Notable Alumni
Max Abramovitz
Architect/Assembly Hall (deceased)
John B. Anderson
1980 Presidential candidate
Mark Andreessen
Programmer of Netscape internet browser
Nelson Algren
Chicago Writer (deceased)
Scott Altman
Astronaut
Michael Arrington
President and CEO, Recon Management Services
Albert Babb
Pioneer in hemodialysis
Barbara Bain
Actress
Arnold Beckman
Founder/chairman emeritus of Beckman Instruments (now SmithKline Beckman) (deceased)
Lou Boudreau
Professional Baseball Hall of Famer (deceased)
Charles Bowsher
Former U.S. Comptroller General (1981-1996)
James Brady
Press secretary during Reagan Administration; wounded during Reagan assassination attempt; namesake of The Brady Bill on handgun control
Dee Dee Bridgewater
Grammy nominated jazz vocalist
Nancy Brinker
Breast Cancer Foundation
Dee Brown
Author of "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" (deceased)
Avery Brundage
Former president of the International Olympic Committee (deceased)
Hal Bruno Jr.
Retired director of political coverage for ABC News
Tonja Buford-Bailey
Three-time Olympic track and field athlete, 400m hurdles bronze medalist 1996 (Atlanta)
Dick Butkus
College Football and NFL Hall of Famer
James Cantalupo
Former Chairman and CEO of McDonald's Corp. International (deceased)
John Chancellor
Political analyst and newscaster for "NBC Nightly News" (deceased)
George Chandler
Actor, played Uncle Petrie on "Lassie" (deceased)
Dr. Shou-Po Chao
Former General Secretary of Taiwan
Steven Chen
Computer designer
Doris Kelley Christopher
Founder of The Pampered Chef
Jerry Colangelo
Director of USA Basketball; Former president of the Phoenix Suns and Arizona Diamondbacks
John Coleman
Founder of the Weather Channel
Michael Colgrass Jr.
Composer; 1978 Pulitzer Prize winner in Music
Rafael Correa
President of Ecuador
Godfrey Danchimah
Comedian
John Darling
Former Chancellor, Louisiana State University
Andrew Davis
Film director/producer ("The Fugitive," "Under Siege")
Ollie Watts Davis
Opera Singer
Dorothy Day
Founder of the Catholic Worker Movement (deceased)
Jean Driscoll
Wheelchair athlete; Eight-time winner of the Boston Marathon
Alan Dysert
Actor, played Sean Cudahy on "All My Children"
Roger Ebert
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Film Critic
Dwight "Dike" Eddleman
Olympic high jumper and Final Four and Rose Bowl participant (deceased)
Andrea Evans
Soap Opera actress
Lee Falk
Cartoonist (The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician) (deceased)
Perdita Felicien
World Champion and Olympic hurdler
Michael Filerman
TV producer
George M.C. Fisher
CEO of Eastman Kodak
Dan Fogelberg
(Attended) Composer and recording artist (deceased)
Rich Frank
Former President of Disney Studios
Steve Friedman
TV producer, director
Dale Gardner
Astronaut
Bill Geist
Journalist on "CBS Sunday Morning"
Rick George
President of the PGA Champions Tour
John Georges
CEO of International Paper Co.
Thornton Gilchrest
President, National Safety Council (deceased)
S. Malcolm Gillis
Former President, Rice University
Harold "Red" Grange
College Football and NFL Hall of Famer (deceased)
Richard Greenberg
Film maker
Jerry Hadley
Opera star (deceased)
George Halas
Founder of the Chicago Bears (deceased)
Erika Harold
Miss America 2003
Leanne Harvey
Former General Manager, New Orleans Zephyrs
Eric Halverson
Former opera star, bass
Hugh Hefner
Founder of Playboy Magazine
Sharon Hedrick
Wheelchair track Olympian (1984, 1988)
Beth Henley
1981 Pulitzer Prize Award winner for "Crimes of the Heart"
Nicole Hollander
Cartoonist (Sylvia)
Mike Hopkins
NASA Astronaut
Sue Ann Huseman
Former President, Monmouth College (1994-97)
Billy Morrow Jackson
Painter
Jesse Jackson Jr.
(Attended) Politician
Mannie Jackson
Former Pro Basketball player, Former Owner of Harlem Globetrotters
Donald Johanson
Anthropologist, discoverer of oldest known hominid, "Lucy"
Arte Johnson
"Laugh-In" television personality
Robert Johnson
Owner of the Charlotte Bobcats NBA franchise; 2003 Sports Illustrated's Most Influential Minority in Sport; Former CEO of Black Entertainment Television
Sheila Johnson
CEO Salamander Hospitality, President, Managing Partner, and Governor of WNBA Washington Mystics
Jawed Karim
Co-founder of YouTube
Katherine Kendall
Retired United Nations Social Affairs Director
Charla Krupp
Former Editor, Glamour magazine
Ang Lee
Film Director ("Brokeback Mountain," "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," and "The Hulk")
Annette Lu
Former Vice President, Taiwan
Naomi Lynn
Former Chancellor, University of Illinois-Springfield (1991-2001); First Hispanic woman president of an American public university.
Jack Mabley
Newspaper columnist (deceased)
Carol Marin
Television journalist/anchor
Prentice Marshall
Federal Judge (deceased)
Lynn Martin
Secretary of Labor during the Bush Administration
Fred Marx
Co-director and editor of "Hoop Dreams"
Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
Actress
Tim McCarthy
Secret service agent during President Ronald Reagan Administration (wounded during 1981 assassination attempt)
Jim McNeely
Grammy nominated jazz pianist
Donna Mills
Movie and television actress
Erie Mills
Opera star
Bobby Mitchell
Professional Football Hall of Famer
Jacob Morowitz
Owner, USA Trading Company
Tom Murphy
Retired chairman of General Motors (deceased)
Scott Mutter
Artist/Photographer (deceased)
Steve Nagel
Retired astronaut
Malden Nesheim
Emeritus Professor, Provost Emeritus, Cornell University
Ray Nitschke
Professional Football Hall of Famer (deceased)
Robert Novak
Columnist and CNN political commentator (deceased)
Jerry Orbach
Actor (deceased)
Suze Orman
Financial advisor and author
Ray Ozzie
Microsoft Chief Software Architecht
Peter Palmer
Actor, singer (Broadway)
Larry Parks
Actor, "The Al Jolson Story" (deceased)
Francine "Penny" Patterson
Taught Koko the gorilla to communicate through Sign Language
Gregg Philbin
Founding Member of the band REO Speedwagon
Irna Phillips
Creator of the Soap Opera (deceased)
Ron Popeil
Ronco Inventions
Richard Powers
Author, National Book Award winner
Fidel Ramos
Former President of the Philippines
James "Scotty" Reston
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist (deceased)
Bob Richards
Olympic pole vaulter
Alan Ruck
Actor, "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," "Spin City"
Stephen Sample
President, USC (1991-2010)
E. Roger Sayers
Former President, University of Alabama (1988-96)
Gerald Schoenfeld
Shubert Organization (deceased)
Gene Shalit
"NBC Today Show" film critic
Albert Shanker
American Federation of Teachers (deceased)
Allan Sherman
Comedian, co-developer of TV game show "I've Got a Secret" (deceased)
Thomas Siebel
Founder of Siebel Systems
Shel Silverstein
(Attended) Author and songwriter (deceased)
Roger Simon
Chief Political Columnist, Politico.com; New York Times Best Selling author
Sam Skinner
Secretary of Transportation; Chief of Staff during the George Bush Sr. Administration
Ralph Snodsmith
TV gardening guide (deceased)
Godfrey Sperling Jr.
Syndicated columnist for the Christian Science Monitor
Justin Spring
2008 Olympic Bronze Medalist, Men's Gymnastics
Mark Steinberg
Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Golf, IMG
John Strohm
Founded World Wildlife Fund (deceased)
Dennis Swanson
Chief Operating Officer, Viacom Television
Joe Tanner
Astronaut
Barbara Ann Teer
Founder & CEO of National Black Theater (deceased)
Nancy Thies
Olympic gymnast, sportscaster
Lynne Thigpen
Tony Award-winning actress, "An American Daughter" (deceased)
Craig Virgin
Olympic runner
Marvin Wachman
Former President, Temple University (1973-1982); Author, "The Education of a University President " (deceased)
Arnold Weber
Former President, Northwestern University (1985-95)
William Wegman
Artist
Jack Welch
Former CEO of General Electric (1981-2001)
Cheryl West
Playwright
Deron Williams
Olympic Men's Basketball Team, Gold Medal 2008 (Beijing)
Tug Wilson
Former Big Ten Commissioner; Olympian (deceased)
Leslie B. Worthington
President of U.S. Steel Corp. (deceased)
Rosalyn Yalow
1978 Nobel Prize-winner in physiology & medicine
Timothy Zahn
Writer
