Charles Atlas, Famed Bodybuilder
Legendary bodybuilder Charles Atlas became an icon in the 1920s as the man who transformed himself from a skinny weakling into a muscle-bound celebrity.
Charles...
Francis Scott Key, Author of “The Star-Spangled Banner”
Francis Scott Key was a Federalist, a lawyer, attorney general of Washington, D.C., a husband and the father of 11 children. An ancestor and...
Václav Havel, Playwright and Former President of the Czech Republic
Václav Havel was a revolutionary, a poet, a playwright and a president. Although he was reluctant to become a public figure, he has been...
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...
Tammy Wynette, Country Music’s First Lady
By the age of 20, Tammy Wynette was divorced with three children, and working two jobs. At the time, the singer performed just to...
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...
Peter the Great, Czar of Russia
Peter the Great became czar of Russia when he was only 10 years old. As a young man, he showed little interest in politics...
Edmund Hillary, First Man to Summit Mt. Everest
An explorer at heart, humble New Zealand beekeeper Edmund Hillary became the first man to reach the peak of Mount Everest in 1953, and...
Walt Whitman, “America’s Poet”
Walt Whitman helped transform the literary scene in the United States during the 19th century, becoming one of the most influential poets of his...
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...
