Richard Wright, Groundbreaking Author of “Black Boy” and “Native Son”

Richard Wright is known for landmark books like “Native Son” and “Black Boy.” Richard Wright’s Early Days Richard Wright was born near Natchez, Mississippi, on September...

Truman Capote, Investigative Journalist and Author

Writer Truman Capote emerged from the small town of Monroeville, Alabama, to become one of the most visible writers of the 1950s and ’60s....

Hayao Miyazaki, the Japanese Walt Disney

Animator Hayao Miyazaki is often called the Japanese equivalent of Walt Disney. His prodigious imagination has given rise to Japan’s most popular manga, animated...

Tenzin Gyatso, Tibet’s 14th Dalai Lama

Tenzin Gyatso was recognized as the 14th Dalai Lama at the age of 2. He has been serving as Tibet’s political leader since age...

Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Fashion Icon and First Lady

Her pillbox hat, her love of family and her passion for the arts compose the portrait of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. As a young widow,...

Mary Lyon, Champion of Women’s Higher Education

Mary Lyon was a progressive educator and pioneer of women’s higher education. In 1837 she founded the Mount Holyoke Female Seminary in South Hadley,...

Oskar Schindler, Keeper of “List” That Saved 1,200 Jews

Oskar Schindler was a Nazi party member, philanderer and war profiteer who saved approximately 1,200 Jews during the Holocaust. Schindler is now revered as...

W.E.B. Du Bois, Civil Rights Pioneer and Social Historian

A tireless activist and scholar, W.E.B. Du Bois wrote “The Souls of Black Folk” and was a founding member of the National Association for...

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...

Rainer Maria Rilke, Author of “Letters to a Young Poet”

Rainer Maria Rilke spent his life traveling the globe. Despite a variety of lovers and locales—Prague, Munich, Rome, Paris and Switzerland—Rilke remained alone, seeking...