Lester William Polsfuss' 98th Birthday.

Lester William Polsfuss (June 9, 1915 – August 13, 2009)known as Les Paul was an American jazz, country and blues guitarist, songwriter, luthier and inventor. He was one of the pioneers of the solid-body electric guitar, which made the sound of rock and roll possible. He is credited with many recording innovations. Although he was not the first to use the technique, his early experiments with overdubbing (also known as sound on sound)delay effects such as tape delay, phasing effects and multitrack recording were among the first to attract widespread attention.
His innovative talents extended into his playing style, including licks, trills, chording sequences, fretting techniques and timing, which set him apart from his contemporaries and inspired many guitarists of the present day.He recorded with his wife Mary Ford in the 1950s, and they sold millions of records.

Honors and Awards:

• Paul was initiated into the Gamma Delta chapter of the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity at the University of Miami in 1952. 
• He has earned the Presidential award from the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity.
• In 1979, Paul and Ford's 1951 recording of "How High the Moon" was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Paul received a Grammy Trustees Award for his lifetime achievements in 1983, and in 2001 the Special Merit/Technical Grammy Award. 
• In 1988, Paul was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by Jeff Beck.
• In 1991, the Mix Foundation established an annual award in his name.It honors "individuals or institutions that have set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of audio technology".
• In 2005, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his development of the solid-body electric guitar .
• In 2006, Paul was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame.
• He was named an honorary member of the Audio Engineering Society.
• In 2007, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts.
• On November 15, 2008, he received the American Music Masters award through the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at a tribute concert at the State Theater in Cleveland, Ohio.
• In August, 2009, Paul was named one of the ten best electric guitar players of all-time by Time magazine. 
• On June 9–10, 2011 Google celebrated what would have been Paul's 96th birthday with a Google doodle of an interactive guitar.
• On November 23, 2011, Paul was ranked at #18 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".
• In 2010, Paul was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame.

Source: Wikipedia