Columbia Encyclopedia

(Encyclopedia) Theodoric the Great, c.454–526, king of the Ostrogoths and conqueror of Italy, b. Pannonia. He spent part of his youth as a hostage in Constantinople. Elected king in 471 after his father's death, h...

(Encyclopedia) outsider art, artwork created by typically unconventional and untrained artists from the margins of society and the art world. The term was coined in 1972 by British scholar and art critic Roger Cardi...

(Encyclopedia) science fiction, literary genre in which a background of science or pseudoscience is an integral part of the story. Although science fiction is a form of fantastic literature, many of the events recou...

(Encyclopedia) Mamet, David mămĕtˈ [key], 1947–, American playwright and film director, b. Chicago. He taught drama (and produced some of his early plays) at Goddard College. His work, often dealing with the su...

(Encyclopedia) Spenser, Edmund, 1552?–1599, English poet, b. London. He was the friend of men eminent in literature and at court, including Gabriel Harvey, Sir Philip Sidney, Sir Walter Raleigh, and Robert Sidney,...

(Encyclopedia) electronic game, device or computer program that provides entertainment by challenging a person's eye-hand coordination or mental abilities. Made possible by the development of the microprocessor, ele...

(Encyclopedia) Lethaby, William Richard lĕthˈəbē [key], 1857–1931, English architect. He was a founder and first principal (1893–1911) of the London County Council Central School of Arts and Crafts, and prof...

(Encyclopedia) Merrick, David, 1912–2000, American theatrical producer, b. St. Louis, Mo., as David Margulois. Merrick began his remarkably successful series of theatrical productions in 1954 with Fanny, his first...

(Encyclopedia) National Rifle Association of America (NRA), group founded (1871) to promote shooting, hunting, firearm safety, and wildlife conservation. The NRA has more than 3 million members. The association spon...

(Encyclopedia) Martin, Archer John Porter, 1910–2002, English biochemist, educated at Cambridge. From 1938 to 1946 he carried on chemical research in the laboratories of the Wool Industries Association at Leeds, Y...