The first total syntheses of a variety of useful bioactive compounds have been accomplished by practically useful strategies. In addition practically useful intermediates have been developed, analogues of natural products have been prepared, their structure‐activity relationships studied, and the large‐scale preparations of medically useful compounds established. The target molecules are antibiotics, antifungals, antitumor antibiotics, compounds related to β‐lactam antibiotics, enzyme inhibitors, central nervous system‐affecting products, non‐steroidal progesterone receptor ligands, mussel‐attachment inhibitors, and so on.