Tim Burton, Director and Animator
Tim Burton is a maverick auteur in a world where filmmakers are often relegated to pleasing Hollywood studios and producers. But his quirky and...
Helen Keller, Blind and Deaf Author and Activist
Helen Keller lost her vision and hearing before age 2. But with help from her tutor, Anne Sullivan, Keller learned how to speak, read...
Pablo Sarasate, Spanish Composer and Violin Virtuoso
Violinist Pablo Sarasate is a figure of tremendous national and international regard. The distinctly Spanish flavor of his compositions, combined with his masterful technique...
Samuel Johnson, Dictionary Writer and Biographer
Not only did Samuel Johnson’s work define the literature of the 18th century, his dictionary defined the language. Sometimes called “the great convulsionary” for...
Harriet Beecher Stowe, Author and Abolitionist
Harriet Beecher Stowe’s most memorable contribution to society was her book, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” The responses to Stowe’s work were so powerfully divisive that...
Pablo Neruda, the “People’s Poet” of Chile
One of the most beloved and widely read Latin American poets, Pablo Neruda defies categorization. His work was as stylistically varied—from sensuous love poetry...
Maslow, Father of the “Hierarchy of Needs”
Best known for his theory of self-actualization, psychologist and philosopher Abraham Maslow identified a “Hierarchy of Human Needs,” noting that once basic needs were...
Sir Isaac Newton, Mathematician and Physicist
Physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton was one of the most influential figures of the scientific revolution. He made significant contributions to calculus and his...
Quentin Tarantino, Director of “Pulp Fiction”
A self-taught filmmaker who has nevertheless displayed a profound knowledge of film history, Quentin Tarantino has built an oeuvre upon sharp dialogue, gritty violence...
Steve Jobs, Creator of Apple Computers
Derided by some, held up as a technological savior by others, Steve Jobs helped launch a wave of personal computer use that has redefined...
