Auguste Escoffier, Innovative Chef and Inventor of the Chef’s Hat
Modern cuisine owes many of its practices to the great French chef Auguste Escoffier: he changed public dining in hotels and restaurants worldwide by...
Peggy Lee, Actress and Award-Winning Jazz-Pop Singer
Peggy Lee was a prolific, Grammy Award-winning vocalist, Academy Award-nominated actress and songwriter. Renowned for her emotive voice and sensual delivery, her most famous...
Charlie Chaplin, Silent Movie Star
Charlie Chaplin is one of the most familiar faces of the silent film era. With his expressive demeanor and comedic wit, this pioneering actor...
John D. Rockefeller, America’s First Billionaire
As the main shareholder of the notorious Standard Oil Trust, John D. Rockefeller was not only America’s first billionaire, he was also one of...
Eugene Debs, Labor Leader
Eugene V. Debs spearheaded labor movements, led the American Socialist Party and is remembered today for being an agitator who never shied from passionately...
Sultan Abdulhamid II, Ruler of the Ottoman Empire
Sultan Abdulhamid II, who ruled the Ottoman Empire for more than 30 years, earned a reputation both as an oppressive leader and a champion...
Niccolò Paganini, Violinist and Composer
Playing with a skill so dazzling and in so eerie a manner that it was seen as supernatural, violinist and composer Niccolò Paganini is...
Desmond Tutu, Former Archbishop of Cape Town and Anti-Apartheid Activist
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, one of the strongest crusaders for peace in the last century, has fought for equality since he was a young man....
William Shakespeare, Playwright, Poet and Actor
“He was not for an age but for all time,” said Ben Jonson in the dedication to William Shakespeare’s 1623 First Folio. It may...
Walt Whitman, “America’s Poet”
Walt Whitman helped transform the literary scene in the United States during the 19th century, becoming one of the most influential poets of his...
