Film & TV · born 1966Dean Cainactor, producer, former football playerTV's 1990s Superman in Lois & Clark was born at Selfridge Air Force Base in Macomb County, northeast of Detroit.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.
- 1,940 famous people
- 366 Detroit places
- 21 fields
Hungarian ties 22 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Field
Connection
Born in
A–Z (family name)
39 people
Clear filtersFilm & TV · born 1966Dean Cainactor, producer, former football playerTV's 1990s Superman in Lois & Clark was born at Selfridge Air Force Base in Macomb County, northeast of Detroit.
Sports · born 1981José Calderónbasketball point guard, team executiveSpanish point guard who spent 14 NBA seasons mostly with Toronto but returned to the Pistons twice, once as a starter and once at the end of his career.
Sports · 1886–1961Ty Cobbbaseball player, center fielder, player-managerWidely regarded as one of the greatest hitters in baseball history, Cobb played 22 of his 24 major-league seasons with the Detroit Tigers and served as the team's player-manager for his last six.
Auto industry · 1878–1941Louis Chevroletracing driver, engineer, co-founder of ChevroletSwiss-born racer who designed the first Chevrolet in a Detroit workshop in 1911 and later returned to the city's factories as a mechanic.
Sports · 1889–1972Ralph Craigtrack and field athlete, sprinterDetroit-born sprinter who won Olympic gold in both the 100 meters and 200 meters at the 1912 Stockholm Games, later carrying the American flag at the 1948 Olympics.
Sports · born 1993Kentavious Caldwell-Popebasketball player, shooting guardEighth overall pick in 2013 who became the Pistons' starting shooting guard for four seasons and their best perimeter defender before winning NBA titles elsewhere.
Sports · 1941–2015Henry CarrsprinterTwo-time Olympic gold medalist sprinter who grew up in Detroit and set state records at Northwestern High School before starring at Arizona State.
Sports · born 1959Rick Carlislebasketball coach, former playerHall-of-Fame-caliber coach who ran the Pistons bench for two seasons, reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals before Detroit let him go with a year left on his contract.
Sports · born 1951Doug Collinsbasketball coach and broadcasterHead coach of the Pistons from 1995 to 1998 who built the team around a young Grant Hill and ended a long losing streak against the rival Chicago Bulls.
Sports · born 1962Chris Cheliosice hockey defensemanHall of Fame defenseman who joined the Red Wings in 1999, won Stanley Cups in 2002 and 2008 and played in Detroit into his late forties.
Sports · born 1983Miguel Cabrerabaseball player, first baseman, third baseman, designated hitterVenezuelan-born slugger who spent sixteen seasons with the Tigers, won the 2012 Triple Crown, two American League MVP awards, and remains one of only three players with 3,000 hits, 500 home runs and a .300 career average.
Sports · born 1979Swin Cashbasketball player, broadcaster, executiveWNBA Hall of Famer who was the second overall pick of the Detroit Shock in 2002 and led the team to championships in 2003 and 2006.
Sports · born 1961Paul Coffeyice hockey defencemanHall of Fame defenceman, second all-time among NHL blueliners in points, who spent three and a half seasons with the Red Wings and won a Norris Trophy in Detroit.
Sports · born 1996Kyle Connorice hockey forwardMetro Detroit-born NHL forward for the Winnipeg Jets who learned the game in the Belle Tire youth hockey program before starring at the University of Michigan.
Sports · born 1987Joe Cadaprofessional poker playerPoker pro from Shelby Township in Macomb County who won the 2009 World Series of Poker Main Event at 21, then the youngest champion ever.
Sports · born 1990Will Clyburnbasketball playerDetroit-born forward who starred at Romulus High School before a college career at three schools and a long professional career in Europe, winning EuroLeague Final Four MVP in 2019.
Sports · born 1988Jordan Crawfordbasketball playerDetroit-born guard who attended a Detroit public high school before a college and NBA career that took him to Washington, Boston and several other franchises.
Sports · born 1946Don Chaneybasketball coach, former playerTwo-time NBA champion as a player elsewhere who worked as a Pistons assistant coach and later served two seasons as Detroit's head coach in the mid-1990s.
Sports · born 1960Dino Ciccarelliice hockey player, right wingerHall of Fame goal-scorer who reached his 500th career goal with the Red Wings and later opened Detroit-area sports bars named for his jersey number.
Sports · born 1978Daniel Clearyice hockey forward, front-office executiveNewfoundland-born forward who made the Red Wings out of a tryout in 2005, won the 2008 Stanley Cup as the first Newfoundlander ever to do so, and now directs the team's player development.
Sports · 1922–1990Nathaniel Cliftonbasketball and baseball playerOne of the first African American players in the NBA, who closed his basketball career with the Pistons after their move to Detroit, then joined the Negro-league Detroit Stars.
Sports · born 1976Ty Conklinice hockey goaltenderJourneyman backup goaltender who twice signed with the Red Wings, backstopping Detroit to the 2009 Stanley Cup Final and recording a memorable shutout at the Winter Classic.
Sports · born 1994Andrew Coppice hockey forwardAnn Arbor-born forward who played youth hockey with Detroit Compuware, starred at the University of Michigan and signed a five-year contract with the Red Wings in 2022.
Sports · 1903–1962Mickey Cochranebaseball catcher and managerHall of Fame catcher who, as player-manager, led the Tigers to pennants in 1934 and 1935 and Detroit's first World Series title.
Sports · 1880–1968Sam Crawfordbaseball player, outfielderHall of Fame Tigers right fielder of 1903–1917, Ty Cobb's teammate and rival, who still holds the major-league record for career triples.
Sports · 1957–2024Earl Curetonbasketball forward and centerDetroit native who played for the University of Detroit and his hometown Pistons and won NBA titles with Philadelphia and Houston.
Sports · born 1976Dan CampbellAmerican football coach, former tight endFormer Lions tight end who became head coach in 2021 and, after a famous "kneecaps" introduction, turned Detroit into a Super Bowl contender.
Sports · 1933–1986Norm Cashbaseball player, first basemanFun-loving Tigers first baseman of 1960–1974 who won the 1961 batting title and was the first Tiger to hit a ball over Tiger Stadium's right-field roof.
Sports · 1928–1986Jack ChristiansenAmerican football safety and return specialistHall of Fame safety whose name was given to the Lions' famed 1950s secondary, "Chris's Crew", and one of the most dangerous punt returners in NFL history.
Politics · 1869–1927George P. Coddlawyer, mayor of Detroit, judge, congressmanDetroit-born lawyer and former Michigan baseball captain who was mayor in 1905–1906, then a Wayne County circuit judge and congressman.
Press & broadcasting · 1928–2016Paul Careyradio broadcasterWJR announcer for 36 years and Ernie Harwell's longtime partner on Tigers radio, known for his deep baritone.
Sports · 1898–1941Andy Cooperbaseball pitcher and managerHall of Fame left-hander who pitched nine seasons for the Negro-league Detroit Stars; one historian called him the greatest pitcher ever to play for a Detroit team.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 ↗