People a to z

Film and television actress Tippi Hedren was discovered by director Alfred Hitchcock and starred in two of his best known films, The Birds and Marnie.

Hugh Hefner created the adult entertainment magazine Playboy. Today, the Playboy brand includes an extensive publishing, TV and internet empire.

German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel was one of the creators of German Idealism. He explored how contradictions ultimately integrated.

Dorothy Height was a civil rights and women's rights activist focused primarily on improving the circumstances of and opportunities for African-American women.

Katherine Heigl is an American actress best known for her Emmy Award-winning role on Grey's Anatomy and starring role in the comedic film Knocked Up.

Painter, Al Held was know for his painting complex cube-like structures in the 1960s, and his precise and brightly colored geometric forms in the 1980s.

Based on his experience, novelist Joseph Heller wrote the satirical novel Catch-22, considered one of the most significant works of postwar protest literature.

Lillian Hellman was a playwright and screenwriter whose dramas attacked injustice, exploitation and selfishness.

Musician and singer Levon Helm was a member of the influential rock group, The Band, and a Grammy Award-winning solo artist.

Ed Helms is an actor, comedian, singer and musician known for his work on The Daily Show, The Office and The Hangover films.

Republican, Jesse Helms was a United States Senator from North Carolina who served for five terms (1973-2003). He was known for his right-wing politics and opposition to civil rights legislation.

Sally Hemings was an enslaved African-American woman who’s believed to have had several children with one-time U.S. president Thomas Jefferson.

Nobel Prize winner Ernest Hemingway is seen as one of the great American 20th century novelists, and is known for works like A Farewell to Arms and The Old Man and the Sea.

Actor Sherman Hemsley played the popular television character George Jefferson in All in the Family and The Jeffersons in the 1970s and 1980s.

Liam Hemsworth is an Australian actor of television and film known for his roles in Neighbours, The Last Song and The Hunger Games.

Actress Christina Hendricks, named the sexiest woman alive by Esquire magazine, is known for playing Joan Holloway on the TV series Mad Men.

Guitarist, singer, and songwriter, Jimi Hendrix delighted audiences in the 1960s with his outrageous electric guitar playing skills and his experimental sound.

Sonja Henie was a Norwegian figure skater who won three Olympic gold medals. After retiring from skating, she acted in Hollywood films like The Thin Ice.

Don Henley is a musician who was a founding member of the Eagles and later went on to great solo success with such songs as "Boys of Summer."

Jill Hennessy is an actress, singer, musician and restaurateur known for her work in TV series like Law & Order and Crossing Jordan.

Doug Henning was a magician known the world over for his tricks performed on TV and Broadway and in Las Vegas.

Patrick Henry was a brilliant orator and a major figure of the American Revolution, perhaps best known for his words "Give me liberty or give me death!"

Henry IV Holy Roman Emperor became king of Germany in 1056 and was abdicated in 1105. He overthrew Pope Gregory VII because of a disagreement about imperial rule.

Henry IV was King of France 1589–1610. The first monarch of France’s Bourbon Dynasty, he issued The Edict of Nantes, granting religious freedom to Protestants.

Henry V served as joint king of Germany with Henry IV until he forced his father to abdicate the throne. Holy Roman emperor from 1111 to 1125, he was the last of the Salian line.

Henry VI was the German king and Holy Roman emperor (1165-1197). His main achievement was increasing his dynasty's power by acquiring of the kingdom of Sicily.

Henry VII was a 13th century German king and son of Frederick II, who was Holy Roman emperor.

Henry VII became the first House of Luxembourg member to serve as king of Germany in 1308. In 1312, he became the House of Luxembourg's first Holy Roman Emperor.

Henry VIII, king of England, was famously married six times and played a critical role in the English Reformation, turning his country into a Protestant nation.

Jim Henson was an American puppeteer best known for creating TV characters, including the Muppets, and for his work on the popular children's show Sesame Street.

Escaped slave and minister Josiah Henson became involved in the Underground Railroad, leading slaves to freedom and developed his own Afro-Canadian community.

Matthew Henson was an African American explorer best known as the co-discoverer of the North Pole with Robert Edwin Peary in 1909.

African-American actress Taraji Henson starred in Hustle and Flow, and earned an Academy Award nomination for her role in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

Actress Audrey Hepburn, star of Breakfast at Tiffany's, remains one of Hollywood's greatest style icons and one of the world's most successful actresses.

Katharine Hepburn was an actress known as a spirited performer with a touch of eccentricity in films such as The African Queen and On Golden Pond.

English poet George Herbert was an ordained priest. His book, The Temple: Sacred Poems and Private Ejaculations, was published posthumously.

In 2012, Pedro Hernandez confessed to the killing of Etan Patz, a young boy whose 1979 disappearance made national headlines.

James Herriot was a British veterinarian and author best known for his books detailing life as a country vet. Two films and a TV series were based on his book All Creatures Great and Small.

Bernard Herrmann was an American composer best known as the author of scores for Orson Welles and Alfred Hitchcock films including Citizen Kane and Psycho.

American biologist A.D. Hershey won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1969 for his research done on viruses that infect bacteria.

American manufacturer and philanthropist who founded the Hershey Chocolate Corporation and popularized chocolate candy throughout much of the world.

Journalist Theodor Herzl responded to the anti-Semitism he witnessed while covering the Dreyfus Affair by starting the World Zionist Organization.

Adolf Hitler appointed Rudolf Hess deputy of the Nazi party in 1939. Following World War II, Hess was convicted at the Nuremberg Trials and sentenced to life in prison.

Charlton Heston was an American film actor best known for his roles in Antony and Cleopatra, The Ten Commandments, Ben Hur and Planet of the Apes (1968).

James Hetfield is the lead guitarist and vocalist for heavy metal band Metallica, known for hits like "Enter Sandman" and "The Memory Remains."

Don Hewitt was a television producer who created the long-running news show 60 Minutes.

Jennifer Love Hewitt is an American actress and singer-songwriter best known for her role on the TV show Party of Five and her part in I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Norwegian adventurer Thor Heyerdahl made a celebrated journey aboard a raft called Kon-Tiki in 1947, and later wrote an international best-seller about his amazing expedition.

Musician Frederick "Toots" Hibbert helped define reggae with his band Toots and the Maytals. Their 2004 album, True Love, won a Grammy in 2005.

Robert Hichens was a British mariner best known for being at the wheel of the RMS Titanic when it hit the iceberg that resulted in its sinking.

Wild Bill Hickok was an American frontiersman, army scout and lawman who helped bring order to the frontier West.

Taylor Hicks is an American singer-songwriter who rose to fame after his win on the fifth season of American Idol.

Mary Higgins Clark is a bestselling author of mystery and suspense books, best known for the novel Where Are the Children?

American fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger created a brand of clothing that was extremely popular with several different communities in the 1990s.

Benny Hill, the British comedian, is best known for his long running comedy series that would play in 109 countries.

Faith Hill is a Grammy award-winning singer with numerous hits on the country and pop charts. She's married to Tim McGraw.

Director George Roy Hill produced some of the most popular films of the 1960s and 1970s, including Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

Henry Hill was a member of the Lucchese crime family who became a federal informant, inspiring the Martin Scorsese movie Goodfellas.

James J. Hill was a railroad magnate responsible for greatly expanding railways into the U.S. northwest during the late 19th century.

Writer and actor Jonah Hill starred in the teen hit Superbad. In 2011, he received an Oscar nomination for his performance in Moneyball.

When singer, songwriter and actress Lauryn Hill released her solo debut album, she became the first woman or hip-hop artist to win five Grammy Awards.

Steven Hill is a Jewish-American actor known for his roles in Mission Impossible and on Law & Order.

20th century explorer and mountaineer Edmund Hillary was the first to reach the peak of Mt. Everest along with fellow climber Tenzing Norgay.

Conrad Hilton founded the Hilton Hotel empire and grew it into one of the largest private companies in the U.S., consisting of over 3600 hotels worldwide.

Paris Hilton is best known as the Heiress and Reality star that courts regular media attention for her socialite lifestyle and short-lived romances.

Heinrich Himmler was commander of Hitler's Schutzstaffel, and later of the Gestapo in Nazi Germany. After World War II, he committed suicide to escape capture.

John Hinckley Jr. gained national notoriety in 1981 when he attempted to assassinate President Ronald Reagan outside of a Washington, D.C. hotel.

Myra Hindley was an serial killer of small children, murders she committed in partnership with boyfriend Ian Brady.

On the big screen, actor Ciaran Hinds is best known for his work in period dramas. He made his debut as one of the medieval knights in 1981’s Excalibur.

Lewis Hines was a photographer known for his documentation of exploited child workers and government projects.

American actress Cheryl Hines is known for her Emmy Award-nominated role as Cheryl David, Larry David's wife, on HBO comedy 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' which began in 2000.

Gregory Hines began dancing as a child and went on to launch a successful Broadway, television and film career. His notable movies include The Cotton Club and White Nights.