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Amadis of Gaul

(Encyclopedia)Amadis of Gaul ämädēsˈ də gōl [key], famous prose romance of chivalry, first composed in Spain or Portugal and probably based on French sources. Entirely fictional, it dates from the 13th or 14t...

Bogan, Louise

(Encyclopedia)Bogan, Louise bōˈgən [key], 1897–1970, American poet and critic, b. Livermore, Maine. She spent much of her life in New York City and was for many years poetry editor for the New Yorker. Her vers...

Acosta, Uriel

(Encyclopedia)Acosta, Uriel dä kōˈstä [key], c.1585–1640, Jewish rationalist, b. Oporto, Portugal. His original name was Gabriel da Costa, and his family had been converted to Roman Catholicism. When he reach...

Middleton, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Middleton, Thomas, 1580–1627, English dramatist, b. London, grad. Queen's College, Oxford, 1598. His early plays were chiefly written in collaboration with Dekker, Drayton, and others. Between 1604 ...

Anouilh, Jean

(Encyclopedia)Anouilh, Jean zhäN änwēˈyə [key], 1910–87, French dramatist. Anouilh's many popular plays range from tragedy to sophisticated comedy. His first play, L'hermine, was published in 1932. During th...

Büchner, Georg

(Encyclopedia)Büchner, Georg gāˈôrk bükhˈnər [key], 1813–37, German dramatist. He was a student of medicine and a political agitator. He died at the age of 24, leaving a powerful drama, Danton's Death (183...

Bedford, Brian

(Encyclopedia)Bedford, Brian, 1935–2016, English actor, b. Morley, Yorkshire; studied Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, London. During his long career, Bedford, who was adept at both tragedy and comedy, performed on...

Stevens, George Cooper

(Encyclopedia)Stevens, George Cooper, 1904–75, American film director, b. Oakland, Calif. A distinguished 20th-century filmmaker, he is known for his skillful camera work and careful craftsmanship. After 1925 he ...

Storm, Theodor

(Encyclopedia)Storm, Theodor tāˈōdôr shtôrm [key], 1817–88, German poet and novelist, b. Schleswig-Holstein. From 1843 to 1853 he practiced law in his native Husum, but he was exiled (1853–64) by Denmark f...

Dunlap, William

(Encyclopedia)Dunlap, William dŭnˈlăp [key], 1766–1839, American dramatist and theatrical manager, b. Perth Amboy, N.J. Inspired by the success of The Contrast by Royall Tyler, he began to write plays for the ...