List of people from Spokane, Washington

This is a list of people from Spokane, Washington. The list includes individuals who were born in or lived in the city. A person who lives in or comes from Spokane, Washington, is known as a Spokanite.

Authors

• Sherman Alexie, author
• David Eddings, author of The Belgariad and many other books
• Wilbur Crane Eveland, served in various functions as secret agent for the USA in the Arab East
• Michael Gurian, New York Times bestselling author of thirty-two books published in twenty-two languages
• Quail Hawkins, bookseller and children's author
• Bruce Holbert, author, Washington State Book Award winner
• Kenn Nesbitt, Children's Poet Laureate (2013–2015)
• Jack Nisbet, author of several books on explorer David Thompson
• Shann Ray, author, American Book Award winner
• Rick Rydell, outdoor writer, worked at local radio stations as a radio talk show host
• David Shannon, author of No, David! and many other children's books
• Wayne Spitzer, author and low-budget horror filmmaker
• Terry Trueman, Printz Award winning author of Stuck in Neutral and numerous other young adult novels
• Shawn Vestal, author, Washington State Book Award winner and recipient of the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize
• Jess Walter, author, recipient of the 2006 Edgar Allan Poe Award

Comedians

• Julia Sweeney, actor and comedian (appeared on Saturday Night Live)
• Tom McTigue, actor and comedian, Baywatch, Quantum Leap, Boyhood

Convicted criminals

• Kevin Coe, convicted "South Hill rapist"
• Jack Owen Spillman, serial killer
• Rollen Stewart, kidnapper
• Robert Lee Yates, serial killer

Film, stage and television industry

• Sophia Anne Caruso, Broadway actress best known for playing Lydia Deetz in Beetlejuice: The Musical
• Jordan Fry, actor most known for his role as Mike Teevee in Charlie and The Chocolate Factory
• Russell Hodgkinson, actor
• Jim Ignatowski, The Reverend Jim "Iggy" Ignatowski, played by Christopher Lloyd, is a fictional character in the 1970s television series Taxi.
• Cheyenne Jackson, singer and actor, known for United 93
• Paul Johansson, actor, appeared in One Tree Hill
• Eric Johnston, former head of the United States Chamber of Commerce, former president of the Motion Picture Association of America
• Chuck Jones, director of animated films, three-time Academy Award winner
• Neil LaBute, film director/playwright
• David Lynch, film director, known for Blue Velvet and Twin Peaks
• Darren McGavin, actor, known for starring in Kolchak: the Night Stalker and A Christmas Story
• John McIntire, actor on Wagon Train and The Virginian
• Michele Morrow, actress, appeared in Basement Jack, The Young and the Restless, and Alias
• Craig T. Nelson, actor, star of television series Coach and Parenthood, as well as the films The Incredibles and Poltergeist
• Seena Owen, silent-film actress
• Gale Page, actress, starred in Knute Rockne, All American with Ronald Reagan
• Patrick Page, Tony-nominated actor best known as Hades in Hadestown
• Susan Peters, actress
• Matt Piedmont, film director and writer
• Trevor St. John, actor; known for his role on One Life to Live (graduated from Whitworth University)
• Wayne Spitzer, low-budget horror filmmaker
• Hilary Swank, two-time Oscar-winning actress (father was stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base)
• Sydney Sweeney, actress best known for playing Cassie Howard in Euphoria
• Tongolele, film and television actor
• Sarah Truax, stage and film actress, Spokane resident from 1912 to 1927
• Michael Winslow, actor and comedian, known for Police Academy
• Deanna Oliver, actress and writer, known for her role in The Brave Little Toaster and work with Animaniacs and Casper movie

Artists

• Harold Balazs, sculptor
• Dominic Arizona Bonuccelli, photographer/traveller
• Kenneth Callahan, painter from the Northwest School
• Brian Crane, cartoonist
• Jerry Holkins, writer for Penny Arcade
• Mike Krahulik, artist for Penny Arcade
• Tom Kundig, principal at Olson Kundig Architects
• George Nakashima, furniture maker, entrepreneur
• Clyfford Still, abstract-expressionist painter

Journalists

• Timothy Egan, journalist, winner of the National Book Award and the Washington State Book Award
• Neil Everett, journalist, ESPN SportsCenter anchor
• Julian Guthrie, journalist and author based in San Francisco
• Sue Herera, journalist, CNBC anchor
• Eric Johnson, journalist, former sports director for KREM 2; weeknight news anchor for KOMO 4
• John Richards, journalist, radio personality, producer of The Morning Show and Audioasis on 90.3 FM KEXP Seattle
• Rick Rydell, journalist, worked at local radio stations KJRB, KZZU, and KKZX as a radio talk show host

Musicians

• Jim Boyd, musician
• Cami Bradley, America's Got Talent finalist and member of The Sweeplings
• Keeley Brineman, musician and lead singer with Lord Mouse and the Kalypso Katz
• Mike Clarke, member of the band The Byrds
• Bing Crosby, singer/actor
• Bob Crosby, bandleader and vocalist
• Andra Day, singer-songwriter
• Paul D'Amour, former member of the band Tool
• Andy Gibson, singer-songwriter
• Theo Hakola
• Dan Hamilton, member of Surf band The Ventures, Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds, and The T-Bones.
• Thomas Hampson, baritone
• Dan Hoerner, lead guitarist and backup vocalist for the band Sunny Day Real Estate
• Myles Kennedy, lead singer of the band Alter Bridge
• Keyboard Cat and his handler Charlie Schmidt, performer on a viral internet meme
• Ryan Lewis, music producer; primarily with Macklemore
• George Lynch, former member of the rock band Dokken; member of Lynch Mob
• Chad Mitchell, member of the Chad Mitchell Trio
• Craig Montoya, former member of the band Everclear
• Matty Mullins, lead singer of the band Memphis May Fire
• Patrice Munsel, former Metropolitan Opera star
• Danny O'Keefe, singer-songwriter
• Eckart Preu, conductor of the Spokane Symphony Orchestra
• Jimmy Rowles, jazz pianist
• Scott Thompson, former member of the Canadian band Lillix
• Billy Tipton, jazz musician
• Kenny "Blues Boss" Wayne, boogie-woogie and blues-rock pianist
• Tyrone Wells, singer-songwriter
• Merrill Womach, undertaker, organist and gospel singer, founder of National Music Service

Politicians

Civic

• James Everett Chase, mayor of Spokane
• Jack Geraghty, mayor of Spokane; former Spokane County Commissioner
• Dennis P. Hession, mayor of Spokane
• John Powers, mayor of Spokane
• David H. Rodgers, mayor of Spokane
• Ron Sims, former member of the King County Council; former King County Executive; former member of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development
• Jon Snyder, member of the Spokane City Council
• John Talbott, mayor of Spokane
• Mary Verner, mayor of Spokane
• James E. West, Washington State Senator and Spokane mayor

Federal

• Ryan Crocker, U.S. diplomat, former U.S. Ambassador to Iraq
• Tom Foley, U.S. Congressman, former Democratic Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
• Eric Johnston, former head of the United States Chamber of Commerce, former president of the Motion Picture Association of America
• Mike McKevitt, U.S. Congressman for Colorado's 1st District in the United States House of Representatives (1971–73)
• George Nethercutt, former Republican U.S. Congressman, judge and attorney
• Ron Sims, former Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

State

• Andy Billig, Washington State Senator
• James Geraghty, Washington State Supreme Court Justice
• Samuel G. Havermale, early Spokane pioneer, minister and politician
• Horace E. Houghton, Washington and Wisconsin state legislator, lawyer
• James E. West, Washington State Senator and Spokane mayor
• Marcus Riccelli, Washington State Representative

Science and technology

• Michael P. Anderson, astronaut killed in the 2003 Space Shuttle Columbia disaster
• Walter Houser Brattain, awarded the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics
• Robert Dirks, computational chemist killed in a 2015 train wreck in New York
• Dorothy M. Horstmann, virologist, made important discoveries about polio
• Anne McClain, NASA Astronaut, Flight Engineer for Expedition 58/59 to the International Space Station
• Wilder Graves Penfield, American-born Canadian neurosurgeon who mapped out the functional areas of the cerebral cortex and pioneered groundbreaking research into epilepsy treatment
• Irwin Rose, biologist awarded the 2004 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Sports

Auto racing

• Chad Little, NASCAR race winner
• Tom Sneva, Indianapolis 500 winner and IndyCar Series champion

Baseball

• Jeremy Affeldt, Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher for the San Francisco Giants
• Ed Brandt, MLB pitcher (1928–38)
• Ed Kirkpatrick, former MLB outfielder and catcher
• Andrew Kittredge, pitcher for Tampa Bay Rays
• Larry Koentopp, Gonzaga University three-sport all-state selection, baseball head coach and athletic director
• Tyler Olson, pitcher for Cleveland Indians
• Mike Redmond, former MLB player for the Florida Marlins, Minnesota Twins, and Cleveland Indians; manager for the Marlins; (Gonzaga University graduate, 1993)
• Ryne Sandberg, 2005 inductee in the Baseball Hall of Fame, former second baseman for the Chicago Cubs, former MLB manager for the Philadelphia Phillies
• Kevin Stocker, former shortstop for the Philadelphia Phillies, Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Anaheim Angels; current analyst for the Pac-12 Network
• Christine Wren, second female professional baseball umpire

Basketball

• Briann January, former Arizona State Sun Devils player; plays for the WNBA's Indiana Fever (Lewis and Clark High School graduate, 2005)
• Adam Morrison, former Gonzaga player, former 2005–2006 first-team All-American, Charlotte Bobcats and Los Angeles Lakers basketball player (Mead High School graduate, 2003)
• John Stockton, NBA Hall of Fame former point guard for the Utah Jazz
• Wayne Tinkle, player for the Montana Grizzlies (Ferris High School graduate, 1984); currently head coach for the Oregon State Beavers

Billiards

• Dorothy Wise, member of Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame

Boxing

• Chauncy Welliver, professional boxer

Hockey

• Patrick Dwyer, Spokane native who last played for the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes
• Tyler Johnson, Spokane native currently playing for NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning
• Derek Ryan, Spokane native currently playing for NHL's Calgary Flames
• Kailer Yamamoto, Spokane native currently playing for NHL's Edmonton Oilers

Extreme sports

• Jess Roskelley, youngest American (at the time) to climb Mount Everest
• Eric Uptagrafft, sport shooter

Football

• Bob Bellinger, football player
• Erik Coleman, former Washington State Cougars football player, former player for the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions (Lewis and Clark High School graduate, 2000)
• Joe Danelo, former kicker for the Green Bay Packers, the New York Giants, and the Buffalo Bills (graduated from WSU and Gonzaga Prep 1971)
• Will Davis, former defensive back for the Miami Dolphins, Baltimore Ravens, San Francisco 49ers, and Salt Lake Stallions of the AAF
• Steve Emtman, 1992 NFL No. 1 draft pick, former defensive lineman for the Indianapolis Colts
• Steve Gleason, NFL former special teams player for the New Orleans Saints and a graduate of WSU and Gonzaga Prep.
• Jason Hanson, former kicker with the Detroit Lions
• Max Krause, running back for the New York Giants and Washington Redskins
• Dan Lynch, first team All-American for Washington State University (Lewis & Clark High School graduate 1980)
• Steve Parker, NFL player
• Mark Rypien, former quarterback for the Washington Redskins; Most Valuable Player of 1991 Super Bowl; Shadle Park High School, Washington State University
• Bishop Sankey, current NFL running back for the Minnesota Vikings (attended Gonzaga Preparatory School)
• Cory Withrow, center for the St. Louis Rams
• John Yarno, former NFL offensive lineman (attended Gonzaga Preparatory School and Ferris High School)

Mixed martial arts

• Michael Chiesa, Ultimate Fighter winner and current UFC lightweight
• Julianna Peña, Ultimate Fighter winner and current UFC women's bantamweight
• Sam Sicilia, Ultimate Fighter alumnus and former UFC featherweight

Rowing

• Joe Rantz, 1936 Summer Olympics gold medal winner in the eights competition

Soccer

• Amy LePeilbet, professional player for Boston Breakers; vice world champion

Tennis

• Jan-Michael Gambill, professional player

Track and field

• Madonna Buder, 75-year-old Catholic nun and oldest Hawaii Ironman Triathlete competitor
• Helga Estby, walked across the United States in 1896
• Fortune Gordien, Olympic silver and bronze medalist in discus throw
• Gerry Lindgren, runner, won 11 NCAA championships at Washington State University (attended John R. Rogers High School)
• Brad Walker, American record holder and two-time world champion in the pole vault (University High School graduate)

Early Spokane notable residents

• Joe Albi, attorney and civic leader
• Kirtland Cutter, architect, known for his work in Spokane, including the Davenport Hotel
• Sonora Smart Dodd, successfully campaigned for the establishment of Father's Day
• Helga Estby, Norwegian-American resident of the Spokane area; in 1896 walked across America from Spokane to New York City
• James Geraghty, Spokane City Corporate Counsel
• Henry John Kaiser, American industrialist

Native Americans

• Chief Garry, one of the Spokane tribes' most prominent and influential leaders during the shift from indigenous to European-American control of their land

Military

• John Babcock, last Canadian veteran of World War I
• Col. David P. Jenkins, Civil War Colonel, Spokane homesteader, and philanthropist

Crime

• Keith Hunter Jesperson, serial killer
• Robert Lee Yates, serial killer

References