- William Marsh Rice University (university, Houston, Texas, United States)
Rice University, private, coeducational institution of higher learning in Houston, Texas, U.S. The university includes the Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Management, Shepherd School of Music, Wiess School of Natural Sciences, and George R. Brown School of Engineering as well as schools of
- William McKinley, Fort (fort, Makati, Philippines)
Makati: Fort Andres Bonifacio (formerly Fort William McKinley) is the site of the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, the largest cemetery maintained by the American Battle Monuments Program. Pop. (2007) 510,383; (2010) 529,039.
- William of Alvernia (French philosopher)
William of Auvergne was the most prominent French philosopher-theologian of the early 13th century and one of the first Western scholars to attempt to integrate Classical Greek and Arabic philosophy with Christian doctrine. William became a master of theology at the University of Paris in 1223 and
- William of Auvergne (French philosopher)
William of Auvergne was the most prominent French philosopher-theologian of the early 13th century and one of the first Western scholars to attempt to integrate Classical Greek and Arabic philosophy with Christian doctrine. William became a master of theology at the University of Paris in 1223 and
- William of Auxerre (French philosopher)
William of Auxerre was a French philosopher-theologian who contributed to the adaptation of classical Greek philosophy to Christian doctrine. He is considered the first medieval writer to develop a systematic treatise on free will and the natural law. Probably a student of the Parisian canon and
- William of Champeaux (French philosopher)
William of Champeaux was a French bishop, logician, theologian, and philosopher who was prominent in the Scholastic controversy on the nature of universals (i.e., words that can be applied to more than one particular thing). After studies under the polemicist Manegold of Lautenbach in Paris, the
- William Of Conches (French philosopher)
William Of Conches was a French Scholastic philosopher and a leading member of the School of Chartres. A pupil of the philosopher Bernard of Chartres, he taught at Chartres and Paris and was tutor to Henry (later Henry II of England), son of Geoffrey Plantagenet. William, a realist whose ideas
- William of Denmark, Prince (king of Greece)
George I was the king of the Greeks whose long reign (1863–1913) spanned the formative period for the development of Greece as a modern European state. His descendants occupied the throne until the military coup d’état of 1967 and eventual restoration of the republic in 1973. Born Prince
- William of Gelderland (duke of Gelderland)
Charles VI: …expedition in August 1388 against Duke William of Gelderland; Charles, however, made a speedy peace with William and returned to France.
- William Of Hirsau (German abbot)
William Of Hirsau was a German cleric, Benedictine abbot, and monastic reformer, the principal German advocate of Pope Gregory VII’s clerical reforms, which sought to eliminate clerical corruption and free ecclesiastical offices from secular control. William was sent as a child to the monastic
- William of Holland (king of Germany)
William was a German king from Oct. 3, 1247, elected by the papal party in Germany as antiking in opposition to Conrad IV and subsequently gaining general recognition. As William II, he was also count of Holland, succeeding his father, Count Floris IV, in 1234. William was elected German king to
- William of Moerbeke (Belgian archbishop)
William of Moerbeke was a Flemish cleric, archbishop, and classical scholar whose Latin translations of the works of Aristotle and other early Greek philosophers and commentators were important in the transmission of Greek thought to the medieval Latin West. William entered the Dominican priory at
- William Of Newburgh (English historian)
William Of Newburgh was an English chronicler who is remembered as the author of one of the most valuable historical works on 11th- and 12th-century England. He entered the Augustinian priory of Newburgh as a boy to study theology and history and apparently remained there the rest of his life,
- William of Normandy (king of England)
William I was a noble who made himself the mightiest in France and then changed the course of England’s history through his conquest of that country in 1066. One of the greatest soldiers and rulers of the Middle Ages, he was duke of Normandy from 1035 and king of England, as William I, from 1066
- William of Norwich (English murder victim)
blood libel: Emergence of the blood libel: …to the burial site of William of Norwich, a young boy who was found dead in 1144 on Holy Saturday. According to Thomas’s hagiographical account of William’s life, the boy was brutally murdered with strange wounds to his head, arms, and torso. The boy’s uncle, a priest, accused local Jews…
- William of Orange (king of England, Scotland, and Ireland)
William III was the stadholder of the United Provinces of the Netherlands as William III (1672–1702) and king of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1689–1702), reigning jointly with Queen Mary II (until her death in 1694). He directed the European opposition to Louis XIV of France and, in Great
- William of Palerne (English poem)
English literature: The revival of alliterative poetry: William of Palerne, condescendingly commissioned by a nobleman for the benefit of “them that know no French,” is a homely paraphrase of a courtly Continental romance, the only poem in the group to take love as its central theme. The poet’s technical competence in handling…
- William of Paris (French philosopher)
William of Auvergne was the most prominent French philosopher-theologian of the early 13th century and one of the first Western scholars to attempt to integrate Classical Greek and Arabic philosophy with Christian doctrine. William became a master of theology at the University of Paris in 1223 and
- William of Rubrouck (French explorer)
Willem Van Ruysbroeck was a French Franciscan friar whose eyewitness account of the Mongol realm is generally acknowledged to be the best written by any medieval Christian traveller. A contemporary of the English scientist and philosopher Roger Bacon, he was cited frequently in the geographical
- William of Saint Calais (English bishop)
William Of Saint Carilef was a Norman-French bishop of Durham (1081–96), adviser to William I the Conqueror, and chief minister to William II Rufus (1088). Bishop William distinguished himself in his early years as a diligent and practical monk and abbot at the monasteries of St. Carilef (later
- William Of Saint Carilef (English bishop)
William Of Saint Carilef was a Norman-French bishop of Durham (1081–96), adviser to William I the Conqueror, and chief minister to William II Rufus (1088). Bishop William distinguished himself in his early years as a diligent and practical monk and abbot at the monasteries of St. Carilef (later
- William Of Saint-amour (French philosopher)
William Of Saint-amour was a French philosopher and theologian who led the opposition at the University of Paris to the 13th-century rise of the newly formed mendicant religious orders. A protégé of the Count of Savoy, who supported his doctoral studies in canon law and theology at the University
- William of Saint-Thierry (French philosopher)
William of Saint-Thierry was a French monk, theologian, and mystic, and a leading adversary of early medieval rationalistic philosophy. William studied under Anselm of Laon, a supporter of the philosophical theology (later called scholasticism) advanced by St. Anselm of Canterbury. After entering a
- William Of Sens (French architect)
William Of Sens was a French master-mason who built the first structure in the Early Gothic style in England. William is one of the first cathedral architects to be known by name. Exact knowledge of his contribution was preserved in the report of an eyewitness, the monk Gervase, who described the
- William of Sherwood (English logician)
history of logic: Developments in the 13th and early 14th centuries: …1253 and 1257; and (3) William of Sherwood, who produced Introductiones in logicam (Introduction to Logic) and other logical works sometime about the mid-century.
- William of Tripoli (Dominican missionary)
Crusades: The results of the Crusades: The Dominican William of Tripoli had some success, presumably within the Crusaders’ area; he and his colleague Riccoldo di Monte Croce both wrote perceptive treatises on Islamic faith and law. Other missionaries usually failed, and many suffered martyrdom. In the 14th century the Franciscans were finally permitted…
- William of Tyre (French-Syrian historian)
William of Tyre was a Franco-Syrian politician, churchman, and historian whose experiences in the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem inspired him to write a history of medieval Palestine. Probably born to a French family that had settled in Frankish Syria during the 12th century, William was educated in
- William of Wales, Prince (British prince)
William, prince of Wales is the elder son of Charles III and Diana, princess of Wales, and the heir apparent to the British throne. William is one of the most popular members of the British royal family, and he has come to personify the modern monarchy. William is the first British heir apparent
- William pear (fruit)
pear: History and types: …widely grown pear variety is Williams’ Bon Chrétien, known in the United States as Bartlett. In the United States and Canada, varieties such as Beurré Bosc, Anjou, and Winter Nelis are grown. A highly popular variety in England and the Netherlands is Conference. Common Italian varieties include Curato, Coscia, and…
- William Preston Lane, Jr., Memorial Bridge (bridge, Maryland, United States)
Chesapeake Bay: The William Preston Lane, Jr., Memorial Bridge spans the upper bay near Annapolis, Maryland. It was opened to traffic in 1952 and is 4 miles (6.4 km) long. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel was completed across the lower bay in 1964. The bay forms part of the…
- William R. Warner and Company, Inc. (American company)
Warner-Lambert Company, former diversified American corporation that manufactured products ranging from pharmaceuticals to candy. It became part of U.S. pharmaceutical conglomerate Pfizer Inc. in 2000. The company dates to 1856, when William Warner, a Philadelphia pharmacist, invented the
- William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts (museum, Kansas City, Missouri, United States)
Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, art museum in Kansas City, Missouri, that ranks among the 10 largest in the United States. (Read Sister Wendy’s Britannica essay on art appreciation.) Opened in 1933, the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art has more than 40,000 works of art. The museum’s outstanding feature is
- William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet (film by Luhrmann [1996])
Baz Luhrmann: He followed with Romeo + Juliet (1996), a modern reinterpretation of Shakespeare’s play, set in Miami Beach, Florida; it starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes. Moulin Rouge! (2001) is a musical set in Paris at the turn of the 20th century. Together those three films became
- William Tell (play by Schiller)
William Tell, verse drama in five acts by German dramatist Friedrich Schiller, published and produced in 1804 as Wilhelm Tell. During the 15th century, in the Swiss canton of Uri, the legendary hero Wilhelm Tell leads the people of the forest cantons in rebellion against tyrannical Austrian rule.
- William Tell (opera by Rossini)
Gioachino Rossini: …the most widely heard is William Tell (1829).
- William Tell Overture (musical composition by Rossini)
William Tell Overture, composition by Gioachino Rossini. The overture premiered in Paris on August 3, 1829, and constituted the introductory dozen minutes of the composer’s last opera, Guilllaume Tell (William Tell). For many Americans, the work is irrevocably remembered for its exciting final
- William the Aetheling (duke of Normandy)
William the Aetheling was an Anglo-Norman prince, the only son of Henry I of England and recognized duke of Normandy (as William IV, or as William III if the earlier claim of his uncle, William Rufus, is not acknowledged). He succeeded his uncle, the imprisoned Duke Robert II Curthose. In
- William the Bad (king of Sicily)
William I was the Norman king of Sicily, an able ruler who successfully repressed the conspiracies of the barons of his realm. His epithet was bestowed on him by his hapless enemies. He patronized science and letters and showed religious tolerance; among those who frequented his court were many
- William the Bastard (king of England)
William I was a noble who made himself the mightiest in France and then changed the course of England’s history through his conquest of that country in 1066. One of the greatest soldiers and rulers of the Middle Ages, he was duke of Normandy from 1035 and king of England, as William I, from 1066
- William the Conqueror (king of England)
William I was a noble who made himself the mightiest in France and then changed the course of England’s history through his conquest of that country in 1066. One of the greatest soldiers and rulers of the Middle Ages, he was duke of Normandy from 1035 and king of England, as William I, from 1066
- William the Good (king of Sicily)
William II was the last Norman king of Sicily; under a regency from 1166, he ruled in person from 1171. He became known as William the Good because of his policy of clemency and justice toward the towns and the barons, in contrast with his father, William I the Bad. After the regency of his mother,
- William the Lion (king of Scotland)
William I was the king of Scotland from 1165 to 1214; although he submitted to English overlordship for 15 years (1174–89) of his reign, he ultimately obtained independence for his kingdom. William was the second son of the Scottish Henry, Earl of Northumberland, whose title he inherited in 1152.
- William the Marshal (English regent)
William Marshal, 1st earl of Pembroke was a marshal and then regent of England who served four English monarchs—Henry II, Richard I, John, and Henry III—as a royal adviser and agent and as a warrior of outstanding prowess. Marshal’s father, John (FitzGilbert) the Marshal (died 1165), fought for the
- William the Silent (stadholder of United Provinces of The Netherlands)
William I was the first of the hereditary stadtholders (1572–84) of the United Provinces of the Netherlands and leader of the revolt of the Netherlands against Spanish rule and the Catholic religion. William, the eldest son of William, count of Nassau-Dillenburg, grew up in a cultivated Lutheran
- William the Wise (landgrave of Hesse-Kassel)
William IV was the landgrave (or count) of Hesse-Kassel from 1567 who was called “the Wise” because of his accomplishments in political economy and the natural sciences. The son of the landgrave Philip the Magnanimous, he participated with his brother-in-law Maurice of Saxony in the princely
- William Trent House (building, Trenton, New Jersey, United States)
Trenton: The restored William Trent House (1719) is the city’s oldest landmark. The gilt-domed State House (1792) is adjacent to the New Jersey State Cultural Center, which contains a museum, auditorium, planetarium, and state library. The Old Barracks (1758–59; erected as winter quarters for British troops during the…
- William V (duke of Aquitaine)
France: The principalities of the south: …and again, more imposingly, under William V (994/5–1029), who was acclaimed as one of the greatest rulers of his day and even offered the imperial crown in 1024. An advocate of religious reform, William sought to strengthen his control over Aquitaine by promoting alliances with the monasteries and imposing his…
- William V (count of Holland)
Jülich: William V of Jülich, through his marriage in 1328 to the daughter of Count William III of Holland, became the brother-in-law of Emperor Louis IV, who made Jülich a margravate in 1336, and of Edward III of England, whom he helped to secure an alliance…
- William V (prince of Orange and Nassau)
William V was the prince of Orange and Nassau and general hereditary stadtholder of the Dutch Republic (1751–95). When his father, William IV, died (1751), he was but three years of age, and his mother, Anne of Hanover, acted as regent for him until her death (Jan. 12, 1759); then the provincial
- William VI (king of The Netherlands)
William I was the king of the Netherlands and grand duke of Luxembourg (1815–40) who sparked a commercial and industrial revival following the period of French rule (1795–1813), but provoked the Belgian revolt of 1830 through his autocratic methods. The son of William V, prince of Orange, William
- William Wilson (short story by Poe)
Edgar Allan Poe: The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym and The Fall of the House of Usher: …stimulated him to write “William Wilson” and “The Fall of the House of Usher,” stories of supernatural horror. The latter contains a study of a neurotic character now known to have been an acquaintance of Poe, not Poe himself, as was assumed based in part on the physical characteristics…
- William X (duke of Aquitaine)
William X was the duke of Aquitaine and of Gascony (1127–37), son of William IX. In 1131 he recognized the antipope Anaclet and supported him until 1134. In 1136 he ravaged Normandy. The following year he went on a pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, where he died. His daughter,
- William, Fort (fort, Kolkata, India)
Fort William, citadel of Calcutta (now Kolkata), named for King William III of England. The British East India Company’s main Bengal trading station was moved from Hooghly (now Hugli) to Calcutta in 1690 after a war with the Mughals. Between 1696 and 1702 a fort was built in Calcutta, with the
- William, Mount (mountain, Victoria, Australia)
Victoria: Relief: …in the western region is Mount William (3,829 feet [1,167 metres]) in the Grampians.
- William, prince of Wales (British prince)
William, prince of Wales is the elder son of Charles III and Diana, princess of Wales, and the heir apparent to the British throne. William is one of the most popular members of the British royal family, and he has come to personify the modern monarchy. William is the first British heir apparent
- William, Warren (American actor)
Roy Del Ruth: Early films: …and Employees’ Entrance (1933) starred Warren William as an unscrupulous department-store manager who wreaks havoc on the lives of those around him. Del Ruth handled five more films in 1933: The Little Giant, with Edward G. Robinson in good comic form as a beer baron who, after the repeal of…
- Williams College (college, Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States)
Williams College, private, coeducational institution of higher learning opened in 1791 and founded as a college in 1793 at Williamstown, Massachusetts, U.S. Like many other New England colleges, Williams was established by the Congregational church, but it is now nondenominational. It offers
- Williams Lake Stampede (cultural event, British Columbia, Canada)
British Columbia: The arts: The Williams Lake Stampede is the great annual rodeo event of the ranching country of the interior. Even the annual Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver is largely oriented to the agricultural communities of the lower Fraser valley rather than to the urban interest of Vancouver. Other…
- Williams Landing (Mississippi, United States)
Greenwood, city, seat (1871) of Leflore county, northwestern Mississippi, U.S. It lies along the Yazoo River, 96 miles (154 km) north of Jackson. The original settlement (1834), known as Williams Landing, was incorporated (1844) and named for the Choctaw chieftain Greenwood Leflore, a wealthy
- Williams tube (computing device)
Sir Frederic Williams: …electrical engineer who invented the Williams tube store, a cathode-ray-tube memory system that heralded the beginning of the computer age.
- Williams’ Bon Chrétien pear (fruit)
pear: History and types: …widely grown pear variety is Williams’ Bon Chrétien, known in the United States as Bartlett. In the United States and Canada, varieties such as Beurré Bosc, Anjou, and Winter Nelis are grown. A highly popular variety in England and the Netherlands is Conference. Common Italian varieties include Curato, Coscia, and…
- Williams, Abigail (American colonist)
Salem witch trials: Fits and contortions: …Betty (age 9), his niece Abigail Williams (age 11), and their friend Ann Putnam, Jr. (about age 12), began indulging in fortune-telling. In January 1692 Betty’s and Abigail’s increasingly strange behavior (described by at least one historian as juvenile delinquency) came to include fits. They screamed, made odd sounds, threw…
- Williams, Alberto (Argentine composer)
Latin American music: The early 20th century: …in the early 20th century, Alberto Williams, exerted a fundamental influence in his country by relying on the music of the gauchos (cowboys of the pampas, or plains). This gauchesco tradition was evident in his Aires de La Pampa (1944; “Songs of the Pampas,” a collection of more than 50…
- Williams, Allen Lane (British publisher)
Sir Allen Lane was a 20th-century pioneer of paperback publishing in England. His belief in a market for high-quality books at low prices helped to create a new reading public and also led to improved printing and binding techniques. In 1919 Lane was apprenticed to his uncle, publisher John Lane of
- Williams, Allison (American actress)
Get Out: …white girlfriend, Rose Armitage (Allison Williams), on a weekend trip to her family’s estate in upstate New York so that he can meet her parents for the first time. There he experiences racism and uncovers his girlfriend’s horrifying motive behind the invitation. Get Out received tremendous public and critical…
- Williams, Alpheus (United States Army officer)
Battle of Antietam: Battle for the Cornfield and Bloody Lane: Alpheus Williams, who led the corps well; after heavy fighting, Hood and D.H. Hill were driven back. Again, want of support checked the Federals, and the fight became stationary, with both sides losing many thousands of men.
- Williams, Andy (American singer)
Ethel Kennedy: Later life: …escorted in public by singer Andy Williams, she largely devoted her life to raising her children as a single mother.
- Williams, Anson (American actor)
Happy Days: …and his pal Potsie (Anson Williams). The boys fraternized with the crowd at Arnold’s Malt Shop, where they sipped floats, dumped dimes into the jukebox, fretted about girls, and lamented the minor misunderstandings they had with their parents.
- Williams, Audrey (American musician)
Hank Williams: …of his tumultuous relationship with Audrey Sheppard, whom he married in 1942 (they divorced in 1952).
- Williams, Augusta (American ballerina)
Augusta Maywood was the first American ballerina to achieve international renown. Augusta Williams was the daughter of itinerant English actors. She acquired the name of her stepfather, the theatrical manager Robert Campbell Maywood, when she was three. She began studying ballet under Paul H.
- Williams, Barry (American actor)
The Brady Bunch: …the Brady boys, Greg (Barry Williams), Peter (Christopher Knight), and Bobby (Mike Lookinland); the girls, Marcia (Maureen McCormick), Jan (Eve Plumb), and Cindy (Susan Olsen); and Alice Nelson (Ann B. Davis), the wisecracking live-in housekeeper. While the initial season’s
- Williams, Bernard (English philosopher)
Bernard Williams was an English philosopher, noted especially for his writings on ethics and the history of Western philosophy, both ancient and modern. Williams was educated at Chigwell School, Essex, and Balliol College, Oxford. During the 1950s he served in the Royal Air Force (1951–53) and was
- Williams, Bert (Bahamian-born American comedian and singer)
Bert Williams was a Bahamian-born American comedian and singer who portrayed the slow-witted, shuffling Black man that was then a standard, if racist, role in vaudeville. Williams and his family moved from the Bahamas to the United States when he was ten. They made their way to California and
- Williams, Betty (Northern Irish activist)
Betty Williams was a Northern Irish peace activist who, with Máiread Maguire and Ciaran McKeown, founded the Peace People, a grassroots movement dedicated to ending the sectarian strife in Northern Ireland. For her work, Williams shared with Maguire the 1976 Nobel Prize for Peace. Williams, an
- Williams, Billy (American baseball player)
Chicago Cubs: Notable players and traditions: …hitting 512 home runs; outfielder Billy Williams (1959–74); second baseman Ryne Sandberg (1982–94, 1996–97); pitcher Ferguson (“Fergie”) Jenkins (1966–73, 1982–83); and third baseman Ron Santo (1960–73).
- Williams, Brandon (American politician)
swatting: Brandon Williams, were swatted on Christmas Day. Greene has claimed that she has been swatted eight separate times. In December 2023 several hundred synagogues were swatted, as well as Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows, who had blocked former president Donald Trump from the state’s…
- Williams, Buck (American basketball player)
Brooklyn Nets: …seasons), and drafted power forward Buck Williams. A tenacious rebounder, Williams was named Rookie of the Year and led the Nets to their first NBA winning record during the 1981–82 season. The Nets qualified for the playoffs that year and in each of the next four, but only once did…
- Williams, C. Greville (British chemist)
rubber: The rise of synthetic rubber: …and in 1860 the Englishman C. Greville Williams broke down rubber by distillation into three parts—oil, tar, and “spirit”—this last part being the more volatile fraction and the main constituent, which Williams named isoprene. The Frenchman Georges Bouchardat, with the aid of hydrogen chloride gas and prolonged distillation, converted isoprene…
- Williams, C.K. (American poet)
C.K. Williams was an American poet who was known for his moral passion and for his lengthy meandering lines of verse, though his early work was characterized by short lines and an acid tone. For his work, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and many other prestigious honors.
- Williams, Caleb (American football player)
Chicago Bears: Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams: …year’s draft, the team selected Caleb Williams, a Heisman-winning QB from the University of Oklahoma. Expectations were high, but Chicago had another losing season, 5–12. During the off-season, the Bears hired Ben Johnson as head coach, and the team experienced a dramatic turnaround in 2025, going 11–6 and finishing atop…
- Williams, Charles Kenneth (American poet)
C.K. Williams was an American poet who was known for his moral passion and for his lengthy meandering lines of verse, though his early work was characterized by short lines and an acid tone. For his work, he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Award, and many other prestigious honors.
- Williams, Charles Melvin (American musician)
Cootie Williams was an American trumpeter whose mastery of mutes and expressive effects made him one of the most distinctive jazz musicians. Sources differ as to Williams’s birth date; in addition to July 10, 1911, a date of July 24, 1910, is also cited by some. A self-taught trumpeter, Williams
- Williams, Charles, Jr. (American scientist)
telephone: Development of the modern instrument: …common use was introduced by Charles Williams, Jr., in 1882. Designed for wall mounting, this instrument consisted of a ringer, a hand-cranked magneto (for generating a ringing voltage in a distant instrument), a hand receiver, a switch hook, and a transmitter. Various versions of this telephone instrument remained in use…
- Williams, Claude (American baseball player)
Black Sox Scandal: …were pitchers Eddie Cicotte and Claude (“Lefty”) Williams, first baseman Arnold (“Chick”) Gandil, shortstop Charles (“Swede”) Risberg, third baseman George (“Buck”) Weaver, outfielders Joe (“Shoeless Joe”) Jackson and Oscar (“Happy”) Felsch, and utility infielder Fred McMullin. Court records
- Williams, Cleveland (American boxer)
Muhammad Ali: First heavyweight title: …November 14, 1966, Ali fought Cleveland Williams. Over the course of three rounds, Ali landed more than 100 punches, scored four knockdowns, and was hit a total of three times. Ali’s triumph over Williams was succeeded by victories over Ernie Terrell and Zora Folley.
- Williams, Cliff (British musician)
AC/DC: …1954, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), and Cliff Williams (b. December 14, 1949, Romford, Essex, England).
- Williams, Cootie (American musician)
Cootie Williams was an American trumpeter whose mastery of mutes and expressive effects made him one of the most distinctive jazz musicians. Sources differ as to Williams’s birth date; in addition to July 10, 1911, a date of July 24, 1910, is also cited by some. A self-taught trumpeter, Williams
- Williams, Cyclone Joe (American baseball player)
Smokey Joe Williams was an American baseball player who was an early star of the Negro leagues. Williams was a 6-foot 4-inch (1.93 metre) right-handed pitcher who combined a high-velocity fastball with very good control. Williams was occasionally called “Cyclone,” a nickname, like “Smokey,” derived
- Williams, Daniel Hale (American physician)
Daniel Hale Williams was an American physician and founder of Provident Hospital in Chicago, credited with the first successful heart surgery. Williams graduated from Chicago Medical College in 1883. He served as surgeon for the South Side Dispensary (1884–92) and physician for the Protestant
- Williams, David (British actor, author, and host)
David Walliams is an English comedian, actor, writer, and presenter, who first gained fame with the television show Little Britain, a sketch comedy that he and his frequent collaborator, Matt Lucas, starred in and wrote. Walliams later became a successful children’s book author. Williams grew up in
- Williams, Delores (American singer)
LaVern Baker was an American rhythm-and-blues singer notable for her vocal power and rhythmic energy. At age 17 she performed as Little Miss Sharecropper. Her 1955–65 tenure with Atlantic Records yielded 15 rhythm-and-blues hits, most notably “Tweedle Dee” (1955), “Jim Dandy” (1957), and “I Cried a
- Williams, Denise (American singer)
Johnny Mathis: King of easy listening: …a duet with rhythm-and-blues singer Deniece Williams. Additional duets with Williams followed, as well as with other performers, including Dionne Warwick and Gladys Knight.
- Williams, Deron (American basketball player)
Utah Jazz: The Jazz drafted point guard Deron Williams in 2005, and after a three-year absence the team returned to the playoffs in Williams’s second season. Utah beat the Houston Rockets and the Golden State Warriors in the postseason to advance to the conference finals, where the Jazz lost to the eventual…
- Williams, Donald Cary (American philosopher)
universal: Trope nominalism: …nominalists, follow the American philosopher Donald Cary Williams in positing an extra kind of part for things. Williams held that a round red disk, for example, has parts in addition to its concrete spatial parts, such as its upper and lower halves. It also has as parts a particular “redness…
- Williams, Doug (American football player)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Led by quarterback Doug Williams, in 1979 the Bucs—to the surprise of many observers—won 10 games and qualified for the postseason, where they advanced to the conference championship game but lost to the Los Angeles Rams. Tampa Bay went on to playoff berths in both 1981 and 1982,…
- Williams, Edward (Welsh scholar)
Wales: Politics and religion, 1640–1800: …of its key figures was Edward Williams (Iolo Morganwg), whose endeavours encompassed a vast range of literary and historical studies and who also represented the political radicalism inspired by the French Revolution. Radical convictions were held only by a small minority, some of them eccentrics and others distinguished expatriates, but…
- Williams, Edward Bennett (American lawyer)
Edward Bennett Williams was an American lawyer best known for his defense of famous public figures. After graduating summa cum laude from Holy Cross College in Worcester, Massachusetts, he served in the Army Air Force before earning a law degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., in
- Williams, Egbert Austin (Bahamian-born American comedian and singer)
Bert Williams was a Bahamian-born American comedian and singer who portrayed the slow-witted, shuffling Black man that was then a standard, if racist, role in vaudeville. Williams and his family moved from the Bahamas to the United States when he was ten. They made their way to California and
- Williams, Elizabeth (Northern Irish activist)
Betty Williams was a Northern Irish peace activist who, with Máiread Maguire and Ciaran McKeown, founded the Peace People, a grassroots movement dedicated to ending the sectarian strife in Northern Ireland. For her work, Williams shared with Maguire the 1976 Nobel Prize for Peace. Williams, an
- Williams, Ella Gwendolen Rees (British writer)
Jean Rhys was a West Indian novelist who earned acclaim for her early works set in the bohemian world of Europe in the 1920s and ’30s but who stopped writing for nearly three decades, until she wrote a successful novel set in the West Indies. The daughter of a Welsh doctor and a Creole mother, Rhys