Ohio State Alumni

Millions of students have attended OSU since its founding in 1870 and we have many, many distinguished alumni. Here are some, aside from football players, that you may have heard of:

James Thurber (1894 - 1961) - author and humorist, he went to OSU during the Chic Harley days and remained lifelong friends with Harley. Thurber went on to write stories and cartoons for The New Yorker and in Hollywood. His most famous story is probably "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty." He also collaborated on the 1947 film version of that story.


Jesse Owens (1913 - 1980) - track a field star at Ohio State in the 1930s, he went to the Berlin Olympics in 1936 and won four gold medals. He was nicknamed "The Buckeye Bullet." After his days as a track star, he went on to be active in his communities in Cleveland and Chicago. He was awarded the Medal of Freedom in 1976 by President Ford.



Roy Lichtenstein (1923 - 1997) - artist famous for his paintings that look like comic books. He was a World War II veteran, with his Ohio State days being interrupted by the war. He returned to OSU after the war and attended graduate school there, too. He eventually move to New York and worked as an art professor. He became a pioneer of pop art. Here is one of his most famous works:


George Steinbrenner (1930 - 2010) - former owner of the New York Yankees. He got his master's degree in Physical Education from Ohio State in the 1950s and was a graduate assistant to Woody Hayes. He had several business ventures over the next decades and eventually bought the New York Yankees in the 1970s. He became famous for the Yankees success in the 1990s and his insistence that Yankees players stay clean-cut.


Mary Oliver (born 1935) - best-selling poet and essayist. She is a prolific poet whose work is reminiscent of Henry David Thorough, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1984 and has honorary doctorates from several universities. Read this short poem of hers: "At Black River."

*photo of Mary Oliver by Rachel Giese property of Poetry Foundation.



Bobby Knight (born 1940) - famed basketball coach of the Indiana Hoosiers and the Texas Tech Red Raiders, he graduated from Ohio State in 1962 and played on our 1960 basketball team that won the National Championship. He became the long time coach at Indiana and led them to their undefeated championship in 1976 (the last team to do it). He led Indiana to National Championships again in 1981 and 1987. Knight coached Mike Krzyzewski when he was a player at Army. Knight coached until 2008 and has 902 Division I basketball wins. Here he is coaching Mike Krzyzewski around 1970:




R.L. Stine  (born 1943) - author of the children's book series Goosebumps. Stine graduated from Ohio State in 1965 and started publishing children's literature in the 1970s. He has written an amazing amount of books and stories over the years and is one of the most popular young adult authors in the world. Most of his work is in the horror/sci-fi/fantasy vein.

*photo of R.L. Stine in 2008 property of Larry D. Moore

Richard Lewis (born 1947) - comedian and actor most known for stand up comedy and his appearances in "Curb Your Enthusiasm." Lewis graduated from OSU in 1969 when we were at the height of football glory. He was originally from New York City and returned there to find success as a stand-up comedian. His popularity in the 1980s and '90s led to some acting gigs like playing Prince John in Robin Hood: Men in Tights. Here he is in Cleveland in 2013 with 92.3 The Fan:

*photo of Richard Lewis (center) property of cleveland.cbslocal.com

Patricia Heaton (born 1958) - actress best known for "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "The Middle." She is from the Cleveland area and graduated from Ohio State in 1980. Heaton made a career out of small TV and film roles until she landed a leading role in "Everybody Loves Raymond" for almost ten years and in "The Middle" for almost five years now. Here she is receiving a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame:

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