List of University of Southern California people

This is a list of notable alumni, faculty, and students, from the University of Southern California. Those individuals who qualify for multiple categories have been placed under the section for which they are best known.

Academia

• Anna Jean Ayres (B.A. 1945, M.A. 1954, Ph.D. 1961) – occupational therapist and developmental psychologist known for her work in the area of Sensory processing disorder^[1]
• A.V. Balakrishnan (M.A. 1949, M.S. 1950, Ph.D. 1954) – applied mathematician; professor of mathematics at the University of California, Los Angeles; initially earned a masters in cinema^[2]
• Leo Buscaglia (B.A. 1950, M.A. 1954, Ph.D. 1963) – educator, best-selling author^[3]
• George V. Chilingar (B.S. 1949, M.S. 1950, Ph.D. 1956) – distinguished petroleum geologist^[4]
• Fred Cohen (Ph.D. 1986) – computer scientist; inventor of computer virus defense techniques^[5]
• Anita Elberse (M.A.) – Lincoln Filene Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School^[6]
• Andrew A. Frank (M.S. 1965, Ph.D. 1968) – professor of mechanical and aeronautical engineering at UC Davis; the father of modern plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV)^[7]
• Alice Gast (B.S. 1980) – President of Imperial College London^[8]
• George Gerbner (M.A. 1951, Ph.D. 1955) – communication theorist; founder of cultivation theory^[9]
• Piara Singh Gill (B.S. 1935, M.S. 1936) – pioneer in cosmic ray nuclear physics^[10]
• Alfred Gottschalk (Ph.D. 1965), President of Hebrew Union College and leader in the Reform Judaism movement.^[11]
• Robert M. Gray (Ph.D. 1966) – information theorist; professor of electrical engineering at Stanford University^[12]
• Loren Grey (B.A. 1939, M.S. 1954, Ph.D. 1959) – author and educational psychologist^[13]
• Adam Herbert (B.A. 1966, M.P.A. 1968) – President, Indiana University^[14]
• Philip G. Hoffman (M.A. 1942) – former President of the University of Houston, first Chancellor of the University of Houston System^[15]
• John B. Hogenesch (B.A. 1989, B.S. 1991) - chronobiologist, Professor of Pharmacology at University of Pennsylvania, discovered the essential circadian clock gene Bmal1
• Howard P. House (M.D. 1935) – ear specialist and founder of the House Ear Institute^[16]
• Ayanna Howard (M.S. 1994, Ph.D. 1999) – roboticist, professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology^[17]
• Amando Kapauan (Ph.D. 1959) – chemist and researcher
• Jonathan Kellerman (Ph.D. 1974) clinical psychologist and writer^[18]
• Barry Kerzin (Ph.D. 1976) - professor of medicine, Buddhist monk and teacher, and personal physician to the Dalai Lama
• Satinder Vir Kessar, (PhD 1958) - organic chemist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureate
• Douglas Kmiec (J.D. 1976) – Caruso Family Chair & Professor of Constitutional Law, Pepperdine University^[19]
• Ellis O. Knox (M.A. 1928, Ph.D. 1931) – educator, first African-American to be awarded a Ph.D. on the West Coast^[20]
• Bart Kosko (B.A. 1982) – Hybrid intelligent system expert and science fiction writer^[21]
• Anthony Lazzaro (B.S. 1948) – USC Senior Vice President^[22]
• Minnette Gersh Lenier (Ph.D. 1971) – teacher who used magic to improve students’ learning skills.
• Paul Locatelli (Ph.D. 1971) – former President and professor of accounting at Santa Clara University^[23]
• Catherine McBride-Chang (M.A. 1992, Ph.D. 1994) – developmental psychologist and early literacy researcher.^[24]
• John Mearsheimer (M.A. 1974) – political scientist; professor of political science at the University of Chicago^[25]
• Max More (Ph.D. 1995) – philosopher and futurist, founder of Extropy Institute^[26]
• James Porter Moreland (Ph.D. 1985) – professor of philosophy at Talbot School of Theology at Biola University
• William Moritz (Ph.D. 1968) – film historian^[27]
• Dennis J. Murray (M.P.A. 1971, Ph.D. 1977) – President of Marist College^[28]
• Boris Podolsky (B.S.E.E. 1918, M.S. 1926) – physicist
• Nemesio Prudente (Ph.D. 1959) – President of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and political activist^[29]
• Alison Dundes Renteln (J.D. 1991) – Political Scientist, Professor of Political Science, Anthropology, Public Policy and Law at the University of Southern California
• Ian Roberts (Ph.D. 1985) – linguist; Professor of Linguistics at the University of Cambridge^[30]
• Gordon H. Sato (B.S. 1951) – biochemist; former director of the W. Alton Jones Cell Science Center; founder of the Manzanar Project^[31]
• Gretchen Sibley (A. M. 1946) – zoologist, founder of the docent program at the Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History, first executive director of the California State Science Fair^[32]
• Rangaswamy Srinivasan (Ph.D. 1956) – discoverer of Ablative Photodecomposition (APD) and co-inventor of the LASIK procedure^[33]
• Susan Straight (B.A. 1981) – published writer and novelist, professor at the University of California, Riverside^[34]
• Shang-Hua Teng (M.S. 1988) – computer scientist; chairman of the Computer Science Department at the Viterbi School of Engineering^[35]
• Norman Topping (B.A. 1933, M.D. 1936) – former University President and NIH associate director; helped develop a typhus vaccine and the first effective treatment against Rocky Mountain spotted fever^[36]
• Laura Skandera Trombley (Ph.D. 1989) – President of Pitzer College^[37]
• Cecilia Velástegui – author
• Andrew Viterbi (Ph.D. 1962) – inventor of the Viterbi algorithm, CDMA, co-founder of Qualcomm and benefactor of the Viterbi School of Engineering^[38]

Architecture

• Gregory Ain (attended the School of Architecture from 1927–28) FAIA - was an architect active in the mid-20th century^[39]
• Joel Bergman (B.Arch. 1965) FAIA – architect, designer of several landmark casinos^[40]
• Al Boeke (B.Arch. 1948) – developer of Sea Ranch, California^[41][42]
• Boris Dramov (1966) - architect and principle of ROMA Design Group^[43]
• Sidney Eisenshtat (B.Arch. 1935) – architect, best known for synagogues and Jewish academic buildings^[44]
• Edward H. Fickett (B.Arch. 1937) FAIA – architect, consultant to federal and local governments^[45]
• Frank Gehry (B.Arch. 1954, Honorary Doctorate 2000) FAIA – Canadian-American Pritzker Prize winning architect^[46]
• Jon Jerde (B.Arch. 1964) FAIA – architect, founder and chairman of The Jerde Partnership^[47]
• Edward Killingsworth (B.Arch. 1940) FAIA – was an architect best known as a participant in Arts & Architecture's Case Study program in the mid-1950s^[48]
• Pierre Koenig (B.Arch. 1952) FAIA – was an architect known for his exposed steel and glass houses^[49]
• Harold Levitt (1921–2003) – architect, designed homes for the rich and famous^[50]
• Carl Maston (B.Arch. 1936) – was an Mid-Century Modern architect and USC Distinguished Alumni Award recipient in 1989^[51]
• Thom Mayne (B.Arch. 1968) FAIA – principal of Morphosis, Pritzker Prize laureate, and co-founder of Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-ARC)^[52]
• Allen Siple (1900–1973) – architect^[53]
• Raphael Soriano (B.Arch. 1934) FAIA – architect and educator, helped define the mid-century modern period^[54]
• Paul Revere Williams (B.S. 1919) – architect, designed the homes of numerous celebrities, first African American member of the American Institute of Architects^[55]
• Bernard Zimmerman – Modernist architect,longtime educator at the Cal Poly Pomona College of Environmental Design^[56]

Art

• Khalil Bendib (M.A. 1982) – political cartoonist^[57]
• Art Clokey (M.A. 1956) – clay animator; creator of Gumby^[58]
• James Grant (B.S., c. 1945) – painter, sculptor^[59]
• Corita Kent (M.A. 1951) – artist ^[60]
• Elad Lassry (M.F.A. 2007) - artist^[61]
• Paul McCarthy (M.F.A. 1973) – artist^[62]
• Kenneth Price (B.F.A. 1956) – ceramic artist and printmaker^[63]
• Ada Mae Sharpless (B. A. 1922) – sculptor^[64]
• Delmer J. Yoakum (attended the Roski School of Fine Arts) – artist^[65]

Astronauts

Athletics

American football

The University of Southern California has had a number of notable American football players. The following list includes all former USC football players that have articles on Wikipedia. Please note: Some former players may be listed elsewhere due to other achievements (i.e. John Wayne and Ward Bond, became better known as actors; Quincy Woods became better known as an Olympian, etc.)

Baseball

Basketball

• Elías Larry Ayuso – professional basketball player^[450]
• David Bluthenthal (now "Blu") – professional basketball player^[451]
• Cynthia Cooper-Dyke – Pprofessional basketball player, 2-time Olympic medalist, member of both the Naismith Memorial and Women's Basketball Halls of Fame^[452]
• DeMar DeRozan – professional basketball player with the Toronto Raptors, drafted 9th overall in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Raptors^[453]
• Desmon Farmer — professional basketball player with Ironi Ashkelon^[454]
• Taj Gibson – Chicago Bulls power forward, 2009–present^[455]
• Lisa Leslie – WNBA player for Los Angeles Sparks, 4-time Olympic champion, member of the Naismith and Women's Halls of Fame^[456]
• Steve Malovic (1956–2007), American-Israeli basketball player^[457]
• O. J. Mayo – professional basketball player with the Milwaukee Bucks^[458]
• Barry Migliorini - American Basketball Association head coach^[459]
• Cheryl Miller – member of both the Naismith and Women's Halls of Fame, former USC women's coach^[460]
• Harold Miner - NBA player and Slam Dunk contest champion
• Brian Scalabrine – NBA forward for the Chicago Bulls, NBA champion with the Boston Celtics^[461]
• Bill Sharman – player and coach, Basketball Hall of Famer^[462]
• Tina Thompson – WNBA player, 2-time Olympic champion^[463]
• Paul Westphal – professional basketball player, current head coach at Pepperdine University^[464]
• Tex Winter – basketball coach (inventor of the Triangle offense)^[465]
• Nick Young – professional basketball player with the Los Angeles Lakers^[466]
• Daniel Hackett – professional basketball player with the Olympiacos B.C.

Golf

• Nicole Castrale (B.A. 2001) LPGA professional golfer^[467]
• Al Geiberger (B.A. 1959) – professional golfer^[468]
• Brian Henninger – professional golfer^[469]
• Anna Rawson – LPGA professional golfer^[470]
• Jennifer Rosales – LPGA professional golfer^[471]
• Dave Stockton – professional golfer^[472]
• Scott Simpson (B.S.B.A. 1978) – professional golfer^[473]
• Craig Stadler – professional golfer^[474]
• Kevin Stadler (B.A. 2002) - professional golfer^[475]

Tennis

• Byron Black – tennis champion
• Bob Falkenburg - tennis champion
• Luke Jensen – tennis champion
• Murphy Jensen - tennis champion
• Rick Leach - tennis champion
• Bob Lutz - tennis champion
• Gene Mako – tennis champion
• Alex Olmedo (B.S.B.A.) – tennis champion
• Rafael Osuna - tennis champion
• Raúl Ramírez - tennis champion
• Ted Schroeder tennis champion
• Stan Smith - tennis champion
• George Toley (B.A. 1942) – tennis coach and player
• Ellsworth Vines – tennis champion

Olympians

Miscellaneous

• Bibiana Candelas – volleyball player^[487]
• Peter Daland – swimming coach^[488]
• Phil Hill – only American-born driver to win the Formula One driving championship^[489]
• Lisa Moretti (B.A. 1984) professional female wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment under stage name Ivory^[490]
• Jess Mortensen – NCAA champion track athlete and coach^[491]
• Dave Salo – swimming coach^[492]
• Eve Torres - professional female wrestler for World Wrestling Entertainment

Business

• Dan Bane (B.S. 1969) – Chairman and CEO of Trader Joe's
• Tom Barrack (B.A. 1969) – CEO of Colony Capital
• Marc Benioff (B.S.B.A. 1986) – founder and CEO of Salesforce.com
• Douglas G. Bergeron (M.S. 1987) – CEO of VeriFone
• David Bohnett (B.S. 1978) – founder and former CEO of Geocities.com, founder of David Bohnett Foundation
• Jerry Buss (Ph.D. 1957) – owner of Los Angeles Lakers
• Henry Caruso (B.S.B.A.) – founder of Dollar Rent-A-Car
• Rick Caruso (B.S. 1980) – CEO of Caruso Affiliated
• Alan Casden (B.S. 1968) – Chairman and CEO of Casden Properties
• Fu Chengyu (傅成玉) (M.E.) – Chairman of Sinopec;^[493] former CEO of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (2003—2011)^[494]
• Yang Ho Cho (M.B.A. 1979) – President and CEO of Korean Airlines
• Richard W. "Dick" Cook (B.A. 1972) – Chairman of the Walt Disney Studios
• Scott Cook (B.A. 1974) – co-founder and chairman of Intuit, Inc.
• Kenneth C. Dahlberg (M.S.E.E. 1969) – President and CEO of Science Applications International Corporation
• Chris DeWolfe (M.B.A. 1997) – co-founder of MySpace and current CEO
• Sanford Diller - real estate developer
• David H. Dornsife, Chairman of the Herrick Corporation, USC trustee, namesake of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
• Vic Edelbrock, Jr. (B.S.B.A. 1959) – President and CEO of Edelbrock Automotive
• Pierre El Daher – Chairman and CEO of LBC and PAC Ltd.
• Dick Enthoven, South African-born businessman, owner of Nando's.
• Larry Flax (J.D. 1971) – co-founder of California Pizza Kitchen
• Robert M. Fomon – Chairman and CEO of E. F. Hutton & Co.
• Carlo Gancia (M.A. in Economics) – co-owner of the Forti Formula One team
• Abe Garver – investment banker
• Ivan Glasenberg (M.B.A. 1993) – CEO of Glencore, #96 richest man in the world
• Stanley Gold (J.D. 1967) – President and CEO of Shamrock Holdings
• Steve Goodall (B.S., M.B.A.) – President of J. D. Power and Associates
• Frances Hashimoto (1966) – former CEO of Mikawaya, inventor of mochi ice cream^[495]
• Jerry Heller (B.S.B.A. 1963) – co-founder and CEO of Ruthless Records
• Thomas Hicks (M.B.A 1970) – partner at Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst; part-owner of Dallas Stars and Texas Rangers
• Barron Hilton (1946) – co-chairman of the Hilton Hotels chain, and the original owner of the San Diego Chargers
• David T. Hon (Ph.D. 1971) – physicist and founder of Dahon folding bicycles
• Ming Hsieh (B.S.E.E. 1983, M.S.E.E. 1984) – President and founder of Cogent Systems
• Bradley Wayne Hughes (B.S.B.A. 1957) – founder of Public Storage
• Jon Huntsman, Sr. (M.B.A.) – founder and Chairman of Huntsman Corporation
• Hyekyung "Shelly" Hwang (M.B.A.) – founder of Pinkberry
• Ray R. Irani (Ph.D. 1957) – CEO of Occidental Petroleum
• James Jannard – founder of Oakley Sunglasses and Red Digital Cinema Camera Company
• Suzanne Nora Johnson (B.S. 1979) – Vice Chairman of Goldman Sachs
• Bruce Karatz (J.D. 1970) – Chairman and CEO of KB Home
• Richard Knerr (B.S.) – co-founder of Wham-O; the creators of the Hula Hoop, Frisbee, and Superball
• Ronald Lam (M.B.A. 1986) - former CEO/President of GameWorks
• Terrence Lanni (B.S. 1965) – Chairman and CEO of MGM Mirage
• Alan Levine (B.S. 1968, J.D. 1971) – former President and COO of Sony Pictures Entertainment
• Jack Lindquist (B.A. 1950) – former president of Disneyland
• Bryan Lourd (B.A. 1982) – Co-Chairman of Creative Artists Agency (CAA)
• Armen Margarian (B.S. 2001, M.B.A. 2006) - co-founder of NexusLab Inc. (an Inc.5000 Company)
• Mike Markkula (B.S.E.E., M.S.E.E.) – former CEO and angel investor of Apple Computer, Inc.
• Preston Martin (B.S. 1947, M.B.A. 1948) – founder of the PMI Mortgage Insurance Company; former Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board
• Steve McIntosh (B.S. 1984) – founder and president of Now & Zen, Inc.; influential writer in the field of integral philosophy
• Arthur Melin (B.S.) – co-founder of Wham-O
• Oscar Munoz (B.S. 1982) – President and CEO of United Airlines
• Brian Mulligan – former chairman of Fox Television
• Paul Orfalea – founder of Kinko's
• Sol Price (J.D. 1957) – founder of Price Club (now Costco)
• Charles Prince (B.A. 1971, M.A. 1975, J.D. 1975) – former Chairman and CEO of Citigroup
• Jim Rogers (L.L.M. 1963) – Chairman and CEO of Sunbelt Communications
• Edward P. Roski (B.S. 1962) – Chairman and CEO of Majestic Realty Co., part owner of the Los Angeles Kings and Los Angeles Lakers
• Steve Saleen – CEO and founder of Saleen Performance, Inc.
• Devita Saraf - founder of Vu Technologies and co-founder of Vu TelePresence
• Robert Sarzo (B.S. 2004) - owner of Sarzo Entertainment LLC
• Jeetendr Sehdev - marketing professor at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
• Alan Smolinisky (B.S. 2001) - entrepreneur, real estate investor, owner of Palisadian-Post newspaper^[496]
• Jeff Smulyan (B.S. 1969, J.D. 1972) – founder and CEO of Emmis Communications
• Mark Stevens (B.S.E.E. 1981, B.A.ECON 1981, M.S.CENG 1984) – partner at Sequoia Capital
• Michael Trope – sports agent, divorce lawyer
• Kevin Tsujihara (B.S. 1986) – CEO of Warner Bros. Pictures
• Ronald Tutor (B.S.B.A. 1963) – President/CEO of Tutor-Saliba Corp.
• Andrew Viterbi (Ph.D. 1962) – co-founder of Qualcomm
• William Wang (B.S. 1986) – founder and CEO of Vizio
• Craig Winn (B.S. 1977) – founder of Value America; author of Prophet of Doom and Tea With Terrorists
• Albert C. Zapanta - President and CEO of the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce
• Richard Ziman (B.S. 1964, J.D. 1967) – Chairman and CEO of Arden Realty

Film and television

For people primarily known as actors and actresses, see Performing arts, below.

• Elizabeth Allen – director
• Zeenat Aman – Indian actress, model and Miss Asia Pacific 1970
• Thom Andersen – film critic
• David Anspaugh – director
• Judd Apatow – filmmaker
• Gregg Araki – filmmaker
• John August – filmmaker
• June Bacon-Bercey, M.P.A 1979 – television meteorologist, first African American as well as first woman to be awarded American Meteorological Society's Seal of Approval^[497]
• John Bailey – cinematographer
• Hugh Beaumont – actor, television director, and Methodist minister
• Walt Becker – filmmaker
• Jack Bender – executive producer of Lost
• Beck Bennett - actor and comedian
• Laura Bialis – filmmaker
• Les Blank – documentary filmmaker
• Jeffrey Blitz – filmmaker
• Paul Harris Boardman – producer and screenwriter
• Robert F. Boyle – art director and production designer
• Charles Braverman – filmmaker
• Henry Bumstead – art director and production designer
• Bryan Burk – executive producer of Lost
• Keith Calder – producer
• Trey Callaway – screenwriter and producer
• Andrés Cantor – sportscaster
• John Carpenter – film director
• Adam Christian Clark – filmmaker
• Lily Collins - actress^[498]
• Sandro Corsaro – executive producer, creator of Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil
• Miranda Cosgrove – actress of iCarly and singer
• Sean Covel – producer
• Buster Crabbe (B.A. 1931) – actor
• R. J. Cutler (B.A. 1993) – filmmaker
• Thomas Del Ruth – cinematographer
• Scott Derrickson – filmmaker
• Caleb Deschanel – cinematographer
• Dean Devlin – screenwriter and producer
• Susan Downey – producer
• Ree Drummond (1991 B.A. Gerontology) – chef and TV personality
• Ellis R. Dungan – director
• Robert Elswit – cinematographer
• Rick Famuyiwa – director
• America Ferrera – actress, producer^[499]
• Verna Fields – film editor and sound editor
• Erik Fleming – film director and producer
• Dana Fox – screenwriter
• William A. Fraker – cinematographer
• Joe Francis – adult film producer
• Richard Franklin – Australian film director
• Sarah Gilman _ Actress
• David S. Goyer – filmmaker
• James Gray – film director and screenwriter
• Brian Grazer – film and television producer
• Taylor Hackford – film director and producer
• Kevin Hagen – actor
• Conrad Hall – cinematographer
• Curtis Harrington – experimental filmmaker
• Ami Horowitz – filmmaker, media personality
• Ron Howard – film director and actor
• George Huang – filmmaker
• Martin Hynes – filmmaker
• Robert Illes – Emmy-winning TV writer
• James Ivory – film director
• Frederick Johnson (M.P.W. 1985) -- Emmy-winning TV writer
• Rian Johnson – filmmaker
• Joe Johnston – film director
• Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski – writers
• Rob Kardashian – TV personality and businessman
• Howard G. Kazanjian – film producer
• Richard Kelly – filmmaker
• Irvin Kershner – film director
• Mahira Khan - Pakistani actress
• Karey Kirkpatrick – screenwriter
• Randal Kleiser – filmmaker
• Tom Klemesrud – editor
• John Knoll (B.A. 1984) – motion picture visual effects specialist, co-creator of Adobe Photoshop
• Chad Kultgen – writer, producer
• Ben Kurland – actor, producer
• Gary Kurtz – film producer
• Frederick Larson - law professor and filmmaker
• Barry Levy – screenwriter
• John Longenecker – film director, cinematographer
• Robert Lovenheim – film producer and writer
• Doug Liman – film director and producer
• George Lucas – film director and producer
• Joseph Magee (M.L.A. 1984) - music scoring mixer
• Felipe Marino – producer
• Gregory Markopoulos – filmmaker
• Kerry McCluggage – film and TV executive and producer
• Bridgit Mendler - actress and singer-songwriter
• John Milius – film director and screenwriter
• Miles Millar – screenwriter and producer
• Herman Miller – writer and producer
• Jeremy Miller - actor
• Ron W. Miller – CEO and president of Walt Disney Productions
• Kyle Mooney – actor, writer, cast member on Saturday Night Live
• Walter Murch – film editor and sound designer
• Tomas Mureika - filmmaker, playwright, music critic
• Don Murphy – producer
• Gustin Nash – screenwriter
• Tom Neff – film director, producer and executive
• Joe Neurauter – producer
• Michael Nolin – producer
• Natalie Nunn - reality television star
• Tommy O'Haver – filmmaker
• Tom Oesch – director
• Richard Outten – screenwriter
• Sam Peckinpah – film director
• Brian Wayne Peterson – screenwriter and television producer
• Jason Peterson - producer, CEO, digital distribution entrepreneur
• Angelo Pizzo – screenwriter and producer
• Gene Polito – cinematographer and professor at USC School of Cinematic Arts^[500]
• Patrik-Ian Polk - film director and producer
• Jon Poll – film editor and director
• Kelly Preston – actress
• Jon Paul Puno – film director
• Nathalia Ramos – actress of House of Anubis, seasons 1 – 2, later to return for season 4
• Jason Reitman – film director
• Shonda Rhimes – screenwriter, director, and producer
• Jay Roach – film director and producer
• Robert Rodat – screenwriter
• Gene Roddenberry – screenwriter and producer
• Barry Rubinow – film executive and editor
• Jason Russell – film director, co-founder of Invisible Children, Inc.
• Emily Rutherfurd - actress
• Gary Rydstrom (B.A. 1981) – sound designer
• Walter Salles – filmmaker
• Jarrett Schaefer – filmmaker
• Elle Schneider cinematographer, developer of Digital Bolex camera
• Josh Schwartz – producer and creator of The O.C.
• John Schwartzman – cinematographer
• Ben Shedd – documentary filmmaker
• Sigurjón Sighvatsson – producer
• Bryan Singer – film director
• John Singleton – film director
• Stephen Sommers – film director
• Dror Soref – filmmaker
• Scott Speer – music video producer
• Adam Stein – filmmaker, editor
• Tim Story – film director
• Madeleine Stowe - actress
• Ross Thomas – actor, filmmaker
• David E. Tolchinsky – screenwriter
• Ron Underwood – film director
• Lee Unkrich – film director
• Clay Walker – film producer, director, cinematographer and editor
• Matthew Weiner – writer, director, producer, creator of television drama series Mad Men
• David N. Weiss - screenwriter
• Brad Williams – comedian
• Max Winkler - director, screenwriter
• Alexander Winn – filmmaker
• David L. Wolper (B.A. 1949) – film and television producer
• Freddie Wong – YouTube celebrity and director
• Robert Yeoman – cinematographer
• Robert Zemeckis – Academy Award-winning director
• Laura Ziskin – producer
• Sasha Knezev – filmmaker

Music

See also: USC Thornton School of Music

• Ambrose Akinmusire (M.M. 2007) – jazz trumpeter
• Herb Alpert (B.M. 1954) – musician, co-founder of A&M Records
• Banks - pop singer
• Christophe Beck (Graduate Certificate in Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television, 1993) – film score composer
• Marco Beltrami (Graduate Certificate in Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television, 1993) – film score composer
• Aloe Blacc - soul singer, musician
• Houston Bright (Ph.D musicology, 1952) – composer
• Harold Budd (B.M. 1966) – Ambient/avant-garde composer
• Todd Carey – singer-songwriter and musician
• Rob Cavallo (B.A., English 1985)^[501] – Grammy Award winning record producer and A&R; Chief Creative Officer of Warner Music Group
• Alan Chang (B.M. 2002) – musician, composer, musical director for Michael Bublé
• Nicolas Chumachenco – violinist
• Alfred Darlington, better known as Daedelus - electronic music producer based in Los Angeles
• John Dearman (B.M. 1981, M.M. 1983) – classical guitarist
• Marianne Dissard (B.A 1991 Film Production) – singer, lyricist
• Flea – bassist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers
• Nmon Ford (B.M., M.M.) – Grammy Award-winning singer
• Jeremiah "JGivens" Givens (B.S., Mechanical Engineering 2010) - Rap artist with record label Humble Beast.^[502]
• Goldroom – musician
• Jerry Goldsmith – film score composer
• Kina Grannis – musician
• Macy Gray (B.A., screenwriting 1990) – Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter
• Lionel Hampton – jazz musician
• Dexter Holland – singer and guitarist for The Offspring
• Marilyn Horne (B.M. 1953) – opera singer
• James Horner (B.M. 1974) – film score composer
• James Newton Howard, film score composer
• Paul Jackson Jr. (B.M.) – guitarist
• Tommy Johnson (B.M. 1956) – tuba player
• William Kanengiser (B.M. 1981, M.M. 1983) – classical guitarist
• Morten Lauridsen (B.M. 1966, M.A. 1968, D.M.A. 1974) – composer
• Roger Joseph Manning, Jr., keyboardist for Jellyfish, Beck and The Moog Cookbook
• Anthony Marinelli – Film score composer
• Robert Marsteller – faculty, principal trombone, Los Angeles Philharmonic (1946-1971)
• Bear McCreary – film score composer
• Mark McGrath – singer, frontman of Sugar Ray, host of Extra
• Angela Meade (M.M. 2004) – opera singer
• J. Greg Miller - horn player
• David Newman (M.M. 1982) – film composer
• Kelley O'Connor (B.M. 2002) – opera singer
• Martin O'Donnell – composer best known for video game work
• John Ottman (B.A. 1988) – film score composer
• Christopher Parkening (B.M. 1969) – classical guitarist
• Elizabeth Pitcairn – concert violinist
• Basil Poledouris, film score composer
• Brian Ralston – film score composer
• Lee Ritenour (B.M. 1972) – jazz guitarist
• Jessica Rivera (M.M. 1998) – opera singer
• Douglas Romayne (Graduate Certificate in Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television, 2000) – television and film score composer
• Patrice Rushen (B.M. 1976) – songwriter, session musician, producer, arranger, film composer, and musical director
• Craig Saper – audio engineer, actor
• Anil Srinivasan - Classical pianist and music educator
• Scott Tennant (B.M. 1986) – classical guitarist
• Salli Terri – singer and songwriter
• Michael Tilson Thomas (B.M. 1967, M.M. 1976) - conductor and music director of the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra
• Robyn Troup – singer, "My Grammy Moment 2007" winner
• Mack Wilberg – director of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
• Frank Wildhorn – Broadway composer
• Andrew York (M.M. 1986) – classical guitarist-composer
• Marvin Young (more popularly known as Young MC) – rapper, producer and writer
• Steven Zhu (more popularly known as Zhu) – electronic music producer

Performing arts

• Patrick J. Adams - actor best known for TV series Suits
• Sasha Alexander – actress best known as Maura Isles on Rizzoli & Isles
• Zeenat Aman – Indian actress, model and Miss Asia Pacific 1970
• Morris Ankrum – actor
• Brandon Barash – actor
• Troian Bellisario – actress best known as Spencer Hastings on ABC Family's Pretty Little Liars
• Beck Bennett - actor and comedian
• John Beradino – baseball player and actor, General Hospital
• Julie Marie Berman – actress best known as Lulu Spencer on General Hospital
• Richard Biggs – actor
• Harry Blackstone, Jr. – actor and magician
• Ward Bond – football player and actor
• LeVar Burton – actor
• Sophia Bush – actress
• Eric Close – actor
• Miranda Cosgrove – actress and singer
• Buster Crabbe – actor, All-American swimmer at USC
• James Dannaldson – actor, animal handler
• Erica Dasher – actress
• Jenna Dewan – actress and dancer
• Anthony Edwards – film and television actor
• Rob Estes – actor
• Dorothy Fay – actress
• Will Ferrell – actor and comedian
• America Ferrera – actress
• Joe Flynn – actor
• Dave Franco – actor
• Jimmy Fowlie - actor
• Vova Galchenko – juggler
• David Gallagher – actor
• Ron Gans – character actor and voice actor
• Skyler Gisondo - actor
• Renée Elise Goldsberry - Tony winning actress, played Angelica Schuyler in Hamilton
• Topher Grace - actor
• Greer Grammer – actress
• Kevin Hagen – actor
• Kristin Hanggi – Tony Award-nominated theatre director
• Daryl Hannah – actress
• Larry Harmon – actor, known as Bozo the Clown
• Mike Henry – actor, also played football at USC and in NFL
• James Hong – actor
• Patty Hou - TV host, actress, newscaster
• Ron Howard - actor, director, producer
• Grant Imahara – TV personality
• David Jaffe – Award-winning video game designer
• Brad Johnson – actor, played deputy Lofty Craig on western series Annie Oakley
• Rob Kardashian – actor
• Swoosie Kurtz – actress
• Raymond Lam – actor at Hong Kong top TV station TVB (Television Broadcasts Limited) (attended USC for one year)
• Michael Landon – actor
• Joey Lawrence - actor
• Matthew Lawrence – actor
• Charlotte Laws - TV host, actress, author
• Nelson Leigh – actor
• James Lesure – actor
• Jeff Lewis – star of Flipping Out
• Lisa Ling – former co-host of The View
• Chris Lowell – actor
• Alexander Ludwig – actor, known for playing Cato in The Hunger Games
• Joseph Mazzello – actor
• Michael McDonald – actor and comedian
• Ted McGinley – actor
• Bridgit Mendler – singer-songwriter and actress
• Ty Miller – actor
• Derek Mio – actor
• Bentley Mitchum – actor, grandson of Robert Mitchum
• Kyle Mooney - actor, comedian
• Senta Moses – actress
• Timothy Olyphant – actor
• Fess Parker – screen and television actor
• Kelly Preston – actress
• Ke Huy Quan – actor and stuntman
• Maeve Quinlan - actress
• Michael Pataki – actor
• Paula Patton – actress
• Drew Pinsky – physician, radio and TV personality
• Diana Pinto - Miss India America 2009
• Vaneza Leza Pitynski – actress
• Whitney Port – cast member on MTV's reality show The Hills, fashion designer
• John Ritter – actor
• David A. Romero - spoken-word poet
• Jon Rudnitsky - actor, comedian
• Mort Sahl – comedian
• Stark Sands – actor
• Kyra Sedgwick – actress
• Tom Selleck – actor
• Ally Sheedy – actress
• Cybill Shepherd – actress
• Chima Simone – actress, TV personality
• Robert Stack – actor
• Eric Stoltz – actor
• Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa – actor
• Marlo Thomas – actress
• Eve Torres – wrestler, dancer, and model
• Robert Vaughn - actor
• Natasha Gregson Wagner – actress
• John Wayne – actor (did not graduate)
• Forest Whitaker (B.A. 1982) - Academy Award-winning actor
• Mary Kate Wiles - actress
• Deborah Ann Woll - actress, best known as Jessica on True Blood
• Anton Yelchin – actor
• Lee Thompson Young – actor, best known as Detective Barry Frost on Rizzoli & Isles
• Scott Hoying - singer, baritone from Pentatonix

Politics and government

Presidents and prime ministers

• Marouf al-Bakhit (M.P.A. 1982) - 69th Prime Minister of Jordan
• Fayez Al-Tarawneh (M.S 1974, Ph.D. 1980) - 73rd Prime Minister of Jordan
• Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (attended the College from 1947–49) - first democratically elected Prime Minister and President of Pakistan
• Abdurrahim El-Keib (M.S.E.E. 1976) - Interim Prime Minister of Libya
• Ljupčo Jordanovski (Ph.D. 1985) - former acting President of the Republic of Macedonia, Speaker of the Macedonian Parliament, and Macedonian Ambassador to the U.S.
• Takeo Miki (attended the College in the 1930s) - 41st Prime Minister of Japan
• Mohamed Morsi (Ph.D. Electrical Engineering 1982) - 5th President of Egypt
• Abe Shinzo (attended the College from 1978–79) - 90th and 96th Prime Minister of Japan
• Kang Young-Hoon (M.A. 1966, Ph.D. 1973) - 21st Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea (South Korea)

Cabinet ministers and secretaries

• Ghazi Algosaibi (M.A. 1964) - statesman, former Minister (five portfolios), former Ambassador to Bahrain and the UK, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Rafic Chahine (PhD) - Lebanese Minister of Planning from 1960 to 1961, and Minister of labor and Social Affairs in 1968.
• Warren Christopher (B.A. 1945) - 63rd United States Secretary of State
• Michael B. Donley (B.A. 1977, M.A. 1978) - 22nd United States Secretary of the Air Force
• Robert Finch (LL.B. 1951) - 8th United States Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, 38th Lieutenant Governor of California
• Vecdi Gönül (M.P.A. 1970) - 62nd Minister of Defence of Turkey and Member of Parliament for Kocaeli
• Paul Robert Ignatius (B.A. 1942) - United States Secretary of the Navy, 1967–1969
• Hilda Solis (M.P.A. 1981) - 25th United States Secretary of Labor
• Kantathi Suphamongkhon (Ph.D. 1984) - 39th Foreign minister of Thailand, UC Regent's Professor at UCLA, 2007–2009

Governors

• Jim Gibbons (attended graduate school in the 1980s) - 28th Governor of Nevada^[503]
• Fred Hall (B.A. 1938, LL.B. 1941) - 33rd Governor of Kansas^[504]
• Tomás Yarrington (M.P.A. 1986) - former Governor of Tamaulipas, Mexico

United States Senators

• Dean Heller (B.S. 1985) - United States Senator from Nevada^[505]
• Thomas H. Kuchel (B.A. 1932, LL.B. 1935) - former U.S. Senator from California^[506]
• Jim Webb (attended the college from 1963–1964) - U.S. Senator from Virginia^[507]

Members of the United States House of Representatives

• Bob Barr (B.A. 1970) - former member of the United States House of Representatives; Libertarian Party nominee for President of the United States (2008)^[508]
• Henry S. Benedict (LL.B. 1910) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[509]
• Mary Bono (B.A. 1984) - member of the United States House of Representatives^[510]
• Yvonne Brathwaite Burke (J.D. 1956) - former Los Angeles County Supervisor; former member of the United States House of Representatives^[511]
• Phillip Burton (B.A. 1947) - former member of the United States House of Representatives
• John Campbell (M.S.B.T. 1977), member of the United States House of Representatives^[512]
• Wes Cooley (B.S. 1958), former member of the United States House of Representatives^[513]
• James C. Corman (J.D. 1948) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[514]
• Christopher Cox (B.A. 1973) - former Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; former member of the United States House of Representatives^[515]
• Henry Aldous Dixon (Ed.D. 1937) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[516]
• Charles Djou (J.D. 1996) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[517]
• John F. Dockweiler (LL.B. 1921) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[518]
• Clyde Doyle (LL.B. 1917) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[519]
• Bertrand W. Gearhart (LL.B. 1914) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[520]
• Augustus F. Hawkins (M.A. 1932) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[521]
• Patrick J. Hillings (B.A. 1947, J.D. 1949) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[522]
• Andrew J. Hinshaw (B.A. 1950) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[523]
• Joseph F. Holt (B.S. 1947) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[524]
• Craig Hosmer (J.D. 1940) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[525]
• William W. Johnson (LL.B. 1925) - former member of the United States House of Representatives
• George A. Kasem (B.S. 1949, LL.B. 1951) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[526]
• Jay Kim (B.S. 1967, M.S. 1969, M.S. 1970) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[527]
• Glenard P. Lipscomb - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[528]
• James F. Lloyd (M.A. 1966) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[529]
• Cynthia McKinney (B.A. 1978) - former member of the United States House of Representatives; Green Party nominee for President of the United States (2008)^[530]
• Ralph Metcalfe (M.A. 1939) - former member of the United States House of Representatives; Olympic champion in track & field^[531]
• Juanita Millender-McDonald (attended the College) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[532]
• Carlos Moorhead (J.D. 1949) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[533]
• Dana Rohrabacher (M.A. 1971) - member of the United States House of Representatives^[534]
• Byron N. Scott (M.A. 1930) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[535]
• H. Allen Smith (A.B. 1930, LL.B. 1933) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[536]
• William I. Traeger (LL.B. 1909) - former member of the United States House of Representatives; former Los Angeles County Sheriff; former USC Trojans football head coach^[537]
• Walter R. Tucker III (B.A. 1978) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[538]
• Robert A. Underwood (Ed.D. 1987) - former delegate from Guam to the United States House of Representatives^[539]
• James B. Utt (J.D. 1946) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[540]
• Lionel Van Deerlin (B.A. 1937) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[541]
• Tom Vandergriff (B.A. 1947) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[542]
• Charles E. Wiggins (B.S. 1953, LL.B. 1956) - former member of the United States House of Representatives^[543]

Jurists

See also: USC Gould School of Law

U.S. Court of Appeals judges

• Arthur Lawrence Alarcon (B.S. 1949, LL.B. 1951) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1979–1992)^[544]
• James Marshall Carter (J.D. 1927) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1967–1971); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1949–1967)^[545]
• Walter Raleigh Ely, Jr. (LL.M. 1949) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1964–1979)^[546]
• Warren J. Ferguson (LL.B. 1949) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1979–1986); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–1979)^[547]
• Ferdinand Francis Fernandez (B.S. 1958, J.D. 1962) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1989–2002); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1985–1989)^[548]
• Dorothy Wright Nelson (LL.M. 1956) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1979–1995)^[549]
• Richard Lowell Nygaard (B.S. 1969) - Judge of the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals (1988–2005)^[550]
• David R. Thompson (B.S. 1952, LL.B. 1955) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1985–1998)^[551]
• Charles E. Wiggins (B.S. 1953, LL.B. 1956) - Judge of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1984–1996)^[552]

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California judges

• William Matthew Byrne, Jr. (B.S. 1953, LL.B. 1956) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1971–1998)^[553]
• Thurmond Clarke (LL.B. 1927) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–1970); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1955–1966)^[554]
• Elisha Avery Crary (A.B. 1929, LL.B. 1929) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–1975); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1962–1966)^[555]
• Richard Arthur Gadbois, Jr. (LL.M. 1960) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1982–1996)^[556]
• Peirson Mitchell Hall (LL.B.) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–1968); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1942–1966)^[557]
• James M. Ideman (J.D. 1963) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1984–1998)^[558]
• David Vreeland Kenyon (J.D. 1957) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1980–1995)^[559]
• George H. King (J.D. 1974) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1995–present)^[560]
• Stephen G. Larson (J.D. 1989) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (2006–2009)^[561]
• Nora Margaret Manella (J.D. 1975) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1998–2006)^[562]
• Edward Rafeedie (B.S. 1956, J.D. 1959) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1982–1996)^[563]
• Manuel Real (B.S. 1944) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–present)^[564]
• Albert Lee Stephens, Jr. (A.B. 1936, LL.B. 1938) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1966–1979); Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1961–1966)^[565]
• Alicemarie Huber Stotler (B.S. 1964, J.D. 1967) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1984–2009)^[566]
• Robert Mitsuhiro Takasugi (J.D. 1959) - first Japanese American federal judge; Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1976–1996)^[567]
• Dickran Tevrizian (B.S. 1962, J.D. 1965) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1985–2005)^[568]
• Laughlin Edward Waters, Sr. (J.D. 1947) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1976–1986)^[569]
• David W. Williams (LL.B. 1937) - first African American federal judge west of the Mississippi River; Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1969–1981)^[570]

Other U.S. federal court judges

• Harold Michael Fong (A.B. 1960) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii (1982–1995)^[571]
• J. Lawrence Irving (B.S. 1959, LL.B. 1963) - udge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1982–1990)^[572]
• David W. Ling (LL.B. 1913) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona (1936–1964)^[573]
• Leland Chris Nielsen (J.D. 1946) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1971–1985)^[574]
• William Schwarzer (A.B. 1948) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (1976–1991)^[575]
• Gordon Thompson, Jr. (B.S. 1951) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1970–1994)^[576]
• Howard Boyd Turrentine (LL.B. 1939) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California (1970–1984)^[577]
• Oliver Winston Wanger (B.S. 1963) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California (1991–2006)^[578]
• Ronald M. Whyte (J.D. 1967) - Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (1992–2009)^[579]

California Supreme Court Justices

• David Eagleson (B.A. 1948, LL.B. 1950) - Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1987–1991^[580]
• Douglas L. Edmonds (LL.B. 1910) - Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1936–1955
• Frederick W. Houser (LL.B. 1900) - Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1937–1942^[581]
• Marcus Kaufman (LL.B. 1956) - Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1987–1990^[582]
• Joyce L. Kennard (B.A. 1970, M.P.A. 1974, J.D. 1974) - first Asian-American to serve as an Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1989–present^[583]
• Malcolm M. Lucas (B.A. 1950, LL.B. 1953) - 26th Chief Justice of California, 1987–1996; Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court, 1984–1987; Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (1971–1984)^[584]

Other jurists

• You Chung Hong (LL.B. 1924, LL.M. 1925) - first Chinese American admitted to practice in California
• Charles Older - California Superior Court judge presiding over trial of Charles Manson; one of the famed Flying Tigers pilots of WWII^[585]
• William A. Reppy (LL.B. 1937) - Associate Justice of the California Second District Court of Appeal, Division Five (1968–1972)
• Mabel Walker Willebrandt (J.D. 1916, LL.M. 1917) - U.S. Assistant Attorney General from 1921 to 1929

Military

• Ira Eaker (B.A. 1933) - former general of the United States Army Air Forces
• Jack K. Farris (1973) - former Major General, United States Air Force
• Sandra Finan (1989) - Brigadier General, United States Air Force
• Harold J. Greene - major general, U.S. Army, highest ranking casualty of the War in Afghanistan
• Dennis R. Larsen (1978) - former Lieutenant General, United States Air Force
• William L. McGonagle (1947) - former Captain USS Liberty (AGTR-5), United States Navy; Medal of Honor recipient
• Geoffrey Miller (M.A.) - former United States Army Major General
• William L. Nyland (M.S.) - retired United States Marine Corps four-star general, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps (2002–2005)
• Jerry D. Page (B.S. 1937) - former major general, United States Air Force; commandant, Air War College
• Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf (M.S.M.E. 1964) - United States Army Four Star General
• Michael J. Williams - retired United States Marine Corps four-star general, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps (2000–2002)
• Frances C. Wilson (Ed.D. 1981) - retired United States Marine Corps Lieutenant General, former President, National Defense University (2006–2009)
• David G. Young III - former Brigadier General, United States Air Force

Ambassadors

• Daryl Arnold (B.A. 1944) - 8th United States Ambassador to Singapore
• Jack Dyer Crouch, II (B.A. 1980, M.A. 1981, Ph.D. 1987) - former Deputy National Security Advisor, former U.S. Ambassador to Romania
• Genta H. Holmes (B.A. 1962) - former United States Foreign Service officer and the first U.S. Ambassador to Namibia
• Douglas Kmiec (J.D. 1976) - United States Ambassador to Malta
• Edward J. Perkins (M.P.A. 1972 - Ph.D. 1976), former U.S. Ambassador to Australia, South Africa and the United Nations
• Warren W. Tichenor (B.A. 1982) - 17th United States Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva
• Robert Holmes Tuttle (M.B.A.) - United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom

Presidential staff

• Joseph Cerrell (B.A. 1957) - former political consultant for John F. Kennedy
• Herbert G. Klein (B.A. 1940) - former White House Communications Director
• Fred Ryan (B.A. 1977, J.D. 1980) - Assistant and Chief of Staff for Ronald Reagan
• Donald Segretti (B.A. 1963) - political operative for Richard Nixon
• Ron Ziegler (B.A. 1961) - former White House Press Secretary

State officials

• Greg Aghazarian (B.S. 1986) - California State Assembly
• Eugene W. Biscailuz - first Superintendent of the California Highway Patrol, 27th Los Angeles County Sheriff
• Martha Escutia (B.S. 1979) - California State Senator
• Matthew Harper (B.S. 1997) - California State Assemblyman, 74th District, and the 59th Mayor of Huntington Beach (2013-2014)
• Paul Heroux (B.A. 2001) - State Representative from Massachusetts
• Sheila M. Kiscaden (M.P.A. 1986) - Minnesota State Senator
• Tim Leslie (M.P.A. 1969) - California State Senator
• Pat Nolan (B.A. 1972, J.D. 1975) - California State Assembly, 1978–1994, Assembly Republican Leader 1984–1988
• Joe Shell (B.S. 1940) - California State Assemblyman; intraparty rival of Richard Nixon; captain of the 1939 USC Trojans football team
• Alan Sieroty (LL.B. 1956) - California State Senator
• Jesse M. Unruh (B.A. 1948) - California State Treasurer, Speaker of the California State Assembly
• Michael L. Williams (B.A. 1975, M.P.A. 1979, J.D. 1979) - senior commissioner of the Railroad Commission of Texas

Miscellaneous

• Lili Bosse - Mayor of Beverly Hills, California
• George P. Cronk - Los Angeles City Council member, 1945–52
• James Dobson (Ph.D. 1967) - conservative evangelical leader
• Charles Elachi (M.B.A. 1978) - director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
• Michael Fabricant (Ph.D. 1978) - British politician and Member of Parliament
• Sattareh Farman Farmaian (B.A. 1946, M.A. 1948) - social reformer, established Tehran School for Social Work and concept of family planning in Iran
• John Ferraro (B.S.B.A. 1948) - former Los Angeles city council president, also former football player
• Gil Garcetti (B.S. 1963) - Los Angeles County's 39th District Attorney
• Earl C. Gay (1902–75) - Los Angeles City Council member, 1933–45
• Michael D. Griffin (M.S.E.E. 1979) - NASA Administrator from 2005 to 2009
• Roy Hampton (ca. 1901–1953) - Los Angeles City Council member, 1939–41
• Carl Hoecker - Inspector General of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
• Charles A. Holland - Los Angeles City Council member, 1929–31
• Quentin Kawānanakoa - Hawaiian politician, heir to the throne of the lapsed Kingdom of Hawaii
• Edward L. Masry - lawyer
• Frank McEnulty (M.B.A. 1981) - Reform Party candidate for Vice President of the United States (2008)
• Cindy Hensley McCain (B.A. 1976, M.A. 1978) - wife of 2008 Republican presidential nominee John McCain and Chairwoman of Hensley & Co.
• Dominic J. Monetta – deputy director of Defense Research and Engineering (Research and Advanced Technology) at the U.S. Department of Defense from 1991–1993, director, Office of New Production Reactors, at the United States Department of Energy from 1989–1991
• Pat Nixon (B.A. 1937) - First Lady of the United States from 1969 to 1974
• Marcus Peacock (B.S. 1982) - deputy administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
• Reza Pahlavi (B.A. 1985) - former Crown Prince of Iran, the older son of late Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi
• Richard Perle (B.A. 1964) - former assistant United States Secretary of Defense
• Ann Shaw (social worker) (M.S.W. 1968) - social worker and civic leader in Los Angeles, California
• Daniel Seddiqui (B.A. 2005) - author and adventurer of 50 Jobs in 50 States
• Lorenzo Bini Smaghi (M.A. 1980) - member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank
• Rosalind Wiener Wyman - political figure

Print and broadcast media

• Millicent Borges Accardi (MPW 1993) - poet and writer, National Endowment for the Arts
• David Bezmozgis (M.F.A.) - writer
• Anthony Boucher (B.A. 1932) - science fiction editor and writer of mystery novels and short stories
• Stacey Bradford (B.A. 1993) - personal finance author, journalist, and commentator
• Tammy Bruce (B.A. 2002) - author and political commentator
• Art Buchwald (attended the Annenberg School for Communication from 1945–48) - author and columnist, Pulitzer Prize winner
• Stan Chambers (B.A. 1944) - television journalist
• Julie Chen (B.A. 1991) - television personality, news anchor, journalist, and producer
• Mark Z. Danielewski - (M.F.A. 1993) author
• Frank Davey (Ph.D. 1968) - poet
• Jerry Del Colliano - journalist, author
• Maureen Furniss (Ph.D. 1994) - author, animation historian, and USC faculty member^[586]
• Joseph Heller - author and satirist
• Raj Kamal Jha (M.A. 1990) - author
• Spencer Johnson (B.A. 1963) - writer
• Pablo Kleinman (B.A. 1996) - political columnist, entrepreneur
• Laila Lalami (Ph.D. 1997) - author and essayist
• Corinne Lee (B.A. 1983) - poet
• Vindy Lee (B.A. 2004) - cookbook author and professional chef
• Sandra Tsing Loh (M.P.W. 1984) - radio commentator and author
• Bob Lorenz (B.A. Broadcast Journalism) – - studio host, anchor, New York Yankees (YES Network)
• Arash Markazi (B.A. 2004) - journalist, writer for Sports Illustrated
• Stephanie Miller - adio and TV personality, host of The Stephanie Miller Show
• C. L. Moore (B.A. 1956, M.A. 1963) - science fiction and fantasy writer
• Joan Lowery Nixon (B.A. 1947) - journalist and author
• John Norman (M.A. 1957) - science fiction author and philosopher
• Téa Obreht, formerly Téa Bajrakterević (B. A. 2007) - novelist, The Tiger's Wife
• Petros Papadakis (B.A.) - sportscaster
• Alexandra Pelosi (M.A. 1993) - journalist and documentary filmmaker
• Katherine Schwarzenegger - author
• Joe Sheehan (B.A. 1994) - sportswriter and co-founder of Baseball Prospectus
• Lindsay Soto (B.A. 1998) - television sports journalist and producer
• Suzy Spencer - true-crime writer
• Irving Stone (M.A. 1924) - writer, known for biographical novels of famous historical personalities
• Michele Tafoya (M.B.A. 1991) - ESPN sportscaster
• Brad Thor - author
• Paul Vangelisti (M.A. 1970) - poet and broadcaster
• Alex Witt - news anchor
• Linda Yu (B.A. 1968) - Chicago television journalist
• Marie Lu (B.A. 2006) - author^[587]

Other

• Gary Anderson (B.Arch. 1970, M.Arch 1971) - creator of the universal recycling symbol
• Ethel Percy Andrus (M.A. 1928, Ph.D. 1930) - founder of the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
• Wanda Austin (Ph.D. 1988) - President and CEO of The Aerospace Corporation, NAE
• Anita Caspary (1943) - former nun, founder of lay organization
• Jenova Chen (M.F.A.) - video game designer, co-founder thatgamecompany
• Annabel Chong, pseudonym of Grace Quek - pornographic actress, engaged in 251 sex acts over a ten-hour period in January 1995, resulting footage was promoted as The World's Biggest Gang Bang
• Salvatore Ferragamo - fashion designer
• Valentino Mazzia (1922–1999) - forensic anesthesiologist^[588]
• Reuben Fine (Ph.D. 1948) - chess grandmaster, psychologist
• Frank Fertitta (B.A./B.S. 1984) - CEO of Station Casinos; owner of Zuffa, LLC, the entity that runs the Ultimate Fighting Championship
• Joseph Gutheinz (M.S.S.M 1984) - retired NASA OIG Senior Special Agent, founder of the Moon Rock Project, lawyer, educator, author, commissioner
• Irene Hirano Inouye (BA 1970, MPA 1973) - president United States-Japan Council and chair Ford Foundation Board of Trustees
• Cliff Johnson (B.F.A. 1974) - author of award-winning computer puzzle games
• Joe Medicine Crow (M.A. 1938, Honorary Doctorate 2003) - last war chief of the Crow Tribe of Montana and historian^[589]
• Tom Morey (B.A. 1957) - creator of the Boogie Board
• Sean Plott (M.F.A.) - e-sports commentator for StarCraft II and former progamer^[590]
• Kellee Santiago (M.F.A.) - video game designer, co-founder thatgamecompany
• Sakaye Shigekawa – obstetrician^[591]
• Brian Sun (J.D.) - trial lawyer
• Kathryn Le Veque - author
• Joseph Wapner (B.A. 1941, J.D. 1948) - judge of television's The People's Court, former Los Angeles County Superior Court judge
• Essie Mae Washington-Williams (M.A.) - educator, writer, daughter of Strom Thurmond
• John Zerzan - anarchist and primitivist philosopher

Notable faculty members

A–K

• Leonard M. Adleman – co-inventor of RSA, Turing Award laureate
• William French Anderson – genetics professor, dubbed "father of gene therapy"
• Michael A. Arbib – computational neuroscience professor
• Tim Asch – professor at the Center for Visual Anthropology
• Lois W. Banner – former president of the American Studies Association, author
• Richard Bellman – inventor of dynamic programming
• Aimee Bender – novelist
• Warren Bennis – university professor, Distinguished Professor of Business Administration; named the "dean of leadership gurus" by Forbes magazine
• Shelley Berman – comedian, actor, author; teaches Writing Humor, Literary and Dramatic
• Terence Blanchard – jazz trumpeter
• Barry Boehm – software engineering economics expert, inventor of COCOMO
• Todd Boyd – author, media commentator, producer, and consultant
• T.C. Boyle – novelist
• Leo Buscaglia – author and motivational speaker
• Drew Casper – film historian
• Manuel Castells – sociologist, played a key role in the development of a Marxist urban sociology
• John Choma – analog and mixed signal circuit designer
• Thomas Crow – art critic, Director of the Getty Research Institute
• António Damásio – physician and neurologist
• Paul Debevec – graphics researcher
• Rod Dedeaux – baseball coach
• Richard Dekmejian – expert on international relations
• Richard Easterlin – economics professor
• Mar Elepano – artist, animator, filmmaker
• Susan Estrich – author, law professor; former campaign manager, Michael Dukakis for President
• Percival Everett – novelist
• Rachel Feldman – director, screenwriter
• Caleb E. Finch – Alzheimer's disease researcher
• Scott Fisher – pioneering virtual reality researcher
• Eric Fossum – inventor of CMOS image sensor
• Murray Gell-Mann – Professor of Physics and Medicine, Nobel Laureate in Physics
• Barry Glassner – sociologist, made an appearance in Bowling for Columbine
• Solomon W. Golomb – mathematician, invented the Golomb coding and Golomb ruler
• Jane Goodall – distinguished adjunct professor of anthropology
• Midori Gotō – violinist and the Jascha Heifetz Chair in Music
• Eva Gustavson – opera singer
• Judith Halberstam – gender theorist
• Ted Harris – mathematician, former President of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics
• Jascha Heifetz – violinist, one of the most famous of the 20th century
• Tomlinson Holman – inventor of Lucasfilm's THX sound system
• John Hospers – philosopher, first presidential candidate of the United States Libertarian Party
• A. Quincy Jones – residential architect and influential figure in modern urban planning concepts, USC Dean of Architecture.
• Mark Kac – mMathematician, pioneered the modern development of probability
• Bart Kosko – professor of electrical engineering, fuzzy logic authority
• Timur Kuran – economist, specializing in the study of Islamic finance and its consequences

L–Z

• Jerome Lawrence – playwright
• Kurt Lehovec – creator of the p-n junction isolation technique in integrated circuits
• Robert C. Lipsett – violin pedagogue
• David Lloyd - Professor of English and political activist
• Raymond Loewy – industrial designer
• Leonard Maltin – film critic
• Daniel McFadden – econometrician, Nobel Laureate
• AnnMaria De Mars, 1984 Judo World Champion, mother of Ronda Rousey; Statistical Consultant at USC
• Mardik Martin – screenwriter, Raging Bull, Mean Streets
• Barbara Myerhoff – professor at the Center for Visual Anthropology
• Richard Neutra – modernist architect
• George Olah – Nobel Laureate in Chemistry
• Ishu Patel – artist, director, animator, and photographer
• William Pereira – architect and urban planner
• Gregor Piatigorsky – cellist
• Jon Postel – Internet pioneer, former director of Information Sciences Institute's Computer Networks Division
• Claudia Rankine – poet
• Irving S. Reed – inventor of Reed-Solomon codes
• Andrew Robinson – actor
• Everett Rogers – professor of communications
• Lisa Roma – chair of grand opera in the College of Music, 1930
• Steven B. Sample – professor of electrical engineering and leadership, noted author, USC president
• Robert Scheer – journalist and social, political activist
• Arnold Schoenberg – composer
• Hubert Selby Jr. – novelist, screenwriter, Last Exit to Brooklyn, Requiem for a Dream
• Shahbudin Rahimtoola Chief, Division of Cardiology
• Scott Soames – professor of philosophy
• Esther Somerfeld-Ziskind - neurologist and psychiatrist
• Craig Stanford – professor of biological anthropology
• Gay Talese – one of the founders of New Journalism
• Shirley Thomas – professor of technical writing
• Arieh Warshel - Nobel Laureate in Chemistry
• Michael S. Waterman – founding editor of Journal of Computational Biology
• Paul Wehrle – physician who helped in the development of methods for the prevention and treatment of polio and smallpox
• Dallas Willard – philosophy professor, author of Divine Conspiracy and other important Christian works, speaker
• Curt Wittig – Professor of Physical Chemistry
• Darryl F. Zanuck – major figure in the Hollywood studio system

References

External links

• USC Alumni Association website
• About USC Faculty