List of Finnish Americans

The following is a list of Finnish Americans, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.

To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Finnish American or must have references showing they are Finnish American and are notable.

List

Academics, inventors, scientists

Arts and literature

  • Jean M. Auel (born 1936), author, wrote the Earth's Children books; her books have sold 34 million copies worldwide in many translations
  • Rudy Autio (1926–2007), sculptor
  • Max Dimont (1912–1992), historian; author of Jews, God and History, which received critical acclaim and has sold over a million and a half copies; has lectured on Jewish history throughout the United States, Canada, South Africa, Brazil, and Finland; author of The Indestructible Jews, The Jews in America, and Appointment in Jerusalem
  • Eino Friberg (1901–1995), Protestant Minister and English translator of The Kalevala, the Finnish national epic
  • Rick Hautala (1949–2013), writer
  • Clifton Karhu (1927-2007), artist in Japan renounced for woodblock prints of Kyoto and Kanazawa
  • Tiina Nunnally, author and translator
  • Emil Petaja, author
  • Hannu Rajaniemi, science fiction author
  • Eero Saarinen (1910–1961), architect and product designer of the 20th century, famous for his simple, sweeping, arching structural curves
  • Eliel Saarinen (1873–1950), architect who became famous for his art nouveau buildings in the early 20th century
  • Haddon Sundblom, artist
  • Wallace Wood, comics artist (EC Comics, Mad Magazine, Marvel Comics)

Business

  • Bill Aho (born 1957), businessman who is a partner with The SagePoint Group, a management consulting firm, served as Senior Vice President of Strategic Planning for Darden Restaurants and was instrumental in turning around the Red Lobster business.
  • Mary Barra, CEO of General Motors
  • Mike Markkula (born 1942), entrepreneur; angel investor and second CEO of Apple Computer, Inc.; provided early critical funding and managerial support; known as Apple employee #3
  • Marissa Mayer
    Marissa Mayer, CEO of Yahoo and former Google executive
  • Gustave Niebaum (1842–1908), established Inglenook Winery in Napa Valley, California, the first Bordeaux style winery in the US
  • Oscar Wirkkala (1880–1959), logger and inventor, developed the high lead method of logging, which revolutionized the industry; also invented important pieces of that industry's machinery used during the first half of the 20th century

Film and television

Matt Damon
  • Matt Damon (born 1970), award-winning screenwriter and actor, mother is of partial Finnish descent
  • Eric Dane (born 1972), actor
  • Alexa Davalos (born 1982), actress, mother is of partial Finnish descent
  • Elyssa Davalos (born 1959), actress, father was of partial Finnish descent
  • Richard Davalos (1930–2016), actor; starred in East of Eden (1955) as James Dean's brother; portrayed the convict Blind Dick in Cool Hand Luke (1967); won the Theatre World Award for his performance in the Arthur Miller play A Memory of Two Mondays in 1955; fa is of Finnish descent
  • Anna Easteden (born 1976), actress; The House of Branching Love (2009) and Sideways (2009); co-starred in soap operas Passions and Days Of Our Lives, and the series Bones
  • Taina Elg (born 1931), Golden Globe-winning film and stage actress
  • Nathan Fillion (born 1970), actor
  • George Gaynes (1917–2016), film actor, known for his role as Commandant Eric Lassard in the Police Academy film series
  • Renny Harlin (born 1959), producer and director; immigrant from Finland
  • Crystal Hayes (born 1984), model and actress
  • Brian Heidik (born 1968), won $1,000,000 on the Thailand edition of Survivor
  • Nancy Juvonen (born 1967), American-Finnish film producer; with Drew Barrymore, co-owner of production company Flower Films; produced Never been Kissed (1999), Charlie's Angels (2000), Donnie Darko (2002), Charlie's Angels – Full Throttle (2003); wife of comedian and talk show host Jimmy Fallon
  • Paul Kangas, host of Nightly Business Report television program
  • Vincent Kartheiser (born 1979), actor, known for his role in Mad Men, has distant Finnish ancestry
  • Marta Kristen (born 1945), perhaps best known for her role as the character "Judy Robinson" in the cult television series Lost in Space
  • Christine Lahti (born 1950), film actress, paternal grandparents were immigrants from Finland
  • Jessica Lange (born 1949), two-time Academy Award-winning film actress, maternal grandparents were of Finnish descent
  • Dick Latvala (1943–1999), tape archivist for the Grateful Dead
  • Scott Lautanen, television director and producer
  • David Lynch (born 1946), director, mother is of part Finnish ancestry
  • Leslie Mann (born 1972), actress who has appeared in numerous films, including The Cable Guy (1996), George of the Jungle (1997), Big Daddy (1999), The 40-Year-Old Virgin (2005), Knocked Up (2007), 17 Again (2009), Funny People (2009), This Is 40 (2012), and Blockers (2018)[citation needed]
  • Lisa Niemi (born 1956), actress, director and choreographer
    Marian Nixon
  • Marian Nixon (1904–1983), actress
  • Maila Nurmi (1921–2008), creator of the well-remembered 1950s character of Vampira
  • Catherine Oxenberg (born 1961), actress
  • Ethan Peck (born 1986), actor
  • Bonnie Pietila, casting director and producer for The Simpsons
  • Joyce Randolph (born Joyce Sirola, 1924–2024), actress, best known for playing Trixie Norton on The Honeymooners
  • Allison Rosati (born 1963), journalist, paternal Finnish ancestry
  • Eric Saarinen (born 1942), cinematographer, son of Eero Saarinen
  • Albert Salmi (1928–1990), film and television actor
  • Steve Schubert (born 1951), football player, paternal grandmother was a Finnish immigrant
  • Vanessa Williams (born 1963), singer, actress, producer, former fashion model; first African American to be crowned Miss America; a DNA test revealed she is 12% Finnish
  • Marsha Garces Williams, film producer and mom of Zelda Williams
  • Zelda Williams (born 1989), actress, daughter of Robin Williams; mother of partial Finnish descent
  • Renée Zellweger (born 1969), actress and producer; mother of partial Finnish descent
  • Daphne Zuniga, Actress, mother of partial finnish deecent.

Military personnel

  • Johannes Anderson (1887–1950), Finnish-born U.S. Army soldier during World War I; Medal of Honor recipient
  • Reino Hayhanen (1920–1961), U.S. spy; Soviet Lt. Colonel who defected to the U.S. during the Cold War; helped break open the Hollow Nickel Case which led to the capture of top Soviet spies in the U.S. looking for atomic secrets
    Timothy L. Kopra
  • Timothy L. Kopra (born 1963), astronaut; flew missions on the International Space Station and Space Shuttle Discovery; U.S. Army Colonel; Desert Storm veteran; Bronze Star recipient; West Point graduate
  • Lauri Törni (1919–1965), Finnish Army Captain who led an infantry company in Finnish Winter and Continuation Wars; moved to the United States after World War II and adopted the name Larry Thorne; served with the U.S. Army Special Forces in Vietnam War; killed in Laos while on a clandestine mission
  • Dale Eugene Wayrynen (1947–1967), U.S. Army enlisted soldier; recipient of the Medal of Honor, America's highest military decoration, for his actions in the Vietnam War
  • Carl E. Vuono (born 1934), retired United States Army general who served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1987 to 1991.
  • Olavi Alakulppi (1915-1990), Finnish Army Captain and recipient of the Mannerheim cross, who later moved to the US enlisting in the US army and retiring at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Musicians

Dance

Politics

Sports

Other


This page was last updated at 2024-02-16 04:53 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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