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tall tale

(Encyclopedia)tall tale, extravagantly and humorously exaggerated story of the backwoods exploits of an American frontiersman. Originating in the 1820s, the genre remained popular well into the 20th cent. One of th...

Beaumont

(Encyclopedia)Beaumont, city (2020 pop. 115,282), seat of Jefferson co., Tex., on the Sabine-Neches Waterway; inc. 1838. A ship channel provides the facilities of a m...

Ephrata

(Encyclopedia)Ephrata ĕfˈrətə [key]. <1> Borough (2020 pop. 13,794), Lancaster co., SE Pa., in a ...

Hyksos

(Encyclopedia)Hyksos hĭkˈsōs [key] [Egyptian,=rulers of foreign lands], invaders of ancient Egypt, now substantiated as the XV–XVIII dynasties. They were a northwestern Semitic (Canaanite or Amorite) people wh...

Autry, Gene

(Encyclopedia)Autry, Gene (Orvon Grover Autry), 1907–98, American entertainer and businessman, b. Tioga Springs, Tex. Probably the most successful of the movies' singing cowboys, Autry began singing o...

O'Hara, John

(Encyclopedia)O'Hara, John, 1905–70, American novelist and short-story writer, b. Pottsville, Pa. He worked at a number of jobs and ultimately became a newspaperman before the appearance of his first novel, Appoi...

Ford, John, American film director

(Encyclopedia)Ford, John, 1895–1973, American film director, b. Cape Elizabeth, Maine, as John Martin Feeney. Ford began directing in 1917 after an apprenticeship with his brother Francis. Over the next 50 years,...

Hedin, Sven Anders

(Encyclopedia)Hedin, Sven Anders svĕn änˈdərs hĕdēnˈ [key], 1865–1952, Swedish explorer in central Asia. Following soon after Przhevalsky, Hedin explored Tibet, Xinjiang, and the Kunlun and Trans-Himalaya ...

squash bug

(Encyclopedia)squash bug, name for a true bug, Anasa tristis, found throughout the United States and S Canada. It damages squash, pumpkin, and related plants by sucking the juices from leaves and stems. The adult i...

Solomon's-seal

(Encyclopedia)Solomon's-seal, any plant of the genus Polygonatum, north-temperate perennial herbs of the family Liliaceae (lily family). The hairy Solomon's-seal (P. pubescens) and the smooth Solomon's-seal (P. bif...
 

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