Film & TV · born 1939Francis Ford Coppolafilm director, screenwriter, producerThe director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now was born at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, and his middle name honors the city's most famous carmaker.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
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.
- 664 famous people
- 66 Detroit places
- 15 fields
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A–Z (family name)
51 people · 1/2 page
Clear filtersFilm & TV · born 1939Francis Ford Coppolafilm director, screenwriter, producerThe director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now was born at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, and his middle name honors the city's most famous carmaker.
Music · born 1948Alice Coopersinger, songwriterThe shock-rock pioneer was born in Detroit, grew up in East Detroit, and found his first real audience when his band moved to a Pontiac farmhouse in 1970.
Music · 1964–2017Chris Cornellsinger, guitarist, songwriterSoundgarden and Audioslave frontman who played his final concert at Detroit's Fox Theatre and died in the city hours later, in May 2017.
Film & TV · born 1958Bruce Campbellactor, producer, director, writerRoyal Oak-born cult actor, Ash of The Evil Dead, who made his first films with Sam Raimi in Detroit's suburbs and premiered them in Detroit theaters.
Film & TV · 1926–2024Roger Cormanfilm director and producerDetroit-born king of low-budget cinema who produced or directed hundreds of films and gave first breaks to Coppola, Scorsese, Cameron and many more.
Film & TV · born 1966Dean Cainactor, producer, former football playerTV's 1990s Superman in Lois & Clark was born at Selfridge Air Force Base in Macomb County, northeast of Detroit.
Auto industry · 1875–1940Walter P. Chryslerfounder of Chrysler CorporationKansas railroad mechanic who ran Buick, founded Chrysler Corporation in Detroit in 1925 and made it one of the Big Three by buying Dodge in 1928.
Music · born 1941George Clintonsinger, songwriter, producer, bandleaderLeader of Parliament-Funkadelic, who worked as a Motown staff writer and built P-Funk on Detroit labels and in Detroit studios such as United Sound Systems.
Notorious figures · 1873–1901Leon Czolgoszanarchist, assassin of President William McKinleyDetroit-born wireworker and anarchist who shot President William McKinley in Buffalo in 1901; his birth in the city is his main tie to Detroit.
Auto industry · 1878–1941Louis Chevroletracing driver, engineer, co-founder of ChevroletSwiss-born racer who designed the first Chevrolet in a Detroit workshop in 1911 and later returned to the city's factories as a mechanic.
Film & TV · 1935–2019Seymour CasselactorOscar-nominated star of John Cassavetes's independent films and Wes Anderson favorite, who grew up in Detroit and started out building theater props there.
Music · 1929–1998Betty Carterjazz singer, bandleader, educatorFlint-born, Detroit-raised jazz singer famed for her daring scat and phrasing, who won a Paradise Theatre talent contest and sat in with Parker and Gillespie before joining Lionel Hampton.
Music · born 1937Ron Carterjazz double bassist, cellist, composerBorn in suburban Ferndale and trained at Detroit's Cass Tech, he became the most-recorded bassist in jazz history and anchored Miles Davis's 1960s quintet.
Politics · 1782–1866Lewis Cassterritorial governor, U.S. senator, secretary of stateGovernor of Michigan Territory from Detroit for 18 years and 1848 Democratic presidential nominee; Cass Avenue and Cass Tech bear his name, and he rests at Elmwood.
Politics · 1929–2019John Conyerspolitician, lawyerDetroit's congressman for more than half a century (1965–2017), the longest-serving African American member of Congress and Rosa Parks's longtime employer.
Press & broadcasting · 1891–1979Charles CoughlinCatholic priest, radio broadcaster, political agitatorThe Royal Oak 'Radio Priest' whose 1930s broadcasts from the Shrine of the Little Flower reached tens of millions before turning to antisemitism and support for fascism.
City history · 1658–1730Antoine de la Mothe CadillacFrench officer, explorer and founder of DetroitFrench officer who founded Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit on July 24, 1701, the settlement that grew into Detroit, and commanded it until 1710.
Film & TV · born 1991Garrett Claytonactor, singer, dancerDearborn-born actor and singer who started out in his high school drama club and starred in Disney's Teen Beach Movie and NBC's Hairspray Live!
Music · 1935–1969Paul Chambersjazz double bassistHard-bop bassist raised in Detroit, trained at Cass Tech and by a Detroit Symphony bassist, who anchored Miles Davis's first great quintet.
Press & broadcasting · born 1943E. Jean Carrolljournalist, advice columnist, authorDetroit-born journalist whose Ask E. Jean column ran in Elle for 26 years and who later won major civil verdicts against Donald Trump.
Sports · born 1987Joe Cadaprofessional poker playerPoker pro from Shelby Township in Macomb County who won the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event at 21, then the youngest champion ever.
Business & brands · born 1963Dick Costolotechnology executive, former CEO of TwitterRoyal Oak–born University of Michigan graduate who co-founded FeedBurner and ran Twitter as CEO from 2010 to 2015.
Music · 1952–2025Carl Carltonsinger, songwriterDetroit-born soul and funk singer who started as "Little" Carl Carlton and later scored "Everlasting Love" (1974) and "She's a Bad Mama Jama" (1981).
Sports · 1903–1962Mickey Cochranebaseball catcher and managerHall of Fame catcher who, as player-manager, led the Tigers to pennants in 1934 and 1935 and Detroit's first World Series title.
Business & brands · 1872–1936James CouzensFord Motor Company co-founder and business manager, mayor of Detroit, U.S. senatorCanadian-born railroad clerk who became Ford's hard-driving business manager, then mayor of Detroit and a U.S. senator.
Sports · 1880–1968Sam Crawfordbaseball player, outfielderHall of Fame Tigers right fielder of 1903–1917, Ty Cobb's teammate and rival, who still holds the major-league record for career triples.
Auto industry · 1880–1936Roy D. Chapinco-founder and president of Hudson Motor Car Company, U.S. Secretary of CommerceOlds test driver who co-founded the Hudson Motor Car Company in Detroit, named it for merchant J. L. Hudson, and later served as U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
Music · 1931–1991James Clevelandgospel singer, composer, arranger, choir directorChicago gospel giant who worked at Detroit's New Bethel Baptist Church under Rev. C. L. Franklin and founded the Gospel Music Workshop of America after a Detroit Sing-A-Rama.
Sports · 1933–1986Norm Cashbaseball player, first basemanFun-loving Tigers first baseman of 1960–1974 who won the 1961 batting title and was the first Tiger to hit a ball over Tiger Stadium's right-field roof.
Civil rights & activism · 1955–1982Vincent Chindraftsman, hate-crime victimChinese American draftsman from Highland Park whose 1982 beating death by two autoworkers, and the killers' lenient sentences, sparked the Asian American civil rights movement.
Music · born 1946Chris Clarksinger, screenwriter, executiveCalifornia-born Motown singer of the northern soul favorites "Do Right Baby Do Right" and "Love's Gone Bad", later Oscar-nominated for co-writing Lady Sings the Blues.
Music · born 1963Gerald Cleaverjazz drummer, composer, bandleaderDetroit-born drummer, son of drummer John Cleaver Jr., who taught at the University of Michigan and became a leading figure of the New York creative-jazz scene.
Press & broadcasting · 1928–2016Paul Careyradio broadcasterWJR announcer for 36 years and Ernie Harwell's longtime partner on Tigers radio, known for his deep baritone.
Civil rights & activism · 1920–2002Lily Chincivil rights activistChinese immigrant mother of Vincent Chin who, after his 1982 killing, became the moral voice of the national campaign for justice that launched the Asian American civil rights movement.
Sports · 1898–1941Andy Cooperbaseball pitcher and managerHall of Fame left-hander who pitched nine seasons for the Negro-league Detroit Stars; one historian called him the greatest pitcher ever to play for a Detroit team.
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.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own.