W.S. Gilbert, Operetta Librettist for “The Pirates of Penzance”
William Schwenck Gilbert, one half of the successful Gilbert and Sullivan duo, had a knack for satire and an eye for staging, producing comic...
Elizabeth Taylor, Hollywood Actress
Elizabeth Taylor spent her life on camera. She took her first screen test in 1939 at age seven and worked as an actress until...
Elinor Ostrom, First Woman to Win the Nobel Prize in Economics
Elinor Ostrom won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Economics for her against-the-grain studies of how self-imposed regulation of common resources can be more efficient...
John Updike, Prolific Novelist, Critic and Poet
John Updike is one of America’s most beloved authors, known for “The Witches of Eastwick,” the “Rabbit” novel series and his final work, “The...
Charles Atlas, Famed Bodybuilder
Legendary bodybuilder Charles Atlas became an icon in the 1920s as the man who transformed himself from a skinny weakling into a muscle-bound celebrity.
Charles...
Oscar de la Renta, Prolific Couture Designer
Born in the Dominican Republic, Oscar de la Renta credits the island for inspiring his creative designs and use of bright color. The industry...
H.L. Mencken, Reporter Who Covered Scopes “Monkey Trial”
H.L. Mencken, the “Sage of Baltimore,” was an outspoken journalist whose caustic tongue and scathing criticism of many segments of American society inspired anger...
Peter the Great, Czar of Russia
Peter the Great became czar of Russia when he was only 10 years old. As a young man, he showed little interest in politics...
Pearl Buck, 1938 Winner of Nobel Prize in Literature
Pearl Buck is best known for her novel “The Good Earth,” which received the Pulitzer Prize in 1935 and helped earn her the Nobel...
Meriwether Lewis, Western Explorer
Along with William Clark, Meriwether Lewis led the first expedition through the territory of the Louisiana Purchase, revealing the landscape and nature of the...
