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Richard Allen
Civil Rights Activist, Minister, Journalist / 1760 - 1831
Born into slavery in 1760, Richard Allen bought his freedom at age 17 and went on to found the first national black church in the United States, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1816.
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(1760-1831)
Civil Rights Activist, Minister, Journalist
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Richard Ashcroft
Songwriter, Guitarist, Singer / 1971 -
English singer-songwriter Richard Ashcroft was the lead vocalist for the Verve. After the band broke up, Ashcroft started a new band, RPA & The United Nations of Sound, in 2010.
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(1971-)
Songwriter, Guitarist, Singer
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Richard Attenborough
Actor / 1923 -
Richard Attenborough is an award-winning actor and director known for helming acclaimed works like Gandhi and Cry Freedom.
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(1923-)
Actor
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Richard Avedon
Photographer / 1923 - 2004
American photographer Richard Avedon was best known for his work in the fashion world and for his minimalist, large-scale character-revealing portraits.
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(1923-2004)
Photographer
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Richard Axel
Neurologist / 1946 -
American neuroscientist Richard Axel is best known for his work on the olfactory system, exploring how the brain interprets smell.
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(1946-)
Neurologist
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Ricky Barnes
Golfer / 1981 -
Ricky Barnes, son of NFL player Bruce Barnes, is best know as an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour.
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(1981-)
Golfer
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Richard Blanco
Poet / 1968 -
Richard Blanco is the fifth inaugural poet of the United States, the first Latino and openly gay-identified person to hold the position.
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(1968-)
Poet
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Richard Branson
Entrepreneur / 1950 -
Entrepreneur Richard Branson launched Virgin Records in 1973. Today Virgin Group holds more than 200 companies in more than 30 countries.
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(1950-)
Entrepreneur
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Richard Brooks
Actor / 1962 -
African American actor Richard Brooks is best known for his role as Assistant District Attorney Paul Robinette in the first three seasons of NBC's Law & Order.
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(1962-)
Actor
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Richard Burton
Linguist, Scholar, Explorer / 1821 - 1890
Sir Richard Burton was a British explorer and linguist. He translated The Arabian Nights, and wrote extensively about his travels in Asia, Africa and America.
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(1821-1890)
Linguist, Scholar, Explorer
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Richard Burton
Film Actor / 1925 - 1984
Richard Burton was a highly regarded Welsh actor of stage and screen. He earned seven Oscar nominations and was married twice to actress Elizabeth Taylor.
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(1925-1984)
Film Actor
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Richard Byrd
Explorer, Pilot / 1888 - 1957
Richard E. Byrd was a naval officer and fearless explorer best known for being the first to reach the South Pole by air.
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(1888-1957)
Explorer, Pilot
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Richard Carlile
Civil Rights Activist, Women's Rights Activist, Publisher, Journalist / 1790 - 1843
Richard Carlile was a radical British journalist who is best known for advocating the freedom of the press, abolition of monarchy and the emancipation of women.
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(1790-1843)
Civil Rights Activist, Women's Rights Activist, Publisher, Journalist
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Richard Chamberlain
Actor / 1934 -
Richard Chamberlain was a leading television heartthrob of the early 1960s, best known for his role as Dr. Kildare on the television show Dr. Kildare.
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(1934-)
Actor
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Richard Clarke
Political Leader, Journalist / 1951 -
Richard Clarke is best known for being the chief counter-terrorism advisor under George W. Bush for the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
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(1951-)
Political Leader, Journalist
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Richard Dawson
Film Actor, Television Actor, Comedian, Game Show Host / 1932 - 2012
British comedian Richard Dawson is best known for his role as Corporal Newkirk in the World War II sitcom Hogan's Heroes and as the host of Family Feud.
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(1932-2012)
Film Actor, Television Actor, Comedian, Game Show Host
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Richard Dreyfuss
Actor / 1947 -
Richard Dreyfuss is an American actor known for his roles in Jaws, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, American Graffiti and The Goodbye Girl.
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(1947-)
Actor
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Richard Farnsworth
Film Actor, Television Actor / 1920 - 2000
Richard Farnsworth was a stuntman for 30 years before he started his career as an actor. He is best known for his performance in The Grey Fox (1982).
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(1920-2000)
Film Actor, Television Actor
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Richard Feynman
Academic, Inventor, Physicist / 1918 - 1988
American physicist Richard Feynman is an American physicist best known for his work in quantum mechanics. He assisted in the development of the atomic bomb.
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(1918-1988)
Academic, Inventor, Physicist
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Richard Buckminster Fuller
Environmental Activist, Architect, Engineer, Inventor, Poet / 1895 - 1983
Richard Buckminster Fuller was an American inventor, futurist, architect and author best known for popularizing the geodesic dome.
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(1895-1983)
Environmental Activist, Architect, Engineer, Inventor, Poet
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Richard Gere
Civil Rights Activist, Anti-War Activist, Film Actor, Theater Actor, Pianist, Philanthropist / 1949 -
Richard Gere is an American actor best known for his status as an American sex symbol and his leading film roles, including in Report to the Commissioner, American Gigolo, An Officer and A Gentleman, Pretty Woman and Chicago.
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(1949-)
Civil Rights Activist, Anti-War Activist, Film Actor, Theater Actor, Pianist, Philanthropist
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Moby
Singer / 1965 -
Musician, singer. Moby was born as Richard Melville Hall on September 11, 1965, in Harlem, New York. However, his parents felt that such a grand name was unsuited for such a small, fragile child and instead decided to call him Moby, after the eponymous
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(1965-)
Singer
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Richard Harris
Film Actor, Theater Actor / 1930 - 2002
Irish actor Richard Harris is best known for his performances as King Arthur in Broadway's Camelot and Albus Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films.
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(1930-2002)
Film Actor, Theater Actor
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Richard March Hoe
Entrepreneur, Inventor / 1812 - 1866
Richard March Hoe was an American inventor best known for manufacturing the first successful rotary printing press.
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(1812-1866)
Entrepreneur, Inventor
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Richard Jeni
Film Actor, Television Actor, Comedian, Talk Show Host / 1957 - 2007
Actor Richard Jeni was best known as a popular stand-up comedian, appearing often on television comedy shows, including a few of his own HBO comedy specials.
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(1957-2007)
Film Actor, Television Actor, Comedian, Talk Show Host
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Richard Mentor Johnson
Political Leader / 1780 - 1850
Richard Mentor Johnson was the ninth Vice President of the United States, serving in the Democratic administration of Martin Van Bruen.
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(1780-1850)
Political Leader
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Richard Henry Lee
U.S. Representative / 1732 - 1794
Richard Henry Lee was an American statesman from Virginia who made the motion for independence from Great Britain at the Second Continental Congress.
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(1732-1794)
U.S. Representative
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Richard Lewis
Actor, Comedian, Journalist / 1947 -
Angst-ridden and neurotic, Richard Lewis turned his private pain into a comic persona that served him as a standup comedian and versatile actor, adding author to his credits when he penned a memoir of struggling with sobriety.
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(1947-)
Actor, Comedian, Journalist
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Richard Loeb
Murderer / 1905 - 1936
Richard Loeb, of Leopold and Loeb, is best known for murdering 14-year old Bobby Franks with Nathan Leopold in an attempt to carry out the 'perfect crime'.
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(1905-1936)
Murderer
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Richard Nixon
U.S. President / 1913 - 1994
Richard Nixon was the 37th U.S. president and the only commander-in-chief to resign from his position, after the 1970s Watergate scandal.
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(1913-1994)
U.S. President
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Frank Oz
Director / 1944 -
Puppeteer Frank Oz is the man behind such iconic characters as Yoda, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Grover, and Animal. He's also directed several films.
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(1944-)
Director
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Richard D. Parsons
Entrepreneur, Lawyer / 1948 -
Richard D. Parsons is an American media executive best known as for his Chairman positions at Time Warner and Citigroup.
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(1948-)
Entrepreneur, Lawyer
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Richard Petty
Race Car Driver / 1937 -
Richard Petty is a champion NASCAR driver who was nicknamed "The King" for his record setting Daytona 500 and NASCAR championship wins.
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(1937-)
Race Car Driver
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Richard Pryor
Actor, Comedian, Screenwriter / 1940 - 2005
Richard Pryor was a groundbreaking African-American comedian and one of the top entertainers of the 1970s and '80s.
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(1940-2005)
Actor, Comedian, Screenwriter
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Richard Ramirez
Serial Killer / 1960 -
Richard "The Night Stalker" Ramirez is an American serial killer who left more than 25 victims in his wake. He is on death row at San Quentin Prison.
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(1960-)
Serial Killer
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Richard I
Folk Hero, Military Leader, Political Leader, King / 1157 - 1199
Richard I of England, better known as Richard the Lionheart, is best known as a great military leader who remains a enduring iconic figure in England today.
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(1157-1199)
Folk Hero, Military Leader, Political Leader, King
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Richard III
Political Leader, King / 1452 - 1485
Richard III was king of England for two turbulent years. He is best known for being accused of murdering his nephews to protect his throne.
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(1452-1485)
Political Leader, King
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Richard Rodgers
Songwriter, Singer / 1902 - 1979
From The Sound of Music to Oklahoma! to South Pacific, Richard Rodgers helped change the face of Broadway musicals, giving them stories and making them both memorable and "hum-able."
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(1902-1979)
Songwriter, Singer
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Richard Scrushy
Business Leader, White Collar Criminal / 1952 -
Richard Scrushy is a business executive who founded and ran HealthSouth before corruption landed him in prison.
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(1952-)
Business Leader, White Collar Criminal
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Richard W. Sears
Entrepreneur / 1863 - 1914
Richard W. Sears was an American merchant who is best known for developing his mail-order jewelry business into the retail company Sears, Roebuck.
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(1863-1914)
Entrepreneur
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Red Skelton
Film Actor, Television Actor, Painter, Comedian, Radio Personality, Television Personality / 1913 - 1997
Son of a circus clown, Red Skelton was a radio and television comedian and host best known for his emotionally complex routines.
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(1913-1997)
Film Actor, Television Actor, Painter, Comedian, Radio Personality, Television Personality
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Richard E Smalley
Chemist / 1943 - 2005
Richard E. Smalley was an American chemist best known for discovering a new form of carbon, for which he won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
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(1943-2005)
Chemist
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Richard Speck
Serial Killer / 1941 - 1991
In 1966, Richard Speck committed one of the most horrifying mass murders in American history when he brutalized and killed eight student nurses living on Chicago's South Side.
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(1941-1991)
Serial Killer
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Richard Wagner
Songwriter, Conductor / 1813 - 1883
Richard Wagner is best known for creating several complex operas, including Tristan and Isolde and Ring Cycle, as well as for his anti-semitic writings.
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(1813-1883)
Songwriter, Conductor
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Richard Widmark
Film Actor, Television Actor / 1914 - 2008
Actor Richard Widmark had a long and successful film career and is best known for his shocking debut as a psychopath in Kiss of Death.
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(1914-2008)
Film Actor, Television Actor
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Richard Wilson
Painter / 1714 - 1782
Richard Wilson is one of Britain's earliest landscape painters and is best known for the picturesque effects and serenity in his pieces.
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(1714-1782)
Painter
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Richard Wright
Journalist, Author, Poet / 1908 - 1960
Pioneering African-American writer Richard Wright is best known for the classic texts Black Boy and Native Son.
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(1908-1960)
Journalist, Author, Poet