MUHAMMAD ALI

Muhammad Ali, The Greatest, shouts at Sonny Liston to get to his feet.

Born Cassius Marcellus Clay in 1942, Muhammad Ali, like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Dolores Huerta, and Cesar Chavez, is another real person who attained a pop culture eminence through his activities as dissident, religious leader, civil rights activist, United Nations ambassador for peace, and yes, three-time heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Muhammad Ali is truly a renaissance man in a modern world. The nice kid from Louisville, Kentucky transformed and transcended his sport and culture. Although he is suffering from Parkinson's disease, Ali has added 'inspiration for disabled people' to his roster of accomplishments.