Stanley Kunitz, American Poet
Stanley Kunitz was destined to be a poet. Kunitz once said, “There was so much joy in playing with the language that I couldn’t...
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....
Martin Scorsese, Director of “Taxi Driver” and “Raging Bull”
“It’s easy to think of Scorsese as a kind of poet of the underworld,” the American Film Institute reflected when they granted him a...
Meriwether Lewis, Western Explorer
Along with William Clark, Meriwether Lewis led the first expedition through the territory of the Louisiana Purchase, revealing the landscape and nature of the...
Margaret Sanger, Founder of Birth Control League (Planned Parenthood)
After seeing what she felt were too many women dying a result of unintended pregnancy, Margaret Sanger decided it was time for a revolution....
Jean Piaget, Developmental Psychologist
Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget was the first to realize that the cognitive processes of children differ from those of adults. Over his 75-year career...
Joseph Haydn, “the Father of the Symphony”
Known as “the Father of the Symphony,” Joseph Haydn's contribution to the world of music can be heard in every arrangement of melody, rhythm...
Oskar Schindler, Keeper of “List” That Saved 1,200 Jews
Oskar Schindler was a Nazi party member, philanderer and war profiteer who saved approximately 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust. Schindler is now revered as...
Eugene Debs, Labor Leader
Eugene V. Debs spearheaded labor movements, led the American Socialist Party and is remembered today for being an agitator who never shied from passionately...
Sultan Abdulhamid II, Ruler of the Ottoman Empire
Sultan Abdulhamid II, who ruled the Ottoman Empire for more than 30 years, earned a reputation both as an oppressive leader and a champion...
