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Johnson, Guy

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Guy, c.1740–1788, Loyalist leader in colonial New York, b. Ireland. He emigrated to America as a boy and married (1763) a daughter of Sir William Johnson, whom he succeeded as superintenden...

Yeats, Jack Butler

(Encyclopedia)Yeats, Jack Butler yāts [key], 1871–1957, Irish painter, son of the painter John Butler Yeats and brother of the poet William Butler Yeats. He began his career as an illustrator and produced his fi...

Johnson City

(Encyclopedia)Johnson City. 1 Village (1990 pop. 16,890), Broome co., S N.Y., in a tricity area including Endicott and Binghamton; inc. 1892. It has been noted for its Endicott-Johnson shoes. Originally called Lest...

Johnson, Cave

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Cave, 1793–1866, American political leader, b. Robertson co., Tenn. He practiced law in his native state and served (1829–37, 1839–45) in the U.S. House of Representatives. Johnson gave...

London, Jack

(Encyclopedia)London, Jack (John Griffith London), 1876–1916, American author, b. San Francisco. The illegitimate son of William Chaney, an astrologer, and Flora Wellman, a seamstress and medium, he had a poverty...

Johnson, Thomas

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Thomas, 1732–1819, American political leader, b. Calvert co., Md. A lawyer, he served (1762–73) in the Maryland colonial assembly, where he became prominent in the fight against the Stamp...

Layton, Jack

(Encyclopedia)Layton, Jack (John Gilbert Layton), 1950–2011, Canadian political leader, grad. McGill Univ. (B.A., 1970), York Univ. (M.A., 1971; Ph.D., 1983). A social democrat from a political family, he served ...

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...

Johnson, Magic

(Encyclopedia)Johnson, Magic (Earvin Johnson, Jr.), 1959–, African-American basketball player, b. Lansing, Mich. After winning the national championship with Michigan State Univ. (1979), he joined the Los Angeles...

Dempsey, Jack

(Encyclopedia)Dempsey, Jack (William Harrison Dempsey), 1895–1983, American boxer, b. Manassa, Colo. Dempsey, called the “Manassa Mauler,” emerged from fights on saloon floors near mining camps to become (191...

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