Literature · born 1938Joyce Carol Oatesnovelist, short-story writer, poet, professorOne of America's most prolific novelists, she taught at the University of Detroit in the 1960s and turned the city and its 1967 uprising into the National Book Award–winning novel them.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
- 6 fields
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4 people
Clear filtersLiterature · born 1938Joyce Carol Oatesnovelist, short-story writer, poet, professorOne of America's most prolific novelists, she taught at the University of Detroit in the 1960s and turned the city and its 1967 uprising into the National Book Award–winning novel them.
Politics · born 1964Fuat Oktaypolitician, engineer, academicTurkey's first vice president (2018–2023), who earned his master's degree and doctorate in engineering at Wayne State University in Detroit.
Film & TV · born 1963Gail O'Gradyactress, producerThree-time Emmy nominee for NYPD Blue, where she played receptionist Donna Abandando, born in Detroit.
Auto industry · 1864–1950Ransom E. Oldsautomotive pioneer, founder of Oldsmobile and REOLansing carmaker who opened Detroit's first dedicated auto factory in 1899; after it burned in 1901 his Curved Dash Olds became America's first mass-produced car.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own.