List of Colombian Americans

This is a list of notable Colombian Americans, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.

To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Colombian American or must have references showing they are Colombian American and are notable.

List

Artists and designers

• Guilloume - Colombian minimalist artist, self-described master of "Bolismo".
• Greg Giraldo, comedian.^[1]
• René Moncada - Colombian-born American artist
• Diego Suarez - (1888-1974) was a garden designer known for his work at James Deering's Villa Vizcaya in Miami, Florida.^[2]

Anchors and TV personalities

• Julie Banderas, Fox News anchor.
• Monica Fonseca - television presenter, journalist and blogger.
• Ingrid Hoffmann - Colombian-American television personality and restaurateur..

Actors

• Odette Annable - American actress of Colombian, French, and Cuban descent.^[3][4]
• Moisés Arias, American actor.^[5]
• Yancey Arias - American actor of Colombian and Puerto Rican descent.
• Stephanie Beatriz - American actress of Colombian father.
• Héctor Luis Bustamante - Colombian American actor.
• Adriana Cataño- American actress and television host.
• Alyssa Diaz - American actress of Colombian and Mexican-American descent.
• Paula Garcés, actress.
• Miguel Gomez (actor) - Colombian born American actor.
• Andrew Keegan, actor, mother is Colombian.^[6]
• John Leguizamo, actor and comedian.
• David López, actor.
• Kika Perez, born Ilva Margarita Perez, Colombian-American actress and TV host.
• Sonya Smith - American actress best known for her roles in telenovelas. Her mother is Venezuelan and her father is of Colombian partially descent.^[7]
• Brittany Underwood - American actress to Colombian mother.^[8]
• Wilmer Valderrama, actor. He is of Colombian and Venezuelan descent.^[9]
• Carlos Valdes - Colombian born American raised actor (The Flash (2014 TV series).
• Alexa Vega, American actress from Colombian father.^[10]
• Makenzie Vega - American actress, young sister of Alexa Vega.^[11]
• Sofía Vergara- Colombian actress, known for the series Modern Family.
• Sofia Carson - Colombians American Actress known for the movie Descendants

Musicians

• Psycho Les - hip hop emcee of the group The Beatnuts.
• Adassa - American reggaetón singer-songwriter also known as the "Reggaetón Princess". He is son of Afro-Colombians parents.
• Ryan Cabrera - American singer born to a Colombian father and an American mother.
• Jason Castro - singer-songwriter.
• Freddy Cricien - American emcee and vocalist for the hardcore band Madball.^[12]
• Robo - drummer (Black Flag, Misfits).
• Kike Santander - Colombian songwriter and producer naturalized in the United States in 2004.^[13]
• Yasmin Deliz - American singer-songwriter, model and actress of Dominican and Colombian and Venezuelan parentage.
• Carlos Dengler - former bassist of the band Interpol.
• Santiago Durango - guitarist (Big Black, Naked Raygun).^[14]
• Alex González (musician)- American-born musician of Cuban and Colombian origin.
• Danny Mercer - Colombian American recording artist, songwriter, and producer.
• Ericson Alexander Molano - Gospel Christian singer.
• Erick Morillo - Colombian-American DJ, music producer and record label owner.
• Billy Murcia - drummer (New York Dolls).^[15]
• Marty Stuart - American country music singer-songwriter. He is of French, English, Choctaw, and Colombian descent.
• Tonedeff - American rapper, producer, and singer-songwriter. He was born to a Cuban mother and a Colombian father.
• Andrés Useche - Colombian American writer, film director, graphic artist, singer-songwriter and activist.
• DJ Yonny - American DJ, producer and remixer.
• Rob Swift - (born Robert Aguilar) American hip hop DJ and turntablist group The X-Ecutioners as of late 2005 and as of 2006; with Mike Patton’s project Peeping Tom. Rob Swift is on the faculty of Scratch DJ Academy in New York City.^[16]

Sport

• Juan Agudelo - soccer player.^[17]
• Alejandro Bedoya - American soccer player.^[18]
• Daniel Barrera - American professional soccer player.^[19]
• Lou Castro - first Latin American born player to play in Major League Baseball in the United States, and the first Latin American since player Esteban Bellán in 1873 as a professional baseball player.^[2]
• Scott Gomez, retired NHL player. Half Colombian and half Mexican.
• Diego Gutiérrez (soccer) - retired Colombian American footballer.
• Eliot Halverson - American figure skater.
• George Hincapie - cyclist^[20]
• Carlos Llamosa - soccer player.^[21]
• Travis Pastrana - American motorsports competitor and stunt performer who has won championships and X Games gold medals in several events.
• Fuad Reveiz - former NFL player.
• Johnny Torres - Colombian-American soccer midfielder and coach.

Models

• Manuela Arbeláez - model (The Price Is Right).
• Maria Checa - Colombian-American model and actress.

Journalist

• Nina Garcia - fashion journalist and critic (Project Runway, Elle, Marie Claire).^[22]
• Adrian Lamo - hacker and journalist.
• Manuel Teodoro - journalist (CBS News, Univision) (also has Filipino descent).
• Saeddien Mejía - private journalist (Will take your girl)

Politicians

• Diana Farrell - member and one of two Deputy Directors of the United States National Economic Council (NEC) in the administration of President Barack Obama.
• Jeff Frederick - former member of the General Assembly of Virginia.^[23]
• Jorge E. Meneses - member of the City Council and current mayor of Hackensack, New Jersey.

Writers

• James Cañón - Colombian author.
• Mo Rocca - American writer, journalist, comedian and political satirist to Colombian (mother) and Italian (father) descent.
• Andrés Useche - Colombian American naturalized writer, film director, graphic artist and singer/songwriter.
• Sean Torres - Writer and creator of the Rey de Noches book series.^[24][25][26] His father is Colombian.^[27]

Scientists

• Rodolfo Llinás - Colombian neuroscientist.
• Ana María Rey - Colombian physicist.
• Jaime Imitola - Colombian neuroimmunologist.

Others

• José Luis Castillo (activist) - Colombian-American activist,^[28] politician, and non-profit community liaison in south Florida. He was born to a Dutch mother and a Colombian father in Netherlands. He lives in Florida.
• Arturo Escobar - Colombian-American anthropologist primarily known for his contribution to postdevelopment theory and political ecology.
• Clara Harris - the murderer of David Harris
• Will Jimeno - police officer, 9/11 survivor, portrayed in World Trade Center
• Andre Melendez - (1971-1996), better known as Angel Melendez, was a Club Kid and drug dealer who lived and worked in New York City.
• Beto Pérez - Colombian born American dancer and choreographer who created the fitness program Zumba in the 1990s
• Cristina Pérez - judge^[29]
• Alejandro Santo Domingo - Colombian American financier.
• Al Williamson - (1931-2010) American cartoonist, comic book artist and illustrator specializing in adventure, Western and science-fiction/fantasy.^[30]
• George Zamka - NASA astronaut^[31]
• Luis Rafael Zarama - Colombian-American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church.

References

1. Stand up Latino & political comedian Greg Giraldo
2. He was a grandson of the Colombian revolutionist and caudillo Francisco de Miranda. Biographical details are taken from an interview with Suarez reported in James T. Maher , Twilight of Splendor: Chronicles of the Age of American Palaces (Boston: Little, Brown) 1975:190-91.
3. Ángela González (January 6, 2008). "Odette Yustman, in the company of monsters in 'Cloverfield'". New York: NY Daily News.
4. Moreno Valley|PE.com|Southern California News|News for Inland Southern California Archived March 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine.
5. Colombia Passport: Economics, Culture and Society: " 27 May 2009 archived version of Moisés Arias of Colombia", 23 March 2009. Link retrieved 25 March 2009. Cite: "If some Colombians dream with an American passport, there are cases of Americans who are proud of say they are Colombians. It is the case of New York-born actor Moises Arias, a teen heart throb and an American US television actor who is proud of the origin of his parents: Colombia."
6. Andrew Keegan - Yahoo! TV
7. "Sonya Smith's Biography at Biografia DVD"
9. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/entertainment/movies/wilmer-more-than-lindsays-ex/story-e6frf9h6-1111112681135
11. Alexa Vega (2005-05-11). "Alexa Forever Forums". RE: Questions for Miss Alexa Vega. Retrieved 2006-08-20. My father's side is Colombian (bogota)... and I don't know why they said my mom was Italian. She's not. My family and I were trying to figure out what my mom was, but we can only go back to 5 generations and they were all from Florida. haha. so .. Floridian? ahhah... my moms last name is French though
12. Freddy Madball interview for Stefan Topuzov's Music Vault
13. Lena Hansen (27 February 2008). "Las lecciones de vida de Kike Santander (The life lessons of Kike Santander). (In Spanish)". Retrieved May 22–26, 2010. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
14. Azerrad, Michael. Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991. Little, Brown and Company, 2001. ISBN 0-316-78753-1
15. Jacobson, Mark. "The Icon: Doll Face", New York (magazine), September 23, 2002. Accessed May 28, 2009. "Then came the sad pictures: Johnny and Jerry, RIP, and Billy Murcia too, their first drummer, a Colombian from Jackson Heights, dead in a London bathtub."
16. Scratch - Documentary
17. "Gold Cup 2011" [Gold Cup 2011: Juan Agudelo]. NJ.com. June 5, 2011. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
18. Bondy, Stefan. "Englewood native Alejandro Bedoya vies for U.S. spot", The Record (Bergen County), May 25, 2010. Accessed February 16, 2011.
19. Barrera aiming high at Spartak at yanks-abroad.com, 16-12-2011
20. Daily Peloton - Pro Cycling News
21. "Profile: Carlos Llamosa". Soccer Times. Retrieved 2009-04-13.
22. Tkacik, Maureen (2008-08-17), "America's Next Top Fashion Editor", New York Magazine, retrieved 2010-07-14
23. Jost, Lauren (2011-07-20). "Muñoz, Frederick Speak of Platforms in Forum". Woodbridge Patch. Retrieved 2011-09-13.
24. http://www.amazon.com/Rey-Noches-Legacy-Cycle-ebook/dp/B008HXX0A4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359500458&sr=8-1&keywords=rey+de+noches
25. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/rey-de-noches-sean-torres/1112035765?ean=9781105811845
26. https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/rey-de-noches/id541667093?mt=11
27. http://nocheslegacycycle.blogspot.com/
28. “County Commission Candidates Line Up Endorsements” Miami Herald, August 24, 2000
29. New York Daily News
30. "Interview with Al Williamson," The Jack Kirby Collector #15 (April 1997), p. 16. Reprinted in The Collected Jack Kirby Collector Volume Three (TwoMorrows Publishing, 1999), p. 142. ISBN 978-1-893905-02-3
31. Astronaut Bio: George D. Zamka (11/2007)