# List of Danish Americans

This is a list of notable Danish Americans, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American-born descendants.
To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Danish American or must have references showing they are Danish American and are notable.

## List
### Actors

* Jessica Alba, actress, mother is of part Danish descent
* Bridgette Andersen, actress
* Robert Anderson, actor, make-up artist and director
* Gwili Andre, actress, immigrant from Denmark
* Earl W. Bascom, actor, maternal grandfather was from Denmark
* Rowan Blanchard, American actress
* Alexis Bledel, actress, paternal grandfather of Danish descent
* Michael Bowen, actor, son of actress Sonia Sorel (née Henius), who is the daughter of Danish-American biochemist Max Henius
* Keith Carradine, actor, Danish maternal great-grandfather Max Henius, Danish maternal great-grandmother the sister of historian Johan Ludvig Heiberg
* Robert Carradine, actor, brother of actor Keith Carradine
* Erika Christensen, actress, father is of part Danish descent
* Hayden Christensen, actor, father is part Danish
* Tove Christensen, producer and actor, father is part Danish
* Ellen Corby, actress, maiden name was Hansen
* Jamie Lee Curtis, actress, maternal grandmother was born to Danish immigrants
* Kelly Curtis, actress, sister of actress Jamie Lee Curtis
* Karl Dane, comedian and actor
* Eliza Dushku, actress, mother is of mostly Danish descent
* Buddy Ebsen, actor, father was of Danish ancestry
* Ann Forrest, actress, immigrant from Denmark
* Lilie Hayward, actress and screenwriter, sister of Danish American actress Seena Owen
* Florence Henderson, actress, daughter of Danish American mother
* Jean Hersholt, actor, immigrant from Denmark
* Maren Jensen, actress and model, father was of Danish ancestry
* Scarlett Johansson, actress, father is an immigrant from Denmark
* Ashley Johnson, actress and voice actress
* Janet Leigh, actress, mother (Helen Westergaard), was born to Danish immigrants
* Deanna Lund, actress
* Michael Madsen, actor, father was of Danish ancestry
* Virginia Madsen, actress, father was of Danish ancestry
* John Melendez, entertainer
* Kristine Miller, actress
* Viggo Mortensen, actor, father is from Denmark
* Brigitte Nielsen, Danish-born actress
* Leslie Nielsen, Danish father
* Connie Nielsen, actress
* Nica Noelle, pornographic film actress/director (father)
* Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, fashion designers and former actresses (father is of partial Danish and partial Norwegian descent)
* Merlin Olsen, actor
* Susan Olsen, actress
* William Orlamond, actor, immigrant from Denmark
* Heather O'Rourke (1975–1988), child actress, mother is of Danish descent
* Seena Owen, actress, parents were immigrants from Denmark
* William Petersen, actor, paternal grandfather was of Danish ancestry
* Anders Randolf, actor, immigrant from Denmark
* AnnaSophia Robb, actress, one or two of her great-grandmothers were Danes
* Bodil Rosing (1877–1941), Danish-born actress who had roles in both silent and talkie Hollywood films
* Peter Sarsgaard, actor, paternal great-great-grandparents were born in Denmark
* Gale Sondergaard, actress
* Amandla Stenberg, actress, Danish father
* Sven-Ole Thorsen, actor and stuntman, immigrant from Denmark
* Uma Thurman, actress, mother is of partial Danish descent
* Vanessa Trump, actress and former model, mother of Danish origin
* Betty White, actress, Danish paternal grandfather
* Elijah Wood, American actor, maternal great-grandmother was of Danish ancestry
* Moon Zappa, actress, mother is of partial Danish ancestry

### Architects

* Jens Jensen, landscape architect

### Artists

* Earl W. Bascom, painter and sculptor of the American and Canadian West, "Cowboy of Cowboy Artists", "Dean of Canadian Cowboy Artists"
* Gutzon Borglum, sculptor of Mount Rushmore
* Solon Borglum, sculptor of the American West
* C. C. A. Christensen, painter
* Floyd Gottfredson, cartoonist, creator of The Phantom Blob and Eega Beeva in the Mickey Mouse universe
* Christian Gullager, painter
* Antonio Jacobsen, maritime painter
* George Jensen, painter
* Eric Larson, animator
* Ib Penick, paper engineer
* Ferdinand Richardt, landscape painter
* Olaf Wieghorst, painter, "Dean of Western Art"

### Athletics

* Chris "Birdman" Andersen, NBA player, father was a Danish immigrant
* Morten Andersen, NFL kicker
* Thomas William Asmussen, Major League Baseball catcher
* Earl W. Bascom, rodeo pioneer, rodeo champion, rodeo hall of fame inductee, "Father of Modern Rodeo"
* Julia Boserup, tennis player, Danish parents
* Jay DeMerit, professional soccer player
* Niko Hansen, professional soccer player
* Jim Jensen, football player
* Vern Mikkelsen, basketball player
* Colonel Thomas Hoyer Monstery, fencing and boxing master
* Battling Nelson, professional boxing world lightweight champion 1905–1906, 1908–1910
* Josef Newgarden, IndyCar driver, Indianapolis 500 winner
* Greg Olsen, football player
* Merlin Olsen, football player for Los Angeles Rams, Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee, older brother to Orrin and Phil
* Orrin Olsen, football player for Kansas City Chiefs
* Phil Olsen, football player for L.A. Rams, Denver Broncos and the Buffalo Bills
* Anton Peterlin, soccer player
* Henrik Rummel, Danish-born olympic rower
* Reed Sorenson, NASCAR driver
* Noah Syndergaard, current MLB pitcher for the New York Mets
* Alan Voskuil, basketball player for the Danish national team
* Kid Williams, professional boxing world bantamweight champion 1914–1917

### Journalism

* Jack Anderson, journalist
* Chris Hansen, television journalist
* Sophus Frederik Neble, Danish born editor of Den Danske Pioneer
* Jacob Riis, Danish born journalist

### Music

* Peter Blegvad, musician
* Victor Borge, musician and comedian
* Julian Casablancas, The Strokes vocalist
* Mose Christensen, symphony conductor
* Alf Clausen, film and television composer
* King Diamond, King Diamond lead vocalist
* Lars Frederiksen, Rancid vocalist and guitarist
* Dinah Jane, member of Fifth Harmony
* Taylor Hanson, musician
* Zac Hanson, musician
* Otto Harbach, lyricist
* Gunnar Johansen, pianist and composer
* Morten Lauridsen, composer
* Anita Lerche, singer-songwriter and composer
* Lauritz Melchior, opera singer
* M. P. Møller, pipe organ builder
* Rick Nielsen, Cheap Trick guitarist
* Oh Land (Nanna Øland), singer-songwriter
* Iggy Pop, singer-songwriter
* Matthew Santos, rock and folk singer-songwriter, musician and painter, mother Danish-born
* Thomas Søndergård, Music director of the Minnesota Orchestra
* Tinashe, singer
* Mads Tolling, violist and composer
* Mike Tramp, singer-songwriter
* Lars Ulrich, Metallica drummer
* Eddie Vedder, Pearl Jam singer-songwriter

### Politics and law

* Lloyd Bentsen, former Democratic senator from Texas, Treasury Secretary, and vice presidential nominee
* Marius Dueholm, Danish born American farmer and politician
* Hans Peter Mareus Neilsen Gammel, author of The Laws of Texas 1822–1897
* Newt Gingrich, former Republican Congressman from Georgia from 1979 to 1999, and Speaker of the House from 1995 to 1999.
* Leo Hoegh, Decorated U.S. Army officer, lawyer, and politician who served as the 33rd Governor of Iowa from 1955 to 1957
* Steny Hoyer, House Minority Whip and former House Majority Leader
* Roger Jepsen, former Republican senator from Iowa
* Jo Jorgensen, Libertarian vice presidential candidate of 1996, and presidential candidate of 2020.
* Chris Madsen, United States Marshals Service
* Janet Reno, Attorney General
* Ted Sorensen, speechwriter and president advisor

### Religious personalities

* Anton Marius Andersen, founding President of Trinity Seminary at Dana College
* Kristian Anker, first president of the combined Trinity Seminary and Dana College
* Gottlieb Bender Christiansen, founding President of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church
* Claus Lauritz Clausen, first President of the Conference of the Norwegian-Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church of America
* Theodore Marcus Hansen, President of Dana College and Trinity Seminary
* Kristian Ostergaard, Lutheran pastor, educator and author
* Peter Sørensen Vig, President and Professor of Theology at Trinity Seminary at Dana College
* Russell M. Nelson, heart surgeon; President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
* D. Todd Christofferson, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
* Neil L. Andersen, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
* Ronald A. Rasband, member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

### Science

* Jens Clausen, evolutionary biologist
* Erik Erikson, psychologist
* Philo Farnsworth, inventor and television pioneer
* Niels Ebbesen Hansen, Head of the Horticultural Department at South Dakota State University
* William Webster Hansen, physicist and one of the founders of microwave electronics technology
* Max Henius, biochemist and founder of the Rebild National Park in Denmark
* Theo Holm, botanist
* Christine Korsgaard, philosopher
* Otto Larsen, sociologist known for academic work in mass hysteria and public positions on obscenity and pornography
* Dale T. Mortensen, economist
* Peter Norvig, computer scientist
* Jørgen Slots, American professor and researcher, immigrant from Denmark
* Holger Thiele, astronomer

### Writers

* Poul Anderson, science fiction author
* Erik Christian Haugaard, author of children's books
* Axel Madsen, writer
* Ib Melchior, Danish born film director, science fiction author and screenwriter
* Joel Skousen, American author
* Mark Skousen, American economist and author
* Royal Skousen, American professor
* W. Cleon Skousen, American author
* Brad Torgersen, science fiction author
* Sophus Keith Winther, professor and novelist

### Other

* Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, biological father Ted Jorgensen, son of Danish immigrants
* Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, philanthropist
* John Wayne Gacy (1942–1994), serial killer
* Robert Hansen (1939–2014), serial killer known as the "Butcher Baker".
* Peter L. Jensen, engineer, inventor and entrepreneur and co-creator of the first moving-coil loudspeaker
* Johnson Outboards was founded by the Johnson brothers. Their father, Soren, was born in Denmark.
* Semon Knudsen, executive with Ford Motor Company and General Motors
* William S. Knudsen, Lieutenant general and executive with Ford Motor Company and General Motors
* Christian Mortensen, Danish-born supercentenarian, was longest-lived man on record at the time of his death
* Arthur Nielsen, American market analyst of Danish descent who founded the ACNielsen company and Nielsen Media Research, best known for the Nielsen ratings
* George Nissen, inventor of the trampoline, was the son of Danish immigrants
* Charles E. Sorensen, production engineer and executive with Ford Motor Company
* Claus von Bülow, Danish-born socialite accused of killing his wife Sunny
* William East