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Johnson, Denis

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Denis, 1949–2017, American writer, b. Munich, Germany, where his father was a diplomat; B.A. Univ. of Iowa, 1971, M.F.A. Iowa Writers' Workshop, 1974. Years of drinking and taking drugs end...

Kunlun

(Encyclopedia)Kunlun ko͝onˈlo͝onˈ [key], great mountain system of central Asia, between the Himalayas and the Tian Shan, extending c.1,000 mi (1,610 km) E from the Pamir Mts., along the Tibet-Xinjiang border in...

Belloc, Hilaire

(Encyclopedia)Belloc, Hilaire (Joseph Hilaire Pierre Belloc) bĕlˈŏk [key], 1870–1953, English author, b. France. He became a British subject in 1902, and from 1906 to 1910 was a Liberal member of Parliament fo...

Alain-Fournier

(Encyclopedia)Alain-Fournier älăN-fo͞ornyāˈ [key], 1886–1914, French novelist, whose real name was Henri Alban Fournier. He was killed in action during World War I. His single full-length work is his poetic ...

incarnation

(Encyclopedia)incarnation, the assumption of human form by a god, an idea common in religion. In early times the idea was expressed in the belief that certain living men, often kings or priests, were divine incarna...

del Toro, Guillermo

(Encyclopedia)del Toro, Guillermo (Guillermo del Toro Gómez), 1964–, Mexican film director, screenwriter, and producer. He worked in special effects and makeup before becoming a writer and director. Del Toro has...

Millet, Jean François, c.1642–1679, French landscape painter

(Encyclopedia)Millet or Milé, Jean François both: zhäN fräNswäˈ mēlāˈ [key], c.1642–1679, French landscape painter, known as Francisque, b. Antwerp. The Arcadian and imaginary Italian landscapes that are...

Tanguy, Yves

(Encyclopedia)Tanguy, Yves ēv täNgēˈ [key], 1900–1955, French surrealist painter. At first a merchant seaman, he saw a picture by Chirico in 1923 and instantly decided to take up painting. He created vast ima...

Monnier, Henri

(Encyclopedia)Monnier, Henri äNrēˈ mônyāˈ [key], 1799–1877, French lithographer and writer. His work became popular (c.1825) when he illustrated La Fontaine's Fables with pen drawings. He wrote and illustra...

celestial sphere

(Encyclopedia)celestial sphere, imaginary sphere of infinite radius with the earth at its center. It is used for describing the positions and motions of stars and other objects. For these purposes, any astronomical...