1001 People Who Made America - Alan Axelrod [9]
Bernstein, Carl (1944– ) With Bob Woodward, Bernstein made journalism history—and changed American history—with investigative reporting in the Washington Post of the Watergate break-in, which led directly to the resignation of President Richard M. Nixon in 1974. With Woodward, he also coauthored a book on Watergate, All the President’s Men (1974), and an inside account of the collapse of the Nixon presidency, The Final Days (1976).
Bernstein, Leonard (1918–1990) Handsome and charismatic, Bernstein earned international fame as a conductor (especially of the New York Philharmonic from 1958 to 1969) and a composer, who achieved great success in musical theater (On the Town, Wonderful Town, West Side Story, and others) and in classical composition. Bernstein was also an accomplished pianist and an influential musical educator, host of a distinguished televised series of “Young People’s Concerts,” and the author of two important texts, The Infinite Variety of Music (1966) and The Unanswered Question (1976), taken from his 1973 Harvard lecture series.
Berrigan, Daniel (1921– ) Inspired in part by his activist brother Philip (also a Catholic priest), Daniel Berrigan wrote poems and essays as a means of social protest against injustice and war (his was one of the most eloquent voices in protest of the Vietnam War during the 1960s and 1970s). He defined the role of the clergy in the struggle for social justice.
Berryman, John (1914–1972) Berryman had a distinguished career as a professor of English at Wayne State University, Harvard, Princeton, and the University of Minnesota while also developing a unique style of surreal confessional poetry into which he wove a profound understanding of American history and mythology. Some have called Berryman a 20th-century Walt Whitman.
Bethune, Mary McLeod (1875–1955) Born in Maysville, South Carolina, one of 17 children of former slaves, Bethune sought an education at the Maysville Presbyterian Mission School, the Scotia Seminary, and the Moody Bible Institute, then founded in 1904 the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls, which later became Bethune Cookman College. Bethune founded the National Association of Colored Women and during the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt served as director of Negro Affairs in the National Youth Administration. Later, she was a consultant on interracial affairs and understanding at the conference that created the charter of the United Nations.
Beverley, Robert (circa 1673–1722) A Virginia plantation owner, Beverley wrote The History and Present State of Virginia in 1705 to promote the further settlement of his colony. The book is a minor literary masterpiece and was one of the first internationally popular works by an American author.
Bierstadt, Albert (1830–1902) Bierstadt was born in Düsseldorf, Germany, but made his career in America, earning international renown for his epic canvases depicting the wonders of the American West, including (most famously) The Rocky Mountains (1863). Based on sketches he made in the field, the works were painted in his New York studio, became icons of a romantic vision of western magnificence, and earned the artist a fortune.
Big Foot, Chief (circa 1825–1890) Called by the Miniconjous Si Tanka (Spotted Elk) and known to whites as Big Foot, this chief was a diplomat who sought peace among the tribes and peace with whites. He was killed by Seventh Cavalry troopers at Wounded Knee, South Dakota, while on a mission to avert a final war between the whites and the Sioux.
Billings, William (1746–1800) A tanner by vocation, Billings was a self-taught musician and composer who wrote hymns, anthems, and psalms of great vitality. His tunes have