Born and died in 1939

American-born Swiss singer, songwriter, and actress known as the 'Queen of Rock 'n' Roll' who broke racial and gender barriers in music

Malaysian politician who served as the fifth prime minister of Malaysia from 2003 to 2009, also known as the Father of Human Capital Development of Malaysia

British chemist who co-discovered fullerenes, earning him the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his pioneering work on carbon structures

Japanese mountaineer and explorer, the first woman to summit Mount Everest and ascend the Seven Summits

Portuguese lawyer and politician who served as President of Portugal for two terms, Mayor of Lisbon, and United Nations High-Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations

Russian military officer who, during a 1983 false alarm, decided not to launch a nuclear counter-strike, a decision that likely prevented a global catastrophe

American pioneer of the civil rights movement who, at 15, refused to give up her bus seat in segregated Montgomery

Third President of Botswana who led the nation for a decade from 1998 to 2008, known for his political and economic leadership

American film director, screenwriter, actor, and film historian who was a key figure in the New Hollywood movement

American actress known for her roles as Julia Sugarbaker on Designing Women and Randi King on Family Law

German physicist and Nobel laureate who co-discovered giant magnetoresistance, revolutionizing hard disk drive technology

Canadian-American molecular biologist and Nobel laureate who discovered the catalytic properties of RNA

Canadian-American coach, physician, and inventor best known for creating the game of basketball

Austrian neurologist, psychoanalyst, and essayist who founded psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychological conflicts through dialogue

Austrian novelist and journalist best known for his family saga Radetzky March and his novel of Jewish life Job

British egyptologist known for discovering the intact tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in November 1922, the best-preserved pharaonic tomb ever found

Spanish poet and Generation of '98 figure who created philosophical heteronyms and evolved from modernism to intimate symbolism

Head of the Catholic Church from 1922 to 1939 and the first sovereign of Vatican City

Irish poet, playwright, and politician who received the 1923 Nobel Prize in Literature for his inspired poetry and served as a Senator of the Irish Free State