Photograph of American author Ben Tarnoff.

Ben Tarnoff

Painting of Jean de la Bruyère wearing a red cape.

Jean de La Bruyère

(1645 - 1696)

Black and white photograph of a young Mark Twain with dark hair.

Mark Twain

(1835 - 1910)

Photograph of President Abraham Lincoln sitting in a chair.

Abraham Lincoln

(1809 - 1865)

Sepia colored photo of Oscar Wilde sitting on a rock with a book in his hand

Oscar Wilde

(1854 - 1900)

Black and white photo of Harry S. Truman holding a newspaper with the headline "Dewey defeats Truman"

Harry S. Truman

(1884 - 1972)

black and white photo of Steve Martin wearing a white dinner jacket and black tie

Steve Martin

black and white photo of Groucho Marx wearing glasses and smoking a cigar from the side of his mouth

Groucho Marx

(1890 - 1977)

Color drawing of Jane Austen sitting in a chair wearing a blue dress

Jane Austen

(1775 - 1817)

color photograph of Victor Frankl with his hand on his chin looking pensive

Victor Frankl

(1905 - 1997)

Color photograph of comedian and writer Rob Delaney.

Rob Delaney

Black and white photograph of American entertainer Joan Rivers.

Joan Rivers

(1933 - 2014)

Sculpture bust of Roman teacher and writer Quintilian.

Quintilian

(35 - c. 96)

David Simon sitting outside wearing an Irish driver cap

David Simon

Painting of Thomas Hobbes

Thomas Hobbes

(1588 - 1679)

Robert Benchley

Robert Benchley

(1889 - 1945)

black and white photo of James Thurber lighting a cigarette in the new york times office

James Thurber

(1894 - 1961)

Pastel drawing of George Eliot.

George Eliot

(1819 - 1880)

Frances Warfield

(1884 - 1969)

Painting of François Rabelais.

François Rabelais

(1494 - 1553)

Japanese diarist and poet Sei Shōnagon.

Sei Shonagon

(c. 966 - c. 1025)

Colorized engraving of Voltaire wearing a wig.

Voltaire

(1694 - 1778)

Classical engraving of Aristophanes with a long beard.

Aristophanes

(c. 446 BC - c. 386 BC)

Engraving of William Shakespeare from the first folio edition.

William Shakespeare

(1564 - 1616)

Depiction of Greek philosopher Plato.

Plato

(c. 427 BC - c. 347 BC)

Stanley Kubrick

(1929 - 1999)

Black and white photograph of Mencken looking over his shoulder at the camera

H.L. Mencken

(1880 - 1956)

Billy Collins

Photograph of Soviet author Mikhail Zoshchenko in military uniform.

Mikhail Zoshchenko

(1895 - 1958)

Spanish writer Miguel de Cervantes.

Miguel de Cervantes

(1547 - 1616)

Black and white photograph of Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud with cigar.

Sigmund Freud

(1856 - 1949)

Black and white photo of Herbert Spencer with long, hairy mutton chops and a stern expression

Herbert Spencer

(1820 - 1903)

Color mosaic of earl Church father St. John Chrysostom.

St. John Chrysostom

(347 - 407)

Lewis Lapham at his desk

Lewis H. Lapham

Ambrose Bierce

Ambrose Bierce

(1842 - c. 1914)

American feminist, activist, and editor Gloria Steinem.

Gloria Steinem

Painting of Charles Lamb wearing a black suit against a red backdrop.

Charles Lamb

(1775 - 1834)

Calvin Trillin standing in front of a refrigerator in a black and white photograph

Calvin Trillin

Photograph of African-American poet and writer Langston Hughes.

Langston Hughes

(1902 - 1967)

photograph of David Foster Wallace speaking at a podium

David Foster Wallace

(1962 - 2008)

Portrait of Chinese fiction writer Pu Songling.

Pu Songling

(1640 - 1715)

Photograph of English professor and author Andrew McConnell Stott.

Andrew McConnell Stott

Italian courtier, diplomat, and writer Baldassare Castiglione.

Baldassare Castiglione

(1478 - 1529)

Ukrainian-born Russian novelist Nikolai Gogol.

Nikolai Gogol

(1809 - 1852)

Abu Nuwas

(c. 755 - c. 814)

black and white pencil drawing of Moliere in an ornate frame

Molière

(1622 - 1673)

Oil painting portrair Michel de Montaigne in red robes and white collar

Michel de Montaigne

(1533 - 1592)

Henri Bergson

Henri Bergson

(1859 - 1941)

black and white photograph of Sara Silverman performing at the Upright Citizens Brigad

Sarah Silverman

Jonathan Swift

Jonathan Swift

(1667 - 1745)

Black and white image of French classical author La Rochefoucauld.

La Rochefoucauld

(1613 - 1680)

Photo of stone Aristotle statue face

Aristotle

(384 BC - 322 BC)

Image of Renaissance humanist and scholar Poggio Bracciolini.

Poggio Bracciolini

(1380 - 1459)

Flann O'Brien in an overcoat standing next to a Dublin Diversion sign

Flann O’Brien

(1911 - 1966)

Portrait bust of presumed author of the Iliad and the Odyssey Homer.

Homer

(c. 800 BC - 725 BC)

Image of French poet François Villon.

François Villon

(1431 - c. 1463)

Dorothy Parker working at her typewriter.

Dorothy Parker

(1893 - 1967)

Joseph Heller

Joseph Heller

(1923 - 1999)

Portrait of George Vasey in a suit with a long white beard

George Vasey

(1822 - 1893)

Illustration of Plautus with red robes and hat

Plautus

(c. 254 BC - c. 184 BC)

Daniil Kharms looking serious with an intent stare

Daniil Kharms

(1905 - 1942)

Photograph of Charles Baudelaire

Charles Baudelaire

(1821 - 1867)

Kurt Vonnegut

(1922 - 2007)

Portrait of Philip Dormer Stanhope wearing a blue sash.

Philip Dormer Stanhope

(1694 - 1773)

Sepia toned photograph of Lewis Carroll in a suit, reading a book

Lewis Carroll

(1832 - 1898)

Charlie Chaplin

(1889 - 1977)

Samuel Beckett, 1977. Photograph by Roger Pic.

Samuel Beckett

(1906 - 1989)

Don DeLillo standing outside in a jacket, black and white photo

Don DeLillo

Woody Allen in thick black rim glasses

Woody Allen

Juvenal

(c. 60 - c. 130)

Black and white photo of Lenny Bruce being frisked by an officer

Lenny Bruce

(1925 - 1966)

color oil painting of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in a red tunic with gray hair

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

(1756 - 1791)