Curated playlist
American men centenarians
- Kirk DouglasKirk Douglas insisted on giving blacklisted writer Dalton Trumbo an on-screen credit for Spartacus.
- Jimmy CarterJimmy Carter once was lowered into a crippled nuclear reactor for 90 seconds at a time. He later ran for president.
- Henry KissingerHenry Kissinger made a secret trip to China in July 1971. It helped end 23 years of diplomatic isolation.
- William R. LucasMarshall director William R. Lucas retired in 1986 after a commission criticized his role in Challenger.
- Alan GreenspanIn October 2008, Alan Greenspan told Congress his faith in free markets had a flaw.
- Nicolas SlonimskyA book of scales that was largely ignored became a favorite of John Coltrane. Nicolas Slonimsky wrote it in 1947.
- Dick Van DykeDick Van Dyke walked onto the stage of The Masked Singer in 2023 disguised as a character called Gnome, and he was the first contestant eliminated. The show had promoted his unmasking as "the most legendary, decorated and beloved unmasking…
- Richard N. CurrentRichard N. Current became a Lincoln expert only because a colleague died. He had written about other figures first.
- George F. KennanGeorge Kennan spent decades disowning the Cold War policy he made famous. Containment, he said, was not military.
- Gail HalvorsenGail Halvorsen handed two sticks of gum to Berlin children in July 1948. He was a young Air Force pilot.
- Gerald HoltonGerald Holton was labeled an "Enemy Alien" in America, yet Harvard hired him. He taught naval officers to use radar.