American Famous Names Starting with Letter W

Is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the

Is a retired American professional basketball player who played center for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A five-time winner of the NBA Most Valuable Player Award and a twelve-time All-Star, the 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) Russell was the centerpiece of the Celtics dynasty that won eleven NBA Championships during Russell's thirteen-year career. Along with Henri Richard of the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadiens, Russell holds the record for the most championships won by an Athlete in a North American sports league. Before his professional career, Russell led the University of San Francisco to two consecutive National Collegiate Athletic Association championships (1955, 1956).

A retired American Football cornerback and is currently on the staff of the Oakland Raiders.He was t

A retired American Football cornerback and is currently on the staff of the Oakland Raiders.He was then signed by the AFL's Denver Broncos and became a starter by the middle of his rookie season. He won All-AFL honors in his second season and played in the AFL All-Star Game, recording 9 interceptions for 144 yards.In 1967, Brown was traded to the AFL's Oakland Raiders and would spend the remainder of his career there. He served as defensive captain for 10 of his 12 years with the team. He was named to 5 AFL All-Star games and 4 NFL Pro Bowls. He was also named All-AFL 3 times and All-NFL 4 times.

An American meteorologist, developed theories which explained the mid-latitude atmospheric circulati

An American meteorologist, developed theories which explained the mid-latitude atmospheric circulation cell in detail, and it is after him that the Ferrel cell is named. He was born in southern Pennsylvania. His family moved to what would become West Virginia in 1829. His formal elementary schooling was limited and he taught himself using science books well enough to become a school teacher. Despite financial difficulties, he was able to graduate from Bethany College's first graduating class in 1844. He would continue teaching in Missouri and Tennessee until 1858. At that point, he took up a full-time position on the staff of The American Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1882, Ferrel joined the U.S. Army Signal Service (which would become the Weather Bureau in 1891). He retired in 1887. He died in West Virginia in 1891.

Was an American sociologist who was born in Butler, Georgia and died in Tallahassee, Florida. He was

Was an American sociologist who was born in Butler, Georgia and died in Tallahassee, Florida. He was also a statistician and an educator. Ogburn received his B.A. degree from Mercer University and his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees from C

Was a United States politician, newspaperman, and Republican Party leader. He served as the United S

Was a United States politician, newspaperman, and Republican Party leader. He served as the United States Senate Majority Leader (1953-1955), as United States Senate Minority Leader (1955-1959), and succeeded his father, Joseph R. Knowland, as the editor and publisher of the Oakland Tribune.

Was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York.Rogers served as a member of Company

Was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York.Rogers served as a member of Company D of the Buffalo City Guard, in 1846, and served in the American Civil War as colonel of the Twenty-first Regiment, New York Volunteers. He mustered out i

Was a merchant and political figure in British Columbia, Canada. He represented Esquimalt in the Leg

Was a merchant and political figure in British Columbia, Canada. He represented Esquimalt in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1875 to 1878 as an Independent. In 1832, Fisher entered his father's business, which was involved in trade in Africa, India, China, South America and Lower Canada. In 1844, he married Harriet Alice Birch. Fisher was elected to the town council for Liverpool in 1848. He first came to British Columbia in 1860 and settled in Esquimalt in 1863. He served as chairman of the Esquimault school board. Fisher ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the British Columbia assembly in 1871. He was defeated when he ran for reelection in 1878.

Was a nineteenth century politician and lawyer from Virginia. He moved to Charlottesville, Virginia

Was a nineteenth century politician and lawyer from Virginia. He moved to Charlottesville, Virginia in 1809 to continue his practice and eventually became the city's commonwealth attorney in 1812. He served in the War of 1812, attaining the rank of major

Was a U.S. Representative from Indiana.He served as member of the State house of representatives in

Was a U.S. Representative from Indiana.He served as member of the State house of representatives in 1858 and served during the general and special sessions. He was appointed and subsequently elected judge of the fifteenth circuit and served from 1859 to 1

Was a Major League Baseball catcher. A native of Los Angeles, California, he played for the St. Loui

Was a Major League Baseball catcher. A native of Los Angeles, California, he played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1951–1952, 1954–1956) and New York Giants (1956).Sarni's professional baseball career began at the age of 15 when he played for the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League. In 33 games he went 19-for-83 (.229) with one home run and nine runs batted in.He reached the major leagues in 1951 with the Cardinals at age 23 and became their regular catcher in 1954. That would be his best season, batting .300 with 9 HR and 70 RBI in 123 games. He also led National League catchers with a .996 fielding percentage and 12 double plays.

Is an American-Canadian writer who has been called the "noir prophet" of the cyberpunk subgenre of s

Is an American-Canadian writer who has been called the "noir prophet" of the cyberpunk subgenre of science fiction.[16][17] Gibson coined the term "cyberspace" in his short story "Burning Chrome" and later popularized the concept in his debut novel, Neuromancer (1984).

Is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as the 40th Governor of Co

Is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He served as the 40th Governor of Colorado from 1999 to 2007, being restricted by term limits

Is the STANCO 25 Professor of Finance, Emeritus at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business

Is the STANCO 25 Professor of Finance, Emeritus at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.He was one of the originators of the Capital Asset Pricing Model, created the Sharpe ratio for risk-adjusted investment performance analysis, contributed to the development of the binomial method for the valuation of options, the gradient method for asset allocation optimization, and returns-based style analysis for evaluating the style and performance of investment funds.

Was an American archaeologist, biblical scholar, linguist and expert on ceramics. From the early twe

Was an American archaeologist, biblical scholar, linguist and expert on ceramics. From the early twentieth century until his death, he was the dean of biblical archaeologists and the universally acknowledged founder of the Biblical archaeology movement. His student George Ernest Wright followed in his footsteps as the leader of that movement, while others, notably Frank Moore Cross and David Noel Freedman, became international leaders in the study of the Bible and the ancient Near East, including Northwest Semitic epigraphy and paleography. Albright is assured of a place in the history of the development of Middle Eastern archaeology.

(born December 28, 1946), (nicknamed "Spaceman"), is an American athlete and retired Major League Ba

(born December 28, 1946), (nicknamed "Spaceman"), is an American athlete and retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox from 1969-1978 and the Montreal Expos from 1979-1982.

(born November 21, 1952 in Providence, Rhode Island) was an extremely versatile utility player who h

(born November 21, 1952 in Providence, Rhode Island) was an extremely versatile utility player who had a 15 year career from 1974 to 1988. He played first base,

(October 22, 1883 - July 8, 1969), nicknamed "Rough", was a Major League baseball catcher. He was bo

(October 22, 1883 - July 8, 1969), nicknamed "Rough", was a Major League baseball catcher. He was born in Lewiston, Maine.

Was an American bobsledder who competed from the late 1930s to the late 1940s. He won a bronze medal

Was an American bobsledder who competed from the late 1930s to the late 1940s. He won a bronze medal in the four-man event at the 1948 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz.

Is the 27th and current Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth (U.S. state of Massachusetts' Se

Is the 27th and current Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth (U.S. state of Massachusetts' Secretary of State).He began his political career in 1972 as an aide to the Massachusetts Governor's Council while an undergraduate, and won a special electi

Is an American athlete and retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox f

Is an American athlete and retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He played for the Boston Red Sox from 1969-1978 and the Montreal Expos from 1979-1982. On November 7, 2008, Lee was inducted into the Red Sox Hall of Fame as the team's record-holder for most games pitched by a left-hander (321) and the third-highest win total (94) by a Red Sox southpaw.In addition to his baseball success, Lee is known for his adherence to counterculture behavior, his antics both on and off the field, and his use of the Leephus pitch, a personalized variation of the eephus pitch.[1]

Was a Major League Baseball player. He played two seasons in the majors, in 1969 and 1972 for the Oa

Was a Major League Baseball player. He played two seasons in the majors, in 1969 and 1972 for the Oakland Athletics. He also played one season in Japan for the Lotte Orions in 1975. During his major league career, he played in the outfield and at third base.

Was a catcher for the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, and the Seattle Mariners. While never a regular

Was a catcher for the Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, and the Seattle Mariners. While never a regular player (he was Johnny Bench's backup catcher during the Big Red Machine years), he did play solid defense. He was a lifetime .188 hitter (he only batted above .200 three times in his career).After he retired, he stayed in the Mariners system. He managed the Wausau Timbers in 1981. He was the Mariners' third base coach, and when Jim Lefebvre was fired after the 1991 season, he was hired as manager. The Mariners finished in last place in his only season in Seattle, going 64-98.

Is a former Associate Administrator of the Office of Space Flight, at NASA Headquarters.Readdy joine

Is a former Associate Administrator of the Office of Space Flight, at NASA Headquarters.Readdy joined NASA's Johnson Space Center in October 1986 as a research pilot at Ellington Field, Houston, Texas, where he served as program manager for the highly-mod

Was an American author and conservative commentator. He founded the political magazine National Revi

Was an American author and conservative commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing style was famed for its erudition, wit, and use of uncommon words.

(August 21, 1875 - July 15, 1941) was a Major League first baseman, second baseman, and outfielder i

(August 21, 1875 - July 15, 1941) was a Major League first baseman, second baseman, and outfielder in the 1910s. He played for the Chicago Cubs in 1898 briefly, where he had 37 hits in 159 at bats (.233 batting average).