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Famous Detroiters

People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.

1,912 famous people
135 Detroit places
21 fields

Hungarian ties 22 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →

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Auto industry · 1912–1998Semon Knudsenautomotive executive, head of Pontiac and Chevrolet, president of FordSon of GM president William Knudsen who turned stodgy Pontiac into a performance brand, ran Chevrolet, then had a stormy 19 months as Ford's president.Grew up hereDetroit career

Visual art · 1915–1999Hughie Lee-Smithpainter, teacherAfrican American painter of haunting, surreal cityscapes who built his career in Detroit in the 1940s and 1950s and won top prizes at the DIA.Moved hereDetroit career

Press & broadcasting · 1916–1974Van PatricksportscasterPlay-by-play voice of the Detroit Lions and Tigers in the 1950s and 1960s and a fixture of Detroit sports television.Moved hereDetroit career

Sports · 1910–1961Schoolboy Rowebaseball pitcherFolksy Arkansas right-hander who won 16 straight games for the 1934 Tigers and became one of Depression-era Detroit's favorite players.Detroit career

Sports · 1915–1977Mayo Smithbaseball managerManager of the 1968 world champion Tigers, remembered for his daring World Series move of center fielder Mickey Stanley to shortstop.Detroit career

Science & invention · 1918–2002Charles H. Wrightobstetrician-gynecologist, museum founderDetroit obstetrician who founded the museum of African American history that now bears his name, one of the largest of its kind in the world.Moved hereDetroit career

Music · 1915–1973Joe Von Battlerecord store owner, record producerOwner of Joe's Record Shop on Hastings Street and one of the first Black independent record producers, who first recorded Rev. C. L. Franklin and the teenage Aretha Franklin.Moved hereDetroit career

Religion · 1911–2000Albert Cleage Jr.minister, Black nationalist leaderDetroit minister who founded the Shrine of the Black Madonna and the Black Christian Nationalist movement, a leading voice of Detroit's Black Power era.Grew up hereDetroit career

Film & TV · 1913–2007Lawson Demingactor, television horror hostCleveland-born actor who, as the cackling vampire Sir Graves Ghastly, hosted Saturday horror movies on Detroit's WJBK-TV 2 for fifteen seasons, from 1967 to 1982.Moved hereDetroit career

Press & broadcasting · 1917–2012Budd Lynchhockey broadcaster, public-address announcerOne-armed World War II veteran who spent 63 years with the Red Wings, first as play-by-play voice from 1949 and later as the beloved PA announcer at Joe Louis Arena.Moved hereDetroit career

Visual art · 1918–2017Bill Rauhauserphotographer, educatorDetroit street photographer who documented the city from the 1940s onward and taught photography at the College for Creative Studies for over thirty years.Born hereGrew up here

Labor · 1912–2004Victor ReutherUAW organizer and education directorYoungest of the organizing Reuther brothers, a key voice of the 1936–1937 sit-down strikes and the UAW's education and international director.Moved hereDetroit career

Civil rights & activism · 1912–2001Charleszetta WaddlesPentecostal minister, founder of the Mother Waddles Perpetual MissionPentecostal minister known as Mother Waddles who for more than four decades fed, clothed and trained Detroit's poor through her Perpetual Mission.Moved hereDetroit career

Music · 1912–2003Bernard Besmanrecord producer, distributor, bandleaderDetroit record distributor who founded Sensation Records and in 1948 produced John Lee Hooker's first session, which yielded "Boogie Chillen'".Grew up hereDetroit career

Politics · 1917–2009Erma Hendersoncivil rights activist, city council presidentBlack Bottom-raised social worker and civil rights leader who became the first Black woman on the Detroit City Council and its first Black president (1977–1989), and led the fight against redlining.Grew up hereDetroit career

Music · 1914–2003Josephine Harreld Loveconcert pianist, musicologist, museum founderConcert pianist and musicologist who moved to Detroit in 1941 and in 1969 co-founded Your Heritage House, a fine arts museum and studio for the city's children.Moved hereDetroit career

Science & invention · 1916–1998Neal Vernon Lovingaviator, aircraft designer, aeronautical engineerDetroit aviator and designer, the first African American and the first double amputee licensed as a racing pilot, who co-founded Michigan's first Black-owned aircraft company.Born hereGrew up here

Law · 1918–1998John Nicholspolice commissioner, sheriffSon of Detroit's southwest-side Hungarian community who rose to Detroit police commissioner and narrowly lost the 1973 mayoral race to Coleman Young.Born hereGrew up here

Sports · 1910–1968Bert Rubyprofessional wrestler, trainer, promoterHungarian-Jewish wrestler from Transylvania who became a fixture of Detroit professional wrestling as a barefoot grappler, trainer and the right-hand man of promoter Harry Light.Moved hereDetroit career

Business & brands · 1919–2006Ed Wingaterecord label owner, entrepreneurDetroit entrepreneur who co-founded Golden World and Ric-Tic Records with Joanne Bratton, for a time Motown's strongest local rival.Grew up hereDetroit career

Business & brands · 1910–2003Clarence Bakerjazz club ownerOwner of Baker's Keyboard Lounge for 57 years, who turned his parents' Livernois Avenue sandwich shop into one of the world's oldest continuously operating jazz clubs.Detroit career

Music · 1910–1985Julius Chajescomposer, pianist, conductor, educatorLviv-born composer and pianist who led music at Detroit's Jewish Community Center for 45 years, founded its symphony orchestra and wrote widely performed synagogue music.Moved hereDetroit career

Film & TV · 1912–1994Clare Cummingsmagician, television clownDetroit-area magician who became Milky the Clown, the Twin Pines Dairy's TV mascot, on Detroit television from 1950 to 1964.Moved hereDetroit career

Film & TV · 1914–1994Toby Davidradio and television host, comedianDetroit-raised broadcaster who, as Captain Jolly on CKLW-TV's Popeye and Pals (1958–1964), drew an estimated million young viewers a week.Grew up hereDetroit career

Business & brands · 1918–1992Clarence Eddinsnightclub ownerOwner of the Blue Bird Inn on Tireman Avenue, who with his wife Mary ran Detroit's legendary west-side bebop club and booked Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Art Blakey.Grew up hereDetroit career

Music · 1910–1974George Yorkcountry singer, guitaristElder half of the York Brothers, the Kentucky-born harmony duo who became stars of Detroit's country taverns and scored a local smash in 1939 with “Hamtramck Mama.”Moved hereDetroit career

Music · 1917–1984Leslie Yorkcountry singer, lead guitaristYounger half and lead guitarist of the York Brothers, the Detroit-based country duo behind “Hamtramck Mama” and “Motor City Boogie.”Moved hereDetroit career

The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗

Famous Detroiters

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