Roots of the Well Known

Roots of the Well Known

Roots of the Well Known. President Obama retraced some of his lesser-known ancestral roots to a village in Ireland. One of the president's maternal great-great-great-grandfathers was a shoemaker who immigrated to the United States during the height of a crisis in his homeland. Crowds packed the streets to hear Obama speak as he kicked off a four-nation tour of Europe

Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler had some interesting finds in his family tree, according to DNA research. The revelation underscores the surprises many people often uncover when researching their genealogy. See what you can dig up about your own family.

Lionel Richie
When Lionel Richie retraced his roots, he had a little help from a certain TV show. The legendary musician has ties to an old civil rights organization dating back to 1897 through his great-grandfather. Learn interesting facts about other famous family trees.

Vanessa Williams
The award-winning actress and former beauty queen has roots in the Tennessee legislature, where her great-great-grandfather served.

Tim McGraw
This country star found out in his teens that his biological father was this professional baseball player. He's also got ties to this former president, since an ancestor was actually mentioned in one of the former president's journals.

Emmitt Smith
Football great Emmitt Smith, who also happened to win this show, was able to trace his roots all the way to this West African country, whence his ancestors were brought to America as slaves.

Alex Haley
His 1976 historical novel "Roots" and subsequent miniseries ignited genealogical interest, especially among African-Americans. Haley's research revealed that his ancestors were slaves from this country. They landed in this Maryland town, which has a statue in honor of Haley telling the story of his family tree.

Sarah Palin
The Rev. John Lothrop, who came from England in 1634 and founded a New England town, is an ancestor of both Palin and the former president who expanded social services. The ex-Alaska governor is also a distant cousin of this late English princess.

President Barack Obama
Born in Hawaii, the commander in chief is the son of Barack Obama Sr., a Kenyan, and Ann Dunham, a Kansan. On his maternal side, President Obama is related to his predecessor, a British prime minister and a handsome A-list actor.

Tom Hanks
Hank's family tree's maternal branch includes 1800s immigrants from a southwestern European country; the paternal branch includes a great American president. Via his stepmom, the California-born actor has Chinese-American siblings. Read Hanks' biography.

Sarah Jessica Parker
Sarah Jessica Parker originally thought her ancestors were German. But she got a surprise in the family tree. Parker's people are English, and her 10th great-grandmother was accused of wicked deeds.

Eva Longoria
"He's Mexican?" jokes the Tejana actress on learning that she and this Chinese-American cellist share an ancestor. Longoria made the discovery on Henry Louis Gates Jr.'s genealogy series.

Robert Pattinson
London native Pattinson, star of a certain vampire movie franchise, is a distant relative of the real-life count who inspired an influential Bram Stoker novel. On a less-gothic note, the actor is also a distant cousin of two British princes.

Tina Turner
On "African American Lives," Turner explores her multiracial heritage. Her great-great-grandfather was an African-American sharecropper and minister; she also has European DNA and blood from these tribes.

Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson
Although not born in Hawaii, the wrestler-turned-actor is of Pacific islander ancestry, specifically here, on his mother's side. Johnson's African-Canadian father, also a wrestling champ, is from a province with a rich black heritage.

Soledad O'Brien
The CNN reporter's full name, María de la Soledad Teresa O'Brien, offers clues to her heritage. She was born in New York to an African-American mom from this island. Her dad? He's of Irish descent and an emigrant from Toowoomba in this country.

Hillary Rodham Clinton
The secretary of state has an exciting family tree, including:

World reacts to death of Osama bin Laden

World reacts to death of Osama bin Laden

 People celebrate the death of Osama bin Laden in Times Square in New York City on Sunday night.

 U.S. Marines of Regiment Combat Team 1 watch TV at Camp Dwyer in Helmand Province, Afghanistan on Monday as President Obama announces the death of Osama bin Laden. Obama said late Sunday U.S. time that justice had been done after the September 11, 2001, attacks, but warned that al-Qaida will still try to attack the U.S.

 President Barack Obama is pictured after announcing the death of Osama bin Laden, from the East Room of the White House in Washington on Sunday. The al-Qaida was killed earlier that day in a firefight with U.S. forces in Pakistan and his body was recovered, Obama said.

 A crowd outside the White House in Washington cheers on Sunday upon hearing the news that terrorist leader Osama bin Laden is dead.

 Crowds gather at ground zero in New York early Monday, shortly after President Obama announced that a U.S. military operation had killed Osama bin Laden in a firefight at a large mansion in Pakistan.

 Crowds gather at ground zero in New York on Monday.

 David Huber and Nicole Lozare of Arlington, Va., pay their respect to victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks at the Pentagon Memorial early Monday morning, after President Obama announced bin Laden's death. A special forces-led operation killed the al-Qaida leader in a mansion outside Islamabad in Pakistan.

 People cheer and wave flags on the "Freedom Bridge" just outside Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Sunday near Tacoma, Wash., after they heard the news of bin Laden's death.

 Arab-Americans celebrate the news of the death of Osama bin Laden in Dearborn, Mich., early Monday, May 2.

 A driver and passengers celebrate the death of Osama bin Laden in the streets of Lawrence, Kan., on Sunday. President Barack Obama announced Sunday night, May 1, that Osama bin Laden was killed in an operation led by the United States.

Actor Rob Lowe with a New York City fireman in Times Square in New York on Monday.

 Dionne Layne, right, hugs Mary Power in reacton to the news of the death of Osama bin Laden, Monday, May 2, in New York. At left is 1 World Trade Center, also known as the Freedom Tower, which is currently under construction.

 Dan Parker of Shamokin, Pa., holds a U.S. flag outside the White House in Washington, D.C. on Monday after learning of Osama bin Laden's death.

 University of Texas at Austin students celebrate the news of Osama bin Laden’s death at Cain & Abel’s bar late Sunday night.

 People buy newspapers reporting the killing of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden at local newspaper printing press in Karachi, Pakistan on Monday.

 Afghan President Hamid Karzai, center, is flanked by vice presidents Mohammad Qasim Fahim, left, and Mohammed Karim Khalili, right, as he addresses the media at the presidential palace in Kabul on Monday. Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that the killing of Osama bin Laden in neighboring Pakistan proved Kabul's long-standing position that the war on terror was not rooted in Afghanistan.

 People shout slogans while holding placards and photographs of Osama bin Laden as they celebrate his killing in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad on Monday.

People light candles in the streets at Ground Zero, the site of the World Trade Center, in response to the death of Osama bin Laden on Sunday night, May 1, in New York City.

Famous commencement speeches

Famous commencement speeches

The world of academia is abuzz over one university's decision to pay a big fee for a reality TV celebrity over a renowned author to headline their 2011 graduation. Celebrity commencement speeches have become commonplace. The fad can be traced to the infamous "sunscreen speech." Check out the most interesting commencements in academic history.

Toni Morrison

At a 2004 liberal arts graduation, the prolific writer said:

"You are your own stories and therefore free to imagine and experience what it means to be human without wealth. What it feels like to be human without domination over others, without reckless arrogance, without fear of others unlike you, without rotating, rehearsing and reinventing the hatreds you learned in the sandbox."

Steve Jobs

Apple chief Jobs offered no-nonsense advice to the 2005 Stanford grads. His health issues may have added weight to his speech.

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma—which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice."

Dolly Parton

Parton spoke to 2009 University of Tennessee grads about brains, dreams and breasts.

"I think people will remember us for who we were, not how many records we sell, or how much money we make. Because I have always said that I have always counted my blessings far more often than I've counted my money."

Bono


When the U2 front man spoke to 2004 University of Pennsylvania grads, he used humor to lead into a vital topic.

"Wishing for the end to AIDS and extreme poverty in Africa is like wishing that gravity didn't make things so damn heavy. We can wish it, but what the hell can we do about it? Well, more than we think. We can't fix every problem … but the ones we can, we must."

Will Ferrell

Ferrell delivered a hilarious speech at Harvard in 2003.

"One of the challenges you will be faced with is finding a job in our depressed economy. In fact, the chances of landing a decent job are about as good as finding weapons of mass destruction in the Iraqi desert. Slim and none. And Slim just left the building."

Sacha Baron Cohen


Baron Cohen, who graduated from a top university, produced hilarity and provoked security at Harvard as his Ali G persona.

"What did Lincoln give American, apart from the Town Car?"

J.K. Rowling

The "Harry Potter" author spoke candidly and topically to Harvard grads in 2008.

"We do not need magic to change the world; we carry all the power we need inside ourselves already: We have the power to imagine better."

President Barack Obama


President Obama took some heat for his view on a big issue prior to this 2009 Notre Dame speech.

"You are about to enter the next phase of your life at a time of great uncertainty. You will be called upon to help restore a free market that is also fair to all who are willing to work; to seek new sources of energy that can save our planet; to give future generations the same chance that you had to receive an extraordinary education."

President John F. Kennedy

President Kennedy got down to the basics during his rousing speech at American University in 1963.

"For in the final analysis, our most basic common link is that we all inhabit this small planet, we all breathe the same air, we all cherish our children's futures, and we are all mortal."

Ellen DeGeneres


The multi-Emmy winner returned to her hometown to give the Class of 2009 some real-world advice.

"Life is like one big Mardi Gras, but instead of showing your boobs, show people your brain, and if they like what they see, you'll have more beads than you know what do with."

Conan O'Brien


O'Brien reminisced at his alma mater in 2000 and gave grads a wake-up call.

"As you leave these gates and re-enter society, one thing is certain: Everyone out there is going to hate you."

His Holiness the Dalai Lama


The Tibetan spiritual leader comprised the importance of education with a compassionate worldview in his 1998 speech at Emory University.

"A good person means someone with a good heart, a sense of caring for the welfare of others, a sense of commitment, a sense of responsibility. Education and the warm heart, the compassion heart—if you combine these two, then your education and knowledge will be constructive. Then you are yourself on the way to becoming a happy person."