37.7775° N, 122.4165° W

SAN FRANCISCO

Most Famous People Born in San Francisco, United States

Notable people
2,619
Peak decade
1960s
Median birth year
1943
Most distinctive
Baseball 6.1×

A city of restless reinventions. San Francisco's notables are heavily literary and athletic in the 19th century, then heavily technological and countercultural in the 20th — the same town gave the world Jack London and Steve Jobs, Ansel Adams and Bruce Lee, the Beats and the venture capitalists. The dataset doesn't show the tech industry as a category, but you can see its silhouette in the unusually high share of entrepreneurs, engineers, and screenwriters with day jobs in software.

Through the Decades

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

Notable Births by Decade

Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1960s with 295 notable births.

What San Francisco Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Actor is San Francisco's biggest profession — 15% of all notables (385).

San Francisco over-indexes on baseball6.1× the global rate.

San Francisco under-produces politician — only 0.4× the global rate.

  1. Actor385
  2. Baseball182
  3. Football144
  4. Politician136
  5. Film110
  6. Writer77
  7. Music74
  8. Singer74
  1. Baseball1826.1×
  2. Screenwriter433.8×
  3. Film1103.4×
  4. Actor3852.8×
  5. Photographer322.5×
  6. Basket732.2×
  7. Music742.0×
  8. Artist511.9×
  1. Politician1360.4×
  2. Football1440.5×

Profession Mix Over Time

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

18001850190019502000
  • Sports
  • Film & TV
  • Music
  • Politics & Law
  • Writing
  • Art & Design
  • Other
All2,619
Sort By

2,619 notable people

0001 ACTOR

Clint Eastwood

Born 1930

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0002 ENTREPRENEUR

Steve Jobs

1955 - 2011

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0003 FILM

Bruce Lee

1940 - 1973

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0004 WRITER

Jack London

1876 - 1916

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0005 GUITAR

Courtney Love

Born 1964

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0006 DANCER

Isadora Duncan

1877 - 1927

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0007 PHOTOGRAPHER

Ansel Adams

1902 - 1984

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0008 ACTOR

Natalie Wood

1938 - 1981

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0009 RUNNING

O. J. Simpson

Born 1947

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0010 POET

Robert Frost

1874 - 1963

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0011 ACTOR

Danny Glover

Born 1946

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0012 POLITICIAN

Robert McNamara

1916 - 2009

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0013 SCREENWRITER

Liev Schreiber

Born 1967

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0014 JOURNALIST

William Randolph Hearst

1863 - 1951

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0015 ACTOR

Alicia Silverstone

Born 1976

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0016 ACTOR

Darren Criss

Born 1987

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0017 ANTHROPOLOGIST

Dian Fossey

1932 - 1985

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0018 ACTOR

Mel Blanc

1908 - 1989

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0019 POLITICIAN

Jerry Brown

Born 1938

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0020 ACTOR

Rob Schneider

Born 1963

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0021 POLITICIAN

Dianne Feinstein

Born 1933

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0022 GUITAR

Jerry Garcia

1942 - 1995

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0023 DESIGNER

Monica Lewinsky

Born 1973

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0024 ACTOR

David Strathairn

Born 1949

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0025 ACTOR

Jeffrey Tambor

Born 1944

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0026 GUITAR

Kirk Hammett

Born 1962

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0027 WRITER

Shirley Jackson

1916 - 1965

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0028 PHYSICIST

Luis Walter Alvarez

1911 - 1988

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0029 ACTOR

Leslie Mann

Born 1972

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0030 ACTOR

Patty Hearst

Born 1954

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0031 ACTOR

Eric Dane

Born 1972

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0032 ANTHROPOLOGIST

Clifford Geertz

1926 - 2006

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0033 ACTOR

Benjamin Bratt

Born 1963

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0034 ACTOR

Bill Bixby

1934 - 1993

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0035 ACTOR

Aisha Tyler

Born 1970

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0036 ACTOR

BD Wong

Born 1960

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0037 WRITER

Jack Vance

1916 - 2013

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0038 WRITER

Daniel Handler

Born 1970

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0039 LAWYER

Stephen Breyer

Born 1938

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0040 SCULPTOR

Richard Serra

Born 1939

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0041 ACTOR

Margaret Cho

Born 1968

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0042 ACTOR

Lisa Bonet

Born 1967

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0043 MUSIC

Paul Kantner

1941 - 2016

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0044 ARTIST

Rube Goldberg

1867 - 1970

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0045 COMEDIAN

Kevin Pollak

Born 1957

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0046 ASTRONAUT

John Young (astronaut)

1930 - 2018

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0047 POET

Gary Snyder

Born 1930

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0048 COMPOSER

Paul Desmond

1924 - 1977

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0049 ACTOR

Simon Rex

Born 1974

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0050 ACTOR

Jamie Chung

Born 1983

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0051 ARTIST

Matthew Barney

Born 1967

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0052 BASKET

Jason Kidd

Born 1973

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0053 ACTOR

Stuart Whitman

1928 - 2020

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0054 ACTOR

Barry Nelson

1917 - 2007

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0055 POLITICIAN

Caspar Weinberger

1917 - 2006

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0056 ACTOR

Mervyn LeRoy

1900 - 1987

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0057 ACTOR

Gracie Allen

1895 - 1964

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0058 ACTOR

J. T. Walsh

1943 - 1998

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0059 ACTOR

Daphne Zuniga

Born 1962

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0060 LIBERAL

Naomi Wolf

Born 1962

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0061 POLITICIAN

Gavin Newsom

Born 1967

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0062 ACTOR

Bradford Dillman

1930 - 2018

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0063 BOXER

James J. Corbett

1866 - 1933

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0064 FILM

Colin Trevorrow

Born 1976

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0065 FILM

Alan Taylor (director)

Born 1965

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0066 COMPUTER SCIENTIST

Gordon Moore

Born 1929

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0067 SINGER

Nancy Wilson (rock musician)

Born 1954

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0068 ACTOR

Courtney Thorne-Smith

Born 1967

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0069 ACTOR

Aunjanue Ellis

Born 1969

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0070 ACTOR

Kurt Fuller

Born 1953

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0071 ACTOR

Marla Sokoloff

Born 1980

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0072 ACTOR

Lloyd Nolan

1902 - 1985

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0073 ACTOR

Colleen Camp

Born 1953

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0074 ACTOR

Elisha Cook Jr.

1903 - 1995

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0075 ACTOR

Tony Martin (American singer)

1913 - 2012

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0076 ACTOR

Tim Kang

Born 1973

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0077 SINGER

Jessica Jung

Born 1989

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0078 WRITER

Alice B. Toklas

1877 - 1967

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0079 WRITER

Irving Stone

1903 - 1989

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0080 POLITICIAN

Pat Brown

1905 - 1996

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0081 WRESTLER

Yokozuna (wrestler)

1966 - 2000

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0082 FEMINIST

Louise Bryant

1885 - 1936

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0083 SCREENWRITER

Frances Marion

1888 - 1973

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0084 ACTOR

Leland Orser

Born 1960

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0085 PSYCHOLOGIST

Allen Newell

1927 - 1992

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0086 COLUMNIST

Tucker Carlson

Born 1969

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0087 COMPUTER SCIENTIST

Jim Gray (computer scientist)

1944 - 2007

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0088 ACTOR

Charles Lane (actor)

1905 - 2007

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0089 PHYSICIST

Owen Chamberlain

1920 - 2006

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0090 PRODUCER

Andraé Crouch

1942 - 2015

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0091 COMPOSER

Aubrey O'Day

Born 1984

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0092 SINGER

Bob Weir

Born 1947

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0093 ACTOR

Genevieve Cortese

Born 1981

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0094 ACTOR

Susan Tyrrell

1945 - 2012

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0095 SINGER

Kreayshawn

Born 1989

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0096 ACTOR

Delmer Daves

1904 - 1977

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0097 PAINTER

Beatrice Wood

1893 - 1998

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0098 FILM

Joanna Kerns

Born 1953

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0099 SINGER

Tiffany Young

Born 1989

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0100 ACTOR

Richard Egan (actor)

1921 - 1987

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0101 FILM

Dorothy Arzner

1897 - 1979

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0102 DESIGNER

Alexander Wang (designer)

Born 1983

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0103 NUTRITIONIST

Jack LaLanne

1914 - 2011

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0104 ACTOR

George O'Brien (actor)

1899 - 1985

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0105 THEATRE

David Belasco

1853 - 1931

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0106 FILM

Jesse L. Lasky

1880 - 1958

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0107 FILM

Todd Bridges

Born 1965

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0108 ACTOR

Remy LaCroix

Born 1988

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0109 DRUMMER

Terry Bozzio

Born 1950

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0110 POLITICIAN

Pierre Salinger

1925 - 2004

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0111 ARCHITECT

Julia Morgan

1872 - 1957

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0112 ENTREPRENEUR

Biz Stone

Born 1974

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0113 ACTOR

Carré Otis

Born 1968

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0114 BOXER

Andre Ward

Born 1984

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0115 ACTOR

Victor Wong (actor, born 1927)

1927 - 2001

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0116 ACTOR

Mala Powers

1931 - 2007

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0117 ACTOR

Jerry Paris

1925 - 1986

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0118 ACTOR

Anna Maria Perez de Tagle

Born 1990

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0119 ACTOR

Joe Spano

Born 1946

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0120 ACTOR

Justin Whalin

Born 1974

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0121 ACTOR

Marjorie Rambeau

1889 - 1970

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0122 PHYSICIAN

Joseph Erlanger

1874 - 1965

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0123 PLAYER

Sam Querrey

Born 1987

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0124 MUSIC

Ronnie Montrose

1947 - 2012

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0125 SINGER

Krystal Jung

Born 1994

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0126 COMPOSER

Tycho (musician)

Born 1977

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0127 FILM

Rider Strong

Born 1979

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0128 WRITER

Walter Tevis

1928 - 1984

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0129 WRESTLER

Rikishi (wrestler)

Born 1965

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0130 POET

Jocelyn Brando

1919 - 2005

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0131 ACTOR

Raymond Bailey

1904 - 1980

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0132 ACTOR

Henry Bergman

1868 - 1946

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0133 FILM

Walter Wanger

1894 - 1968

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0134 ARTIST

Greg Rucka

Born 1969

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0135 OFFICER

Elmo Zumwalt

1920 - 2000

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0136 POLITICIAN

Jackie Speier

Born 1950

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0137 FILM

David Butler (director)

1894 - 1979

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0138 JOURNALIST

Lincoln Steffens

1866 - 1936

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0139 ACTOR

Mary Ellen Trainor

1952 - 2015

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0140 PHYSICIST

Frederick Seitz

1911 - 2008

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0141 COMPOSER

Vince Guaraldi

1928 - 1976

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0142 COMPOSER

Michael Shrieve

Born 1949

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0143 SINGER

Ben Kweller

Born 1981

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0144 DRUMMER

Paul Bostaph

Born 1964

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0145 SINGER

Malvina Reynolds

1900 - 1978

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0146 POLITICIAN

George Moscone

1929 - 1978

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0147 FILM

Rawson Marshall Thurber

Born 1975

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0148 ACTOR

Claire Coffee

Born 1980

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0149 ACTOR

David Dukes

1945 - 2000

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0150 ACTOR

Richard Gant

Born 1944

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0151 PRODUCER

Zhu (musician)

Born 1989

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0152 FILM

Michael Lehmann

Born 1957

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0153 ACTOR

Alison Elliott

Born 1970

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0154 ENTREPRENEUR

Barry Diller

Born 1942

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0155 ACTOR

Michael Paul Chan

Born 1950

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0156 AUTHOR

Greil Marcus

Born 1945

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0157 ACTOR

Victor Sen Yung

1915 - 1980

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0158 ACTOR

Edith Massey

1918 - 1984

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0159 ACTOR

Walter Catlett

1889 - 1960

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0160 ACTOR

Frank Wolff (actor)

1928 - 1971

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0161 POET

Sharon Olds

Born 1942

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0162 FILM

Yvonne Rainer

Born 1934

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0163 MATHEMATICIAN

John C. Baez

Born 1961

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0164 DRUMMER

Mike Bordin

Born 1962

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0165 FILM

Melissa Hill

Born 1970

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0166 WRESTLER

Umaga (wrestler)

1973 - 2009

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0167 CONDUCTOR

Leon Fleisher

1928 - 2020

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0168 ACTOR

Laura Hope Crews

1879 - 1942

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0169 SINGER

Francisca Valenzuela

Born 1987

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0170 FILM

Sidney Franklin (director)

1893 - 1972

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0171 ACTOR

Gregg Palmer

1927 - 2015

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0172 ACTOR

Victoria Vetri

Born 1944

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0173 ACTOR

Vonetta McGee

1945 - 2010

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0174 GOLF

Johnny Miller

Born 1947

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0175 ACTOR

Charlie Carver

Born 1988

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0176 PAINTER

Chesley Bonestell

1888 - 1986

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0177 ACTOR

Joan Blackman

Born 1938

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0178 BASEBALL

Joe Cronin

1906 - 1984

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0179 ACTOR

Golden Brooks

Born 1970

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0180 ACTOR

Alma Rubens

1897 - 1931

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0181 ACTOR

Will Wright (actor)

1891 - 1962

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0182 ACTOR

Dana Vespoli

Born 1972

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0183 ACTOR

David Warshofsky

Born 1961

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0184 FILM

Lowell Sherman

1885 - 1934

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0185 ACTOR

Marjorie Lord

1918 - 2015

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0186 GOLF

Ken Venturi

1931 - 2013

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0187 BASEBALL

Keith Hernandez

Born 1953

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0188 SWIMMER

Maya DiRado

Born 1993

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0189 ACTOR

Vito Scotti

1918 - 1996

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0190 ACTOR

Tara Lynn Foxx

Born 1990

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0191 ACTOR

Brigid Brannagh

Born 1972

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0192 MUSIC

Bobby Freeman

1940 - 2017

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0193 ACTOR

Lloyd Corrigan

1900 - 1969

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0194 WRITER

Alan Cooper

Born 1952

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0195 MUSIC

Chanté Moore

Born 1967

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0196 HOCKEY

Brooks Orpik

Born 1980

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0197 ACTOR

Stafford Repp

1918 - 1974

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0198 ACTOR

Phillip Rhee

Born 1960

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0199 ACTOR

Venus Lux

Born 1990

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0200 PAINTER

Milt Kahl

1909 - 1987

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0201 ACTOR

Russell Simpson (actor)

1880 - 1959

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0202 ACTOR

Linda Arvidson

1884 - 1949

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0203 ACTOR

Gina Ravera

Born 1966

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0204 POLITICIAN

John A. McCone

1902 - 1991

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0205 FILM

Michael A. Goorjian

Born 1971

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0206 POLITICIAN

Dennis Ross

Born 1948

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0207 PHYSICIST

Richard A. Muller

Born 1944

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0208 ACTOR

Trina Michaels

Born 1983

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0209 COMPOSER

Sharon Robinson (songwriter)

Born 1953

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0210 ACTOR

Isis Taylor

Born 1989

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0211 ACTOR

Max Carver

Born 1988

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0212 FILM

Charles Ferguson (filmmaker)

Born 1955

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0213 FILM

Angela Robinson

Born 1971

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0214 WRITER

Anne Lamott

Born 1954

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0215 FILM

Kirk Wise

Born 1963

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0216 ACTOR

Kathleen Chalfant

Born 1945

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0217 WRITER

Fred Dekker

Born 1959

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0218 RAPPER

George Watsky

Born 1986

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0219 WRITER

Lloyd Osbourne

1868 - 1947

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0220 POLITICIAN

Sam Farr

Born 1941

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0221 COMPOSER

Hugo Friedhofer

1901 - 1981

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0222 ACTOR

Percy Kilbride

1888 - 1964

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0223 POLITICIAN

Liao Zhongkai

1877 - 1925

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0224 FINANCIER

Philip Arthur Fisher

1907 - 2004

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0225 FILM

Charles Barton (director)

1902 - 1981

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0226 ACTOR

Frank Fay (American actor)

1891 - 1961

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0227 CLUB

Mix Master Mike

Born 1970

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0228 MUSIC

Rappin' 4-Tay

Born 1968

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0229 FOOTBALL

Tedy Bruschi

Born 1973

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0230 BASEBALL

Tony Lazzeri

1903 - 1946

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0231 ACTOR

Theodore Roberts

1861 - 1928

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0232 WRITER

Charles Webb (author)

1939 - 2020

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0233 ARCHITECT

Pierre Koenig

1925 - 2004

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0234 POLITICIAN

James Rolph

1869 - 1934

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0235 PHOTOGRAPHER

Alex Webb (photographer)

Born 1952

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0236 PLAYER

CiCi Bellis

Born 1999

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0237 POET

Robert Hass

Born 1941

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0238 ACTOR

Carmel Myers

1899 - 1980

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0239 ACTOR

Adrianna Nicole

Born 1977

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0240 CINEMA

Hal Mohr

1894 - 1974

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0241 MUSIC

Goa Gil

Born 1951

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0242 FILM

Ruth Roland

1892 - 1937

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0243 FOOTBALL

Sebastian Lletget

Born 1992

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0244 ACTOR

Dimitri Diatchenko

1968 - 2020

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0245 FILM

Audrey Wells

1960 - 2018

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0246 ACTOR

Daria Halprin

Born 1948

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0247 PLAYER

Rosemary Casals

Born 1948

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0248 COMEDIAN

Alec Mapa

Born 1965

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0249 SINGER

Lorraine Hunt Lieberson

1954 - 2006

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0250 MUSIC

Dan the Automator

Born 1967

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0251 ACTOR

Hal March

1920 - 1970

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0252 ACTOR

Jennifer Siebel Newsom

Born 1974

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0253 PIANIST

Hephzibah Menuhin

1920 - 1981

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0254 FILM

Charles Lamont

1895 - 1993

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0255 SCREENWRITER

Erin Cressida Wilson

Born 1964

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0256 RAPPER

MC Frontalot

Born 1973

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0257 NOVELIST

Gertrude Atherton

1857 - 1948

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0258 ACTOR

Paul Mantee

1931 - 2013

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0259 ACTOR

Shanna McCullough

Born 1960

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0260 FOOTBALL

Pete Carroll

Born 1951

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0261 ACTOR

Lena Hall

Born 1980

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0262 FILM

James W. Horne

1881 - 1942

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0263 ACTOR

Al Ernest Garcia

1887 - 1938

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0264 AUTHOR

Gerald Posner

Born 1954

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0265 ACTOR

Paula Raymond

1924 - 2003

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0266 PSYCHOLOGIST

Daniel Levitin

Born 1957

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0267 ARTIST

DJ Earworm

Born 1982

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0268 SINGER

Joe Louis Walker

Born 1949

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0269 EDITOR

Louise Dahl-Wolfe

1895 - 1989

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0270 POLITICIAN

James D. Phelan

1861 - 1930

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0271 ATHLETIC

Shannon Rowbury

Born 1984

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0272 PHOTOGRAPHER

Yasuhiro Ishimoto

1921 - 2012

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0273 COMPOSER

Martha Wash

Born 1953

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0274 PLAYER

Bill Johnston (tennis)

1894 - 1946

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0275 FILM

Peter Del Monte

Born 1943

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0276 ACTOR

Thomas Horn (Schauspieler)

Born 1997

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0277 MUSIC

Hanni El Khatib

Born 1981

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0278 ACTOR

Charles Haid

Born 1943

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0279 WRITER

David Cay Johnston

Born 1948

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0280 WRESTLER

Tyler Reks

Born 1978

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0281 ACTOR

Phillip Terry

1909 - 1993

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0282 MUSIC

Gabrielle Roth

1941 - 2012

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0283 SINGER

April March

Born 1965

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0284 PAINTER

Anna Elizabeth Klumpke

1856 - 1942

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0285 WRITER

Jeanne DuPrau

Born 1944

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0286 SINGER

Trine Rein

Born 1970

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0287 FILM

James Isaac

1960 - 2012

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0288 ACTOR

Abby Wilde

Born 1989

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0289 POET

Maggie Nelson

Born 1973

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0290 AUTHOR

Kathleen Norris

1880 - 1966

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0291 WRITER

Steve Martini

Born 1946

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0292 ENGINEER

John Hays Hammond

1855 - 1936

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0293 ACTOR

Leila Arcieri

Born 1973

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0294 ANIMATOR

Jay Ward

1920 - 1989

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0295 MUSIC

Lauv

Born 1994

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0296 MEDIEVALIST

Lynn Townsend White Jr.

1907 - 1987

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0297 RAPPER

Ya Boy

Born 1984

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0298 POET

Philip Lamantia

1927 - 2005

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0299 BASEBALL

Dom DiMaggio

1917 - 2009

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0300 TEACHER

Ron Jones (teacher)

Born 1941

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