During the summer of 2012, Travelandleisure.com posted an online survey asking Americans what they like—and don't like—about 35 large American cities and used the…
(Encyclopedia) Crane, Hart (Harold Hart Crane), 1899–1932, American poet, b. Garrettsville, Ohio. He published only two volumes of poetry during his lifetime, but those works established Crane as one…
(Encyclopedia) Hindemith, PaulHindemith, Paulhĭnˈdəmĭth [key], 1895–1963, German-American composer and violist, b. Hanau, Germany. Hindemith combined experimental and traditional techniques into a…
(Encyclopedia) Munro, Alice, 1931–, Canadian writer, b. Wingham, Ont., as Alice Ann Laidlaw. Much acclaimed as one of the finest contemporary short-story writers, Munro is known for quiet,…
(Encyclopedia) Auster, PaulAuster, Paulôˈstər [key], 1947–, American writer, b. Newark, N.J. After publishing four volumes of poetry, he wrote his first novel, Squeeze Play (1982). A compelling…
(Encyclopedia) Bradbury, Ray (Raymond Douglas Bradbury)Bradbury, Ray (Raymond Douglas Bradbury)brădˈbĕrˌē, –bərē [key], 1920–2012, American writer, b. Waukegan, Ill. A popular and prolific writer of…
(Encyclopedia) Simon, Neil (Marvin Neil Simon), 1927–2018, American playwright, b. the Bronx, New York City. His plays, nearly all of them popular with audiences, if not always with critics, are…
(Encyclopedia) Carver, Raymond, 1938–88, American short-story writer, b. Clatskanie, Oreg. He was raised in the Pacific Northwest, where he often set his sparely written tales of everyday blue-collar…
(Encyclopedia) Pynchon, ThomasPynchon, Thomaspĭnˈchən [key], 1937–, American novelist, b. Glen Cove, N.Y., grad. Cornell, 1958. Pynchon is noted for his amazingly fertile imagination, his wild sense…