List of Phillips Exeter Academy people

The following is a list of notable alumni from Phillips Exeter Academy.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

1790s

• Dudley Leavitt (1790) - Publisher, writer, teacher, Meredith, New Hampshire
• Lewis Cass (1792) - Secretary of State
• Nathaniel Upham (1793) - United States Representative from New Hampshire.
• Samuel Conner (1794) - U.S. Representative from Massachusetts
• Daniel Webster (1796) - U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, born in New Hampshire

1810s

• John Adams Dix (1810) - Secretary of the Treasury, Senator from New York, Governor of New York
• George Bancroft (1811) - Historian, Secretary of Navy, and founder of the United States Naval Academy. (Admitted to Harvard at age 13.)

1820s

• Franklin Pierce (1820) - 14th U.S. President
• Alpheus Felch (c. 1822) - U.S. Senator and Governor of Michigan
• John Parker Hale (c. 1824) - U.S. Representative, Senator, abolitionist from New Hampshire

1830s

• Amos Tappan Akerman (c.1839) - U.S. Attorney General, 1870-1872, not listed in Alumni Records[1]

1840s

• Christopher Langdell (c.1848) Legal scholar, jurist and educator.

1860s

• Robert Todd Lincoln (1860) - Son of President Abraham Lincoln, US Secretary of War.
• John E. Leonard (1863) - U.S. Representative from Louisiana
• Emmanuel Sullavou (1867) - 2nd African American to Graduate from Harvard

1870s

• Ulysses S. (Buck) Grant, Jr. (c. 1870) - Entrepreneur, Son of President Ulysses S. Grant, not listed in Alumni Records
• Walter I. McCoy (c. 1875) - Represented New Jersey's 8th congressional district from 1911 to 1913, and the 9th district from 1913 to 1914.
• Frederick Winslow Taylor (1874) - president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) from 1906-1907

1880s

• Amos Alonzo Stagg (1880) - "Grandfather of Football"
• Gifford Pinchot (1885) - First Chief Forester of the U.S. Forest Service and the Governor of Pennsylvania.
• George Higgins (1887) - U.S. Senator from New Hampshire
• Thomas Lamont (1888) - Partner and chairman of Board of Directors of J.P. Morgan & Co.. Father of Thomas W. Lamont, Jr. (1916) and Corliss Lamont (1920); grandfather of Edward M. Lamont (1944); great-grandfather of Ned Lamont (1972).
• Booth Tarkington (1889) - Winner, Pulitzer Prize, not listed in Alumni Records

1900s

• William D. Byron, Maryland politician.
• Thomas Coffin (1906) - U.S. Representative from Idaho
• Robert Benchley (1908) - author, member of original staff of The New Yorker, actor. Father of Nathaniel Benchley (1934), Robert Benchley Jr. (1938), Grandfather of Peter Benchley (1957) and Nat Benchley.

1910s

• Lawrence Dennis (1912?) - Author and economist, not listed in Alumni Records
• Werner Janssen (1916?) - Conductor and composer
• Norris H. Cotton (1919) - U.S. Representative and Senator from New Hampshire

1920s

• Corliss Lamont (1920) - Humanist and civil libertarian
• Wheaton Lane (1921) - Noted American History Professor at Princeton University
• William N. Bates, Jr. - Instructor in English, PEA. Brother of Robert H. Bates (1929).
• William G. Saltonstall (1924) - Instructor, Ninth Principal PEA.
• Dwight Macdonald (1925) - Author and critic
• Drew Pearson (1925) - Newspaper reporter, author, columnist.
• James Agee (1928) - Author and critic
• Tex McCrary (1928) - Journalist, radio and television talk-show innovator, political "fixer".
• Hart Day Leavitt (1928) - Longtime English teacher, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts
• Robert H. Bates (1929) - Instructor in English, PEA. Noted mountaineer. Brother of William N. Bates, Jr. (1924).
• H. Hamilton "Hammy" Bissell (1929) - Long-time Director of Scholarships at the Academy. Uncle of John Irving (1961).

1930s

• Pierre S. du Pont (1930) - President of DuPont, manager of General Motors
• Andrew Ladd (1931) - Contributed to Dianetics, authored by L. Ron Hubbard.
• Hamilton Webb (1931) - Highly decorated Brigadier General
• Germain Glidden (1932) - Artist and squash player
• Adolph Coors III (1933) - Businessman
• Richard French (1933) - Celebrated Musicologist and Yale Professor
• Arthur Schlesinger Jr. (1933) - Historian
• Nathaniel Benchley (1934) - Author, screenwriter. Son of Robert Benchley (1908), father of Peter Benchley (1957) and Nat Benchley.
• Richard Bolling (c. 1934) - U.S. Representative from Missouri
• Edward Myers (1934) - Founder of first national mail order seafood business; founder of Maine aquaculture industry
• Joseph Coors (1935) - C.E.O., Coors Brewing Company
• Hugh Gregg (1935) - Governor of New Hampshire, father of Senator Judd Gregg (1965)
• David Hall (c. 1935) - Recorded sound archivist
• Alden Todd (1935) - Writer
• James T. Aubrey, Jr. (c. 1936), President of CBS and MGM
• Lex Barker (1938) - Actor
• Nicholas Katzenbach (1938) - Former U.S. Attorney General and Vice-President of IBM. Father of John Katzenbach (1968).

1940s

• Burke Marshall (1940) - U.S. Assistant Attorney General
• Colin F.N. Irving (1941) - Instructor in Russian. Stepfather of John Irving (1961).
• Gore Vidal (1943) - Author
• Edward Lamont (1944) - Politician, grandson of Thomas W. Lamont (1888); son of Thomas W. Lamont, Jr. (1916); father of Ned Lamont (1972).
• George Plimpton (1944) - Author/editor, journalist, actor. [Sent down.] Son of Francis T.P. Plimpton (1917).
• John Knowles (1945) - Author (A Separate Peace)
• Donald Hall (1947) - Poet (US Poet Laureate, 2006-2007)
• Carlos Romero Barceló (1949) - Governor of Puerto Rico
• Thomas P. Hoving (1949) - Museum director, author, publisher [Sent down, graduated from Hotchkiss School.]

1950s

• Richard S. Arnold (1953) - former judge of the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals, federal courthouse in Little Rock bears his name
• Edward S. Gleason (1951) - PEA Chaplain, President Forward Movement Inc.
• Pierre S. du Pont, IV (1952) - former Governor of Delaware, Republican
• Stanford Phelps (1952) - Former President and Chief Investment Officer of U.S. Life Advisors and U.S. Life Income Fund
• Christopher Jencks (1954) - Harvard professor, writer, author of "The Exeter Syndrome: Dissatisfaction, Delinquency, Despair, and Departure"
• Joseph Nadeau (1955) - Senior Associate Justice of the New Hampshire Supreme Court
• John D. "Jay" Rockefeller IV (1954) - Senator from West Virginia, Democratic Party (United States)Democrat
• Stewart Brand (1956) - Editor, author, Internet pioneer
• Jon Helman (1956) - Wasilla, AK Television personality
• H. John Heinz III (1956) - Senator from Pennsylvania
• John Negroponte (1956) - The first Director of National Intelligence
• Peter Benchley (1957)- Journalist, Presidential Speech Writer, Author and Screenwriter (Jaws). Son of Nathaniel Benchley (1934), and grandson of Robert Benchley (1907).
• Tim Wirth (1957) - U.S. Representative and Senator from Colorado, current head of the United Nations Foundation
• David Lamb (1958) - Author, foreign correspondent The Los Angeles Times.
• Robert Thurman (1958) - First American to be ordained a Buddhist priest in 1964, current leading expert on Tibetan Buddhism
• John M. Walker, Jr. (1958) - Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• August Zemo (1958) - Educator
• David Rockefeller, Jr. (1959) - Philanthropist and businessman, descendant of John D. Rockefeller
• Morris S. Arnold (1959) - U. S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
• Guy B. Darst (1959) - Journalist
• Daniel Dennett (1959) - Philosopher
• Hayford Peirce (1959) - Writer
• Benno C. Schmidt, Jr. (1959) - Educator

1960s

• Charles Horman (1960) - Journalist, victim of Chilean coup.
• Charles C. Krulak (1960) - 31st Commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps
• John Irving (1961) - Author. Has written more books and short stories set at Exeter than any other alum author. Stepson of Colin F.N. Irving (1941).
• Chester E. Finn, Jr. (1962) - Educator. President, Thomas B. Fordham Foundation.
• Myron Magnet (1962) - Conservative author, Editor at Large ofCity Journal
• Gregory Craig (1963) - Attorney, assistant Secretary of State, defended President Bill Clinton in Impeachment trial, represented father of Elián González in child custody/refugee case, foreign policy adviser to Senator Barack Obama.
• Frederick I. Taft (1963) - Attorney. (See Taft family)
• Carter Wiseman (1963) - Architecture critic New York magazine; lecturer in architecture, Yale School of Architecture, biographer of Louis Kahn; editor, Yale Alumni Magazine.
• Donald Chiofaro (1964) - President, the Chiofaro Company, property development, Boston, Massachusetts.
• Peter Coors (1965)- President, Adolph Coors Brewing Co.
• David Darst (1965) - Managing director Morgan Stanley.
• Terry Goddard (1965) - Attorney General of Arizona, formerly Mayor of Phoenix.
• Judd Gregg (1965) - Senator from New Hampshire, son of Hugh Gregg (1935), former Governor of New Hampshire.
• Helmut Panke (1965) - President, Bayerische Motoren Werke AG.
• Harrison "Skip" Pope Jr. (1965) - Distinguished psychiatrist.
• Charles Smith (1965) - Author, screenwriter.
• Toby Webb (1965) - Executive Vice President Verizon Communications.
• Kent Conrad (1966) - Senator from North Dakota
• David Eisenhower (1966) - grandson of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th president of the United States; Namesake to the Camp David presidential retreat.
• Fred Grandy (1966) - Actor, politician, political commentator. Son of William Grandy, Jr. (1927).
• Lawrence Lasker (1967) – Producer and screenwriter of Sneakers
• John Katzenbach (1968) - Author. Son of Nicholas Katzenbach (1938).
• John C. Harvey, Jr. (1969) - Vice Admiral, Chief of Naval Personnel Deputy Chief of Naval Operations
• Charles Trueheart (1969) - Author and journalist.

1970s

• Nicholas Callaway (1970) - Publisher, television producer, writer, and photographer
• Jon Sawyer (1970) - Journalist, executive director, Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting
• Joyce Maynard (1971) - Author
• Benmont Tench (1971) - Musician and Producer
• Ned Lamont (1972) - businessman, cable television executive; MBA, Yale School of Management; Democratic nominee for Senator from Connecticut in 2006 defeated by Joseph Lieberman (I). Son of Edward M. Lamont (1944), grandson of Thomas W. Lamont, Jr. (1916), great-grandson of Thomas Lamont (1888).
• Ward E. Scott (1972) - Colonel, United States Marines
• John O. McGinnis (1975) Legal theorist
• Brooks D. Simpson (1975) - Author, historian
• Keshav Rao (1976) Businessman, convicted of 4 counts of Racketeering
• Suzy Welch (1977) - Journalist, author, former editor of Harvard Business Review, married to former GE CEO Jack Welch
• Jack Jorgensen (1978) - Winner of a 2008 Darwin Award
• Catherine Disher (1978) - Actress
• Michael Cerveris (1979) - Broadway and movie actor
• Jon Smith (1979) - Four time US Olympic rower (1980 - 1992)
• Andrew Sudduth (1979) - Olympic athlete (Rowing, men's eight, silver, 1984, single scull, 6th, 1988)

1980s

• Paul Klebnikov (1981) - Journalist
• Greg Daniels (1981) - Producer, including (The Simpsons), adapted U.S. version of The Office from the BBC version
• Sarah Lyall (1981) - reporter, The New York Times
• Michael Okwu (1982) - Journalist
• Dan Brown (1982) - Former Instructor in English at Phillips Exeter Academy, bestselling author (The Da Vinci Code)
• Gwynneth Coogan (1983) - Olympic athlete (10,000 m, 1992)
• Adam Guettel (1983) Musical Theater Composer, Composed The Light in the Piazza Winner of 6 Tony Awards
• Chang-Rae Lee (1983) - Author
• Daniel Vinegrad (1984) - Former Djiboutian Intelligence Czar
• Edmund Perry (1985) - Honor student shot to death by a plainclothes NYC policeman
• Kenji Yoshino (1987) - Law school professor, author
• China Forbes (1988) - Musician (Lead singer of Pink Martini)
• Peter Orszag (1987) - Director (nominated) of U.S. Office of Management & Budget (OMB) under incoming President Barack Obama

1990s

• Vitus Barbaro (summer alumnus 1991) - art historian of Art Institute of Chicago; acting head of the Barbaro family
• Michael Crowley (1990) - Journalist
• Jeff Ma (1990) - part of MIT blackjack team, basis of the film 21 (2008 film) and the book Bringing Down the House (book) by Ben Mezrich; Webster Hall South dormitory proctor
• Alessandro Nivola (1990) - Actor
• Jedediah Purdy (1992) - Author, law school professor
• John Forté (1993) - Musician
• Ted Zagat (1993) - Vice President, Univision Communications Inc., son of founders of Zagat restaurant guide
• Sloan DuRoss (1995) Olympic Rower 2004, Men's Quadruple Sculls
• Ketch Secor (1996)- Musician & Vocalist, Old Crow Medicine Show
• Win Butler (1998) - Musician (Lead singer of Arcade Fire)
• Sabrina Kolker (1998) - Canadian National Rower http://www.rowingcanada.org/beijing_2008/athletes_bios/kolker/
• Matt Haskell (1999) - Brother of comedian John Haskell
• Mike Blomquist (1999) - U.S. National Team (Rowing), 2005 Men's 8+, Gold Medal 2005 World Championships

2000s

• Sam Fuld (2000) - Major League baseball player
• William Butler (2001) - Musician (multi-instrumentalist of Arcade Fire)
• Tom Cavanagh (2001) - National Hockey League player
• Mark Zuckerberg (2002) - founder of Facebook