Famous People Who Won Awards a to z

Actress Danica McKellar played Winnie Cooper on The Wonder Years. She has also written a series of New York Times best-sellers, including Math Doesn't Suck.

American film star Steve McQueen was one of the most popular and well-paid actors of the 1960s and ‘70s. He starred in films like The Great Escape, Bullit and The Getaway.

Janet McTeer is an English television, stage and film actress best known for her Golden Globe-winning performance in Tumbleweeds.

Jayne Meadows is an American actress best known for her television work on I’ve Got a Secret (1952-'59). She is the wife of comedian Steve Allen.

Angela Merkel is a German politician best known as the first female chancellor of Germany and one of the architects of the European Union.

Argentina native Lionel Messi has established records for goals scored and won individual awards en route to worldwide recognition as the best player in soccer.

During the 2000s, actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers continued to shine in a wide array of film genres. Notable films include 2001’s Prozac Nation with Christina Ricci.

Stephenie Meyer is best known for authoring the Twilight book series, which was later adapted for a film franchise.

American athlete Phil Mickelson began golfing as soon as he could walk, and is now one of the foremost successful golfers in the world.

Dennis Miller is an Emmy-winning comedian and actor known for his biting humor filled with esoteric and wide-ranging knowledge.

Spike Milligan was an Irish writer and comedian best known for his work on The Goon Show.

As a child star, film and television actress Hayley Mills won an Oscar for her title role in the Disney movie Pollyanna, and went on to star in The Parent Trap.

Hip-hop artist Nicki Minaj was featured in seven songs on Billboard's Hot 100 at the same time, even before the release of her debut album in 2010.

Anthony Minghella was an Academy Award-winning director best known for his adaptation of Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient. Released in 1996, the film claimed the Oscar for best picture in 1997.

Catalan painter Joan Miró combined abstract art with Surrealist fantasy to create his lithographs, murals, tapestries, and sculptures for public spaces.

A legendary tough guy on and off-screen, Robert Mitchum was one of the most memorable leading men of the twentieth century.

Fashion designer Issey Miyake used new technology to create innovative textiles with both Eastern and Western influences for his clothing line, Pleats Please.

Actress Marilyn Monroe overcame a difficult childhood to become of the world's biggest and most enduring sex symbols. She died of a drug overdose in 1962.

Juan Pablo Montoya reigned as the Colombian National Carting Champion from 1981 through 1984. By 1992, he was winning Colombian Formula Renault races.

Tennis player Helen Wills Moody was the first female athlete to become an international star, winning 31 Grand Slam titles during her career.

Contrasting her edgy, tomboyish style with that of her female popstar peers, Pink has had huge success with hits like "You Make Me Sick" and "There You Go".

Roger Moore is a British actor best known for his role as James Bond in seven films from 1973-'85.

Jeanne Moreau is a French actress, best known for her performances in French New Wave films of the 1950s and 60s.

Garrett Morgan blazed a trail for African-American inventors with his many patents, including those for a hair-straightening product, a breathing device, and an improved sewing machine and traffic signal.

Henry Morgan was a Welsh Admiral who raided Spanish settlements in the late 17th century. He is accounted as one of the most notorious buccaneers in history.

With her incredibly thin, boyish body, model Kate Moss created quite a stir in the modeling world, launching what became known as the waif look.

Constance Baker Motley was a legal advocate in the Civil Rights Movement. She became the first female African-American federal judge in 1966.

Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad is a professor, author and media commentator who is executive director of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.

Shirley Muldowney is recognized as one of the top professional car racers in the world, having earned the moniker "First Lady of Drag Racing."

American actor Paul Muni is best known for his film and stage portrayals of noted historical figures. He was nominated five times for the Academy Awards.

Cillian Murphy is an Irish movie actor known for the diversity of his roles in films ranging from Breakfast on Pluto to Batman Begins, and for his bright blue eyes.

Comedian and actor Bill Murray is best known for his roles on Saturday Night Live and in the classic comedies Caddy Shack and Stripes. More recently, he was cast as FDR in the film Hyde Park on Hudson.

Luis Muñoz Marín was Puerto Rico's first governor, serving four terms.

James Nachtwey is an American photographer best known for his work documenting wars, civil strife and other social conflicts. His work has appeared in Time magazine and in international solo exhibitions.

Sir V.S. Naipaul is a Trinidadian-British writer of Indian descent known for his novels set in developing countries. He won the Nobel Prize in 2001 for his novel, Half a Life.

Liam Neeson is an Irish actor known for his strong leading-man roles and for his role as Qui-Gon Jinn in the three prequels to Star Wars.

Jennifer Nettles is an American country music vocalist, best known as the lead singer of the popular group Sugarland.

Professional golfer Jack Nicklaus, nicknamed "the Golden Bear," won the U.S. Open four times and the Professional Golfers Association championship five times.

Florence Nightingale, a nurse, spent her night rounds giving personal care to the wounded, establishing her image as the 'Lady with the Lamp.'

Leonard Nimoy is an actor who has played Spock in both the 1960s TV series Star Trek and several movies based on the show.

Chuck Norris has starred in such action films as Return of the Dragon and Missing in Action. He also had a hit TV series called Walker, Texas Ranger.

Film actress Kim Novak was a leading box-office attraction of the 1950s, perhaps the last of the ‘sex goddesses’ produced by the Hollywood star system.

Antonia C. Novello is a former U.S. surgeon general who was the first woman and first person of Latin descent to hold the position.

Famed Russian-born male dancer Rudolf Nureyev was a soloist for the Kirov Ballet and a choreographer for the Paris Opera Ballet.

Flannery O'Connor is considered one of the best short story authors of the 20th century. She wrote about religious themes and southern life.

Sandra Day O'Connor was the first woman appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court. A Republican, she was considered a moderate conservative and served for 24 years.

Walter O'Malley was the influential president of the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers for nearly 30 years.

Ryan O’Neal is an Oscar-nominated actor known for films like Love Story, What’s Up, Doc?, Barry Lyndon and The Main Event.

Maureen O'Sullivan was an actress best known for playing Jane in the Tarzan film series opposite Johnny Weismuller.

Ronnie O’Sullivan is an English Snooker player best known as one of the most talented and awarded athletes in the sport.

Michelle Obama is a lawyer, Chicago city administrator and community outreach worker, as well as the wife of U.S. President Barack Obama and the 44th first lady.

St Clare of Assisi was one of the first followers of Saint Francis of Assisi. She became the abbess of the convent of San Damiano, near Assisi in 1216. In 1958 she was declared the Patron of television.

St. Catherine of Siena was a Dominican tertiary who worked to return the papacy from France to Italy. She is one of two patron saints of Italy.

St. John of the Cross was a Spanish poet whose work is considered the summit of mystical Spanish literature. He was glorified as a saint in 1726 by Pope Bendict XIII.

Sandra Oh is a Canadian actress best known for her role as Dr. Cristina Yang on the hit television series Grey's Anatomy.

Michael Oher is an NFL football player with the Baltimore Ravens. He was the subject of Michael Lewis's book, The Blind Side, and the 2009 film of the same name.

Jan Hendrik Oort was a Dutch astronomer who confirmed that the Milky Way rotates in its own plane around the center of the galaxy.

J. Robert Oppenheimer is often called the "father of the atomic bomb" for leading the Manhattan Project, the program that developed the first nuclear weapon during World War II.

José Clemente Orozco was a painter who helped lead the revival of Mexican mural painting in the 1920s. His works are complex and often tragic.

Sharon Osbourne is known as the wife of legendary rock star Ozzy Osbourne and a television personality who's been featured on several programs, including The Osbournes and The Talk.

Queen Latifah is an American rapper, record producer and actress known for her roles in the films Set it Off, Bone Collector, Last Holiday and Chicago.

Jack Paar had no singing, dancing or acting talent, but he was blessed with "the gift of gab." That gift was enough to endear him to millions of American television viewers during his tenure as host of The Tonight Show (1957-1962).

Manny Pacquiao has won world boxing titles in eight different weight divisions, and is considered one of the world's best boxers.

Academy Award-winning actress Anna Paquin has appeared in such films as The Piano and X-Men, and the television drama True Blood.

Dorothy Parker was the sharpest wit of the Algonquin Round Table, as well as a master of short fiction and a blacklisted screenwriter.

Gordon Parks was an African-American photographer, filmmaker and author, best known for his work published in LIFE magazine and for directing the hit movie Shaft.