Who are these people?

[Celethiel]

yes to Zombie, and No i am not inward turning when it comes to history i just wanted to choose this particular person...

Besides which if I didn't know who this person was I MIGHT not know who it was...

[Zombie]

So your clue that he's a "very special man to history" - that's World history then. And he's an American.

That just leaves the timing - late 19th or early twentieth century?

[Zombie]

Found it Googled "American beat stick", spotted "very big stick" quote so googled that and Bingo - the second item:

The widespread use of 'speak softly and carry a big stick' began with American president Theodore Roosevelt. In a letter to Henry L. Sprague, on January 26th 1900, he wrote:

    "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far."
 

[Zombie]

OK, here's a nice colour snap - who's this?

 

Edited March 19, 2013 by Zombie

[Red_A]

"tolstoy" leo   author of war and peace  got to be dressed as a wealthy peasant like that and he is on back cover

[Zombie]

Yep, the great 19th century Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy.

 

And a genuine colour photo from 1908

 

Your turn
 

[Red_A]

Well first my belated congratulation to paya, how an east european recognised a Western Ruffian I do not know, There must be a story there. It shocked me entirely, I did not recognise him from that photo.

 

But I will persist, believe it not here is an american citizen, and definitely not an European citizen

 

[Zombie]

But I will persist, believe it not here is an american citizen, and definitely not an European citizen

 

Is this a cunning clue?

[MikeL]

I'm confused, Red.  Did you say this is an American, not a European?

 

I ask because I recognize the picture.  I previously posted a challenge with the picture of British engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel.  The picture you offer is that of his father, Marc Isambard Brunel, the not quite so famous French/British engineer.

 

Am I correct?

[Red_A]

Shucks yes you are right, both of you.  Marc Isambard Brunel was born in France, was a Royalist, and fled France during the Revolution, so definitly not a French republican Citizen.  He fled to the USA and became an american citizen to obtain work.  Apparently he did a lot of work in New York and won a prize for the Washington Capitol.  He came to Greta Britain to marry his sweetheart and/or sell his wood block making equipment to the British Navy, he also invented the shield for tunnelling.  However there is no record of him giving up his american citizenship.

[MikeL]

Cool, Red_A.  Sneaky clue.

 

Probably no clues needed on this one.  Who will be first?

 

 

[Zombie]

Car on the right looks like a '53 Cadillac Eldorado *drools*

[Red_A]

Here is another punt Marlon Brando on a Triumph Thunderbird 6T, my father had one

[MikeL]

Here is another punt Marlon Brando on a Triumph Thunderbird 6T, my father had one

 

Not Brando and it's not a Triumph.

[C J]

Could it be James Dean?   I don't know because I couldn't cheat on this one, but that's my guess.   If I'm right, I still don't think I can get a picture on here.

[paya]

Thank You, Red_A! :-) Believe it or not, I recognized him from one board game called Bang!, specifically this card:

Now that I'm looking back at it, I don't see the similarity... Maybe I have seen a picture of Billy the Kid like that before.

 

MikeL, is that Elvis?

 

P.S. I prefer CENTRAL European, Eastern European for me is Ukraine, Belarus or Moldova, basically former parts of the Soviet Union (NOT the Soviet "Warsaw Pact" block).

[MikeL]

Gratuluji, Pavel.  That is indeed The King. He is sitting on a Harley.

 

Elvis Presley, at the love-me-tender age of 21 in 1956, at the house he bought for himself and his parents at 1034 Audubon Drive in Memphis. When he first became a hit, he bought the house and three Cadillacs.  I doubt the neighbors liked the cars parked in the front yard.  The house was two blocks from where I lived at the time; I was 15.  I stopped by one day and introduced myself to Elvis.  He was in the front yard attracting a crowd.

 

Graceland came later.

 

This larger format picture may show him more clearly.  http://www.shorpy.com/node/14863?size=_original

 

Your turn to challenge us, Paya.

[Zombie]

Elvis must have bought the ragtop Caddy used or already owned it a couple of years - it's definitely a '53-''54 and much the better looker than the '55 onwards when the tail fins started growing like weeds

What a thrill for you to have met the guy! All the archive stuff says what a nice regular guy he was - before the Colonel got his claws in him ...
 

[Celethiel]

correct to the fact it was Teddy Roosevelt, The Late president did play on the international stage during the War against Spain, in Cuba in which America pushed Spain from being a world power and became one herself. Not to mention playing on a world stage as being America's Representative to the World as our president (sadly is it not how the world gets to know America, through our presidents)...

As for the man on the bike being the king, I couldn't see his face well enough to see who it even could be...my thoughts were too Brando

 

I've got a couple of pics to see if you know who they are...

Who be this for one:

a clue... I get the feeling his pose was life long...

Edited March 20, 2013 by Celethiel

[Finn]

My, my, Cel; you sure do have a stock of famous men's boyhood photos.  

 

God(less!), that was a mouthful. Funny, how people change over time. This kid looks different as an adult, with a goatee and all.... Was he the one that took an ax to the head? No... pretty close though. ;P

 

Lol, Wiki has an image of poorlev as a child too.

 

You're all welcome. o/o/o/o/o/o/o/

[MikeL]

OK, here's the next challenge:

 

 

[Finn]

Those were just hints.

 

I commend you for finding such an obscure image, though. I got absolutely nothing on this lad. /me melts away, screaming in devastating defeat.

[podga]

Celethiel's is Lenin.

 

And Mike's is Vaclav Havel.

 

Thanks for choosing Europeans, guys!!  

 

I will return with mine in a moment.

[podga]

And who might this fine gentleman be?  

 

Edited March 22, 2013 by podga

[Celethiel]

The First King of Greece since the middle ages?