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) Hood, John Bell, 1831–79, Confederate general in the American Civil War, b. Owingsville, Ky. He resigned from the army (Apr., 1861) and entered the Confederate service 1862. He fought in the Peninsu...

(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) Hempstead hĕmpˈstĕd, –stəd [key]. <1> Town (2020 pop. 793,409), Nassau co., SE N.Y., ...

(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) Yancey, William Lowndes, 1814–63, American leader of secession, b. Warren co., Ga. Admitted (1834) to the bar in Greenville, S.C., he soon moved to Alabama. There he became an outstanding lawyer, wa...

(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) 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...