Category: Today’s Birthday

Considered the greatest European scholar of the 16th century, Erasmus was a Dutch priest and leading humanist of the Renaissance era. After his ordination in the early 1490s, Erasmus traveled throughout Europe and became acquainted with many scholars, including Thomas More. A prolific writer, he was noted for his editions of classical works as well as the first Greek edition of the New Testament. Who placed all of Erasmus’s works on a list of prohibited books? Discuss

Post was an American breakfast cereal manufacturer. In the 1880s, while being treated by John H. Kellogg at a health sanitarium, he developed an interest in producing healthful foods like those served by Kellogg. In 1891, he established La Vita Inn, an institute for healing by mental suggestion. After experimenting with breakfast foods, he invented Postum, a coffee substitute after which he named his company, Postum Cereal Co., the precursor to General Foods Corp. What cereals did Post invent? Discuss

Among the most influential figures in 20th-century art, Picasso was a Spanish-born French artist and a founder of cubism. A prolific artist, he is best known for works from his so-called Blue Period and Rose Period, as well the enormous Guernica, whose violent imagery—inspired by the Spanish Civil War—condemned the useless destruction of life. Often a controversial figure for both his art and his politics, Picasso was once questioned about the theft of what famous painting? Discuss

Leeuwenhoek was a Dutch scientist and maker of microscopes whose observations helped lay the foundations for the sciences of bacteriology and protozoology. He assembled hundreds of microscopes, nine of which survive today and can magnify objects as much as 275 times. In the course of his examination of innumerable microorganisms and tissue samples, he gave the first complete descriptions of bacteria and protozoa—which he called animalcules. What likely kindled his interest in microscopes? Discuss

Larousse was a French publisher, lexicographer, and encyclopedist. In 1852, he founded a publishing house called Librairie Larousse, producing textbooks, grammar books, and dictionaries, but his major work, reflecting his desire “to teach everyone about everything,” was the combined dictionary and encyclopedia Grand dictionnaire universel du XIXe siècle, or Great Universal 19th-Century Dictionary, which took more than 10 years to complete. Who finished it after Larousse’s death? Discuss

One of contemporary American art’s most prolific and influential figures, Rauschenberg was a painter whose three-dimensional collages, known as “combines,” incorporated objects—such as soda bottles and stuffed birds—and anticipated the emerging pop art movement, of which he became a pivotal figure. He later used silk-screening to transfer images from print media to canvas. What did Rauschenberg submit to a gallery exhibition for which artists were asked to create portraits of the gallery owner? Discuss

One of the most versatile and influential figures in the English Romantic movement, Coleridge was a poet and critic who perfected a sensuous lyricism in his poetry that was echoed by many later poets. His most famous works include “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” and “Kubla Khan.” Known for his influential lectures on Shakespeare, he later wrote Biographia Literaria, the most significant work of general literary criticism of the Romantic period. To what drug was Coleridge addicted? Discuss

Though now known as the greatest architect of the English baroque style, Wren was first a celebrated astronomer and mathematician who was one of the founders of the Royal Society. His architectural career began in 1661 when King Charles II appointed him assistant to the royal architect. Wren went on to help rebuild more than 50 churches destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. He also designed Saint Paul’s Cathedral, where he is buried. What famous epitaph appears on Wren’s burial marker? Discuss

Nicknamed “Three Finger” by the press because a farming accident in his youth cost him parts of two fingers on his right hand, Brown was one of the top Major League Baseball pitchers at the turn of the 20th century. He used his injury to his advantage, developing a unique grip on the ball that produced an unusual amount of spin, baffling batters. Over the course of his major league career, Brown won 239 games and lost just 130. With what team did he win two World Series championships? Discuss

Margarita Cansino began her show business career as a child, dancing flamenco with her well-known father, Eduardo. After taking acting lessons, changing her last name to Hayworth, and dying her hair its trademark red, she began her acting career. Her appearance in a series of musicals made her a star, and her role in Gilda confirmed her status as a Hollywood sex symbol, making her one of the most popular wartime pinups. Hayworth’s picture is rumored to have been placed on what weapon? Discuss