The following is from the introduction to LIFE’s special tribute issue, Jimmy Carter: A Noble Life, which is available online and at newsstands.

See how fashion, family life, sports, holiday celebrations, media, and other elements of pop culture have changed through the decades.

Experience LIFE's visual record of the 20th century by exploring the most iconic photographs from one of the most famous private photo collections in the world.

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See photographs and read stories about global icons - the actors, athletes, politicians, and community members that make our world come to life.

Subscribe to the LIFE Newsletter. Travel back in time with treasured photos and stories, sent right to your inbox. Join Today

Subscribe to the LIFE Newsletter. Travel back in time with treasured photos and stories, sent right to your inbox. Join Today

Subscribe to the LIFE Newsletter. Travel back in time with treasured photos and stories, sent right to your inbox. Join Today

In 1968 LIFE magazine summed up the appeal of French philosopher and author Albert Camus with a single sentence: “Camus looked directly into the darkness as saw sun—the human …

When LIFE magazine visited Big Sur in 1959, the Esalen Institute was three years from opening, but the coastal community had long been attracting free-thinking types.