page_title: California State University, Long Beach
section_title: Notable people
hierarchical_section_title: California State University, Long Beach / Notable people
caption_attribution_description: Richard Nixon (edited out of the photo) meeting with Karen and Richard Carpenter, 08/01/1972
context_page_description: California State University, Long Beach is a public university in Long Beach, California. The 322-acre campus is the third largest of the 23-school California State University system and one of the largest universities in the state of California by enrollment, its student body numbering 38,074 for the Fall 2019 semester. With 5,290 graduate students, the university enrolls one of the largest graduate student populations across the CSU system and in the state of California.
  The university offers 82 different Bachelor's degrees, 65 types of Master's degrees, and four Doctoral degrees. It is home to one of the largest publicly funded art schools in the United States. The university currently operates with one of the lowest student tuition rate in the country, at $6,420 per year for full-time students with California residence.
context_section_description: CSULB has more than 320,000 alumni as of 2018.
  Alumni have written, acted and directed screenplays that have attracted Oscar-caliber talent. David Twohy (BA) co-wrote the screenplay for the Academy Award winning film The Fugitive. Linda Woolverton (BA 1974) wrote the screenplays for the Academy Award-winning, Disney animated films Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, and the live-action 2010 film Alice in Wonderland directed by Oscar-nominated director Tim Burton and starring Oscar-nominated actor Johnny Depp. J. F. Lawton (BA) wrote the screenplay to Pretty Woman, starring the Oscar-winning actress Julia Roberts. Mark Steven Johnson (BA 1989) has co-written and directed the films Daredevil, starring Oscar-winning actor Ben Affleck, and Ghost Rider, starring Oscar-winning actor Nicolas Cage. Actor Crispin Alapag notably on Big Time In Hollywood FL, Ray Donovan, General Hospital and VR Troopers Power Rangers.
  Former students have won at least five Academy Awards. Steven Spielberg (Class of 1969, BA 2002) won two Oscars for Best Directing for Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan and has directed a number of other successful movies such as Jaws, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and Jurassic Park. Former industrial design major John Dykstra, who has been nominated five times for Academy Awards, won two Oscars for his special effects work on the George Lucas film Star Wars and the Sam Raimi film Spider-Man 2. Deborah L. Scott (BA) won an Oscar for costume design for the James Cameron film Titanic.
  Emmy Award-nominated director Chris Carter (BA 1979) created the series The X-Files, which garnered several awards during its nine seasons on television. Former student Steve Martin, whose philosophy classes at the university inspired him to become a professional comedian, is an Emmy Award winner and a Disney Legend.
  Alumni and former students have also participated in the world of sports. Jason Giambi, Evan Longoria, Troy Tulowitzki, Harold Reynolds, Jered Weaver, Steve Trachsel, and Jason Vargas have all been selected to play in the Major League Baseball All Stars games. Matt Duffy won the World Series with the 2014 San Francisco Giants and continues to play third base for the Tampa Bay Rays. Golfer Mark O'Meara (BA 1980) won the Masters Tournament and The Open Championship. Craig Hodges is a two-time NBA Champion, Terrell Davis is a two-time Super Bowl champion and Billy Parks played five seasons in the NFL. Diver Pat McCormick won four gold medals in two consecutive Olympics (Helsinki and Melbourne), and Misty May-Treanor (BS 2002) won three gold medals in women's beach volleyball in three other consecutive Olympics (Athens, Beijing, and London). High Jumper Dwight Stones set the World Record while a student at Cal State Long Beach, in addition to winning the bronze medal at both the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich and 1976 in Montreal. Track and Field athlete Bill Green (BA 1984) set the United States and NCAA record three times in the hammer throw, and placed 5th at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
  Former students Karen Carpenter and Richard Carpenter (Class of 1972, Honorary Doctorate 2000) of The Carpenters are the namesakes of the Carpenter Performing Arts Center, a 1,065-seat performance hall on the campus of the university that also houses an exhibit on the Carpenters. Richard Carpenter's college instructor and choir director Frank Pooler inspired him in choral arrangement, and both Karen and Richard participated in Pooler's choir. Pooler also introduced Richard to fellow undergraduate and future song-writing collaborator John Bettis. Another undergraduate, Wesley Jacobs, would join the Carpenters as a musical instrumentalist. The Carpenters sold over 100 million records, won three Grammy Awards out of eighteen nominations, and created numerous gold and platinum albums.
caption: Former students Karen Carpenter and Richard Carpenter (Honorary Doctorate, 2000[73]) of The Carpenters
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