BIOGRAPHY

Marjorie Lee Browne was a prominent mathematician and educator who, in 1949, became only the third African American woman to earn a Ph.D. in her field.

Kara Walker is an African American artist who rose to fame for her use of large paper silhouettes to explore social issues surrounding gender, race and Black history.

American lyricist and composer Stephen Sondheim was known for the remarkable range of musicals he wrote and composed, from ‘West Side Story’ to ‘Sweeney Todd’ to ‘Into the Woods.’

Tommy Lee Jones is an American actor known for his roles in ‘Men in Black,’ ‘The Fugitive,’ ‘No Country for Old Men’ and ‘Lincoln.’

Playwright and poet William Shakespeare is considered the greatest dramatist of all time. His works are loved throughout the world, but Shakespeare’s personal life is shrouded in mystery.

As frontwoman for the Runaways, Joan Jett became a female pioneer in the male-dominated world of rock music.

Singer and musician Willow Smith is a child of Hollywood royalty who has made a name for herself in pop, R&B and rock, as well as joining her mother and grandmother on the talk show ‘Red Table Talk.’

In 1960, Wilma Rudolph became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field at a single Olympics.

Petrarch was a poet and scholar whose humanist philosophy set the stage for the Renaissance. He is also considered one of the fathers of the modern Italian language.

Convicted criminal Albert DeSalvo is best known for confessing to be the “Boston Strangler,” who killed 13 women in Boston in the early 1960s.