Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Coen Brothers, American filmmakers Joel Coen, 1955–, and Ethan Coen, 1958–, both b. St. Louis Park, Minn. Joel studied at New York Univ. Film School (B.A., 1978), Ethan at Princeton (B.A., 1979). ...

(Encyclopedia) Kael, Pauline kāl [key], 1919–2001, American film critic, b. Petaluma, Calif. Possessed of extremely strong opinions about movies and a feisty, pop-inflected style, Kael was noted for her provocati...

(Encyclopedia) Hani, Chris 1942–1993, anti-apartheid activist, politician, and soldier. A legendary figure in South African history and a key participant in the ...

(Encyclopedia) Snow, C. P. (Charles Percy Snow, Baron Snow of Leicester), 1905–80, English author and physicist. Snow had an active, varied career, including several important positions in the British government. ...

(Encyclopedia) Schuller, Gunther Alexander, 1925–2015, American composer and conductor, b. Queens, N.Y. He studied French horn and flute, becoming principal hornist with the Cincinnati Symphony (1943–45) and Met...

(Encyclopedia) spiritism or spiritualism, belief that the human personality continues to exist after death and can communicate with the living through the agency of a medium or psychic. The advocates of spiritism ar...

(Encyclopedia) Agee, James āˈjē [key], 1909–55, American writer, b. Knoxville, Tenn., grad. Harvard, 1932. He soon joined the literary and journalistic life of New York City, becoming (1932) a writer for Fortun...

(Encyclopedia) Eakins, Thomas āˈkĭnz [key], 1844–1916, American painter, photographer, and sculptor, b. Philadelphia, where he worked most of his life. Eakins is considered the foremost American portrait painte...

(Encyclopedia) Swift, Jonathan, 1667–1745, English author, b. Dublin. He is widely recognized as one of the greatest satirists in the English language. In 1713 Swift became dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dubl...

(Encyclopedia) McKim, Charles Follen, 1847–1909, American architect, b. Chester co., Pa., studied (1867–70) at the École des Beaux-Arts. He was one of the founders of the firm of McKim, Mead, and Bigelow, which...