One of America’s richest men is now its no. 2 real estate broker. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway bought HomeServices of America, Inc. in 2000; the company has since grown through acquisitions, including Long & Foster Cos. last year, to dominate its business sector.

Barack Obama was the 44th president of the United States, and the first African American to serve in the office. First elected to the presidency in 2008, he won a second term in 2012.

Radio distress calls picked up by locals and the government may offer clues to Amelia Earhart’s disappearance and destiny in the days after, according to a new report by Richard Gillespie, executive director of The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery.

Shirley Chisholm became the first African-American congresswoman in 1968. Four years later, she became the first major-party black candidate to make a bid for the U.S. presidency.

Madeleine Albright became the first woman to represent the U.S. in foreign affairs as the secretary of state.

James Franco is an American actor who earned notice on the series 'Freaks and Geeks' before going on to starring roles in 'Spider-Man,' 'Flyboys,' 'Milk,' '127 Hours' and 'The Disaster Artist.'

Ursula Le Guin, who pushed boundaries as a female writer in male-dominated fantasy and science fiction genres, has died at 88. The author was known for her novels including ‘The Left Hand of Darkness,’ ‘A Wizard of Earthsea,’ ‘The Tombs of Atuan’ and ‘The Farthest Shore.’

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson hosted NOVA ScienceNow and makes media appearances to encourage science and space exploration.

Marie M. Daly is best known for being the first African-American woman to receive a Ph.D. in chemistry in the United States.

Chelsea Clinton is the daughter of Hillary Rodham Clinton and former U.S. President Bill Clinton.

Alicia Keys is a multiple Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter whose debut album, Songs in A Minor, went platinum five times over.

Hall of Fame first baseman Lou Gehrig played for the New York Yankees in the 1920s and 1930s, setting the mark for consecutive games played. He died of ALS in 1941.

Charles Drew was an African-American surgeon who pioneered methods of storing blood plasma for transfusion and organized the first large-scale blood bank in the U.S.

Jack Kerouac was an American writer best known for the novel On the Road, which became an American classic, pioneering the Beat Generation in the 1950s.

Alexander Hamilton, a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and major author of the Federalist papers, was the United States' first secretary of the treasury.

Anthony Perkins is an Oscar-nominated stage and film actor who is best known for his role as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.

Oscar Hammerstein II collaborated with Richard Rodgers on popular musicals such as ‘Oklahoma!,’ ‘South Pacific,’ ‘Carousel,’ ‘The King and I,’ and ‘The Sound of Music.’

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."

James Meredith is a civil rights activist who became the first African American to attend the University of Mississippi in 1962.

The son of John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon has contributed to groups as a musician and producer, and has released multiple albums as a solo artist.

Upton Sinclair was an activist writer whose works, including 'The Jungle' and 'Boston,' often uncovered social injustices.

Allen Ginsberg is one of the 20th century's most influential poets, regarded as a founding father of the Beat Movement and known for works like "Howl."

Writer E.L. Doctorow is the author of novels including Ragtime, Billy Bathgate and The Book of Daniel.

With his landmark novel Catcher in the Rye, J.D. Salinger was an influential 20th-century American writer.