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O. Henry was an American writer whose short stories are known for wit, wordplay and clever twist endings. He wrote nearly 600 stories about life in America.

He was born William Sidney Porter on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina. His father, Algernon Sidney Porter, was a medical doctor. When William was three his mother died and he was raised by his grandmother and aunt. He left school at the age of 15 and then had a number of jobs, including bank clerk. In 1896 he was accused of embezzlement. He absconded from the law to New Orleans and later fled to Honduras. When he learned that his wife was dying, he returned to US and surrendered to police. Although there has been much debate over his actual guilt, he was convicted of embezzling funds from the bank that employed him, he was sentenced to 5 years in jail. In 1898 he was sent to the penitentiary at Columbus, Ohio.

While in prison he began writing short stories in order to support his young daughter Margaret. His first published story was "Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking" (1899). He used a pseudonym, Olivier Henry, only once and changed his pen name to O. Henry, not wanting his readers to know he was in jail. He published 12 stories while in prison. After serving 3 years of the five-year sentence, he was released for good behavior. He moved to New York City in 1902 and wrote a story a week for the New York World, and also for other publishers. His first collection of stories was "Cabbages and Kings" (1904). The next collection, "The Four Million" (1906), included his well-known stories "The Gift of the Magi", "The Skylight Room" and "The Green Door". One of his last stories, "The Ransom of Red Chief" (1910), is perhaps the best known of his works. Among its film adaptations are Ruthless People (1986) with Danny DeVito and Bette Midler, The Ransom of Red Chief (1998), The Ransom of Red Chief (1911) and Business People (1963) (aka "Business People") by director Leonid Gaidai, starring Georgiy Vitsin and Yuriy Nikulin

In his lifetime O. Henry was able to see the silent film adaptations of his stories; The Sacrifice (1909), Trying to Get Arrested (1909) and His Duty (1909). His success brought the attendant pressure, and he suffered from alcohol addiction. His second marriage lasted 2 years, and his wife left him in 1909. He died of cirrhosis of the liver, on June 5, 1910, in New York, New York.

O. Henry is credited for creation of The Cisco Kid, whose character alludes to Robin Hood and Don Quixote. The Arizona Kid (1930) and The Cisco Kid (1931) are among the best known adaptations of his works.

Arthur Schnitzler was born on 15 May 1862 in Vienna, Austrian Empire [now Austria]. He was a writer, known for Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Late Fame and The Affairs of Anatol (1921). He was married to Olga Gussmann. He died on 21 October 1931 in Vienna, Austria.

Claude Debussy was born in St. Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, France. His father was a salesman and kept a china shop. His mother was a seamstress. Some traumatizing events in his childhood caused him a depression and he never spoke about his early years. Later he could not compose without having his favorite porcelain frog.

Debussy's piano teacher, Mme. Maute, had been a student of Frédéric Chopin. She sent Debussy to the Paris Conservatory, where he studied from 1872-84 with César Franck, Ernest Guiraud and others. He lived at the castle of Nadezhda von Meck and taught her children. She was a wealthy patroness of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and eventually Debussy played all pieces by Tchaikovsky in addition to other classical repertoire. She also took Debussy on trips to Venice, Vienna and Moscow. In Vienna he heard "Tristan und Isolde" by Richard Wagner and later admitted that it had influenced him for a number of years.

Debussy won the Prix de Rome twice--in 1883 and 1884--and the money covered his studies at the Villa de Medici in Rome for the next four years. In Rome he met Franz Liszt and Giuseppe Verdi and heard more of Wagner's music, which made a strong impression on him. In 1888 and 1889 he went to listen to yet more of Wagner's music at the Bayreuth Festspiehaus. There he was very impressed by "Parsifal" and other of Wagner's works. He used the Wagnerian chromaticism for upgrades to his own tonal harmony in "Cinq poems de Baudelaire" (1889).

Debussy became influenced by the impressionist poets and artists in the circle of Stéphane Mallarmé. In 1890 he wrote his most famous music collection for piano, "Suite bergamasque", containing "Clair de Lune". His "Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun" (1892) continued the most productive 20-year period in his life. He composed orchestral "Nocturnes", "La Mer", "Images" (1899-1909), and the intricate ballet "Jeux" (1912) for "Ballets Russes" of Sergei Diaghilev. He was fascinated with Maurice Maeterlinck's play "Pelleas et Melisande", which inspired him to compose the eponymous symbolist opera which was praised by Paul Dukas and Maurice Ravel.

In 1908 Debussy married singer Emma Bardac after they had a daughter, Claude-Emma. Debussy called her Chou-Chou and composed for her the collection of piano pieces "Children's Corner Suite" (1909). His piano masterpiece "Preludes" were composed in 1910-1913. The twelve preludes of the first book are alluding to Frédéric Chopin, with more provocative harmonies, especially the "La Cathedrale Engloutie". In the second book of twelve preludes Debussy explored avant-garde, with deliciously dissonant harmonies and mysterious images.

The beginning of WW I and the onset of cancer depressed Debussy. He left unfinished opera, ballets and two pieces after stories by Edgar Allan Poe that later were completed by his assistants. He died on March 25, 1918, in Paris.

She survived the death of her husband in 1905, the San Francisco earthquake in 1906 and raising four children with no money. In 1926, when she was 64 she became one of the most mature freshman ever to enter the University of California. She graduated 6 years later with her B.A. degree. In 1940 she went to Hollywood, where she began her acting career. Best known for her role in Shirley Temple's Storybook production of "Sleeping Beauty", although she is probably seen most often in "Going My Way" as Father Fitzgibbon's elderly mother.

Edith Wharton (née Jones) was an American novelist and short story writer from New York City. She had insider knowledge of New York's upper class, which she realistically portrayed in her works. In 1921, Wharton became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. She won the award for her historical novel "The Age of Innocence" (1920), where she portrayed the rigid worldview of the 1870s aristocrats of New York. She spend the last few decades of her life as an expatriate in France.

In 1862, Wharton was born in New York City. Her parents were George Frederic Jones and Lucretia Stevens Rhinelander. The Joneses were a wealthy and well-connected family in New York, having earned their wealth through real estate business. Through her mother, Wharton was a great-granddaughter of Lieutenant Colonel Ebenezer Stevens (1751 -1823), an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolution. Through her father, Wharton was a first cousin, once removed, of the famed socialite Caroline Schermerhorn Astor (1830 - 1908). Astor was the de facto leader of the "Four Hundred", an informal grouping of New York's wealthy socialites who were seen as "champions of old money and tradition".

From 1866 to 1872, Wharton and her family made extensive travels across Europe. During her stay in Europe, Wharton became a fluent speaker in French, German, and Italian. She was educated by tutors and governesses. She also loved to read the books in her father's library, though her mother forbade her to read novels.

In 1871, Wharton faced the first crisis of her life. During an extended visit in the Black Forest of Germany, Wharton suffered from typhoid fever. The disease almost killed her. In 1872, the Joneses returned to the United States. They divided their time between New York City (in the winter) and Newport, Rhode Island (in the summer).

From an early age, Wharton started writing her own fictional works. By 1873, she had written an incomplete novel. In 1877, Wharton publisher her first work. It was an English translation of the German poem "Was die Steine Erzählen" ("What the Stones Tell") by Heinrich Karl Brugsch (1827 -1894). She was paid 50 dollars for her work, the first money she earned as a writer.

She had to use a pseudonym for her first published work, at the insistence of her parents. A writing career was out-of-the-question for proper "society women" of this era. Also in 1877, Wharton completed the novella "Fast and Loose". In 1878, she had a collection of her poems and translations privately published by her father. In 1879, one of her pseudonymous poems was published in the "New York World". In 1880, five of her poems were published in the literary magazine "Atlantic Monthly". Her family and her social circle discouraged her from continuing her promising literary career. Wharton did not write anything of note between 1880 and 1889, when one of her poems was published in "Scribner's Magazine".

In 1879, Wharton came out as a debutante at the age of 17. She soon was courted by Henry Leyden Stevens, son of the prosperous hotel owner Paran Stevens. Her family disapproved her new relationship. In 1881, Wharton and her family returned to Europe. George Jones' health had started failing, and he hoped that a stay in Europe would help him recover. In 1882, he died in Cannes, France due to a stroke.

In 1882, Wharton and her widowed mother returned to the United States. Wharton was briefly engaged to her persistent suitor Henry Leyden Stevens, but the engagement was canceled without any known explanation. In 1883, Wharton started living separately from her mother Lucretia. Lucretia had decided to settle permanently in France, where she lived until her death in 1901.

In 1885, Wharton married the sportsman Edward Robbins "Teddy" Wharton, who was 12 years older than her. The two of them shared a love of travel. Between 1886 and 1897, the couple spent several months each year in Europe. Their favorite destination was Italy; Wharton retained a love of this country for decades.

In the late 1880s, Teddy suffered from acute depression. As the years passed and his mental state declined, the couple ceased their extensive travels. They spent most of their time at "The Mount", their country house in Lenox, Massachusetts. Wharton herself reportedly struggled with asthma and bouts of depression in the late 19th century.

From 1908 to 1909, Wharton had a mid-life extramarital affair with the journalist William Morton Fullerton (1865 -1952). In 1913, Wharton divorced Teddy. Their marriage had lasted for 28 years, but caring for a chronically depressed man had taken its toll on her.

In 1911, as her marriage deteriorated, Wharton decided to move permanently to Paris, France. During World War I (1914-1918), Wharton supported the French war effort. In 1914, Wharton opened a workroom for unemployed women. In 1914, she helped set up the American Hostels for Refugees, to care for Belgian war refugees in France. In 1915. she helped found the Children of Flanders Rescue Committee, which sheltered about 900 Belgian refugees.

In 1915, Wharton wrote articles about France's front-lines. She regularly visited the trenches of the Western Front to get a first-hand view of the war, and was within earshot of artillery fire. Her articles were collected in the non-fiction book "Fighting France: From Dunkerque to Belfort" (1915).

In 1916, President Raymond Poincaré appointed Wharton a chevalier (knight) of the Legion of Honour, the country's highest award, in recognition of her dedication to the war effort. During the war, she helped in the founding of tuberculosis hospitals. In 1919, following the war's end, Wharton decided to leave Paris and to settle in the French countryside. She purchased Pavillon Colombe, an 18th-century house located in Saint-Brice-sous-Foret. It remained her main residence until her death.

In 1921, Wharton became the first woman to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction though her win was controversial. The three fiction judges employed for the contest voted that the award should be given to Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951). Columbia University's advisory board overturned their decision and decided that the winner was Wharton. Wharton was also nominated three times for the Nobel Prize in Literature (in 1927, 1928, and 1930), without ever winning.

In 1934, Wharton published her autobiography under the title "A Backward Glance". The work is noted for omitting some of the more difficult aspects of her life, which became known after Wharton's death. Among these omitted aspects were Wharton's rather poor relationship with her mother Lucretia, the personal problems which she faced while married with Teddy, and her extramarital affair with Fullerton.

In June 1937, Wharton was working on a revised edition of an older work, when she suffered a heart attack. She recovered, but suffered a stroke in August of the same year. She died due to the stroke, at the age of 75. She was buried in the American Protestant section of the Cimetière des Gonards in Versailles. She was given war hero honors at her funeral.

Wharton remains one of the most celebrated American writers of the 20th century, in large part due to her astute criticism of the 19th-century upper class, and her vivid depictions of a world that was long gone even when she wrote her novels. Her prose works remain in print, while her poetry is largely forgotten.

William Holden was born on 22 May 1862 in Rochester, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for Weary River (1929), Dance, Fools, Dance (1931) and Holiday (1930). He was married to Louise Osborne. He died on 3 March 1932 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Auguste Lumière was a French engineer, industrialist, biologist, and illusionist, born in Besançon, France. He attended the Martinière Technical School and worked as a manager at the photographic company of his father, Antoine Lumière. Although it is his brother Louis Lumière who is generally acclaimed as the "father of the cinema", Auguste also made a major contribution towards the development of the medium, first by helping with the invention and construction of the cinematographe (the world's first camera and projection mechanism), and second by appearing as a subject in many of the films shot by Louis. Along with his brother, he is also credited with giving the world's first public film screening on December 28, 1895. However, according to Louis, Auguste lost interest in the cinematographe as soon as construction had been completed, and thereafter showed no further interest in the film medium. After his work on the cinematograph he began focusing on the biomedical field, becoming a pioneer in the use of X-rays to examine fractures. He also contributed to innovations in military aircraft, producing a catalytic heater to allow cold-weather engine starts.

Born in 1862, Montague Rhodes James developed a reading habit at an early age, preferring to stay in the library than with friends. He took this with him when he went to study at Eton and then at the King's College, Cambridge, where he became assistant in classical archaeology at the Fitzwilliam museum. After writing a dissertation: "The Apocalypse of St. Peter", he became a Fellow of King's, and then Dean. Although he was renowned in some circles for his biographies, studies into antiques, reviews and palaeography, it was his ghost stories that he would be remembered for. He was keenly engaged in examining the supernatural, and his stories were always written in a way so the reader uses their imagination. The real horror is often kept to the reader's mind. Celebrated cult horror novelist and story writer H.P. Lovecraft was a fan, and wrote a review on his work: "...gifted with an almost diabolic power of calling horror by gentle steps from the midst of prosaic daily life." he says, also adding: "Dr. James has, it is clear, an intelligent and scientific knowledge of human nerves and feelings; and knows just how to apportion statement, imagery, and subtle suggestions in order to secure the best results with his readers." Although largely ignored by filmmakers - Curse of the Demon (1957) - is one exception), his work has a dedicated fan base, and the BBC filmed several of his stories in the 1970s, wisely titling them under the series "A Ghost Story for Christmas". In 2000, horror legend Christopher Lee jumped at the chance to read four of James' stories in another Christmas special screened on BBC2. James' most famous works include "Ghost Stories of an Antiquary", "The Five Jars", "A Warning to the Curious and other Ghost Stories" and "The Collected Ghost Stories of M. R. James".

Albert Gran was born on 4 August 1862 in Bergen, Norway. He was an actor, known for 7th Heaven (1927), Dry Martini (1928) and Employees' Entrance (1933). He died on 16 December 1932 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Carrie Clark Ward was born on 9 January 1862 in Virginia City, Nevada, USA. She was an actress, known for Daddy-Long-Legs (1919), A Fool and His Money (1925) and Old Lady 31 (1920). She was married to Sedley Brown. She died on 6 February 1926 in Hollywood, California, USA.

Mrs. Leslie Carter was born on 10 June 1862 in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. She was an actress and writer, known for DuBarry (1915), The Heart of Maryland (1915) and The Lifeguardsman (1916). She was married to Louis Payne and Leslie Carter. She died on 13 November 1937 in Santa Monica, California, USA.

Rudolph Schildkraut was born on 27 April 1862 in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire [now Istanbul, Turkey]. He was an actor, known for His People (1925), The King of Kings (1927) and The Country Doctor (1927). He was married to Ernestine Weinstein. He died on 15 July 1930 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Cyril Maude was born on 24 April 1862 in London, England, UK. He was an actor, known for Grumpy (1930), Peer Gynt (1915) and Orders Is Orders (1933). He was married to Mrs. P.H. Trew and Winifred Emery. He died on 20 February 1951 in Torquay, Devon, England, UK.

Carl Goetz was born on 10 April 1862 in Vienna, Austrian Empire [now Austria]. He was an actor, known for Pandora's Box (1929), Tom Sawyer (1917) and Glanz und Elend der Kurtisanen (1920). He died on 15 August 1932 in Vienna, Austria.

Billy Sunday was born on 19 November 1862 in Ames, Iowa, USA. He is known for Pathé's Weekly, No. 9 (1914), Hearst-Selig News Pictorial, No. 32 (1915) and The Pathé Daily News, No. 4 (1915). He was married to Helen Amelia Thompson. He died on 6 November 1935 in Chicago, Illinois, USA.

Wilton Lackaye was born in Loudon County, Virginia, and educated at Georgetown University. He was barely out of college when he made his debut as Lucentio opposite Lawrence Barrett in an 1883 revival of "Francesca da Rimini". A powerfully built, mustachioed stage star of the old school, Lackaye played the title role in "Nero" (1890), Svengali in "Trilby" (1895) and Simon Legree in "Uncle Tom's Cabin" (1901). He entered the motion-picture business (shot in New York City) with World Films in 1914 and re-created his Svengali for director Maurice Tourneur in the still extant Trilby (1915). Well received at the time, it was the highlight of a screen career spent mainly in supporting roles. From a theatrical family, Lackaye was the husband of actress Ruth Lackaye, brother of actors James Lackaye and Helen Lackaye and the father of actor-playwright Wilton Lackaye Jr. His final Broadway appearance seems to have been opposite old pal Alice Brady in an unsuccessful production of "Love, Honor and Betray" (1930), which closed after 45 performances. Lackaye continued to appear both in new plays and revivals, especially of "Trilby", until shortly before his death at age 69. Lackaye had a pleasant, round face, with large eyes, and for many years sported a prominent handlebar mustache.

Justus D. Barnes was born on 2 October 1862 in Little Falls, New York, USA. He was an actor, known for The Declaration of Independence (1911), The Star of Bethlehem (1912) and A Beauty Parlor Graduate (1913). He died on 6 February 1946 in Weedsport, New York, USA.

Between 1876 and 1883, Gustav Klimt studied at the School of Applied Arts in Vienna. A scholarship made this training possible for him. His brother attended the same school. Between 1880 and 1883, together and with Franz Matsch, they realized commissioned works and painted ceiling and theater decorations in Vienna, Karlsbad and Reichenberg. In 1883 the three opened a studio in Vienna and, among other things, accepted commissioned work. They worked on the National Theater in Bucharest, or they designed the ceilings of the Hermes Villa of the Austrian Empress Elisabeth. In 1886 a commission at the Burgtheater in Vienna followed. Two years later, the work was completed and the artists were honored by Emperor Franz Joseph I with the Golden Cross of Merit for Art. During this time, Klimt turned to monumental painting. In 1889, Gustav Klimt undertook a trip to Europe, including stops in Trieste, Venice and Munich. Especially in the period between 1890 and 1900, the artist was in search of his individual expressiveness. He increasingly broke away from the academic style.

In 1891 he joined the "Vienna's Cooperative of Visual Artists". In doing so, he placed himself between the fronts of tradition-conscious followers and the avant-gardists. During this time he met Emilie Flöge. The connection develops into a friendship. Gustav Klimt is the father of several illegitimate children that he had with his models. In 1892 his brother died. Klimt severed his studio connection with Franz Matsch. Two years later the two were commissioned to design the ceiling decoration of the "Aula Magna" at the University of Vienna. In 1897, Klimt was one of the co-founders of the Viennese artist group "Secession". He was also its first president. The group's goals were the independence of art and artists, above all, from government regulations. The magazine "Ver Sacrum" became the movement's medium in which the "Secession" artists presented their work and their goals. In the following years, Klimmt was heavily involved in the artists' association. In the period from 1898 to 1900 there was a change in the artist's painting technique. Klimt turned to an expressionist style with a flat, ornamental character. In 1900 the work "Philosophy", one of three ceiling paintings in the University of Vienna, was awarded the gold medal.

Nevertheless, the paintings met with internal criticism from professors who judged them to be ugly and pornographic. In 1902 Klimt created the "Beethoven Frieze" for Max Klinger's "Beethoven Statue". Klimt's work provoked polemical reactions. In the same year he met the important French sculptor Auguste Rodin, who was impressed by Klimt's "Beethoven Frieze". The following year the artist went on a trip to Italy to Ravenna, Venice and Florence. The discussion between naturalists and stylists in the "Secession" led to the group's split in 1905. Klimt and other artists then left. The contrary reactions to his faculty pictures at the University of Vienna increased. As a result, Klimt withheld the works and paid back the fee. The following year, Klimt's "golden period" began. The picture entitled "Fritza Riedler" was created and marked the beginning of it. This phase culminated in the picture "The Kiss". During this time, Klimmt realized an expressive language that was linked to early Christian mosaic works and icons. The artist got his inspiration for this in Italy.

During this period, numerous portraits of women with an erotic character were created and document Klimt's devotion to the female gender. In 1907 there was first contact with the Austrian painter and draftsman Egon Schiele. The expressionist artist was significantly inspired by Klimt's work. In the years 1908 and 1909 Klimt organized the "Art Show". In 1911 the artist was awarded first prize at the International Art Exhibition in Rome for his painting "Death and Life". On the other hand, Klimt's style was often criticized. He brought his pictures into harmony with the compositions of Gustav Mahler and the psychoanalytic theses of Sigmund Freud. Together with Egon Schiele, Oskar Kokoschka and Anton Faistauer, Klimt took part in the exhibition of the "Association of Austrian Artists", which was organized by the Berlin "Secession". In 1917, Gustav Klimt became an honorary member of the academies of fine arts in Vienna and Munich.

Frank Beal was born on 11 September 1862 in Cleveland, Ohio, USA. He was an actor and director, known for The Big Diamond Robbery (1929), The Inside of the White Slave Traffic (1913) and The Devil, the Servant and the Man (1912). He was married to Louise Lester. He died on 20 December 1934 in Hollywood, California, USA.

Otis Turner was born on 29 November 1862 in Fairfield, Indiana, USA. He was a director and writer, known for The Black Box (1915), The Fairylogue and Radio-Plays (1908) and Get the Boy (1916). He was married to Etta French. He died on 28 March 1918 in Los Angeles, California, USA.

Luke Cosgrave was born on 6 August 1862 in Ballaghdreen, County Mayo, Ireland, UK [now Republic of Ireland]. He was an actor, known for Hollywood (1923), The Light That Failed (1923) and Merton of the Movies (1924). He died on 28 June 1949 in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA.

Edward Grey was born on 25 April 1862 in London, England, UK. He was a writer, known for The First World War (2003) and Pathé News, No. 37 (1916). He was married to Pamela Tennant and Dorothy Widdington. He died on 7 September 1933 in Fallodon, near Embleton, Northumberland, England, UK.

Loie Fuller was born on 15 January 1862 in Hinsdale, Illinois, USA. She was an actress and director, known for Le lys de la vie (1920), Danse serpentine (1897) and Programme Nadar (1896). She died on 1 January 1928 in Paris, France.

Joseph Klein was born on 3 January 1862 in Brünn, Austria-Hungary [now Brno, Czech Republic]. He was an actor and director, known for Die Herrin der Welt 4. Teil - König Macombe (1919), Die Herrin der Welt 1. Teil - Die Freundin des gelben Mannes (1919) and Anna Boleyn (1920). He was married to Elisabeth Hruby. He died on 24 September 1927 in Berlin, Germany.

Georges Feydeau was born on 8 December 1862 in Paris, France. He was a writer, known for The Girl from Maxim's (1933), La vida en broma (1950) and La dama de Chez Maxim's (1923). He was married to Marie-Anne Carolus-Duran. He died on 5 June 1921 in Paris, France.