List of people from Oakland, California

Academics

• Robert Harvey - comparative literature, philosophy
• Nanos Valaoritis - comparative literature, poetry

  Artists and designers

• Natalia Anciso - artist and educator
• Olive Ayhens – painter
• Steven F. Arnold - filmmaker, photographer, painter, illustrator, set and costume designer, and assemblage artist
• Garry Knox Bennett - woodworker, metalworker, furniture maker, artist
• Bernice Bing - artist, activist
• Warrington Colescott - artist and educator
• Henry Doane - landscape painter, commercial artist
• Roger C. Field - industrial designer, graduated from California College of the Arts
• Walter J. Mathews - architect, designed the First Unitarian Church of Oakland
• Bernard Maybeck - architect
• Jeremy Mayer - sculptor
• Julia Morgan - architect, raised and buried in Oakland
• Willis O'Brien - animator
• Nathan Oliveira - painter, printmaker, sculptor, professor
• Lisa Quinn - artist, author, designer
• Galen Rowell - photographer
• J. Otto Seibold - artist, illustrator, author
• Elizabeth Sher - documentary and short filmmaker, artist
• Seasick Steve - blues musician
• Betty Swords - cartoonist
• Morrie Turner - artist, illustrator, author of the Wee Pals comic strip
• Wendy Yoshimura - artist

  Athletes

• Zack Andrews - baseball player
• Pervis Atkins - NFL fotball player, Los Angeles Rams, Washington Redskins, Oakland Raiders, actor, The Longest Yard
• Drew Barry - basketball player
• Jon Barry - basketball player and sportscaster
• Charlie Beamon - baseball pitcher
• Charlie Beamon, Jr. - baseball player
• Davone Bess - football player
• Will Blackwell - football player
• Linc Blakely - Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds
• Marlin Briscoe - football player
• John Brodie - football player and sportscaster
• Jabari Brown - basketball player
• Don Budge - tennis player
• Chris Burford - football player
• Glenn Burke - baseball player
• Steve Clark - swimmer, won five Olympic gold medals
• Ray Crouse - football player
• Bruce Cunningham - Major League Baseball player, Boston Braves
• Antonio Davis - basketball player
• Steve DeBerg - football player
• Bernie DeViveiros - Major League Baseball player, Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers
• Taylor Douthit - Major League Baseball player, St. Louis Cardinals, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds
• Forey Duckett - football player
• Dennis Eckersley - baseball player
• Manny Fernandez - football player
• Eric Fernsten - basketball player, NBA, CBA, and Europe
• Curt Flood - Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinals, Washington Senators known for challenging the Reserve clause
• Greg Foster - basketball player
• La Vel Freeman - baseball player
• Len Gabrielson - Major League Baseball player, Philadelphia Phillies
• Len Gabrielson - Major League Baseball player, Milwaukee Braves, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants, California Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers
• Joe Gaines - Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles, Houston Astros
• Derrick Gardner - football player
• Brad Gilbert - tennis player and coach
• John Gillespie - Major League Baseball player, Cincinnati Reds
• Jesse Gonder -baseball player
• Drew Gooden - basketball player
• Alexis Gray-Lawson - basketball player, Phoenix Mercury
• Bob Greenwood - Major League Baseball player, Philadelphia Phillies
• Bud Hafey - Major League Baseball player, Chicago White Sox, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies
• Tom Hafey - Major League Baseball player, New York Giants, St. Louis Browns
• Roger Harding - football player
• Rickey Henderson - baseball player
• Jan Henne - swimmer, two-time gold medalist at 1968 Summer Olympics
• Steve Hosey - baseball player
• Al Hrabosky - baseball pitcher and sportscaster
• Proverb Jacobs - NFL football player, Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants
• Jackie Jensen - baseball player
• Brian Johnson - baseball player
• Josh Johnson - Quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals
• Maurice Jones-Drew - football player
• Robert Jordan - football player
• Bobby Kemp - football player
• Jason Kidd - basketball player and coach
• MacArthur Lane - football player
• Cookie Lavagetto - baseball player and manager
• Tony Lema - golfer
• Bill Lester - NASCAR driver
• Damian Lillard - basketball player
• Ernie Lombardi - baseball player
• Don Lofgran - professional basketball player
• Terrell Lowery - baseball player
• Lorenzo Lynch - football player
• Marshawn Lynch - football player
• Eddie McGah - baseball player, part-owner of Oakland Raiders
• Bill McKalip - college All-American football player, NFL player, Portsmouth Spartans / Detroit Lions
• Joe Mellana - Major League Baseball player, Philadelphia Athletics
• Demetrius "Hook" Mitchell - streetball player, convicted for armed robbery
• Joe Morgan - baseball second baseman and sportscaster
• Kirk Morrison - football player
• Hank Norberg - football player
• Mike Norris - baseball player
• Zoe Ann Olsen - olympic diver
• Gary Payton - basketball player, born and raised in Oakland
• Gary Pettis - baseball player and coach
• Paul Pierce - basketball player
• Vada Pinson - baseball player and coach
• Jim Pollard - basketball player
• Leon Powe - basketball player
• Jarrod Pughsley - football player
• John Ralston - football player and coach
• Isiah Rider - basketball player
• Chris Roberson - baseball player
• Frank Robinson - baseball player and manager
• Jimmy Rollins - baseball player
• Bill Russell - basketball player and coach
• Luis Scott-Vargas - player
• Brian Shaw - basketball player and coach
• Paul Silas - basketball player and coach
• Fred Silva - football official
• Marvel Smith - football player
• Dave Stewart - baseball player and executive
• John Sutro - football player
• Ron Theobald - baseball player
• Jim Tobin - baseball player
• Marviel Underwood - football player
• Langston Walker - football player
• Andre Ward - professional boxer
• George Wells - professional wrestler
• Ray Wells - football player
• Bill Werle - baseball player
• Archie Williams - runner
• Dontrelle Willis - baseball player
• Rodney Williams - American football player

  Businesspeople and industrialists

• Stephen Bechtel - engineer, president, CEO of Bechtel Corporation, 1933-1960
• Anthony Chabot - entrepreneur, father of hydraulic mining, namesake of Chabot Space & Science Center, Lake Chabot, and Chabot College, buried in Oakland
• Charles Crocker - railroad tycoon, buried in Oakland
• Debbi Fields - entrepreneur, founder of Mrs. Fields cookies
• Domingo Ghirardelli - founder of the Ghirardelli Chocolate Company based in San Francisco, buried in Oakland
• Ken Hofmann - former owner of the Oakland Athletics
• Henry J. Kaiser - entrepreneur, businessman, founder of Kaiser Permanente and Kaiser Family Foundation, buried in Oakland
• Mark Mastrov - founder of 24 Hour Fitness, partial owner of the Sacramento Kings
• Jonah Peretti - founder of BuzzFeed
• Francis Marion Smith - miner, business magnate

  Entertainment

• Mahershala Ali - Academy Award-winning actor
• Eddie Anderson - actor
• Billie Joe Armstrong - singer
• Max Baer, Jr. - actor, film director
• Matt Bettinelli-Olpin - filmmaker and musician
• Pamela Blake - actress
• True Boardman - silent film actor
• David Carradine - actor
• Connie Cezon - actress
• Tracie Collins - actress, writer, theatre director and producer
• Ryan Coogler - director
• Buster Crabbe - actor
• T. D. Crittenden - silent film actor
• Robert Culp - actor
• Mark Curry - actor/comedian
• Walter DeLeon - screenwriter
• Daveed Diggs - actor and rapper
• Rockmond Dunbar - actor, mixed-media artist
• Michael Earl - puppeteer
• Clint Eastwood - actor, Academy Award-winning film producer and director
• Lyndsy Fonseca - actress
• Squire Fridell - actor
• Cary Fukunaga - Emmy Award-winning director
• G-Eazy - rapper
• Sylvia Gerrish - musical comedy and light opera
• Sumner Getchell - actor
• Gary Goldman - filmmaker
• Michael A. Goorjian - actor and filmmaker
• R. Henry Grey - silent film actor
• Khamani Griffin - child actor
• Mark Hamill - actor
• Bernie Hamilton - actor, Starsky and Hutch
• Tom Hanks - Academy Award-winning actor, raised in Oakland
• Susan Seaforth Hayes - actor
• Claude Heater - opera singer and actor, Ben-Hur
• Russell Hornsby - actor
• Joseph Jackson - talent manager
• Moshe Kasher - comedian, actor, and author/writer; raised in Oakland
• Kehlani - singer
• Joe Knowland - newspaper publisher, actor
• David Labrava - actor, writer, tattoo artist
• Remy Lacroix - adult actress
• Ted Lange - actor
• Brandon Lee - actor, born in Oakland
• Bruce Lee - actor, martial artist
• Nnegest Likké - film director
• Caryl Lincoln - actress
• Dakin Matthews - actor
• Russ Meyer - film director
• Jefferson Moffitt - screenwriter, film director
• Shemar Moore - actor, model
• Mitch Mullany - actor
• Kali Muscle - actor
• Roger Nichols - recording engineer
• Natalie Nunn - television personality
• Laura Oakley - silent film actress
• Orunamamu - storyteller
• Frank Oz - actor, director, puppeteer for Bert, Cookie Monster and Grover on Sesame Street
• John Pappas - actor
• Chelsea Peretti - comedian, actress
• Dorothy Revier - silent film actress, dancer
• Cherie Roberts - adult model, photographer
• Raphael Saadiq - singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer
• Sheila E. - percussionist
• Bob Smale - pianist on The Lawrence Welk Show, 1969-1982
• Kellita Smith - actress and model
• Jack Soo - comedian, actor, Barney Miller
• Marcus D. Spencer - actor, writer, producer, film director
• George Stevens - Academy Award-winning film director
• Cynthia Stevenson - actress
• Ethel Grey Terry - silent film actress
• Colin Trevorrow - film director
• Jo Van Fleet - actress
• Matt Vasgersian - actor, sports broadcaster
• Mills Watson - actor
• Robert Webber - film and TV actor, 12 Angry Men
• Will Wright - game designer
• Daniel Wu - actor
• Bassem Youssef - satirist
• Zendaya - actress

  Leaders (activists and politicians)

• Richard Aoki - activist
• William P. Baker - politician
• Sonny Barger - founder of the Hells Angels motorcycle club
• Henry G. Blasdel - first governor of Nevada; resident of Oakland
• Jerry Brown - politician, former governor of California and mayor of Oakland
• Albert E. Carter - politician
• Frank Chu - eccentric street protester
• William Clark, Jr. - diplomat, ambassador
• C. L. Dellums - organizer and leader of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters
• Ron Dellums - politician, former U.S. Congressman and Representative, mayor of Oakland
• Warren B. English - Confederate war veteran, politician, realtor
• Heather Fargo - politician, mayor of Sacramento, California
• Lydia Flood Jackson, businesswoman, clubwoman, suffragist, oldest living native of Oakland when she died in 1963
• Marcus Foster - educator, the first African-American Superintendent of the Oakland Unified School District
• Alicia Garza - co-founder of Black Lives Matter
• Elihu Harris - politician, former mayor of Oakland
• Kamala Harris - U.S. Senator, presidential candidate, politician, the first female African-American attorney general for the state of California, former district attorney for San Francisco
• Fred Korematsu - Japanese-American who fought forced internment, testing the law in Korematsu v. United States
• Joseph R. Knowland - former U.S. Representative and former owner of the Oakland Tribune, cremated in Oakland
• William F. Knowland - former U.S. Senator
• Barbara Lee - U.S. Representative
• Charles Goodall Lee - dentist, civic leader, benefactor of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance
• Clara Elizabeth Chan Lee - activist, first Chinese-American woman voter in the U.S.
• Richard Lee - horticulturist, activist for the legalization of marijuana
• Joseph McKenna - former Congressman, Justice 9th US Circuit, Attorney General and Associate Justice US Supreme Court.
• Edwin Meese III - former U.S. Attorney General
• Victor H. Metcalf - politician, attorney, banker
• Jessica Mitford - writer, activist, former Communist
• Paul Montauk - Communist politician and two-time candidate for Oakland mayor
• Anca Mosoiu - technology activist
• Nancy Nadel - member of the Oakland City Council
• Huey P. Newton - activist, co-founder of the Black Panther Party
• Andrew Nisbet, Jr. - member of the Washington House of Representatives and United States Army officer
• Pat Parker - black lesbian poet and activist
• Ed Rosenthal - horticulturist, publisher, activist for the legalization of marijuana
• Byron Rumford - pharmacist
• John A. Russo - Oakland city attorney, former city councilman
• Bobby Seale - activist, co-founder of the Black Panther Party
• Hettie B. Tilghman - African-American activist and suffragist
• Robert Treuhaft - activist for labor and leftist causes, attorney, writer
• Charles Stetson Wheeler - attorney, Regent of the University of California
• Earl Warren - Assistant Attorney City of Oakland, District Attorney of Alameda County, Attorney General of California, Governor of California and U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice
• Lionel J. Wilson - politician, first African-American mayor of Oakland
• Mother Wright - anti-hunger activist

  Military

• Bud Anderson - USAF fighter pilot and commander, triple ace who retired at the rank of colonel
• Jeremiah C. Sullivan - Civil War general in the Union Army and staff member of Ulysses S. Grant, buried in Oakland

  Musicians, composers and dancers

• 3XKrazy - male rap group
• A-Plus - rapper
• Billie Joe Armstrong - musician, lead vocalist and guitarist for the punk rock band Green Day
• Tim Armstrong - musician, lead vocalist of punk rock band Rancid
• Paul Baloff - former lead singer of thrash metal band Exodus
• Ant Banks - rapper, producer
• Gaylord Birch - musician
• Carla Bley - composer, musician
• Mike Botts - studio musician, drummer for rock band Bread
• Bobby Brackins - rapper, songwriter
• Ian Brennan - Grammy Award-winning record producer and author
• Antonia Brico classical pianist, first woman conductor of New York Philharmonic
• Chris Broderick - musician, lead guitarist for heavy metal band Megadeth
• Peter Buck - musician, guitarist and co-founder of the alternative rock band R.E.M.
• Aaron Burckhard - musician, first drummer of the grunge band Nirvana
• Kevin Cadogan - musician, original lead guitarist of Third Eye Blind
• Emilio Castillo - musician, founding member of Tower of Power
• Casual - rapper
• Mike Clark - musician
• Cold Blood - rock, soul, jazz band
• Keyshia Cole - Grammy Award-nominated R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, born and raised in Oakland
• Jason Cropper - original band member of Weezer
• Del tha Funkee Homosapien - musician
• Daveed Diggs - rapper and actor
• Digital Underground - rap group
• Rose Ann Dimalanta - musician
• Mike Dirnt - musician, bassist for rock band Green Day
• Sue Draheim - fiddler
• Mac Dre - rapper, born in Oakland, raised in Vallejo
• Dru Down - rapper
• Isadora Duncan - dancer
• Sheila E. - drummer, born in Oakland
• E-A-Ski - rapper, record producer
• En Vogue - Grammy Award nominated female R&B singing group, originated from Oakland in 1990
• Pete Escovedo - musician, born in Oakland
• Robb Flynn - musician best known as lead guitarist and vocalist for Machine Head
• Michael Franti - musician
• Fred Frith - improvisational musician, guitarist, composer, professor of music
• Nils Frykdahl - musician, founding member of Sleepytime Gorilla Museum and Idiot Flesh
• David Garibaldi - musician, member of Tower of Power
• G-Eazy - rapper and producer
• Mic Gillette - musician, founding member of Tower of Power
• Goapele - soul and R&B singer
• Larry Graham - musician
• MC Hammer - musician, born in Oakland
• Jeff Hanneman - guitarist for heavy metal band Slayer
• Shawn Harris - musician; former member of The Matches
• Davey Havok - musician, lead singer for AFI
• Edwin and Walter Hawkins - gospel singers
• Hieroglyphics - rap group, originated from Oakland
• Earl Hines - jazz pianist
• John Lee Hooker - blues singer
• Paul Jackson - musician
• Henry Kaiser - musician, grandson of Henry J. Kaiser
• Keak da Sneak - musician
• Kehlani - singer
• Kid 606 - musician
• Sharon Knight - Celtic musician, founding member of pagan rock band Pandemonaeon
• Kreayshawn - rapper
• Stephen "Doc" Kupka - musician, founding member of Tower of Power
• LaToya London - singer; born in San Francisco, raised in Oakland
• Pep Love - rapper
• The Lovemakers - pop band
• The Luniz - Grammy Award-nominated rap duo
• MC Lars - rapper; post-punk laptop rap
• Michael Manring - bassist, born in D.C., lives in Oakland
• Adrian Marcel - singer
• Jim Martin - musician
• Tony Martin - singer, actor
• Dave Meniketti - rock musician; born and raised in Oakland; lead singer/lead guitarist for Y&T
• Seagram Miller - rapper
• Mistah F.A.B. - rapper
• David Murray - musician
• Fantastic Negrito - musician
• Noaccordion - multimedia project of Onah Indigo
• Numskull - rapper
• Ray Obiedo - musician
• Marty Paich - pianist, composer, arranger, producer, director, conductor
• Harry Partch - composer
• The Phenomenauts - science and space band, refer to Oakland as "Earth's capital"
• Phesto - rapper, producer
• Matt Pike - guitarist of Sleep and High on Fire
• The Pointer Sisters - Grammy Award-winning R&B singing group
• Pooh-Man - rapper
• Francis Rocco Prestia - musician
• Perri "Pebbles" Reid - singer-songwriter, manager of TLC
• San Quinn - rapper, born in Oakland, raised in San Francisco
• Richie Rich - rapper
• Cynthia Robinson - musician
• Raphael Saadiq - musician
• Arion Salazar - musician in Third Eye Blind
• Pharoah Sanders - musician
• Timothy B. Schmit - rock musician, bassist for the Eagles
• E.C. Scott - blues singer, songwriter and record producer; television host
• Tupac Shakur - rapper, lived in Oakland
• Shock G - rapper
• Sharon Shore - ballet dancer, model
• Calvin E. Simmons - symphony orchestra conductor, namesake of Calvin Simmons Theatre, born in San Francisco
• Souls of Mischief - rap group
• J. Stalin - rapper, co-founder of Livewire Records
• Steady Mobb'n - rap duo
• Shakir Stewart - record producer, Senior Vice President of Island Def Jam Music Group
• Freddie Stone - musician
• Rose Stone - musician
• Sly Stone - musician
• Bill Summers - musician
• The Team - rap group
• Tony! Toni! Toné! - R&B singing group
• Too Short - rapper, born in Los Angeles, lived in Oakland from 1980 to 1994
• Tower of Power - band, formed and based in Oakland
• Tre Cool - musician, drummer for rock band Green Day
• Tune-Yards - band; indie, afro-funk
• Weasel Walter - progressive rock and free jazz musician/composer
• Freddie Washington - musician
• Lenny Williams - musician, early member of Tower of Power
• Y&T - rock band, formed in Oakland 1974
• Yukmouth - rapper
• Zendaya - singer, dancer, actress

  Physicians

• Eric Andrew Coleman - physician, practiced in Denver, recipient of MacArthur Foundation Fellowship and Director of Care Transitions Program
• Samuel Merritt - physician, practiced in San Francisco, namesake of Merritt College, Merritt Hospital, and Lake Merritt, buried in Oakland

  Religious leaders

• David A. Bednar - LDS Apostle, born in Oakland
• David Berg - controversial cult leader, founder of Children of God
• Yusuf Bey - controversial Black Muslim activist, indicted for child rape
• Mose Durst - author, educator, former president of the Unification Church
• James Ishmael Ford - Zen Buddhist priest and Unitarian Universalist minister
• Ray Frank - female Jewish leader
• Jack Hayford - minister, chancellor, songwriter
• Judah Leon Magnes - prominent Reform rabbi, first President of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• Carol Anne O'Marie - Roman Catholic nun, mystery fiction writer
• Bebe Patten - evangelist and founder of Patten University
• Clarence Richard Silva - Catholic bishop from Oakland, current Bishop of Honolulu
• Richard B. Stamps - anthropologist, archeologist, president of the Taipei Mission of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints
• Allen Henry Vigneron - Catholic bishop, leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland

  Scientists and inventors

• Harold C. Bradley - professor of biochemistry
• Fernando J. Corbató - computer scientist
• Frederick Cottrell - inventor
• Kim Eric Drexler - engineer, molecular nanotechnology theorist
• Frank Epperson - popsicle inventor
• Alexei Filippenko - astrophysicist, professor of astronomy
• Lloyd N. Ferguson - first African American to earn a Ph.D. in chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley
• Ansel Franklin Hall - first park naturalist for Yosemite National Park, first Chief Forester for the National Park Service
• Richard F. Johnston - ornithologist, academic and author
• Ingemar Henry Lundquist - inventor and mechanical engineer
• Stanley Miller - chemist
• Wendell Phillips - archaeologist and oil magnate
• Lydia Weld, first woman to get a degree in engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and naval architect in World War II

  Writers and poets

• Daniel Alarcón - writer, currently resides in Oakland
• Catherine Asaro - writer
• Chauncey Bailey - journalist assassinated by an agent of Your Black Muslim Bakery
• Delilah L. Beasley - first African-American columnist to be published in a major newspaper
• Charles Borden - writer, sailed around the globe four times
• Anthony Boucher - writer
• Garrett Caples - poet, writer
• Jon Carroll - columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle
• Frank Chin - writer
• Daniel Clowes - comic book writer, Academy Award-nominated screenwriter, currently resides in Oakland
• Robert Duncan - poet
• Sarah Webster Fabio - African-American writer, poet, educator; born in Nashville, lived in Oakland 1955-1979
• Robert Harvey - literary theorist, born in Oakland
• Bruce Henderson - author, born in Oakland
• Sidney Howard - Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Academy Award-winning screenwriter
• Daedalus Howell - writer, currently resides in Oakland
• Maxine Hong Kingston - writer, currently resides in Oakland
• Jack London - writer, raised in Oakland, namesake of Jack London Square
• Rod McKuen - poet, composer, singer
• Joaquin Miller - poet, lived in Oakland from 1886–1913
• Jessica Mitford - author
• Jess Mowry - writer
• Ray Nelson - science-fiction writer
• Frank Norris - author, buried in Oakland
• Colleen Patrick-Goudreau - author, speaker, and podcaster
• Ishmael Reed - writer, currently resides in Oakland
• Mary Roach - science writer, currently resides in Oakland
• William Saroyan - dramatist, author, lived in Oakland from 1913-1918
• Jason Shiga - author, cartoonist, puzzle designer
• Emji Spero - writer, poet, performance artist
• Jan Steckel - poet, writer, bisexual activist
• Alex Steffen - writer, born in Oakland
• Gertrude Stein - writer
• Robert Louis Stevenson - writer
• Tina Susman - journalist, Time senior editor, former national editor of BuzzFeed News
• Amy Tan - writer, born in Oakland
• Nellie Wong - poet and activist, born in Oakland
• Shawn Wong - writer, English professor
• Helen Zia - writer, journalist, and activist, currently resides in Oakland

  Criminals

• Felix Mitchell - notorious drug lord and gang leader of the 1970s and early 1980s
• Hans Reiser - computer programmer, owner of Namesys, convicted of murdering his wife