Roald Dahl, Children’s Book Author
Known for his bestselling children’s novels, including “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” and “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” author Roald Dahl’s life was nearly as dark...
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...
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...
Eleanor Roosevelt, Philanthropist and Revolutionary First Lady
Eleanor Roosevelt was more than just a first lady. She was a politician in her own right, serving on the United Nations, promoting the...
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...
Lou Gehrig, the Yankees’ “Iron Horse”
Lou Gehrig anchored the Yankees’ “Bronx Bomber” teams of the 1920s, playing in a record-setting 2,130 consecutive games over 14 seasons. His career would...
Milton Bradley, Father of the Modern Board Game
Milton Bradley is a household name for his creation of such board game classics as The Game of Life, but he was more than...
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...
Neil Armstrong, First Man to Walk on the Moon
A pilot at 16, astronaut Neil Armstrong’s early years were spent in the skies, but his later years have been grounded in academia and...
Amelia Earhart, Record-Breaking Pilot
Amelia Earhart set the gold standard for “enlightened feminism.” She was dubbed “Lady Lindy” because of her likeness to aviator Charles Lindbergh, and because...
