I was born and grew up in Findlay, Ohio and I am proud of my hometown (for the most part). I am also interested in learning about famous people who were born or lived in Findlay. This page is a salute to them. Also you might learn something you didn't know before like I did as I was compiling this information.
The list is in alphabetical order and where I have confirmed they were born in Findlay I note that in their listing. Also "famous" is a subjective term here. I decided to include those who are or were known in their field of work if not to the public at large.
I have also opened the list up to famous people who were born and/or lived in Hancock county.
This list isn't finished as I don't know everything. If you have a suggestion about someone I missed please let me know. Please provide some kind of on-line means to verify your suggestion if possible.
Willard Harrison Bennett (Physicist and inventor b.1903 d.1987)- Invented the radiofrequency mass spectrometer, a device
that measures the mass of ions. Bennett made scientific history in the
1930s pioneering studies in plasma physics - the study of gases ionized
by high-voltage electricity. Born in Findlay.
Gavin Creel (Broadway actor and recording artist) His first big part was the male
lead, Jimmy Smith, in 'Thoroughly Modern Millie', which led to a Tony nomination for Best Actor (Musical). He also issued his first album called "GOODTIMENATION" and has an official website at gavincreel.com
Russel Crouse (actor, writer, and producer) wrote "Life
with Father" and "Sound of Music" for Broadway. He won a Tony for 'Sound of Music'in 1960. Born in Findlay.
David Cryer (stage actor) graduated from Findlay High School in 1954. Performs in the touring production of 'Phantom of the Opera'and recently moved to the Broadway company of the show. Has also appeared
in movies and as a guest of various TV shows like "Law and Order". Father of actor Jon Cryer from CBS' "Two and Half Men"
Lt. Donald Arthur Gary, US Navy, World War II Congressional
Medal of Honor Recipient. When his ship was hit in battle he risked his
life to save many fellow crew members.
Ray Harroun (auto racer) Won the first Indy 500 in 1911. Lived in Findlay for a time.
William 'Dummy' Hoy born in Houcktown. His claim to fame was he is the first deaf mute major league baseball player to play the game. Legend has it that it was because of Hoy that umpires use hand signals for balls and strikes today. Some even say that all the various hand signs are the result of his playing days. There is no documented proof of that but it sounds interesting. Hoy was active from 1888 to 1903 and played in 1796 games with an average of .287 that included 2004 hits, 1426 runs, 40 homers and 726 runs batted in. He played for the Cincinnati Redlegs from 1894 to 1898. The Redlegs were the predecessor to the current Cincinnati Reds.
Grant "Homerun" Johnson (baseball player) Played in the Negro Leagues from 1894 to 1932. First
played for the Findlay Sluggers in 1894 and hit a reported 60 homeruns.
Born in Findlay. http://www.pitchblackbaseball.com/nlotmhomerunjohnson.html
John Kidd (football punter)
The highest-selected punter in Buffalo Bills history. Born in Findlay.
Graduated from Findlay High School. Star punter for Northwestern.
Rowland V. Lee (actor, director, writer, producer) Directed "Son of Frankenstein" (1939) and Captain Kidd (1945). Born in Findlay.
Mark Metcalf (actor, producer)
Played "Doug Neidermeyer" in Animal House (1978) "The Master" in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1996-1998 and 2002) and "Maestro" on a couple of episodes of "Seinfeld" (1996) among others. Born in Findlay.
J. Robin Miller (actress) General Hospital (Lydia Karenin Cassadine #2 2003)
Navy NCIS, CSI, JAG, Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Born in Findlay.
Steve Morehead (motorcross), aka the "Findlay
Flyer," was one of the leading dirt-track racers from the mid-1970s
through the 1990s. In all, No. 42 won a total of 23 AMA Nationals during
his 26-year professional racing career. He finished ranked in the top-10
a remarkable 17 times. Morehead became a fan favorite and was one of
the oldest riders on the professional dirt-track circuit when he retired.
Born in Findlay.
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale (clergyman) lived in Findlay when his father was pastor
of the First Methodist Church from 1916 to 1919, and later superintendent
of the old Findlay District of the denomination. Dr. Peale worked as a
reporter for the Findlay Morning Republican in 1920 before going into the
ministry.
Tot Pressnell (baseball player) Real name Forest
Charles Pressnell Debut April 21, 1938 Final Game August 30,
1942 played for the Brooklyn Dodgers and Chicago Cubs. Born in Findlay.
Ben Rothlisberger (football QB). Led Pittsburgh Steelers to 15-1 regular season
record as a rookie in 2004. Helped Steelers win Superbowl XL after the 2005 season. First played quarterback as a senior in high
school at Findlay High and finished 2nd in Ohio Mr. Football award with
over 4,000 yards and 54 touchdowns. Because he is 6 feet 5" tall his nickname is "Big Ben". Has his own website called BigBen7.com
Dave Sorenson - (basketball) Twice named first team All-Buckeye Conference, was Ohio Player of the Year 1965-66, and was named Buckeye Conference MVP. He remains among FHS' all-time leaders in career, season and game scoring. Played for Ohio State. Led Ohio State in scoring and rebounding as a junior and as a senior. Helped the Buckeyes win the 1968 Big Ten championship and hit the game-winning basket against Kentucky that sent the Buckeyes into the 1968 NCAA Final Four. Played for the Cleveland Cavaliers and Philadelphia 76ers of the NBA. Sorenson's NBA stats
Tell Taylor (songwriter) born in nearby Vanlue. Wrote the famous
song "Down by the Old Millstream" about the Blanchard River that runs through Findlay.
C.J. "Pappy" Hart (Drag Racing b. 1911 d. 2004) - opened first comercial drag strip in Southern California (the Santa Ana Dragstrip) in 1950 to give hot rods a place to race legally. Developed the first rules for drag racing and established the 'quarter-mile' as a standard race distance. Born in Findlay.
Matt Fox (TV Host) - Hosts Room by Room on HGTV cable network.
James D. Parriott (television writer, producer, and director) Lived for a time in Findlay as a youth. Currently executive producer and writer of the show "Grey's Anatomy" (2005) on the ABC network. He also created, wrote, and produced one of my favorite TV shows -"Forever Knight" (1992-1996) and wrote for another - "Voyagers!" (1982) - that I loved in my younger days. He even produced the "The Bionic Woman" (1976-1978) and the "The Incredible Hulk" (1978-1982) shows back in the late 70's. Wow!
Howard T. Ricketts (pathologist b. 1871 d. 1910) - He discovered the bacterium that causes Rocky Mountain spotted fever and was one of the researchers who found the same bacterium led to epidemic typhus. He died from typhus during his research in Mexico. The science community named a taxonomic family (Rickettsiaceae) and an order (Rickettsiales) after him. Born in Findlay.
Last updated 04/12/2008
Layout ©2008 Doug Berger