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Ritter, Tex

(Encyclopedia)Ritter, Tex (Woodward Maurice Ritter), 1905–74, American country singer, b. Murvaul, Tex. He moved (1930) to New York, where he performed in musicals and on the radio. Settling (1936) in California,...

Whitaker, Pernell

(Encyclopedia)Whitaker, Pernell, 1964–2019, American boxer, b. Norfolk, Va. A left-handed fighter with brilliant defensive skills, he was a 1984 Olympic gold medalist in the 132-pound lightweight division. Turnin...

Harris, Frank

(Encyclopedia)Harris, Frank, 1856–1931, British-American author, b. Galway, Ireland. He studied at the Univ. of Kansas, became a U.S. citizen, and returning to England, edited successively a number of periodicals...

epigram

(Encyclopedia)epigram, a short, polished, pithy saying, usually in verse, often with a satiric or paradoxical twist at the end. The term was originally applied by the Greeks to the inscriptions on stones. The epigr...

Bernstein, Walter

(Encyclopedia)Bernstein, Walter, 1919-2021, American screenwriter, b. Brooklyn, NY, Dartmouth College (BA, 1940). After attending high school, Bernstein enrolled at ...

Lumet, Sidney

(Encyclopedia)Lumet, Sidney lo͞o-mĕtˈ [key], 1924–2011, one of the great American film directors of the 20th cent., b. Philadelphia. A child actor in New York's Yiddish radio and theater and (1935–41) on Bro...

Leopold II, king of the Belgians

(Encyclopedia)Leopold II, 1835–1909, king of the Belgians (1865–1909), son and successor of Leopold I. His reign saw great industrial and colonial expansion. In 1876 he organized, with the help of H. M. Stanley...

Leopold II, grand duke of Tuscany

(Encyclopedia)Leopold II, 1797–1870, grand duke of Tuscany (1824–59). Liberally inclined at first, he granted some reforms and undertook public works. In 1848 he approved a constitution and joined Sardinia in i...

Louis II, emperor of the West

(Encyclopedia)Louis II, d. 875, emperor of the West (855–75), king of Italy (844–75), son of Emperor of the West Lothair I. In 844, Lothair I designated him king of Italy and in 850 he was crowned emperor of th...

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