Oberlin College

Discover the notable alumni of Oberlin College. The list includes people like Ed Helms, Corey Stoll, Sinclair Lewis, John Wesley Powell & Robert Andrews Millikan. This list of notable alumni is loosely sorted by popularity and has people from different domains of life, such as intellectuals & academics, writers, scientists, miscellaneous and activists etc.
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 1 
Ed Helms
(Actor)
Ed Helms
39
Birthdate: January 24, 1974
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia, United States
Best known as Andy Bernard from The Office and Stuart Price from The Hangover trilogy, Edward Helms has also been a correspondent on The Daily Show and voiced animated characters such as Once-ler in The Lorax. He is part of a bluegrass band and created a Yahoo! Screen web series.
 2 
Michelle Malkin
(Political Commentator, Author and Blogger)
Michelle Malkin
11
Birthdate: October 20, 1970
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States

Michelle Malkin is an American blogger, author, political commentator, and businesswoman. Her weekly syndicated column gets featured in several websites and newspapers. Apart from writing four books and contributing to TV channels, such as Fox News, Michelle Malkin is also credited with founding the conservative websites Hot Air and Twitchy.

 3 
Avery Brooks
7
Birthdate: October 2, 1948
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Evansville, Indiana, United States
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
 4 
Corey Stoll
11
Birthdate: March 14, 1976
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: New York City, New York, USA

Corey Stoll is an American actor best known for playing Peter Russo on the popular political thriller television series House of Cards. As an actor who plays important roles, Corey Stoll has contributed to the success of popular films like Ant-Man, Midnight in Paris, Black Mass, and First Man.

 5 
William Goldman
(Novelist)
William Goldman
1
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: August 12, 1931
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Highland Park, Illinois, USA
Died: November 16, 2018
Height: 6'1" (185 cm)
 6 
Bill Irwin
(Actor)
Bill Irwin
2
Birthdate: April 11, 1950
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Santa Monica, California, USA
Height: 5'11" (180 cm)
 7 
Edmonia Lewis
(First African-American and Native American Sculptor to Achieve International Prominence)
Edmonia Lewis
3
Birthdate: July 4, 1844
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Rensselaer County, New York, United States
Died: September 17, 1907

Edmonia Lewis was an American sculptor who worked in Rome for most of her career. The first African-American sculptor to gain international prominence, Lewis was also the only Black female artist to have participated and recognized by the American artistic mainstream until the end of the 19th century. Molefi Kete Asante included Lewis in his 100 Greatest African Americans list.

 8 
Thornton Wilder
(Playwright)
Thornton Wilder
2
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: April 17, 1897
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Madison, Wisconsin, United States
Died: December 7, 1975
 9 
Lynn Shelton
(Film director)
Lynn Shelton
2
Birthdate: August 27, 1965
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Oberlin, Ohio, U.S.
Died: May 16, 2020
 10 
Sinclair Lewis
(Nobel Prize Winner in Literature)
Sinclair Lewis
7
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: February 7, 1885
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Sauk Centre
Died: January 10, 1951
 11 
Liz Phair
(Singer)
Liz Phair
7
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: April 17, 1967
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: New Haven, Connecticut, USA
Height: 5'2" (157 cm)
 12 
Willard Van Orman Quine
(Mathematician, Analytic philosopher, Philosopher of language, Epistemologist, Philosopher of science, University teacher, Professor, Philosopher)
Willard Van Orman Quine
5
Birthdate: June 25, 1908
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Akron
Died: December 25, 2000
 13 
Eric Bogosian
(Actor and Playwright Known for His Play 'SubUrbia' and TV Series 'Law & Order: Criminal Intent')
Eric Bogosian
5
Birthdate: April 24, 1953
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Woburn, Massachusetts, United States

Eric Bogosian is an American actor, playwright, novelist, and historian. He is credited with writing plays like Talk Radio and SubUrbia, which were adapted into films. Over the course of his career, Bogosian has won several awards including three Obie Awards. He was honored at the 1989 Berlin Film Festival with the Silver Bear for his work on Talk Radio. 

 14 
Rhiannon Giddens
(Musician)
Rhiannon Giddens
2
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: February 21, 1977
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Greensboro, North Carolina, United States
 15 
Jerry Greenfield
(Entrepreneur)
Jerry Greenfield
7
Listed In: Business People
Birthdate: March 14, 1951
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Brooklyn, New York, United States
Height: 5'3" (160 cm)
 16 
Alison Bechdel
(American Cartoonist Known for the Long-Running Comic Strip 'Dykes to Watch Out For')
Alison Bechdel
3
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: September 10, 1960
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Beech Creek, Pennsylvania, United States

Cartoonist Alison Bechdel is best known for her Dykes to Watch Out For strip, which gained a lot of popularity in various LGBT weeklies. The strip’s prime character is believed to be modeled on her. The lesbian artist’s works gave rise to the Bechdel Test, which targets gender inequality in Hollywood.

 17 
Marc Cohn
(Rock singer)
Marc Cohn
1
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: July 5, 1959
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
 18 
Lena Dunham
(Actress)
Lena Dunham
28
Birthdate: May 13, 1986
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: New York City, U.S.
Height: 5'3" (160 cm)
 19 
Josh Ritter
(Singer-songwriter, Musician, Singer, Songwriter)
Josh Ritter
2
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: October 21, 1976
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Moscow
 20 
Jason Molina
(Musician)
Jason Molina
1
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: December 30, 1973
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Lorain, Ohio, USA
Died: March 16, 2013
 21 
John Wesley Powell
(Explorer, Geologist)
John Wesley Powell
1
Birthdate: March 24, 1834
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Mount Morris
Died: September 23, 1902

John Wesley Powell was a geologist and explorer of the American West. He undertook a series of adventures as a young man and later joined the military. He is best known for the three-month-long geographic expedition he undertook down the Green and Colorado rivers. He was made the director of the U.S. Geological Survey in 1881.  

 22 
John Cazale
87
Birthdate: August 12, 1935
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Revere, Massachusetts, United States
Died: March 12, 1978

John Cazale is best remembered for his memorable performance as Fredo Corleone in two The Godfather films. Fans also loved him in The Deer Hunter, The Conversation, and Dog Day Afternoon. He also performed in Broadway and off-Broadway plays. He met an untimely death at 42, due to lung cancer.

 23 
Robert Andrews Millikan
2
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: March 22, 1868
Sun Sign: Aries
Birthplace: Morrison
Died: December 19, 1953

Nobel Prize-winning experimental physicist Robert Andrews Millikan had begun his career as a faculty member at the University of Chicago and penned countless physics books. He later devoted himself to his research on elementary electronic charge and the photoelectric effect. His famous oil-drop experiment is known to all physics enthusiasts.

 24 
Henrietta Swan Leavitt
0
Listed In: Scientists
Birthdate: July 4, 1868
Sun Sign: Cancer
Birthplace: Lancaster, Massachusetts
Died: December 12, 1921

Born to a church minister, Henrietta Swan Leavitt grew up to work as a “human computer” at the Harvard Observatory. The American astronomer gained fame for discovering the period-luminosity relation of Cepheid variables. However, her brilliant scientific career was halted by her death due to stomach cancer at 53.

 25 
Moses Fleetwood Walker
(Baseball player)
Moses Fleetwood Walker
2
Listed In: Sportspersons
Birthdate: September 7, 1856
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Mount Pleasant, Ohio, United States
Died: May 11, 1924
 26 
Will Chase
(Actor)
Will Chase
4
Birthdate: September 12, 1970
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Frankfort, Kentucky, USA
Height: 6'0" (183 cm)
 27 
Jon Theodore
(Drummer)
Jon Theodore
0
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: December 30, 1973
Sun Sign: Capricorn
Birthplace: Baltimore, Maryland, United States
 28 
James McBride
(American Writer and Musician)
James McBride
3
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: September 11, 1957
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: New York City, New York, US
Height: 6'4" (193 cm)
 29 
Lucy Stone
(American Abolitionist, Suffragist, Orator, and Women's Rights Activist)
Lucy Stone
2
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: August 13, 1818
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: West Brookfield, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died: October 19, 1893

Lucy Stone was an American abolitionist, suffragist, orator, and women's rights activist. She was the first woman to earn a college degree from Massachusetts. Stone played a key role in the formation of the Woman's National Loyal League as well as the American Woman Suffrage Association. In 1986, she was made an inductee of the National Women's Hall of Fame.

 30 
Andras Schiff
(Pianist)
Andras Schiff
4
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: December 21, 1953
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Budapest, Hungary

Born to Holocaust survivors, Hungarian-born pianist Andras Schiff began learning the piano at age 5. He is now best known for his interpretations of legends such as of Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven. His numerous awards include a Grammy. He was also knighted for his achievements.

 31 
Karen O
(Singer)
Karen O
4
Listed In: Singers
Birthdate: November 22, 1978
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: South Korea
Height: 5'6" (168 cm)
 32 
Rollo May
(Psychologist)
Rollo May
3
Birthdate: April 21, 1909
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Ada, Ohio, United States
Died: October 22, 1994
 33 
Elisha Gray
(Engineer)
Elisha Gray
0
Birthdate: August 2, 1835
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Barnesville
Died: January 21, 1901
 34 
Romulus Linney
(Playwright, Novelist)
Romulus Linney
0
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: September 21, 1930
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Died: January 15, 2011
 35 
Mary Church Terrell
(African-American Suffragist, Civil Rights Activist)
Mary Church Terrell
2
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: September 23, 1863
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Memphis, Tennessee, United States
Died: July 24, 1954

Mary Church Terrell was an African-American suffragist and civil rights activist. She was one of the first women of African-American heritage to earn a college degree. Terrell helped establish the National Association of Colored Women and served as its first president. Mary Church Terrell was made an inductee of the National Women's Hall of Fame in 2020.

 36 
Anna Julia Cooper
(One of the Most Important African-American Scholars in US History)
Anna Julia Cooper
7
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: August 10, 1858
Sun Sign: Leo
Birthplace: Raleigh, North Carolina, U.S.A.
Died: February 27, 1964

Anna Julia Cooper was an American author, sociologist, educator, Black liberation activist, and speaker. She was one of the most important African-American scholars in US history. In 1924, Anna Julia Cooper earned her PhD from the University of Paris, becoming only the fourth African-American woman to receive a doctoral degree.

 37 
Max Robinson
(Broadcaster)
Max Robinson
0
Birthdate: May 1, 1939
Sun Sign: Taurus
Birthplace: Richmond, Virginia, U.S.
Died: December 20, 1988
 38 
James Lawson
(university teacher, pastor)
James Lawson
1
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: September 22, 1928
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Massillon

James Lawson is an American professor and activist. A prominent tactician and theoretician of nonviolence, Lawson played a major role during the Civil Rights Movement. In the 1960s, Lawson doubled up as a mentor to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee as well as the Nashville Student Movement. James Lawson also served as a pastor for 25 years.

 39 
Christopher Browning
(American Historian)
Christopher Browning
1
Birthdate: May 22, 1944
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Durham, North Carolina, United States

Christopher Browning is an American historian who serves as a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Browning, who has studied the Holocaust for most of his life, is best known for working on the Final Solution. He has received several prestigious awards like National Jewish Book Award and Yad Vashem International Book Prize for Holocaust Research. 

 40 
John Kander
(Composer)
John Kander
3
Listed In: Musicians
Birthdate: March 18, 1927
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: Kansas City, Missouri, United States
 41 
Donald Henderson
(Medical Doctor)
Donald Henderson
0
Listed In: Physicians
Birthdate: September 7, 1928
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Lakewood, Ohio, United States
Died: August 19, 2016
 42 
Kenneth Waltz
(Political Scientist)
Kenneth Waltz
1
Birthdate: June 8, 1924
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
Died: May 12, 2013
 43 
Anna Louise Strong
(Writer, Journalist, Activist, Trade unionist)
Anna Louise Strong
0
Birthdate: November 24, 1885
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Friend
Died: March 29, 1970
 44 
Richard Theodore Greener
(Educator)
Richard Theodore Greener
0
Listed In: Miscellaneous
Birthdate: January 30, 1844
Sun Sign: Aquarius
Birthplace: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States
Died: May 2, 1922
 45 
John Mercer Langston
(Attorney)
John Mercer Langston
0
Listed In: Activists
Birthdate: December 14, 1829
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Louisa, Virginia, United States
Died: November 15, 1897
 46 
Bruce Catton
(American Historian and Journalist Known Best for His Books Concerning the 'American Civil War')
Bruce Catton
0
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: October 9, 1899
Sun Sign: Libra
Birthplace: Petoskey, Michigan, United States
Died: August 28, 1978

Journalist and historian Bruce Catton is best remembered for his books on the American Civil War. He quit his studies midway to join the navy during World War I and then became a journalist, working for publications and magazines. His A Stillness at Appomattox won him a Pulitzer Prize.

 47 
Charles Martin Hall
4
Birthdate: December 6, 1863
Sun Sign: Sagittarius
Birthplace: Thompson Township, Ohio, United States
Died: December 27, 1914
 48 
John Langalibalele Dube
(South African Essayist, Novelist, Poet and Founding President of the South African Native National Congress)
John Langalibalele Dube
0
Listed In: Writers
Birthdate: February 22, 1871
Sun Sign: Pisces
Birthplace: KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Died: February 11, 1946

John Langalibalele Dube was a South African essayist, philosopher, politician, publisher, educator, editor, novelist, and poet. He served as the president of the South African Native National Congress (SANNC) from 1912 to 1917. He felt strongly about human rights and founded the Inanda Seminary Institute for Girls. He was passionate about encouraging black people to launch their own businesses. 

 49 
Eduardo Mondlane
(Anthropologist)
Eduardo Mondlane
1
Birthdate: June 20, 1920
Sun Sign: Gemini
Birthplace: Manjacaze, Mozambique
Died: February 3, 1969
 50 
John Gutfreund
(Businessman)
John Gutfreund
1
Listed In: Business People
Birthdate: September 14, 1929
Sun Sign: Virgo
Birthplace: Scarsdale, New York, United States
Died: March 9, 2016