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2005: The Good Samaritans -

In 2005, Time named Bono and the former couple, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates, Person of the Year for their philanthropic work. 

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2004: George W. Bush -

President Bush became the Time Person of the Year, just after he won his second term. In his first term, Bush sent US troops to invade Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks, signed the Patriot Act, and withdrew the US from the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.  

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2003: The American Soldier -

In 2003, the Iraq war was the most important story in the news. Therefore, Time decided to recognize the US forces who were on the ground, fighting.

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2002: The Whistleblowers -

Three women who pointed out wrongdoings, Sherron Watkins (pictured) at Enron, Coleen Rowley at the FBI, and Cynthia Cooper at WorldCom, became the Persons of the Year in 2002.

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2001: Rudy Giuliani -

The Mayor of New York City, at the time of the September 11 attacks in 2001, was selected for shepherding NYC through the traumatic event. 

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2000: George W. Bush -

The newly elected President of the US was chosen for the first time after defeating incumbent Vice President Al Gore.

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1999: Jeff Bezos -

That's right, back in 1999, Time thought Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was influential. Imagine what they might think now? His vision for an online bookstore truly paved the way for the explosion of e-commerce. 

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1998: Bill Clinton -

With a civil lawsuit alleging sexual advances during his governorship and the Monica Lewinsky scandal, things weren't looking good for Clinton. By the end of the year, the House of Representatives voted to impeach him, though the Senate didn't agree. 

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1998: Kenneth Starr -

Clinton shared the 1998 title with Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel who led the investigation into his alleged misdeeds. He also released the juicy Starr Report about the investigation. 

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1997: Andrew Grove -

In 1997, Grove was chairman and CEO of Intel, and recognized as a representative of the digital revolution and the tech boom.

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1996: David Ho -

In 1996, Dr. David Ho became Time's Person of the Year for his contributions to AIDS research. He changed both the understanding and treatment of the disease, thus saving many lives. 

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1995: Newt Gingrich -

When Newt Gingrich became the Speaker of the House in 1994, he ended 40 years of domination by the Democratic Party in that chamber. 

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1994: Pope John Paul II -

The first non-Italian pope in 455 years, Pope John Paul II reached a greater number of Catholics around the world. 

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1993: The Peacemakers -

"The Peacemakers" refers to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, State President of South Africa F.W. de Klerk, President of the African National Congress Nelson Mandela, and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. The four world leaders worked together to create a more peaceful world. Pictured are Arafat and Mandela. 

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1992: Bill Clinton -

Clinton was named Person of the Year for the first time in 1992. He defeated President George H.W. Bush and independent Ross Perot.

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1991: Ted Turner -

When Ted Turner founded CNN in 1980, the first 24-hour news channel, he changed the news cycle forever. Time's editors recognized the impact of CNN by naming Turner 1991's Person of the Year.

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1990: George H.W. Bush -

Just one year into his first term as president, George H.W. Bush became Time's Person of the Year. As president, Bush oversaw the US involvement in the Gulf War. 

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1989: Mikhail Gorbachev -

In 1989, Time named Mikhail Gorbachev the Man of the Decade. As General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, in 1989 he oversaw the first free Soviet elections in history, before the fall of Soviet-dominated communist governments in Eastern Europe.

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1988: The Endangered Earth -

A non-human subject, the Earth represented the growing environmental movement. Person of the Year became Planet of the Year in 1988, as several natural and ecological disasters struck.

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1987: Mikhail Gorbachev -

Even before he became the president of the Soviet Union, Gorbachev still exerted a huge influence over the country and the world. His openness earned him his first Person of the Year spot.

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1986: Corazon Aquino -

In 1986, Corazon Aquino became the first female president of the Philippines. She faced government intimidation, election fraud, and inherent sexism to assume the post. She was named Woman of the Year by Time for 1986.

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1985: Deng Xiaoping -

As Paramount Leader of China, Deng Xiaoping was acknowledged for sweeping economic reforms that challenged Marxist orthodoxies. By that year, he had implemented the famous one-child policy to control China's growing population. 

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1984: Peter Ueberroth -

As the organizer of the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, Peter Ueberroth was directly responsible for the games' success or failure. Luckily, it was a success. 

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1983: Ronald Reagan -

Ronald Reagan became the Person of the Year in 1983, due to his arms reduction negotiations with Soviet leaders. 

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1983: Yuri Andropov -

The 1983 spot was shared with Soviet leader Yuri Andropov, who spent months negotiating over arms reductions with Reagan. 

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1982: The Computer -

When Time named the computer the Person of the Year, or rather the Machine of the Year, little did they know just how influential that technology would become.

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1981: Lech Wałęsa -

Polish labor leader Lech Wałęsa rose to prominence during the Polish revolution in 1981. In spite of his working class background and lack of education, he got Poland's first deputy premier Mieczysław Jagielski to allow workers the right to organize. Wałęsa later served as president from 1990 to 1995. 

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1980: Ronald Reagan -

After a successful acting career and stint as the governor of California, Reagan became president in 1980. That year, Time named him Person of the Year for the first time. 

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1979: Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini -

Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini led the 1979 Iranian Revolution, establishing himself as Supreme Leader and imposing strict adherence to Islamic law from its citizens. 

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1978: Deng Xiaoping -

Just a year after Xiaoping rose to power in 1977, China was already transforming into an economic powerhouse. His reforms, including the "household-responsibility system" that gave farmers ownership of their crops, earned him the title Person of the Year.

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1977: Anwar Sadat -

In 1977, Egyptian president Anwar Sadat became the first Arab leader to travel to Israel. Sadat's controversial move opened the door for peace talks between the two nations. 

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1976: Jimmy Carter -

President Jimmy Carter's ambitious agenda motivated Time to choose him as the Person of the Year in 1976. He created the Department of Energy, pardoned Vietnam War deserters, and lowered federal income taxes.

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1975: American women -

Time chose to spotlight the changing roles of American women in 1975. Notable women were featured, such as Betty Ford, Billie Jean King (pictured), and influential feminist Susan Brownmiller. 

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1974: King Faisal -

Saudi Arabia's King Faisal received his spot as Person of the Year for his role in rising oil prices. Saudi Arabia and other Arab oil-producing nations imposed an oil embargo on countries supporting Israel in the October War. This caused oil and gasoline prices to skyrocket. 

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1973: John Sirica -

In 1973, US District Judge John Sirica ordered President Nixon to turn over Watergate-related tapes of White House conversations. Without those tapes, we would have never known the truth of the Watergate scandal and Richard Nixon never would have resigned.

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1972: Richard Nixon -

In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first US president to visit China. He also signed a historic agreement with Soviet President Leonid Brezhnev to limit each nation's strategic arms.

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1972: Henry Kissinger -

National security advisor Henry Kissinger also played a crucial role in Nixon's foreign policy, and accompanied him to China. This also led him to become Person of the Year in 1972. 

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1971: Richard Nixon -

Named back-to-back Person of the Year, the first time Nixon received the title, was due to his decision to end the Vietnam War. 

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1970: Willy Brandt -

Elected in 1969, German Chancellor Willy Brandt was already gaining notoriety for his attempts to bring East and West Germany together. This eventually earned him a Nobel Peace Prize. 

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1969: The Middle Americans -

In 1969, Time chose a group as the Men and Women of the Year. The title referred to conservative small-town Americans, who were the driving force behind Nixon's election win in 1968.  

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1968: The Apollo 8 astronauts -

In 1968, William Anders, Frank Borman, and Jim Lovell became the first humans to complete a lunar flight, which qualified them for Time's annual honor.

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1967: Lyndon B. Johnson -

Four years into his presidency, Lyndon B. Johnson became Time's Person of the Year in 1967. Time noted it had been a year of setbacks and failures for Johnson, with race riots across the US and deepening involvement in the Vietnam War.

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1966: The Inheritor -

Time chose an entire generation in 1966: the baby boomers. The magazine predicted that the country's unprecedented economic stability would lead the boomers to be more outspoken than previous generations.

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1965: William Westmoreland -

General Westmoreland was commander of US forces during the Vietnam War. His decision to wage a war of attrition led to an increasing number of both American and Vietnamese casualties. 

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1964: Lyndon B. Johnson -

After John F. Kennedy's assassination in 1963, Johnson fulfilled his constitutional responsibility and assumed the presidency. 

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1963: Martin Luther King Jr. -

Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. became the first African American Person of the Year. However, he had already been featured on a 1957 Time cover about the Montgomery bus boycott. 

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1962: Pope John XXIII -

In 1962, Pope John XXIII volunteered as a mediator in the Cuban Missile Crisis between the US and USSR, gaining praise from both sides. 

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1961: John F. Kennedy -

In his first year in office, Kennedy led the country through the failed Bay of Pigs invasion, pledged his support of the space program, and created the Temporary Peace Corps.

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1960: US Scientists -

Because science developed so much in 1960, Time editors felt it was only appropriate to spotlight US scientists overall.

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1959: Dwight D. Eisenhower -

Fifteen years after his first Person of the Year recognition, President Dwight D. Eisenhower again received the title. In 1959, Eisenhower arranged the state visit by Nikita Khrushchev to the United States and toured several countries. He also became the first US president to visit India. 

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1958: Charles de Gaulle -

Years after his political and military work in World War II, Charles de Gaulle returned as elected president of France at the end of 1958.

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1957: Nikita Khrushchev -

Time magazine chose the Soviet statesman as the Person of the Year in 1957. He denounced his predecessors, reorganized the country's industry, and even attempted to make peace with the US.

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1956: The Hungarian freedom fighters -

After Nikita Khrushchev gave a speech publicly criticizing Stalin, thousands of Hungarians were encouraged to protest against the Soviet-dominated government. The Hungarian freedom fighters were eventually put down by the Soviet Army. 

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1955: Harlow Curtice -

Harlow Curtice became the president of General Motors in 1953, leading the corporation to great success. In fact, General Motors became the first industrial corporation to make US$1 billion in profits in 1955.

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1954: John Foster Dulles -

President Eisenhower appointed John Foster Dulles as Secretary of State in 1953, who became the architect of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization. Dulles also believed that peace could be maintained by containing communism.

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1953: Konrad Adenauer -

In 1953, Adenauer was re-elected as Chancellor of West Germany. He was instrumental in the country's recovery after World War II.

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1952: Elizabeth II -

In 1952, Elizabeth acceded to the throne of the UK and the other Commonwealth realms upon the death of her father, King George VI. She was named Woman of the Year. 

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1951: Mohammad Mosaddegh -

In 1951, Mohammad Mosaddegh was appointed Prime Minister of Iran and expelled western oil companies. 

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1950: The American fighting-man -

Five years after the end of World War II, Time editors chose the first group of People of the Year: the American fighting man. They represented troops involved in the Korean War. 

Sources: (Stacker) (CBS News) (Time)

See also: The biggest celebrity wedding the year you were born

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