List of Famous people born in Illinois, United States of America
Doc Rivers
Glenn Anton "Doc" Rivers is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is the head coach for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played as a point guard in the NBA and was known for his defense, a trait that has carried over into his coaching. Rivers was an NBA All-Star in 1988.
Mary Astor
Mary Astor was an American actress. Although her career spanned several decades, she may be best remembered for her performance as Brigid O'Shaughnessy in The Maltese Falcon (1941).
Phoebe Snetsinger
Phoebe Snetsinger, née Burnett, was an American birder famous for having seen and documented birds of 8,398 different species, at the time, more than anyone else in history and the first person to see more than 8,000. Her memoir, Birding on Borrowed Time, explores this achievement. She traveled the world multiple times to find birds in their habitats. She was described as having had an excellent memory, and a strong competitive spirit.
Marcheline Bertrand
Marcia Lynne "Marcheline" Bertrand was an American actress and humanitarian. She was the former wife of actor Jon Voight, and the mother of actors Angelina Jolie and James Haven.
Fisher Stevens
Fisher Stevens is an American actor, director, producer and writer. As an actor, he is best known for his portrayals of Ben Jabituya in Short Circuit, Chuck Fishman on the 1990s television series Early Edition, and villainous computer genius Eugene "The Plague" Belford in Hackers. His most recent successes include winning the 2010 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for The Cove and the 2008 Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary Feature for Crazy Love. In addition, he has directed the Leonardo DiCaprio-produced documentary Before the Flood, executive produced by Martin Scorsese, which screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and by National Geographic on October 21, 2016.
Kwame Brown
Kwame Hasani Brown is an American former professional basketball player. He was the first overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft by the Washington Wizards, and was the first number one draft pick to be selected straight out of high school. Over the course of his 12-year career, he played for the Wizards, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Bobcats, Golden State Warriors, and Philadelphia 76ers. His performance as a first overall draft pick has led many analysts to label him as one of the "biggest busts" in NBA history.
Bruce Dern
Bruce MacLeish Dern is an American actor, often playing supporting villainous characters of unstable nature. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for Coming Home (1978) and the Academy Award for Best Actor for Nebraska (2013). His other major film appearances include Silent Running (1972), The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), The Cowboys (1972), Posse (1975), Family Plot (1976), Black Sunday (1977), Tattoo (1981), Monster (2003), The Hateful Eight (2015), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019), and The Artist's Wife (2020).
Ron Stallworth
Ron Stallworth is an American retired police officer who infiltrated the ranks of the Ku Klux Klan in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in the late 1970s. He was the first African-American detective in the Colorado Springs Police Department.
Joseph F. Ambrose
Joseph F. Ambrose was a World War I veteran from the U.S. state of Illinois who served with Company I, 140th Infantry, 35th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, from 1917 to 1919, becoming nationally known for his photo at the dedication day parade for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., at the age of 86. In this widely viewed and circulated United States Defense Audiovisual Agency photo, he was photographed wearing his Doughboy uniform, helmet and field equipment, for which he was known as "Doughboy Joe". In the photo, Ambrose carries the U.S. flag that had covered the casket of his son, Clement A. Ambrose, who was killed in the Korean War in 1951.
Heather Nauert
Heather Ann Nauert is an American broadcast journalist and former government official who served as Spokesperson for the United States Department of State from 2017 to 2019. She is currently a senior fellow at the Hudson Institute.