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Martínez Ruiz, José

(Encyclopedia)Martínez Ruiz, José hōsāˈ märtēˈnĕth ro͞oēthˈ [key], 1873?–1967, Spanish writer. He often used the pseudonym Azorín. A political radical in the 1890s, he moved steadily to the right. In...

Fonda, Peter

(Encyclopedia)Fonda, Peter, 1939–2019, American actor. The son of Henry Fonda and brother of Jane Fonda, he made his screen debut in a forgettable 1963 feature. Several movies later he co-wrote and starred in the...

Peters, Roberta

(Encyclopedia)Peters, Roberta, 1930–2017, American coloratura soprano, b. New York City as Roberta Peterman. Discovered by Jan Peerce, she auditioned for the Metropolitan Opera in 1950. Scheduled to debut as the ...

Bedford, Sybille

(Encyclopedia)Bedford, Sybille, 1911–2006, English writer, b. Charlottenberg, Germany, as Sybille von Schoenebeck. She worked as a legal reporter for various publications, covering more than 100 trials including ...

Tolkien, J. R. R.

(Encyclopedia)Tolkien, J. R. R. (John Ronald Reuel Tolkien) tälˈkēn, tōlˈ– [key], 1892–1973, British novelist, b. South Africa. A fantasy writer and Oxford don, Tolkien wrote The Hobbit (1937), adapted fro...

Słowacki, Juliusz

(Encyclopedia)Słowacki, Juliusz yo͞olˈyo͞osh slôvätsˈkē [key], 1809–49, Polish writer, one of the foremost Polish romantic poets. A revolutionist, he joined the Polish expatriates in Paris and died there ...

Kotelawala, Sir John Lionel

(Encyclopedia)Kotelawala, Sir John Lionel, 1895–1980, Sri Lankan political and military leader. After studying at Christ College, Cambridge, he returned to Sri Lanka (then the British colony of Ceylon), joining t...

Hooker, John Lee

(Encyclopedia)Hooker, John Lee, 1917–2001, American blues singer and guitarist, b. near Clarksdale, Miss. From a cotton-sharecropping family, he learned the blues from his stepfather and various visiting Delta bl...

Domingo, Plácido

(Encyclopedia)Domingo, Plácido plăˈcēdō dōmēˈgō [key], 1941–, Spanish operatic tenor, b. Madrid, Spain. He made his operatic debut in Mexico City in 1961 and his New York debut at the Metropolitan Opera ...

Donizetti, Gaetano

(Encyclopedia)Donizetti, Gaetano gītäˈnō dōnēdzĕtˈtē [key], 1797–1848, Italian composer. He studied music in Bergamo and Bologna and achieved success with his first opera, Enrico di Borgogna (1818). His ...