Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi), Baroque Painter
Michelangelo Merisi, popularly known as Caravaggio, spearheaded the Baroque movement, and his paintings are acclaimed for their realism and their depiction of the violent,...
Neil Armstrong, First Man to Walk on the Moon
A pilot at 16, astronaut Neil Armstrong’s early years were spent in the skies, but his later years have been grounded in academia and...
Jane Addams, Social Settlement Worker
Jane Addams was a pioneer in the field of social work and co-founder of the Hull House, a settlement house for lower class immigrants...
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...
Paul Robeson, Entertainer and Social Activist
Paul Robeson was a renaissance man. Revered for his abilities on stage, on the football field, in the classroom and in the campaign for...
Milton Bradley, Father of the Modern Board Game
Milton Bradley is a household name for his creation of such board game classics as The Game of Life, but he was more than...
Dr. Spock, Pioneering Pediatrician
Pediatrician and psychoanalyst Dr. Benjamin Spock revolutionized modern child care when he encouraged parents to openly express affection and eschew physical discipline for their...
Elizabeth Blackwell, First Female Physician in America
When Elizabeth Blackwell was born in 1821, there were no formally trained female physicians in the Western world. But Blackwell graduated first in her...
Truman Capote, Investigative Journalist and Author
Writer Truman Capote emerged from the small town of Monroeville, Alabama, to become one of the most visible writers of the 1950s and ’60s....
Ravi Shankar, Renowned Indian Musician
Ravi Shankar, India’s most famous sitar player and composer, is credited with popularizing Indian music in the Western world, and with influencing musicians in...
