Louise Glück is a poet whose work has been described as technically precise, sensitive, insightful and gripping.
Tracey Gold is an actress who shot to stardom in the 1980s on the hit TV show Growing Pains.
Kim Gordon is the bass player for the band Sonic Youth as well as an artist and clothing designer.
Lesley Gore is a singer-songwriter best remembered for her 1963 smash single "It's My Party." Gore also scored hits with "Maybe I Know" and "You Don't Own Me."
Author Sue Grafton is the creator of the popular mystery novels featuring private investigator Kinsey Millhone, which began with 1982's A Is for Alibi.
Martha Graham is considered by many to be the 20th century's most important dancer and the mother of modern dance.
Ulysses S. Grant served as U.S. general and commander of the Union armies during the late years of the American Civil War, later becoming the 18th U.S. president.
Mike Gravel is a former U.S. senator from Alaska, known for his efforts to end the draft during the Vietnam War and for releasing the Pentagon Papers.
Charles Grodin is an actor, comedian and talk show host known for his roles in The Heartbreak Kid and Beethoven.
Grace Gummer is an American actress best known as the daughter of Academy Award-winner Meryl Streep.
In 1966, Thomas Watt Hamilton attacked a classroom at the Dunblane Primary School in Scotland.
After earning a fortune in the cigar industry, Oscar Hammerstein I, grandfather of lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II, built numerous theaters and opera houses.
Scottish actor John Hannah played a supporting role opposite Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell in Four Weddings and a Funeral and was also in Sliding Doors.
Playwright and activist Lorraine Hansberry wrote A Raisin in the Sun and was the first black playwright and the youngest American to win a New York Critics’ Circle award.
During his all-too-brief life, artist Keith Haring became a sensation in the art world with his bold, cartoon and graffiti influenced works during the 1980s.
In 1982, Jean Harris shot and killed author and cardiologist Herman Tarnower, who wrote the international best-seller The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet.
Lorenz Hart was an American lyricist best known for his collaborations with Richard Rodgers, including "My Funny Valentine" and "Blue Moon."
World Wrestling Federation fans knew Owen Hart as "the Rocket" or "the Blue Blazer." He died tragically during a pre-match publicity stunt when he fell 90 feet.
Tony Hawk is a professional skateboarder, probably the most famous to ever be involved in the sport.
Economist F.A. Hayek was noted for his criticisms of the Keynesian welfare state and of totalitarian socialism. In 1974 he shared the Nobel Prize for Economics.
Charles Melville Hays was president of the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway and a victim of the Titanic disaster of 1912.
William Randolph Hearst is best known for publishing the largest chain of American newspapers in the late 19th century, and particularly for sensational "yellow journalism."
Based on his experience, novelist Joseph Heller wrote the satirical novel Catch-22, considered one of the most significant works of postwar protest literature.
Actress Christina Hendricks, named the sexiest woman alive by Esquire magazine, is known for playing Joan Holloway on the TV series Mad Men.
Doug Henning was a magician known the world over for his tricks performed on TV and Broadway and in Las Vegas.
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.
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.
Hirohito is best known for being Japan's longest-reigning emperor. His reign lasted from 1926 until his death in 1989. He was a controversial leader who led Japan's military to surrender to the Allied Forces in 1945.
Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazi Germany from 1934 to 1945. He initiated World War II and oversaw fascist policies that resulted in millions of deaths.
Academy Award-winning actress Celeste Holm is known for her roles in the 1943 Broadway musical Oklahoma! and the film Gentleman's Agreement.
H.H. Holmes was the alias of one of America's first serial killers. During the 1893 Columbian Exposition, he lured victims into his elaborate "murder castle."
Actor/director Dennis Hopper came to fame with 1969's Easy Rider. Later films like Blue Velvet and River's Edge cemented his legend.
At 16, Sarah Hughes won the 2002 Olympic women’s figure skating gold medal as the result of a thrilling long program.
British singer Engelbert Humperdinck made it big in 1967 with hit song "Release Me (And Let Me Love Again)."
As dictator of Iraq, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, leading to the Persian Gulf War in 1992. His downfall was a direct effect of the Iraq War, initiated by the U.S. in 2003. Hussein was executed in 2006.
Enrique Iglesias is a Spanish singer known for several hit songs, including "Bailamos," "Rhythm Divine," "Be With You," "Escape" and "Hero." He is the son of Spanish singer Julio Iglesias.
Cuban born writer Guillermo Infante was a success for many works, including Tres tristes tigres, winning the Miguel Cervantes literary prize in 1997.
William Inge was a playwright best known for his plays Come Back, Little Sheba; Picnic, for which he won a Pulitzer Prize; and Bus Stop.
Glenda Jackson is best known for her Academy Award winning roles in Women in Love and A Touch of Class.
Jackie Jackson was the oldest member of the group Jackson 5, which included his four brothers Michael, Tito, Jermaine and Marlon Jackson.
The younger sister of Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson is one of the best-selling artists in contemporary history. Her albums include Control and Rhythym Nation.
Katherine Jackson is best known for being the mother of international pop superstar Michael Jackson.
Author and activist Jane Jacobs wrote about preserving urban neighborhoods, in books like The Death and Life of Great American Cities and Dark Age Ahead.
Jim James is a singer, songwriter, guitarist and founding member of the psychedelic rock band My Morning Jacket. Under the name Yim Yames, he created his first solo album, Tribute To, to honor the music of George Harrison.
Comedian and actor Kevin James is best known for his nine-season turn as Doug Heffernan on the CBS sitcom, The King of Queens.
Judith Jamison, choreographer and dancer, has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the Kennedy Center Honors and the National Medal of Arts.
Jazz pianist, composer and saxophonist Keith Jarrett is considered one of the most original and prolific jazz musicians to emerge during the late 20th century.
Singer Billy Joel topped the charts in the 1970s and '80s with hits like "Piano Man," "Uptown Girl" and "We Didn't Start the Fire."
Dwayne Johnson became a film actor (2001's The Mummy) after gaining fame with the World Wrestling Federation as "The Rock."
Adored for his cool, mellow style, folk singer Jack Johnson has sold millions of records since his 2001 debut release, Brushfire Fairytales.
Musician Robert Johnson is best known as one of the greatest blues performers of all time, a recognition that came largely after his death at age 27.
Jim Jones was best known as the cult leader of the Peoples Temple who led more than 900 followers in a mass suicide via cyanide-laced punch known as the Jonestown Massacre.
William Joyce is best known for his involvement in the British Fascist Party during World War II and immigrating to Nazi Germany.
Reggae and ska musician Judge Dread produced a string of hits in the 1970s, such as Big Six and several others that were banned by the BBC for their sexual innuendo.
First female politician,attorney to serve as solicitor general of the United States of America.
Industrialist Henry J. Kaiser capitalized on U.S. mobilization for WWII and grew his ship building company into a multi-billion dollar corporation.
Professional soccer player Kaká helped São Paulo take home the World Cup title in 2002. He later lead Milan to Champions League and Club World Cup titles.
Immanuel Kant was a German philosopher during the Enlightenment era of the late 18th century. His best known work is the Critique of Pure Reason.
Raden Adjeng Kartini is a Javanese noblewoman and is best known as a pioneer in the area of women's rights for native Indonesians.
Harvey Keitel is best known for his work with director Martin Scorsese in the films Mean Streets and Taxi Driver.
Mohammad Ayub Khan was president of Pakistan from 1958 to 1969, giving birth to modern-day Pakistan. He introduced a system of basic democracies in 1960.
Søren Kierkegaard was a 19th century Danish philosopher who wrote about Christian belief systems and helped birth existentialism.
Coretta Scott King was an American civil rights activist and the wife of 1960s civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Jack Klugman is an American actor best known for his role as Oscar Madison in the Broadway play The Odd Couple and the TV series of the same name.
Jordan Knight is best known for performing in New Kids on the Block, a boy band that produced many hit songs in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
Bill Kreutzmann was the drummer for the Grateful Dead, along with Mickey Hart. Together, they were known as the band's "rhythm devils." Kreutzmann toured with the band for 30 years.
Tim LaHaye is an evangelical Christian minister who helped found the Moral Majority and co-wrote the best-selling Left Behind series.
Edwin Land is best known as the inventor of the Polaroid camera and film, and as the co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation.
Jessica Lange is an award-winning American actress best known for her roles in King Kong, Tootsie and Grey Gardens.
Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 first-graders and six adults at Sandy Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on December 14, 2012, before shooting himself.
American actress Cloris Leachman has had a long, successful career in television and film, playing a range of dramatic and comedic roles.
Harper Lee is best known for writing the Pulitzer Prize-winning best-seller To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)—her one and only published novel.
Vladimir Lenin was founder of the Russian Communist Party, leader of the Bolshevik Revolution and architect and first head of the Soviet state.
Jay Leno is the late-night talk show host of The Tonight Show. Fallon announced plans to exit the long-running series in April 2013.
Sugar Ray Leonard was a champion Olympic and professional welterweight boxer. He retired from the sport in 1997 and was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame.