Johnny Cash. (Arkansas)

I’d have to say “The Colonel”! But we also have Henry Clay, Pres Zachary Taylor, Abe Lincoln, Daniel Boone, Louis Brandeis. Contemporary would be the Judd’s, Jennifer Lawrence, Rosemary and nephew George Clooney, Billy Rae Cyrus, Patricia Neal, and many more.

And Olychick, don't forget Paul Allen, Bill Gates' Microsoft co-founder and Seahawks owner.

Bing Crosby is from WA state.

Bill Gates I suppose but personally I vote for Gary Larson.

Tennessee Williams, Elvis Presley, William Faulkner, John Grisham, Eudora Welty, Charley Pride, James Earl Jones, Leontyne Price, Muddy Waters.

Thomas Jefferson

Helen Keller, Harper Lee, Nat King Cole, Tallulah Bankhead, Hank Aaron

More contemporary - Courtney Cox, Emmy Lou Harris, Jim Nabors (Gomer Pyle), Octavia Spencer, Hank Williams, Channing Tatum

I live in California, and so you can take your pick. Also, there are too many to choose from New York as well, but if you are talking about Texas, then LBJ takes the cake without much competition, except perhaps from Willie Nelson.

Brad Pitt, Garth Brooks, Blake Shelton, Paul Harvey, Reba McEntire, Johnny Bench, Tony Randall, Mickey Mantle, Patti Page.

Prince I suppose. Judy Garland. Hubert Humphrey, Lindsey Whalen, Charles Lindberg come to mind off the top of my head. I am thinking most famous from you TOWN might have more manageable lists. Lindsey or Les Kouba would be Hutchinson's.

My first guess was Andy Griffith. Their answer was Michael Jordan. I can go with that, at least I know who he is.

Our state claims a lot of famous people who weren't born here, but lived here, like Mark Twain. Others were born here but didn't live here long like George W Bush. Katharine Hepburn was born and spent many of her final years here, having a large, beautiful home on the water.

We have some famous patriots such as Ethan Allan and Nathan Hale, and the more infamous Benedict Arnold. Also PT Barnum, Dr. Spock, Noah Webster, Frederick Law Olmsted and JP Morgan.

We tend to get a lot of famous residents due to our proximity to NYC, such as Paul Newman, Robert Redford, Dustin Hoffman, Kyra Sedgwick, Meryl Streep, Arthur Miller, and the like.

FYI- John Legend is the first African American to win the big 4:

Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony.

"from" is an interesting term here, especially in Nashville. Almost everyone is a transplant. I am an oddity, my family having lived here since the 1700s at least. So from here? Most famous? Davy Crockett, Wilma Rudolph, Aretha Franklin, Kathy Bates, the Allman Brothers, Pat Boone, Dixie Carter, Alex Haley, Sam Houston, Michael Jeter, David Keith, Minnie Pearl, Annie Potts, Dinah Shore, Tina Turner, any and all country music stars. Several moved here. Nicole Kidman comes to mind (or did they move?), but she's hardly from here (she has a weird accent ;) Attended high school in my area, so that's pretty much "from": Winona and Ashley Judd, Mookie Betts (literally from MY high school), and Reese Witherspoon. I don't count all those that moved here to make it big here. Those are young enough to consider them "from".

Yes, I know who John Legend is & Chrissy Teigan. :0)

Tim Allen was born in Denver. John Denver was popular. Aspen Colorado is full of movie stars homes. Goldie Hawn & Kurt Russell, used to live in Snowmass Colorado....I think they sold the place...? Rickie Schroder quit Hollywood to buy a ranch & raise children here, before going back. Oprah Winfrey used to have a home in Telluride, so she always had snow for Christmas. Tom Cruise & Katie Holmes owned a whole mountain here at one time.

I believe Ralph Lauren still has a sizeable ranch here. The outskirts of his ranch, is a popular place for fall photography, near Last Dollar Road, also in Telluride.

Where is this list?

John Legend? Sounds like a legend in his own mind (sorry, couldn't resist).

Michael, Olychick found and linked the one that sparked this post. There are others, of course.

I didn't mean to imply in any way that John Legend isn't worthy, BTW, just that I wasn't so familiar with him that he would among the first to spring to mind for Ohio. At least, for me.

Other Ohioans like LeBron James, Jack Nicklaus, Albert Sabin (not born/raised in OH but spent nearly all his professional career here), Thomas Edison, Drew Carey, and Steven Spielberg are contenders for "most famous" also. I will partially claim George Clooney since he spent a fair bit of his childhood here, in the Cincinnati area!

That's definitely an odd list. It's like who is the most unlikely widely known person from your state to be considered the most famous person. From California, the list says Dwayne Johnson...seriously?

For PA, should we add Tom Ridge? He's living, but definitely should be known by most for being the first Head of the Dept of Homeland Security.

Add to KY John Michael Montgomery, Johnny Depp, Loretta Lynn. I drive by Johnny Depp's house he can't sell nearly every day.

Names you might recognize - Bryan Adams, Michael Buble, Diana Krall, David Suzuki, Michael J. Fox, Ryan Reynolds, Seth Rogen, Jason Priestley, Pamela Anderson. I didn't bother with the hockey players.

ETA - I have heard of John Legend - I just noticed that you asked for names from states, I live in a province but I hope it's ok that I contributed to the thread.

In SD I think it would be Tom Brokaw, Bob Barker and Daisy Duke. In ND where I was from I think it would be Louis Llamour or maybe Angie Dickinson.

Liberace was from West Allis in Wisconsin. Oprah's late mother and cousin live here. The lady that played Mimi on the Drew Carey show lives here,too. There's more ,too ,but I can't remember.

Lincoln is still famous enough to be on our license plates in Illinois.

Joe Namath from Al.

born there not sure.

Outside are you from Al?

See? That's a good point. I don't consider Namath from AL, for example. He did attend University there, but he's from Pennsylvania. What criteria does one use? It's not that you're wrong by any stretch josephene, merely that you use different criteria that I would've used. It's really hard to decide!

Ben don't forget Lawrence Welk!!

blfenton, of course it is alright! This is for the entire GW community! And Canadian celebs are usually American celebs also!

Ah, I see that the click bait list is of famous people in entertainment. Makes a difference. My state's Jimi Hendrix is an interesting choice. You could make an argument for Kurt Cobain but in television/radio though he was not born here(Born in NC) came here to my county (Skagit) when he was just six, it has to be Edward R. Murrow.

Tom Brady, JFK, John Adams, Too many to list.

Well, the list did include several politician, an author, an artists, a few athletes, and Martin Luther King Jr. So I am kind of puzzled by the some of the sort of minor celebs (Tonya Harding?) who made the list

TY Arcy I knew I answered that too soon. I drive past his home place all the time. Probably Mickey Mantle too.

Hmm, it’s probably a generational thing. But off the top of my head.

Jimmy Carter, Ted Turner, Julia Roberts, Ray Charles, Kanye West, Usher, Holly Hunter, Margaret Mitchell

Well Texas is so large there are many. President Bush twice father and son and of course the wives. President Lyndon Johnson. President Dwight D Eisenhower.

Willie Nelson. Janis Joplin. Matthew McConaughey. Howard Hughes. Buddy Holly. Patrick Swayze.

Many more. Too many to list.

https://www.thefamouspeople.com/texas.php

namath went to high school in

East Brenton,al

No one said they had to be born in

that state.

New Rules?

Francis Scott Key

Well if attending university qualifies, here's one humorous, perhaps lesser shining star, born in Arizona, who graduated from the Chicago Musical College, now part of Roosevelt University. Christine McIntyre received her Bachelors Degree in Music there in 1933 and was a classically trained soprano. She had a wonderful voice; no need for her movie singing scenes to be dubbed and she was quite a doll too.

Miss McIntyre singing.

And she could rough it up with the best of them.

"Taking advantage of a poor, weak, helpless woman."

it’s probably a generational thing

It occurred to me that 20-early 30 somethings might have never heard of Bob Hope, Doris Day, Roy Rogers etc, or if they had, wouldn't consider them very famous.

I’m from Canada and live in Alberta, so the most famous person from this province i think would be Micheal J Fox, he was born in Edmonton but raised in BC or Nathan Fillion. Most famous person in Edmonton is Joey Moss the stick boy for the Edmonton Oilers.

rae, I saw a bumper sticker the other day from Jack Benny Middle School, which is in his hometown of Waukegan, Illinois. Their team name is the 39ers! I was laughing and pointed it out to my DS, 20, and he didn't get it. I had to explain not only who Jack Benny was but how he was perennially 39. Sigh, I'm old.

President Bush father was born in Massachusetts, Pres Bush son was born in Connecticut. Both went to Yale. Transplants maybe but not "from" Texas.

Sarah Palin?? Ugh!

And the father of George HW Bush was born in Columbus OH. That family got around!

I don't know how many famous people would admit to being from the State of Confusion!

But, somewhat infamous, I would pretty well have to admit to relating somewhat from there when I see so many of you not identifying which state to which you refer.

ole joyful

Not so unusual, raee. Kids go away to college and then sometimes settle in or around that new area. Or take a job upon graduating at a third location and may have other job transfers to other locations. These steps summarize the Bush family's moves. I know a lot of people who have made similar moves (including myself and my own family members), don't you?