Selected by the Library's curators and subject specialists, those honored have advanced and embodied the quintessentially American ideal of individual creativity, conviction, dedication, and exuberance. They are:

Hank Aaron Muhammad Ali Madeleine Albright Harry Belafonte Tony Bennett Big Bird Larry Bird Herbert Block (Herblock) Judy Blume Dr. T. Berry Brazelton William F. Buckley Jr. Carol Burnett Benjamin Solomon Carson Benny Carter Johnny Cash Julia Child Vinton Cerf Linda Chavez Beverly Cleary David Copperfield Bill Cosby Merce Cunningham Michael E. DeBakey Dr. Sylvia Earle Marian Wright Edelman Ahmet Ertegun

Suzanne Farrel John Kenneth Galbraith Andrew J. Goodpastor Dr. Stephen Jay Gould Katharine Graham Mickey Hart Al Hirshfeld Quincy Jones Jenette Kahn (for Superman) Ambassador Max Kampelman George Kennan Jackie Joyner Kersee B. B. King Billie Jean King Jeanne Kirkpatrick Ursula LeGuin Annie Leibovitz Carl Lewis Congressman John Lewis Alan Lomax Yo-Yo Ma Robert McCloskey Mark McGwire Rita Moreno Toni Morrison Katherine Paterson

I.M. Pei Dr. Jaroslav Pelikan Itzhak Perlman Colin Powell Leontyne Price Tito Puente Sally Ride Cal Ripken, Jr. Fred Rogers Philip Roth Martin Scorsese Pete Seeger Maurice Sendak Bobby Short Stephen Sondheim Steven Spielberg Ralph Stanley Gloria Steinem Barbra Streisand Isaac Stern William Styron Dr. Harold Varmus Gwen Verdon Dr. Fred L. Whipple Tiger Woods Herman Wouk