People who became nouns

Before there were silhouettes, there was a Silhouette. And before there was gerrymandering, there was a Gov. Gerry. It's easy to forget that some of the English language's most common words had real-life namesakes in living, breathing people.

Another example is Dr Henry Heimlich: Helping Us Breathe Easy. The American doctor created the procedure for using abdominal thrusts to eject material that's causing someone to choke, i.e., the Heimlich maneuver.

Read this Life slideshow to find out more.