Jack Leonard Warner (bornJacob Warner; August 2, 1892 – September 9, 1978) was a Canadian-born American film executive, who was the president and driving force behind theWarner Bros. Studios inBurbank, California. Warner's career spanned over 55 years, surpassing that of any other of the pioneeringHollywood studio moguls.

As co-head of production at Warner Bros. Studios, Warner worked with his brother,Sam Warner, to procure the technology for the film industry's first talking picture,The Jazz Singer (1927). After Sam's death, Jack clashed with his surviving older brothers,Harry andAlbert Warner. He assumed exclusive control of the company in the 1950s when he secretly purchased his brothers's shares in the business after convincing them to participate in a joint sale of stocks. (Full article...)

Murray M Chotiner (October 4, 1909 – January 30, 1974) was an Americanpolitical strategist,attorney,government official, and close associate and friend of PresidentRichard Nixon during much of the 37th President's political career. He served ascampaign manager for the future president's successful runs for theUnited States Senate in 1950 and for thevice presidency in 1952, and managed the campaigns of otherCalifornia Republicans. He was active in each of Nixon's two successful runs for theWhite House in low-profile positions.

Chotiner was born inPittsburgh, Pennsylvania; his father moved the family to California and then abandoned his wife and children. Murray Chotiner attendedUCLA, and graduated from theSouthwestern School of Law. He practiced law in Los Angeles, and branched out into public relations. Involving himself in Republican politics, he played an active part in several political campaigns and made an unsuccessful run for theCalifornia State Assembly in 1938. (Full article...)

Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal (/ˈdʒɪlənhɔːl/JIL-ən-hawl,Swedish:[ˈjʏ̂lːɛnˌhɑːl]; born December 19, 1980) is an American actor whohas worked on screen and stage for over thirty years. Born into theGyllenhaal family, he is the son of film directorStephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriterNaomi Foner, and the younger brother of actressMaggie Gyllenhaal. He began acting as a child, making his debut inCity Slickers (1991), followed by roles in his father's filmsA Dangerous Woman (1993) andHomegrown (1998). His breakthrough roles were asHomer Hickam in the biopicOctober Sky (1999) and a troubled teenager in the thrillerDonnie Darko (2001). Gyllenhaal expanded to big-budget films with a starring role in the 2004 disaster filmThe Day After Tomorrow.

Gyllenhaal playedJack Twist inAng Lee's 2005 romantic dramaBrokeback Mountain, for which he won aBAFTA Award and was nominated for anAcademy Award. His career progressed with starring roles in the thrillerZodiac (2007), the romantic comedyLove & Other Drugs (2010), and the science fiction filmSource Code (2011). Further acclaim came with his roles inDenis Villeneuve's thrillersPrisoners (2013) andEnemy (2013), and he received nominations for theBAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his performances as a manipulative journalist inNightcrawler (2014) and a troubled writer inNocturnal Animals (2016). His highest-grossing release came with theMarvel Cinematic Universe superhero filmSpider-Man: Far From Home (2019), in which he portrayedMysterio. After playing a supporting role in the dramaWildlife (2018), Gyllenhaal starred in action or thriller projects, including the filmsThe Guilty (2021),Ambulance (2022) andRoad House (2024), as well as the seriesPresumed Innocent (2024). (Full article...)

Alfred Manuel "Billy"Martin Jr. (May 16, 1928 – December 25, 1989) was an AmericanMajor League Baseball (MLB)second baseman and manager, who, in addition to leading other teams, was five times the manager of theNew York Yankees. First known as a scrappy infielder who made considerable contributions to the championship Yankee teams of the 1950s, he then built a reputation as a manager who would initially make bad teams good, before ultimately being fired amid dysfunction. In each of his stints with the Yankees he managed them to winning records before being fired by team ownerGeorge Steinbrenner or resigning under fire.

Martin was born in a working-class section ofBerkeley, California. His skill as a baseball player gave him a route out of his home town. Signed by thePacific Coast LeagueOakland Oaks, Martin learned much fromCasey Stengel, the man who would manage him both in Oakland and in New York, with whom he enjoyed a close relationship. Martin's spectacular catch of a wind-blownJackie Robinson popup late in Game Seven of the1952 World Series saved that series for the Yankees, and he was the hitting star of the1953 World Series, earning the Most Valuable Player award in the Yankee victory. He missed most of two seasons, 1954 and 1955, after beingdrafted into the Army, and his abilities never fully returned; the Yankees traded him after a brawl at theCopacabana club in New York during the 1957 season. (Full article...)

John Whiteside Parsons (bornMarvel Whiteside Parsons; October 2, 1914 – June 17, 1952) was an Americanrocket engineer,chemist, andThelemite occultist. Parsons was one of the principal founders of both theJet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) andAerojet. He invented the firstrocket engine to use acastable,compositerocket propellant, and pioneered the advancement of bothliquid-fuel andsolid-fuel rockets.

Parsons was raised in Pasadena, California. He beganamateur rocket experiments with school friendEdward Forman in 1928. Parsons was admitted toStanford University but left before graduating due to financial hardship during theGreat Depression. In 1934, Parsons, Forman, andFrank Malina formed the Caltech-affiliatedGuggenheim Aeronautical Laboratory (GALCIT) Rocket Research Group, with support by GALCIT chairmanTheodore von Kármán. The group worked onJet-Assisted Take Off (JATO) for the U.S. military, and founded Aerojet in 1942 to develop and sell JATO technology during World War II. The GALCIT Rocket Research Group became JPL in 1943. (Full article...)

Gavin Christopher Newsom (born October 10, 1967) is an American politician and businessman serving as the 40thgovernor of California since 2019. A member of theDemocratic Party, he served as the 49thlieutenant governor of California from 2011 to 2019 and as the 42ndmayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011.

Born inSan Francisco, Newsom graduated fromSanta Clara University in 1989 with aBachelor of Science in political science. Afterward, he founded the boutique wineryPlumpJack Group inOakville, California, with billionaire heir and family friendGordon Getty as an investor. The company grew to manage 23 businesses, including wineries, restaurants, and hotels. Newsom began his political career in 1996, when San Francisco mayorWillie Brown appointed him to the city's Parking and Traffic Commission. Brown then appointed Newsom to fill a vacancy onthe Board of Supervisors the next year and Newsom was first elected to the board in 1998. (Full article...)

Russell Albion Meyer (March 21, 1922 – September 18, 2004) was an Americanfilmmaker. He was primarily known for writing and directing a successful series ofsexploitation films featuringcampy humor, sly satire and large-breasted women, which have attracted a considerablecult following. His best-known works includeFaster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! (1965),Vixen! (1968),Supervixens (1975),Beneath the Valley of the Ultra-Vixens (1979), and the film he considered to be his definitive work,Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970). (Full article...)

Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (/ˈkroʊbərləˈɡwɪn/KROH-bər ləGWIN;néeKroeber; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author. She is best known for her works ofspeculative fiction, includingscience fiction works set in herHainish universe, and theEarthseafantasy series. Her work was first published in 1959, and her literary career spanned nearly sixty years, producing more thantwenty novels and more than a hundred short stories, in addition to poetry,literary criticism, translations, and children's books. Frequently described as an author of science fiction, Le Guin has also been called a "major voice in American Letters". Le Guin said that she would prefer to be known as an "American novelist".

Le Guin was born inBerkeley, California, to authorTheodora Kroeber and anthropologistAlfred Louis Kroeber. Having earned a master's degree in French, Le Guin began doctoral studies but abandoned these after her marriage in 1953 to historianCharles Le Guin. She began writing full-time in the late 1950s, and she achieved major critical and commercial success with the novelsA Wizard of Earthsea (1968) andThe Left Hand of Darkness (1969); these have been described byHarold Bloom as her masterpieces. For the latter volume, Le Guin won both theHugo andNebula awards for best novel, becoming the first woman to do so. Several more works set in Earthsea or the Hainish universe followed; others included books set in the fictional country ofOrsinia, several works for children, and many anthologies. (Full article...)

Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is widely regarded asone of the most culturally significant figures of the 20th century. Over a four-decade career,his musical achievements brokeAmerican racial barriers and made him a dominant figureworldwide. Throughhis songs,stages, and fashion, he proliferated visual performance for artists inpopular music, popularizingstreet dance moves such as themoonwalk, therobot, and theanti-gravity lean. Jackson is often deemed the greatest entertainer of all time.

The eighth child of theJackson family, Michael made his public debut at age six as the lead singer ofthe Jackson 5, one ofMotown's most successful acts. His breakthrough as a solo artist came with the albumOff the Wall (1979). Jackson achieved unprecedented global success withThriller (1982), thebest-selling album in history. Itsshort film-stylemusic videos for "Thriller", "Beat It", and "Billie Jean" popularizedMTV and redefined the medium as an art form. Jackson followed it withBad (1987), the first album to produce five USBillboard Hot 100 number-one singles: "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror", and "Dirty Diana". He then released the socially conscious recordsDangerous (1991) andHIStory (1995). His final album,Invincible (2001), became a21st-century bestseller. (Full article...)

Angelina Jolie (/dʒoʊˈliː/joh-LEE; bornAngelina Jolie Voight,/ˈvɔɪt/, June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient ofnumerous accolades, including anAcademy Award, aTony Award and threeGolden Globe Awards, she has been named Hollywood's highest-paid actress multiple times.

Jolie made her screen debutas a child alongside her father,Jon Voight, inLookin' to Get Out (1982). Her film career began in earnest a decade later with the low-budget productionCyborg 2 (1993), followed by her first leading role inHackers (1995). After starring in the television filmsGeorge Wallace (1997) andGia (1998), Jolie won theAcademy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1999 dramaGirl, Interrupted. Her portrayal of thetitular heroine inLara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) established her as a leading lady. Jolie's success continued with roles in the action filmsMr. & Mrs. Smith (2005),Wanted (2008), andSalt (2010), as well as in the fantasy filmsMaleficent (2014) andMaleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) and theMarvel Cinematic Universe superhero filmEternals (2021) She also had voice roles in the animated filmsShark Tale (2004) and theKung Fu Panda franchise (2008–2016), and gained praise for her dramatic performances inA Mighty Heart (2007),Changeling (2008), which earned her a nomination for theAcademy Award for Best Actress, andMaria (2024). (Full article...)

Joshua Abraham Norton (February 4, 1818 – January 8, 1880) was a resident ofSan Francisco, California, who in 1859declared himself "Emperor of these United States" in a proclamation that he signed "Norton I., Emperor of the United States". Commonly known asEmperor Norton, he took the secondary title "Protector of Mexico" in 1866.

Born in England and raised inSouth Africa, Norton leftCape Town in late 1845, sailing fromLiverpool toBoston in early 1846 and eventually arriving in San Francisco in late 1849. After a brief period of prosperity, Norton made a business gambit in late 1852 that played out poorly, ultimately forcing him to declare bankruptcy in 1856. (Full article...)

Glenn Theodore Seaborg (/ˈsiːbɔːrɡ/SEE-borg; April 19, 1912 – February 25, 1999) was an Americanchemist whose involvement in thesynthesis, discovery and investigation of tentransuranium elements earned him a share of the 1951Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His work in this area also led to his development of theactinide concept and the arrangement of theactinide series in theperiodic table of the elements.

Seaborg spent most of his career as an educator and research scientist at theUniversity of California, Berkeley, serving as a professor, and, between 1958 and 1961, as the university's second chancellor. He advised ten US presidents—fromHarry S. Truman toBill Clinton—on nuclear policy and was Chairman of theUnited States Atomic Energy Commission from 1961 to 1971, where he pushed for commercialnuclear energy and the peaceful applications of nuclear science. Throughout his career, Seaborg worked for arms control. He was a signatory to theFranck Report and contributed to theLimited Test Ban Treaty, theNuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and theComprehensive Test Ban Treaty. He was a well-known advocate of science education and federal funding for pure research. Toward the end of theEisenhower administration, he was the principal author of the Seaborg Report on academic science, and, as a member of PresidentRonald Reagan'sNational Commission on Excellence in Education, he was a key contributor to its 1983 report "A Nation at Risk". (Full article...)

Horace Jeremiah "Jerry"Voorhis (April 6, 1901 – September 11, 1984) was an American politician and educator who served five terms in theUnited States House of Representatives representingCalifornia from 1937 to 1947. A member of theDemocratic Party, he represented the12th congressional district inLos Angeles County. He was the first political opponent ofRichard M. Nixon, who defeated Voorhis for re-election in 1946 in acampaign cited as the first example of Nixon's use ofred-baiting tactics during his political rise.

Voorhis was born inKansas, but the family relocated frequently in his childhood. He earned a bachelor's degree fromYale University (where he was elected to the academic honor societyPhi Beta Kappa) and a master's degree in education fromClaremont Graduate School. In 1928, he founded the Voorhis School for Boys and became its headmaster. He retained the post into his congressional career. (Full article...)

Kamala Devi Harris (/ˈkɑːmələˈdeɪvi/ ^ⓘKAH-mə-ləDAY-vee; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49thvice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under PresidentJoe Biden. She is the first female, firstAfrican American, and firstAsian American U.S. vice president, and the highest-ranking female and Asian American official in U.S. history. Harris representedCalifornia in theU.S. Senate from 2017 to 2021 and was theattorney general of California from 2011 to 2017. A member of theDemocratic Party, she was the party's nominee in the2024 presidential election.

Born inOakland, California, Harris graduated fromHoward University and theUniversity of California, Hastings College of the Law. She began her law career in the office of thedistrict attorney ofAlameda County. Harris was recruited to the San Francisco District Attorney's Office and later to the office of thecity attorney of San Francisco. She waselected district attorney of San Francisco in 2003 andattorney general of California in 2010, andreelected as attorney general in 2014. (Full article...)

Ruth E. Norman (bornRuth Nields; August 18, 1900 – July 12, 1993), also known asUriel, was an American religious leader who co-founded theUnarius Academy of Science, based inSouthern California. Raised in California, Norman received little education and worked from an early age in a variety of jobs. In the 1940s, she developed an interest inpsychic phenomena andpast-life regression. These pursuits led to her introduction toErnest Norman, a self-described psychic, in 1954. He engaged inchanneling, past-life regression, and attempts atcommunication with extraterrestrials. She married Ernest, her fourth husband, in the mid-1950s. Together they published several books about his revelations and formed Unarius, an organization which later became known as the Unarius Academy of Science, to popularize his teachings. The couple discussed numerous details about their alleged past lives and spiritual visits to other planets, forming amythology from these accounts.

After Ernest died in 1971, Ruth succeeded him as their group's leader and primary channeler. She subsequently began publishing accounts of her experiences andrevelations. In early 1974, she predicted that a space fleet of benevolent extraterrestrials, the Space Brothers, would land on Earth later that year, which led the Unarius Academy to purchase a property to serve as the landing site. After the extraterrestrials failed to appear, Norman said that trauma she had suffered in a past life had caused her to make an inaccurate prediction. Undaunted, she rented a building for Unarius' meetings and sought publicity for the movement, claiming to have united the Earth with an interplanetary confederation. She revised the Space Brothers' expected landing date several times, before finally settling on 2001. Her health declined in the late 1980s, prompting her students to try to heal her with rituals of past-life regression. Despite predicting that she would live to see the extraterrestrials land, Norman died in 1993. Unarius has continued to operate after her death, and formed a board of directors. Since the 2000s, leaders have concentrated on individual transformation leading to spiritual change in humankind. (Full article...)