Music · 1925–1981Bill Haleysinger, guitarist, bandleaderRock and roll pioneer of “Rock Around the Clock,” born in Highland Park, the Ford factory town surrounded by Detroit, in 1925.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.
- 664 famous people
- 66 Detroit places
- 11 fields
Field
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A–Z (family name)
19 people
Clear filtersMusic · 1925–1981Bill Haleysinger, guitarist, bandleaderRock and roll pioneer of “Rock Around the Clock,” born in Highland Park, the Ford factory town surrounded by Detroit, in 1925.
Film & TV · 1922–2002Kim Hunterstage, film and television actressDetroit-born actress who created Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire on Broadway, won an Oscar for the film, and later played Zira in Planet of the Apes.
Theatre & dance · 1925–2013Julie HarrisactressOne of the great actresses of the American stage, winner of five Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Play, born and raised in Grosse Pointe.
Film & TV · born 1953Tom Hulceactor, theater producerOscar-nominated Mozart of Amadeus, born in Detroit and raised in Plymouth, the son of a Ford Motor Company employee.
Film & TV · born 1965Mike Henryvoice actor, writer, producerFamily Guy writer and longtime voice of Cleveland Brown, born in Pontiac, Michigan.
Film & TV · born 1979Elisabeth HarnoisactressFormer child star of Disney's Adventures in Wonderland and CSI investigator Morgan Brody, born in Detroit.
Music · born 1991Angel Hazerapper, singerDetroit-born rapper and singer (now performing as ROES) known for the album Dirty Gold and raw, confessional verses; they grew up in the city before moving to New York at 15.
Music · 1929–2021Barry Harrisjazz pianist, composer, educatorDetroit bebop pianist whose family home was a jam-session school for a generation of the city's jazz musicians, and who became one of jazz's great teachers.
Music · born 1942Wendell Harrisonjazz saxophonist, clarinetist, label founder, educatorDetroit saxophonist and clarinetist who co-founded Tribe, the 1970s Black-consciousness jazz label and magazine, and later the Rebirth education organization.
Politics · born 1990Abdullah Hammoudpolitician, mayor of DearbornDearborn-born son of Lebanese immigrants who in 2022 became the city's first Arab American and first Muslim mayor, in the hometown of Henry Ford.
Labor · born 1941James P. HoffaTeamsters General President (1999–2022), labor lawyerDetroit-born son of Jimmy Hoffa who practiced labor law in the city and led the Teamsters for five terms, from 1999 to 2022.
Music · born 1952John Lee Hooker Jr.blues singer, songwriter, ministerDetroit-born son of John Lee Hooker who sang on local radio as a child, toured with his father, and later earned Grammy nominations with his own modern blues.
Music · born 1964Robert Hurstjazz bassist, composer, educatorDetroit-born bassist who played with Wynton and Branford Marsalis, spent the 1990s in The Tonight Show Band, and now teaches jazz bass at the University of Michigan.
Music · born 1973Deitrick Haddongospel singer, songwriter, producer, pastorDetroit-born progressive gospel singer and producer, leader of Voices of Unity, known for "Sinner's Prayer" and the reality series Preachers of L.A.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own.