Short Biographies of Eminent People
From: http://www.short-biographies.com/index.html
Leonardo da Vinci (April 15, 1452 – May 2,
1519) was an Italy|Italian Renaissance architect,
musician, anatomist, inventor, engineer, sculptor,
geometer, and painter. He has been described as
the archetype of the "Renaissance man" and as a
universal genius. Leonardo is famous for his
masterly paintings, such as ''The Last Supper
(Leonardo)|The Last Supper'' and ''Mona
Lisa''. He is also known for designing many
inventions that anticipated modern technology,
although few of these designs were constructed in
his lifetime. In addition, he helped advance the
study of anatomy, astronomy, and civil
engineering.
Albert Einstein (March 14, 1879 – April 18,
1955) was a Germany|German-born theoretical
physics|theoretical physicist of Switzerland|Swiss
and United States of America|American citizenship,
who is widely regarded as the greatest
science|scientist of the 20th century. He proposed
the theory of relativity and also made major
contributions to the development of quantum
mechanics, statistical mechanics, and physical
cosmology|cosmology. He was awarded the 1921 Nobel
Prize in Physics|Nobel Prize for Physics for his
explanation of the photoelectric effect and "for
his services to Theoretical Physics".
Orlando Jonathan Blanchard Bloom (born January 13,
1977) is a United Kingdom|British actor who became
famous playing Legolas in The Lord of the Rings
trilogy. He has also had major roles in Pirates
of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,
Troy (movie)|Troy, The Calcium Kid, and his first
lead role in Kingdom of Heaven (movie)|Kingdom of
Heaven. Bloom is currently filming the sequel
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest.
Louisa May Alcott (November 29, 1832 - March 6, 1888)
was an American novelist, best known for the novel
Little Women (1868).
She was the daughter of Amos Bronson Alcott and Abigail
May, and though of New England parentage and
residence, was born in Germantown, now part of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She began work at an early
age as an occasional teacher, seamstress, governess,
and writer — her first book was Flower Fables (1854),
tales originally written for Ellen Emerson, daughter
of Ralph Waldo Emerson. In 1860 she began writing for
the Atlantic Monthly, and she was nurse in the Union
Hospital at Georgetown, D.C., for six weeks in
1862-1863. Her letters home, revised and published
in the Commonwealth and collected as Hospital
Sketches (1863, republished with additions in 1869),
displayed keen power of observation and record with
a healthy dose of the humor of retrospection, and
garnered her the first critical recognition. Despite
its uncertainty of method and of touch, Moods, a
novel (1864), also showed considerable promise
Venus Ebone Starr Williams (born June 17, 1980) is
a former World No. 1 tennis champion who was born
in Lynwood, California, United States. She is the
daughter of Richard Williams (tennis)|Richard and
Oracene Williams and the older sister of another
tennis champion, Serena Williams.
Cameron Michelle Diaz (born August 30, 1972) is an
United States|American film Actor|actress.
At the age of 21 she auditioned for a part in the
Jim Carrey movie The Mask. To her own surprise,
and with no previous acting experience, she was
cast as the female lead. Immediately on getting
the part she signed up for acting lessons.
Vince Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American
country music musician and singer.
He was born in Norman, Oklahoma and learned to
play banjo and guitar before he started high
school. After he graduated, he played in a number
of bluegrass bands including the Pure Prairie
League.
Colonel Edwin Eugene "Buzz" Aldrin, Jr.,
Doctorate|Ph.D (born January 20, 1930) is an
United States|American pilot and astronaut who
became the second human to set foot on the Moon
(after Neil Armstrong) during the Apollo 11
mission, the first manned lunar landing.
Cecilia Beaux (1855–-September 7,1942) was
an United States|American society portraitist, in
the nature of John Singer Sargent.
She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, she
received the bulk of her art training at the
Academie Julien in Paris. During her time in Paris
she studied under painters Tony Robert-Fleury and
William-Adolphe Bouguereau.
William Shakespeare (April 1564; baptised April
26, 1564; – April 23, 1616 (O.S.), May 3, 1616
(N.S.)) has a reputation as the greatest of all
writers in the English language and one of the
greatest playwrights in history.
George Washington (February 22,
1732–December 14, 1799) was an Agriculture
in the United States|American planter, Politics of
the United States|political figure, and military
leader. Born of English people|English descent
into a moderatly wealthy family in the Province of
Virginia, Washington worked as a surveyor before
inheriting his parents' plantation, Mount Vernon
(plantation)|Mount Vernon.
Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955 in
McAlester, Oklahoma) is one of the best-selling
country music performers of all time, best known
for pop ballads that include 22 #1 hits on the
Billboard Country Chart. She has sold more than
45 million albums in the United States.