Who Was Alfred Hitchcock?
Who Was?
By Pamela D. Pollack & Meg Belviso
Narrated by Gildart Jackson / 52 minutes
Known as one of the most influential filmmakers of all time, Alfred Hitchcock’s unique vision in movies like Psycho and The Birds sent shivers down our spines and shockwaves through the film industry. His innovative camera techniques have been studied for decades and his gift for storytelling cemented his place in history. Many directors make great movies, but the genius of Hitchcock helped make movies great. Learn how a chubby boy from London became the “Master of Suspense.”
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Who Was Neil Armstrong?
By: Roberta Edwards
Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
Length: 56 minutes
Abridged: No
On July 20, 1969, Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon and, to an audience of over 450 million people, proclaimed his step a giant leap for mankind. This Eagle Scout built his own model planes as a little boy and then grew up to be a test pilot for experimental aircraft before becoming an astronaut. Read More »
Who is Dolly Parton?
By: True Kelley
Narrated by: Dorothy Dillingham Blue
Length: 55 minutes
Abridged: No
Born in a little cabin in Tennessee, Dolly Parton always dreamed big, and she was right to! She wrote her first song at age five and became a country music star by the time she was in her early twenties. Of course, her success didn't stop there. Dolly Parton is also an actress, author, businesswoman, and philanthropist whose "Imagination... Read More »
Who Was Louis Armstrong?
By: Yona Zeldis McDonough
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 53 minutes
Abridged: No
If not for a stint in reform school, young Louis Armstrong might never have become a musician. It was a teacher at the Colored Waifs' Home who gave him a cornet, promoted him to band leader, and saw talent in the tough kid from the even tougher New Orleans neighborhood called Storyville. But it was Louis Armstrong's own passion and genius that... Read More »
Who Was Jackie Robinson?
By: Gail Herman
Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
As a kid, Jackie Robinson loved sports. And why not? He was a natural at football, basketball, and, of course, baseball. But beyond athletic skill, it was his strength of character that secured his place in sports history. In 1947 Jackie joined the Brooklyn Dodgers, breaking the long-time color barrier in major league baseball. It was tough... Read More »
Who Is George Lucas?
By: Pamela D. Pollack & Meg Belviso
Narrated by: Marc Cashman
Length: 1 hour
Abridged: No
As a child his passions were comics and cars, but George Lucas grew up to be one of the most successful filmmakers of all time. He is a producer, screenwriter, director and entrepreneur whose company Lucasfilms pioneered the movie effects that changed the world of animation. He founded Industrial Light and Magic, which transformed special sound... Read More »
Who Was Galileo?
By: Patricia Brennan Demuth
Narrated by: Mark Deakins
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
Like Michelangelo, Galileo is another Renaissance great known just by his first name--a name that is synonymous with scientific achievement. Born in Pisa, Italy, in the sixteenth century, Galileo contributed to the era's great rebirth of knowledge. He invented a telescope to observe the heavens. From there, not even the sky was the limit! He... Read More »
Who Was Harriet Tubman?
By: Yona Zeldis McDonough & Who HQ
Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
Length: 55 minutes
Abridged: No
Born a slave in Maryland, Harriet Tubman knew first-hand what it meant to be someone's property; she was whipped by owners and almost killed by an overseer. It was from other field hands that she first heard about the Underground Railroad which she travelled by herself north to Philadelphia. Throughout her long life (she died at the age of... Read More »
Who Was Charles Darwin?
By: Deborah Hopkinson
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 48 minutes
Abridged: No
As a young boy, Charles Darwin hated school and was often scolded for conducting “useless” experiments. Yet his passion for the natural world was so strong that he suffered through terrible seasickness during his five-year voyage aboard The Beagle. Darwin collected new creatures from the coasts of Africa, South America, and the Galapagos... Read More »
Who Is Jeff Kinney?
By: Patrick Kinney
Narrated by: Ramón de Ocampo
Length: 1 hour 4 minutes
Abridged: No
Even as a kid, everyone thought Jeff Kinney was talented. People loved his drawings, and when he went to college, his comic strip Igdoof was so popular that it spread to other universities! Still, Jeff faced challenges. His cartoons were rejected by syndicates that claimed his art was unprofessional. Then, an idea struck: Jeff would write a... Read More »
Who Was Michael Jackson?
By: Megan Stine
Narrated by: JB Adkins
Length: 55 minutes
Abridged: No
Born in Gary, Indiana, on August 29, 1958, Michael Jackson was definitely not a regular kid. A superstar with The Jackson 5 before he was eight years old, he became the King of Pop as a solo artist. Michael was a creative--yet deeply troubled--genius who always remained devoted to his art right up until his death is 2009 before a much... Read More »
Who Was Elvis Presley?
By: Geoff Edgers
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 49 minutes
Abridged: No
Put on your blue suede shoes and get ready for another addition to the Who Was…? series! The King could not have come from humbler origins: Born in Tupelo, Mississippi, during the Depression, he grew up with the blues music of the rural South, the gospel music of local churches, and the country-western classics. But he forged a sound all his... Read More »
Who Was Maurice Sendak?
By: Janet Pascal
Narrated by: Arthur Morey
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
It seems entirely fitting that Maurice Sendak was born on the same day that Mickey Mouse first made his cartoon debut--June 10, 1928. Sendak was crazy about cartoons and comic books, and at twelve, after seeing Disney's Fantasia, he decided that he was going to become an illustrator. His love of childrens books began early: often sick and... Read More »
Who Was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart?
By: Yona Zeldis McDonough
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 54 minutes
Abridged: No
Born in Austria in 1756, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his first piece of music, a minuet, when he was just five years old! Soon after, he was performing for kings and emperors. Although he died at the young age of thirty-five, Mozart left a legacy of more than 600 works. This fascinating biography charts the musician's extraordinary career... Read More »
Who Was Sacagawea?
By: Judith Bloom Fradin & Dennis Brindell Fradin
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 45 minutes
Abridged: No
Sacagawea was only sixteen when she made one of the most remarkable journeys in American history, traveling 4500 miles by foot, canoe, and horse-all while carrying a baby on her back! Without her, the Lewis and Clark expedition might have failed. Through this engaging book, kids will understand the reasons that today, 200 years later, she is... Read More »
Who Were the Wright Brothers?
By: James Buckley, Jr. & Who HQ
Length: 55 minutes
Abridged: No
As young boys, Orville and Wilbur Wright loved all things mechanical. As young men, they gained invaluable skills essential for their success by working with printing presses, bicycles, motors, and any sort of machinery they could get their hands on. As adults, the brothers worked together to invent, build, and fly the world's first successful... Read More »
Who Was Mark Twain?
By: April Jones Prince
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 56 minutes
Abridged: No
A humorist, narrator, and social observer, Mark Twain is unsurpassed in American literature. Best known as the author of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain, not unlike his protagonist, Huck, has a restless spirit. He found adventure prospecting for silver in Nevada, navigating steamboats down the Mississippi, and making people laugh... Read More »
Who Was Maria Tallchief?
By: Catherine Gourley
Narrated by: Hillary Huber
Length: 1 hour 13 minutes
Abridged: No
Born in 1925, Maria Tallchief spent part of her childhood on an Osage reservation in Oklahoma. With the support of her family and world-renowned choreographer George Balanchine, she rose to the top of her art form to become America's first prima ballerina. Black-and-white illustrations provide visual sidebars to the history of ballet while... Read More »
Who Was Lucille Ball?
By: Pamela D. Pollack & Meg Belviso
Narrated by: Tara Sands
Length: 56 minutes
Abridged: No
Who doesn't love Lucy? The legendary actress, producer, and comedian steps into the Who Was? spotlight.
Much like her hit TV show, I Love Lucy, Americans in the 1950s fell in love with Lucy. Born in New York in 1911, Lucille Ball was always a natural performer. She danced in the chorus of Broadway shows and acted in small parts in Hollywood... Read More »
Who Is Bob Dylan?
By: Jim O'Connor
Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews
Length: 57 minutes
Abridged: No
A singer-songerwriter, musician, and artist, Bob Dylan is an American icon. In the past five decades, Dylan's work has influenced everyone from John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, and David Bowie to rapper Eminem. Young music lovers will be fascinated by this great artist's life! Read More »
Who Are the Rolling Stones?
By: Dana Meachen Rau
Narrated by: Will Damron
Length: 56 minutes
Abridged: No
Follow the bad boys of rock and roll from their beginnings in London to their unparalleled success around the world.
Starting out over fifty years ago, the Rolling Stones took the music of the blues and blended it into rock and roll to create their own unique sound. Decades later, they are still hard at work, recording and playing live to massive... Read More »
Who Was Roald Dahl?
By: True Kelley
Narrated by: René Ruiz
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
Roald Dahl is one of the most famous children's book authors ever. Now in this Who Was . . . ? biography, children will learn of his real-life adventures. A flying ace for the British Air Force, he was married to an Academy Award-winning actress. He also wrote books and screenplays for adults. Read More »
Who Was Thomas Jefferson?
By: Dennis Brindell Fradin
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 4 minutes
Abridged: No
Did you know that John Adams had to coax Thomas Jefferson into writing the Declaration of Independence? It's true. The shy Virginia statesman refused at first, but then went on to author one of our nation's most important and inspiring documents. The third U.S. president, Jefferson was also an architect, inventor, musician, farmer, and-what is... Read More »
Who Was William Shakespeare?
By: Celeste Mannis
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 7 minutes
Abridged: No
The beloved plays of Shakespeare are still produced everywhere, yet the life of the world's most famous playwright remains largely a mystery. Young Will left the town of Stratford to pursue theater in London, where his work eventually thrived and made him a famous and wealthy man. Celeste Davidson Mannis here puts together the pieces of... Read More »
Who Is Jane Goodall?
By: Roberta Edwards
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
Length: 1 hour 6 minutes
Abridged: No
A life in the wild!
Jane Goodall, born in London, England, always loved animals and wanted to study them in their natural habitats. So at age twenty-six, off she went to Africa! Goodall's up-close observations of chimpanzees changed what we know about them and paved the way for many female scientists who came after her. Now her story comes to... Read More »
Who Was Thomas Alva Edison?
By: Margaret Frith
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
One day in 1882, Thomas Edison flipped a switch that lit up lower Manhattan with incandescent light and changed the way people live ever after. The electric light bulb was only one of thousands of Edison’s inventions, which include the phonograph and the kinetoscope, an early precursor to the movie camera. As a boy, observing a robin catch a... Read More »
Who Was Alexander Hamilton?
By: Pam Pollack & Meg Belviso
Narrated by: P.J. Ochlan
Length: 1 hour 10 minutes
Abridged: No
Read the story of the Founding Father who inspired the smash Broadway musical.
Born in the British West Indies and orphaned as a child, Alexander Hamilton made his way to the American Colonies and studied to become a lawyer. He joined a local militia during the American Revolution, rose to the rank of Major General, and became the chief aide to... Read More »
Who Was Anne Frank?
By: Ann Abramson
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 43 minutes
Abridged: No
In her amazing diary, Anne Frank revealed the challenges and dreams common for any young girl. But Hitler brought her childhood to an end and forced her and her family into hiding. Who Was Anne Frank? looks closely at Anne’s life before the secret annex, what life was like in hiding, and the legacy of her diary. Read More »
Who Is Bruce Springsteen?
By: Stephanie Sabol
Narrated by: Fred Sanders
Length: 1 hour
Abridged: No
Not only was Bruce Springsteen "Born in the USA," he has risen to become a twenty-time Grammy winner and American icon.
Bruce Springsteen grew up in a blue-collar New Jersey town, where his parents struggled to make ends meet. Bruce didn't fit in at school but found solace in rock and roll and playing guitar. After the breakup of a local band... Read More »
Who Was Eleanor Roosevelt?
By: Gare Thompson
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 59 minutes
Abridged: No
For a long time, the main role of First Ladies was to act as hostesses of the White House...until Eleanor Roosevelt. Born in 1884, Eleanor was not satisfied to just be a glorified hostess for her husband, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Eleanor had a voice, and she used it to speak up against poverty and racism. She had experience and... Read More »
Who Was John F. Kennedy?
By: Yona Zeldis McDonough
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 4 minutes
Abridged: No
The man who saved the lives of his PT-109 crewmen during WWII and became the 35th president fought-and won-his first battle at the age of two-and-a-half, when he was stricken with scarlet fever. Although his presidency was cut short, our nation's youngest elected leader left an indelible mark on the American consciousness and now is profiled in... Read More »
Who Was Johnny Appleseed?
By: Joan Holub
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 42 minutes
Abridged: No
The perfect biography to "bite into" at the start of a new school year! Children are sure to be fascinated by the eccentric and legendary Johnny Appleseed, a man who is best known for bringing apple trees to the midwest. Over John Chapman’s lifetime, he saw the country grow and start to spread westward. Traveling alone— in bare feet and sporting... Read More »
Who Was Abigail Adams?
By: True Kelley & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 11 minutes
Abridged: No
Abigail Adams was a strong woman far ahead of her time. She urged her husband, President John Adams, to "remember the ladies" and despite having no formal education herself, she later advocated for equal education in public schools for both boys and girls. She was also the first First Lady to live in the White House! This biography tells the... Read More »
Who is Stevie Wonder?
By: Jim Gigliotti
Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
Length: 56 minutes
Abridged: No
Discover more about Stevie Wonder, the music prodigy whose awards include 25 Grammy Awards and the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Stevie Wonder is one of the most successful singer-songwriter-musicians of our time. Signing his first record deal when he was only eleven, he had his first No.1 hit when he was thirteen. Since then he has had thirty... Read More »
Who Was Isaac Newton?
By: Janet B. Pascal & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 9 minutes
Abridged: No
Isaac Newton was always a loner, preferring to spend his time contemplating the mysteries of the universe. When the plague broke out in London in 1665 he was forced to return home from college. It was during this period of so much death, that Newton gave life to some of the most important theories in modern science, including gravity and the... Read More »
Who Is Malala Yousafzai?
By: Dinah Brown & Who HQ
Length: 59 minutes
Abridged: No
Malala Yousafzai was a girl who loved to learn but was told that girls would no longer be allowed to go to school. She wrote a blog that called attention to what was happening in her beautiful corner of Pakistan and realized that words can bring about change. She has continued to speak out for the right of all children to have an education. In... Read More »
Who Was Frida Kahlo?
By: Sarah Fabiny
Narrated by: Marisol Ramirez
Length: 52 minutes
Abridged: No
You can always recognize a painting by Kahlo because she is in nearly all--with her black braided hair and colorful Mexican outfits. A brave woman who was an invalid most of her life, she transformed herself into a living work of art. As famous for her self-portraits and haunting imagery as she was for her marriage to another famous artist,... Read More »
Who Were the Beatles?
By: Geoff Edgers
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 4 minutes
Abridged: No
Almost everyone can sing along with the Beatles, but how many young readers know their whole story? Geoff Edgers, a Boston Globe reporter and hard-core Beatles fan, brings the Fab Four to life in this Who Was...? book. Readers will learn about their childhoods in Liverpool, their first forays into rock music, what Beatlemania was like, and why... Read More »
Who Was Marco Polo?
By: Joan Holub
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 52 minutes
Abridged: No
Marco Polo was seventeen when he set out for China . . . and forty-one when he came back! More than seven hundred years ago, Marco Polo traveled from the medieval city of Venice to the fabled kingdom of the great Kublai Khan, seeing new sights and riches that no Westerner had ever before witnessed. But did Marco Polo experience the things he... Read More »
Who Was Annie Oakley?
By: Stephanie Spinner
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
You want girl power? Meet Annie Oakley! Born in 1860, she became one of the best-loved and most famous women of her generation. She amazed audiences all over the world with her sharpshooting, horse-riding, action-packed performances. In an age when most women stayed home, she traveled the world and forged a new image for American women. Read More »
Who Was Daniel Boone?
By: Sydelle Kramer
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 15 minutes
Abridged: No
Called the "Great Pathfinder", Daniel Boone is most famous for opening up the West to settlers through Kentucky. A symbol of America's pioneering spirit Boone was a skilled outdoorsman and an avid reader although he never attended school. Sydelle Kramer skillfully recounts Boone's many adventures such as the day he rescued his own daughter from... Read More »
Who Were the Tuskegee Airmen?
By: Sherri L. Smith & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 2 minutes
Abridged: No
It's up, up, and away with the Tuskegee Airmen, a heroic group of African American military pilots who helped the United States win World War II.
During World War II, black Americans were fighting for their country and for freedom in Europe, yet they had to endure a totally segregated military in the United States, where they weren't considered... Read More »
Who Was Andy Warhol?
By: Kirsten Anderson
Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith
Length: 57 minutes
Abridged: No
Best known for his screen prints of soup cans and movie stars, this shy young boy from Pittsburgh shot to fame with his radical ideas of what “art” could be. Working in the aptly named “Factory,” Warhol’s paintings, movies, and eccentric lifestyle blurred the lines between pop culture and art, ushering in the Pop Art movement and, with it, a... Read More »
Who Was Queen Victoria?
By: Jim Gigliotti
Narrated by: Jayne Entwistle
Length: 58 minutes
Abridged: No
Her reign of 63 years and seven months is known as the Victorian Era, a period of industrial, cultural, scientific, and political change that was marked by a great expansion of the British Empire. But Victoria was raised under close supervision and near isolation until she became Queen of the United Kingdom at the young age of 18. She married... Read More »
Release
Who Is Jackie Chan?
By: Jody Jensen Shaffer & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour
Abridged: No
How did Jackie Chan become one of the most recognizable and beloved actors in the world? Find out in this exciting biography of this martial artist turned international film superstar.
When Kong-sang was a young boy in Hong Kong, he enjoyed practicing martial arts with his dad but hated going to school. He was eventually enrolled in the China... Read More »
Who Was Helen Keller?
By: Gare Thompson
Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
At age two, Helen Keller became deaf and blind. She lived in a world of silence and darkness and she spent the rest of her life struggling to break through it. But with the help of teacher Annie Sullivan, Helen learned to read, write, and do many amazing things. This inspiring biography is perfect for young middle-grade listeners. Read More »
Soon
Who Is David Beckham?
By: Ellen Labrecque & Who HQ
Length:
Abridged: No
Whether you call it football or soccer, there's no disputing that David Beckham is one of the best players in the history of the game!
Whenever a young David Beckham was asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, he'd always answer with the same response: I want to be a footballer. This English native got his wish when he joined the Manchester... Read More »
Who Was Rosa Parks?
By: Yona Zeldis McDonough
Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
Length: 1 hour 8 minutes
Abridged: No
In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama. This seemingly small act triggered civil rights protests across America and earned Rosa Parks the title "Mother of the Civil Rights Movement." Read More »
Who Was Mister Rogers?
By: Diane Bailey & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 2 minutes
Abridged: No
Learn how Fred Rogers, a minister and musician from Pennsylvania, became one of America's most beloved television personalities and everyone's favorite neighbor.
Even though he's best known for his successful PBS series Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, Fred Rogers never dreamed of working in television. In fact, he hated the very first program that... Read More »
Soon
Who Was Richard Nixon?
By: Megan Stine & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 1 minute
Abridged: No
Learn more about Richard Nixon--one of America's most unpopular presidents and the only one to resign from the position.
On August 8, 1974, millions sat stunned as they watched Richard Nixon on TV when he announced he was stepping down as the President of the United States. He'd participated in a scandal that included secret tape recordings, a... Read More »
Who Was Genghis Khan?
By: Nico Medina & Who HQ
Length: 1 hour 2 minutes
Abridged: No
Named Temujin at birth by his nomadic family in early Mongolia, the great Genghis Khan used his skill and cunning to create the Mongol Empire and conquer almost the entire continent of Asia. As ruler of the largest empire in human history, he was as respected as he was feared. Learn more about the man and the legend in Who Was Genghis Khan? Read More »
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