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A French philosopher and salonnière, an important figure in the 17th-century moralist tradition. She wrote 81 maxims on the nature of virtue and human nature.

British clergyman who served as Archbishop of St Andrews in Scotland. He argued for the acceptance of the crown's absolute authority over the church.

American philosopher and writer who rose to fame with The True Believer, a study of the psychology of mass movements. He worked as a longshoreman while writing his books.

Robert De Niro is an American actor and film producer, born on August 17, 1943, in New York City. He is known for his roles in films like 'Taxi Driver,' 'The Godfather Part II,' and 'Black Swan,' having won the Academy Award twice for his remarkable acting skills and character immersion.

American historian who taught at Harvard. His research centred on Napoleon and European military history.

The English playwrights Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher, who together dominated the early seventeenth-century stage. Their collaborative plays rivaled Shakespeare's in popularity at the time.

British publisher and editor. His inexpensive classics series broadened popular reading culture. He is also known for compiling an extensive handbook of proverbs.

American comedian and radio personality. His witty satire defined the golden age of radio comedy in the 1930s and 40s, and he recorded those years in his memoir Treadmill to Oblivion.

British film director regarded as the master of suspense and one of the greatest directors in cinema history. His films include Vertigo, Rope, Rear Window, and Psycho.

Thomas Fuller

1654 – 1734 · United Kingdom

English physician and writer who compiled Gnomologia (1732), a collection of adages and proverbs. Not to be confused with the churchman Thomas Fuller (1608-1661).

French general and military theorist. His Essai général de tactique influenced Napoleonic warfare, and he also wrote the tragedy Le Connétable de Bourbon.

Scottish biographer and diarist. His Life of Samuel Johnson is regarded as the greatest biography written in English.