List of people from Kansas

State flag of Kansas

Location of Kansas in the U.S. map

The following are notable people who were either born, raised, or have lived for a significant period of time in the American state of Kansas.

Academics and Nobel Prize Laureates

Marvin Lee Pelton is a native Kansan and the 12th President of Emerson College.

• Milton S. Eisenhower (1899–1985), university president, Abilene
• Wendell Johnson (1906–1965), psychologist and speech pathologist, author of The Monster Study, Roxbury
• Jack S. Kilby (1923–2005), Nobel Prize winner in Physics, Great Bend
• Solon Toothaker Kimball (1909–1982), anthropologist, Manhattan
• Stanford Lehmberg (born 1931), historian, McPherson
• Norman Malcolm (1911–1990), philosopher, Selden
• Deane Waldo Malott (1898–1996), president of Cornell University, Abilene
• Abby Lillian Marlatt (1869–1943), home economics, Manhattan
• Eric K. Meyer (born 1953), journalism professor and Pulitzer Prize nominee, Marion
• M. Lee Pelton (born 1950), president of Willamette University, Wichita
• John Brooks Slaughter (born 1934), college president and first African-American director of the National Science Foundation, Topeka
• Vernon L. Smith (born 1927), Nobel Memorial Prize winner in Economics, Wichita
• Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr. (1915–1974), 1971 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology and Medicine, Burlingame
• Donald Worster (born 1941), historian, Lawrence

Arts and literature

Artists

• Nina E. Allender (1873–1957), artist and women's suffrage cartoonist, Auburn
• Grace Bilger (1907–2000), artist, Olathe
• Grant Bond (born 1974), artist, Kansas City
• Blackbear Bosin (1921–1980), Native American artist, Wichita
• Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks (1917–2000), poet, Topeka
• Bruce Conner (1933–2008), artist, McPherson
• John Steuart Curry (1897–1946), artist, Winchester
• Aaron Douglas (1900–1979), artist, Topeka
• Randall Duell (1903–1992), architect and art director, Russell County
• Edgar Heap of Birds (born 1954), artist, Wichita
• Elizabeth Layton (1909–1993), artist, Wellsville
• Evan Lindquist (born 1936), printmaker, Artist Laureate of Arkansas, Salina
• Barbara Morgan (1900–1992), photographer, Buffalo, Kansas
• Gordon Parks (1912–2006), photographer and film director, Fort Scott
• Birger Sandzen (1871–1954), artist, art professor at Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas
• Gary Mark Smith (born 1956), photographer, studied at University of Kansas, Wichita
• W. Eugene Smith (1918–1978), photographer, Wichita
• Mort Walker (born 1923), cartoonist, creator of Beetle Bailey and Hi and Lois comic strips, El Dorado

Authors

• Laura Abbot, author of Harlequin romance novels, Kansas City
• Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000), author, poet, Topeka
• William Burroughs (1914–1997), author, Lawrence
• Don Coldsmith (1926–2009), author of Western fiction, Iola
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher (1879–1958), author of children's books, Lawrence
• Thomas Frank (born 1965), author and editor, Mission Hills
• Jane Heap (1883–1964), author and publisher, Topeka
• Scott Heim (born 1966), author, Hutchinson
• Langston Hughes (1902–1967), author and poet, Lawrence
• William Inge (1913–1973), playwright, Independence
• Bill James (born 1949), author, Mayetta, Kansas
• Bill Martin, Jr. (1916–2004), children's author, Hiawatha
• Fred Myton (1885–1955), screenwriter, Garden City, Kansas
• Kathy Patrick, author, founder of Pulpwood Queens Book Club, Eureka, Kansas
• Scott Phillips (born 1961), author, Wichita
• Vance Randolph (1892–1980), folklorist, Pittsburg, Kansas
• Red Reeder (1902–1998), author and United States Army officer, Fort Leavenworth
• Richard Rhodes (born 1937), author and historian, Kansas City
• Lois Ruby, author of historic fiction, Lawrence
• Damon Runyon (1880–1946), author, Manhattan
• Mary Francis Shura (1923–1990), children's, romance and mystery author, Pratt
• William Stafford (1914–1993), poet and pacifist, Hutchinson
• Max Yoho (born 1934), author, Colony, Kansas

Dancers

• Clark Tippet (1954–1992), ballet, Parsons, Kansas

Musicians

• Chris Arpad, solo steel pannist, McPherson
• Karrin Allyson, jazz performer, Great Bend
• Dawayne Bailey, musician and songwriter (Bob Seger and Chicago), Manhattan
• Chris Burnett (born 1955), musician, Olathe
• Karla Burns (born 1955), mezzo-soprano, Wichita
• Danny Carey (born 1961), musician, Lawrence
• Richard Christy, musician, actor, comedian, drummer for various metal groups, writer for the Howard Stern show; Fort Scott
• Dorothy DeLay (1917–2002), violinist, Juilliard professor, Medicine Lodge
• Joyce DiDonato (born 1969), mezzo-soprano Prairie Village
• Phil Ehart (born 1951), drummer for the rock band "Kansas", Coffeyville
• Melissa Etheridge (born 1961), musician, Leavenworth
• Rory Lee Feek (born ca. 1966), country music singer, Atchison
• Wendell Hall (1886–1969), musician, St. George
• Louis Thomas Hardin (1916–1999), vocalist, percussionist and composer better known by his stage name, "Moondog," Marysville
• Nora Holt (1885 or 1890–1975), singer and co-founder of the National Association of Negro Musicians, Kansas City
• Dave Hope (born 1949), musician, Topeka
• Eva Jessye (1895–1992), choral conductor, Coffeyville
• Jennifer Knapp (born 1974), singer and songwriter, Chanute
• Katrina Leskanich (born 1960), musician, Topeka
• Kerry Livgren (born 1949), founding member of Kansas, Topeka
• Frank Luther (1905–1980), musician, Lakin, Kansas
• Mitch Markovich (born 1944), drummer, marching band director, professor, Great Bend
• Martina McBride (born 1966), musician, Sharon, Kansas
• Andy McKee (born 1979), musician, Topeka
• Janelle Monáe (born 1985), vocalist, Kansas City
• Jerrod Niemann (born 1979), country singer, Liberal
• Charlie Parker (1920–1955), musician, Kansas City
• Samuel Ramey (born 1942), opera, bass-baritone, Colby, Kansas
• Joe Don Rooney (born 1975), guitarist and vocalist, Baxter Springs, Kansas
• Mark Schultz (born 1970), musician, Colby, Kansas
• Steven Stucky (born 1949), Pulitzer Prize-winner in music, Hutchinson
• Jeremy Turner, guitar player in death metal band Origin and former member of Cannibal Corpse
• Joe Walsh (born 1947), musician, Wichita
• Bobby Watson (born 1953), musician, Bonner Springs, Kansas
• James Wesley, country music singer, Mound Valley
• David Wetzel (born 1983), musician, Westwood
• Chely Wright (born 1970), musician, Wellsville
• XV (stage name of Donavan LaMond Johnson), emcee, producer, Wichita
• Gordon Young (1919–1998), organist and composer, McPherson

Athletics

Athletes

A–F

• Alvan Adams (born 1954), basketball, Lawrence
• John H. Adams (born 1915), jockey, Iola
• Neil Allen (born 1958), baseball pitcher, pitching coach, Kansas City
• David Arkin (born 1987), pro football player, Wichita
• Elden Auker (1910–2006), baseball pitcher, Norcatur
• Chase Austin (born 1989), NASCAR driver, Eudora, Kansas
• Ron Baker (born 1993), NBA player (New York Knicks); born in Hays, raised in Utica and Scott City
• Thane Baker (born 1931), gold medalist at 1956 Summer Olympics, Elkhart
• Tony Barker (born 1968), football player, Wichita
• Chris Barnes (born 1970), professional bowler, Topeka
• James Bausch (1906–1974), gold medalist 1932 Summer Olympics, Garden Plain, Kansas
• Judy Bell (born 1936), member of World Golf Hall of Fame, Wichita
• Matt Besler (born 1987), professional soccer player, Overland Park
• B.H. Born (born 1932), basketball player, Medicine Lodge
• Clint Bowyer (born 1979), NASCAR driver, Emporia, Kansas
• George Brett (born 1953), baseball Hall of Famer, Mission Hills
• Bryce Brown (born 1991), football player, Wichita
• Orville Brown (1908–1981), pro wrestler, NWA champion, Sharon, Kansas
• Mildred Bliss Burke (1915–1989), wrestler, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame, Coffeyville
• Enos Cabell (born 1949), baseball player, Fort Riley, Kansas
• Veronica Campbell-Brown (born 1982), track and field athlete (Olympic and World Champion), Great Bend
• Antoine Carr (born 1961), basketball player
• Larry Cheney (1886–1969), baseball pitcher, Belleville
• Jack Christiansen (1928–1986), football Hall of Famer, Sublette
• Tony Clark (born 1972), baseball player, Newton, Kansas
• Baron Corbin (born 1984), football player, NXT wrestler, Lenexa
• Nolan Cromwell (born 1955), football player, Smith Center
• Aaron Crow (born 1986), baseball player, Topeka
• Glenn Cunningham (1909–1988), silver medalist, 1936 Olympic Games, Elkhart
• Johnny Damon (born 1973), baseball player, Fort Riley, Kansas
• Eldon Danenhauer (born 1935), football player, Clay Center
• Darren Daulton (born 1962), baseball player, Arkansas City
• Wantha Davis (born 1918), jockey, Liberal
• Joey Devine (born 1983), baseball player, Junction City
• Lynn Dickey (born 1949), football player, Osawatomie
• Andy Dirks (born 1986), baseball player, Burrton
• Larry Drew (born 1958), basketball player and coach, Kansas City
• Mark Duckens (born 1965), football player, Wichita
• Brian Duensing (born 1983), baseball player, Marysville
• Brody Eldridge (born 1987), football player, La Cygne
• Tim Elliott (born 1986), mixed martial artist, Wichita
• Maurice Evans (born 1978), basketball player, Wichita
• Kyle Farnsworth (born 1976), baseball player, Wichita
• Galen Fiss (1931–2006), football player, Johnson City
• Scott Fulhage (born 1961), football player, Beloit

G–M

• Andrew Gachkar (born 1988), football player, Overland Park
• Tyson Gay (born 1982), track and field athlete (World Champion), Great Bend
• Maurice Greene (born 1974), track and field athlete (world and Olympic champion), Kansas City
• Adrian Griffin (born 1974), basketball player and coach, Wichita
• Don Gutteridge (1912–2008), baseball player and manager, Pittsburg, Kansas
• Joe Hastings (born 1987), football player, Wichita
• Tanner Hawkinson (born 1990), football player, McPherson
• Mark Haynes (born 1958), football player, Kansas City
• Bobby Henrich (born 1938), baseball player, Lawrence
• Don Hill (1904–1967), football player, Hiawatha
• Shaun Hill (born 1980), football player, Parsons, Kansas
• Lionel Hollins (born 1953), basketball player and coach, Arkansas City
• Scott Huffman (born 1964), pole vaulter, Quinter, Kansas
• Damian Johnson (born 1962), football player, Great Bend
• Walter Johnson (1887–1946), baseball Hall of Famer, Humboldt, Kansas
• Fred Kipp (born 1931), baseball pitcher, Piqua, Kansas
• Tonya Knight (born 1966), IFBB professional bodybuilder, Overland Park
• Laurie Koehn (born 1982), WNBA player, Moundridge, Kansas
• Gene Krug (born 1955), baseball player, Garden City, Kansas
• Adam LaRoche (born 1979), baseball player, Fort Scott
• Bobby Lashley (born 1976), professional wrestler for WWE, Junction City
• Shalee Lehning (born 1987), WNBA player, Sublette
• Martin Lewis (born 1975), NBA basketball player, Liberal
• Danny Manning (born 1966), NBA basketball player, Lawrence
• Rudy May (born 1944), baseball player, Coffeyville
• Jon McGraw, professional football player, Riley, Kansas
• Archie "Hap" McKain (1911–1985), baseball player, Delphos, Kansas
• Peter Mehringer (1910–1987), Olympic gold medalist wrestler, pro football player, Kinsley, Kansas
• Brian Moorman (born 1976), football player, Wichita
• Mike Morin (born 1991), baseball player, Leawood, Kansas

N–Z

• Jordy Nelson (born 1985), football player, Leonardville, Kansas
• Terence Newman (born 1978), football player, Salina
• Nicole Ohlde (born 1982), WNBA player, Clay Center
• Antonio Orozco (born 1987), professional boxer, Garden City, Kansas
• Victor Ortiz (born 1987), professional boxer, Garden City, Kansas
• Bob Orton (1929–2006), professional wrestler, Kansas City
• Bob Orton, Jr. (born 1950), professional wrestler, WWE Hall of Fame, Kansas City
• John Parrella (born 1969), professional football player, Topeka
• Hal Patterson (1932–2011), professional football player, Larned, Kansas
• Jordan Phillips (born 1992), professional football player, Towanda, Kansas
• Joseph Randle (born 1991), professional football player, Wichita
• Ronn Reynolds (born 1958), professional baseball player, Wichita
• Dustin Richardson (born 1984), MLB baseball pitcher, Newton, Kansas
• John Riggins (born 1949), football player, Pro Football Hall of Famer, Centralia, Kansas
• Brandon Rios (born 1986), professional boxer, Garden City, Kansas
• Lafayette Russell (1905–1978), football player, B-movie actor "Reb" Russell, Osawatomie
• Johnny Rutherford (born 1938), race car driver, Coffeyville
• Jim Ryun (born 1947), athlete and politician, Wichita
• Barry Sanders (born 1968), NFL Hall of Famer, Wichita
• Melvin Sanders (born January 3, 1981), pro basketball player, Liberal
• Wes Santee (1932–2010), NCAA cross country champion, track and field athlete, Ashland
• Gale Sayers (born 1943), NFL Hall of Famer, Wichita
• Otto Schnellbacher (1923–2008), pro basketball and football player, Sublette
• Ryan Schraeder (born 1988), professional football player, Wichita
• Wayne Simien (born 1983), NCAA All-American, NBA basketball player, Leavenworth
• Mark Simoneau (born 1977), professional football player, Smith Center
• Marilynn Smith (born 1928), professional golfer and LPGA co-founder, Topeka
• Lee Stevens (born 1967), professional baseball player, Lawrence
• Darren Sproles (born 1983), professional football player, Olathe
• Jackie Stiles (born 1978), WNBA basketball player, Claflin, Kansas
• Stewart "Smokey" Stover (born 1938), professional football player, McPherson
• Darrell Stuckey (born 1987), professional football player, Kansas City
• Steve Tasker (born 1962), NFL Pro Bowl MVP in 1993, born in Smith Center, grew up in Leoti, Kansas
• Luther Haden "Dummy" Taylor (1875–1958), baseball pitcher, Oskaloosa, Kansas
• Doug Terry (born February 10, 1968), pro football player, Liberal
• Tommy Thompson (1916–1989), pro football player, Hutchinson
• Blake Treinen (born 1988), professional baseball player, Osage City, Kansas
• Jerame Tuman (born March 24, 1976), pro football player, Liberal
• Ron Warner (born 1975), professional football player, Independence
• Earl Watson (born 1979), NBA basketball player, Kansas City
• Tom Watson (born 1949), golfer, member of World Golf Hall of Fame, Stilwell
• Kendra Wecker (born 1982), WNBA player, Marysville
• Michael Wilhoite (born 1986), pro football player, Manhattan
• Jess Willard (1881–1968), world heavyweight boxing champion, St. Clere, Pottawatomie County, Kansas
• Kamerion Wimbley (born 1983), professional football player, Wichita
• Lynette Woodard (born 1959), basketball Hall of Famer, Wichita
• Brad Ziegler (born 1979), baseball player, Pratt
• John Zook (born 1947), professional football player, Garden City, Kansas

Coaches

• Phog Allen (1885–1974), college basketball coach, Lawrence
• Jeremy Bates (born 1976), offensive coordinator, Seattle Seahawks, Manhattan
• Jack Christiansen (1928–1986), pro football and college football coach, Sublette
• Alan Cockrell (born 1962), hitting coach, New York Yankees, Kansas City
• Jory Collins (born 1978), college basketball coach, Holton, Kansas
• Larry Drew (born 1958), head coach for the Atlanta Hawks, Kansas City
• Mark Fox (born 1969), college basketball coach, Garden City, Kansas
• Dennis Franchione (born 1951), college football coach, Girard, Kansas
• Don Gambril (born 1934), Hall of Fame swimming coach, Altamont, Kansas
• Ted Gilmore (born 1967), college football coach, Wichita
• Bill Guthridge (born 1937), college basketball coach, Parsons, Kansas
• Lionel Hollins (born 1953), pro basketball head coach, Arkansas City
• Ralph Houk (1919–2010), manager, New York Yankees, Lawrence
• Tim Jankovich (born 1959), college basketball coach, Manhattan
• Gene Keady (born 1936), college basketball coach, Larned, Kansas
• Gary Patterson (born 1960), college football coach, Rozel, Kansas
• Jerry Kill (born 1961), college football coach, Cheney, Kansas
• Lon Kruger (born 1952), college and NBA basketball coach, Silver Lake, Kansas
• John McLendon (1915–1999), Hall of Fame basketball coach of college, ABL, and ABA, Hiawatha
• Ralph Miller (1919–2001), college basketball coach, Chanute
• Billie Moore (born 1943), Hall of Fame college basketball coach, Westmoreland, Kansas
• James Naismith (1861–1939), the inventor of basketball, then the basketball coach, then the athletic director, and a faculty member at the University of Kansas
• Johnny Orr (born 1927), college basketball coach, Yale, Kansas
• John H. Outland (1871–1947), the namesake of the Outland Trophy, Douglas County, Kansas
• Adolph Rupp (1901–1977), college basketball coach, Halstead, Kansas
• Francis Schmidt (1885–1944), college football, baseball, and basketball coach, Downs, Kansas
• Brian Schottenheimer (born 1973), offensive coordinator, New York Jets, Stilwell
• Dean Smith (1931–2015), college basketball coach, Emporia, Kansas
• Eddie Sutton (born 1936), college basketball coach, Bucklin, Kansas
• Mark Turgeon (born 1965), college basketball coach, Topeka
• Brent Venables (born 1970), college football coach, Salina

Aviators and astronauts

• Walter Herschel Beech (1891–1950), aviator and aircraft designer, Wichita
• Clyde Vernon Cessna (1879–1954), aviator and aircraft designer, Rago, Kansas
• Amelia Earhart (1897–1937), aviator, Atchison
• Joe Engle (born 1932), astronaut, Chapman, Kansas
• Ronald Evans (1933–1990), astronaut, St. Francis, Kansas
• Daniel Forbes (1920–1948), United States Army Air Corps pilot, Carbondale, Kansas
• Steve Hawley (born 1951), astronaut, Salina
• Donald Hudson (1895–1967), World War I flying ace, Topeka
• Glenn L. Martin (1886–1955), aviation pioneer, Salina
• Lloyd Carlton Stearman (1898–1975), aviator and aircraft designer, Wellsville

Businesspeople and inventors

• Philip Anschutz (born 1939), billionaire investor, Russell
• Bion Barnett (1857–1958), co-founder of Barnett Bank, Hiawatha
• Olive Ann Beech, Chairwoman of Beech Aircraft Company, Wichita (born in Waverly, Kansas)
• Dan and Frank Carney (Dan born 1931, Frank born 1938), founders of Pizza Hut, Wichita
• Walter Chrysler (1875–1940), founder of Chrysler Corporation, Wamego, Kansas
• William Coffin Coleman (1870–1957), founder of the Coleman Company, Wichita
• David Dillon (born 1951), former CEO of Kroger, Hutchinson
• Vic Edelbrock (1913–1962), automotive engineer, Eudora, Kansas
• James Harbord (1866–1947), President and Chairman of the Board of RCA, Manhattan
• William Wadsworth Hodkinson (1881–1971), pioneer film marketer and distributor, Independence
• Omar Knedlik (1915–1989), inventor of the ICEE frozen drink, Barnes, Kansas
• Charles G. Koch (born 1935), CEO of Koch Industries, Wichita
• David H. Koch (born 1940), executive and politician, Wichita
• Alan Mulally (born 1945), engineer, President and CEO of the Ford Motor Company, Lawrence
• Matthew K. Rose (born 1959), Chairman and CEO of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., Salina
• Harry F. Sinclair (1876–1956), founder of Sinclair Oil company, Independence
• Russell Stover (1888–1954), founder of Russell Stover Candies, Alton, Kansas

Film, stage and television

Actors and performers

• Brandon Adams (born 1979), actor, Topeka
• Kirstie Alley (born 1951), actress, Wichita
• Fatty Arbuckle (1887–1933), actor, Smith Center
• Ed Asner (born 1929), actor, Kansas City, Missouri
• Barbara Babcock (born 1937), actress, Fort Riley, Kansas
• Gerry Bamman (born 1941), actor, Independence
• Hugh Beaumont (1909–1982), actor, Lawrence
• Annette Bening (born 1958), actress, Topeka
• Madge Blake (1899–1969), actress (Batman), Kinsley, Kansas
• Cal Bolder (1931–2005), actor, Elkhart
• Roscoe Born (born 1950), actor, Topeka
• Todd Bosley (born 1984), actor, Overland Park
• Steve Brodie (1919–1992), actor, El Dorado
• Louise Brooks (1906–1985), actress, Cherryvale, Kansas
• Petrea Burchard (born 1955), actress, Lawrence
• Darren E. Burrows (born 1966), actor, Winfield, Kansas
• Trai Byers (born 1983), actor, Kansas City
• Del Close (1934–1999), actor and comedian, Manhattan
• Brent Collins (1941–1988), actor, Plainville, Kansas
• Jack Colvin (1934–2005), actor (The Incredible Hulk), Lyndon, Kansas
• Aneta Corsaut (1933–1995), actress, Hutchinson
• Nathan Darrow (born 1976), actor, Overland Park
• Lucinda Dickey (born 1960), actress and dancer, Hutchinson
• Billy Drago (born 1945), actor, Hugoton, Kansas
• Marj Dusay (born 1936), actress, Hays, Kansas
• R. Lee Ermey (born 1944), actor, Emporia, Kansas
• Bill Farmer (born 1952), voice actor, Pratt
• Tamara Feldman (born 1980), actress, Wichita
• Scott Foley (born 1972), actor, Kansas City
• Dwight Frye (1899–1943), actor, Salina
• Alan Fudge (1944–2011), actor, Wichita
• Laurel Goodwin (born 1942), actress, Wichita
• Cary Guffey (born 1972), actor, Topeka
• Dennis Hayden (born 1952), actor, Girard, Kansas
• Colton Haynes (born 1988), actor, Wichita
• Thelma Hill (1906–1938), actress, Emporia, Kansas
• Dennis Hopper (1936–2010), actor, Dodge City, Kansas
• Jayne Houdyshell (born 1953), actress, Topeka
• Mary Howard (1913–2009), actress, Independence
• Don Johnson (born 1959), actor, Wichita
• Neal Jones (born 1960), actor, Wichita
• Gordon Jump (1932–2003), actor, Manhattan
• Tom Kane (born 1962), voice actor, Overland Park
• Buster Keaton (1895–1966), actor and director, Piqua, Kansas
• Emmett Kelly (1898–1979), circus clown, Sedan, Kansas
• Laura Kirk (born 1966), actress, Lecompton, Kansas
• Shirley Knight (born 1936), actress, Goessel, Kansas
• Sarah Lancaster (born 1980), actress, Overland Park
• Lila Leeds (1928–1999), actress, Dodge City, Kansas
• Hattie McDaniel (1895–1952), actress, Wichita
• Everett McGill (born 1945), actor, Kansas City
• Michael McMillian (born 1978), actor, Olathe
• George Murdock (born 1930), actor, Salina
• Cassandra Peterson (born 1949), actress better known as Elvira, Mistress of the Dark, Manhattan
• ZaSu Pitts (1894–1963), actress, Parsons, Kansas
• Chris Porter (born c. 1979), comedian, Olathe
• John Quade (1938–2009), actor, Kansas City
• James Reynolds, actor, Oskaloosa, Kansas
• Rob Riggle (born 1970), actor and comedian, Overland Park
• Charles "Buddy" Rogers (1904–1991), actor and jazz musician, Olathe
• Paul Rudd (born 1969), actor, Overland Park
• Sheila Ryan (1921–1975), actress, Topeka
• Kendall Schmidt (born 1990), singer, actor, and dancer, Wichita
• Kevin Schmidt (born 1988), actor, Andover, Kansas
• Travis Schuldt (born 1974), actor, Topeka
• Angus Scrimm (born 1926), actor, Kansas City
• William Shockley (born 1963), actor, Lawrence
• Max Showalter (1917–2000), actor, Caldwell, Kansas
• Cynthia Sikes (born 1954), actress, Coffeyville
• Lois Smith (born 1930), actress, Topeka
• David Rees Snell (born 1966), actor, Wichita
• Sara Sothern (1895–1994), stage actress, Arkansas City
• Taryn Southern (born 1986), actress, YouTube personality, Wichita
• Rebecca Staab (born 1961), actress, Hays, Kansas
• Milburn Stone (1904–1980), actor (Gunsmoke), Burrton
• Eric Stonestreet (born 1971), actor, Kansas City
• Jason Sudeikis (born 1975), actor Overland Park
• Norma Terris (1904–1989), actress, Columbus
• Fay Tincher (1884–1983), actress, Topeka
• Vivian Vance (1909–1979), actress (I Love Lucy), Cherryvale, Kansas
• Matt Vogel (born 1970), puppeteer, Kansas City
• Lyle Waggoner (born 1935), sculptor, actor (Wonder Woman), Kansas City
• Kari Wahlgren (born 1977), actress, Hoisington, Kansas
• Dee Wallace (born 1948), actress, Kansas City
• David A. R. White (born 1970), actor, screenwriter, Dodge City, Kansas
• Jason Wiles (born 1970), actor, Lenexa
• Claire Windsor (1897–1972), actress, Cawker City, Kansas
• Patrice Wymore (1926-2014), actress, Miltonvale, Kansas
• Jeff Yagher (born 1961), actor, Lawrence

Directors

• Michael Almereyda (born 1960), film director, Overland Park
• Steve Balderson (born 1975), film director, Wamego, Kansas
• Darren Lynn Bousman (born 1979), film director, Overland Park
• Chris Buck (born 1960), film director, animator, Wichita
• Eric Darnell (born 1960), director, writer, songwriter, animator, Prairie Village
• Randall Duell (1903–1992), art director, Russell County
• Alex Graves (born 1968), television director, El Dorado
• Sherman Halsey, music video and television director, Independence
• Martin and Osa Johnson (1884–1937 and 1894–1953), film pioneer, explorer, Chanute
• Oscar Micheaux (1893–1951), film director, Great Bend
• Gordon Parks (1912–2006), film director, Fort Scott
• Richard Thorpe (1896–1991), film director, Hutchinson

Public figures

Journalists

• Frank Marshall Davis (1905–1987), journalist, poet, political and labor movement activist, Arkansas City
• Steve Doocy (born 1956), co-host of Fox News's Fox & Friends, Abilene
• Elizabeth Farnsworth (born 1943), television journalist, Topeka
• William M. Gallagher (1923–1975), Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, Hiawatha
• Jane Grant (1892–1972), journalist who co-founded The New Yorker, Girard, Kansas
• E. W. Howe (1853–1937), author and newspaper editor, Atchison
• Bill Kurtis (born 1940), television journalist, Independence
• Jim Lehrer (born 1934), television journalist, Wichita
• Melissa McDermott (born 1960s), television news anchor for CBS's Up to the Minute, Wichita
• Clementine Paddleford (1898–1967), journalist and food critic, Riley County, Kansas
• Eugene C. Pulliam (1889–1975), founder Central Newspapers, Inc., Ulysses, Kansas
• Roy A. Roberts (1887–1967), newspaper editor, Muscotah, Kansas
• W. Eugene Smith (1918–1978), photojournalist, Wichita
• John Cameron Swayze (1906–1995), television journalist, Wichita
• Julius Wayland (1854–1912), newspaper editor, Appeal to Reason, Girard, Kansas
• William Allen White (1868–1944), author and newspaper editor, Emporia, Kansas
• Gene Wojciechowski, author, sportswriter and ESPN commentator

Politics and law

• John Anderson, Jr. (1917–2014), former Kansas Governor, De Soto, Kansas
• Earl Browder (1891–1973), General Secretary, Communist Party USA, Wichita
• Sam Brownback (born 1956), U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, Kansas Governor, Garnett, Kansas
• Arthur Capper (1865–1951), Kansas Governor and newspaper editor, Garnett, Kansas
• Frank Carlson (1893–1987), U.S. Representative, U.S. Senator, and Kansas Governor, Concordia, Kansas
• Georgia Neese Clark (1900–1995), first woman Treasurer of the United States, Richland, Kansas
• Samuel J. Crawford (1835–1913), Kansas Governor, Garnett, Kansas
• Charles Curtis (1860–1936), U.S. Senator and 31st Vice President of the United States, Topeka
• Harry Darby (1895–1987), businessman and U.S. Senator, Kansas City
• George Docking (1904–1964), Kansas Governor, Clay Center
• Bob Dole (born 1923),U.S. Senator from Kansas (1969-1996) and 1996 Republican nominee for president, Russell
• Dwight Eisenhower (1890–1969), 34th President of the United States, Allied commander in World War II, raised in Abilene
• Joan Finney (1925–2001), Kansas Governor, Topeka
• Marlin Fitzwater (born 1942), Press Secretary for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, Abilene
• Robert Gates (born 1943), former CIA director, U.S. Secretary of Defense, Wichita
• Robert L. Gernon (1943–2005), Kansas Supreme Court Justice, Sabetha, Kansas
• Dan Glickman (born 1944), Secretary of Agriculture, President of the Motion Picture Association of America, Wichita
• Bill Graves (born 1953), Kansas Governor, Salina
• Paul Ranous Greever (1891–1943), Wyoming Congressman, Lansing, Kansas
• Gary Hart (born 1936), Colorado Senator, Ottawa, Kansas
• Carl Hatch (1889–1963), New Mexico Senator, Kirwin, Kansas
• Mike Hayden (born 1944), Kansas Governor, Colby, Kansas
• Wally Hickel (1919–2010), Governor of Alaska, United States Secretary of the Interior (Claflin, Kansas)
• Ural Alexis Johnson (1908–1997), diplomat and ambassador, Falun, Kansas
• Tim Kaine (born 1958), former Governor and current U.S. Senator from Virginia; 2016 Democratic nominee for Vice President under Hillary Clinton, Overland Park
• Nancy Kassebaum Baker (born 1932), Senator, Topeka
• James H. "Dog" Kelley (c. 1833–1912), frontiersman; mayor of Dodge City, Kansas
• William P. Lambertson (1880–1957), U.S. Congressman, Fairview, Kansas
• Alf Landon (1887–1987), Governor, 1936 presidential candidate, Topeka
• Frank H. Lee (1873–1952), Missouri U.S. Representative, De Soto, Kansas
• John Martin (1839–1889), Kansas Governor, newspaperman, and Civil War Colonel, Atchison
• George McGill (1879–1963), Senator, Wichita
• Jerry Moran (born 1954), U.S. Representative and Senator, Plainville, Kansas
• Roger Noriega (born 1959), United States Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Wichita
• Gale Norton (born 1954), United States Secretary of the Interior, Wichita
• Lawton Nuss (born 1952), Kansas State Supreme Court Justice, Salina
• Kate Richards O'Hare (1877–1948), American Socialist Party activist, Ottawa County, Kansas
• Leslie Osterman (born 1947), member of the Kansas House of Representatives, Wichita
• Shirley Phelps-Roper (born 1957), lawyer for Westboro Baptist Church and daughter of Fred Phelps, Topeka
• Chuck Reed (born 1948), Mayor of San Jose, California, Garden City, Kansas
• Roy Romer (born 1928), Colorado Governor, Garden City, Kansas
• Susanna M. Salter (1860–1961), Mayor of Argonia, Kansas, first woman mayor in the United States
• Bradley Schlozman (born 1971), controversial figure in the George W. Bush Administration's Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy, Overland Park
• K. Gary Sebelius (born 1949), United States magistrate judge and husband of former Governor Kathleen Sebelius, Norton, Kansas
• Harold Sebring (1898–1968), Nuremberg Trial judge, Olathe
• Arlen Specter (1930–2012), Pennsylvania Senator, Russell
• Dale Swenson (born c. 1957), former member of the Kansas House, Wichita
• Martin E. Trapp (1877–1951), Oklahoma Governor, Robinson, Kansas
• Rosalie E. Wahl (1924–2014), former associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, Caney, Kansas
• William Walker (1800–1874), Provisional Governor of Nebraska Territory; Wyandot head chief
• Mabel Walker Willebrandt (1889–1963), U.S. Assistant Attorney General from 1921 to 1929, Woodsdale, Kansas
• Harry Hines Woodring (1890–1967), Kansas Governor and Secretary of War under Franklin Roosevelt, Elk City, Kansas
• Robert M. Wright (1840–1915), member of the Kansas House of Representatives, one of the founders of Dodge City, Kansas^[1]
• Ron Wyden (born 1949), Oregon Senator, Wichita

Military and national security

• Stanley T. Adams (1922–1999), Korean War Medal of Honor recipient, De Soto, Kansas
• Wilbur Bestwick (1911–1972), first Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Sabetha, Kansas
• Kendall Carl Campbell (1917–1942), Ensign, United States Navy, posthumous WWII Navy Cross recipient, Garden City, Kansas
• Richard Cowan (1922–1944), WWII Medal of Honor recipient, Wichita
• Rebecca L. Ediger (born 1952), agent in charge of the Presidential Protective Division of U.S. Secret Service, raised in Peabody, Kansas
• Harry D. Felt (1902–1992), WWII Naval aviator and Navy Admiral, Topeka
• Arthur M. Ferguson (1877–1922), Colonel, Medal of Honor recipient, Philippine–American War, Coffey County, Kansas
• Frederick N. Funston (1865–1917), Major General, Medal of Honor recipient, Iola
• John E. Gingrich (1897–1960), U.S. Navy four-star Admiral and first chief of security for the United States Atomic Energy Commission, Dodge City, Kansas
• James Harbord (1866–1947), U.S. Army, WWI Distinguished Service Cross, Bushong, Kansas
• Joseph Henderson (1869–1938), Medal of Honor recipient, Philippine–American War, Fort Leavenworth
• Elizabeth P. Hoisington (1918–2007), first WAC officer promoted to Brigadier General, Newton, Kansas
• Herbert Loper (1896–1989), Major General, United States Army, Norcatur
• Homer A. McCrerey (1919–1999), decorated U.S. Navy Meteorologist and Oceanographer, Hiawatha
• Richard Myers (born 1942), General, United States Air Force, 15th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Olathe
• Danny J. Petersen (1949–1970), Specialist 4, United States Army, posthumous Vietnam Medal of Honor recipient, Netawaka, Kansas
• George S. Robb (1887–1972), U.S. Army, WWI Medal of Honor recipient, Assaria, Kansas
• Bernard W. Rogers (born 1921), former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, Fairview, Kansas
• Donald K. Ross (born 1910), first Medal of Honor recipient in WWII, United States Navy, Beverly, Kansas
• Conrad Schmidt (1830–1908), Civil War, Medal of Honor recipient, Ogden, Kansas
• Duane D. Thiessen (born 1951), Major General, USMC, Goessel, Kansas
• Grant F. Timmerman (1919–1944), Sergeant, United States Marine Corps, posthumous Medal of Honor recipient, Americus, Kansas
• William B. Trembley (1877–1952), Medal of Honor recipient, Philippine–American War, Johnson, Kansas
• Lewis William Walt (1913–1989), General, USMC, initiated the Combined Action Program in the Vietnam war, Wabaunsee County, Kansas

Religious

• William Bickerton (1815–1905), founder of The Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) and the Zion Valley, Kansas, colony, St. John, Kansas
• Charles J. Chaput (born 1944), Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver, Concordia, Kansas
• Sheri L. Dew (born 1953), influential Latter-day Saint spokeswoman, Ulysses, Kansas
• Bart D. Ehrman (born 1955), New Testament scholar, Lawrence
• Jerry Johnston (born 1959), Southern Baptist Convention evangelist and pastor, Overland Park
• Emil Kapaun (1916–1951), Roman Catholic martyr in Korean War and candidate for Sainthood, Pilsen, Kansas
• Ron Kenoly (born 1944), musical worship leader, Coffeyville
• Fred Phelps (1929–2014), leader of the Westboro Baptist Church, Topeka
• James Reeb (1927–1965), Unitarian minister beaten to death by segregationists in Selma, Alabama, during the Civil Rights Movement, Wichita
• David Laurin Ricken (born 1954), bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne, Dodge City, Kansas
• Michael Jarboe Sheehan (born 1939), Archbishop of Santa Fe, Wichita
• John Joseph Sullivan (1920–2001), Bishop of Grand Island, Nebraska, and Kansas City-St. Joseph, Horton, Kansas
• Gerald B. Winrod (1900–1957), evangelical Christian and Nazi sympathizer, Wichita
• Gordon Winrod (born 1926), Christian Identity minister, Hesston, Kansas

Scientists and programmers

• Charles Bachman (born 1924), computer scientist, Manhattan
• C. Olin Ball (1893–1982), food scientist, Abilene
• Barnum Brown (1873–1963), paleontologist, Carbondale, Kansas
• John D. Carmack (born 1970), computer programmer, Shawnee Mission, Kansas
• George Washington Carver (1864–1943), botanist and chemist, Minneapolis, Kansas
• Carl Owen Dunbar (1891–1979), geologist and paleontologist, Cherokee County, Kansas
• David Fairchild (1869–1954), botanist and explorer, Manhattan
• Philip Fox (1878–1944), astronomer, Manhattan
• Howard K. Gloyd (1902–1978), herpetologist, De Soto, Kansas
• Ebbe Hoff (1906–1985), neurologist, Rexford
• Jack Kilby (1923–2005), inventor of the integrated circuit, Great Bend
• Homer A. McCrerey (1919–1999), meteorologist and oceanographer, Hiawatha
• Karl Menninger (1893–1990), psychiatrist, Topeka
• Charles D. Michener (born 1918), entomologist, Lawrence
• Lou Montulli, a founding engineer at Netscape and responsible for many HTML and web innovations
• Ernest Fox Nichols (1869–1924), scientist, Leavenworth County
• Wallace Pratt (1885–1981), petroleum geologist, Phillipsburg
• Walter Sutton (1877–1916), geneticist and physician, Russell
• George Tiller (1941–2009), medical doctor and controversial late-term abortion provider, Wichita
• Clyde Tombaugh (1906–1997), astronomer, Burdett, Kansas
• Samuel Wendell Williston (1852–1918), scientist, Manhattan
• Douglas Youvan (born 1955), biophysicist and inventor, Frontenac, Kansas

Others

Notable individuals

• Danni Boatwright (born 1975), winner of Survivor: Guatemala, Tonganoxie, Kansas
• Emily Gibson Braerton (1884–1966), V.P. Daughters of the American Revolution (1950–53), Lawrence
• Erin Brockovich (born 1960), environmental activist, Lawrence
• Richard Christy (born 1974), comedian on the Howard Stern Show, Fort Scott
• Hilda Clark (1872–1932), first woman to appear in a Coca-Cola advertisement, Leavenworth
• Racquel Darrian (born 1968), pornographic film star, Hutchinson
• Elmer Dresslar, Jr. (1925–2005), voice actor and baritone voice of the Jolly Green Giant commercials, St. Francis, Kansas
• Ann Dunham (1942–1995), mother of Barack Obama, Wichita
• Madelyn and Stanley Dunham (Madelyn, born 1922; Stanley, 1918–1992), grandparents of Barack Obama, Peru, Kansas
• Tara Dawn Holland (born 1972), Miss America 1997, Overland Park
• Carrie Ingalls (1870–1946), sister of author Laura Ingalls Wilder, born in the Little House on the Prairie near Independence
• Charles "Buffalo" Jones (1844–1919), former state representative from Finney County and a co-founder of Garden City, Kansas
• Vicki Lynn Lasseter (born 1960), February 1981 Playboy Playmate of the Month, Iola
• Candy Loving (born 1956), January 1979 Playboy Playmate of the Month and Playboy's 25th Anniversary Playmate, Oswego, Kansas
• Waldo McBurney (1902–2009), formerly listed as oldest worker, Quinter, Kansas
• Kelli McCarty (born 1969), Miss USA 1991, actress, pornographic film star Liberal
• Janet Murguía (born 1954), President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Council of La Raza, Kansas City
• Dan Perkins (born 1961), cartoonist better known by the pen name "Tom Tomorrow", Wichita
• Jeff Probst (born 1962), television personality and host of Survivor, Wichita
• Victor Rojas, studio analyst for the MLB Network, raised in Overland Park
• Satanta (1830–1878), Chief of the Kiowa tribe, western Kansas
• Matt Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union, Wichita
• Justin E. Smith (born 1968), sheriff of Larimer County, Colorado, since 2011, McPherson
• Theresa Vail (born 1990), host of the Outdoor Channel's Limitless with Theresa Vail, Manhattan
• Kari Wahlgren (born 1977), video game voice actress, Hoisington, Kansas
• Carrie Westcott (born 1969), September 1993 Playboy Playmate of the Month, Mission Hills
• Harold F. Williamson (1901–1989), business historian, Piper, Kansas

Notable historical figures not from Kansas but who participated in a significant event in Kansas

• John Brown (1800–1859), abolitionist, Osawatomie
• Buffalo Bill Cody (1846–1917), buffalo hunter and showman, Leavenworth
• Wyatt Earp (1848–1929), lawman, Wichita and Dodge City, Kansas
• Dora Hand (c. 1844–1878), dance hall singer, Dodge City, Kansas^[2]
• Wild Bill Hickok (1837–1876), lawman, Hays, Kansas and Abilene
• James H. Lane (1814-1866), abolitionist, senator and union general, Lawrence
• Bat Masterson (1853–1921), lawman, Dodge City, Kansas
• Carrie Nation (1846–1911), temperance activist, Medicine Lodge

Infamous persons

• Edward J. Adams (1887–1921), bank robber and murderer, Hutchinson
• Lowell Lee Andrews (c. 1939–1962), murderer, Wolcott, Kansas
• John and Kate Bender (c. 1872–1873), serial killers, Labette County, Kansas
• Fred "Killer" Burke (1893–1940), Prohibition-era gangster, Mapleton, Kansas
• Mark Essex (1949–1973), mass murderer, Emporia, Kansas
• Jake and Ralph Fleagle, bank robbers and murderers, Marienthal, Kansas
• Debora Green (born 1951), murderer, Prairie Village
• Eric Harris (1981–1999), perpetrator, along with Dylan Klebold, of the Columbine High School massacre, Wichita
• Richard Hickock (1931–1965), murderer, Kansas City
• Alvin "Creepy" Karpis (1907–1979), bank robber and member of the Barker Gang, Topeka
• Anna Emmaline McDoulet (1882–1978), female spy for the Doolin Gang known as Cattle Annie Lawrence and Seneca, Kansas
• George Newcomb (1866–1895), member of Bill Doolin's Wild Bunch, Fort Scott
• Duane Earl Pope (born 1943), bank robber and murderer, Roxbury
• Dennis Rader (born 1945), serial killer known as "BTK", Wichita
• Scott Philip Roeder (born 1958), assassin, Merriam, Kansas
• Marc Sappington (born 1978), murderer and cannibal, known as the Kansas City Vampire, Kansas City

Fictional persons

• Helen Crump (1962), girlfriend of Sheriff Andy Taylor of Mayberry on The Andy Griffith Show, from rural Kansas
• Dennis the Menace (1951), neighborhood terror, Wichita
• Matt Dillon (1949), marshal, Dodge City, Kansas
• Michael Dorie, mutant character from Marvel Comics' X-Men series, Picayune, Kansas
• Dorothy Gale (1900), farm girl who lived with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry; transported to the Land of Oz by a tornado, with her dog Toto
• Elmer Gantry (1927), evangelist and title character in the Sinclair Lewis novel of the same name; attended college in Kansas
• Gil Hamilton (c. 2083), futuristic detective, Topeka
• Will Kane (1952), sheriff in the 1952 classic Western High Noon, from Hadleyville, Kansas
• Johnny Kaw (1955), mythical Kansas settler, Manhattan
• Clark Joseph Kent (1938), adopted child of Jonathan and Martha Kent of Smallville, known as the alter ego Superman, born on Krypton as Kal-El
• Lana Lang (1950), Superboy's teenage love interest, Smallville, Kansas
• Major Astro (1960), astronaut portrayed by local character actor Tom Leahy; host of a children's television program, Wichita
• Colleen McMurphy, lead character from China Beach, from a "small town" in Kansas
• Cameron Mitchell, Lieutenant Colonel of Stargate SG-1 television series, from Auburn
• Jack B. Quick (1999), boy genius, Queerwater Creek, Kansas
• Amanda Rogers (born 2351), character on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Topeka
• Pete Ross (1961), Superboy's bestfriend, Smallville, Kansas
• Mary Ann Summers, traveler on a "three-hour tour" that was lost at sea on Gilligan's Island, Winfield, Kansas
• Annie Wilson (1993), aspiring actress, Wichita
• Dean Winchester (1979), demon hunter, Lawrence
• Sam Winchester (1983), demon hunter, Lawrence
• Wizard of Oz (1900), balloonist, magician, ruler of the Land of Oz (1939 movie version only)

See also

• Lists of people from Kansas

References

1. "George Laughhead, Robert M. Wright (1840–1915), Dodge City, Kansas: Town President, founder, pioneer, September 23, 2009". kansashistory.us. Retrieved April 14, 2014.
2. "Susan Leiser Silva and Lee A. Silva, "The Killing of Dora Hand", October 1, 2009". historynet.com; originally in Wild West Magazine. Retrieved April 13, 2014.