George Gallup

About

His eponymous polls have been gauging public opinion since 1936.

Before Fame

Hired in 1932 to conduct public-opinion surveys on behalf of its clients of an advertising firm in New York City, he developed methods to ensure accuracy in his results that made polling a trusted research method.

Trivia

Despite his success, he did have a few notable misses--like calling the 1948 presidential election for Thomas Dewey over Harry S. Truman.

Family Life

He was born in Jefferson, Iowa.

Associated With

His first major success came in 1936, when he accurately predicted the winner of the U.S. presidential election would be Franklin D. Roosevelt.