List of Lebanese Americans

Arts and entertainment

Artists

• Chawky Frenn – painter and art professor
• Kahlil Gibran – aka Kahlil G. Gibran, artist, sculptor
• Nabil Kanso – painter
• Sam Maloof – woodworker
• Etel Adnan – painter, poet
• Margot Douaihy – writer

  Beauty pageant contestants

• Rima Fakih – Miss USA 2010

  Entertainment personalities

• Amy Yasbeck – actress
• Anissa Jones – child actor
• Callie Khouri – Oscar-winning screenwriter
• Casey Kasem – radio personality, American Top 40 franchise; voiceover actor
• Catherine Keener – actress, mother of Lebanese descent
• Celeste Thorson – actress, model, activist, screenwriter
• Dan Jbara – television and film producer
• Danny Thomas – actor
• Marlo Thomas – actress
• David Yazbek – musician and composer famous for the Broadway musical The Full Monty
• Diane Rehm – host and executive producer of The Diane Rehm Show on National Public Radio
• Edy Ganem – actress
• Elie Samaha – film producer
• Elizabeth Keener – actress known for her role in The L Word
• Emeraude Toubia – actress
• Emile Kuri – Mexican-born American Oscar-winning art director
• Frank Lackteen – actor
• Gregory Jbara – television and film actor
• George Nader – actor, uncle of Michael Nader
• George Noory – radio host
• Haaz Sleiman – actor
• Hank the Angry Drunken Dwarf – radio and television personality
• James Stacy – film and television actor
• Jamie Farr – actor
• Jamie Gray Hyder – actress, model
• Jane Wiedlin – musician, actress
• Jenna Dewan – actress
• Kristen Doute – television personality known for Vanderpump Rules
• Joan Alexander – actress known for her role as Lois Lane
• John A. Kuri – author and writer, film and television producer, and director
• John Leguizamo – actor
• Kathy Najimy – actress
• Kerri Kasem – radio and television host; daughter of Casey Kasem
• Khrystyne Haje – actress
• Lili Estefan – Cuban-American television personality, niece of Emilio Estefan
• Marlo Thomas – actress
• Mario Kassar – filmmaker, founder of Carolco Pictures
• Mary Zilba – television personality and singer
• Mayssa Karaa – Grammy-nominated singer
• Mia Khalifa — pornographic actress and adult model
• Michael Ansara – stage, screen, and voice actor
• Michael Nader – actor, All My Children
• Michael Nouri – actor, film Flashdance
• Mo Gallini – actor
• Paola Turbay – Colombian-American actress, model, beauty queen and television presenter
• Paul Anka – singer, songwriter, actor, producer
• Peter Macdissi – film and television actor
• Raya Meddine – actress of Lebanese descent
• Rose Abdoo – comedian, actress
• Rowan Blanchard – actress
• Salma Hayek – Mexican-American actress
• Senta Moses – actress known for her role in Home Alone
• Shannon Elizabeth – actress
• Terrence Malick – filmmaker, of part Lebanese descent
• Tom Shadyac – film director
• Tony Shalhoub – actor
• Tony Thomas – producer
• Vince Vaughn – actor
• Wentworth Miller – actor, maternal great-grandmother of Lebanese descent
• Yasmine Al Massri – Lebanese-born American actress
• Zoe Saldana – Dominican-American actress, has claimed some Lebanese ancestry

  Fashion designers

• Joseph Abboud – fashion designer
• Reem Acra – fashion designer
• Georges Habib – fashion designer
• Norma Kamali – fashion designer

  Musicians

• Andrew Bazzi – pop musician
• Dick Dale – rock guitarist and surf music pioneer
• Emile Ghantous – songwriter, musician, music producer
• Emilio Estefan – Cuban-American musician and producer; husband of Gloria Estefan
• G. E. Smith – lead guitarist in the band Hall & Oates; musical director of Saturday Night Live
• Hamed Sinno – Lebanese-American graphic designer, singer/songwriter of the band Mashrou'Leila
• Jack Barakat – guitarist of the band All Time Low
• Jane Wiedlin – musician, singer-songwriter, and actress; best known as a member of the all-female new wave band The Go-Go's
• John Dolmayan – Lebanese-American of Armenian descent, drummer of band System of a Down
• Kat Dahlia – singer, songwriter, rapper
• Mohammed El-Bakkar – tenor singer, oud player, and conductor
• Nadia Azzi – pianist
• Paul Anka – singer-songwriter
• Paul Jabara – composer
• Neil Sedaka – pop/rock singer, pianist, composer and record producer
• Ron Affif – jazz guitarist and musician
• Rosalind Elias – opera singer renowned for her time in the Metropolitan Opera
• Serj Tankian – Lebanese-American of Armenian descent, lead singer of band System of a Down
• Soraya – Colombian-American singer
• Tiffany – singer
• Tino Coury – singer, songwriter and producer
• Tiny Tim – folk singer

  Business

• Alec Gores – entrepreneur
• Caroline Ghosn – entrepreneur
• Charles Elachi – director of Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Clifford Antone – founder of Antone's blues club in Austin, Texas
• Debra Cafaro – CEO of Ventas Inc., a healthcare real estate investment trust
• Fares D. Noujaim – business executive
• Frédéric Fekkai – French-American hairdresser and founder of Frédéric Fekkai salons and hair products
• George Joseph – founder of Mercury Insurance Group
• George J. Maloof Jr. – businessman and owner of the Sacramento Monarchs, Sacramento Kings and the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas
• George J. Maloof Sr. – businessman and former owner of the Houston Rockets
• Jacques Nasser – former CEO of Ford Motor Company
• Jean Succar Kuri – businessman
• Joe Jamail – attorney and businessman
• Joe Robbie – attorney and original owner of the Miami Dolphins
• John J. Mack – former CEO of investment bank Morgan Stanley
• Joseph J. Jacobs – former chairman and founder of the Jacobs Engineering Group
• Madeleine A. Pickens – business executive
• Magid Abraham – market research expert and businessman
• Manuel Moroun – businessman and the owner of the Ambassador Bridge
• Moose Scheib – founder and CEO of LoanMod.com
• Nahim Abraham – businessman, philanthropist
• Tom Abraham – businessman, philanthropist
• Paul Orfalea – founder of Kinko's
• Richard Rainwater – investor and philanthropist
• Robert Khuzami – former director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
• Salem Abraham – businessman
• Thomas J. Barrack, Jr. – businessman and founder of Colony Capital
• Tony Fadell – product development manager at Apple Inc.
• Emil Sayegh – President and CEO of Ntirety, Inc.

  Education and academics

• Charbel Farhat – Chair of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Stanford University; member of National Academy of Engineering
• Joseph Aoun – President of Northeastern University
• Robert Khayat – Chancellor of the University of Mississippi
• Donna Shalala – U.S. Representative from Florida, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and former President of the University of Miami

  History

• Akram Fouad Khater – professor, author, expert on Lebanese-American studies
• Philip Khuri Hitti – historian of Arab culture and history

  Journalism

• Anthony Shadid – foreign correspondent for The New York Times and earlier The Boston Globe
• Brian Karem – journalist and White House correspondent
• Helen Thomas – journalist who covered every U.S. President from 1961 to 2010
• Jad Abumrad – radio host, composer, and producer, founder and co-host of the syndicated public radio program Radiolab
• Jim Avila – senior correspondent for ABC News
• Leila Fadel – Journalist for National Public Radio
• Lucie Salhany – first woman to head a broadcast television network in 1993 in the position as Chairman of Fox Broadcasting Company
• Octavia Nasr – former television journalist for CNN
• Paula Faris – journalist
• Raghida Dergham – columnist and senior diplomatic correspondent for the London-based Al Hayat
• Sara Ganim – CNN journalist
• Serena Shim – journalist
• Tamsen Fadal – television journalist
• Walid Phares – security and anti-terrorism expert

  Medicine

• Amin J. Barakat – physician, known for the diagnosis of Barakat syndrome
• Charles Sophy – psychiatrist
• Daniel Amen – psychiatrist and author
• George Hatem – "Ma Haide," a founder of the public health system in China
• M. Amin Arnaout – nephrologist and physician-scientist
• Michael DeBakey – heart surgeon, medical innovator
• Paul Nassif – facial plastic surgeon, co-star on the television series ''Botched'

  Military

• Alfred Naifeh – U.S. Navy Lieutenant posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal in WWII and namesake of a U.S. Navy ship, USS Naifeh
• Ernest "Iron Mike" Massad – U.S. Army Major General
• George Joulwan – retired U.S. Army General
• James Jabara – first American jet ace
• John Abizaid – retired General in the United States Army
• Michael A. Monsoor – U.S. Navy SEAL awarded Medal of Honor after being killed during the Iraq War

  Politics

Activists

• Brigitte Gabriel – founder of non-profit political organizations American Congress For Truth and ACT! for America; author; formerly journalist in Israel working for World News
• Candy Lightner – activist and founder of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers
• James Zogby – founder of the Arab-American Institute
• Jill Kelley – international advocate, socialite, and former diplomat
• John Zogby – pollster; founder of Zogby International

  Politicians

• Abraham Kazen, Jr. – former U.S. Representative from Texas
• Alex Azar – current United States Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Charles Boustany – former U.S. Representative from Louisiana
• Charlie Crist – U.S. Representative from Florida and former Governor of Florida
• Chris Greeley – former Maine state representative
• Chris John – former U.S. Representative from Louisiana
• Chris Sununu – Governor of New Hampshire
• Darin LaHood – Republican representative from Illinois
• Darrell Issa – former U.S. Representative from California
• David Karem – member of Kentucky Senate from 1976 to 2004
• Debbie Mucarsel-Powell – U.S. Representative from Florida
• Donna Shalala – U.S. Representative from Florida and former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Francis Slay – former Mayor of Saint Louis
• Garret Graves – U.S. Representative from Louisiana
• George A. Kasem – former U.S. Representative from California
• George J. Mitchell – former U.S. Senator from Maine
• Gwen Graham – former U.S. Representative from Florida
• James Abdnor – former U.S. Senator and U.S. Representative from South Dakota
• James Abourezk – former U.S. Senator from South Dakota
• Jeanine Pirro – politician, judge and television host
• John Baldacci – former Governor of Maine
• John E. Sununu – former U.S. Senator and U.S. Representative from New Hampshire
• John H. Sununu – former White House Chief of Staff; former Governor of New Hampshire
• Katcho Achadjian – former California State Assembly member, of Armenian descent
• Malouf Abraham, Sr. – politician and businessman
• Manuel Maloof – former U.S. government official and businessman
• Mary Rose Oakar – former U.S. Representative from Ohio
• Nick Rahall – former U.S. Representative from West Virginia
• Nico LaHood – Bexar County District Attorney, Texas
• Pat Danner – former U.S. Representative from Missouri
• Philip Habib – former U.S. Ambassador and envoy
• Ralph Abraham – U.S. Representative from Louisiana
• Ralph Nader – political activist and former U.S. presidential candidate
• Ray LaHood – former U.S. Transportation Secretary and former U.S. Representative from Illinois
• Richard L. Hanna – former U.S. Representative from New York
• Selwa Roosevelt – former U.S. government official
• Spencer Abraham – former U.S. Senator from Michigan
• Suzanne Haik Terrell – former Louisiana Elections Commissioner
• Toby Moffett – former U.S. Representative from Connecticut
• Victor G. Atiyeh – former Governor of Oregon
• Vincent Sheheen – member of the South Carolina senate
• Sam H. Zakhem – Member of the Colorado State House of Representatives. Colorado State Senator. Former US Ambassador to Bahrain under Ronald Reagan

  Other personalities

• Adele Khoury Graham – educator and former first lady of the State of Florida
• George Noory – radio host of Coast to Coast AM; author; entertainer
• Joseph Farah – author and journalist
• Nassim Nicholas Taleb – best-selling author, risk expert and statistician, university professor, and former trader and business person
• Robert Khuzami, U.S. Deputy Attorney for Southern District of New York
• Timothy Massad – U.S. Treasury Department official and corporate lawyer
• Victoria Reggie Kennedy – attorney and widow of U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy

  Sciences

• Anthony Atala – Director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine
• Charbel Farhat – Director, Army High Performance Computing Research Center, Stanford University, and Member of National Academy of Engineering
• Charles Elachi – Director of NASA Jet Propulsion Labs
• Christa McAuliffe – secondary school teacher and first American civilian selected to be an astronaut; perished in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster; great niece of historian Philip Khuri Hitti
• Elias Corey – 1990 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry
• Hassan Kamel Al-Sabbah – Lebanese-American technology innovator
• Michael Debakey – doctor and heart surgeon, medical innovator

  Sports

Athletes

• Abe Mickal – football player for LSU
• Bobby Rahal – professional car racer and team owner
• Charley Zivic – professional boxer
• Damien Sandow – professional wrestler in the WWE
• David Azzi – professional football player
• Doug Flutie – former professional football player
• Fred Saigh – lawyer; real estate investor; owner of the American professional baseball franchise the St. Louis Cardinals
• Graham Rahal – professional car racer
• Jackson Vroman – former professional basketball player and member of Lebanon's national basketball team
• Jeff George – former NFL quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts
• Jim Harrick – former head coach of the University of Georgia Bull Dogs
• Joe Lahoud – former Major League Baseball outfielder
• Joe Vogel – professional basketball player and member of Lebanon's national basketball team
• John Grabow – former Major League Baseball pitcher
• John Jaha – former first baseman in Major League Baseball, played for the Milwaukee Brewers and Oakland Athletics
• Johnny Manziel – professional football player
• Jordyn Wieber – Olympic gymnast and gold medallist
• Liz Carmouche – mixed martial artist
• Matt Freije – ex-NBA player and member of Lebanon national basketball team
• Matt Kalil – professional football player
• Mikie Mahtook – Major League Baseball outfielder
• Patrick Maroon – ice hockey player for the Edmonton Oilers in the NHL
• Paul Rabil – former professional lacrosse player
• Petey Sarron – former featherweight boxing champion
• Rich Kotite – former National Football League player and coach
• Robert Watkins – former professional football player; of African-American and Lebanese descent
• Rony Seikaly – former professional basketball player in the NBA and for both the U.S. and Lebanon's national basketball team
• Ryan Kalil – professional football player
• Sabu – professional wrestler, real name Terry Brunk
• Sage Karam – professional car racer
• Samir Bannout – former professional bodybuilder and winner of Mr. Olympia title in 1983
• Skandor Akbar – former professional wrestler
• Soony Saad – professional soccer forward player
• Steve Kerr – retired professional basketball player and current head coach of the Golden State Warriors

  World Series of Poker Champions

• Ihsan "Sammy" Farha – three-time WSOP-bracelet winner
• Jennifer Shahade – two-time United States Women's Champion; has the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster
• Kassem "Freddy" Deeb – two-time WSOP-bracelet winner
• Joe Hachem – WSOP main event winner and a WPT championship winner

  Writers

• Ameen Rihani – author
• D. H. Melhem – poet, novelist, and editor
• Geoff Johns – comic book writer
• Khalil Gibran – author and philosopher
• Lee Francis – poet
• Mikha'il Na'ima – author and poet
• Nassim Nicholas Taleb – essayist
• Paula Gunn Allen – Native American poet and activist
• Raymond Khoury – novelist and screenwriter
• Saree Makdisi – author and literary critic
• Stephen Karam – playwright
• Vance Bourjaily – novelist
• William Peter Blatty – writer, screenwriter