Ursula K. Le Guin, Writer

Novelist, poet and translator Ursula Le Guin is best known for creating worlds of fantasy and of the far future, but that is only...

Billie Jean King, Tennis Star and Feminist Pioneer

Tennis star Billie Jean King spent her career campaigning for gender equality in sports. Her win in 1973’s highly publicized “Battle of the Sexes”...

Hedy Lamarr, Actress and Inventor

Hedy Lamarr was a woman perpetually ahead of her time. She shocked the world with some racy roles in the 1930s, and a decade...

Anna Freud, Pioneer in Child Psychoanalysis

Tirelessly devoted to both her renowned father and his revolutionary but controversial psychoanalytic theory, Anna Freud was Sigmund Freud’s youngest daughter, and sole heir...

Aesop, Ancient Creator of Fables

Aesop, who was most likely a Greek slave, is credited with creating numerous fables that were originally intended for adults but have evolved, over...

Percival Lowell, First to Imagine Life on Mars

A naturally gifted mathematician, Percival Lowell shunned convention to pursue theories that walked the line between science fiction and scientific prophecy. He was compelled...

Fred Astaire, Dancing Film Star and Elegant Showman

A Broadway star who ventured to Hollywood mid-career, Fred Astaire quickly became the era’s icon of grace, style and perfection. Alone or with a...

Elinor Ostrom, First Woman to Win the Nobel Prize in Economics

Elinor Ostrom won the 2009 Nobel Prize in Economics for her against-the-grain studies of how self-imposed regulation of common resources can be more efficient...

Maimonides, Jewish Philosopher and Theologian

Maimonides’ ability to harmonize philosophies of the Greco-Roman, medieval Western, Jewish and Islamic civilizations in the context of his own religious beliefs has established...

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...