Lester Pearson was a Canadian scholar, statesman, soldier, and diplomat who served as the 14th prime minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968. He died on this day, December 27, in 1972 (b. 1897).

Pearson was awarded the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize for organizing the United Nations Emergency Force to resolve the Suez Canal Crisis and is generally considered among the most influential Canadians of the 20th century. Read more (Wikipedia).