Memorials & famous biographies

American actor best known for his award-winning portrayal of Tony Soprano in HBO's The Sopranos, a performance regarded as one of television history's greatest

American actor known for his distinctive character roles, memorable leading performances, and being voted the greatest actor of the 21st century

Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor, known for his expressive Romantic classical music and unparalleled skill at the piano

American theoretical physicist who developed the theory of quarks and received the 1969 Nobel Prize in Physics for his contributions to elementary particle classification

American actor and political activist known for iconic leading roles in biblical epics, historical dramas, and science-fiction films, and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom

American nuclear physicist and Nobel laureate who invented the cyclotron and founded the Lawrence Berkeley and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories

American actor celebrated for his iconic portrayal of Mark Twain and extensive career across stage, film, and television

American computer scientist and co-inventor of the Unix operating system and the C programming language

American poet and writer known for his central role in the Beat Generation and outspoken views against militarism and sexual repression

American social reformer, writer, orator, and abolitionist who rose from slavery to become a leading voice for African-American civil rights in the 19th century

American novelist, artist, and essayist known for breaking literary forms with his semi-autobiographical and often controversial works like Tropic of Cancer

German-American nuclear physicist who won the Nobel Prize for his theory of energy production in stars

American actress and pioneer of film performance techniques, known as the 'First Lady of the Screen'

American showman, businessman, and politician who co-founded the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus and was known for promoting celebrated hoaxes

American physicist and engineer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics twice for his work on transistors and the BCS theory of superconductivity

American short story writer known for his witty narration, naturalist observations, and surprise endings

American psychologist known for creating Maslow's hierarchy of needs, a theory of psychological health culminating in self-actualization

American political economist and political scientist, Nobel laureate known for her analysis of economic governance and the commons

American comedian, actor, comic vocalist, and game show host, known for his masterful one-line retorts and iconic performances across vaudeville, Broadway, film, radio, and television

American cultural anthropologist, author, and speaker known for her studies on culture and human behavior, frequently appearing in mass media

American track and field athlete and Olympic champion who won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympic Games

American guitarist, singer, and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll, famous for hits like "Johnny B. Goode" and his influence on subsequent rock music

American science fiction author renowned for exploring reality and identity through 45 novels and 121 short stories

American actor known for his strong, silent screen persona and two Academy Awards for Best Actor