Harry Ford Sinclair (1876 - 1956)

Industrialist.  Founder of Sinclair Oil and key figure in the Teapot Dome scandal.  Born in Wheeling,  West Virginia and raised in Independence,  Kansas,  he initially worked as a pharmacist with his father.  He entered the oil industry as a lease broker in 1901 and with a partner,  Edward White,  formed the White Oil Company.  An […]

Harry Gallatin (1927 - 2015)

In his third year in the NBA, Harry Gallatin was selected for the first NBA All-Star Game in 1951, and from 1951 through 1957 was chosen for seven consecutive NBA All-Star games. It was in the NBA where he earned the nickname “The Horse”. He played his entire career as an extremely undersized center at […]

Harry Gordon Selfridge, Sr (1858 - 1947)

Businessman. American born, he founded the British department store “Selfridges”. His father owned a small dry-goods shop in Ripon, Wisconsin, but went away with the Union cavalry in the Civil War of 1861 to 1865, attaining rank of Major, and never returning to his family. In 1879, aged 21 he joined the retail firm of […]

Harry Greb (1894 - 1926)

Harry Greb Harry Greb had excellent stamina and constantly threw punches from all directions, which is how he got the nickname “The Human Windmill.” Greb was also considered a dirty fighter, using elbows, thumbs and his head as often as his fists.   Greb engaged in 299 bouts Greb outfought some the best fighters of […]

Harry H Corbett (1925 - 1982)

Actor.  Born in Burma to British parents,  he moved to England as a child. Following service with the Royal Marines in World War II, he joined a theatre repertory company and during the 1950s appeared in many stage productions. He was also seen in over 20 films,  including “Rattle of a Simple Man” (1964) and […]

Harry Harvey, Sr (1901 - 1985)

Actor. Born in Indian Territory, Oklahoma, he was a veteran character performer of countless films and television shows. In 1934, he went to Hollywood and began his fifty year film career with his debut in “Kentucky Blue Strike” (1935). His other notable film credits include “The Oregon Trial” (1936), “The Pride of the Yankees” (1942), […]

Harry Horner (1910 - 1994)

Harry Horner was born in the town of Holitz (presently called Holice), which now belongs to Czech republic, to German-speaking Jewish parents[citation needed] in Bohemia. He began his career working with Max Reinhardt in Vienna. When Reinhardt moved to the United States in the early 1930s, Horner travelled with Max Reinhardt’s production group acting as his […]

Harry Houdini (1874 - 1926)

Harry Houdini Harry Houdini died of peritonitis, secondary to a ruptured appendix at 1:26 p.m. on October 31, 1926 in Room 401 at Detroit’s Grace Hospital, aged 52. In his final days, he optimistically held to a strong belief that he would recover, but his last words before dying were reportedly, “I’m tired of fighting.” Eyewitnesses […]

Harry J. Davenport (1970 - 1929)

Actor. A stage actor, Davenport was a member of the Troupers Organization. Married to actress Milla Davenport. Davenport died of complications from a number of diseases and his body rests next to his wife in an unmarked grave. (bio by: TLS)  Family links:  Spouse:  Milla Davenport (1871 – 1936)* *Calculated relationship

Harry Jackson (1924 - 2011)

Artist. He was a renowned painter-sculptor, best known both as an abstract expressionist and a Western artist. He began his career in 1943, as the US Marine Corps’ youngest combat sketch artist serving with the Marine’s V Amphibious Corps general intelligence group during World War II. After his discharge, he went to New York City […]

Harry Jerome (1940 - 1982)

Harry Jerome competed at the university level for Bill Bowerman at the University of Oregon. He competed for Canada in the 1960, 1964, and 1968 Summer Olympics, winning 100 metre bronze in 1964. Such were the Olympics, Jerome wore his University of Oregon sweats (rather than the contemporary practice of an official national outfit for […]

Harry Lange (1930 - 2008)

Harry Lange (December 7, 1930 – May 22, 2008) was a German film production designer and art director. Lange was born in 1930 in Eisenach, Thuringia. After World War II, Thuringia became part of Soviet-controlled East Germany; Lange went across the border to West Germany, where he studied art before moving to the United States in 1951. […]

Harry Lauter (1914 - 1990)

Harry Lauter was born in White Plains, New York. He came to be a familiar presence in low-budget films, serials (where he was often cast because of his facial resemblance to stuntman Tom Steele, who would double for him), and television programs in the 1950s, though he only once really came close to stardom, as […]

Harry Lundeberg (1901 - 1957)

Harry Lundeberg left his home in Oslo, Norway at age 14, joined the Seamen’s Union of Australia in 1917 and transferred into the Sailors’ Union of the Pacific in Seattle in 1923. He sailed for 21 years on sailing ships and steamers of a variety of flags, eventually earning American citizenship. In 1934, Lundeberg was […]

Harry Maione (2024 - 1942)

Organized Crime Figure. He was part of the “Murder Inc.”, a group of professional assassins who worked solely for the National Crime Syndicate in the 1930s.

Harry Millman (2024 - 1937)

Organized Crime Figure. One of the most prominent members of Detroit’s “Purple Gang”, he was part of a younger generation of Jewish youths in Detroit’s North End who sought to emulate the older, established members of the of the Purple Gang. Harry Millman was a handsome, tough, hard drinking young man who rose to prominence […]

Harry Mosley Stevens (1857 - 1934)

Businessman. Inventor of hot dog in a roll.  A food concessionaire for sports and other events, he introduced it at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition in 1904.  Family links:  Spouse:  Mary Wragg Stevens (1857 – 1941)* *Calculated relationship

Harry Nicholson Morse (1835 - 1912)

Western Lawman. Born in New York City, he relocated to California to search for gold in the 1850s. By the 1870s, he was serving as a constable in the area of San Francisco when he was elected Alameda County Sheriff. Respected as a fine peace officer, he was best known for the capture of the […]

Harry Randall Truman (1896 - 1980)

Harry Randall Truman was born in Ivydale, Clay County, West Virginia, to Rosa Belle (née Hardman; 1873– 1957) and Newberry Truman (1874– 1923). His family settled in Chehalis, Washington several years later, where his father died in a logging camp accident in 1923, aged 49. He had one sister, Geraldine (1905–1987).Truman enlisted in the 100th […]

Harry Reasoner (1923 - 1991)

Reasoner was born at First Street North in Dakota City, Iowa on April 17, 1923; He and his older sister Esther were children of Eunice (Nicholl) and Harry Ray Reasoner, who married in 1911. Reasoner was taught to read by his parents before entering school, gaining a strong vocabulary from his mother.  Reasoner attended West […]

Harry Reems (1947 - 2013)

Reems was born Herbert Streicher. He attended the University of Pittsburgh for a year before briefly serving in the United States Marine Corps, from which he received an honorable discharge following hardship leave. He then elected to pursue an acting career, principally in off-Broadway theater.  Prior to appearing in Deep Throat, Herb Streicher was chosen […]

Harry Reid (1939 - 2021)

Harry Reid Harry Reid, the scrappy former Democratic Senate leader who spearheaded epic legislative battles through three decades in Congress, has died at the age of 82, according to a statement from his wife, Landra Reid. “I am heartbroken to announce the passing of my husband, former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. He died peacefully […]

Harry Shannon (1890 - 1964)

Actor. Shannon started his career in musical comedy and stock at the age of fifteen. He later joined a travelling repertory troupe and developed into a great comedy actor. He played vaudeville, tent shows and Broadway. In the 1930s he was a member of Joseph Schildkraut’s Theatre Guild, which in turn got him into the […]

Harry Stanton (1926 - 2017)

Harry Stanton appeared in indie and cult films (Two-Lane Blacktop, Cockfighter, Escape from New York, Repo Man), as well as many mainstream Hollywood productions, including Cool Hand Luke, The Godfather Part II, Alien, Red Dawn, Alpha Dog, Pretty in Pink, Stephen King’s Christine and The Green Mile. He was a favorite actor of Sam Peckinpah, […]

Harry Stephen Ackerman (1912 - 1991)

Television Producer. He was an executive who produced shows from the 1960s to the 1980s, and was responsible for such successful series as “Bewitched,” “Gidget,” and “The Flying Nun.” He was married to actress Elinor Donahue (best known for her role of ‘Betty Anderson’ on the comedy series “Father Knows Best”). (bio by: A.J. Marik) […]

Harry Truman (1884 - 1972)

Harry Truman 33rd United States President. He was the third vice president under Franklin Roosevelt and was in office but two months when the Presidency was thrust upon him by the death of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He faced unprecedented and defining challenges. The war in Europe was nearly over and President Truman wanted a quick […]

Harry Wills (1889 - 1958)

Harry Wills Between 1915 and 1927, Harry Wills was one of the best fighters, if not the best, in the heavyweight division. Yet, he never got his chance to fight for the heavyweight championship. Like other black fighters in the early part of the past century, Harry Wills was nothing but a footnote in boxing […]

Harry Winchester Robinson (1878 - 1932)

Businessman. The heir to the Robinsons Department Store empire, and son of Founder, John W. Robinson, he built the business into one of Los Angeles’ most successful department stores. Robinsons merged with the May Company in 1993, and today, Robinsons-May has 55 stores in Southern California, Arizona and Nevada. (bio by: Scott G)  Family links: […]

Hart Almerrin Massey (1823 - 1896)

Industrialist,  Philanthropist. A native of what is now Alnwick/Haldimand, Ontario,  Canada,  he built the firm that became Massey-Harris, the farm equipment giant that is now Varity. His estate became the basis of the Massey Foundation, a philanthropic enterprise with multiple cultural and charitable interests. He was the grandfather of Governor General Vincent Massey and actor […]

Hart Almerrin Massey (1823 - 1896)

Industrialist,  Philanthropist. A native of what is now Alnwick/Haldimand, Ontario,  Canada,  he built the firm that became Massey-Harris, the farm equipment giant that is now Varity. His estate became the basis of the Massey Foundation, a philanthropic enterprise with multiple cultural and charitable interests. He was the grandfather of Governor General Vincent Massey and actor […]