See edition of his works edited by W. C. Hazlitt (1875).
See J. Daniels, The Randolphs of Virginia (1972).
See biographies by H. Adams (1882, repr. 1972) and W. C. Bruce (2 vol., 1922; repr. 1970); study by R. Kirk (rev. ed. 1964).
See biography by M. G. Hall (1960, repr. 1969).
See M. D. Conway, Omitted Chapters of History Disclosed in the Life and Papers of Edmund Randolph (1888, repr. 1971); H. J. Eckenrode, The Randolphs (1946).
See biographies by D. S. Davis (1972) and J. Anderson (1973).
In 1887, Hearst persuaded his father, George Hearst, to place him in charge of the San Francisco Examiner, where he experimented profitably with flamboyant pictures, shrieking typography, and earthy, mass-appeal news coverage; the paper remained in Hearst Corporation hands until 2000. In 1895, Hearst invaded New York City with his purchase of the Morning Journal and began a bitter war with the other yellow, or sensational, journals. He provided aggressive news coverage, bought distinctive talent, enticed employees of other papers from their jobs with higher salaries and greater prestige, and increased the size of his paper while cutting its price to a penny—a move his competitors were forced to follow. Into the circulation battle between the rival newspapers Hearst brought wild reports of Cuba's struggle for independence from Spain. Other papers replied with further lurid accounts. Leaving the truth behind, the papers' anti-Spanish outcry fanned public sentiment and helped to drive the United States to war with Spain (1898).
By the time Hearst had established his supremacy in "penny journalism," his funds were almost exhausted, but he had gained a foothold for the great newspaper empire he was to erect. The publisher's holdings eventually embraced not only his newspapers and magazines (which included Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, and Harper's Bazaar) but also the American Weekly syndicated supplement and services supplying news, features, and photographs.
Hearst served in the House of Representatives (1903-7) but was defeated as candidate for mayor of New York City in 1905 and 1909 and for governor of New York in 1906. While a congressman he sought the Democratic party's presidential nomination without success. His papers originally supported public ownership, antitrust laws, and legislation favorable to labor unions. Support for Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal gave way, however, to vigorous opposition to the President's policies on taxes, trusts, and labor, and Hearst became stridently conservative.
Hearst's castle at San Simeon, Calif., erected from 1919 on, won fame for its huge art collections, which often overflowed into warehouses. At his estate Hearst entertained friends in the motion-picture industry, which he had entered as a financier on a large scale. The property was presented to the state as a museum after Hearst's death.
See biographies by J. Tebbel (1953), W. Swanberg (1961), and D. Nasaw (2000).
See biographies of Lord Randolph Churchill by his son Winston S. Churchill (1906) and R. F. Foster (1981); biographies of Jennie Jerome by A. Leslie (1969) and R. G. Martin (2 vol., 1969-71).
See memoir by H. Blackburn (1886, repr. 1969).
See his History of a Literary Radical (ed. by V. W. Brooks, 1920); letters (ed. by E. J. Sandeen, 1981); J. A. Moreau, Randolph Bourne (1966); B. Clayton, Forgotten Prophet (1984).
![]()
William Randolph Hearst, 1906.
Learn more about Hearst, William Randolph with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born June 2, 1773, Prince George county, Va.—died May 24, 1833, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.) U.S. politician. In 1799 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served almost continuously until 1829. A noted orator, he was a staunch advocate of states' rights and opposed a national bank and federal protective tariffs. A supporter of slavery, he led the resistance to the Missouri Compromise. His denunciation of Henry Clay for his support of the presidential candidacy of John Quincy Adams led to a harmless duel with Clay (1826).
Learn more about Randolph, John with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born April 15, 1889, Crescent City, Fla., U.S.—died May 16, 1979, New York, N.Y.) U.S. civil-rights leader. He was the son of a Methodist minister. In 1911 he moved to New York, where he cofounded the journal The Messenger (later Black Worker), in which he called for more positions for African Americans in the war industry and the armed forces. In 1925 he founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first successful African American trade union, and he served as its president until 1968. In 1941 he lobbied Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt to ban racial discrimination in defense industries and federal bureaus. In 1948 he influenced Pres. Harry Truman to bar racial segregation in the armed forces. In 1955 he was made a vice president of the newly combined AFL-CIO. In order to combat discrimination in that union, he formed the Negro American Labor Council in 1960.
Learn more about Randolph, A(sa) Philip with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born Feb. 13, 1849, Blenheim Palace, near Woodstock, Oxfordshire, Eng.—died Jan. 24, 1895, London) British politician. Third son of the 7th duke of Marlborough, he entered the House of Commons in 1874. In the early 1880s he joined other Conservatives in forming the Fourth Party, which advocated a “Tory democracy” of progressive conservatism. In 1886, at age 37, he became leader of the House of Commons and chancellor of the Exchequer, but he resigned after his first budget was rejected. Though he had seemed destined to be prime minister, this miscalculation effectively ended his political career. He remained in the Commons until his death, but he lost interest in politics and devoted much time to horse racing. Winston Churchill was his son.
Learn more about Churchill, Randolph (Henry Spencer), Lord with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born March 22, 1846, Chester, Cheshire, Eng.—died Feb. 12, 1886, St. Augustine, Fla., U.S.) British graphic artist and watercolourist. While working as a bank clerk, he began drawing for periodicals such as London Society, and, after he moved to London, Punch and Graphic. He developed a gently satirical style and achieved success with illustrations for Washington Irving's books The Sketch Book (1875) and Bracebridge Hall (1876). Caldecott is best known as an illustrator of children's books, including William Cowper's John Gilpin (1878) and Oliver Goldsmith's Elegy on a Mad Dog (1879). Always frail in health, he died at age 39 in Florida, where he had gone to improve his condition. Since 1938 the Caldecott Medal has been awarded annually to the illustrator of the most distinguished U.S. picture book for children.
Learn more about Caldecott, Randolph with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born Feb. 13, 1849, Blenheim Palace, near Woodstock, Oxfordshire, Eng.—died Jan. 24, 1895, London) British politician. Third son of the 7th duke of Marlborough, he entered the House of Commons in 1874. In the early 1880s he joined other Conservatives in forming the Fourth Party, which advocated a “Tory democracy” of progressive conservatism. In 1886, at age 37, he became leader of the House of Commons and chancellor of the Exchequer, but he resigned after his first budget was rejected. Though he had seemed destined to be prime minister, this miscalculation effectively ended his political career. He remained in the Commons until his death, but he lost interest in politics and devoted much time to horse racing. Winston Churchill was his son.
Learn more about Churchill, Randolph (Henry Spencer), Lord with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born June 2, 1773, Prince George county, Va.—died May 24, 1833, Philadelphia, Pa., U.S.) U.S. politician. In 1799 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served almost continuously until 1829. A noted orator, he was a staunch advocate of states' rights and opposed a national bank and federal protective tariffs. A supporter of slavery, he led the resistance to the Missouri Compromise. His denunciation of Henry Clay for his support of the presidential candidacy of John Quincy Adams led to a harmless duel with Clay (1826).
Learn more about Randolph, John with a free trial on Britannica.com.
![]()
William Randolph Hearst, 1906.
Learn more about Hearst, William Randolph with a free trial on Britannica.com.
![]()
Coleman Hawkins, c. 1943.
Learn more about Hawkins, Coleman (Randolph) with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born March 9, 1930, Fort Worth, Texas, U.S.) U.S. saxophonist and composer, the principal initiator and leading exponent of free jazz. Coleman began playing the saxophone as a teenager and soon became a working musician in dance bands and rhythm-and-blues groups. He abandoned harmonic patterns in order to improvise more directly upon melodic and expressive elements; because the tonal centres of such music changed at the improviser's will, it became known as “free jazz.” His organized collective improvisation in such recordings as Free Jazz (1960) placed him firmly in the jazz avant-garde. In the 1970s he began composing orchestral music and also formed an electric band called Prime Time, with which he was active until the 1990s.
Learn more about Coleman, (Randolph Denard) Ornette with a free trial on Britannica.com.
![]()
Coleman Hawkins, c. 1943.
Learn more about Hawkins, Coleman (Randolph) with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born March 22, 1846, Chester, Cheshire, Eng.—died Feb. 12, 1886, St. Augustine, Fla., U.S.) British graphic artist and watercolourist. While working as a bank clerk, he began drawing for periodicals such as London Society, and, after he moved to London, Punch and Graphic. He developed a gently satirical style and achieved success with illustrations for Washington Irving's books The Sketch Book (1875) and Bracebridge Hall (1876). Caldecott is best known as an illustrator of children's books, including William Cowper's John Gilpin (1878) and Oliver Goldsmith's Elegy on a Mad Dog (1879). Always frail in health, he died at age 39 in Florida, where he had gone to improve his condition. Since 1938 the Caldecott Medal has been awarded annually to the illustrator of the most distinguished U.S. picture book for children.
Learn more about Caldecott, Randolph with a free trial on Britannica.com.
(born April 15, 1889, Crescent City, Fla., U.S.—died May 16, 1979, New York, N.Y.) U.S. civil-rights leader. He was the son of a Methodist minister. In 1911 he moved to New York, where he cofounded the journal The Messenger (later Black Worker), in which he called for more positions for African Americans in the war industry and the armed forces. In 1925 he founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first successful African American trade union, and he served as its president until 1968. In 1941 he lobbied Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt to ban racial discrimination in defense industries and federal bureaus. In 1948 he influenced Pres. Harry Truman to bar racial segregation in the armed forces. In 1955 he was made a vice president of the newly combined AFL-CIO. In order to combat discrimination in that union, he formed the Negro American Labor Council in 1960.
Learn more about Randolph, A(sa) Philip with a free trial on Britannica.com.