On February 20, 1962, John Glenn was again registered as an an American Hero when he became the first American to orbit the Earth. Though his list of accomplishments goes far beyond that momentous event, Glenn recaptured American hearts on October 29, 1998 when he returned to space as payload specialist on the Space Shuttle Discovery.

After leaving NASA, he was promoted to Marine Corps Colonel in 1964. On Nov 5, 1974, retired Colonel John Glenn was elected Ohio Senator John Glenn. He would go on to become Ohio's first senator to serve four terms.

Without argument, John Glenn has led an exciting life with many diverse experiences.

Jesse Louis Jackson, President of the National Rainbow Coalition, is one of America's foremost political figures. Over the past three decades he has played a major role in virtually every movement for empowerment, peace, civil rights, gender equality, and economic and social justice. Reverend Jackson has been called the "conscience of the nation" and "the great unifier," challenging America to establish just and humane priorities, and bringing people together on common ground across lines of race, class, gender, and belief.

Years before they were common positions, Reverend Jackson was advocating national health care, a war on drugs, dialogue with the Soviet Union, and negotiations in the Middle East. His strong stand against apartheid in South Africa in 1984 mad it an issue on the national conscience. Jesse Jackson's two presidential campaigns broke new ground in U.S. politics.

In 1990, in an impressive victory, Jesse Jackson was elected to the post of U.S. Senator from Washington, D.C., a position also known as "Statehood Shadow Senator." The office was created to advocate for statehood for Washington, D.C. The District of Columbia, with a population higher than five states, has no voting representation in Congress. A hallmark of Reverend Jackson's work has been his commitment to the youth. He has visited thousands of high schools, colleges, and universities, encouraging excellence, and challenging your people to stay in school and away from drugs. Jesse Jackson has also been a major force in the American labor movement. He has worked with unions to organize workers, mediated labor disputes and he has probably walked more picket lines and spoken at more labor rallies than any other national leader.

Jordan was drafted by the N.B.A.'s Chicago Bulls after his junior year in college, and immediately proved that he belonged with Magic Johnson and Larry Bird on the league's short list of superstars. The newcomer's athleticism, acrobatic shots, and pure hang-time earned him the nickname "Air," as well as millions of imitators around the globe. These same attributes, coupled with his charisma, made him a marketer's fantasy: over the course of his career, he almost single-handedly boosted two organizations--Nike and the N.B.A.--into positions of almost frightening international ubiquity.

The bus trip bridged the gap between the Beat Generation '50's and the emerging psychedelic scene that became California in the 1960's. Kesey had proven to the literary establishment that he was a master writer with Cuckoo's Nest and then proved that he could "best" himself with Great Notion. In the eyes of the literary establishment, Ken Kesey proved he could "do nothing" for close to thirty years. Though he wrote a number of other works (Kesey's Garage Sale, Demon Box, which includes "Tricker the Squirrel Meets Big Double the Bear", The Further Inquiry, and Caverns, a collaboration with his class at the University of Oregon) Kesey attracted attention primarily as a counter-cultural folk hero.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Spike returned South from Brooklyn to attended Morehouse College. Spike coontinued his education at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, where he received his Master of Fine Arts Degree in film production. Lee then founded 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks and Musicworks. In addition. he has created two retail companies, Spike's Joint, based in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn, where he has resided since childhood, and Spike's Joint West in Los Angeles.

In addition to his achievements in feature films, Lee has produced had directed numerous music videos for such diverse artists as Miles Davis, Tracy Chapman, Anita Baker, Public Enemy and Bruce Hornsby. His other music videos include work for Phyliss Hyman, Naughty by Nature, and Arrested Development.

At the tender age of 21, in 1981, Lin won an open competition for the design of the proposed Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Her idea, now realized in the Washington Mall in D.C., was to incorporate two simple black granite walls bearing the names of the 57,661 Americans who died in Vietnam. Today, she runs her own design studio in New York. Click here for more on Maya Lin.

Education is a priority for Marsalis. One of the most successful aspects of the Jazz at Lincoln Center program has been Marsalis' Saturday "Jazz for Young People" series, which has become a favorite for New Yorkers. In recognition of the many hours he has contributed to music education, community organizations and charities, he has been given keys to cities across the country, all types of community service awards, and a Congressional citation. In 1996, Time Magazine named him among America's 25 Most Influential People.