Ivana Trump was once the glamorous wife of real estate mogul Donald Trump.
1949-
1914-1984
Mary Tudor was queen of England from 1553 to 1558. She became known as "Bloody Mary" for her persecution of Protestants.
1516-1558
Lana Turner was a film actress and sex symbol who was "discovered" while drinking soda at a diner counter. She made over 50 films and was married seven times.
1921-1995
Known for her fashion design and tumultuous personal life, actress, writer and artist Gloria Vanderbilt became an iconic figure in American popular culture during the 20th century.
1924-
Jules Verne was a 19th century French author whose revolutionary science-fiction novels, including Around the World in Eighty Days and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, have entranced readers for more than a century.
1828-1905
Abe Vigoda has been a popular character actor in television and film for more than four decades. He landed his film break with a role in The Godfather.
1921-
1930-
Alice Walker is a Pulitzer Prize-winning, African-American novelist and poet most famous for authoring The Color Purple.
1944-
David Foster Wallace was a writer known for his dense short stories, magazine articles and novels, most notably the 1,200-page Infinite Jest.
1962-2008
George Washington was a leader of the Continental Army in the American Revolution, and was the first to become U.S. president.
1732-1799
Simone Weil was a French intellectual, activist and Christian Mystic.
1909-1943
Rutina Wesley is an African-American actress known for her role as Tara Thornton on the HBO vampire series True Blood.
1979-
Tom Wesselmann was a 20th century American painter associated with the Pop Art movement.
1931-2004
James West is an American inventor who developed the foil electret microphone, now used in 90 percent of all contemporary microphones, in 1962.
1931-
Vanna White is the longtime co-host of the popular game show Wheel of Fortune.
1957-
1861-1947
Pioneer author Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the autobiographical “Little House” kids’ book series, the basis of the popular television show Little House on the Prairie.
1867-1957
English actor Tom Wilkinson is best known for his Oscar-nominated roles in the films In the Bedroom and Michael Clayton.
1948-
1787-1870
American composer and conductor John Williams has scored more than 75 films, including Jaws, the Star Wars trilogy, E.T. and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.
1932-
Singer Robbie Williams got his start in the boy band Take That, before becoming a best-selling solo singer.
1974-
Cindy Wilson is best known as a vocalist for new wave rock band the B-52s. Her brother was fellow founding member Ricky Wilson.
1957-
Henry Wilson was the 18th vice president of the United States, serving from 1873 to 1875 with President Ulysses S. Grant.
1812-1875
Australia's Rebel Wilson is best known for her funny film roles, including Kristen Wiig's roommate in Bridesmaids and the character Fat Amy in Pitch Perfect.
1986-
1964-
1891-1942
Joanne Woodward is an award-winning American actress best known for her roles in The Three Faces of Eve (1957), Rachel Rachel (1968) and Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams (1973). Woodward is the widow of actor Paul Newman.
1930-
An abused child who later earned her living as a sex worker, Aileen Wuornos was found guilty of killing six men and was later executed in a Florida prison.
1956-2002
A World War II fighter pilot ace, Chuck Yeager was the first to break the sound barrier when he flew the Bell X-1 rocket 670 mph in level flight in 1947.
1923-
Boris Yeltsin was the first freely elected President of Russia. He voluntarily resigned from the post after nine years, leaving the job to Putin.
1931-2007
Rapper-producer Dr. Dre first made it big with hip hop group N.W.A. in 1980s. He has also enjoyed success as a solo act and worked with Snoop Dogg, Eminem and 50 Cent.
1965-
1954-
1923-
1946-
Zhang Ziyi is a celebrated film actress known for starring in films like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Rush Hour 2, 2046 and Memoirs of a Geisha.
1979-
1817-1893
1902-2002