C. Wright Mills, who grew up to become one of the most influential critics of post-World War II America, was born on August 28, 1916 in Waco.

No other book written in the 1950’s had a greater impact than Mills’ “The Power Elite,” which for the first time exposed the  triumvirate of government, military and corporations that posed a threat to the very survival of democracy in the United States.  Mills was just 45 when he died in 1962 of his fourth heart attack.