# Who is the most famous person BORN in your state? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 11, 2010, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341 "2010-11-11T18:41:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Erdosain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/erdosain/32/7284_2.png) [@Erdosain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Erdosain)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/141 "2010-11-13T02:52:53Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > I also mentioned “name recognition”. Someone whose name is universally recognized is famous, even if you wouldn’t recognize his face. e.g. Jesus Christ, or Alexander the Great, or Thomas Edison (how many people could pick Thomas Edison out of a lineup?) > Or are you proposing a better definition of fame? I guess it’s just the “international” part that trips me up. I doubt if most people outside the U.S. would recognize 50 American names. I mean, off the top of your head, name 50 Spaniards. I think “most famous in America” is a much better measure. Only very few people are truly famous internationally, and again, they tend to be Hollywood actors, pop stars, and sports stars. I see that no one has nominated someone for Utah: Roseanne Barr. Someone upthread also mentioned a sure winner for Connecticut: George W. Bush. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/142 "2010-11-13T03:44:13Z")
> [@Erdosain](#): > > I see that no one has nominated someone for Utah: Roseanne Barr. Or Butch Cassidy, born Robert LeRoy Parker in Beaver, Utah, 1866. Or Jewel (KIlcher), Payson, Utah, 1974. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 4:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/143 "2010-11-13T04:05:23Z")
Another nominee for Vermont: [Ted Bundy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Bundy) ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/144 "2010-11-13T05:02:32Z")
We don’t have North Dakota yet. I’m not sure which of these might be most famous, but my guess that currently it would be Phil Jackson. Sacajawea might top him for being on a coin, but I doubt she is well known outside the US. Sacajawea, guide to Louis and Clark Warren Christopher, Secretary of State Angie Dickenson, actress Louis L’Amour, author Phil Jackson, basketball coach Roger Maris, baseball player Lawrence Welk, bandleader ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/145 "2010-11-13T07:12:03Z")
Hey, can we throw [Ronnie James Dio](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronnie_James_Dio) up on the NH list? He’s arguably more famous than Franklin Pierce, and frankly I’d rather have him represent the Granite State than Dan Brown. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/146 "2010-11-13T07:19:37Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > New Hampshire: > I’d guess today, Dan Brown or Sarah Silverman are the most famous. Adam Sandler’s gotta be more famous than Sarah Silverman, right? ---
**Author:** ![Wolverine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ba9def/32.png) [@Wolverine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wolverine)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/147 "2010-11-13T07:20:37Z")
> [@Student\_Driver](#): > > For Michigan, I’d nominate Madonna Madonna is good, but Henry Ford is better. For sheer awesomeness (but not as famous), Bruce Campbell. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 8:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/148 "2010-11-13T08:14:34Z")
To give the non-US perspective, my picks for the disputed states would be: Alabama / Helen Keller (by miles) Arkansas / Bill Clinton California / Marilyn Monroe (that was a tough pick) Georgia / Martin Luther King Illinois / Ronald Reagan Maryland / Frank Zappa New Hampshire / Dan Brown (sorry!) New Jersey / Frank Sinatra New Mexico / Demi Moore currently. Geronimo is a recognisable name, but I don’t know anything\* about\* him. North Carolina / Billy Graham Ohio / Thomas Edison (more sticking power than Spielberg) Oklahoma / Brad Pitt Oregon / Matt Groening Tennessee / Davy Crockett Texas / Eisenhower. I’d never heard of that Alaskan dude. In fact, of a list of [famous Alaskans](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Alaska) the only one I’d heard of at all was Valerie Plame - she been proposed yet? ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 8:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/149 "2010-11-13T08:15:49Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’d argue that Henry Ford is more famous than Madonna. And certainly more a part of Michigan history. Yeah, I’d agree. My suggestion had come from musing on the thread in CS on celebrities who deserve one-name monikers, so she popped into my head as an icon. Mr. Ford’s also well-known for one name, though it’s a last name for once! 🙂 I again nominate Sarah Palin for Idaho, which remains unfilled on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/150 "2010-11-13T08:52:59Z")
For fun, and to add another entry to the territories list, I’m looking over folks born in Puerto Rico. These are some names that jumped out at me: Roberto Alomar Hector “Macho” Camacho Roberto Clemente Benicio del Toro José Feliciano José Ferrer Luis Guzmán Raúl Juliá Rita Moreno Juan “Chi-Chi” Rodríguez Holly Woodlawn Benicio del Toro is currently famous, but I think Feliciano, Ferrer, Juliá, and Moreno have had longer-lasting name recognition. I’m not too familiar with sports, but even I recognized the athletes’ names above, which might indicate they’re perhaps better known? (Holly Woodlawn’s listed simply because I had no idea that one of Warhol’s best known superstars was from PR.) I think I’d lean toward José Ferrer. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/151 "2010-11-13T08:54:05Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > New Hampshire / Dan Brown (sorry!) Sorry to harp on this, but it’s my state :). Is Dan Brown more recognizable than Adam Sandler? I think in terms of books sold and number of movie-goers to Sandler’s movies, they’ve gotta be pretty close. And I think actors’ names are more widely known than authors’. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/152 "2010-11-13T09:02:20Z")
Brown vs Sandler would be a tough call. Sandler wasn’t on the list when I made my choice though! Sandler may have more staying power - he’s done more stuff (and, though I’m not at all a fan - better quality) ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/153 "2010-11-13T12:18:31Z")
Adam Sandler was [born in Brooklyn, NY](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Sandler) ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/154 "2010-11-13T12:33:52Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > We don’t have North Dakota yet. > > I’m not sure which of these might be most famous, but my guess that currently it would be Phil Jackson. Sacajawea might top him for being on a coin, but I doubt she is well known outside the US. > > Sacajawea, guide to Louis and Clark > Warren Christopher, Secretary of State > Angie Dickenson, actress > Louis L’Amour, author > Phil Jackson, basketball coach > Roger Maris, baseball player > Lawrence Welk, bandleader As a non-US person I would say that Phil Jackson could be just as unknown outside the US as Sacajawea. My guess from that list would be Angie Dickinson as I don’t think I had heard of any of the others when I lived in the UK. But maybe people younger than I would not have heard of her either. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/155 "2010-11-13T12:35:00Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > To give the non-US perspective, my picks for the disputed states would be: > > Alabama / Helen Keller (by miles) Is she more famous than [Hank Aaron](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hank_Aaron), [Jimmy Buffett](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Buffett), [Truman Capote](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_Capote), [Nat King Cole](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nat_King_Cole), [Courteney Cox](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courteney_Cox), [Rosa Parks](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Parks), [Condoleezza Rice](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condoleezza_Rice), or [Hank Williams](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hank_Williams)? ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/156 "2010-11-13T12:43:18Z")
Well, **Arnold W** seemed to think so! 😉 . But going down that list … never heard of Hank Aaron or Hank Williams vaguely recognised Jimmy Buffett but I think I was confusing him with Warren Capote/Cole/Cox/Parks - know them, but I don’t think they make it. Helen Keller, after all, is pretty much unique for what she was and did. There have been other writers, singers, actors and activists. Rice - the closest call, but I doubt if she’ll remain famous after she retires/dies, which tips the scales. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/157 "2010-11-13T12:53:23Z")
> [@Aspidistra](#): > > Capote/Cole/Cox/Parks - know them, but I don’t think they make it. Helen Keller, after all, is pretty much unique for what she was and did. There have been other writers, singers, actors and activists. Then I don’t understand your definition of fame. If more people recognize the name of a singer than a blind person, that makes them more famous, in my book. Uniqueness doesn’t enter into it for me. ---
**Author:** ![amarone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e0b2c6/32.png) [@amarone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarone)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/158 "2010-11-13T13:04:27Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Then I don’t understand your definition of fame. If more people recognize the name of a singer than a blind person, that makes them more famous, in my book. Uniqueness doesn’t enter into it for me. I will let **Aspidistra** defend his criteria (or choice of words), but I agree with his assessment of who is likely to be perceived as the most famous outside the US. Or, at least, most famous in the UK as I cannot claim to speak for the rest of the world. I suspect fewer than 25% of people in the UK could tell you who most of the others were, possibly excepting Courtney Cox (even though I have heard of her, I have no idea what she looks like and could not name a single thing she has been in). And Nat King Cole just because of the 70+ crowd, but his fame is diminishing. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/159 "2010-11-13T14:23:33Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > Is she more famous than [Hank Aaron](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hank_Aaron), [Jimmy Buffett](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimmy_Buffett), [Truman Capote](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truman_Capote), [Nat King Cole](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nat_King_Cole), [Courteney Cox](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Courteney_Cox), [Rosa Parks](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Parks), [Condoleezza Rice](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condoleezza_Rice), or [Hank Williams](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hank_Williams)? As an ex-Alabamian my vote may not solve the “fame” issue as seen from an outsider’s point of view. That said, I would rank your list in terms of “international recognition” thusly: Truman Capote Condoleezza Rice Nat King Cole Hank Williams Jimmy Buffett Hank Aaron Courteney Cox Rosa Parks I would place Helen Keller after Condoleezza. Maybe you could do an Alabama Fame poll to see how Dopers would rank them. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2010, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341/160 "2010-11-13T23:51:45Z")
For another US Territory, NFL All-Star Junior Seau is almost certainly the most famous person from American Samoa. I haven’t been able to find anyone recognizable from Guam, the Northern Marianas, or the American Virgin Islands. (There are some baseball players from the Virgin Islands, but the only one I had really heard of was Horace Clarke, and that only because he played for the Yankees.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-most-famous-person-born-in-your-state/560341.md?page=9)