#1Famous people · Bethesda
Of the 52 famous people born in Bethesda, an unusual share are performers
The best known is the American actor Richard Schiff, with articles in 63 languages. Daniel Stern and Amina Wadud follow. Only one town in Maryland lists more. Most were born between 1920 and 1969: 40 of them.
Born here
52
notable people
Best known
Richard Schiff
in 63 Wikipedia languages
First
1911
Raymond Thompson
Youngest
1998
Aran Bell
Most common field
Sports
16 people
Also called it home
17
notable residents
What stands out about Bethesda’s famous people
Still making namesBirths since 1950 number 44, the most recent in 1998.A town of performersPerformers make up 13 of the 52, 2.7 times the usual share.Known worldwideRichard Schiff has a Wikipedia article in 63 languages.A chosen home17 more notable people chose to live here, Michelle Bachelet among them.
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Bethesda’s famous people were born
More were born in the 1950s than in any other decade: 20.
SportsFilm, TV & StageWriting & ArtsMusicPolitics & LawScience & MedicineNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Bethesda is known for
Bethesda has 2.7× the usual share of performers.
The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Bethesda
Richard Schiff, Daniel Stern and Amina Wadud are written about in 63, 43 and 33 languages.
#1
#2Film, TV & Stage
Daniel Stern
born 1957American actor, artist, director and screenwriter
43 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Everyone
Everyone else born in Bethesda
A further 49 follow, born between 1911 and 1998.
Michael Hardt
born 1960American political philosopher, literary theorist and author of 2000 book Empire
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
Charles Sam Faddis
1958–2026American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operations officer, political operative
NotableWikipedia ↗
Trace Armstrong
born 1965American football player, union president, and sports agent
SportsWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
A chosen home
Also called Bethesda home
17 notable people born elsewhere made the town home, Michelle Bachelet the best known.
The town’s pick
Town Square →Who’s the most famous person from Bethesda?
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Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The neighbour with the most names is Chevy Chase, at 17.
From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Bethesda and whose English Wikipedia article agrees, ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. People known mainly for crimes, and adult performers, aren’t listed. “The usual town” = everyone born in the towns gathered so far.
Photo credits (24)
- Richard Schiff: Montclair Film, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Daniel Stern: Mingle Media TV, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Amina Wadud: Oregon State University, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Sean Murray: Angela George, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Lisa Loeb: Justin Higuchi from Los Angeles, CA, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Michael Hardt: Rosa Luxemburg-Stiftung, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Robert Hays: Rob DiCaterino from Clifton, NJ, USA, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Patricia Richardson: Alan Light, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ed Brubaker: Luigi Novi, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Robert Gordon: Jean-Luc, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Chip Roy: United States Congress, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Michael Cerveris: Sweeney Todd with Michael Cerveris.jpg chattingjason from Valley City, North Dakota derivative work: Sirab, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Alondra Nelson: Executive Office of the President of the United States, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Robert R. Redfield: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jo Ann Emerson: US House of Representatives, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Michelle Bachelet: Government of Chile, CC BY 3.0 cl, Wikimedia Commons
- Christine Lagarde: European Parliament from EU, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Julius Axelrod: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Katie Ledecky: Mledecky, CC0, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Friedman: Charles Haynes, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Red Auerbach: [Copyright held by Steve Lipofsky Basketballphoto.com}, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Wolf Blitzer: Edward Kimmel from Takoma Park, MD, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Frank Lausche: U.S. Senate, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Darren Star: Sidewalks Entertainment, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons