Michael

Wohlgemuth, Michael: see Wolgemut, Michael.

Wolgemut or Wohlgemuth, Michael, 1434-1519, German painter, wood carver, and engraver who worked mainly in Nuremberg. First instructed by his father and in Munich, he traveled and then returned to Hans Pleydenwurff's shop in Nuremberg where he worked on the Hofer Altarpiece. The Descent from the Cross panel in this work is treated in a highly patterned, almost abstract style. Wolgemut was the master of Albrecht Dürer. Besides large painted and sculptured altarpieces at Zwickau and Schwabach, executed in his shop, Wolgemut produced hundreds of designs for illustrated books such as the World Chronicle of 1493. The vigor of his outlines is in accord with his taste for drama, complex movement, and forceful characterization.

Cresap, Michael, 1742-75, American frontiersman and soldier, b. Allegany co., Md. A Native American fighter, he was accused by Thomas Jefferson and others of massacring the family of the friendly Native American chief Logan and thus starting (1774) Lord Dunmore's War. But this is denied by most modern historians who accept a letter from George Rogers Clark stating that Cresap was with him at the time of the massacre. Cresap fought in the war, and after the American Revolution began he became (1775) captain of a company of riflemen. Cresap drove his men at such a hard pace to support the patriots at Boston—traveling 550 mi (885 km) in 22 days—that he died of exhaustion as a result.

Crichton, Michael, 1942-2008, American novelist, screenwriter, and director, b. Chicago, grad. Harvard Medical School (1969). He wrote several thrillers under a pseudonym while a student and left medicine soon after his first bestseller, the medical thriller The Andromeda Strain (1969, film 1971). Scientific and technological subjects—epidemiology, chaos theory, genetic engineering, medical and computer technology—became essential elements in his suspenseful page-turners, many of which becames movies (some with his own screenplays). Among his other novels are The Terminal Man (1972, film 1972), Congo (1980, film 1995), the blockbuster Jurassic Park (1990, film 1994) and its sequel The Lost World (1995, film 1997), Rising Sun (1992, film 1993), Prey (2002), State of Fear (2004), and Next (2006). He also wrote original screenplays and directed several films, e.g., Westworld (1973) and Coma (1978), and created the television series E.R. His nonfiction includes a biography of artist Jasper Johns (1977, rev. ed. 1994) and the autobiographical Travels (1988).

Praetorius, Michael, 1571-1621, German composer and musicographer, whose name originally was Schultheiss. He was a prolific composer, his Musae Sioniae (9 vol., 1605-11) alone containing 1,244 choral works. Now he is remembered chiefly for his Syntagma musicum (3 vol., 1615-19), which minutely describes the musical practices and the instruments of his day.

Walzer, Michael, 1935-, American political philosopher, b. New York City, attended Brandeis Univ. (B.A., 1956), Cambridge (1956-57), and Harvard (Ph.D., 1961). A prominent liberal thinker and prolific author, Walzer has written about many areas of political theory and moral philosophy. He is probably best known for his work on the morality of war, discussed in his classic Just and Unjust Wars (1977) and the more recent Arguing about War (2004). His work also has concentrated on issues of nationalism, ethnicity, economic justice, the welfare state, tolerance and accomodation, and the history of Jewish political thought. Other books include Political Action (1971), Spheres of Justice (1983), What It Means to Be an American (1992), and Politics and Passion (2004). Co-editor of Dissent magazine, Walzer is also a frequent contributer to the New York Review of Books and New Republic. Walzer has been a professor at Princeton (1962-66), Harvard (1966-80), and the Institute for Advanced Study (1980-).

Acominatus, Michael, or Michael Choniates, c.1140-1220, Byzantine writer and metropolitan of Athens. Acominatus' speeches, poems, and letters give much information about medieval Athens, which he, a classicist, found barbarous and degenerate. His brother, Nicetas Choniates, c.1150-c.1213, wrote an important history of the Byzantine Empire covering the period 1180 to 1206.

Foot, Michael, 1913-, British politician. He entered Parliament in 1945 and became a spokesperson for the Labour party's radical left wing. Editor of the party organ, the Tribune, he served as secretary of state for employment (1974-75) and as leader of the House of Commons (1976-79). He succeeded James Callaghan as Labour party leader (1980-83) and tried to maintain the party's traditional policies in the face of the opposition of more conservative members, who broke away and formed the Social Democratic party.

Schumacher, Michael, 1969-, German auto race driver, b. Hürth-Hermühlheim. Regarded as the best Formula 1 (F1) driver of his era, he debuted as a racecar driver in 1988 and within two years had become Germany's Formula Three champion. His first F1 race was the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, and his first F1 victory was in the same event in 1992. Schumacher has driven the Jordan team (his first race), Benetton (1991-95), and Ferrari (1995-2006). He won the world championship in 1994, repeating the feat in 1995. His career was interrupted in 1999, when he suffered a broken leg in his first severe crash, but in 2000 he began a five-year reign as world champion, becoming the first driver to win the F1 title seven times. He has more than 90 career F1 race wins. He retired after the 2006 season, but announced in 2009 that he would race for Mercedes three years beginning in 2010.

Scot, Michael, c.1175-c.1234, medieval scholar, b. Scotland. He served as astrologer and physician at the court of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, where with other scholars he translated Aristotle and Averroës into Latin. Scot was best known as a magician, however, famed for his occult learning and reputed supernatural powers. Numerous legends arose concerning his miraculous feats. He figures in Dante's Inferno and Scott's Lay of the Last Minstrel.

Bennett, Michael, 1943-87, American dancer and choreographer, b. Buffalo, N.Y. He appeared in West Side Story and Subways Are for Sleeping. During the 1970s, he was one of the most successful directors and choreographers of Broadway musicals. His credits include Promises, Promises (1968), Coco (1969), and Follies (1971). In A Chorus Line (1975), one of the most successful musicals in history, the song-and-dance elements of the show are so interwoven with the plot as to be inseparable.

Pacher, Michael, c.1435-1498, German religious painter and probably a wood carver, a native of the Tyrol. He painted figures reminiscent of the art of Mantegna, whose work Pacher must have seen on a trip to N Italy. His few known works are chiefly altarpieces, composed on a monumental scale and distinguished for their beauty of workmanship. His masterpiece is the great altarpiece in the village church of St. Wolfgang, Salzkammergut, Austria, executed c.1480 and consisting of a beautifully carved centerpiece in late Gothic style with four wings, painted with scenes from the lives of Jesus and St. Wolfgang.

Faraday, Michael, 1791-1867, English scientist. The son of a blacksmith, he was apprenticed to a bookbinder at the age of 14. He had little formal education, but acquired a store of scientific knowledge through reading and by attending educational lectures including, in 1812, one by Sir Humphry Davy. The following year he became Davy's assistant at the Royal Institution in London. Faraday was made a member of the institution in 1823 and a fellow of the Royal Society in 1824. In 1825 he became director of the laboratory, and from 1833 he was Fullerian professor of chemistry at the Royal Institution. He subsequently declined knighthood and the presidency of the Royal Society.

Faraday's experiments yielded some of the most significant principles and inventions in scientific history. He developed the first dynamo (in the form of a copper disk rotated between the poles of a permanent magnet), the precursor of modern dynamos and generators. From his discovery of electromagnetic induction (1831; also independently discovered by the American Joseph Henry) stemmed a vast development of electrical machinery for industry. In 1825 he discovered the compound benzene. In addition to other contributions he did research on electrolysis, formulating Faraday's law. He also laid the foundations of the classical electromagnetic field theory, later fully developed by J. C. Maxwell. Some of his works were collected as Experimental Researches in Electricity (3 vol., 1839-55) and Experimental Researches in Chemistry and Physics (1859).

Tilson Thomas, Michael: see Thomas, Michael Tilson.

Arlen, Michael, 1895-1956, English novelist, b. Bulgaria as Dikran Kuyumjian. The son of Armenian parents, he was brought to England as a child. In 1922 he became a British subject and changed his name, and in 1928 he married Countess Atalanta Mercati. Arlen is best remembered for his fantastically successful novel (and play) The Green Hat (1924), which depicts the licentious postwar life of fashionable London society. His characters are disillusioned, cynical, and witty. Although sophisticated, the novel is ultimately sentimental. Arlen's novels depicted the mood of the 1920s, and by the 30s he was no longer read. His last novel, Flying Dutchman, appeared in 1939.

Haydn, Michael, 1737-1806, Austrian composer, younger brother of Franz Joseph Haydn. Haydn, largely self-taught, was noted especially for his sacred music. He was a friend of Mozart, whose Symphony No. 37 is actually Haydn's work with an introduction by Mozart. Toward the end of his life Haydn taught the Czech composer Antonín Reicha and Carl Maria von Weber.

Howard, Michael, 1941-, British politician, leader of the Conservative party (2003-5), b. Llanelli, Wales, as Michael Hecht. The son of immigrants (his father changed the family name after becoming a British subject in 1947), he was educated at Cambridge and became a successful barrister. In 1983 he was elected to Parliament, and in 1985 became a junior minister under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. In 1990 he became employment and environment minister, a post he continued to hold under Prime Minister John Major. Appointed home secretary in 1993, he was known for his tough anticrime stance. After Major resigned as party leader (1997), Howard sought unsuccessfully to succeed him. However, following Iain Duncan Smith's loss of the leadership post in 2003, Howard won the position unopposed, becoming the first Jew to lead a major British party (Disraeli had been baptized). Howard resigned as party leader following the Conservative loss in the 2005 elections; he was succeeded by David Cameron.

Cudahy, Michael, 1841-1910, American meat packer, b. Co. Kilkenny, Ireland. He went (1849) to Milwaukee and after 1856 worked for meatpacking firms. In the 1870s he introduced refrigeration into the meatpacking industry. He became a partner of Philip D. Armour and later, with his brother John, established a packing company in Omaha, Nebr.

Michael [Heb.,=who is like God?], archangel prominent in Christian, Jewish, and Muslim traditions. In the Bible and early Jewish literature, Michael is one of the angels of God's presence. He is depicted as a warrior-prince leading the celestial armies against wicked forces and as Israel's guardian angel. The intermediary between God and Moses on Mt. Sinai, Michael also confronts the devil over Moses' right of proper burial. In Christian tradition he is the angel with the sword. Michael is venerated in the Roman Catholic and Eastern churches. His feast (jointly with the other archangels) is Michaelmas, Sept. 29; it is the anniversary of the dedication of a Roman basilica to him. On May 8 he is honored for his apparition (492?) on Monte Gargano, Italy. He is supposed to have appeared to Joan of Arc and on the site of Mont-Saint-Michel.

Michael (Michael Romanov), 1596-1645, czar of Russia (1613-45), founder of the Romanov dynasty; grandnephew of Anastasia, first wife of Ivan IV. His election as czar, following successive appearances of false pretenders (see Dmitri), ended the so-called Time of Troubles, a period of social and political chaos in Russia that had begun in the late 16th cent. The real power in the government was Michael's father, the patriarch Philaret (d. 1633). During Michael's reign the peasantry was further reduced to serfdom; peace was temporarily obtained with Poland and Sweden; and some Western industrial and military techniques were introduced by foreign manufacturers and other experts. Michael was succeeded by his son Alexis.

Michael, 1921-, king of Romania (1927-30, 1940-47). His father, Prince Carol (later Carol II), renounced his right of succession in 1925, and young Michael ascended the throne under a regency on the death of Ferdinand. However, in 1930 his father returned to be recognized as king. When Carol II was deposed in 1940, Michael once more became king. In 1944 he overthrew the dictatorship of Ion Antonescu and concluded an armistice with the Allies (see Romania). Conflicts with the Communist-dominated coalition government after World War II led to his abdication (Dec., 1947) and exile; he was stripped of his Romanian citizenship a year later. He married Princess Anne of Bourbon-Parma in 1948. Since the collapse (1989) of Communist rule in Romania, his citizenship has been restored (1997) and he has reestablished a residence in Romania.

Michael (Michael Obrenović), 1823-68, prince of Serbia (1839-42, 1860-68); younger son of Prince Miloš. He succeeded his brother, Milan, but was deposed (1842) several years later by supporters of Alexander (Alexander Karadjordjević). In 1858, Miloš was restored to the throne and Michael returned with his father, on whose death (1860) he once more became prince. Michael modernized his country and prepared its complete liberation from Ottoman vassalage. At the end of his reign, the last Ottoman garrisons withdrew from the Serbian fortresses, including Belgrade. Michael was assassinated and was succeeded by his cousin Milan.

Michael, in the Bible. 1 Father of Sethur the spy. 2 Chief of Issachar. 3 One of David's captains at Ziklag. 4 Jehoshaphat's murdered son.

Field, Michael, pseud. used by two English authors, Katherine Harris Bradley, 1846-1914, and her niece Edith Emma Cooper, 1862-1913, who collaborated on numerous literary works, including lyrics and poetic tragedies. Although their work was praised by such contemporaries as Robert Browning and George Moore, it is almost forgotten today.

Chertoff, Michael, 1953-, U.S. government official, b. Elizabeth, N.J., grad. Harvard (B.A., 1975, J.D., 1978). A lawyer, Chertoff was an assistant federal prosecutor in New York (1983-87) and New Jersey (1987-90) before becoming U.S. attorney for New Jersey (1990-94). Subsequently in private practice, he also served (1994-96) as special counsel to the U.S. Senate committee that investigated Whitewater. Under President George W. Bush, he was (2001-3) assistant attorney general in charge of the Justice Dept.'s criminal division, where, after the Sept., 2001, terror attacks, he advocated expanding government powers to deal with terrorism, including detaining terror suspects without charging them by declaring them "material witnesses." That policy became especially controversial when most such detainees were subsequently not linked to terrorist groups. Appointed to the federal appeals bench in 2003, Chertoff returned to the executive branch (2005-9) as President Bush's homeland security secretary, succeeding Tom Ridge. Chertoff's, and his department's, response to the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina (2005) were criticized in a 2006 congressional report.

Hainisch, Michael, 1858-1940, president of Austria (1920-28). He was a leading agriculturist and a noted writer. Politically acceptable to all major parties, he was elected first president of the new republic in 1920 and was reelected in 1924. He was (1929-30) minister of commerce and transportation in the Schober cabinet. Throughout his political career Hainisch strongly favored a union of Austria and Germany.

Ondaatje, Michael (Philip Michael Ondaatje), 1943-, Canadian writer, b. Colombo, Sri Lanka (then Ceylon). Emigrating (1962) to Canada, he attended the Univ. of Toronto (B.A., 1965) and Queen's Univ., Ontario (M.A., 1967). Since 1971 he has been an English professor at Glendon College, York Univ., Toronto. His first published works were poems, noted for their mixture of fact and fiction, real and surreal. His Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970) blends poetry, prose, and visual materials into a compelling portrait of the American outlaw. Other poetry collections include The Dainty Monsters (1967), Rat Jelly (1973), The Cinnamon Peeler (1990), and Handwriting (1998). Ondaatje is best known for his novels, which also blend reality and imagination, exploring a variety of cultures and mingling present and past in richly evocative prose. The antithesis of linear narrative, his fiction is filled with incident and coincidence, often changing abruptly in time, style, and point of view. With his most celebrated novel, The English Patient (1992; film 1996), a tale of love and betrayal set in a ruined Italian villa during World War II, Ondaatje became the first Canadian to win the Booker Prize. His other novels are Coming through Slaughter (1976), In the Skin of a Lion (1987), Anil's Ghost (2000), and Divisadero (2007). He has also written screenplays and edited anthologies and a literary journal.

Innes, Michael, pseud. of John Innes Mackintosh Stewart, 1906-94, British writer and scholar, b. near Edinburgh. From 1969 to 1973 he was a reader in English literature at Oxford. Under his own name he wrote novels, short stories, and such critical studies as Character and Motive in Shakespeare (1949), Rudyard Kipling (1966), and Thomas Hardy (1971). As "Michael Innes" he wrote more than forty detective stories featuring John Appleby, a gentleman turned policeman. These erudite and witty mysteries include Seven Suspects (1936), A Comedy of Terrors (1940), The Open House (1972), and The Appleby File (1975).

Choniates, Michael: see Acominatus, Michael.

Servetus, Michael, 1511-53, Spanish theologian and physician. His name in Spanish was Miguel Serveto. In his early years he came in contact with some of the leading reformers in Germany and Switzerland—Johannes Oecolampadius, Martin Bucer, Wolfgang Fabricius Capito, and probably Martin Luther. But he held views, concerning the Trinity in particular, that brought condemnation from the theologians of the Reformation as well as from those of the Roman Catholic Church. When he published De trinitatis erroribus (1531) and De trinitate (1532), the feeling of opposition was so strong that he assumed the name of Michel de Villeneuve, from the family home, Villanueva, and spent some time in Lyons, working on an edition of Ptolemy's geography and other scientific works, then in Paris studying medicine. There he is said to have seen John Calvin. He became well-known for his ability in dissection and had unusual success as a physician; he discovered that some of the blood circulates through the lungs. From 1541 to 1553 he lived in the palace of the archbishop of Vienne as his confidential physician. When (1553) he had a work setting forth his ideas of Christianity secretly printed, investigation was begun by the Inquisition. Servetus, arrested, tried, and condemned, escaped from prison. Several months later, while making his way to Italy, he was seized in Geneva by Calvin's order. There, after a long trial, in which Calvin's condemnation was a stern factor, he was burned on Oct. 27, 1553.

Wigglesworth, Michael, 1631-1705, American clergyman and poet, b. England, grad. Harvard, 1651. His family emigrated to New England in 1638. A devoted minister at Malden, Mass., he also practiced medicine and wrote didactic poetry. His Day of Doom (1662), a ballad of Puritan theology, was extremely popular and was followed by God's Controversy with New England (written c.1662; printed 1873), Meat out of the Eater (1670), and lesser writings. Replete with vivid biblical imagery, Wigglesworth's verse reflects his dedication to his austere faith.

Moore, Michael, 1954-, American documentary filmmaker, author, and sociopolitical activist, b. Flint, Mich. After working as an alternative print and radio journalist, he embarked on a career as a highly personal, populist, frequently polarizing, and increasingly controversial documentary filmmaker. Appalled by his native city's economic decline as a result of downsizing and closings by General Motors, he made Roger & Me (1989), a satirical journey in which he unsuccessfully tries to meet with GM's chairman. His next major work, Bowling for Columbine (2002; Academy Award), is a scathing look at America's gun culture. Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004), his most controversial and financially successful film to date, is an angry critique of the Bush administration's handling of post-9/11 events and Iraq. His next documentary, Sicko (2007), an indictment of the American healthcare industry, focuses on the ways private insurance companies, primarily HMOs, deny appropriate care to subscribers. His film Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) is a scorching attack on the contemporary free-market system that explores and deplores corporate dominance of American society and its disastrous effects on the lives of ordinary citizens. Moore also has produced television programs combining news and satire and written several provocative books, e.g., Downsize This! (1996), Stupid White Men (2001), and Dude, Where's My Country? (2003).

Gratz, Michael: see Gratz, Barnard.

Graves, Michael, 1934-, American architect, b. Indianapolis, Ind., educated at the Univ. of Cincinnati and Harvard. Graves was a member of the New York "Five" or "white" modernist architects during the 1960s, the other four being Richard Meier, Peter Eisenman, Charles Gwathmey, and John Hejduk. In the 1970s, Graves emerged as a leading proponent of the American postmodernist style. His completed projects include the Portland Building in Portland, Oreg.; the Swan and Dolphin Hotels in Walt Disney World, Fla.; the Walt Disney Company Corporate Headquarters in Burbank, Calif.; the Newark Museum in Newark, N.J.; the Emory Univ. Museum of Art and Architecture in Atlanta, Ga.; the expansion of the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City; and the Central Library in Denver. Graves is also known for his design of furniture, furnishings, and artifacts.

Dahl, Michael, 1656-1743, Swedish portrait painter. In 1688, after traveling on the Continent, he settled in England. After the death of Kneller in 1723, Dahl enjoyed an enormous popularity, painting Queen Anne and members of the aristocracy. Beyond a surface artificiality, Dahl's work reflects a considerable humanity. His paintings are to be seen in the National Portrait Gallery, London (e.g., Self-Portrait, 1691), and in Windsor Castle.

Davitt, Michael, 1846-1906, Irish revolutionary and land reformer. He joined the Fenian movement in 1865 and was imprisoned three times by the English for his revolutionary activities. Davitt and Charles Stewart Parnell were the leading figures in the organization of the National Land League in 1879 (see Irish Land Question). Influenced by the theories of Henry George, Davitt broke with Parnell over the question of land nationalization. But he remained an important Irish leader and was instrumental in bringing the Parnell and anti-Parnell factions together in the United Irish League (1898).

Smith, Michael, 1932-2000, British-born Canadian biochemist, Ph.D. Univ. of Manchester, 1956. Smith was a researcher at the Univ. of British Columbia from 1961 until his death in 2000. He shared the 1993 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Kary Mullis for their contributions to the development of methods in DNA-based chemistry. Smith was specifically cited for developing a technique known as site-directed mutagenesis, which enables the genetic code to be reprogrammed and specific amino acids to be replaced in proteins. His work paved the way for the construction of proteins having new properties, with such potential applications as antibodies tailored to attack cancer cells and crop strains modified for more rapid growth.

Drayton, Michael, 1563-1631, English poet. The son of a prosperous tradesman, he received his educational training in the house of Sir Henry Goodere, where he served as page. There he made a lasting friendship with Anne Goodere, the youngest daughter of Sir Henry, who became the "Idea" in his series of sonnets (1593-1619). His work reflects the many poetic fashions of the day. He wrote poems on English history and topography (England's Heroical Epistles, 1597-99; the 15,000-line panoramic Poly-Olbion, 1612-22; Mortimeriados, 1596, recast in The Barons' Wars, 1597); satires (The Owl, 1604, and "The Moon Calf," 1627); a Spenserian, though mock-heroic, fairyland poem (Nymphidia, 1627); and the idyllic Muses' Elysium (1630). He also wrote scriptural paraphrases, pastorals, popular ballads, myths, and collaborated on plays.

Phelps, Michael, 1985-, American swimmer, b. Baltimore. One of the world's greatest competitive swimmers, Phelps became the youngest world record holder (in the 200-m butterfly) at 15 and set an unprecedented five world records at his first world championship (2003). He won eight medals (six gold, two bronze) in the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and eight gold medals in the 2008 Beijing games, setting records for most gold medals at a single Olympics (eight, previously held by Mark Spitz) and for most Olympic gold medals (fourteen). At the 2008 Olympics he also set world record times in seven events (200-m freestyle, 200-m butterfly, 200-m and 400-m individual medleys, and three relays) and an Olympic record in the 100-m butterfly.

Collins, Michael, 1890-1922, Irish revolutionary leader. He spent the years from 1907 to 1916 in England, during which period he joined the Fenian movement. He took part in the Easter Rebellion in Dublin in 1916 and was imprisoned for the rest of the year. One of the Sinn Féin members who set up the Dáil Éireann in 1919, he led the Irish Republican Army in the guerrilla campaign against British rule that eventually forced the British government to sue for a truce. Although a convinced republican, Collins, with Arthur Griffith, negotiated and signed the treaty (1921) that set up the Irish Free State (see Ireland) because he felt it the best settlement with England possible at that time. He was finance minister in Griffith's government for a brief time before being assassinated by extremist republicans.

Baius or Bajus, Michael, 1513-89, Flemish Roman Catholic theologian, also known as Michel de Bay. He was chancellor of the Univ. of Louvain and was sent to the Council of Trent. Baius was the center of a subtle controversy on grace, in which he is said to have been the forerunner of Jansenism (see under Jansen, Cornelis). His position was peculiar in giving original sin an important place while at the same time making man partly instrumental in his own redemption. His doctrines were condemned several times (especially by the bull of St. Pius V, Ex omnibus afflictionibus, 1567), but Baius abjured, or recanted, each time, and he died in the church.

Bajus, Michael: see Baius, Michael.

(born Aug. 10, 1848, Clonakilty, Ire.—died Oct. 29, 1892, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Irish-born U.S. still-life painter. Brought to Philadelphia as a child, he was trained as an engraver and soon developed outstanding skill in trompe l'oeil painting. While traveling in Europe he painted his best-known work, After the Hunt (1885). In 1886 he settled in New York City. His work, popular with the public, was generally dismissed by critics. After a long period of disrepute, his works again were appreciated and sought after when mid-20th-century critics recognized Harnett's outstanding skill at abstract composition.

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(born July 12, 1922, Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire, Eng.—died Sept. 6, 1956, near Hatfield, Hertfordshire) British architect and cryptographer. At age 14 he heard a lecture on the continuing mystery of Linear B script (see Linear A and Linear B) and resolved to decipher it. In 1952 he determined that Linear B was Greek in its oldest known form, dating from circa 1400–1200 BC. He collaborated with John Chadwick (1920–98) on Documents in Mycenaean Greek (1956), published a few weeks after his own death in an auto accident.

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(born Jan. 2, 1905, London, Eng.—died Jan. 8, 1998, London) British composer. Tippett studied composition (1923–28) at the Royal College of Music. His early music was conservative, but in the late 1930s he developed a personal, modernistic idiom that was marked by rhapsodic lyricism, intricate counterpoint, and polyphonic rhythms that have a lilting, bounding quality. He devoted most of his energies to compositions with words (generally his own), including the cantatas A Child of Our Time (1941) and The Mask of Time (1984), and the operas The Midsummer Marriage (1952), King Priam (1961), The Knot Garden (1969), and The Ice Break (1976). Beginning with King Priam, his surging rhythms and lush harmonies gave way to a starker, more taut style. His instrumental works include symphonies and string quartets.

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(born May 17, 1855, Bantry, County Cork, Ire.—died March 26, 1931, Dublin) Irish political leader. Soon after he entered Parliament in 1880, the “Healy Clause” of the Land Act of 1881, protecting tenant farmers' agrarian improvements from rent increases, made him popular in Ireland. Long associated with Charles Stewart Parnell, he broke with him in 1886. He grew dissatisfied with both the Liberals and the Irish Nationalists in the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising, and after 1917 he supported Sinn Féin. He was supported by both the British and Irish ministries as governor-general (1922–28) of the new Irish Free State.

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(born Jan. 2, 1905, London, Eng.—died Jan. 8, 1998, London) British composer. Tippett studied composition (1923–28) at the Royal College of Music. His early music was conservative, but in the late 1930s he developed a personal, modernistic idiom that was marked by rhapsodic lyricism, intricate counterpoint, and polyphonic rhythms that have a lilting, bounding quality. He devoted most of his energies to compositions with words (generally his own), including the cantatas A Child of Our Time (1941) and The Mask of Time (1984), and the operas The Midsummer Marriage (1952), King Priam (1961), The Knot Garden (1969), and The Ice Break (1976). Beginning with King Priam, his surging rhythms and lush harmonies gave way to a starker, more taut style. His instrumental works include symphonies and string quartets.

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orig. Miguel Servet

(born 1511?, Villanueva or Tudela, Spain—died Oct. 27, 1553, Champel, Switz.) Spanish physician and theologian. His views alienated both Roman Catholics and Protestants, beginning with the publication of his first book, De Trinitatis erroribus (1531), in which he denied the Holy Trinity. His most important work, Biblia sacra ex Santis Pagnini translatione (1542), was notable for its theory of prophecy. Elsewhere he questioned the usefulness of baptism and criticized the promulgation of the Nicene Creed. Persecuted by John Calvin, he was convicted of heresy in Geneva and burned at the stake. His notable contribution to medicine was the first accurate description of cardiopulmonary circulation of the blood (1553).

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(born Feb. 18, 1862, Williamsburg, Pa., U.S.—died Sept. 18, 1939, New York, N.Y.) U.S. entrepreneur and steel-industry pioneer. He joined Andrew Carnegie's steelworks at Braddock, Pa., as a labourer and rose swiftly in the Carnegie empire. In 1892 Carnegie delegated to Schwab the task of returning the plant in Homestead, Pa., to normal production after the bloody Homestead Strike. His success in improving labour relations and increasing production led to his appointment as president of Carnegie Steel Co. in 1897 at the age of 35. Schwab proposed the merger of the competing steel companies that would create the U.S. Steel Corp., and he became its first president in 1901. He resigned in 1903 to devote himself to the Bethlehem Steel Corp., which he built into one of the nation's largest steel producers of its time.

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(born circa 1435, County of Tirol—died August 1498, Salzburg?, Archbishopric of Salzburg) Austrian painter and sculptor. His colossal altarpiece for the Pilgrimage Church of St. Wolfgang in Upper Austria (1479–81) is a masterpiece of late Gothic painting, sculpture, and architecture. The painted panels, with their deep architectural perspective and dramatic foreshortening, indicate a knowledge of Andrea Mantegna. The sculptural portions, with their intricate detail, bright polychrome, and sweeping draperies, show his attachment to northern traditions; and the architectural elements show an extravagant version of the late Gothic style. Pacher was one of the earliest artists to introduce the principles of Renaissance painting into German-speaking regions.

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(born Sept. 12, 1943, Colombo, Ceylon) Sri Lankan-born Canadian novelist and poet. He immigrated to Montreal at age 19 and attended the University of Toronto and Queen's University. His fascination with the American West led to one of his most celebrated works, the pastiche The Collected Works of Billy the Kid (1970). His novel The English Patient (1992, Booker Prize; film, 1996) won him international recognition; it was followed by Anil's Ghost (2000). His musical poetry and prose are a blend of myth, history, jazz, memoirs, and other forms.

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(born July 4, 1946, Encino, Calif., U.S.) U.S. financier and entrepreneur. He studied at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and went to work in 1969 for what was to become Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc., an investment-banking company. In 1971 he became head of its bond-trading department. He persuaded many of his clients to invest in junk bonds issued by new or financially troubled companies; the capital he raised financed a new class of “corporate raiders” who carried out numerous mergers, acquisitions, hostile takeovers, and leveraged buyouts in the 1980s. By the end of the decade, the junk-bond market was worth $150 billion, and Drexel was a leading financial firm. In 1986 its client Ivan Boesky, convicted of insider trading, implicated Milken and the firm in his dealings. Charged with securities fraud and heavily fined, Drexel declared bankruptcy in 1990 when the junk-bond market collapsed. Milken pled guilty to securities fraud the same year and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a $600-million fine; released after 22 months, he since made a second fortune.

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orig. Miguel Servet

(born 1511?, Villanueva or Tudela, Spain—died Oct. 27, 1553, Champel, Switz.) Spanish physician and theologian. His views alienated both Roman Catholics and Protestants, beginning with the publication of his first book, De Trinitatis erroribus (1531), in which he denied the Holy Trinity. His most important work, Biblia sacra ex Santis Pagnini translatione (1542), was notable for its theory of prophecy. Elsewhere he questioned the usefulness of baptism and criticized the promulgation of the Nicene Creed. Persecuted by John Calvin, he was convicted of heresy in Geneva and burned at the stake. His notable contribution to medicine was the first accurate description of cardiopulmonary circulation of the blood (1553).

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(born July 4, 1946, Encino, Calif., U.S.) U.S. financier and entrepreneur. He studied at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and went to work in 1969 for what was to become Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc., an investment-banking company. In 1971 he became head of its bond-trading department. He persuaded many of his clients to invest in junk bonds issued by new or financially troubled companies; the capital he raised financed a new class of “corporate raiders” who carried out numerous mergers, acquisitions, hostile takeovers, and leveraged buyouts in the 1980s. By the end of the decade, the junk-bond market was worth $150 billion, and Drexel was a leading financial firm. In 1986 its client Ivan Boesky, convicted of insider trading, implicated Milken and the firm in his dealings. Charged with securities fraud and heavily fined, Drexel declared bankruptcy in 1990 when the junk-bond market collapsed. Milken pled guilty to securities fraud the same year and was sentenced to 10 years in prison and a $600-million fine; released after 22 months, he since made a second fortune.

Learn more about Milken, Michael R. with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born circa 1435, County of Tirol—died August 1498, Salzburg?, Archbishopric of Salzburg) Austrian painter and sculptor. His colossal altarpiece for the Pilgrimage Church of St. Wolfgang in Upper Austria (1479–81) is a masterpiece of late Gothic painting, sculpture, and architecture. The painted panels, with their deep architectural perspective and dramatic foreshortening, indicate a knowledge of Andrea Mantegna. The sculptural portions, with their intricate detail, bright polychrome, and sweeping draperies, show his attachment to northern traditions; and the architectural elements show an extravagant version of the late Gothic style. Pacher was one of the earliest artists to introduce the principles of Renaissance painting into German-speaking regions.

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(born Dec. 10, 1924, St. Andrew, Jam.—died March 6, 1997, Kingston) Jamaican political leader. Son of a prime minister of Jamaica and a sculptor, Manley was a leader of the People's National Party and the National Worker's Union before becoming prime minister in 1972. His leftist government made significant improvements in housing, education, and health care, but a dramatic rise in oil prices precipitated an economic crisis. Much of the middle class fled the country, unemployment rose to 30percnt, and violence broke out in the run-up to the 1980 election, in which he was defeated. He was reelected in 1989, this time as a moderate; he stepped down in 1992 for health reasons.

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known as Mike Mansfield

(born March 16, 1903, New York, N.Y., U.S.—died Oct. 5, 2001, Washington, D.C.) U.S. politician who was the longest-serving majority leader (1961–77) in the U.S. Senate. He worked in Montana copper mines and later taught history at Montana State University. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1943 to 1953 and in the Senate from 1953 to 1977. An outspoken critic of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, he sponsored a 1971 bill calling for a cease-fire and phased withdrawal. He was a persistent critic of Pres. Richard Nixon, especially during the Watergate scandal. After retiring, he served as U.S. ambassador to Japan (1977–88).

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(born Aug. 29, 1958, Gary, Ind., U.S.) U.S. singer and songwriter. The nine-year-old Jackson became the lead singer of the Jackson 5, a family group formed by his father. Their hits on the Motown label included “I Want You Back” and “ABC.” Though Michael remained a member of the group until 1984, he began recording under his own name in 1971. His album Off the Wall (1979) sold millions; his next solo album, Thriller (1982), sold more than 40 million copies, becoming the best-selling album in history. The emerging format of the music video was an important aspect of Jackson's work; his videos for “Beat It” and “Billie Jean” (both 1983) featured his highly influential dancing style (notably his trademark “moonwalk”). He later released the albums Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995). Despite his many efforts to speak out on social issues, Jackson's eccentric, secluded lifestyle stirred controversy in the early 1990s. His reputation was seriously damaged in 1993 when he was accused of child molestation by a 13-year-old boy; a civil suit was settled out of court. In 2003 Jackson was arrested on charges of child molestation; he was acquitted in 2005. His numerous honours include induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Jackson 5 (1997) and as a solo performer (2001). Several of his siblings, notably his sister Janet (b. 1966), have also enjoyed solo success.

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(born Feb. 17, 1963, Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. basketball player. As a freshman in 1982, he helped the University of North Carolina win the collegiate national championship. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1984, he won 10 scoring h1s and 5 Most Valuable Player awards while leading the Bulls to six championships (1991–93, 1996–98). He was also part of the 1984 and 1992 U.S. Olympic basketball teams that won gold medals. He retired briefly in 1993, hoping to play professional baseball, but returned to the Bulls in 1995. He retired again in 1999, but, after a stint as an owner and general manager of the Washington Wizards, Jordan returned to play for that team in 2001. Known as “Air Jordan” for his exceptional leaping ability, he combined acrobatic play with a fierce competitive spirit and was considered among the game's greatest players. His success on the court and in the business world made him one of the most popular and recognized athletes of all time.

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(born Sept. 30, 1906, Edinburgh, Scot.—died Nov. 12, 1994, Coulsdon, Surrey, Eng.) Scottish-born English novelist, literary critic, and educator. Stewart began writing while working as a college professor. In his mystery novels, he created the character of Inspector John Appleby, a British detective known for his suave humour and literary finesse. Among the best of these mysteries, all published under the pseudonym of Michael Innes, are Lament for a Maker (1938), The Journeying Boy (1949), and An Awkward Lie (1971). Stewart wrote other works of fiction under his own name, as well as several works of literary criticism. His autobiography, Myself and Michael Innes, was published in 1987.

Learn more about Stewart, J(ohn) I(nnes) M(ackintosh) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 9, 1934, Indianapolis, Ind., U.S.) U.S. architect and designer. He studied at Harvard University and in 1962 began a long teaching career at Princeton University while designing private houses in the abstract and austere style of orthodox Modernism. In the late 1970s he rejected Modernist expression and began seeking a larger, postmodernist vocabulary. The hulking masses of the Portland Building in Portland, Ore. (1980), and the Humana Building in Louisville, Ky. (1982), display his highly personal, Cubist rendering of such Classical elements as colonnades and loggias. Though considered somewhat awkward, these and his later buildings (e.g., Indianapolis Art Center, 1996) have been acclaimed for their ironic interpretation of traditional forms. Among his later projects were the restoration of the Washington Monument (2000) and the creation of a line of household items, including kitchenware and furniture, for the discount retailer Target.

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(born July 12, 1922, Wheathampstead, Hertfordshire, Eng.—died Sept. 6, 1956, near Hatfield, Hertfordshire) British architect and cryptographer. At age 14 he heard a lecture on the continuing mystery of Linear B script (see Linear A and Linear B) and resolved to decipher it. In 1952 he determined that Linear B was Greek in its oldest known form, dating from circa 1400–1200 BC. He collaborated with John Chadwick (1920–98) on Documents in Mycenaean Greek (1956), published a few weeks after his own death in an auto accident.

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(born July 23, 1913, Plymouth, Devon, Eng.) Leader of Great Britain's Labour Party (1980–83). He worked as a newspaper editor and columnist (1937–74) and served in Parliament (1945–55, 1960–92). He served in Harold Wilson's cabinet as secretary of state for employment (1974–76) and leader of the House of Commons (1976–79). A left-wing socialist, Foot became the party's chief in 1980 by defeating its right-wing candidate. This and other left-wing trends caused some Labourites to resign to found the Social Democratic Party. His books include Aneurin Bevan (2 vol.; 1962, 1973).

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(born Sept. 22, 1791, Newington, Surrey, Eng.—died Aug. 25, 1867, Hampton Court) English physicist and chemist. Son of a blacksmith, he received only a basic education in a church Sunday school, but he went to work as an assistant to Humphry Davy, from whom he learned chemistry. He discovered a number of new organic compounds, including benzene, and was the first to liquefy a “permanent” gas. His major contributions were in the fields of electricity and magnetism. He was the first to report induction of an electric current from a magnetic field. He invented the first electric motor and dynamo, demonstrated the relation between electricity and chemical bonding, discovered the effect of magnetism on light, and discovered and named diamagnetism. He also provided the experimental, and much of the theoretical, foundation on which James Clerk Maxwell built his electromagnetic field theory. In 1833 he was appointed professor at the Royal Institution. After 1855 he retired to a house provided by Queen Victoria, but he declined a knighthood.

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(born Oct. 16, 1890, Clonakilty, County Cork, Ire.—died Aug. 22, 1922, Beal-na-Blath, Cork) Irish national leader. He worked in London (1906–16), then returned to fight in the Easter Rising. Elected as a member of Sinn Féin to the Irish assembly (1918), he became the Irish republic's first minister of home affairs. He was general of the volunteers and director of intelligence of the Irish Republican Army in the Anglo-Irish War. In 1921 he signed the controversial Anglo-Irish Treaty, which gave Ireland dominion status, though with provisions for partition and for an oath of allegiance to the crown. He and Arthur Griffith then became leaders of the provisional government. When civil war broke out, Collins commanded the government forces fighting the anti-treaty republicans, and on Griffith's death he became head of the government. Ten days later he was killed in an ambush at age 31.

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orig. Michael Bennett Difiglia

(born April 8, 1943, Buffalo, N.Y., U.S.—died July 2, 1987, Tucson, Ariz.) U.S. dancer, choreographer, and stage musical director. He began dancing at age three and left high school to tour in a production of West Side Story. His major contribution to dance was as choreographer-director of Broadway musicals such as Promises, Promises (1968), Company (1970), Follies (1971), and Dreamgirls (1981). His most remarkable musical was A Chorus Line (1975, Pulitzer Prize), which he conceived, directed, and choreographed. Bennett personally received eight Tony awards during his career.

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(born Oct. 25, 1921, Sinaia, Rom.) King of Romania. After his father, the future king Carol II, had been excluded from the royal succession (1926), Michael was proclaimed king under a three-member regency. Carol reclaimed the throne in 1930, and Michael was reduced to crown prince. With Carol's abdication in 1940, Michael again became king but was in effect a prisoner of the military dictator Ion Antonescu. In 1944 he helped lead the coup that overthrew the military regime and severed Romania's ties with the Axis powers. He strongly opposed the communists' subsequent rise to power, but was forced to abdicate in 1947. He went into exile in Switzerland and became an executive with a U.S. brokerage firm. In 1997 his Romanian citizenship was restored; he subsequently visited the country and sought the return of property holdings that were confiscated.

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known as Mike Mansfield

(born March 16, 1903, New York, N.Y., U.S.—died Oct. 5, 2001, Washington, D.C.) U.S. politician who was the longest-serving majority leader (1961–77) in the U.S. Senate. He worked in Montana copper mines and later taught history at Montana State University. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1943 to 1953 and in the Senate from 1953 to 1977. An outspoken critic of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, he sponsored a 1971 bill calling for a cease-fire and phased withdrawal. He was a persistent critic of Pres. Richard Nixon, especially during the Watergate scandal. After retiring, he served as U.S. ambassador to Japan (1977–88).

Learn more about Mansfield, Michael (Joseph) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Dec. 10, 1924, St. Andrew, Jam.—died March 6, 1997, Kingston) Jamaican political leader. Son of a prime minister of Jamaica and a sculptor, Manley was a leader of the People's National Party and the National Worker's Union before becoming prime minister in 1972. His leftist government made significant improvements in housing, education, and health care, but a dramatic rise in oil prices precipitated an economic crisis. Much of the middle class fled the country, unemployment rose to 30percnt, and violence broke out in the run-up to the 1980 election, in which he was defeated. He was reelected in 1989, this time as a moderate; he stepped down in 1992 for health reasons.

Learn more about Manley, Michael (Norman) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Feb. 17, 1963, Brooklyn, N.Y., U.S.) U.S. basketball player. As a freshman in 1982, he helped the University of North Carolina win the collegiate national championship. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1984, he won 10 scoring h1s and 5 Most Valuable Player awards while leading the Bulls to six championships (1991–93, 1996–98). He was also part of the 1984 and 1992 U.S. Olympic basketball teams that won gold medals. He retired briefly in 1993, hoping to play professional baseball, but returned to the Bulls in 1995. He retired again in 1999, but, after a stint as an owner and general manager of the Washington Wizards, Jordan returned to play for that team in 2001. Known as “Air Jordan” for his exceptional leaping ability, he combined acrobatic play with a fierce competitive spirit and was considered among the game's greatest players. His success on the court and in the business world made him one of the most popular and recognized athletes of all time.

Learn more about Jordan, Michael (Jeffrey) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Feb. 9, 1940, Cape Town, S.Af.) South African novelist. Coetzee taught English at the University of Cape Town, translated works from the Dutch, and wrote literary criticism before publishing his first book, Dusklands (1974). He won international fame with In the Heart of the Country (1977) and Waiting for the Barbarians (1980), in which he attacked the legacy of colonialism; they were followed by The Life and Times of Michael K (1983, Booker Prize), which concerns a man of limited intelligence caught in a civil war; Foe (1986), a twist on Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe; the autobiographical Boyhood (1997); and others. Among his nonfiction works are Giving Offense: Essays on Censorship (1996) and The Lives of Animals (1999). In 1999 he became the first writer to win the Booker Prize twice when he received the award for his novel Disgrace (1999). In 2003 Coetzee won the Nobel Prize for Literature.

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(born Feb. 22, 1936, York, Pa., U.S.) U.S. virologist. He graduated from Harvard Medical School. In 1970 he and Harold Varmus tested the theory that healthy body cells contain oncogenes (cancer-causing genes). Further research showed that such genes can cause cancer even without viral involvement. By 1989, the year Bishop and Varmus shared a Nobel Prize for their research, scientists had identified more than 40 oncogenes in animals.

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(born Nov. 20, 1874, Boston, Mass., U.S.—died Nov. 12, 1958, Boston) U.S. politician. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1911–14). As Boston's mayor (1914–18, 1922–26, 1930–34, 1947–50), he dominated the city's politics for 50 years. He owed much of his success to serving the needs of Irish immigrants in exchange for votes. He centralized the powers of patronage in his own hands and distributed public works jobs so as to retain the loyalty and support of his working-class electoral base. As mayor, he brought the city close to bankruptcy by spending enormous sums on parks and hospitals to satisfy his various constituencies. Unable to win a seat in the Massachusetts delegation to the 1932 Democratic convention, Curley contrived by means he never explained to be elected a delegate from Puerto Rico. As governor of Massachusetts (1935–37), he spent New Deal funds lavishly on roads, bridges, and other public works programs. He won a seat in the House of Representatives in 1942 and was reelected two years later. His last mayoral term included five months in prison following a conviction for mail fraud; Pres. Harry Truman secured his release and later granted him a full pardon. His colourful career inspired Edwin O'Connor's novel The Last Hurrah (1956). His autobiography, I'd Do It Again, was published in 1957.

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(born Aug. 29, 1958, Gary, Ind., U.S.) U.S. singer and songwriter. The nine-year-old Jackson became the lead singer of the Jackson 5, a family group formed by his father. Their hits on the Motown label included “I Want You Back” and “ABC.” Though Michael remained a member of the group until 1984, he began recording under his own name in 1971. His album Off the Wall (1979) sold millions; his next solo album, Thriller (1982), sold more than 40 million copies, becoming the best-selling album in history. The emerging format of the music video was an important aspect of Jackson's work; his videos for “Beat It” and “Billie Jean” (both 1983) featured his highly influential dancing style (notably his trademark “moonwalk”). He later released the albums Bad (1987), Dangerous (1991), and HIStory (1995). Despite his many efforts to speak out on social issues, Jackson's eccentric, secluded lifestyle stirred controversy in the early 1990s. His reputation was seriously damaged in 1993 when he was accused of child molestation by a 13-year-old boy; a civil suit was settled out of court. In 2003 Jackson was arrested on charges of child molestation; he was acquitted in 2005. His numerous honours include induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Jackson 5 (1997) and as a solo performer (2001). Several of his siblings, notably his sister Janet (b. 1966), have also enjoyed solo success.

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(born May 17, 1855, Bantry, County Cork, Ire.—died March 26, 1931, Dublin) Irish political leader. Soon after he entered Parliament in 1880, the “Healy Clause” of the Land Act of 1881, protecting tenant farmers' agrarian improvements from rent increases, made him popular in Ireland. Long associated with Charles Stewart Parnell, he broke with him in 1886. He grew dissatisfied with both the Liberals and the Irish Nationalists in the wake of the 1916 Easter Rising, and after 1917 he supported Sinn Féin. He was supported by both the British and Irish ministries as governor-general (1922–28) of the new Irish Free State.

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(born Aug. 10, 1848, Clonakilty, Ire.—died Oct. 29, 1892, New York, N.Y., U.S.) Irish-born U.S. still-life painter. Brought to Philadelphia as a child, he was trained as an engraver and soon developed outstanding skill in trompe l'oeil painting. While traveling in Europe he painted his best-known work, After the Hunt (1885). In 1886 he settled in New York City. His work, popular with the public, was generally dismissed by critics. After a long period of disrepute, his works again were appreciated and sought after when mid-20th-century critics recognized Harnett's outstanding skill at abstract composition.

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(born July 9, 1934, Indianapolis, Ind., U.S.) U.S. architect and designer. He studied at Harvard University and in 1962 began a long teaching career at Princeton University while designing private houses in the abstract and austere style of orthodox Modernism. In the late 1970s he rejected Modernist expression and began seeking a larger, postmodernist vocabulary. The hulking masses of the Portland Building in Portland, Ore. (1980), and the Humana Building in Louisville, Ky. (1982), display his highly personal, Cubist rendering of such Classical elements as colonnades and loggias. Though considered somewhat awkward, these and his later buildings (e.g., Indianapolis Art Center, 1996) have been acclaimed for their ironic interpretation of traditional forms. Among his later projects were the restoration of the Washington Monument (2000) and the creation of a line of household items, including kitchenware and furniture, for the discount retailer Target.

Learn more about Graves, Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 3, 1878, Providence, R.I., U.S.—died Nov. 5, 1942, New York, N.Y.) U.S. actor, songwriter, playwright, and producer. Cohan with his parents and sister performed in vaudeville as The Four Cohans. He began writing for the New York stage in the early 1900s; his musical Little Johnny Jones (1904; film, 1930) included the classics “Give My Regards to Broadway” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” Among his later productions were The Governor's Son (1901), The Talk of New York (1907), Broadway Jones (1912), Seven Keys to Baldpate (1913), and American Born (1925). He later appeared in shows such as Ah, Wilderness! (1933) and I'd Rather Be Right (1937). His best-known songs include “You're a Grand Old Flag,” “Mary's a Grand Old Name,” and the famous World War I recruiting song “Over There,” for which he was awarded a special Congressional medal in 1940. Cohan was the subject of the film Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) and the musical George M! (1968).

Learn more about Cohan, George M(ichael) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 23, 1913, Plymouth, Devon, Eng.) Leader of Great Britain's Labour Party (1980–83). He worked as a newspaper editor and columnist (1937–74) and served in Parliament (1945–55, 1960–92). He served in Harold Wilson's cabinet as secretary of state for employment (1974–76) and leader of the House of Commons (1976–79). A left-wing socialist, Foot became the party's chief in 1980 by defeating its right-wing candidate. This and other left-wing trends caused some Labourites to resign to found the Social Democratic Party. His books include Aneurin Bevan (2 vol.; 1962, 1973).

Learn more about Foot, Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Sept. 22, 1791, Newington, Surrey, Eng.—died Aug. 25, 1867, Hampton Court) English physicist and chemist. Son of a blacksmith, he received only a basic education in a church Sunday school, but he went to work as an assistant to Humphry Davy, from whom he learned chemistry. He discovered a number of new organic compounds, including benzene, and was the first to liquefy a “permanent” gas. His major contributions were in the fields of electricity and magnetism. He was the first to report induction of an electric current from a magnetic field. He invented the first electric motor and dynamo, demonstrated the relation between electricity and chemical bonding, discovered the effect of magnetism on light, and discovered and named diamagnetism. He also provided the experimental, and much of the theoretical, foundation on which James Clerk Maxwell built his electromagnetic field theory. In 1833 he was appointed professor at the Royal Institution. After 1855 he retired to a house provided by Queen Victoria, but he declined a knighthood.

Learn more about Faraday, Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Nov. 20, 1874, Boston, Mass., U.S.—died Nov. 12, 1958, Boston) U.S. politician. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives (1911–14). As Boston's mayor (1914–18, 1922–26, 1930–34, 1947–50), he dominated the city's politics for 50 years. He owed much of his success to serving the needs of Irish immigrants in exchange for votes. He centralized the powers of patronage in his own hands and distributed public works jobs so as to retain the loyalty and support of his working-class electoral base. As mayor, he brought the city close to bankruptcy by spending enormous sums on parks and hospitals to satisfy his various constituencies. Unable to win a seat in the Massachusetts delegation to the 1932 Democratic convention, Curley contrived by means he never explained to be elected a delegate from Puerto Rico. As governor of Massachusetts (1935–37), he spent New Deal funds lavishly on roads, bridges, and other public works programs. He won a seat in the House of Representatives in 1942 and was reelected two years later. His last mayoral term included five months in prison following a conviction for mail fraud; Pres. Harry Truman secured his release and later granted him a full pardon. His colourful career inspired Edwin O'Connor's novel The Last Hurrah (1956). His autobiography, I'd Do It Again, was published in 1957.

Learn more about Curley, James Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Oct. 16, 1890, Clonakilty, County Cork, Ire.—died Aug. 22, 1922, Beal-na-Blath, Cork) Irish national leader. He worked in London (1906–16), then returned to fight in the Easter Rising. Elected as a member of Sinn Féin to the Irish assembly (1918), he became the Irish republic's first minister of home affairs. He was general of the volunteers and director of intelligence of the Irish Republican Army in the Anglo-Irish War. In 1921 he signed the controversial Anglo-Irish Treaty, which gave Ireland dominion status, though with provisions for partition and for an oath of allegiance to the crown. He and Arthur Griffith then became leaders of the provisional government. When civil war broke out, Collins commanded the government forces fighting the anti-treaty republicans, and on Griffith's death he became head of the government. Ten days later he was killed in an ambush at age 31.

Learn more about Collins, Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born July 3, 1878, Providence, R.I., U.S.—died Nov. 5, 1942, New York, N.Y.) U.S. actor, songwriter, playwright, and producer. Cohan with his parents and sister performed in vaudeville as The Four Cohans. He began writing for the New York stage in the early 1900s; his musical Little Johnny Jones (1904; film, 1930) included the classics “Give My Regards to Broadway” and “Yankee Doodle Dandy.” Among his later productions were The Governor's Son (1901), The Talk of New York (1907), Broadway Jones (1912), Seven Keys to Baldpate (1913), and American Born (1925). He later appeared in shows such as Ah, Wilderness! (1933) and I'd Rather Be Right (1937). His best-known songs include “You're a Grand Old Flag,” “Mary's a Grand Old Name,” and the famous World War I recruiting song “Over There,” for which he was awarded a special Congressional medal in 1940. Cohan was the subject of the film Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942) and the musical George M! (1968).

Learn more about Cohan, George M(ichael) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born Feb. 18, 1862, Williamsburg, Pa., U.S.—died Sept. 18, 1939, New York, N.Y.) U.S. entrepreneur and steel-industry pioneer. He joined Andrew Carnegie's steelworks at Braddock, Pa., as a labourer and rose swiftly in the Carnegie empire. In 1892 Carnegie delegated to Schwab the task of returning the plant in Homestead, Pa., to normal production after the bloody Homestead Strike. His success in improving labour relations and increasing production led to his appointment as president of Carnegie Steel Co. in 1897 at the age of 35. Schwab proposed the merger of the competing steel companies that would create the U.S. Steel Corp., and he became its first president in 1901. He resigned in 1903 to devote himself to the Bethlehem Steel Corp., which he built into one of the nation's largest steel producers of its time.

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(born Feb. 22, 1936, York, Pa., U.S.) U.S. virologist. He graduated from Harvard Medical School. In 1970 he and Harold Varmus tested the theory that healthy body cells contain oncogenes (cancer-causing genes). Further research showed that such genes can cause cancer even without viral involvement. By 1989, the year Bishop and Varmus shared a Nobel Prize for their research, scientists had identified more than 40 oncogenes in animals.

Learn more about Bishop, J(ohn) Michael with a free trial on Britannica.com.

orig. Michael Bennett Difiglia

(born April 8, 1943, Buffalo, N.Y., U.S.—died July 2, 1987, Tucson, Ariz.) U.S. dancer, choreographer, and stage musical director. He began dancing at age three and left high school to tour in a production of West Side Story. His major contribution to dance was as choreographer-director of Broadway musicals such as Promises, Promises (1968), Company (1970), Follies (1971), and Dreamgirls (1981). His most remarkable musical was A Chorus Line (1975, Pulitzer Prize), which he conceived, directed, and choreographed. Bennett personally received eight Tony awards during his career.

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Michael is a given name that comes from the מִיכָאֵל / מיכאל (mee-KHA-el), meaning "Who is like God?" In English, it is sometimes shortened to Mike, Mikey, or, especially in Ireland, Mick. Michael is one of the 7 Archangels and protector of Yahweh.

Female forms of Michael include Michelle, Michaela, Mechelle, Micheline, and Michaelle, although there are women with the name Michael, such as Michael Learned and Princess Michael of Kent. Another form is Mychal, which can either be a male or female name. Surnames that come from Michael include Carmichael, Dimichele, MacMichael, McMichael, Micallef, Michaelson, Mikhaylov and Mitchell.

Origins

The name first appears in the Bible, Numbers , where Sethur the son of Michael is one of twelve spies sent into the Land of Canaan. The Archangel Michael, referred to later in the Bible (Daniel ), is considered a saint by the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodox Church. 29 September is the feast day of the three archangels, Michael, Gabriel and Raphael.

Popularity

Michael is a popular name in the United States, and has been the first or second most popular name given to male babies in the U.S. for each year since 1954. It is in the top 50 most popular boys' names in England and Wales. The name has been popular in Orthodox Christian countries, and was borne by several rulers of the Byzantine and Russian Empires. In recent years, Michael has been the most popular name in the Philippines, the second most popular name in Finland (Mikael) and ranks among the top ten names in Denmark (Mikkel) and Ireland. It is the 23rd most popular name in Canada, and the 37th most popular in Mexico (Miguel).

Short form and other versions

"Mike", "Mick", "Mikiel", "Mikey", "Mikael", "Mic", "Mischka" (common in Russia) and "Mickey" are short forms of, or nick-names for, Michael as a given name. "Mick" is commonly associated with Irish people.

Meik and Maik are German short forms of Michael. The German pronunciation of both variants is identical to the English pronunciation of "Mike", since both are directly derived from their English counterparts. Similarly, the Welsh versions "Meical" and "Meic" are pronounced in the same way as their corresponding English analogues. Michiel (mee-KHEEL) is Dutch and the Dutch given name "Chiel" is a variation of Michiel. Mikael, Mikell, Mikkel are Scandinavian. In Swedish, "Micke" is a nick-name for "Mikael" (also spelt "Michael").

In Greek "Μιχάλης" ("Michalis" or "Mihalis") is an everyday common form of the "Μιχαήλ" ("Michail" or "Mihail"). The Russian, "Миша" ("Mischa" or "Misha") are shortened forms of "Михаил" (Mikhail). "Мишка" (Mishka) is a common diminutive form, "Миха" (Mikha) is an informal shortened form, and "Михайлович" (Mikhaylovich) is a patronymic form that can be shortened to more informal "Михалыч" (Mikhalych). Michal is Czech. Michał is Polish; Miko is Slavic. Mëhill or Mhill is the Albanian for Michael. The first belongs to the southern (Tosk) dialect, the second to the northern (Gheg) dialect. In Hebrew, "מיכה" (Mikha) is a common shortened form of "מיכאל" (Michael, pronounced Mikha'el).

Miguel is a Spanish and Portuguese form; Michel is French and popular in the Netherlands.

Variations by language

There are various forms of the name:

• ميخائيل / ميكال‎
• Միքայել (Mikayel)
• Михаил (Mihail)
• Miquel
• Mihael
• Czech: Michal
• Mikkel
• Michiel
• Mihkel
• Michel
• Gaelic: Michiel
• Septuagint Μιχαήλ (Mikhaēl)
• 'מיכאל''' (Mikha'el)
• Mihály
• Mícheál
• Michele
• Latin: Michael
• Михаил (Mihail)
• Michał
• Miguel
• Mihai
• Михаил (Mikha'il)
• Михајло (Mihajlo)
• Michal
• Miguel
• Swedish: Mikael
• Mikail
• (Mykháylo)
• Mihangel

Rulers named "Michael"

Byzantine emperors

• Michael I (811–813)
• Michael II (820–829)
• Michael III (842–867)
• Michael IV the Paphlagonian (1034–1041)
• Michael V (1041–1042)
• Michael VI (1056–1057)
• Michael VII (1067–1078)
• Michael VIII Palaeologus (1259–1282)
• Michael IX Palaiologos (1277–1320)

Russian rulers

• Mikhail of Vladimir (1174–1176)
• Mikhail Yaroslavich (1304–1318)
• Michael I (1613–1645)
• Michael II (1917)

King of Poland

• Michael of Poland (Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki)

King & Princes of Portugal

• Miguel of Portugal (Michael I) King of Portugal (1828–1834). During exile he used the title of Duke of Braganza
• Miguel II%2C Duke of Braganza (Michael II), legitimist pretender to the throne of Portugal. As his father (Michael I) he also used the title of Duke of Braganza
• Miguel da Paz (Michael of Peace) older son of King Manuel I of Portugal and heir of all the Iberian Kingdoms (Portugal, Castille and Aragon)
• Miguel de Bragan%C3%A7a, illegitimate son of King Pedro II of Portugal, he was the ancestor of the House of Lafões
• Infante Miguel, Duke of Viseu (born in 1948), fith in line to the Portuguese throne

Rulers of Romania

• Michael the Brave (Romanian: Mihai Viteazul, Hungarian: Vitéz Mihály); Prince of Wallachia (1593–1601), of Transylvania (1599–1600), and of Moldavia (1600)
• Michael I of Romania (Romanian: Mihai I de România)

Tsar of Bulgaria

• Boris I Michael (852–889)
• Michael Asen I of Bulgaria (1246–1256)
• Michael Shishman of Bulgaria (1323–1330)

British Royal Family

• Prince Michael of Kent

Archduke of SUNY Binghamton

• Michael the Postman Monteverde (2007-?)

See also

• List of most popular given names
• Theophory in the Bible

References