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THe MAFYA is dedicated to helping Yale Alumni to perform and create, to watch others perform and create, and to support the overall state of artistic affairs in NYC (and possibly soon LA) as a vibrant, integrated community.





 

















Welcome to the Celebrity Alumni Page of THe MAFYA
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CELEBRITY ALUMNI BY CATEGORY



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THe MAFYA is dedicated to helping Yale Alumni to perform and create, to watch others perform and create, and to support the overall state of artistic affairs in NYC (and soon LA) as a vibrant, integrated community.  (This Mission Statement is currently under construction.  Last Updated 6/20/00). To join THe MAFYA, just send us an e-mail with your contact information...

FAMOUS YALIES IN FILM & TV
Search The Internet Movie Database for more info on any of these folk or their movies or TV shows...
Click here to add more famous alumni or ask questions.... Italics for graduation year denote estimate.

Actors

  • Angela Bassett '80 DRA '83 - Starred in What's Love Got to Do With It and How Stella Got Her Groove Back
  • Jennifer Beals '86 - Movies include Flashdance (which she starred in while a freshman at Yale), The Bride, and Last Days of Disco
  • Carrie Boren '93 - Movies include The Maker and The Pelican Brief. Daughter of Senator David Boren (D-OK) who retired in 1994 to become President at the University of Oklahoma
  • Jordana Brewster BK '03 - star of The Faculty and "As the World Turns" (1956), and granddaughter of former Yale President Kingman Brewster
  • Maia Brewton '98 - Appeared in "Parker Lewis Can't Lose" (Parker's sister), Adventures in Babysitting, and Back to the Future
  • Brian Patrick Clarke '74 - Appeared on "Eight is Enough" and "Fame" (TV) and in Private Wars
  • Jennifer Connelly (dng) - Movies include The Rocketeer and Labyrinth. Studied English and Theater at Yale
  • Michael Cerveris - Movies include Woman, Her Men and Her Futon, Rock and Roll High School Forever, and Steel and Lace. Apeared in Fame TV series. Appeared on Broadway in Tommy and Titanic
  • Sarah Dammann who, before coming to Yale, appeared in many commercials (including one popular Sugar Corn Pops commercial that still haunts here to this day) and appeared on the Wonder Years.
  • Claire Danes CC '02 - Starred in "My So Called Life." Movies include Les Miserables and The Rainmaker
  • Nicole Dubuc MC '00 - Regular on TV's "Major Dad" and "Our House"
  • David Duchovny (dng) - Starred in "The X-Files" and appeared in "Twin Peaks" and Ruby.  David Duchovny went to Princeton for undergrad, and received a graduate degree from Yale in English Lit. What he did not get is a Ph.D, because he quit that program to act. 
  • Noah Emmerich '92 - Movies include The Truman Show and Cop Land
  • Melissa Errico '92 - Regular on "Central Park West". Leading roles in "High Society", "Faust", and "My Fair Lady" on Broadway. Engaged to childhood friend Pat MacEnroe (Jon's brother).
  • Jodie Foster CC '85 - BA English (Magna). Appeared in Taxi Driver, Freaky Friday, and Silence of the Lambs. Directed Contact.  Also received an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts in 1997.
  • Sara Gilbert '97 - Regular on "Roseanne"
  • David Hyde-Pierce '81 - Plays Niles Crane on "Frazier". Movies include The Fisher King and Sleepless in Seattle.
  • Phil LaMarr - Appeared in Pulp Fiction, Bio-Dome, and It's Pat. Was a member of The Purple Crayon at Yale.
  • Josh Malina '88 - Movies include Bulworth, The American President, and A Few Good Men
  • Kellie Martin (dng) - Studied History of Art. Regular on "Life Goes On" and "ER". Movies include Troop Beverly Hills and Jumpin' Jack Flash.  She will be returning to Yale to finish her degree.
  • Crystal McKellar '99 - Played Becky Slater on "The Wonder Years". Her sister, Danica, played Winnie Cooper on the show.  Graduated magna cum laude.
  • Ari Meyers '91- Regular on "Kate and Allie". Movies include Dutch and How to Make an American Quilt
  • Bill Moseley '74 - starred in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part II as Choptop. in 1985.  He also appeared in White Fang with Ethan Hawke, and Pink Cadillac, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Bernadette Peters.
  • George Murphy '26 - Appeared in 49 movies, including This is the Army and The Public Menace. Became president of Screen Actors Guild, and eventually a Senator
  • Obi Ndefo '94 - Regular on first season of TV's "Dawson's Creek". Appeared in one of the Start Trek series; we're no sure which one... Deep Space 9, perhaps
  • Alessandro Nivola '94 - BA English. Movies include Face Off, Inventing the Abbots, and Reach the Rock
  • Edward Norton '91 - BA History. Movies include American History X, Primal Fear (Academy Award), People vs. Larry Flynt, and Rounders
  • Gabriel Olds '95 - Appeared on TV's "Party of Five". Movies include Without Limits and Calendar Girl
  • Robert Picardo - Appeared in The Howling and Total Recall (voice of Johnnycab) and Legend (voice of Meg). Regular on "Star Trek: Voyager" (the Doctor) and "The Wonder Years" (Coach Cutlip)
  • Bronson Pinchot '81 - Played Balki on "Perfect Strangers". Movies include Beverly Hills Cop and Risky Business. Attended Yale on a scholarship with the intention of studying painting and drawing in order to become an illustrator
  • Vincent Price '33 - BA Art History, Davenport College.. Was studying for Masters when fame struck. Narrated Michael Jackson's "Thriller". Movies include House of Wax, The Ten Commandments, and The Fly.
  • Allison Parisi '85 - Metropolitan

  • Josh Saviano '98 - Played Paul Pfeiffer on "The Wonder Years"
  • Matt Shakman '96 - Regular on "Just the Ten of Us"
  • Ben Stein LAW '70 - Valedictorian of the class...
  • Judd Trichter '96 - Appeared in Big and on "E.R." and "Law & Order"
  • James Waterston - Sam's son and a member of the SOB's while at Yale. Jamie appeared in Dead Poet's Society as "Pits" as well as on "Law and Order"
  • Sam Waterston '62 - Regular on "Law and Order". Appeared in The Enemy Within and The Killing Fields
  • James Whitmore '44 - Played Brooks in The Shawshank Redemption
  • Amy Wilson SY '91 - regular on "The Norm Show", Wednesday nights at 9:30 on ABC (after Drew Carey)
  • Monty Woolley ’11 - Nominated for two oscars, and appeared in Irish Eyes are Smiling (1944), The Bishop’s Wife (1947), and Since You Went Away (1944). Starred in Broadway’s The Man Who Came to Dinner. Earned Masters degrees at Yale and Harvard and became professor of Drama at Yale in 1919

Actors: Polly Draper, Jill Eikenberry,  Carrie Nye.

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Directors

  • John Badham - Directed Saturday Night Fever, WarGames, and Point of No Return
  • Richard Fleischer - Directed Tora! Tora! Tora! and Conan the Destroyer
  • Alan Pakula '48 - Directed All the President's Men (nominated for Best Director), Presumed Innocent, and The Devil's Own. Produced To Kill a Mockingbird. Died in 1998 when a metal pipe lying on the Long Island expressway in Suffolk County was kicked up by another car and crashed through his windshield
  • Todd Solondz '81 - Wrote and directed Happiness and Welcome to the Dollhouse
  • Oliver Stone (dng) - Wrote and Directed Platoon, JFK, and Wall Street

More Directors: Mark Brokaw, Arvin Brown, David Brustein, Marc Flanigan, , Richard Foreman, Ulu Grosbard, George Roy Hill, Elia Kazan, Asaad Kelada, Lloyd Richards, Susan H. Schulman and Stan Wojewodski Jr.

Producers

  • James Franciscus '57 - BA English & Theater (magna). Produced "Heidi" and "Jane Eyre" for TV, and Kidnapped. Appeared in Beneath the Planet of the Apes and Killer Fish (aka Deadly Treasure of the Piranha)
  • Tad Lowe '88 - Creator of "Pop Up Videos", VH-1's most successful series (Mike Errico '89 also wrote its theme song)
  • Lloyd Kaufman - Founder of Troma Productions and producer of The Toxic Avenger
  • Rachel Talalay - BA Mathematics. Produced The Borrowers, Hairspray, Cry Baby, Book of Love, and the third and fourth sequels of the Nightmare on Elm Street series. Directed Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare, Ghost in the Machine, and Tank Girl

More Producers: James Burrows, Bruce Cohen, Tony Converse, T. Edward Hambleton, Roger Horchow, Gail Katz, Rocco Landesman, Lew Lloyd, Mace Neufeld, Jon Stone and Douglas Wick.

Writers

  • Fred Finklehoffe - Wrote Girl Crazy, Meet Me in St. Louis, and Strike Up the Band?
  • Joyce Maynard dng - J.D. Salinger's former girlfriend, who sold 14 of his letters for $156,500. Joyce partially excerpted the letters in her 1998 book, ``At Home in the World,'' which also detailed her romance with Salinger, which took place when he was 53 and she was 18. The two began corresponding in 1972, when he wrote her to praise a story she wrote for The New York Times Magazine, called ``An 18-Year-Old Looks Back on Life.'' The letters stopped after Ms. Maynard dropped out of Yale University to move in with him.
  • Rick Natkin - Wrote The Boys in Company C, Necessary Roughness and The Taking of Beverly Hills.

Writers: Erik Ehn, Frank Gilroy, Bert Granet, Albert Innaurato, David C. Ives, Larry Kramer, Archibald MacLeish, James Magruder, Donald Margulies, David Milch, Tad Mosel, Lyn Notteag, Sam Pottle, Peter Stone, Ted Tally, Gary B. Trudeau, Robert Penn Warren and Thornton Wilder.


Designers:

  • Will Armstrong

  • John Lee Beatty

  • Sandra Boynton

  • Pat Collins

  • John Conklin

  • William and Jean Eckart

  • Heidi Ettinger

  • Jane Greenwood

  • David Hays

  • David Jenkins

  • Donald Jenslager

  • Peter Larkin

  • Eugene Lee

  • Santo Loquasto

  • Tharon Musser and Jennifer Tipton.

Entertainment industry leaders:

  • Jed Bernstein, League of American Theaters
  • Jeff Bewkes, HBO
  • Herbert Brodkin, Alcoa Hour
  • Arvin Brown, Long Wharf
  • Jaques Cartier, Hartford Stage
  • Todd Haimes, Roundabout
  • David Hays, National Theater for the Deaf
  • Lynne Meadow, Manhattan Theater Club
  • Ben Moore, Seattle Rep
  • Carol Ochs, 52nd Street Project
  • Walter Parkes, Dreamworks SKG
  • Michael Price, Goodspeed Opera House
  • Nikos Psacharopoulos, Williamstown Theater
  • Brandon Stoddard, ABC-TV
  • George White, Eugene O'Neill Theater

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FAMOUS YALE DRAMA SCHOOL GRADS (they need their own category)

  • Bruce Altman '90 - Glengary Glen Ross
  • Amy Aquino '86 - Boys on the Side
  • Raymond Barry - Movies include The Ref, Born on the Fourth of July, and The Goodbye Girl
  • Angela Bassett BA '80 DRA '83- Starred in What's Love Got to Do With It and How Stella Got Her Groove Back. Also graduated from Yale undergrad.
  • Gary Basaraba '82 - Movies include Last Temptation of Christ, Striptease, and Fried Green Tomatoes
  • Richard Bey - Appeared in Meet Wally Sparks
  • Sorrell Booke - Played "Boss" Hogg on "Dukes of Hazzard". Appeared in the Iceman Cometh and Slaughterhouse Five
  • Patricia Elizabeth Clarkson - Daughter of New Orleans, LA councilwoman Jackie Clarkson.  Graduated Fordham University's College at Lincoln Center, 1982.
  • Charles Dutton '83 - Starred in "Roc". Movies include Rudy, Mimic, and Alien 3
  • Emanual Gerard - Clio Award winning art director. Designed sets for The Incident, Goodbye Columbus, Shaft, and Shaft's Big Score.
  • Malcolm Gets - Appeared on "Caroline in the City" and "Law and Order"
  • Paul Giamatti - Appeared in Private Parts (as "Pig Vomit"), The Truman Show, and Saving Private Ryan. Is the son of A. Bartlett Giamatti, late president of Yale.
  • Michael Gross - Father on Family Ties
  • Ken Howard - The Coach from White Shadow
  • Ernie Hudson - Movies include Ghostbusters and Congo. Regular on "Oz"
  • Mark Linn-Baker - Star of Perfect Strangers
  • Jane Kaczmarek '82 - Pleasantville, "Malcolm in the Middle" (2000)
  • Frances McDormand '82 - Best known for her role as police officer Marge Gunderson in the 1996 Cohen brothers' film Fargo. She is married to Joel Cohen. Other films include "Almost Famous," "Wonder Boys," "Paradise Road," "Mississippi Burning" and her first screen effort, "Blood Simple."
  • Mya Michaels - Appeared in The Devil's Own
  • Philip Moon - Appeared in The Joy Luck Club, Lethal Weapon 3, and Batman Forever
  • James Naughton
  • Paul Newman '54 - Won oscars for The Color of Money (1987) and Nobody's Fool (1994), and was nominated for 7 more, including The Hustler and Cool Hand Luke
  • Liev Schreiber - Scream (I & II), The Daytripper, and Phantoms
  • Tony Shalhoub '80 - Appeared in Men in Black, Big Night, and Barton Fink. Regular on "Wings"
  • Talia Shire '69 - Rocky, The Godfather
  • Meryl Streep '75 - Starred in Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), Sophie's Choice (1982), and Out of Africa (1985)
  • John Turturro '83 - Movies include Raging Bull, Do the Right Thing, Barton Fink, and Quiz Show (Golden Globe nomination). Wrote, directed, and starred in 1993's Mac, winning an award at Cannes for Best New Director. Won an Obie for Danny and the Deep Blue Sea (1984)
  • Sigourney Weaver '74 - Movies include Alien, Aliens, Ghostbusters,and Working Girl
  • Henry Winkler '70 - Played the Fonz on "Happy Days"
  • Courtney Vance '86 - The Preacher's Wife

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FAMOUS YALIES IN MUSIC

  • George Avakian - Revolutionized jazz recording industry by initiating the concept of the classic jazz reissue. Helped boost the careers of such artists as Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck (who he signed), Louis Armstrong, and Bessie Smith. Won a Grammy for liner notes in the complete recordings of Miles Davis and Gil Evans.
  • Eduardo Braniff '93 - MTV V-jay
  • Mary Cutrufello '91 - Released Mercury Records debut, "When The Night Is Through," in 1998 to rave reviews. USA Today called it "a sound that falls somewhere between early Bob Seeger and Exile on Main Street-era Rolling Stones," and said "Cutrufello is a fierce guitarist with a blistered-throat voice"
  • Mike Errico '89 - Signed to Hybrid Records. Wrote the theme music to VH-1's "Pop Up Videos"
  • Brue Feiler - Award-winning journalist and author of three acclaimed books. Heralded by Rolling Stone, USA Today, The Washington Post, Music City News, ASCAP and Billboard Magazine. Nashville Life named him one of "The 100 Coolest People in Nashville". Masters in international relations from Cambridge. and taught school in Japan.
  • Lukas Foss - Conductor laureate of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. Youngest yet to be awarded a Guggenheim fellowship.
  • John Hammond (dng) - Legendary talent scout who signed Billie Holiday, Count Basie, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. Hammond died in 1987 of complications following a series of strokes
  • Paul Hindemith - . Arguably the most scholarly of the four founders of modernism (Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Bartók, and Hindemith)
  • Wayne Kirby MM - Conductor, arranger and performer on numerous television shows including "Merv Griffin" and "The Tonight Show." Performed on bills with Jimi Hendrix and Deborah Harry
  • Jorge Martin '81 - composer
  • Richard Meltzer - Legendary Rock critic. Thrown out of Yale graduate school in philosophy for writing rock papers
  • Thomas Newman - Composed music for over 50 films, including Meet Joe Black, Mad City, and Gung Ho
  • Cole Porter - Legendary composer
  • Joshua Redman LAW '02 - Famous Jazz saxophonist. Graduated summa cum laude from Harvard undergrad.
  • Jim Shapiro '87 - BA English. Former drummer (until 1997) for rock group Veruca Salt, fronted by his sister Nina Gordon (she uses here mom's maiden name). Jim currently front's his own band Ultraswiss.
  • Sandy Smallens - Bass player for Too Much Joy, which played Yale Spring Fling in 1993 and was arrested for playing 2 Live Crew songs in Florida
  • Jon Tiven dng - played with the Rolling Stones, Wilson Pickett, and BB King.  Produced Alex Chilton and Frank Black.  Had his songs recorded by Buddy Guy, Jeff Healey, Michael Hill's Blues Mob, BB King, Son Seals, Jim Carroll, and Alex Chilton. Matriculated for 3 semesters.

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OTHER COOL ARTS ALUMNI

  • Elisha Cooper '93 - Writer
  • James Fenimore Cooper (dng) - Wrote the novels "Last of the Mohicans", "The Spy" and "The Deerslayer". Was exp.elled from yale for misbehavior.
  • Sari Gruber '92 - Opera Singer
  • Maya Lin '86 M.Arch '87 - Sculptor/architect. Designed the Vietnam Memorial and the Women's Table at Yale
  • Judianna Makovsky - Costume Designer. Designed for "Great exp.ectations," "Pleasantville," Adrian Lyne's "Lolita," "The Devil's Advocate," "White Squall," "The Quick and the Dead," "Reversal of Fortune," "Six Degrees of Separation," "Big" and "Gardens of Stone." MFA
  • Archibald MacLeish - Won Pulitzer Prize for Conquistador (1932) and Collected Poems (1952). Poetic Drama, J.B., was a Broadway success in 1957. From 1929-1944, served as Librarian of Congress.
  • Stone Phillips - "Dateline NBC" Anchor
  • Richard Serra BFA '62 MFA '64 - Sculptor
  • Nandita Shenoy '94 - Appeared in the revival or "The King & I" on Broadway
  • Gene Siskell PC '67 - BA Philosphy. Famous movie critic; Appearing with Roger Ebert on the film review program, "Siskel & Ebert," the two created the model for movie criticism on television when they were first paired back in 1975. Five national Emmy Award nominations for "Siskel & Ebert" and an Iris Award from the National Association of Television Programming Executives (NATPE). One of the first broadcasters initiated into NATPE's Hall of Fame. Siskel and Ebert were honored by The Hollywood Radio and Television Society as Men of the Year in 1993. Died in 1999
  • Steve Sohmer '63 - Producer, novelist, and former president of Columbia pictures
  • Brandon Tartikof - Former President of NBC. Died in 1994.
  • Gary Trudeau - Political and comic strip cartoonist. Penned "Doonesbury", one of the most widely read comic strips in the world.
  • Tom Wolfe PhD '57 - Author of bestsellers including "Bonfire of the Vanities", which was made into a movie with Tom Hanks

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TV & FILM CHARACTERS WHO WENT TO YALE

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HONORARY DEGREES

Yale has awarded Honorary Degrees to a number of celebrities who never attended Yale, including:

  • Louise Bourgeois - Sculptor
  • James Earl Jones - The world's coolest actor
  • BB King - Blues Master
  • Branford Marsalis - Jazz musician, leader of the neoclassical school of Jazz
  • Itzhak Perlman - World-famous violinist

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