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Jeans, Sir James Hopwood

(Encyclopedia)Jeans, Sir James Hopwood, 1887–1946, English mathematician, physicist, and astronomer. He was professor of applied mathematics at Princeton (1905–9), later lectured at Cambridge (1910–12) and Ox...

Saltonstall, Sir Richard

(Encyclopedia)Saltonstall, Sir Richard sôlˈtənstôl [key], 1586–1658, early English colonist in Massachusetts. Of a prominent Yorkshire family (he was knighted in 1618), Saltonstall became a member and was app...

Hurt, John

(Encyclopedia)Hurt, John (Sir John Vincent Hurt), 1940–2017, English actor, b. Chesterfield, Derbyshire, grad. Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (1962). Known for his sympathetic portrayal of unusual, often unappeali...

Rothermere, Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount

(Encyclopedia)Rothermere, Harold Sidney Harmsworth, 1st Viscount rŏᵺˈərmēr [key], 1868–1940, English publisher. He was the financial wizard of the publishing firm headed by his brother Alfred, Viscount Nort...

Colvin, Sir Sidney

(Encyclopedia)Colvin, Sir Sidney kōlˈvĭn [key], 1845–1927, English man of letters. Slade professor of fine arts at Cambridge and keeper of prints at the British Museum, he was a friend of Robert Louis Stevenso...

Hales, John

(Encyclopedia)Hales, John, 1584–1656, English clergyman and scholar, often alluded to as the Ever-Memorable. He won distinction by his lectures on Greek at Oxford, his preaching, and his writings. From 1613 to 16...

Crowne, John

(Encyclopedia)Crowne, John, c.1640–c.1703, English playwright. The favorite playwright of Charles II, he is remembered for several rather mediocre comedies. Crowne was influenced by the French tradition, particul...

Playfair, Sir Nigel

(Encyclopedia)Playfair, Sir Nigel nīˈjəl plāˈfâr [key], 1874–1934, English actor-manager. He made his acting debut in 1902 and later appeared in major London productions of Shaw and Shakespeare. He took on ...

Hawkins, Sir Richard

(Encyclopedia)Hawkins, Sir Richard, 1562?–1622, English admiral, son of Sir John Hawkins. He served under Sir Francis Drake in the 1585–86 expedition to the West Indies, commanded the Swallow in the defeat of t...

Porteous, John

(Encyclopedia)Porteous, John pôrˈtēəs [key], d. 1736, British soldier. He was captain of the Edinburgh town guard at the execution (1736) of Andrew Wilson, a smuggler. When the crowd, which was sympathetic to W...