List of Famous people born in United States of America
Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs is an American actress, comedian, singer, writer and television producer, whose career spans five decades. Gibbs is known for her role as George Jefferson's maid, Florence Johnston, in the CBS sitcom, The Jeffersons (1975–1985), for which she received five nominations for Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series.
Henry Johnson
William Henry Johnson, commonly known as Henry Johnson, was a United States Army soldier who performed heroically in the first African American unit of the United States Army to engage in combat in World War I. On watch in the Argonne Forest on May 14, 1918, he fought off a German raid in hand-to-hand combat, killing multiple German soldiers and rescuing a fellow soldier while experiencing 21 wounds, in an action that was brought to the nation's attention by coverage in the New York World and The Saturday Evening Post later that year. On June 2, 2015, he was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama in a posthumous ceremony at the White House.
Curly Neal
Frederick "Curly" Neal was an American basketball player who played with the Harlem Globetrotters. Following in the footsteps of Marques Haynes, Neal became the Trotters' featured ballhandler, a key role in the team's exhibition act.
BD Wong
Bradley Darryl Wong is an American actor. Wong won a Tony Award for his performance as Song Liling in M. Butterfly, becoming the only actor in Broadway history to receive the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, Outer Critics Circle Award, Clarence Derwent Award, and Theatre World Award for the same role. He was nominated for a Critic's Choice Television Award for his role as Whiterose in Mr. Robot, also earning an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.
Ruth Graves Wakefield
Ruth Jones Graves Wakefield was an American chef, best known as the inventor of the Toll House Cookie, the first chocolate chip cookie. She was also a college graduate, dietitian, educator, business owner, and author.
Jon Polito
Jon Raymond Polito was an American character actor. In a film and television career spanning 35 years, he amassed over 220 credits. Notable television roles included Detective Steve Crosetti in the first two seasons of Homicide: Life on the Street and as Phil Bartoli on the first season of Crime Story. He also appeared in several films including The Rocketeer, The Crow and Gangster Squad, as well as his work with the Coen brothers. He appeared in five of their films, including Miller's Crossing, Barton Fink and The Big Lebowski. Polito also portrayed legendary "hungry i" nightclub impresario Enrico Banducci in a large supporting role in Tim Burton's 2014 film Big Eyes starring Amy Adams.
Scott Rudin
Scott Rudin is an American film, television and theater producer.
O. J. Mayo
Ovinton J'Anthony "O. J." Mayo is an American professional basketball player for the Liaoning Flying Leopards of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played a single season of college basketball for the USC Trojans while earning first-team All-Pac-10 honors. The team forfeited all of its wins that season and Mayo lost his remaining three years of National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) eligibility after it was ruled he received improper benefits. Mayo entered the 2008 NBA draft and was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the third overall pick. He was later traded to the Memphis Grizzlies, with whom he played four seasons. In 2011, he tested positive for a banned steroid (DHEA) and was suspended by the NBA for 10 games. Mayo signed with the Dallas Mavericks in 2012, and then with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2013. On July 1, 2016, Mayo was dismissed from the NBA for violating the league's anti-drug program. After a two-year hiatus, he resumed his career with Atléticos de San Germán of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN) in Puerto Rico.
William S. Sessions
William Steele Sessions was an American attorney and jurist who served as a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas and Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Sessions served as FBI director from 1987 to 1993, when he was dismissed by President Bill Clinton. He was the father of Texas Congressman Pete Sessions.
Robert Levinson
Robert Alan Levinson was an American former Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent who disappeared on March 9, 2007, in Kish Island, Iran, while on a mission for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Levinson's family received $2.5 million annuity from the CIA in order to stop a lawsuit revealing details of his work in Iran and to forestall any revelation of details regarding the arrangement between Levinson and the agency. He is believed to have been held captive by the Government of Iran, while Iran does not acknowledge his arrest. In 2017, Levinson became the longest held American hostage in history, surpassing Floyd James Thompson. According to his family, he suffered from type 1 diabetes, gout, and hypertension. His passport has never shown up in any other country. On March 25, 2020, Levinson's family announced his death, and although the date is unknown, it is assumed that he died while in Iranian custody.