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...
Rosa Parks, Mother of the Civil Rights Movement
Rosa Parks was a seamstress and NAACP secretary whose simple act of civil disobedience—her refusal to give up her seat on the bus to...
Marshall McLuhan, Canadian Philosopher
As a prolific lecturer, author and communication theorist, Marshall McLuhan explored the implications of technology on society, encouraging people to reconsider their relationship with...
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...
Melvin Van Peebles, Writer, Director and Actor
Melvin Van Peebles has been called a renaissance man, displaying his multi-genre talents writing screenplays, novels, plays and music, in addition to acting in...
Kim Jong Il, North Korea’s “Dear Leader”
Kim Jong Il assumed power a few years after his father suffered a heart attack. The dictator had a reputation as a somewhat erratic...
Jack Dempsey, Legendary Boxer
Jack Dempsey was one of the great figures of the “golden age of sports” in the 1920s, a ruthless fighter known for brutal early-round...
Jack Kerouac, Beat Author of “On the Road”
Jack Kerouac’s beatnik persona has reached near mythical levels. But the author of “On the Road” never enjoyed his celebrity status, and lived a...
Margaret Thatcher, Former British Prime Minister
Known as the “Iron Lady,” British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was the first woman to lead a Western democracy, a position she held for...
Harry S. Truman, 33rd President of the United States
Early on, it hardly seemed as if Harry S. Truman—a farmer, an army captain in World War I and a haberdasher—was on track to...
