List of people from Teaneck, New Jersey
The following is a list of noted current and former residents of Teaneck, New Jersey.
(B) denotes that the person was born in Teaneck.
Academics and science
Frank Chapman (1864-1945) ornithologist.
Frank Gill (born 1941), ornithologist.
Dr. Alan Kadish (born 1956), President and CEO of Touro College.
Peter Kenen (born 1932), economist who was Provost of Columbia University.
Clifford Nass (1958-2013), professor at Stanford University who was an expert on human-computer interaction.
Jane S. Richardson (born 1941), biochemist and developer of ribbon diagrams of protein structure.
Jacob J. Schacter, Senior Scholar at the Center for the Jewish Future at Yeshiva University, editor of a number of volumes about Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik.
Yvonne Thornton (born 1947), physician and author.
Helen M. Walker (1891-1983), statistician and researcher who was the first female president of the American Statistical Association when she was elected in 1944.
Alan Westin (1929-2013), Columbia University professor who was a pioneer in studying issues related to information privacy.
Arts
Architecture
Louis Bourgeois (1856-1930), architect of Baha'i House of Worship (Wilmette, Illinois).
Authors and journalists
Shalom Auslander (born 1970), author of Foreskin's Lament: A Memoir, published in October 2007.
Peter Balakian (born 1951), poet, writer and academic.
Cathy Bao Bean (born 1942), author.
Jim Bishop (1907-1987), journalist and author of the bestselling book The Day Lincoln Was Shot.
Louis Black, co-founder of The Austin Chronicle and the annual South by Southwest film and music festival.
Don Bolles (1928-1976), investigative reporter killed in a Mob-related car bombing.
Richard Nelson Bolles (born 1927), clergyman and author of the best-selling job-hunting book, What Color is Your Parachute?
George Cain (1943-2010), author of Blueschild Baby.
Louise DeSalvo (born 1942), author.
Howard Fast (1914-2003), novelist, author of Spartacus.
Jeff Gottesfeld (born 1956), author of Anne Frank and Me, screenwriter Broken Bridges and television writer The Young and the Restless.
David Heatley (born 1974) cartoonist, illustrator, graphic designer and musician.
John Hoerr (1930-2015), journalist and historian best known for his work on organized labor, industry, and politics.
Mike Kelly, columnist for The Record and author of Color Lines, a book about the 1990 shooting of Phillip Pannell, an African-American teenager, by Gary Spath, a white Teaneck police officer.
Barry N. Malzberg (born 1939), science fiction author.
Brian Morton (born 1955), author of Starting Out in the Evening.
Gitl Schaechter-Viswanath (born 1958), Yiddish language poet.
Joseph Steinberg, Forbes columnist and author of cybersecurity books.
John A. Williams (1925-2015), author, journalist and academic whose novel The Man Who Cried I Am was a bestseller in 1967.
Fine arts
Robert Barry (born 1936), conceptual artist.
Charles Harbutt (born 1935), photographer.
Frank R. Paul (1884-1963), illustrator of science fiction.
Claire Porter (born 1942), choreographer.
Paul Shambroom (born 1956), photographer.
Chuck Stewart (born 1927), photographer.
Henry Wessel, Jr. (born 1942), photographer.
Fashion
Marc Jacobs (born 1963), designer and artistic director for Louis Vuitton.
Lynn Kohlman (1946-2008), fashion model.
Movies, stage and television
Paul Attanasio (born 1959), screenwriter and executive producer of the TV series House.
De'Adre Aziza (born 1977), Broadway stage actress.
Pat Battle (born 1959), WNBC-TV's New Jersey Bureau reporter, Weekend anchor Today in New York.
Roger Birnbaum (born c. 1950), film producer who owns Spyglass Entertainment.
Ben Blank (c. 1921 - 2009), television graphics innovator.
Philip Bosco (born 1930), character actor.
Chris Brancato (born 1962), Hollywood writer and producer of Sci Fi Channel's First Wave and the film Species II.
Gaius Charles (born 1983), actor, Friday Night Lights.
Jennifer Cody (born 1975), actress.
Joe DiPietro (born c. 1961), playwright.
Jamie Donnelly (born 1947), actress best known as Jan, one of the Pink Ladies from the film version of Grease, a role she got at the age of 30.
Sheldon Epps (born 1952), director and producer of television and theatrical works.
Hunter Foster (born 1969), Broadway actor.
Nely Galan (born 1963), independent producer and a former President of Entertainment for Telemundo, who created and executive produced the FOX reality series The Swan.
John A. Gambling (1930-2004), radio personality.
John B. Gambling (1897-1974), radio personality.
Susan Gordon (1949-2011), child actress who appeared in film and on television.
Jess Harnell, the voice of Wakko Warner on Animaniacs and announcer of America's Funniest Home Videos.<ref>Zayas, Javier. "'Wakko Yaks: A Conversation with Jess Harnell' by Javier Zayas", Fulle Circle Magazine', April 17, 2015. Accessed June 17, 2015. "Javier Zayas: So you were born in Teaneck, New Jersey? Jess Harnell: Actually it was Englewood Hospital, but right near Teaneck and that's where I lived so we'll stick with that."</ref>
Jay Jason (1915-2001), Borscht Belt comedian.
Anthony Johnson (born 1956), New Jersey reporter for WABC-TV.
David P. Levin (born 1958), producer/writer/director who developed the "Uncensored" brand for MTV and produced / directed When Pop Culture Saved America for A&E Network.
Damon Lindelof (born 1973), co-creator and executive producer of the TV series Lost.
Leonard Maltin (born 1950), film critic and author of Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide.
Patricia McBride (born 1942), ballerina who performed with the New York City Ballet for 30 years.
Bob McGrath (born 1932), plays the character "Bob" on TV's Sesame Street, the longest-lasting human character on the program.
Julianne Michelle (born 1987), film actress.
Ozzie Nelson (1906-1975) and Harriet Nelson (1909-1994), from The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
Ricky Nelson (1940-1985), son of Ozzie and Harriet; elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
Christopher O'Neal (born 1994), actor who appears on Nickelodeon's How to Rock.
Sarah Jessica Parker (born 1965), actress, played the role of Carrie Bradshaw on HBO's Sex and the City.
Charles Payne, Fox Business Network television show host.
Randall Pinkston (born 1950), correspondent for CBS News.
Robert Ridgely (1931-1997), actor and voice over artist, appeared in many Mel Brooks movies and made one of his final movie appearances as Colonel James in the film Boogie Nights.Staff. "Robert Ridgely, 65, Film and TV Actor", The New York Times, February 16, 1997. Accessed December 4, 2013. "Mr. Ridgely, a native of Teaneck, N.J., began as a cabaret entertainer."
Rick Schwartz (born c. 1968), film producer.
Matt Servitto (born 1965), actor known for his role on The Sopranos as FBI agent Dwight Harris.
Lawrence Sher (born 1970), cinematographer.
Paul Sorvino (born 1939), actor.
Josh Sussman (born 1983), actor.
Judy Tyler (1933-1957), actress who played Princess Summerfallwinterspring on Howdy Doody as a teenager and appeared on film in Jailhouse Rock, starring opposite Elvis Presley.
John Ventimiglia (born 1963), actor who played Artie Bucco on The Sopranos.
Music
Nat Adderley (1931-2000), jazz cornet and trumpet player.
Nat Adderley, Jr. (born 1955), music arranger who spent much of his career with Luther Vandross.
Eef Barzelay (born 1970), chief songwriter/singer/guitarist of alt-country indie rock band Clem Snide.
Roni Ben-Hur (born 1962), bebop jazz guitarist.
Louis Black (born 1950), co-founder of South by Southwest Music, Film, and Interactive Conference and Festival.
Pat Boone (born 1934), star pop singer from the 1950s Love Letters in the Sand whose best-known hits were cover versions of songs originated by African-American artists Ain't That a Shame, Tutti-Frutti.
Donald Byrd (1932-2013), jazz trumpeter.Zezima, Katie; and Chase, Randall. "Innovative jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd, of Teaneck, dies at 80", The Record (Bergen County), February 11, 2013. Accessed February 11, 2013. "Byrd, a longtime resident of Teaneck, N.J., was a distinguished scholar at William Paterson University and twice was an artist-in-residence at Delaware State University."
Brendan Canty (born 1966), drummer of critically acclaimed indie rock band Fugazi.
Gordon Chambers (born c. 1969), singer-songwriter whose work includes "If You Love Me" by Brownstone.
Ray Chew (born c. 1968), music director.
Johnny Copeland (1937-1997), blues guitarist and singer.
Shemekia Copeland (born 1979), blues singer.
DJ Spinderella (born 1971), DJ for the hip-hop group Salt-n-Pepa.
Placido Domingo (born 1941), operatic tenor."Domingo: Iron man of opera", The Cincinnati Post, September 23, 1998. Accessed August 7, 2007. "Domingo vividly recalls his Met debut - four days earlier than planned. His parents were visiting him and his wife, Marta, in Teaneck, N.J., and they'd just sat down to dinner when "the phone rang and Rudolf Bing's voice inquired, 'How are you feeling, Placido?'"
Ray Drummond (born 1946), jazz bassist.
Randy Edelman (born 1947), film and TV score composer.
Jon Faddis (born 1953), jazz trumpeter, conductor, composer and educator.
Jon Garrison (born 1944), operatic tenor.
Christine Goerke (born 1969), Grammy Award-winning dramatic soprano.
Wally Gold (1928-1998), singer, songwriter, producer, music industry executive, best known for writing the Elvis Presley hits "It's Now or Never" (1960) and "Good Luck Charm" (1962) as well as Lesley Gore's classic number 1 hit "It's My Party".
Florence Greenberg (1913-1995), record producer who discovered The Shirelles.
Ferde Grofe (1892-1972), composer and arranger, best known for his Grand Canyon Suite.
Joe Harnell (1924-2005), composer and arranger.
Al Hibbler (1915-2001), R&B singer; later civil rights activist.
The Isley Brothers, African American music group who founded T-Neck Records (named for their base in the township) in 1964, becoming the first R&B band to form their own record label, then a rarity in black music. Chris Rock made reference to this in his Champagne song
Ronald Isley (born 1941), co-founder and lead singer of the Isley Brothers.
Rudolph Isley (born 1939), founding member of the Isley Brothers.
Master Gee (born Guy O'Brien), co-founder of the hip hop group The Sugarhill Gang, which is best known for its signature song, "Rapper's Delight," where he raps, "I said M-A-S, T-E-R, a G with a double E, I said I go by the unforgettable name of the man they call the Master Gee."
Milt Jackson (1923-1999), jazz vibraphonist.
Moe Jaffe (1901-1972), songwriter.
Jodeci, R&B group of the early 90s.
J. J. Johnson (1924-2001), jazz trombonist.
Kevin Jonas (born 1987), background vocalist and lead guitarist for the Jonas Brothers.(B)
Kimberly Jones (born 1974), rapper known as Lil' Kim.
Ben Jorgensen (born 1983), lead singer of Armor for Sleep.
Don "Magic" Juan (born 1950), Merengue and Hip Hop artist formally part of the popular 1990s Merengue group Proyecto Uno.
Ulysses Kay (1917-1995), composer.
Ben E. King (1938-2015), singer, Stand by Me.
Michael Korie, librettist and lyricist, whose works include Grey Gardens.
Anthony Laciura (born 1951), character tenor for the Metropolitan Opera.Beckerman, Jim. "A classical relief effort; Opera stars in Katrina benefit.", The Record (Bergen County), October 14, 2005. "'My father used to say he heard Caruso at the French Opera House,' says Laciura, a Teaneck resident who has sung tenor for 24 years with the Metropolitan Opera in New York."
Ezra Laderman (born 1924), contemporary classical music composer who was Dean of the Yale School of Music.
Amy London (born c. 1958), jazz singer.
Mario (born 1986), R&B singer.
Rose Marie McCoy (born 1922), songwriter.
Clyde McPhatter (1932-1972), R&B singer who founded The Drifters.
Allan Monk (born 1942), baritone opera singer.
Melissa Morgan (born 1980), jazz vocalist.
Bernard Purdie (born 1941), prolific session drummer.
Rufus Reid (born 1944), jazz bassist and music educator.Beckerman, Jim. "Ben-Hur flavors his jazz with Middle Eastern spice", The Record (Bergen County), July 17, 2005. "Luckily, pianist John Hicks, drummer Leroy Williams, percussionist Steve Kroon and celebrated Teaneck bassist Rufus Reid were happy to go where Ben-Hur led."
Scott Robinson (born 1959), jazz musician best known for his work with various styles of saxophone.
Paul A. Rothchild (1935-1995), music producer of the late 1960s and 1970s, best known for his work with The Doors.
Ernie Royal (1921-1983), jazz trumpeter.
Hilton Ruiz (1952-2006), Jazz pianist, Afro-Cuban style.
Juelz Santana (born 1982), rapper.
Linda Scott (born 1945), singer best known for her 1961 hit "I've Told Every Little Star".
Alan Silvestri (born 1950) film composer.
Ray Simpson (born 1954), lead singer of the Village People since 1980.Leichman, Abigail. "Ashford and Simpson sing of wedded bliss", The Record (Bergen County), September 7, 2007. "'People tried to talk us out of songwriting, but we just kept doing it, and eventually we made it through,' said Simpson, whose brother, Village People lead singer Raymond Simpson, is a longtime Teaneck resident."
Dave Sirulnick, Executive Vice President for Multiplatform Production, News and Music at MTV.
Phoebe Snow (1952-2011), singer-songwriter born Phoebe Laub, whose stage name was selected from the name of a train that ran through Teaneck, the Phoebe Snow.Holden, Stephen. "Phoebe Snow, Bluesy Singer-Songwriter, Dies at 60", The New York Times, April 26, 2011. Accessed May 9, 2011. "Phoebe Ann Laub was born in New York City and grew up in Teaneck, N.J."
Raymond Torres-Santos (born 1958), classical composer, pianist, arranger and conductor. Professor of Music at CUNY; released "Requiem" original composition for orchestra and chorus.
Trey Songz (born 1984), R&B singer.
Christopher Wallace (1972-1997), rapper known as Notorious B.I.G.
Lenny White (born 1949), drummer described as "one of the founding fathers of jazz fusion".
Evan Winiker, musician and bassist in the Steel Train and Fun.
The Wrens, rock band.
Business and industry
Bob Beaumont (1932-2011), founder of Citicar, an electric automobile manufacturer from 1974 to 1977.
Matthew Hiltzik (born 1972), CEO and President of Hiltzik Strategies, a strategic consulting and communications firm.
Les Otten (born 1949), former CEO of the American Skiing Company.
Paul Volcker (born 1927), former Chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Bill Zanker (born 1954), creator of The Learning Annex.
Government and politics
Vincent M. Battle (born 1940), former United States Ambassador to Lebanon.
William W. Bennett (1841-1912), property manager of the William Walter Phelps estate, who was the first Mayor of Teaneck, New Jersey.
Leonie Brinkema (born 1944), U.S. District Court judge in the Zacarias Moussaoui case.
Frank W. Burr (1906-1992), Mayor of Teaneck from 1970 to 1974, who played a major role in the voluntary integration of Teaneck's schools and was one of the prime advocates of what became the Glenpointe complex at the intersection of Interstates 80 and 95.
Gale D. Candaras (born 1947), member of the Massachusetts Senate.
Donna Christian-Christensen (born 1945), non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives for the United States Virgin Islands.
Thomas J. Costa (1912-2003), member of the New Jersey General Assembly from 1968 to 1972 who was mayor of Teaneck from 1966 to 1969.
Matthew Feldman (1919-1994), Mayor of Teaneck from 1960 to 1966; Member of the New Jersey Senate representing the 37th district, from 1966 to 1968 and 1974-94.
Steven Goldstein, LGBT activist and founder of Garden State Equality.
Nelson G. Gross (1932-1997), politician who served in the New Jersey General Assembly and as Chairman of the New Jersey Republican State Committee.
Mohammed Hameeduddin (born c. 1973), Mayor of Teaneck from 2010 to 2014 who was the first Muslim-American mayor in Bergen County.
Archibald C. Hart (1873-1935), represented New Jersey's 6th congressional district from 1912 to 1913 and 1913-1917.
Luis Munoz Marin (1898-1980), first democratically elected Governor of Puerto Rico.
Gabrielle Kirk McDonald (born 1942), federal and international judge.
Dennis McNerney, former County Executive of Bergen County.
Peter Pace (born 1945), former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; the first Marine to hold the position.
Arnold Petersen (1885-1976), National Secretary of the Socialist Labor Party of America from 1914 to 1969
William Walter Phelps (1839-1894), member of the United States House of Representatives who was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Germany.
Anthony Principi (born 1944), United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs from 2001 to 2005.
Paul A. Volcker, Jr. (born 1927), Chairman of the Federal Reserve, and son of Paul A. Volcker, Sr., Teaneck's first Municipal Manager.
Loretta Weinberg (born 1935), Majority Leader of the New Jersey Senate.
Craig Zucker, member of the Maryland legislature.
Sports
Lance Ball (born 1985), former running back for the Denver Broncos.
Beth Beglin (born 1957), field hockey player who represented the U.S. three times at the Summer Olympics as a member of the United States women's national field hockey team.
Dellin Betances (born 1988), pitcher for the New York Yankees.
Jim Bouton (born 1939), former pitcher for the New York Yankees, sportscaster and author of the controversial tell-all book Ball Four.
Chris Brantley (born 1970), wide receiver who played in the NFL for the Los Angeles Rams and Buffalo Bills.Giuffra, Brian A. "Where are they now: Teaneck's Chris Brantley", The Record (Bergen County), November 8, 2011. Accessed November 8, 2011.
Tony Campbell (born 1962), former NBA basketball player for the New York Knicks and several other teams.
Sam Cassell (born 1969), NBA player who lived here while playing for the New Jersey Nets.
Rick Cerone (born 1954), former MLB catcher who played for both the New York Mets and New York Yankees.
Mike DeGerick (born 1943), pitcher who played two games for the Chicago White Sox before a line drive hit his head and ended his career.
Lawrence Frank (born 1970), former Head Coach of the New Jersey Nets.
Mike Fraysse (born 1943), US Olympic Cycling Coach who was inducted into the United States Bicycling Hall of Fame.
Doug Glanville (born 1970), baseball player who played for the Philadelphia Phillies and other teams.
Tamba Hali (born 1983), linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs of the NFL.
Elston Howard (1929-1980), baseball player New York Yankees.
Zab Judah (born 1977), champion welterweight boxer.
Bob Klapisch (born 1957), sportswriter for The Record.
Carl "Spider" Lockhart (1943-1986), safety who played his entire 11-year career with the New York Giants.
Jim McGovern (born 1965), professional golfer.
Christina McHale (b. 1992), tennis player.
Hank Morgenweck (c. 1929-2007) Major League Baseball umpire from 1970 to 1975, who called Nolan Ryan's fourth no-hitter.
Kasib Powell (born 1981), NBA basketball player who has played for the Miami Heat.
Randi Patterson (born 1985), professional soccer player who played for the New York Red Bulls.Staff. "2009 Third Round: Randi Patterson's brace earns him Player of the Round", Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, July 7, 2009. Accessed July 18, 2011. "Patterson: The difference is that playing near New York City was that you always had something to do. I lived in Teaneck [New Jersey] all my life which is 10 minutes from New York City so there was always something for me to do. In Charleston, it's a nice place but it's not like New York City."
David Reed (born 1988), professional soccer player.
Giuseppe Rossi (born 1987), Italian-American association football player, currently playing for Fiorentina and Italy national football team.
Nick Saviano (born 1956), former tennis player, won one ATP title and reached two other finals.
Jason Sehorn (born 1971), former NFL football player who played cornerback for the New York Giants (1994-2002) and St. Louis Rams (2003).
John Sterling (born 1948), Sportscaster for the New York Yankees.
David Stern (born 1942), former Commissioner of the National Basketball Association.
Doug Wark (born 1951), former soccer forward who spent five seasons in the North American Soccer League and three in the Major Indoor Soccer League.
David West (born 1980), NBA basketball player with the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets.
Dave Winfield (born 1951), Hall of Fame baseball player.Smith, Claire. "Winfield Dons Uniform Of Angels", The New York Times, May 18, 1990. Accessed September 11, 2011. "'We are inextricably bound by history, and not in a positive way,' Winfield said in an interview before leaving his home in Teaneck, N.J., to join the Angels here. 'I don't like that. It detracts from the contributions I made.'"
Ahmed Zayat (born 1962), thoroughbred racehorse owner whose horse American Pharoah won the Triple Crown in 2015.
Other
Mickey Featherstone (born c. 1947), mobster and leader of The Westies gang.
Martin Fleisher (born 1958), bridge player and investment adviser.
Rabbi Howard Jachter, specialist in Jewish divorce procedure.
Frank Lucas (born 1930), drug lord in Harlem in the 1970s, and the subject of the 2007 biopic American Gangster''.
Dana Reeve (1961-2006), actress, singer, activist for disability causes, and the wife of Christopher Reeve.
Marty Ravellette, (1938-2007), armless hero
David Sklansky (born 1947), professional poker player and author.
Rabbi Steven Weil (born 1965), Executive Vice President of the Orthodox Union.
Rabbi Jeremy Wieder, Rosh yeshiva and instructor at Yeshiva University's Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary.
References
People from Teaneck, New Jersey