John Winslow Irving is an American-Canadian novelist, short story writer, and screenwriter.
Nancy Patricia Pelosi is an American politician who served as the 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011 and again from 2019 to 2023. A member of the Democratic Party, she was the first woman elected as U.S. House Speaker and the first woman to lead a major political party in either chamber of Congress, leading the House Democrats from 2003 to 2023. A member of the House since 1987, Pelosi currently represents California's 11th congressional district, which includes most of San Francisco. She is the dean of California's congressional delegation.
Gloria Laura Vanderbilt was an American artist, author, actress, fashion designer, heiress, and socialite. During the 1930s, she was the subject of a high-profile child custody trial in which her mother, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, and her paternal aunt, Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney, each sought custody of her and control over her trust fund. Called the "trial of the century" by the press, the court proceedings were the subject of wide and sensational press coverage, due to the wealth and prominence of the involved parties and the scandalous evidence presented to support Whitney's claim that Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt was an unfit parent.
Madam, or madame, is a polite and formal form of address for women in the English language, often contracted to ma'am. The term derives from the French madame, from "ma dame" meaning "my lady". In French, the abbreviation is "Mme" or "Mme" and the plural is mesdames. These terms ultimately derive from the Latin domina, meaning "mistress".
Dave Eggers is an American writer, editor, and publisher. He is best known for his 2000 memoir, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, which became a bestseller and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction. Eggers is also the founder of several notable literary and philanthropic ventures, including the literary journal Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, the literacy project 826 Valencia, and the human rights nonprofit Voice of Witness. Additionally, he founded ScholarMatch, a program that connects donors with students needing funds for college tuition. His writing has appeared in numerous prestigious publications, including The New Yorker, Esquire, and The New York Times Magazine.
Thomas Ludwig John D'Alesandro Jr. was an American politician who served as the 41st mayor of Baltimore from 1947 to 1959. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously represented Maryland's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1939 until 1947. He was known for his own political prominence as well as that of his children and was the patriarch of the D'Alesandro political family, which includes Nancy Pelosi, the 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives; and Thomas D'Alesandro III, the 44th mayor of Baltimore.
Simon & Schuster LLC is an American publishing company owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924, by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. Along with Penguin Random House, Hachette, HarperCollins and Macmillan Publishers, Simon & Schuster is considered one of the 'Big Five' English language publishers. As of 2017, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publisher in the United States, publishing 2,000 titles annually under 35 different imprints.
Miranda Jane Seymour is an English literary critic, novelist and biographer of Robert Graves, Mary Shelley and Jean Rhys among others. Seymour is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She elected to resign from the Royal Society of Literature in December 2023. She was formerly married to Andrew Sinclair, and Anthony Gottleib and is now married to Ted Lynch.
Robert Adams Gottlieb was an American writer and editor. He was the editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster, Alfred A. Knopf, and The New Yorker.
Michael Korda is an English-born writer and novelist who was editor-in-chief of Simon & Schuster in New York City.
Frieda Rebecca Hughes is an English-Australian poet and painter. She has published seven children's books, four poetry collections and one short story and has had many exhibitions. Hughes is the daughter of Pulitzer Prize winning American novelist and poet Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes, who was Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1984 until his death in 1998.
Susan Lea Page is an American journalist, political commentator, and biographer, and the Washington, D.C. bureau chief for USA Today.
Paul Francis Pelosi is an American businessman who owns and operates Financial Leasing Services, Inc., a San Francisco–based real estate and venture capital investment and consulting firm. He was the owner of the Sacramento Mountain Lions of the United Football League. He is married to Nancy Pelosi, the 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives.
Anthony Swofford is an American writer and former U.S. Marine, best known for his 2003 book Jarhead, based heavily on his accounts of various situations encountered in the Persian Gulf War. This memoir was the basis of the 2005 film of the same name, directed by Sam Mendes.
Iyanla Vanzant is an American inspirational speaker, lawyer, New Thought spiritual teacher, author, life coach, and television personality. She is known primarily for her books, her eponymous talk show, and her appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show. From 2012 to 2021, she served as host of OWN's Iyanla: Fix My Life.
Linda K. Hogan is an American poet, storyteller, academic, playwright, novelist, environmentalist and writer of short stories. She previously served as the Chickasaw Nation's writer in residence. Hogan is a recipient of the Lannan Literary Award for Poetry.
The Mace of the United States House of Representatives, also called the Mace of the Republic, is a ceremonial mace that symbolizes the governmental authority of the United States, and more specifically, the legislative authority of the House of Representatives.
Michiel Vos is a Dutch-American journalist and US-based correspondent. He is the author of the best selling Dutch book Vos in de VS.
Know Your Power: A Message to America's Daughters is a 2008 memoir by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, published by Doubleday on July 29, 2008. It is co-written with New York Times best-selling author and Peabody Award-winning writer Amy Hill Hearth. It is Pelosi's first published book.
Max Lincoln Schuster was an American book publisher and the co-founder of the publishing company Simon & Schuster. Schuster was instrumental in the creation of Pocket Books, and the mass paperback industry, along with Richard L. Simon, Robert F. DeGraff and Leon Shimkin. Schuster published many famous works of history and philosophy including the Story of Civilization series of books by Will Durant and Ariel Durant.
