Marshall McLuhan, Canadian Philosopher

As a prolific lecturer, author and communication theorist, Marshall McLuhan explored the implications of technology on society, encouraging people to reconsider their relationship with...

J.R.R. Tolkien, Author of “The Lord of the Rings”

Philologist and English professor J.R.R. Tolkien popularized an entire genre of literature when he wrote his fantasy epic “The Lord of the Rings,” a...

Henry Cabot Lodge Jr., Ambassador to Vietnam

A senator and ambassador to Vietnam, Henry Cabot Lodge was a key player in the Cold War, and an adored political figure among Republicans....

Rosa Parks, Mother of the Civil Rights Movement

Rosa Parks was a seamstress and NAACP secretary whose simple act of civil disobedience—her refusal to give up her seat on the bus to...

Robert A. Heinlein, Author of “Stranger in a Strange Land”

Science fiction Grand Master Robert A. Heinlein inspired many readers with his predictions of technologies to come, his vivid descriptions of outer space, and...

Stan Laurel, Comic Actor, Writer and Director

Known for his antics alongside fellow funnyman Oliver Hardy, comedian Stan Laurel had a unique identity and story all his own. Stan Laurel’s Early Days Stan...

T.S. Eliot, Nobel Prize Winning Writer

As a philosopher, theologian, poet, playwright and essayist working in the early 20th century, T.S. Eliot saw and described the American and European landscape...

Joseph Pulitzer, Founder of the Pulitzer Prizes

Hungarian immigrant Joseph Pulitzer was a lawyer, politician, journalist and publisher of the nation’s most widely circulated newspaper. He is remembered best as the...

Butch Cassidy, Wild West Outlaw

Butch Cassidy was a famed outlaw in the dying days of the Old West, leading the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang and the Wild Bunch in daring...

Charles Dickens, Notable English Novelist

Charles Dickens is best remembered for novels such as “Oliver Twist” and “David Copperfield.” For his dedication to social justice, most notably his humanizing...