One of my favorite portrait photographers is Platon. His setup is simple but it's his interaction with his subjects that allows him to get great expressions and henceforth great portraits. I've been playing with that setup lately just trying to make some nice portraits in the studio. Here's the quick explanation:

-One light in a 28" softbox high and directly in front of subject
-White background
-Wide angle lens

Here are a few to look at: