42.3449° N, 71.0753° W

BOSTON

Most Famous People Born in Boston, United States

Notable people
3,663
Peak decade
1950s
Median birth year
1926
Most distinctive
Novelist 3.5×

America's oldest civic intelligentsia. Boston's notables are unusually concentrated in the 1700s and 1800s by American standards, and the distinctive shelves still read like a Yankee almanac — novelists, lawyers, military officers, mathematicians, and diplomats, the trades of a city where Harvard, the State House, and the Old North Church share a few square miles. The modern half tilts more conventionally toward Red Sox baseball, actors, and a deep college-bred music scene.

Through the Decades

One face per decade — the most globally famous figure born in Boston during each.

Notable Births by Decade

Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1950s with 348 notable births.

What Boston Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Actor is Boston's biggest profession — 9% of all notables (314).

Boston over-indexes on novelist3.5× the global rate.

Boston under-produces football — only 0.2× the global rate.

  1. Actor314
  2. Politician312
  3. Writer149
  4. Lawyer135
  5. Baseball110
  6. Painter106
  7. Music102
  8. Football87
  1. Novelist503.5×
  2. Baseball1102.6×
  3. Officer632.6×
  4. Mathematician452.5×
  5. Lawyer1352.1×
  6. Music1021.9×
  7. Diplomat371.7×
  8. Actor3141.6×
  1. Football870.2×

Profession Mix Over Time

Each band shows a profession family's share of Boston's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.

16501700175018001850190019502000
  • Politics & Law
  • Sports
  • Writing
  • Film & TV
  • Science
  • Music
  • Other
All3,663
Sort By

Showing 267 of 3,663 notable people

0003 ACTOR

Leonard Nimoy

1931 - 2015

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0007 POET

Sylvia Plath

1932 - 1963

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0020 BIOLOGIST

Jared Diamond

Born 1937

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0044 ACTOR

Jane Alexander

Born 1939

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0052 ECONOMIST

Eugene Fama

Born 1939

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0057 GUITAR

Dick Dale

1937 - 2019

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0066 FILM

Frederick Wiseman

Born 1930

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0079 ECONOMIST

William F. Sharpe

Born 1934

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0080 PSYCHOLOGIST

Ram Dass

1931 - 2019

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0083 POLITICIAN

Charles Colson

1931 - 2012

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0103 PHYSICIST

Walter Gilbert

Born 1932

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0117 ASTRONAUT

Story Musgrave

Born 1935

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0122 ENTREPRENEUR

Sheldon Adelson

Born 1933

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0125 MATHEMATICIAN

Richard M. Karp

Born 1935

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0126 ACTOR

Barry Newman

Born 1938

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0152 ACTOR

Richard Herd

1932 - 2020

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0182 POLITICIAN

Edward Seaga

1930 - 2019

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0200 NOVELIST

Joanna Barnes

Born 1934

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0241 ACTOR

Michael Sheard

1938 - 2005

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0256 EDUCATION

Donald Schön

1930 - 1997

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0262 ECONOMIST

Burton Malkiel

Born 1932

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0267 SOCIOLOGIST

James Petras

Born 1937

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0269 MATHEMATICIAN

Elliott H. Lieb

Born 1932

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0270 HISTORIAN

Alfred W. Crosby

1931 - 2018

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0277 ASTRONAUT

Bruce McCandless II

1937 - 2017

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0283 ACTOR

Gary Conway

Born 1936

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0303 MATHEMATICIAN

Robin Hartshorne

Born 1938

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0333 ACADEMIC

A. Bartlett Giamatti

1938 - 1989

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0361 PALAEONTOLOGIST

David M. Raup

1933 - 2015

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0392 LITERARY

Helen Vendler

Born 1933

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0393 POLITICIAN

Warren Rudman

1930 - 2012

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0395 PAINTER

Dorothy Iannone

Born 1933

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0418 EDITOR

Deborah Turbeville

1932 - 2013

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0437 SCREENWRITER

Richard N. Goodwin

1931 - 2018

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0446 PRODUCER

Alan Douglas (record producer)

1931 - 2014

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0462 MUSIC

Bill Keith (musician)

1939 - 2015

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0470 ENGINEER

Norman Abramson

1932 - 2020

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0490 MATHEMATICIAN

Victor Guillemin

Born 1937

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0494 MILITAR

Gordon R. Sullivan

Born 1937

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0495 AUTHOR

Jonathan Kozol

Born 1936

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0504 ACTOR

Jack Burns

1933 - 2020

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0543 HISTORIAN

Herbert P. Bix

Born 1938

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0561 ACTOR

Richard Rust

1938 - 1994

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0583 COMPOSER

Charles Gross

Born 1934

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0589 AUTHOR

Elizabeth Marshall Thomas

Born 1931

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0620 PAINTER

Janet Fish

Born 1938

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0622 ACTOR

Paul Comi

1932 - 2016

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0627 BOXER

Tony DeMarco

Born 1932

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0636 PHYSICIST

Peter P. Sorokin

1931 - 2015

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0641 POET

Susan Howe

Born 1937

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0643 SCIENTIST

Paul Roazen

1936 - 2005

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0659 PHILOSOPHER

Robert Kane (philosopher)

Born 1938

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0661 COMPOSER

Richard Wernick

Born 1934

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0662 COMPOSER

Makanda Ken McIntyre

1931 - 2001

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0691 ACTOR

Lee Kinsolving

1938 - 1974

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0714 PROFESSOR

Arthur Asa Berger

Born 1933

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0745 PRIEST

Alfred Clifton Hughes

Born 1932

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0761 MUSIC

Dwight York

Born 1935

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0788 SKATER

Ronald Ludington

1934 - 2020

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0789 ACTOR

Peter Haskell

1934 - 2010

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0795 LINGUIST

Marron Curtis Fort

1938 - 2019

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0815 PHOTOGRAPHER

Paul Caponigro

Born 1932

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0831 BALLET

Suki Schorer

Born 1939

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0843 RABBI

Isadore Twersky

1930 - 1997

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0875 ACTOR

Richard France (writer)

Born 1938

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0877 LINGUIST

James Matisoff

Born 1937

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0894 MUSIC

Roland Alexander

1935 - 2006

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0903 BUSINESS

John Fellows Akers

1934 - 2014

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0922 DIVER

David Browning

1931 - 1956

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0936 PRELATE

John Michael D'Arcy

1932 - 2013

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0946 MATHEMATICIAN

Jonathan Lazare Alperin

Born 1937

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0950 AUTHOR

Dick Sudhalter

1938 - 2008

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0956 PHILOSOPHER

Robert F. Almeder

Born 1939

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0980 PHOTOGRAPHER

Al Vandenberg

1932 - 2012

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1055 ACTOR

June Kenney

Born 1933

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1060 MATHEMATICIAN

Hugo Rossi

Born 1935

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1086 FOOTBALL

Bobby Walden

1938 - 2018

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1101 FILM

James Herbert (director)

Born 1938

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1134 POET

Gustaf Sobin

1935 - 2005

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1157 WRITER

Nancy Garden

1938 - 2014

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1167 COSTUME DESIGNER

William Ware Theiss

1931 - 1992

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1177 BOTANIST

Theodore Robert Dudley

1936 - 1994

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1189 POLITICIAN

Paul W. Cronin

1938 - 1997

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1217 MUSIC

Ray Santisi

1933 - 2014

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1260 POLITICAL SCIENTIST

Catherine McArdle Kelleher

Born 1939

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1262 WRITER

Joani Blank

1937 - 2016

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1265 ARCHITECT

Jane Holtz Kay

1938 - 2012

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1272 PHILOLOGIST

Charles Segal

1936 - 2002

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1274 LAWYER

Boyce F. Martin Jr.

1935 - 2016

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1281 PRIEST

John Geoghan

1935 - 2003

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1285 PHYSICIAN

Joseph F. Fraumeni Jr.

Born 1933

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1296 SCREENWRITER

Maurice Hurley

1939 - 2015

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1337 MUSIC

Johnny Rae

Born 1934

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1343 NOVELIST

Donald Moffitt

1931 - 2014

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1348 PRIEST

Robert Edward Mulvee

1930 - 2018

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1358 LAWYER

Earl J. Silbert

Born 1936

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1372 LITERARY

Lucianne Goldberg

Born 1935

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1376 MATHEMATICIAN

Robert Morris (cryptographer)

1932 - 2011

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1382 LAWYER

Neil Chayet

1939 - 2017

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1386 RAILROAD

David L. Gunn

Born 1937

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1392 SKIER

Joan Hannah

Born 1939

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1397 DIPLOMAT

Walter L. Cutler

Born 1931

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1411 GERMANIST

Burton Pike

Born 1930

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1418 ACADEMIC

Edward S. Davidson

Born 1939

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1432 SCIENTIST

Margaret Bryan Davis

Born 1931

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1445 PHOTOGRAPHER

Lorraine O'Grady

Born 1934

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1474 MUSIC

Joe Derrane

1930 - 2016

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1491 PRIEST

Paul Shanley

Born 1931

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1517 ATHLETE

John J. McNamara (author)

1932 - 1986

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1537 COLLECTOR

John Wilmerding

Born 1938

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1550 SCREENWRITER

Alan Trustman

Born 1930

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1556 ECONOMIST

Harald Malmgren

Born 1935

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1594 PSYCHIATRIST

David Viscott

1938 - 1996

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1597 JUDGE

Timothy B. Dyk

Born 1937

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1624 PSYCHOLOGIST

Nathan Azrin

1930 - 2013

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1694 PSYCHOLOGIST

Sara Wilford

Born 1932

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1706 PHYSICIST

George A. Keyworth II

1939 - 2017

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1710 PHOTOGRAPHER

David Plowden

Born 1932

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1713 SOCIOLOGIST

Dorothy Nelkin

1933 - 2003

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1714 LAWYER

Richard S. Cohen

1937 - 1998

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1715 LAWYER

Robert M. O'Neil

1934 - 2018

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1716 WRITER

Larry Ruttman

Born 1931

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1719 PHOTOJOURNALIST

Bettye Lane

1930 - 2012

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1740 FOOTBALL

Frank Jacobsson

1930 - 2017

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1742 PHYSICIAN

Timothy Johnson (medical journalist)

Born 1936

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1749 CHEMIST

Frank Stillinger

Born 1934

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1761 JUDGE

Alan David Lourie

Born 1935

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1783 PRIEST

John Patrick Boles

1930 - 2014

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1819 SECRETARY

Flo Steinberg

1939 - 2017

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1826 COMPOSER

David Borden

Born 1938

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1862 BASEBALL

Turk Farrell

1934 - 1977

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1867 SAILOR

James Hunt (sailor)

Born 1936

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1875 ENGINEER

Rod Holt

Born 1934

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1892 WRITER

Blair Lent

1930 - 2009

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1895 POLITICIAN

Carl McCall

Born 1935

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1901 NOVELIST

Paul Brodeur

Born 1931

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1904 POLITICIAN

Carol Ruth Silver

Born 1938

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1906 ANTHROPOLOGIST

Richard Werbner

Born 1937

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1910 ARTIST

Sylvia Edwards

1937 - 2018

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1915 PAINTER

Anne Walker

Born 1933

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1926 ACTOR

Jimmy Flynn

Born 1934

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1931 GUITAR

Peter Walker (guitarist)

Born 1937

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1937 SWIMMER

Bruce Hunter (swimmer)

1939 - 2018

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1955 MATHEMATICIAN

John Benedetto

Born 1939

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1976 CHEMIST

Richard H. Holm

Born 1933

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1981 JOURNALIST

Kelly Lange

Born 1937

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1982 CHEMIST

Susan Band Horwitz

Born 1937

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2008 ACTOR

Robert Fields

Born 1938

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2021 LIBRARIAN

Arthur Curley

1938 - 1998

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2034 COACH

Fred Whittingham

1939 - 2003

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2042 CHEMIST

Reatha King

Born 1938

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2044 LAWYER

Ruth Abrams

1930 - 2019

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2051 OFFICER

Joseph P. Hoar

Born 1934

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2086 POLITICIAN

Joseph F. Timilty (state senator)

1938 - 2017

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2122 RABBI

Yehuda Krinsky

Born 1933

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2144 BASSIST

John Voigt

Born 1939

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2157 ENTREPRENEUR

Paul Van Doren

Born 1930

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2159 JOURNALIST

Dick Flavin (poet)

Born 1936

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2170 GOLF

Kathy Cornelius

Born 1932

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2202 KARATE

Nicholas Raymond Cerio

1936 - 1998

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2214 MOBSTER

Vincent Flemmi

1935 - 1979

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2216 HOCKEY

Red Martin

1938 - 2017

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2221 WRITER

Michael DeSisto

1939 - 2003

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2230 MUSIC

Ray Pitts

1932 - 2012

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2234 GANGSTER

Angelo Mercurio

1936 - 2006

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2240 PAINTER

Richard Yarde

1939 - 2011

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2246 BASEBALL

Chuck Essegian

Born 1931

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2279 MATHEMATICIAN

Daniel Rider

1938 - 2008

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2293 MATHEMATICIAN

Barbara McMartin

1931 - 2005

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2319 PHOTOGRAPHER

Jack Lueders-Booth

Born 1935

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2343 POET

Patricia Goedicke

1931 - 2006

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2363 LAWYER

Paul Edward Plunkett

1935 - 2018

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2409 ACTOR

Tom Magliozzi

1937 - 2014

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2449 EDUCATOR

John D. O'Bryant

1931 - 1992

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2481 JOURNALIST

Linda Solomon

Born 1937

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2512 PSYCHOLOGIST

John Frykman

Born 1932

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2534 DIPLOMAT

David George Newton

Born 1935

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2539 ORGANIST

Larry Ferrari

1932 - 1997

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2547 SENATE

Lou D'Allesandro

Born 1938

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2549 ACADEMIC

Dena F. Dincauze

1934 - 2016

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2561 POLICE

John Simpson (police official)

Born 1932

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2600 LAWYER

David Sutherland Nelson

1933 - 1998

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2605 ACADEMIC

Harold B. Segel

1930 - 2016

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2612 CHEMIST

Stephen F. Heinemann

1939 - 2014

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2621 BANK

Fred Joseph

1937 - 2009

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2660 POLITICIAN

Paul Aizley

Born 1936

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2700 HOCKEY

Herb Hammond

1939 - 2009

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2707 OFFICER

Thomas G. Kelley

Born 1939

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2723 MUSIC

Rocky Boyd

Born 1936

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2732 POLITICIAN

Charles Flaherty (politician)

Born 1938

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2735 BUSINESS

John Harrington (baseball)

Born 1930

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2739 ARCHITECT

Joachim Pfeufer

Born 1935

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2744 BUSINESS

Arie L. Kopelman

Born 1938

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2756 ART HISTORIAN

Draper Hill

1935 - 2009

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2774 FOOTBALL

John LoVetere

1936 - 2012

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2783 POLITICIAN

James Colt

1932 - 2008

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2793 DIPLOMAT

Richard Wayne Bogosian

Born 1937

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2799 AMBASSADOR

Linton Brooks

Born 1938

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2805 FOOTBALL

Roger Ellis

1938 - 1977

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2824 CLARINET

Paul Martin Zonn

1938 - 2000

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2832 POLITICIAN

Francis H. Woodward

Born 1939

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2847 ACADEMIC

Michael Cohen (doctor)

1937 - 2018

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2852 DIPLOMAT

Alexander Watson (diplomat)

Born 1939

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2855 MATHEMATICIAN

Arthur Veinott

1934 - 2012

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2856 MILITAR

Arthur L. Andrews

1934 - 1996

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2857 POLITICIAN

Jim Miceli

1935 - 2018

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2865 MATHEMATICIAN

Theodore W. Palmer

Born 1935

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2875 AUTHOR

Charlotte von Graffenried

1930 - 2013

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2876 POLITICIAN

Julie Belaga

Born 1930

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2888 PAINTER

Hugh Cabot III

1930 - 2005

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2896 LITERARY

Edwin M. Eigner

Born 1931

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2911 CIVIL SERVICE

Denis P. Galvin

Born 1938

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2916 LYRICIST

Joe Cocuzzo

1937 - 2008

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2944 FOOTBALL

Rick Sapienza

Born 1936

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2948 MISSING

Albert J. Simone

Born 1935

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2959 COLLECTOR

Brian P. Burns

Born 1936

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2971 LAWYER

David E. Harrison

Born 1933

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2972 PHYSICIST

A. Brooks Harris

Born 1935

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2983 BIOLOGIST

Judith Goslin Hall

Born 1939

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2985 OFFICER

Richard Dunleavy

Born 1933

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2995 DRUMMER

Shelly Rusten

Born 1938

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2999 ACADEMIC

William B. N. Berry

Born 1931

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3035 POLICE

Robert A. Brooks

1932 - 2000

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3056 PAINTER

Ellen Banks

Born 1938

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3060 POLITICIAN

Barry Locke

1930 - 2007

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3090 MAFIOSO

Joseph Russo

1931 - 1998

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3110 MUSIC

Laurence Cook

Born 1939

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3127 OFFICER

Roberta L. Hazard

1934 - 2017

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3129 BASEBALL

Dick Stello

1934 - 1987

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3159 POLITICIAN

John J. Finnegan

Born 1938

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3165 LAWYER

Fred I. Parker

1938 - 2003

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3195 GEOLOGIST

Alfred M. Ziegler

Born 1938

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3201 BASKET

Jack Leaman

1932 - 2004

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3222 FOOTBALL

Bob Minihane

1938 - 2020

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3233 TELEVISION

Connie Martinson

Born 1932

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3239 POLITICIAN

Clarence "Jeep" Jones

1933 - 2020

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3244 PRIEST

Tomás Andrés Mauro Muldoon

Born 1938

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3279 FOOTBALL

John McCormick (American football)

1937 - 2013

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3286 OPERA

George Fortune

1931 - 2019

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3290 POLITICIAN

Robert C. Buell

1931 - 2018

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3310 POLITICIAN

Bill Gillis

1936 - 2009

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3318 POLITICIAN

Betty Jo Nelsen

Born 1935

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3332 BUSINESS

David Paresky

Born 1938

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3342 BASEBALL

Helen Nordquist

Born 1932

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3354 BUSINESS

Thomas Rattigan

Born 1937

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3365 PAINTER

Paul Shapiro (artist)

Born 1930

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3369 SCIENTIST

Aaron L. Brody

Born 1930

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3389 OFFICER

John A. Collins

1931 - 2003

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3407 ACTIVIST

Ellen Swepson Jackson

1935 - 2005

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3413 ACTOR

Richard De Angelis

1932 - 2005

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3420 JOURNALIST

Ed Fouhy

1934 - 2015

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3422 WRITER

Nelson W. Aldrich Jr.

Born 1935

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3436 JOURNALIST

William O. Taylor II

1932 - 2011

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3443 LAWYER

Charles Stack (lawyer)

Born 1935

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3444 PHOTOGRAPHER

Oliver Noonan

1939 - 1969

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3451 POLITICIAN

Will Rogers (Maine politician)

Born 1938

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3453 CIVIL RIGHTS

Stan Salett

Born 1936

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3459 PHYSICIST

Paul H. Carr (physicist)

Born 1935

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3498 LAWYER

Michael F. Flaherty Sr.

Born 1936

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3509 POLITICIAN

Warren E. Barry

1933 - 2016

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3524 ACADEMIC

Angela Bowen

1936 - 2018

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3531 POLITICIAN

H. James Shea Jr.

1939 - 1970

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3537 POET

Margareta Waterman

Born 1932

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3574 EDITOR

Dana Bullen

1931 - 2007

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3610 SHERIFF

Thomas S. Eisenstadt

Born 1936

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3630 PERCUSSIONIST

Salvatore Rabbio

Born 1934

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3663 SCIENTIST

John Kolsti

Born 1935

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