List of people from Springfield, Missouri
This is a list of notable people born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with the city of Springfield, Missouri and its surrounding metropolitan area.
Politics[change | change source]
- John Ashcroft, former U.S. attorney general
- Matt Blunt, former governor of Missouri
- Melanie Blunt, former first lady of Missouri
- Roy Blunt, U.S. Senator
- Sempronius H. Boyd, former U.S. representative and ambassador to Siam
- Charlie Brown, former U.S. representative
- Jim Keet (born 1949), former member of both houses of the Arkansas legislature; the 2010 Republican gubernatorial nominee in Arkansas
- Billy Long, U.S. Representative
- Roscoe Patterson, former U.S. senator and representative
Arts, literature, humanities and entertainment[change | change source]
- Lennie Aleshire, vaudeville and country music performer
- Bob Barker, former host of The Price Is Right
- Julie Blackmon, photographer
- Aaron Buerge, star of ABC's The Bachelor, season 2
- Kim Crosby, Broadway performer
- Ian Eskelin, lead singer of All Star United
- Ralph D. Foster, broadcasting pioneer
- William Garwood, actor
- John Goodman, actor (born in Affton and attended Missouri State University)
- Lucas Grabeel, actor, singer (High School Musical, HSM2, and HSM 3: Senior Year)
- Sara Groves, Christian contemporary recording artist
- Speedy Haworth, guitarist and singer
- Joe Haymes, swing era bandleader-arranger (born in Marshfield; grew up and began his band in Springfield)
- Tess Harper, actress (graduated from Missouri State University)
- Josh Heinrichs, reggae singer
- Jah Roots, reggae band
- Jay Kenneth Johnson, actor
- The Jordanaires, singing group
- King's X, musical group
- Chandler Lawson, beauty pageant titleholder, Miss Tennessee 2012
- Brenda Lee, singer (moved to Springfield in 1956 at age 11)
- Shelby Lindrose, Miss USA contender
- Jim Lowe, country music singer
- Robin Luke, musician
- The Marksmen, singing quartet (originally The Foggy River Boys)
- The Ozark Mountain Daredevils, musical group
- The Philharmonics, singing quintet
- Brad Pitt, actor
- Dana Powell, actress, Modern Family, The Office, Arrested Development, Suburgatory, Bridesmaids
- Ronnie Self, singer/songwriter
- Brittany Sicard, artist
- Scott Siman, music producer and executive
- Si Siman, music producer and broadcast executive
- Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, musical group
- Speakeasy, rock and roll band
- Patti Suarez newscaster, TV host, film and stage actress
- Terre Thaemlitz, musician, cultural producer
- Tony Tost, poet
- Kathleen Turner, actress
- Speedy West, steel guitarist and record producer
- Robert Westenberg, Broadway performer
- Adrienne Wilkinson, actress (graduated from Kickapoo High School)
- Slim Wilson, musician, radio and TV personality
- Daniel Woodrell, author
Sports[change | change source]
- Scott Bailes, former American League pitcher in the 1980s and 1990s; now the color commentator for the Springfield Cardinals baseball franchise
- Tyler Blaylock, NFL wide receiver
- Lori Endicott, 1996 Olympic volleyball player
- Gracie Gold, Olympic figure skater
- Ryan Howard, current MLB player, 2005 NL Rookie of the Year, 2006 Home Run Derby Champion, 2006 NL Most Valuable Player
- Jack Jewsbury, MLS player for the Portland Timbers
- Josh Kinney, first Springfield Cardinal (AA) to make the St. Louis Cardinals major league roster
- Stan Musial, Hall of Fame baseball player for the St. Louis Cardinals, played for the original Springfield Cardinals minor league baseball team in the late 1930s
- Larry Nemmers, NFL referee
- Steve Rogers, former MLB starting pitcher with Montréal Expos; most successful pitcher in Expos history
- Emily Scott, Olympian speed skater
- Payne Stewart, professional golfer
- Jackie Stiles, NCAA all-time leading scorer in women's basketball
- Anthony Tolliver, NBA basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves
- Paul Walker, football player
Business[change | change source]
- John Morris, founder and majority owner, Bass Pro Shops[1]
- Jack Gentry, World War II and Korean War veteran; founder of Positronic
- David Glass, former CEO of Wal-Mart; owner of the Kansas City Royals
- John Q. Hammons, founder of John Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts
- Ryan Handy, 2010 Mr. Universe contestant; Playgirl magazine centerfold
- Charles F. O'Reilly (father) and Charles H. O'Reilly (son), founders of O'Reilly Auto Parts in 1957[2]
- Jack Stack, founder of SRC Holdings
- Roy E. Winegardner, former CEO of Holiday Inns, partner with John Q. Hammons in Winegardner and Hammons[3]
Other[change | change source]
- Jimmie Angel, aviator, discoverer of Angel Falls, the ighest free-falling waterfall in the world
- J. Alan Groves, Biblical Hebrew scholar; editor of Groves-Wheeler Hebrew morphology database
- Edwin P. Hubble, of Hubble Space Telescope fame (born in Marshfield)[4]
- Virginia E. Johnson, sexologist; junior member of the Masters and Johnson sexuality research team
- Janet Kavandi, NASA astronaut
- Ryan P. Walsh, founder and Chief Technology Officer of the Walsh Foundations
Notes[change | change source]
- ↑ "John Morris". Forbes. Retrieved 9 January 2015.
- ↑ "O'Reilly Auto Parts Co-Founder Dies". 22 April 2005.
- ↑ "Roy E. Winegardner, a Pioneer in the Hotel Industry, 1920 - 2009 / October 2009". www.hotel-online.com.
- ↑ "Edwin Hubble biography". www-history.mcs.st-and.ac.uk.