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Famous People From Louisville

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Updated June 8, 2017 24.2k views 676 items

List of famous people from Louisville, including photos when available. The people below are listed by their popularity, so the most recognizable names are at the top of the list. Some of the people below are celebrities born in Louisville, while others are simply notable locals. If you're from Louisville you might already know that these prominent figures are also from your hometown, but some of the names below may really surprise you. This list includes people who were born and raised in Louisville, as well as those who were born there but moved away at a young age.

List includes Percy Parsons, Henry C. McDowell, Jr. and more.

If you want to answer the questions, "Which famous people are from Louisville?" or "Which celebrities were born in Louisville?" then this list is a great resource for you.
1
Jennifer Lawrence is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 28

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (born August 15, 1990) is an American actress. Her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide, and she was the highest-paid actress in the world in 2015 and 2016. ...more

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2
Muhammad Ali is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 77

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer, activist, and philanthropist. Nicknamed "The Greatest," he is ...more

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3
Jennifer Carpenter is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 39

Birthplace: USA, Kentucky, Louisville

Jennifer Leann Carpenter (born December 7, 1979) is an American actress. She is known for playing Debra Morgan, the adoptive sister of the title character of the Showtime series Dexter, for ...more

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4
Maggie Lawson is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 38

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, USA

Margaret Cassidy "Maggie" Lawson (born August 12, 1980) is an American actress who is best known for her role as Detective Juliet "Jules" O'Hara in the TV show Psych. From ...more

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5
Sean Young is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 59

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Mary Sean Young (born November 20, 1959) is an American actress. She is best known for her performances in the films Stripes (1981), Blade Runner (1982), Dune (1984), No Way Out (1987), Wall ...more

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6
Gus Van Sant is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 66

Birthplace: USA, Kentucky, Louisville

Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician, and author who has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream ...more

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7
Ned Beatty is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 81

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Ned Thomas Beatty (born July 6, 1937) is an American retired actor. He has appeared in more than 160 films and has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, an MTV Movie Award for ...more

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8
Mark Hudspeth is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 50

Birthplace: Louisville, Mississippi

Mark Douglas Hudspeth (born November 10, 1968) is an American football coach, currently the head coach at Austin Peay State. Hudspeth was a four-year football letterman at Delta State ...more
9
Tommy Kirk is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Tommy Kirk Age: 77

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, USA

Thomas Lee Kirk (born December 10, 1941) is an American former actor and later a businessman. He was best known for his performances in a number of highly popular films made by Walt Disney ...more
10
William Conrad is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 74 (1920-1994)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, USA

William Conrad (September 27, 1920 – February 11, 1994) was an American World War II fighter pilot, actor, producer, and director whose career spanned five decades in radio, film, and ...more
11
George M. Whitesides is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 79

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

George McClelland Whitesides (born August 3, 1939) is an American chemist and professor of chemistry at Harvard University. He is best known for his work in the areas of NMR spectroscopy, ...more
12
Mia Zapata is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Mia Zapata Dec. at 28 (1965-1993)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Mia Katherine Zapata (August 25, 1965 – July 7, 1993) was an American musician who was the lead singer for the Seattle punk band The Gits. After gaining praise in the nascent grunge scene, ...more

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13
Mary Travers is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 73 (1936-2009)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Mary Allin Travers (November 9, 1936 – September 16, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter and member of the folk music group Peter, Paul and Mary, along with Peter Yarrow and Paul Stookey. ...more

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14
Miss Elizabeth is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 43 (1960-2003)
Elizabeth Ann Hulette (November 19, 1960 – May 1, 2003), best known in professional wrestling circles as Miss Elizabeth, was an American professional wrestling manager and occasional ...more

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15
Bill Ludwig is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Bill Ludwig Dec. at 65 (1882-1947)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

William Lawrence Ludwig was a catcher in Major League Baseball. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1908.
16
Marsha Norman is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 71

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Marsha Norman (born September 21, 1947) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. She received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for her play 'night, Mother. She wrote the book and ...more
17
Allen Allensworth is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 72 (1842-1914)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Allen Allensworth (7 April 1842 – 14 September 1914), born into slavery in Kentucky, escaped during the American Civil War and became a Union soldier; later he became a Baptist minister and ...more
18
Charles Mengel Allen is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 84 (1916-2000)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Charles Mengel Allen (November 22, 1916 – January 4, 2000) was a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.
19
Telma Hopkins is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 70

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, United States of America

Telma Louise Hopkins (born October 28, 1948) is an American singer and actress. Hopkins rose to prominence as a member of the 1970s pop music group Tony Orlando and Dawn, which had several ...more
20
Clark Adams is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 38 (1969-2007)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Clark Davis Adams (July 23, 1969 – May 21, 2007) was a prominent American freethought leader and activist. Adams was born in Louisville, Kentucky. As a child, he attended Catholic school, but ...more
21
Rudy Rucker is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 72

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

Rudolf von Bitter Rucker (; born March 22, 1946) is an American mathematician, computer scientist, science fiction author, and one of the founders of the cyberpunk literary movement. The author ...more
22
John Patrick is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 90 (1905-1995)

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky, USA

John Patrick (May 17, 1905 – November 7, 1995) was an American playwright and screenwriter.
23
Rebecca Broussard is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Age: 56

Birthplace: USA, Kentucky, Louisville

Rebecca Broussard (born January 3, 1963) is an American actress and model. She was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Broussard has two children with actor Jack Nicholson, whom she was with from 1989 ...more
24
T. Coleman du Pont is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list Famous People From Louisville
Dec. at 67 (1863-1930)

Birthplace: Louisville metropolitan area, Kentucky, Area code 502, Jefferson County, United States of America, + more

Thomas Coleman du Pont (December 11, 1863 – November 11, 1930) was an American engineer and politician, from Greenville, Delaware. He was President of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, and a ...more
25
William E. Lori is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list Famous People From Louisville
William E. Lori Age: 67

Birthplace: Louisville, Kentucky

William Edward Lori (born May 6, 1951) is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who is serving as the Archbishop of Baltimore since 2012. He was previously the fourth Bishop of ...more