List of people from Charlotte, North Carolina
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The following is list of notable people associated with the U.S. city of Charlotte, North Carolina. All people listed are or have previously been residents of Charlotte, unless otherwise indicated.
Arts, literature, humanities and entertainment
- Sunshine Anderson, musician, R&B singer
- John Bain, game commentator
- Brooke Ballentyne, pornographic actress
- Romare Bearden (1911-1988), artist and writer
- Melendy Britt, actress
- Jason V Brock, filmmaker, writer, artist, and author
- Ben Browder, actor, Farscape and Stargate SG-1
- Don Brown, author and attorney
- Horace Brown, R&B singer
- Nappy Brown (1929-2008), R&B and gospel singer
- Phillip Bush, classical pianist
- Nick Cannon, host of America's Got Talent on NBC, Wild 'N Out on MTV, former cast of Nickelodeon's All That (1999-2001)
- W. J. Cash, writer and journalist
- Tom Constanten, former keyboard player, Grateful Dead
- Chelsea Cooley, Miss North Carolina USA 2005, Miss USA 2005
- David L Cook, Christian singer and comedian; inducted into the 2006 ICGMA Hall of Fame; 2006 Country Gospel Music Entertainer of the Year
- Brooklyn Decker, model, graduated from Butler High School in Matthews, NC; Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover model
- Deniro Farrar, rapper
- DJ Flash, rapper
- FireHouse, early 90's "hair metal band"
- Flagship, alt-rock band
- Mark Freiburger, filmmaker
- Brent Funderburk, artist
- Harry Golden, author
- Rohit Gupta, film director, producer
- Anthony Hamilton, R&B singer
- Hank Hanegraaff, author, radio talk-show host, advocate of evangelical Christianity
- Wilbert Harrison, R&B singer
- Ali Hillis, actress
- Cheris F. Hodges, author
- Hopesfall, hard rock band
- Adina Howard, R&B singer
- Travis Jeppesen, author
- K-Ci & JoJo (Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey & Joel "JoJo" Hailey) of 1990s R&B group Jodeci
- Si Kahn, singer-songwriter and activist (resident of Charlotte)
- John P. Kee, gospel singer
- Mark Kemp, author, music journalist
- Sharon Lawrence, Hollywood actress, known for NYPD Blue
- Adam Lazzara, lead singer of Taking Back Sunday
- Jon Lindsay, solo recording artist; former member of Benji Hughes and many other bands; record producer; political activist
- Jordan Lloyd, winner of Season 11 of Big Brother; contestant on Season 16 of The Amazing Race (from suburban Matthews)
- Ben Long, artist, most known for his fresco work and drawings
- Emily Maynard, The Bachelorette, season 8
- Patrick McCauley, journalist, lived in Charlotte 1959-1960[1]
- Carson McCullers, author
- Ross McElwee, documentary filmmaker; professor at Harvard University
- Tammy Faye Messner (1942-2007), Christian singer and television personality; former wife of televangelist, and later convicted felon, Jim Bakker
- Stephanie Mills, R&B singer
- Maureen O'Boyle, formerly of Current Affair and Extra; now newscaster for WBTV
- Jenny Offill, novelist
- Jim Rash, actor for NBC/Yahoo's Community
- Kathy Reichs, anthropologist and author
- Brittany Robertson, actress
- Charlotte Flair, multiple-time WWE Women's Champion
- Gloria Saunders, actress
- Randolph Scott, actor
- John Shelby Spong, retired Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Newark, author, lecturer, and theologian
- Jessica Stroup, actress, best known for portraying Erin Silver on 90210
- Stephanie S. Tolan, children's book author
- Skeet Ulrich, actor, Jericho; graduate of Northwest Cabarrus High School
- David Vincent, frontman, bassist, and singer of the death metal band Morbid Angel
- Wednesday 13, musician
- Willie Weeks, bass guitarist, known for his work with Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder and George Harrison
- Earl Wentz, actor, pianist, composer, and musical director, known for his creation of the American Composer Series in 2000
- Maurice Williams, songwriter and performer of Maurice William and the Zodiacs, famous for "Stay"
Politics, law and the military
- Erskine Bowles, President of UNC System (2005–2010); former White House Chief of Staff; unsuccessful US Senate nominee in 2002 and 2004
- Rebecca Carney, Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly
- Daniel G. Clodfelter, attorney and politician, Democratic mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina
- Chris Cole, politician
- Charlie Smith Dannelly, educator and politician, Democratic member of the North Carolina General Assembly
- Anthony Foxx, 17th United States Secretary of Transportation, and mayor of Charlotte (2009-2013)
- Buster Glosson, Lieutenant General (Ret.), United States Air Force
- Pat McCrory, 74th Governor of North Carolina; longest-serving mayor in Charlotte's history (1995–2009)
- James McDuffie, North Carolina State Senator
- Sue Myrick, member of the United States House of Representatives; mayor of Charlotte (1987–1991)
- Sarah Parker, Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court (born in Charlotte)
- Robert Pittenger, real estate investor; Republican former State Senator in the North Carolina General Assembly (2002–2008)
- Richard Vinroot, attorney and mayor of Charlotte (1991–1995)
- Toussaint Romain, attorney, public defender, and civil rights figure
Business
- Ben Elbert Douglas, Sr., mayor of Charlotte, North Carolina 1935-1941
- Leon Levine, founder of Family Dollar; billionaire, businessman and philanthropist
- Hugh McColl, former CEO and Chairman of Bank of America
- Bruton Smith, billionaire; founder and CEO of Speedway Motorsports, Inc.; founder of Sonic Automotive
- Clemmie Spangler, #117 on Forbes' list of 400 richest Americans; former president of the 16-campus University of North Carolina system
Sports
- Cedric Alexander, professional wrestler
- Pablo Álvarez,[disambiguation needed] soccer defender in Flynet and Charlotte Eagles
- Arn Anderson, former professional wrestler
- Jim Beatty, former American track and field athlete
- Chris Canty, Charlotte Latin School alumni, New York Giants defensive end
- Dwight Clark, former San Francisco 49ers wide receiver
- Stu Cole, former Major League Baseball player and manager of the Tulsa Drillers
- Mo Collins, former Oakland Raiders lineman
- Carlos Crawford, former Philadelphia Phillies pitcher
- Seth Curry, Charlotte Christian alumni, NBA player, Dallas Mavericks
- Stephen Curry, Charlotte Christian alumni, NBA player, Golden State Warriors
- Ray Durham, MLB second baseman
- Ric Flair, professional wrestler
- Ashley Fliehr, professional wrestler known as Charlotte in WWE
- DeShaun Foster, running back for the Carolina Panthers
- Joe Gibbs, Hall of Fame football coach; NASCAR Championship team owner
- Trent Guy, football player
- Larry Hefner, former NFL linebacker
- Tommy Helms, major league baseball player with the Cincinnati Reds and three other major league teams; managed the Reds in parts of two seasons
- Antawn Jamison, NBA forward, former University of North Carolina basketball star
- Bobby Jones, former NBA player and 1972 Olympian
- Michael Jordan, NBA basketball player and owner of the Charlotte Hornets
- Ron "The Truth" Killings, pro wrestler and rapper
- Chris Leak, Offensive MVP of 2007 BCS National Championship Game
- Mohamed Massaquoi, NFL wide receiver, Cleveland Browns
- Jeff McInnis, NBA guard
- Mildred Meacham, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League player
- Kennedy Meeks, power forward for the University of North Carolina
- Sam Mills, linebacker who played twelve seasons in the National Football League for the New Orleans Saints and Carolina Panthers
- Anthony Morrow, Charlotte Latin School alumni, NBA player with the Oklahoma City Thunder
- Jim Nantz, sportscaster
- Hakeem Nicks, NFL wide receiver, New York Giants
- Dickie Noles, former MLB pitcher
- Pettis Norman, former NFL tight end, Dallas Cowboys
- Ayanga Okpokowuruk, football player
- Richard Petty, winner of 200 NASCAR races and seven-time series champion
- Roman Phifer, former NFL linebacker
- Wali Rainer, former NFL player, Cleveland Browns, Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions and Houston Texans
- Jeff Reed, NFL placekicker, plays for the Pittsburgh Steelers
- Jerry Richardson, owner of the Carolina Panthers
- John Sadri, former tennis player, Australian Open singles finalist
- Don Schollander, Olympic champion swimmer
- Jamie Skeen, basketball player, plays for Maccabi Ashdod B.C. in the Israeli Super League
- Ricky Steamboat, former pro wrestler
- Chad Tracy, MLB third baseman
- Dolly Vanderlip, AAGPBL pitcher
- Dave Waymer (1959-1993), former NFL safety, played for the New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Raiders
- Reggie White (1961-2004), American football defensive end for the Carolina Panthers; career leader at the time of his retirement in sacks
- Haywood Workman, former Indiana Pacers guard
Other
- Annie Lowrie Alexander (1864–1929), first licensed female physician in the American South[2]
- William Emerson (1923–2009), journalist; covered the civil rights era as Newsweek's first bureau chief assigned to cover the Southern United States; later editor in chief of The Saturday Evening Post[3]
- Ryan C. Gordon, software and game porter
- Billy Graham, evangelist
- Susan J. Helms, Brigadier General-select in the United States Air Force; former NASA astronaut
- Richard Hipp, software architect and primary author of SQLite
- James B. McMillan, federal judge who ruled in favor of school busing to integrate Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
References
- ^ Emily Featherston (May 5, 2015). "Patrick Earl McCauley". Alabama Press Association. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
- ^ Cohn, Scotti (2012). More Than Petticoats: Remarkable North Carolina Women. Globe Pequot. pp. 82–92. ISBN 978-0-7627-6445-7.
- ^ Applebome, Peter. "William A. Emerson Jr., Editor in Chief of Saturday Evening Post, Dies at 86", The New York Times, August 26, 2009. Accessed August 30, 2009.
