August 12, 1927 – October 28, 2007
Porter Wagoner was an American country music star and television presenter who was known as much for his music as for his dazzling Nudie suits and his blonde pompadour hair cut. His eponymous syndicated television show ran from 1960 to 1981 and gave the world country and western hits, classic gospel performances, comedy…and Dolly Parton.
July 10, 1871 – November 18, 1922
If you have one shot at a novel that vaults you into the discussion of “most influential authors of the century”…you had better make it good. You had better make it epic. You had better make it monumental.
Marcel Proust did just that.
Published over the course of more than a dozen years and seven volumes, Proust’s monumental novel, À la Recherche du Temps Perdu (In Search of Lost Time), became one of the first and lasting great works of the 20th Century. The themes he explored over the novel’s 4000+ pages ranged from memory and homosexuality to vanity and despair and changed the trajectory of the modern novel.
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March 6, 1927 – October 4, 2004
One common denominator amongst pilots – test pilots, in particular – is a love for speed. The need to go faster. To push limits. This desire is ideal when you are piloting prototype jets that have never been piloted before. It’s essential if you want to be crazy enough to strap yourself to a 260,000 pound rocket and launch into the unknown vastness of space.
Leroy Gordon Cooper Jr. loved speed. Thanks to his parents’ love for planes and his father’s service as a military pilot, Gordon learned to fly at a young age. He earned his first certification at the age of just 16. He enlisted in the United States Marines after high school, but World War II ended before he could be deployed. He was eventually discharged from the Marines and joined the Army ROTC (Reserve Officers’ Training Corp) in college. He entered flight school for the U.S. Air Force and earned a degree in Aerospace Engineering. He naturally became a test pilot alongside friend and classmate, Gus Grissom, and logged more than 2,000 hours as an experimental pilot.
In 1959, Cooper received orders to report to Washington D.C. It was there he found out he was on the short list for a new manned space program called Project Mercury.
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February 12, 1809 – April 19, 1882
Geologist, naturalist and biologist, Charles Darwin’s life is extremely well documented. From his early interest in insects and exploring theology in nature to his famed journeys aboard HMS Beagle, Darwin’s contributions to human study, thought and progress are virtually unrivaled.
His five-year voyage on the Beagle from 1831-1836 was arguably his most consequential endeavor. His geological study and collection of natural history specimens from the coasts of South America, Africa, Australia and islands along the way – including Mauritius and, famously, the Galapagos islands – became the bedrock upon which he would change the way humans view the world. Darwin journaled extensively during the journey and his discoveries. He originally set out to write a book about the geological history of these coastlines, but altered his focus after several encounters with fossilized animals and observations in related species of what he would go on to deem “natural selection.”
May 15, 1942 – December 21, 2020
As the old adage goes: “Good things come to those who wait.” For Kay Toinette “K. T.” Oslin, this doesn’t EXACTLY fit…but it’s not a bad start.
K. T. Oslin grew up in the American south (Arkansas>Alabama>Texas, to be precise). As a theatre major in college, she discovered a love for folk music. She would form a folk trio alongside a young Guy Clark, and enjoyed performing in clubs and anywhere there was an audience. At the age of 24, Oslin joined the touring production of Hello Dolly! that eventually led to her moving to New York to pursue acting. While in New York, she appeared in a number of musicals, found work in commercials and – most importantly – began to explore songwriting. At this same time, she began to have an affinity for country music and the possibilities her songwriting might have in that genre.
May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892
Attempting to list out the most influential American poets will consistently return a handful of regular contenders. This number can often pale in comparison to other countries with longer histories, but any list you produce will include monumental names like Dickinson, Frost, Emerson, Poe, etc. And EVERY list will feature one name at the top: Walt Whitman
Whitman grew up in New York and dropped out of school to work as a young man to help his family. One of his early jobs was in a print shop. He continued this work and pursued a career in newspapers and eventually began writing his own copy. Opinions, reviews of operas, essays, he dabbled in anything that interested him. He became a successful editor and was able to publish his own serialized novel in 1852. By the mid-1850s, Whitman had decided he wanted to try poetry. He set out to create the great American epic poem and in 1855, published Leaves of Grass, his defining masterwork.
June 28, 1712 – July 02, 1778
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born in the early 1700s in what is now Switzerland. Losing his mother (died) as a newborn and his father (just…sort of left) somewhat later on, young J-J spent his early years surrounded by upper class artists and working class artisans. The lower his class surroundings became, the more interested he became in the inner workings of the society he lived in. He loved to watch the local militias drill in the square and sympathized with them over the the ruling class armies. He loved music and thought about becoming a priest.
His teens and 20s found him bopping around Europe and taking on…more mature…relationships. He eventually landed in Paris, fathered a bunch of children, started writing, and went on to change the continent of Europe forever.
October 26, 1942 – April 29, 2014
Iconic character actor, tough-guy-with-a-heart, and all-around beloved personality, Bob Hoskins, quite accidentally stumbled into show business. A mediocre student, Hoskins worked a number of odd jobs in his native London (and abroad) before giving a go at a small part in a production of Romeo and Juliet. The bug hadn’t fully bitten yet, but when Bob accompanied an actor friend to an audition and – while waiting – was handed a script and told “You’re next!” He complied, auditioned, and got the part.
A lauded 40 year career followed.
October 17, 1942 – June 6, 2022
Jim Seals grew up in the rough and tumble west Texas oil fields. Born into a family of musical talent, “Jimmy” learned to play the fiddle and the saxophone alongside his brother, Dan. He played in some local bands as a youth, meeting drummer, Dash Crofts, and before too long, the two were off to Los Angeles. Seals – still a teenager at this point – found some success in the LA rock scene of the late 1950s. He played with acts like Eddie Cochran and the Champs (along with Crofts) and wrote songs.
Seals and Crofts soon left the Champs along with guitarist, Glen Campbell, to form a new band with Campbell at the lead. After a couple of years, this group broke up and Seals and Crofts went their separate ways. They would not be apart for long.
September 18, 1709 – December 13, 1784
Samuel Johnson was – and remains – one of the most influential English writers of all time. With works ranging from poems to a literal dictionary, Johnson’s contributions to British literature ran far, wide and very, very deep. Sometimes referred to as “Dr. Johnson”, he wrote in a number of genres including, drama, essays, biographies, literary criticism and sermons. He is widely regarded as “the most distinguished man of letters in English history.”
Celebrity Graveland 