Auguste Escoffier, Innovative Chef and Inventor of the Chef’s Hat
Modern cuisine owes many of its practices to the great French chef Auguste Escoffier: he changed public dining in hotels and restaurants worldwide by...
Abigail Adams, First Lady
First Lady Abigail Adams became the first presidential wife to live in the White House when she joined her husband, John Adams, in Washington...
Osamu Tezuka, Japan’s “God of Comics”
Osamu Tezuka has been called the “god of comics” in Japan. After writing his first comic strip in third grade, Tezuka published his first...
Niccolò Machiavelli, Author of “The Prince”
Niccolò Machiavelli lived through one of the most tumultuous periods in Italian history. An early alliance with the wrong faction suspended his political career;...
Barbra Streisand, Singer, Actor, Director and Producer
In an industry dominated by larger-than-life personalities, Barbra Streisand is quite capable of holding her own. For decades, a unique style, strong sense of...
Peggy Guggenheim, Art Collector
American heiress Peggy Guggenheim was considered to be as intriguing as the art she collected. One of the pioneering collectors of Abstract Expressionism, she...
Studs Terkel, Author and Oral Historian
For 45 years, Studs Terkel conducted interviews with people from all walks of life. Through his radio program and published oral histories, Terkel was...
John D. Rockefeller, America’s First Billionaire
As the main shareholder of the notorious Standard Oil Trust, John D. Rockefeller was not only America’s first billionaire, he was also one of...
Roger Bannister, First Runner to Break the Four-Minute Mile
In 1954, British medical student Roger Bannister became the first man to break the four-minute mile barrier, earning him international admiration and to receive...
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...
