Athletes

LeBron James

Akron, Ohio

Born in Akron in 1984, LeBron Raymone James went directly from St. Vincent-St. Mary High School to the NBA as the first overall pick in 2003. He was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers — the hometown team, 40 miles from where he grew up. He became the most hyped prospect in basketball history, and then he exceeded the hype.

The 2016 NBA Championship — when LeBron brought the Cavaliers back from a 3-1 deficit against the 73-win Warriors — ended a 52-year championship drought for Cleveland. His post-game declaration, "Cleveland, this is for you", is one of the most iconic moments in Ohio sports history. The kid from Akron delivered what the city had been waiting half a century for.

LeBron's relationship with Ohio is complicated — "The Decision" to leave for Miami in 2010 felt like betrayal — but his return, the championship, and his ongoing investment in Akron (the I Promise School, the LeBron James Family Foundation) have cemented his status as Ohio's greatest living athlete.

Jesse Owens

Cleveland, Ohio

At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Jesse Owens won four gold medals in front of Adolf Hitler, destroying the myth of Aryan supremacy on the world stage. He set three world records and tied a fourth. Owens grew up in Cleveland after his family moved from Alabama during the Great Migration, and he developed his athletic abilities at East Technical High School and Ohio State University.

More Athletes from Ohio

  • Jack Nicklaus (Columbus) — "The Golden Bear," 18 major championships, widely considered the greatest golfer ever
  • Cy Young (Gilmore, Tuscarawas County) — Baseball legend, the award for pitching excellence bears his name
  • Stephen Curry (born in Akron) — NBA superstar and greatest shooter in basketball history
  • Travis & Jason Kelce — NFL stars with Cleveland Heights roots

Entertainment & Music

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Cleveland Ohio - honoring Ohio's deep music heritage OHIO'S STAGE

Steven Spielberg

Cincinnati, Ohio

The most commercially successful filmmaker in history was born in Cincinnati in 1946. Jaws, E.T., Schindler's List, Jurassic Park, Saving Private Ryan, Indiana Jones — the list is absurd. Spielberg's family moved to Arizona when he was young, so Ohio doesn't get full credit. But the birth certificate doesn't lie.

The Music List

Ohio's music pedigree extends across every genre, and it's staggering when you see it assembled:

  • Dave Grohl (Warren) — Nirvana's drummer, Foo Fighters founder, certified rock deity
  • Chrissie Hynde (Akron) — The Pretenders
  • Dean Martin (Steubenville) — Singer, actor, Rat Pack cool incarnate
  • John Legend (Springfield) — EGOT-winning musician
  • Tracy Chapman (Cleveland) — "Fast Car," Grammy-winning voice
  • Doris Day (Cincinnati) — Singer and actress, America's sweetheart of the 1950s
  • The Isley Brothers (Cincinnati) — "Shout," "It's Your Thing," decades of influence
  • Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (Cleveland) — Pioneered melodic rap
  • Machine Gun Kelly (Cleveland) — Rapper turned pop-punk crossover
  • Devo (Akron) — "Whip It," born from the Kent State shootings

Film, TV & Stage

  • Halle Berry (Cleveland) — Academy Award-winning actress
  • Paul Newman (Shaker Heights/Cleveland) — Actor, philanthropist, race car driver, salad dressing mogul
  • Drew Carey (Cleveland) — Comedian, host of The Price is Right, Cleveland's most vocal ambassador
  • Wes Craven (Cleveland) — Director of Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream. Cleveland apparently produces horror.
  • Nancy Cartwright (Kettering) — The voice of Bart Simpson is from Dayton's suburbs
  • Sarah Jessica Parker — Raised in part in Ohio

Inventors & Innovators

Ohio's invention legacy is covered in depth on our Legends page, but the people behind the inventions deserve their own recognition:

  • Thomas Edison (Milan) — Light bulb, phonograph, motion pictures, 1,000+ patents. The most prolific inventor in American history grew up in Ohio.
  • The Wright Brothers (Dayton) — Invented powered flight. Dayton's bicycle shop mechanics changed civilization.
  • Garrett Morgan (Cleveland) — Invented the traffic light and the gas mask. An African American inventor who saved lives in both war and peace.
  • Charles Kettering (Loudonville) — Electric car starter, Freon, leaded gasoline, 186 patents. The man who made cars start without a hand crank.
  • Granville T. Woods (Columbus) — Over 60 patents. Beat Edison in court and turned down Edison's job offer.

Authors & Thinkers

  • Toni Morrison (Lorain) — Nobel Prize in Literature. Beloved, Song of Solomon, The Bluest Eye. February 18 is Toni Morrison Day in Ohio.
  • James Thurber (Columbus) — Humorist, cartoonist, The New Yorker legend. His Columbus childhood informed decades of American humor.
  • Zane Grey (Zanesville) — Western novels that defined the genre. The most popular American author of the early 20th century.
  • Gloria Steinem (Toledo) — Feminist icon and activist who reshaped American political conversation
  • Victoria Woodhull (Homer) — First woman nominated for U.S. President, in 1872. From Homer, Ohio.
  • Erma Bombeck (Dayton) — Beloved humor columnist who made suburban life funny for millions of newspaper readers
  • Paul Laurence Dunbar (Dayton) — Among the first African American authors to achieve national prominence

Presidents & Astronauts

Ohio has produced eight U.S. presidents and 25+ astronauts. The full stories behind these numbers — including why Ohio was the 19th century's kingmaker state and what it is about the Buckeye State that makes people want to leave Earth — are covered in depth on our Legends page.

The Presidents

William Henry Harrison, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, William Howard Taft, Warren G. Harding. More than any state except Virginia.

The Astronauts

Neil Armstrong (Wapakoneta) — first human on the Moon. John Glenn (Cambridge) — first American in orbit, later U.S. Senator. Judith Resnik (Akron) — Challenger crew. Kathryn Sullivan — first American woman spacewalker.

And Also...

  • Annie Oakley (Darke County) — Legendary sharpshooter who could split a playing card edge-on and hit dimes tossed in the air. Buffalo Bill's star attraction.
  • Daniel Beard (Cincinnati) — Founded the Boy Scouts of America
  • J.D. Vance (Middletown) — Author of Hillbilly Elegy, current U.S. Vice President
  • Dorothy Dandridge (Cleveland) — First African American actress nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award
  • Harvey Pekar (Cleveland Heights) — VA file clerk who created American Splendor and proved comics could be literature about ordinary life
"Ohio produces an absurd number of historically significant people. There's a famous joke: 'What is it about Ohio that makes people want to leave Earth?' — referencing the disproportionate number of astronauts from the state."