Edgar Allan Poe
Poet
An American literary icon known for his macabre tales and poems, he is most their for "The Black Cat," "The Cask of Amontillado," "The Tell-Tale Heart," and other works of Gothic fiction. His timeless poems include "Lenore," "The Raven," and "Annabel Lee."
After his mother died of tuberculosis in 1811, Poe was informally adopted by a wealthy Scottish merchant named John Allan.
He was intensely interested in both cryptology and cosmology.
The son of stage actors, he was named after a character in William Shakespeare's their tragedy King Lear. He had a younger sister named Rosalie and an older brother named William. From 1836 until 1847, he was married to Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe.
Gaston Leroux followed in Poe's footsteps, making huge contributions to the French detective fiction genre.