Misner, Charles WThese two files relate to a lecture prepared for the inauguration of the International School of Astrophysical Relativity "John Archibald Wheeler" in Erice, Italy, on 1 June 2006. One file "Erice_ ..." contains the slides shown at that lecture. The second file "UMphys_ ..." is a (computer generated then) lightly edited transcript of a repeat of that talk given at the University of Maryland in October 2006.The physics life of John Archibald Wheeler is surveyed; the main emphasis is on the years 1953--1976 in Princeton where his activity primarily centered on Einstein's theory of gravitation, general relativity.en-USgeneral relativityJohn A WheelergravitationastrophysicsPresentation