Kim Jong Il, North Korea’s “Dear Leader”
Kim Jong Il assumed power a few years after his father suffered a heart attack. The dictator had a reputation as a somewhat erratic...
Louis XV, King of France
King Louis XV of France was known as “the Well-Beloved,” although he apparently did little to earn the name. He reigned for nearly 60...
Magic Johnson, Legendary Basketball Player
His nimbleness on the court earned him the nickname “Magic,” and Earvin Johnson has truly lived up to it. Whether he was facing rival...
Elizabeth Blackwell, First Female Physician in America
When Elizabeth Blackwell was born in 1821, there were no formally trained female physicians in the Western world. But Blackwell graduated first in her...
Ronald Reagan, 40th President of the United States
Some consider Ronald Reagan the greatest president in contemporary American history: under his watch, the country saw the longest period of peacetime prosperity in...
Lauren Bacall, Actress
Lauren Bacall got her start at age 19 as a sultry screen siren alongside future husband Humphrey Bogart, 25 years her senior. She went...
Wynton Marsalis, Award Winning Trumpeter and Jazz and Classical Composer
Equally accomplished at jazz and classical music, bandleader and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis was the first jazz musician to win the Pulitzer Prize.
Wynton Marsalis' Early...
Terry Bradshaw, Quarterback of the Steelers Dynasty
Terry Bradshaw has made a career out of exceeding expectations. Though derided by fans as a country bumpkin, he deftly guided the Steelers to...
Walter Cronkite, CBS News Anchor
To his colleagues, he was “Old Iron Pants,” and to everyone else, he was “The Most Trusted Man in America.” For more than half...
Lincoln Steffens, One of the First Muckrakers
Lincoln Steffens was an American journalist active during the early 20th century. A famous muckraker, Steffens is remembered for pioneering a style of critical,...
