Auto industry · 1854–1929
David Dunbar Buickinventor, founder of BuickScottish-born Detroit plumber and inventor who founded the Buick Motor Company, lost it within a few years, and died nearly broke in Detroit in 1929.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
Famous Detroiters
People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.
- 1,949 famous people
- 516 Detroit places
- 21 fields
Hungarian ties 31 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Origin and citizenship
Field
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184 people · 2/4 page
Clear filtersAuto industry · 1854–1929David Dunbar Buickinventor, founder of BuickScottish-born Detroit plumber and inventor who founded the Buick Motor Company, lost it within a few years, and died nearly broke in Detroit in 1929.
Sports · born 1999Marvin Bagley IIIbasketball playerFormer No. 2 overall pick who spent nearly three seasons as a Pistons forward after a 2022 trade-deadline deal from Sacramento.
Sports · born 1989Evan Batesice dancerOlympic champion ice dancer born and raised in Ann Arbor, who trained for years in suburban Canton and won national silver in Detroit in 2019 with Madison Chock.
Sports · born 1985Reggie Bushfootball running backHeisman Trophy winner and Super Bowl champion who spent two seasons with the Lions late in his career, helping Detroit reach the 2014 playoffs.
Sports · born 1983Will Bynumbasketball player and coachUndrafted guard who became a Pistons fan favorite for seven seasons, setting a franchise record with 26 points in a single quarter.
Sports · born 1967Dana Barrosbasketball player, guardSharpshooting guard, a former All-Star elsewhere, who closed out his NBA career with two seasons off the Pistons' bench.
Music · born 1970Brendan Bensonsinger-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producerPower-pop songwriter born in Royal Oak whose Detroit attic was where he and Jack White wrote the first song of the Raconteurs in 2005.
Sports · born 1975
Todd Bertuzziice hockey wingerPower forward who joined the Red Wings at the 2008 trade deadline and returned for a five-season second stint, reaching the 2009 Western Conference finals.
Press & broadcasting · born 1976
Nargiz Birk-Petersenlawyer, television presenter, modelAzerbaijani-American lawyer who co-hosted the 2012 Eurovision Song Contest in Baku, after studying in Michigan and earning her law degree at Wayne State.
Politics · born 1964Dave Bratpolitician, economist, diplomatEconomics professor and Virginia congressman who unseated House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in 2014; born in Detroit and raised in Alma, Michigan.Chuck BehlerdrummerLivonia-born drummer who played on Megadeth's So Far, So Good... So What! and later returned to the Detroit area, where he plays with Motor City Freaks.
Sports · born 1954Kent Bensonbasketball playerFormer No. 1 overall pick and 1976 NCAA champion who anchored the Pistons' center position for six seasons in the early 1980s.
Music · born 1985Porcelain Blacksinger, songwriter, rapperSinger-songwriter raised in metro Detroit who mixes industrial rock with pop; known for "This Is What Rock n' Roll Looks Like" and "One Woman Army."
Film & TV · born 1984Jayson BlairactorActor from The New Normal and The Hard Times of RJ Berger, born in Detroit and a tennis player at L'Anse Creuse High School-North in Macomb Township.
Politics · born 1954Suzanne Bonamicilawyer, politicianDetroit-born lawyer who has represented Oregon's 1st congressional district, covering western Portland and its suburbs, since 2012.Robert John Braidwoodarchaeologist, anthropologistPioneer of scientific archaeology who searched for the origins of farming in the Near East, born in Detroit and trained at the University of Michigan.
Sports · born 1968Jud Buechlerbasketball player, coachRole player from Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls championship teams who spent three seasons with the Pistons at the end of his NBA career.Mike Binderfilmmaker, stand-up comedian, actorBirmingham-raised comedian and filmmaker whose directing debut, Crossing the Bridge, turns his teenage years in suburban Detroit into drama.Stephen Braysongwriter, drummer, record producerDetroit-born songwriter and producer, Madonna's early bandmate and co-writer of "Into the Groove" and "Express Yourself," who later won a Grammy for The Color Purple.
Business & brands · 1933–2021Eli Broadhomebuilder, financier, philanthropistRaised in Detroit, he built his first houses in the city's suburbs, founded what became KB Home, and later became a major art and education philanthropist.Marvin Barnesbasketball playerFlashy, immensely talented forward, nicknamed 'Bad News', whose chaotic two seasons with the Pistons in the late 1970s became one of the most colorful chapters in franchise history.
Sports · born 1988Jonathan Bernierice hockey goaltenderStanley Cup-winning goaltender who signed with Detroit in 2018 and spent three seasons backing up, then sharing duties with, Jimmy Howard.
Music · born 1939Cindy BirdsongsingerFormer Bluebelle who was flown to Detroit in 1967 to replace Florence Ballard in the Supremes and sang with the group through 1976.
Sports · 1931–2021Leo Boivinice hockey player, defensemanHard-hitting defenseman who joined the Red Wings in a 1966 trade and helped Detroit reach that year's Stanley Cup Final.Cindy Brownbasketball playerOlympic gold medalist forward who was part of the Detroit Shock's inaugural WNBA roster in 1998.
Religion · 1958–2025Michael J. ByrnesCatholic Archbishop of Agaña (Guam)Detroit-born priest who served as an auxiliary bishop of Detroit before leading the Catholic Church in Guam; he died in Detroit in 2025.Jane Bartkowicztennis playerHamtramck-born Polish-American tennis star, a pupil of Jean Hoxie, who won the Wimbledon girls' title in 1964 and was one of the Original 9 who launched women's professional tennis in 1970.
Music · 1956–2012Bob BirchbassistDetroit-born, Wayne State–trained bassist who played in Elton John's band for two decades.
Religion · born 1949Leonard Paul BlairCatholic Archbishop of Hartford (2013–2024)Detroit-born priest who served as an auxiliary bishop of Detroit, then as Bishop of Toledo and Archbishop of Hartford.
Politics · born 1942James Blanchardlawyer, congressman, governor of Michigan, diplomatDetroit-born, Ferndale-raised Democrat who led the 1979 Chrysler loan guarantee through Congress and governed Michigan through the 1980s recovery (1983–1991).Alexander Joseph BrunettCatholic Archbishop of Seattle (1997–2010)Detroit-born priest who spent 35 years in Detroit-area ministry, led the archdiocese's ecumenical and interfaith work, then became Archbishop of Seattle.Alfred H. Barr Jr.art historian, museum directorDetroit-born art historian who became the first director of New York's Museum of Modern Art and shaped how the world sees modern art.
Sports · born 1972Jerome BettisAmerican football running backDetroit-born Hall of Fame running back, "the Bus", who won Super Bowl XL with Pittsburgh at Ford Field in his hometown and retired on the spot.
Music · born 2000BabyTronrapper, songwriterYpsilanti rapper of the ShittyBoyz whose joke-dense, pop-culture-packed bars made him a breakout star of the Detroit rap scene and an Eminem collaborator.
Politics · 1814–1892Henry P. Baldwinshoe merchant, banker, governor of Michigan, U.S. senatorDetroit boot and shoe wholesaler and banker who built St. John's Episcopal Church on Woodward, served as governor (1869–1873) and gave Hazen Pingree his first Detroit job.
Visual art · 1915–1978
Harry Bertoiasculptor, furniture and jewelry designerItalian-born artist who grew up in Detroit, studied at Cass Tech and Cranbrook, and later created the Diamond Chair and sounding sculptures.
Politics · born 1945David Boniorpolitician, labor advocateDetroit-born Macomb County congressman (1977–2003) who rose to House Democratic whip and led labor's fight against NAFTA.
Science & invention · born 1944Larry Brilliantepidemiologist, technologist, philanthropistDetroit-born epidemiologist and Wayne State medical graduate who helped the World Health Organization eradicate smallpox and later led Google.org.Johnny Bristolsongwriter, producer, singerMotown producer and writer of "Someday We'll Be Together" who began in the Detroit duo Johnny & Jackey and later scored "Hang On in There Baby".
Music · 1938–2005Roy Brooksjazz drummer, percussionist, bandleaderDetroit drummer who played on Horace Silver's Song for My Father, joined Max Roach's M'Boom, and after returning home in 1975 became a pillar and teacher of the city's jazz scene.BugzrapperFounding member of D12, a gifted Detroit freestyler who was shot and killed in 1999, just before the group's breakthrough.
MusicMike Banksrecord producer, musician, label and distribution founderCo-founder of Underground Resistance and Submerge, the militant, independent heart of Detroit's second techno wave, based on East Grand Boulevard.
Music · 1935–2012Johnnie Bassettblues guitarist, singer, songwriterDetroit-raised blues guitarist who played on Fortune Records sessions in the 1950s and, late in life, became the city's elder statesman of jump blues.
Politics · born 1977Jocelyn Bensonlawyer, law school dean, Michigan secretary of stateElection-law scholar who came to Detroit to clerk for Judge Damon Keith, became the youngest woman to lead an accredited law school at Wayne State, and has been Michigan's secretary of state since 2019.Shelton Brookscomposer, pianist, vaudeville performerCanadian-born songwriter who grew up in Detroit, where he first made his name, and wrote "Some of These Days" and "At the Darktown Strutters' Ball".
Music · 1936–2015Marcus Belgravejazz trumpeter, educatorTrumpeter who left Ray Charles's band for Detroit in 1963 to record at Motown and became the city's great jazz teacher, mentoring a generation of Detroit stars.
Architecture & design · born 1945Charles Bigelowtype designer, type historianType designer who grew up in the Detroit suburbs and attended Cranbrook School, and co-created the Lucida and Wingdings font families.
Music · 1937–2012Bob BabbittbassistPittsburgh-born Funk Brothers bassist (1966–1972) who shared sessions with James Jamerson and played on "War", "Band of Gold" and "Inner City Blues".The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗
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