39.9292° N, 75.2300° W

PHILADELPHIA

Most Famous People Born in Philadelphia, USA

Notable people
5,575
Peak decade
1940s
Median birth year
1928
Most distinctive
Baseball 6.0×

The original American capital, then the capital of nothing in particular, then a sports town. Philadelphia's notables run thick through the 18th century — lawyers, philanthropists, financiers — and then settle into a long, steady output of baseball players, basketball players, jazz bandleaders, and character actors. The city has one of the highest shares of notables in organized labor of the early 20th century and one of the deepest benches of soul singers of the late 20th.

Standouts

What Philadelphia Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Politician is Philadelphia's biggest profession — 9% of all notables (482).

Philadelphia over-indexes on baseball 6.0× the global rate.

Philadelphia under-produces football — only 0.4× the global rate.

  1. Politician 482 0.7×
  2. Actor 414 1.4×
  3. Baseball 383 6.0×
  4. Basket 260 3.7×
  5. Football 251 0.4×
  6. Music 206 2.6×
  7. Lawyer 185 1.9×
  8. Singer 161 1.4×
  1. Baseball 383 6.0×
  2. Basket 260 3.7×
  3. Boxer 72 3.3×
  4. Rower 57 2.8×
  5. Music 206 2.6×
  6. Officer 84 2.3×
  7. Lawyer 185 1.9×
  8. Film 113 1.6×
  1. Football 251 0.4×

Profession Mix Over Time

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

1700 1750 1800 1850 1900 1950 2000
  • Sports
  • Politics & Law
  • Film & TV
  • Music
  • Writing
  • Art & Design
  • Other
All5,575
Sort By

Showing 517 of 5,575 notable people

3047 NOVELIST

Persimmon Blackbridge

Born 1951

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3050 MATHEMATICIAN

Charles R. Doering

Born 1956

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3058 AUTHOR

Tony Bove

Born 1955

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3061 SPORT

Dave Sims

Born 1953

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3066 FOOTBALL

Jim Cooper (American football)

Born 1955

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3071 BOXER

Tyrone Everett

1953 - 1977

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3087 ACTOR

Toukie Smith

Born 1955

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3089 ECONOMIST

Francis X. Diebold

Born 1959

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3098 BASEBALL

Gil Patterson

Born 1955

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3099 SCULPTOR

Rebecca Kamen

Born 1950

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3112 THEATRE

George Coates

Born 1952

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3141 POLITICIAN

John Perzel

Born 1950

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3150 MUSIC

Jan Randall

Born 1952

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3155 ARTIST

Ann Agee

Born 1959

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3159 POET

Sarah Arvio

Born 1954

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3175 WRITER

Lise Funderburg

Born 1959

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3188 SPORT

Arn Tellem

Born 1954

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3189 ACTOR

Vickilyn Reynolds

Born 1955

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3191 PRODUCER

Wharton Tiers

Born 1953

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3196 NASCAR

Kirk Shelmerdine

Born 1958

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3200 JOURNALIST

Andrea Kremer

Born 1959

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3205 POLITICIAN

Dan Wolf

Born 1957

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3246 CHIEF EXECUTIVE

Stephen K. Klasko

Born 1953

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3247 FOOTBALL

Frank Naylor (American football)

Born 1959

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3254 POLITICIAN

Bill Purcell (mayor)

Born 1953

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3256 COMPOSER

Louis Karchin

Born 1951

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3268 MONK

Dada Maheshvarananda

Born 1953

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3271 MUSIC

Celestine Tate Harrington

1956 - 1998

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3307 POLITICIAN

William F. Keller

Born 1951

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3318 ACADEMIC

William Kinderman

Born 1952

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3324 SINGER

Carol Lynn Maillard

Born 1951

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3325 WRESTLER

Tony Stetson

Born 1959

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3336 BUSINESS

Adam Aron

Born 1954

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3342 WRITER

Andrea Lee (author)

Born 1953

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3353 LAWYER

Mark R. Kravitz

1950 - 2012

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3375 POET

Jacqueline Osherow

Born 1956

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3382 BASEBALL

Tom Filer

Born 1956

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3389 ACTOR

Susan Wheeler Duff

Born 1958

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3391 ENGINEER

Paul Bechly

Born 1958

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3397 POLITICIAN

Vincent Hughes

Born 1956

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3401 RABBI

Amy Eilberg

Born 1954

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3421 WRESTLER

Tommy Cairo

Born 1958

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3422 ARTIST

Marc Lafia

Born 1955

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3424 POLITICIAN

Diane B. Snelling

Born 1952

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3431 ONCOLOGIST

Cora Sternberg

Born 1951

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3438 TRUMPET

Mel Davis (musician)

1955 - 2004

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3444 BASEBALL

Tito Nanni

Born 1959

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3455 ARTIST

Tim McCreight

Born 1951

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3466 POLITICIAN

Stephen Kinsey

Born 1958

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3471 ACTOR

Naz Edwards

Born 1952

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3477 ACTOR

Mark Goodman

Born 1952

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3487 ACTOR

David Fine (acteur)

Born 1955

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3498 SCREENWRITER

Carol Gould (writer)

Born 1953

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3505 LAWYER

Peter York Solmssen

Born 1955

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3515 ARTIST

Jeanne Silverthorne

Born 1950

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3524 POLITICIAN

Richard Bloom

Born 1953

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3525 BASEBALL

Lorenzo Bundy

Born 1959

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3541 LAWYER

Gerald Austin McHugh Jr.

Born 1954

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3542 LAWYER

Susan R. Bolton

Born 1951

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3554 ARCHITECT

Philip Freelon

1952 - 2019

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3557 BASKET

Bill Magarity

Born 1952

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3578 POLITICIAN

Peter Schwartzkopf

Born 1955

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3586 COMPOSER

David Hahn

Born 1956

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3587 SINGER

Russell Thompkins Jr.

Born 1951

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3590 FENCER

Brooke Makler

1951 - 2010

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3607 POLITICIAN

Al Taubenberger

Born 1953

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3626 JOURNALIST

Ukee Washington

Born 1958

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3636 BANK

Catherine Austin Fitts

Born 1950

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3672 COACH

Dean Demopoulos

Born 1954

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3675 COMPOSER

Scott A. Wyatt

Born 1951

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3696 ARTIST

Cornbread (graffiti artist)

Born 1953

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3697 POLITICIAN

Fred H. Madden

Born 1954

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3709 NASCAR

Bobby Norfleet

Born 1958

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3712 FOOTBALL

Florian Kempf

Born 1956

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3716 PAINTER

Cheryl Goldsleger

Born 1951

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3717 JAVELIN THROWER

Anthony Hall (athlete)

Born 1950

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3725 POLITICIAN

Michael H. O'Brien

1954 - 2018

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3762 BROTHER

Robert Schieler

Born 1950

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3800 POLITICIAN

Terry C. Burton

Born 1956

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3854 LAWYER

Lee Solomon

Born 1954

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3866 POLITICAL

Richard Roberts (pharmaceutical executive)

Born 1957

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3869 ACTOR

James Carroll (actor)

1956 - 2016

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3872 POLITICIAN

Maria Donatucci

Born 1954

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3900 PAEDIATRICIAN

Earl Bradley

Born 1953

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3907 POLITICIAN

Alan Butkovitz

Born 1952

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3908 BASEBALL

John Hobbs (baseball)

Born 1956

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3925 LAWYER

Petrese B. Tucker

Born 1951

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3928 DIPLOMAT

Wanda Nesbitt

Born 1956

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3954 FOOTBALL

Steve Coleman (American football)

Born 1950

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3964 FILM

Joey Coyle

1953 - 1993

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3967 POLITICIAN

John A. Lawless

Born 1957

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3974 LAWYER

Mitchell S. Goldberg

Born 1959

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3975 WRITER

Celeste O. Norfleet

Born 1959

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3979 RESEARCH

Kay Dickersin

Born 1951

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4021 FOOTBALL

James "Quick" Parker

1958 - 2018

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4029 RADIO

Harvey (announcer)

Born 1951

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4045 LAWYER

John Milton Younge

Born 1955

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4051 BUSINESS

Dave Calhoun

Born 1957

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4054 WRESTLER

King Kaluha

Born 1958

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4068 FOOTBALL

Dave LaCrosse

Born 1955

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4071 MUSIC

Papo Vázquez

Born 1958

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4075 LAWYER

William S. Duffey Jr.

Born 1952

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4083 RADIO

Ron Bennington

Born 1959

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4093 BASEBALL

George Riley (baseball)

Born 1956

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4097 SINGER

Steve Guyger

Born 1952

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4149 SPORT

Tony Bruno

Born 1952

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4179 COMPOSER

Derrick Murdock

Born 1957

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4180 AUTHOR

James R. Fitzgerald

Born 1953

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4186 SCREENWRITER

Bruce Graham (Drehbuchautor)

Born 1957

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4188 BUSINESS

Steve DeAngelo

Born 1958

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4192 BASEBALL

Jeff Jones (outfielder)

Born 1957

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4243 SONGWRITER

Michael Caruso (musician)

Born 1954

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4244 POLITICIAN

Thomas W. Blackwell

1958 - 2017

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4256 FOOTBALL

Bob Grupp

Born 1955

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4263 JOCKEY

Doug Banks

1958 - 2016

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4271 CORRESPONDENT

Mike Schneider (news anchor)

Born 1952

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4277 POLITICIAN

Melissa Noriega

Born 1954

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4288 FOOTBALL

Ed Sheridan

Born 1957

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4298 BASKET

Joe McKeown

Born 1956

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4300 FOOTBALL

Joe Senser

Born 1956

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4312 KILLER

Harrison Graham

Born 1959

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4323 MATHEMATICIAN

Louis J. Gross

Born 1952

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4343 FOOTBALL

Bill Straub

Born 1957

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4357 FOOTBALL

Larry Marshall (American football)

Born 1950

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4375 DEPUTY

Edward C. Hugler

Born 1950

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4377 GINASTA

Joan Moore

Born 1954

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4387 ACTOR

Mark Dobies

Born 1959

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4392 SCHOLAR

Douglas Baird

Born 1953

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4401 JOURNALIST

Albert J. Neri

1952 - 2011

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4415 MUSIC

Brooks Tegler

Born 1954

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4430 CHIEF OF STAFF

Karen Czarnecki

Born 1956

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4440 POLITICIAN

George T. Kenney

Born 1957

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4442 WRITER

Tim Wendel (writer)

Born 1956

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4454 LAWYER

Wilma B. Liebman

Born 1950

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4460 POLITICIAN

Christopher Wogan

Born 1950

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4467 MUSIC

Fran Smith Jr.

Born 1952

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4473 DESIGNER

Edward T. Welburn

Born 1950

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4476 SPORT

Mike Faragalli

Born 1958

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4500 ARTIST

Doug Fitch

Born 1959

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4506 MISSING

Patricia McGuire

Born 1952

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4519 RADIO

Gary Bryan

Born 1952

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4559 METEOROLOGIST

Dave Schwartz

1953 - 2016

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4567 ARTIST

John Stango

Born 1958

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4576 NOVELIST

Chris Knopf

Born 1951

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4581 RABBI

Steven Langnas

Born 1956

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4599 COMEDIAN

Big Daddy Graham

Born 1953

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4605 COMPOSER

Elliott Levin

Born 1953

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4613 FOOTBALL

Steve Shull

Born 1958

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4614 DRUMMER

Cornell Rochester

Born 1957

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4625 PHYSICIST

Doron Gepner

Born 1956

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4627 HORSE BREEDER

Sharon Magness Blake

Born 1950

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4649 POLITICIAN

Jewell Williams

Born 1957

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4651 MUSIC

Brad Cole (musicien)

Born 1953

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4656 LAWYER

Paul B. Higginbotham

Born 1954

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4678 ACTOR

Paul L. Nolan

Born 1954

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4697 RADIO

Mike Stone (radio personality)

Born 1958

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4699 FOOTBALL

Dave MacWilliams

Born 1957

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4721 JOURNALIST

Mark Segal

Born 1951

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4724 NURSE

Stacey Bentley

1958 - 2019

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4726 OFFICER

Charles J. Leidig

Born 1956

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4749 NOVELIST

Linda Cajio

1953 - 2017

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4792 POLITICIAN

Mary Ellen Balchunis

Born 1954

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4810 POLICE

Richard Costello

Born 1951

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4815 COACH

Gary Emanuel

Born 1958

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4818 JOURNALIST

Pat Ciarrocchi

Born 1952

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4824 POLITICIAN

Eugene McGill

Born 1956

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4848 OFFICER

Carol A. DiBattiste

Born 1951

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4861 POLITICIAN

Joseph Gladeck

Born 1950

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4864 POLITICIAN

James R. Lloyd

1950 - 1989

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4869 NEUROLOGIST

William J. Schwartz

Born 1950

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4889 SURGEON

I Michael Leitman

Born 1959

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4899 PLAYER

Kathy Flores

Born 1955

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4907 FOOTBALL

Ken McDonald (soccer)

Born 1957

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4914 SINGER

Denise King

Born 1954

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4921 BIOCHEMIST

Jonathan Dordick

Born 1959

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4923 FOOTBALL

Allen Harvin

Born 1959

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4941 POLITICIAN

Roy Reinard

Born 1954

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4951 POLITICIAN

Lynwood Savage

Born 1954

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4958 ACTOR

Marty Watt

Born 1952

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4960 FOOTBALL

Tom McDonald (soccer)

Born 1959

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4972 SCULPTOR

Tom Nussbaum

Born 1953

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4974 BASKET

Ívar DeCarsta Webster

Born 1955

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4981 DESIGNER

Sondra Sherman

Born 1958

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4983 COACH

Gary Catona

Born 1952

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4989 BASSIST

Amin Ali

Born 1956

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4997 COMPOSER

Andrew Kahn

Born 1952

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5005 BASKET

Dave Magarity

Born 1950

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5015 ROWER

Bruce Beall

Born 1951

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5017 ROWER

Diane Braceland

Born 1950

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5021 POLITICIAN

Gerard Kosinski

Born 1954

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5026 ROWER

James Moroney

Born 1953

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5036 FOOTBALL

Bob Rickenbach

Born 1950

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5049 POLITICIAN

Nicholas Maiale

Born 1951

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5068 POLITICIAN

Richard Hayden (Pennsylvania politician)

Born 1956

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5075 FOOTBALL

Mike Robinson (soccer)

Born 1958

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5088 POLITICIAN

Frances Weston

1954 - 2005

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5111 BUSINESS

Felix Rappaport

1953 - 2018

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5114 FOOTBALL

Barry Barto

Born 1950

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5123 CARTOONIST

Rob Rogers (cartoonist)

Born 1959

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5147 EDITOR

Jane Amsterdam

Born 1951

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5238 WRITER

Brett Shapiro

Born 1955

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5302 FOOTBALL

Woody Hartman

Born 1954

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5333 FOOTBALL

Andy Rymarczuk

1951 - 1997

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5339 LAWYER

David C. Weiss

Born 1956

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5348 CREATIVE

Robert S. Cutler

Born 1956

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5362 POLITICIAN

Tom Foley (Pennsylvania politician)

Born 1953

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5377 FOOTBALL

Brooks Cryder

Born 1955

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5388 FOOTBALL

George Lesyw

1957 - 2005

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5395 FOOTBALL

Ed Blaney

Born 1951

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5412 HORSE TRAINER

Joe Orseno

Born 1955

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5418 BASKET

Frank E. Weiss

Born 1951

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5422 FOOTBALL

Mike Dennery

Born 1950

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5437 FOOTBALL

John O'Hara (soccer, born 1959)

Born 1959

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5465 PHOTOGRAPHER

Lydia Panas

Born 1958

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5506 BASKET

Rubin Collins

Born 1953

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5561 POLITICIAN

Steven M. Petrillo

Born 1958

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5563 RACEHORSE

Stephen L. DiMauro

Born 1957

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