Leo Tolstoy, Author of “War and Peace”
Leo Tolstoy proclaimed, “The sole meaning of life is to serve humanity.” His rebellion toward society, and his philosophical and idealistic outlook fashioned his...
Joan Miró, Surrealist Painter and Abstract Artist
A man who worked in many styles and mediums, Joan Miró is regarded as one of Spain’s best abstract artists. He’s known for pushing...
Saul Bellow, American Novelist
“The backbone of 20th-century American literature”—this was novelist Philip Roth’s assessment of Saul Bellow. His struggle with modernism, his Jewish upbringing, his feelings of...
Albert Einstein, Physicist Who Developed Theory of Relativity
Albert Einstein grew up in Munich, Germany and spent much of his life as a scholar in Berlin. He wrote several monumental papers that...
Rainer Maria Rilke, Author of “Letters to a Young Poet”
Rainer Maria Rilke spent his life traveling the globe. Despite a variety of lovers and locales—Prague, Munich, Rome, Paris and Switzerland—Rilke remained alone, seeking...
Harry Belafonte, Actor, Singer and Activist
Harry Belafonte’s handsome looks and velvety voice, coupled with his talent as an actor and producer, have earned him fame and accolades. But he...
William Faulkner, American Novelist
William Faulkner, revered modernist writer, historian and sociologist, is known for capturing the raw beauty of the rural South in all its dark complexity....
Hedy Lamarr, Actress and Inventor
Hedy Lamarr was a woman perpetually ahead of her time. She shocked the world with some racy roles in the 1930s, and a decade...
Gwendolyn Brooks, First African-American Pulitzer Prize Winner
Gwendolyn Brooks, renowned poet, was the author of many memorable works centered on the black experience in America and the issues of the Civil...
George Clooney, Award-Winning Actor and Activist
Before 2000, most would have thought George Clooney a victim of his good looks. However, more challenging roles have revealed his true talents. Today,...
