Peter Moore made footwear an art form. Paired with a young sports star whose ascendancy defied gravity, Moore’s art inspired a pop-culture phenomenon. Moore designed the original Air Jordan sneakers. They were first worn by Chicago Bulls rookie basketball star Michael Jordan in 1984 and then released to the public before the end of the...
Margaret Rudkin was a force of nature on the farm, in the bakery and in the boardroom. You may not know her name. But you’ve certainly enjoyed delicious breads and snacks inspired by her idyllic Connecticut estate. Pepperidge Farm. Yes, it’s a real place. The Pepperidge Farm brand today is a powerhouse of the American...
Nathan Nearest Green rose from the inhumanity of slavery to lift American spirits around the world. Green lived in bondage in the years before the Civil War. He operated a farmhouse distillery for minister slave owner and grocery-store operator Dan Call in Lynchburg, Tennessee. It was there that the middle-aged, African-American distiller taught a poor,...
Milwaukee, Wisconsin is America’s hog heaven. The city celebrates its status as the birthplace of Harley-Davidson motorcycles, a high-powered global symbol of American freedom, as the GOP Convention shortly rolls into town. Delegates to the Republican National Convention say they’re fueled by positive vibes and energy — and some plan to make the Harley-Davidson Museum...
Garrett A. Morgan is emerging as a larger-than-life figure in American history. International recognition for the brilliant Cleveland entrepreneur comes a century after his life-saving inventions helped reshape the modern world — from the battlefield to the firehouse to the family road trip. He possessed a unique humanitarian gift for turning tragedy into life-saving inventions....
Bill France Sr. was born with a mind for business, a gift for people and a need for speed. He turned those passions into a nationwide obsession with stock car racing. France founded the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing — NASCAR — on Feb. 21, 1948, in Daytona Beach, Florida. NASCAR has grown...
Clarence Birdseye proved you can’t judge a book by its cover. The Brooklyn native and frozen food pioneer looked scholarly in his spectacles, as if he belonged at the head of a college lecture hall. He was in fact a college dropout. The slight, narrow-shouldered free spirit instead lived a life of adventure. He explored...
