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....
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...
Doris Lessing, Social Commentator and Nobel Prize Winner in Literature
A powerful, politically minded and acerbic Nobel Laureate, Britain's Doris Lessing was a treasured social commentator and novelist who continued her prolific and award-winning...
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...
Hans Christian Andersen, Poet and Author of Fairy Tales
Fairy tales may seem to have existed since the beginning of storytelling, but Hans Christian Andersen is the acknowledged father of the modern form....
Mark Spitz, Swimming Legend
Mark Spitz was a brash swimming prodigy who overcame disappointment in the 1968 Olympics to win seven gold medals in 1972, setting a record...
Claude Monet, Leader of the Impressionist School of Painting
French painter Claude Monet was the central figure of the Impressionist movement in the late 19th century, producing colorful, vibrant studies of natural and...
Marie Curie, Discoverer of Radium
The first woman in France to receive a doctorate degree, scientist Marie Curie is remembered for her discoveries in radioactivity and radioactive elements. Her...
Eliot Ness, Leader of the Prohibition-Era “Untouchables”
Eliot Ness had a distinguished career in law enforcement. He and his team of “Untouchables” fought against Al Capone and illegal bootlegging in Chicago...
J.R.R. Tolkien, Author of “The Lord of the Rings”
Philologist and English professor J.R.R. Tolkien popularized an entire genre of literature when he wrote his fantasy epic “The Lord of the Rings,” a...
