Marlene Dietrich, Glamorous Siren of the Silver Screen

1901 An icon of sexuality and sensuality who captured her public with understated beauty and nonchalant charm, the German-born Marlene Dietrich was one of the...

Lincoln Steffens, One of the First Muckrakers

Lincoln Steffens was an American journalist active during the early 20th century. A famous muckraker, Steffens is remembered for pioneering a style of critical,...

Jimi Hendrix, Rock Guitarist, Singer and Songwriter

Jimi Hendrix revolutionized rock during the late 1960s with his songwriting, guitar playing and outrageous stage moves. Although he died young, his music and...

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...

Sandra Day O’Connor, First Female Supreme Court Justice

Sandra Day O’Connor endured a great deal of gender-based prejudice before she became the first woman to serve as a Supreme Court justice. During...

Richard Wright, Groundbreaking Author of “Black Boy” and “Native Son”

Richard Wright is known for landmark books like “Native Son” and “Black Boy.” Richard Wright’s Early Days Richard Wright was born near Natchez, Mississippi, on September...

Chuck Yeager, American Pioneer of Flight

Driven by an unshakable sense of duty and a love of life in the air, Chuck Yeager has spent decades pushing the boundaries of...

George Pullman, Inventor of the Sleeper Car

Inventor and industrialist George Pullman literally raised Chicago from the sewer and built luxury railroad cars for the elite. The media praised his “utopian”...

Joseph Heller, Author of “Catch-22”

Brooklyn-born author Joseph Heller is best known for coining the phrase “Catch-22” in his tragicomic World War II novel of the same name. Joseph Heller’s...

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....