...

(Encyclopedia) Virginia Beach, resort city (1990 pop. 393,069), independent and in no county, SE Va., on the Atlantic coast; inc. 1906. In 1963, Princess Anne co. and the former small town of Virginia Beach were mer...

(Encyclopedia) week, period of time shorter than the month, commonly seven days. The ancient Egyptians used a 10-day period, as did the French under the short-lived French Revolutionary calendar. In many regions a f...

(Encyclopedia) Wright, Henry, 1878–1936, American landscape architect and community planner, b. Lawrence, Kans., studied architecture at the Univ. of Pennsylvania. He was widely recognized as a leader in the movem...

(Encyclopedia) Fanon, Frantz Omar fräNts ômärˈ fänôNˈ [key], 1925–61, French West Indian ps...

(Encyclopedia) Stafford, Henry, 2d duke of Buckingham, 1454?–1483, English nobleman. He was the grandson of Humphrey Stafford, the 1st duke, whom he succeeded in 1460. He passed the death sentence on George, duke ...

(Encyclopedia) Sabbath [Heb.,=repose], in Judaism, last day of the week (Saturday), observed as a rest day for the twenty-five hours commencing with sundown on Friday. In the biblical account of creation (Gen. 1) th...

(Encyclopedia) Ashura, holy day in Islam, the 10th day of the month of Muharram. It commemorates the day Noah left the ark and the day Moses was saved by God from the Egyptians, and is a voluntary day of fasting for...