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Schumer, Chuck

(Encyclopedia)Schumer, Chuck (Charles Ellis Schumer), 1950–, American politician, b. Brooklyn, N.Y., grad. Harvard, 1971, Harvard law school, 1974. A liberal Democrat, he served three terms in the New York state ...

Ford, Tom

(Encyclopedia)Ford, Tom (Thomas Carlyle Ford), 1961–, American fashion designer and film director, b. Austin, Tex. After designing for Kathy Hardwick (1986–88) and Perry Ellis (1988–90), he moved to Milan and...

Key, Ellen

(Encyclopedia)Key, Ellen kā [key], 1849–1926, Swedish author, critic, and ideologue. Believing that women are primarily fitted for motherhood, she deplored feminist claims to equality on the labor market. Her id...

Teller, Henry Moore

(Encyclopedia)Teller, Henry Moore, 1830–1914, American statesman, b. Allegany co., N.Y. A lawyer, he practiced in Colorado after 1861. He commanded a militia district in the Civil War period. When Colorado became...

Frazier, Joe

(Encyclopedia)Frazier, Joe (William Joseph Frazier), 1944–2011, African-American boxer, b. Beaufort, S.C. Known for a brawling style and devastating left hook, “Smokin' Joe” won Olympic gold in 1964 and turne...

Kleist, Heinrich von

(Encyclopedia)Kleist, Heinrich von hīnˈrĭkh fən klīst [key], 1777–1811, German dramatic poet. He is one of the most evocative and disturbing of the German Romantic writers. Kleist served (1792–99) in the P...

Rural Electrification Administration

(Encyclopedia)Rural Electrification Administration (REA), former agency of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture charged with administering loan programs for electrification and telephone service in rural areas. The REA wa...

Samoa, island chain, SW Pacific Ocean

(Encyclopedia)Samoa, chain of volcanic islands in the South Pacific, comprising the independent nation of Samoa (formerly Western Samoa), and E of long. 171° W, the islands of American Samoa, under U.S. control. T...

Antirent War

(Encyclopedia)Antirent War, in U.S. history, tenant uprising in New York state. When Stephen Van Rensselaer, owner of Rensselaerswyck, died in 1839, his heirs attempted to collect unpaid rents. Tenants on the estat...

Johnson, Samuel, American clergyman, educator, and philosopher

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Samuel, 1696–1772, American clergyman, educator, and philosopher, b. Guilford, Conn., grad. Collegiate School (now Yale), 1714; father of William Samuel Johnson. He became a Congregationali...