Edward Jenner, Physician Who Discovered a Vaccination for Smallpox
An English physician who spent his early years studying fossils and birds, Edward Jenner discovered a vaccination for smallpox disease in 1796. His experiments...
Al Hirschfeld, Caricature Artist
Al Hirschfeld demonstrated prodigious artistic talent at an early age. As an adult, his technique was deceptively simple; he harnessed the power of a...
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...
Joseph Pulitzer, Founder of the Pulitzer Prizes
Hungarian immigrant Joseph Pulitzer was a lawyer, politician, journalist and publisher of the nation’s most widely circulated newspaper. He is remembered best as the...
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...
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....
James P. Johnson, Jazz Pianist
The 1920s were a dynamic time in American history. Flappers tested the limits of fashion. Bootleg liquor fought prohibition. In music, the era became...
Maria Montessori, Innovative Educator
Maria Montessori’s innovative approach to education left an indelible mark on the way in which we view child development. Her world-famous educational method focused...
Samuel Johnson, Dictionary Writer and Biographer
Not only did Samuel Johnson’s work define the literature of the 18th century, his dictionary defined the language. Sometimes called “the great convulsionary” for...
Martin Luther King Jr., Civil Rights Pioneer
Born into a life of religion, Martin Luther King Jr. used his faith to help guide a divided nation toward racial equality, breaking barriers...
