# List of people from Danville, Illinois

The following list includes notable people who were born or have lived in Danville, Illinois. For a similar list organized alphabetically by last name, see the category page People from Danville, Illinois.

## Arts and culture

| Name | Birth | Death | Known for | Association |
| Susan Wittig Albert | Jan 2, 1940 | | Fiction and non-fiction writer | Lived in Danville and area, 1946–1963; attended Lincoln, Garfield, DHS |
| Morris Ankrum | Aug 28, 1896 | Sep 2, 1964 | Actor | Born in Danville |
| Irving Azoff | Dec 13, 1947 | | Music and movie producer, chairman of Live Nation Entertainment and Ticketmaster | Attended school in Danville |
| Todd E. Creason | May 26, 1967 | | Fiction and non-fiction writer | |
| Joshua Ferris | Nov 7, 1974 | | Novelist, author of Then We Came to the End | Born in Danville |
| Gene Hackman | Jan 30, 1930 | Feb. 2025 | Academy Award–winning actor | Raised in Danville |
| Brett Haley | Aug 17, 1983 | | Film director | Born in Danville |
| Ned Luke | Oct 4, 1958 | | Film, TV, and video game actor | Born in Danville |
| Helen Morgan | Aug 2, 1900 | Oct 9, 1941 | Stage and screen star, subject of The Helen Morgan Story | Born in Danville |
| Donald O'Connor | Aug 28, 1925 | Sep 27, 2003 | Film star and dancer | Grew up in Danville |
| Bobby Short | Sep 15, 1924 | Mar 21, 2005 | Cabaret singer, TV and film star, and recording artist | Born in Danville |
| Matthew Stover | Jan 29, 1962 | | Author | |
| Dick Van Dyke | Dec 13, 1925 | | Film, TV, and stage star | Raised in Danville |
| Jerry Van Dyke | Jul 27, 1931 | Jan 5, 2018 | Film, TV, and stage star | Born and raised in Danville |
| Kelly Jean Van Dyke | Jun 5, 1958 | Nov 17, 1991 | TV and adult film star | Born in Danville |
| Helen Wells | 1910 | 1986 | Author of Nurse Cherry Ames books, volumes 1-7 and 17-27 | |

## Military

| Name | Image | Birth | Death | Known for | Association | Reference |
| Kenneth D. Bailey | | Oct 21, 1910 | Sep 26, 1942 | Medal of Honor recipient | Lived in Danville |
| William T. Wood | | June 19, 1854 | December 18, 1943 | U.S. Army brigadier general | Lived in Danville | |

## Politics

| Name | Birth | Death | Known for | Association |
| Joseph Gurney Cannon | May 7, 1836 | Nov 12, 1926 | Speaker of the US House of Representatives (1903–1911) | Resided and died in Danville |
| John Thomas Scopes | Aug 3, 1900 | Oct 21, 1970 | Teacher who went to trial for teaching evolution in a public school, in defiance of Tennessee's Butler Act, in the famous 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial. | Lived in Danville as a teenager. |
| Rickey Williams Jr. | 1977/1978 | | First African-American mayor of Danville | Raised in Danville |

## Space

| Name | Image | Birth | Death | Known for | Association | Reference |
| Joseph R. Tanner | | Jan 21, 1950 | | Astronaut | Born in Danville | |

## Sports

| Name | Birth | Death | Known for | Association |
| Jason Anderson | Jun 9, 1979 | | Pitcher for the New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, and New York Yankees | Born in Danville |
| Zeke Bratkowski | Oct 20, 1931 | Nov 11, 2019 | Quarterback and coach for seven National Football League teams | Born in Danville |
| Keon Clark | Apr 16, 1975 | | Power forward for the six National Basketball Association teams | Born in Danville |
| Bert Daniels | Oct 31, 1882 | Jun 6, 1958 | Outfielder for the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds | Born in Danville |
| Jack Doan | Jun 12, 1972 | | Wrestling referee with the World Wrestling Entertainment | Lives in Danville |
| Ben Howard | Jan 15, 1979 | | Pitcher for the San Diego Padres and Florida Marlins | Born in Danville |
| Jim Marshall | May 25, 1931 | | Second baseman and manager for seven Major League Baseball teams | Born in Danville |
| Al Myers | Oct 22, 1863 | Dec 24, 1927 | Second baseman for the Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Quakers, Kansas City Cowboys and Washington Nationals. | Born in Danville |
| Curtis Redden | Feb 8, 1881 | Jan 16, 1919 | All-Western football player and coach; died in World War I | Born in Danville |
| Sterling Slaughter | Nov 18, 1941 | | Pitcher for the Chicago Cubs | Born in Danville |
| Stephanie White | Jun 20, 1977 | | Purdue and WNBA player, Vanderbilt coach | Born in Danville |
| Robin Yount | Sep 16, 1955 | | Hall of Fame center fielder and shortstop for the Milwaukee Brewers | Born in Danville |