Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

263 results found

Getz, Stan

(Encyclopedia)Getz, Stan, 1927–91, American jazz tenor saxophonist, b. Philadelphia, as Stanley Gayetsky. As a mature musician he was especially known for his “cool” jazz style. He began playing as a teenager...

Francis, Dick

(Encyclopedia)Francis, Dick (Richard Stanley Francis), 1920–2010, English novelist. He was a champion steeplechase jockey (1946–57) and a racing writer for a London newspaper (1957–73). Francis parlayed his k...

Jágr, Jaromír

(Encyclopedia)Jágr, Jaromír, 1972–, Czech ice hockey player, b. Kladno. Jágr played professional hockey in Czechoslovakia as a teenager, and joined the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League in 1990...

Beaufort, Margaret, countess of Richmond and Derby

(Encyclopedia)Beaufort, Margaret, countess of Richmond and Derby bōˈfərt, därˈbē [key], 1443–1509, English noblewoman, mother of Henry VII. She was the daughter and heiress of John, 1st duke of Somerset, an...

Hodgkin's disease

(Encyclopedia)Hodgkin's disease, a type of cancer of the lymphatic system. First identified in 1832 in England by Thomas Hodgkin, it is a type of malignant lymphoma. Incidence peaks in young adults and the elderly....

Shero, Fred

(Encyclopedia)Shero, Fred (Frederick Alexander Shero), 1925–1990, Canadian hockey player and coach. He was a defenseman for the New York Rangers (1947–50), then played (1950–58) and coached (1958–70) in the...

yellow fever

(Encyclopedia)yellow fever, acute infectious disease endemic in tropical Africa and many areas of South and Central America. Yellow fever is caused by a virus transmitted by the bite of the female Aedes aegypti mos...

Heyerdahl, Thor

(Encyclopedia)Heyerdahl, Thor hāˈərdälˌ, hīˈ– [key], 1914–2002, Norwegian explorer and anthropologist, b. Larvik. He carried out research in the Marquesas Islands in 1937–38 and studied the indigenous ...

Jordan, Vernon Eulion, Jr.

(Encyclopedia)Jordan, Vernon Eulion, Jr., 1935–2021, African-American civil-rights leader and lawyer, b. Atlanta, Ga., DePauw Univ. (BA, 1957), Howard Univ. Law Sch...

Christian Coalition

(Encyclopedia)Christian Coalition, organization founded to advance the agenda of political and social conservatives, mostly comprised of evangelical Protestant Republicans, and to preserve what it deems traditional...