Biographies of notable people — their path, achievements and key facts.
Robert C. Atkins
Born Robert Coleman Atkins, October 17, 1930, in Columbus, OH; died after suffering a severe head injury, April 17, 2003, in New York, NY. Doctor and author. Dr. Robert C. Atkins was the a...
Rowan Atkinson
Actor and comedian Born Rowan Sebastian Atkinson, January 6, 1955, in Newcastle–Upon–Tyne, England; son of Eric and Ella May Atkinson; married Sunetra Sastry (a makeup artis...
Margaret Atwood
Born: November 18, 1939 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada Canadian author, novelist, poet and cultural activist One of Canada's best-known writers, Margaret Atwo...
John James Audubon
Born: April 26, 1785 Les Cayes, Saint Dominigue (French colony) Died: January 27, 1851 New York, New York French-born American artis...
Red Auerbach
Red Auerbach (1917–2006), one of the most successful sports coaches and executives over a half-century, was the mastermind behind the Boston Celtics' 16 National Basketball Associa...
Augustus
Born: September 23, 63 B.C.E. Rome (now in Italy) Died: August 19, C.E. 14 Nola (now in It...
Marcus Aurelius
Born: April 26, 121 Rome (now in Italy) Died: March 17, 180 Vindobona (now Vienna, Austria) Roman emperor The Roman e...
Jane Austen
Born: December 16, 1775 Steventon, England Died: July 18, 1817 Winchester, England English author, novelist, and writer ...
Julius Axelrod
Born May 30, 1912, in New York, NY; died December 29, 2004, in Rockville, MD. Biochemist. American biochemist Julius Axelrod conducted important research in brain chemistry that spurred th...
Iyengar B.k.s.
Yoga instructor and author Born Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar, December 14, 1918, in Karnataka, India; son of a teacher; married Ramamani, 1943; children: Geeta, ...
Charles Babbage
Born: December 26, 1791 London, England Died: October 18, 1871 London, England English mathematician and inventor Cha...
Johann Sebastian Bach
Born: March 21, 1685 Eisenach, Germany Died: July 28, 1750 Leipzig, Germany German composer, organist, and musician T...
Michelle Bachelet
President of Chile Born Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria, September 29, 1951, in Santiago, Chile; daughter of Alberto Bachelet Martínez (an Air Force general) and Ángela Jer...
Francis Bacon
Born: October 28, 1909 Dublin, Ireland Died: April 28, 1992 Madrid, Spain English painter and artist The English arti...
Roger Bacon
Born: c. 1214 Ilchester, Somerset, England Died: c. 1292 Oxford, England English philosopher The medieval English phi...
Joan Baez
Born: January 9, 1941 Staten Island, New York American musician, singer, and activist American folk singer Joan Baez is recognized for her nonviolent, ...
John N. Bahcall
Born John Norris Bahcall, December 30, 1934, in Shreveport, LA; died of a rare blood disorder, August 17, 2005, in New York, NY. Astrophysicist and astronomer. Princeton astrophysicist Joh...
F. Lee Bailey
Born: June 10, 1933 Waltham, Massachusetts American attorney and author F. Lee Bailey is a "superstar" lawyer and best-selling author. Bailey has...
Josephine Baker
Born: June 3, 1906 St. Louis, Missouri Died: April 12, 1975 Paris, France African American dancer and singer Josephin...
George Balanchine
Born: January 22, 1904 St. Petersburg, Russia Died: April 30, 1983 New York, New York Russian-born American choreographer ...