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Blount, William

(Encyclopedia)Blount, William, 1749–1800, American political leader, b. near Windsor, N.C. He served in the American Revolution and later became a legislator in North Carolina, a member of the Continental Congres...

Bolcom, William

(Encyclopedia)Bolcom, William (William Elden Bolcom), 1938–, American composer, b. Seattle, Wash. He attended the Univ. of Washington (B.A., 1958) and studied composition at Mills College and Stanford (D.M.A., 19...

Wirt, William

(Encyclopedia)Wirt, William wûrt [key], 1772–1834, U.S. Attorney General and author, b. Bladensburg, Md. He had little formal schooling but was admitted to the Virginia bar in 1792. His first book was an anonymo...

Wordsworth, William

(Encyclopedia)Wordsworth, William, 1770–1850, English poet, b. Cockermouth, Cumberland. One of the great English poets, he was a leader of the romantic movement in England. Wordsworth's personality and poetry ...

Wotton, William

(Encyclopedia)Wotton, William, 1666–1727, English scholar. He is best known for his Reflections upon Ancient and Modern Learning (1694), a defense of contemporary learning written in response to an essay by Sir W...

Wycherley, William

(Encyclopedia)Wycherley, William wĭchˈərlē [key], 1640?–1716, English dramatist, b. near Shrewsbury. His first comedy, Love in a Wood (1671), was a huge success and won him the favor of the duchess of Clevela...

Wyler, William

(Encyclopedia)Wyler, William, 1902–1981, American film director, producer, and writer, b. Mülhausen, Germany (now Mulhouse, France) as Willi Wilder. He came to the United States (1920) at the invitation of Carl ...

Billings, William

(Encyclopedia)Billings, William, 1746–1800, American hymn composer, b. Boston. A tanner by trade, he was one of the earliest American-born composers. He wrote popular hymns and sacred choruses of great vitality u...

Zorach, William

(Encyclopedia)Zorach, William zŏrˈäk [key], 1887–1966, American sculptor, b. Lithuania. His family emigrated to the United States when he was four and settled near Cleveland. After studying at the Cleveland Sc...

Schuman, William

(Encyclopedia)Schuman, William sho͞oˈmən [key], 1910–92, American composer, b. New York City. Schuman taught at Sarah Lawrence College (1935–45), and while president of Juilliard (1945–62) he helped initia...