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James, Henry, American student of religion and social problems

(Encyclopedia)James, Henry, 1811–82, American student of religion and social problems, b. Albany, N.Y.; father of the philosopher William James and of the novelist Henry James. He rebelled against the strict Calv...

Ellison, Ralph

(Encyclopedia)Ellison, Ralph (Ralph Waldo Ellison), 1914–94, African-American author, b. Oklahoma City, studied Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee Univ.). Originally a trumpet player and aspiring composer, he moved...

Shannon, Claude Elwood

(Encyclopedia)Shannon, Claude Elwood, 1916–2001, American applied mathematician, b. Gaylord, Michigan. A student of Vannevar Bush at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he was the first to propose th...

Saarinen, Eero

(Encyclopedia)Saarinen, Eero āˈrō säˈrĭnĕn [key], 1910–61, Finnish-American architect, grad. Yale (B.A., 1934), became an American citizen in 1940; son of Eliel Saarinen. Saarinen's reputation was establis...

Cash, Johnny

(Encyclopedia)Cash, Johnny, 1932–2003, American singer and songwriter, b. Kingsland, Ark. Born to a farm family, he went to Memphis in 1955 and recorded such hits as “I Walk the Line” (1956) and “Ring of Fi...

Stephens, Alexander Hamilton

(Encyclopedia)Stephens, Alexander Hamilton, 1812–83, American political leader, Confederate vice president (1861–65), b. Taliaferro co. (then part of Wilkes co.), Ga. He was admitted to the bar in 1834, served ...

Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

(Encyclopedia)Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, philanthropic institution founded in 1994 by Microsoft chairman Bill Gates and his wife, Melinda, to improve the lives of the poor throughout the world, primarily th...

Buffalo Bill

(Encyclopedia)Buffalo Bill, 1846–1917, American plainsman, scout, and showman, b. near Davenport, Iowa. His real name was William Frederick Cody. His family moved (1854) to Kansas, and after the death of his fath...

Guilmant, Félix Alexandre

(Encyclopedia)Guilmant, Félix Alexandre fālēksˈ älĕksäNˈdrə gēlmäNˈ [key], 1837–1911, French organist, one of the foremost performers of his day. He taught at the Schola Cantorum, of which he was a fo...

Albany, river, Canada

(Encyclopedia)Albany ôlˈbənē [key], river, 610 mi (982 km) long, rising in Lake St. Joseph, W Ont., Canada, and flowing generally E into James Bay, near Fort Albany. The Kenogami and Ogoki rivers are its chief ...