(Encyclopedia) Lahr, Bert, 1895–1967, American comic actor, b. New York City, originally named Irving Lahrheim. Lahr first performed in burlesque and vaudeville, where he became known for his morose…
Astonished Fact Monster Wins Webby! Creature overwhelmed with happiness by Borgna Brunner Fact Monster, www.factmonster.com (the children's reference site from Infoplease.com) was selected…
(Encyclopedia) JajaJajajäˈjə [key], fl. 1869–87, Nigerian merchant prince. A former slave, he became an important trader in Bonny in the 1860s as a middleman between the coastal markets and the…
(Encyclopedia) Pendergast, Thomas Joseph, 1872–1945, American political boss, b. St. Joseph, Mo. After holding minor political offices (1899–1910) in Kansas City, Mo., he became the acknowledged…
(Encyclopedia) Burton, Harold Hitz, 1888–1964, associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1945–58), b. Jamaica Plain (now part of Boston), Mass. Admitted to the bar in 1912, he built a prosperous…
(Encyclopedia) MeissenMeissenmīsˈən [key], city (1994 pop. 33,075), Saxony, E central Germany, on the Elbe River. A porcelain manufacturing center since 1710, Meissen is famous for its delicate…
(Encyclopedia) Owen, Wilfred, 1893–1918, English poet, b. Oswestry, Shropshire. He served as a company commander in the Artist's Rifles during World War I and was killed in France on Nov. 4, 1918,…
(Encyclopedia) wheel. Through the many millennia of the Paleolithic period and the Neolithic period no use of the wheel was known to humans. Its use was not known to the Native Americans until the…
(Encyclopedia) Santa Fe Opera, summer opera festival held outside Santa Fe, N. Mex., founded 1957. Featuring outstanding young singers and musicians, it presents a wide variety of operas from the…
