Search

Search results

Displaying 11 - 20

Piaf, Edith

(Encyclopedia) Piaf, EdithPiaf, Edithpēäfˈ [key], 1915–63, French cabaret singer, born as Edith Giovanna Gassion. She began to sing at 15 in cafés and on the streets of Paris and was soon engaged to…

Holiday, Billie

(Encyclopedia) Holiday, Billie, 1915–59, American singer, b. Baltimore. Her original name was Eleanora Fagan. She began singing professionally in 1930, and after performing with numerous bands—…

Montmartre

(Encyclopedia) MontmartreMontmartremôNmärˈtrə [key] [Fr.,=hill of the martyrs], hill in Paris, on the right bank of the Seine River. The highest point of Paris, it is topped by the Church of Sacré-…

Price, Lloyd

(Encyclopedia) Price, Lloyd, 1933-2021, b. Kenner, La. Price began his first band at age 18 while also working in construction. Signed to Specialty…

Greenwich Village

(Encyclopedia) Greenwich VillageGreenwich Villagegrĕnˈĭch [key], residential district of lower Manhattan, New York City, extending S from 14th St. to Houston St. and W from Washington Square to the…

Motley, Archibald John, Jr.

(Encyclopedia) Motley, Archibald John, Jr., 1891–1981, African American artist, b. New Orleans, grad. Art Institute of Chicago (1918). He was an important figure in the early Harlem Renaissance,…

Grant, Mudcat

(Encyclopedia) Grant, Mudcat, 1935-2021, African-American baseball player, b. Lacoochee, Fl., as James Timothy Grant Jr. As a teenager, Grant played…

Angelou, Maya

(Encyclopedia) Angelou, MayaAngelou, Mayamīˈə ănˈjəl&oomacr; [key], 1928–2014, African-American writer and performer, b. St. Louis, Mo., as Marguerite Johnson. She toured Europe and Africa in the…

Staples, Mavis

(Encyclopedia) Staples, Mavis, 1939- , African American popular singer, b. Chicago, Il. Staples began performing at age 11 with her father,…

Ellington, Duke

(Encyclopedia) Ellington, Duke (Edward Kennedy Ellington), 1899–1974, American jazz musician and composer, b. Washington, D.C. Ellington made his first professional appearance as a jazz pianist in…