People from San Pedro, Los Angeles

These are notable people from San Pedro, Los Angeles, California.

Aviation

• Larry Walters (1949–1993) Piloted a lawn chair with 45 helium-filled weather balloons from his San Pedro residence.

Art

Acting

• Mike Lookinland: The actor who played the youngest brother, "Bobby Brady", on The Brady Bunch television series, from 1969 until 1974. Lookinland lived in San Pedro during his experience as a child actor. Lookinland attended Chadwick School on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, just outside Northwest San Pedro.^[1][2]
• Todd Lookinland: Starred with Elizabeth Taylor in The Blue Bird (1976 film) produced in Russia.
• Dewey Martin: Actor who was known for roles in Howard Hawks' 1950s films of who, as of October 6, 2007, was known to be residing in San Pedro.^[3]
• Patrick Muldoon: An actor who starred in regular recurring roles in the well-known soap operas, Days of Our Lives and Melrose Place. Muldoon's most well-known feature film production is the 1997 film Starship Troopers. Muldoon's father was a lifeguard at Cabrillo beach in San Pedro.^[4][5]
• D. L. Hughley: A comedian and actor who attended San Pedro High School.^[6][7]
• Kirk Harris: An actor and filmmaker, who starred in The Kid: Chamaco, with Martin Sheen and Michael Madsen, among other films.^[8] Harris resides in the South Shores area of San Pedro.
• Anthony Head: British actor, best known for his roles in Joss Whedon's now-ended television series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and the BBC^[9] television production of Merlin, owns a home in San Pedro.
• Sasha Knezev: A Serbian American filmmaker known for American Addict, American Addict 2, Fragments of Daniela and Welcome to San Pedro.^[10]

Music

• Ambrosia: Well-known "classic rock" band that achieved numerous top 40 hits, such as "Biggest Part of Me" and "How Much I Feel"—the band was formed in the South Bay/San Pedro area.^[11]
• People Under The Stairs: Hip hop group.
• John Bettis: Lyricist for many big artists, such as Michael Jackson, Madonna, The Carpenters, and Whitney Houston. Bettis, who graduated from San Pedro High School, has been nominated for an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, three Grammys and three Emmys.^[12][13]
• Chuck Dukowski - Bass player for 1970s punk rock band Black Flag ^[14]
• Minutemen: The members of this influential, eclectic punk rock trio grew up in San Pedro where the band was also formed. The surviving members, bassist/songwriter, Mike Watt, and drummer, George Hurley, still reside in San Pedro, where the former remains active in the city's music scene.^[15] Music journalist, John Calvert, has written in a brief history of the band:

Was there ever a more paradoxical band than the Minutemen? Comprising D. Boon, Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley, natives of working class seaport San Pedro, card-carrying socialists, unpretentious to a fault, and forever jocular, the Minutemen were alt-rock's most blue-collar act; the union heavies of the 1980s underground.^[16]

• Krist Novoselic: Novoselic grew up in San Pedro after his Croatian father emigrated to the Croatian enclave in the southern Californian city. Later, the future Nirvana bassist would relocate to Aberdeen, Washington, US.^[17]
• Art Pepper: A jazz saxophonist who was born in nearby Gardena, California, but was raised in San Pedro.^[18]
• Brenton Wood: Wood, a 1960s pop-soul vocalist, achieved his biggest hit with "Gimme Little Sign", a song that reached #9 on the 1967 pop charts, and "The Oogum Boogum Song", released in the same year.^[19]
• Eric Erlandson: Born and raised in San Pedro, Erlandson was the co-founder and lead guitarist for 1990s "grunge rock" band, Hole (led by Courtney Love). Following the band's dissolution in 2002, Erlandson achieved a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, the city he resides in as of 2011.^[20]
• Blu: A Los Angeles-based rapper and record producer who relocated with his family to San Pedro at the commencement of his tenth year of school.^[21]
• Jim Korthe: Vocalist for rap-metal group, 3rd Strike, who grew up in San Pedro and attended the Bishop Montgomery school as a teenager—Korthe died in his San Pedro home in January 2010 at the age of 39 years.^[22][23]
• Miguel: With the birth name, Miguel Jontel Pimentel, Miguel is a singer who is a native of San Pedro and was born to a Mexican father and an African American mother.^[24]

Politics

• John S. Gibson, Jr.: A Los Angeles City Council representative, lived in San Pedro until his death in 1981. Gibson first moved to San Pedro with his wife in 1928 and founded the first Boys' Club of California in 1937.^[25]
• James Hahn: Former Mayor of Los Angeles, is, as of 2011, a resident of the city and is described as living, worshipping, shopping, and playing in the area, alongside his sister, Janice.^[26]
• Janice Hahn: Former City Councilwoman (15th district) and active U.S. Congresswoman for the 36th District, resides in the area as of 2011, and her District office is located on West 6th Street.^[26]
• A.E. Henning: A Rotarian Special Representative for Torrance, California and a Los Angeles, California City Council member (1929–1931).^[27][28]
• Joe Hill, a radical songwriter, labor activist, and member of the Industrial Workers of the World (The Wobblies), lived and worked in San Pedro in the early years of the 20th century, and it was in the area that he began his labor organizing activism. Hill was a secretary of the San Pedro Wobblies chapter and was imprisoned for thirty days after playing a lead role in the organization of a dockworkers' strike, whereby 200 Italian workers abandoned their posts on July 21, 1912.^[29]
• Yuri Kochiyama: A human rights activist (in both Harlem, New York, US and Oakland, California, US) and Nobel Peace prize nominee, Kochiyama worked with Black Power organizations and was a leader of the Asian American and redress movements in New York City. Kochiyama held Malcolm X's head at the Audubon Ballroom in 1965 after he had been shot by an assassin. Kochiyama stated after her Nobel nomination that: "The worst recipients [of the Nobel Peace Prize] were Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Kissinger and the worst nominees were George Bush senior and Tony Blair.”^[30][31]
• Mike Lansing: Born and raised in San Pedro, Lansing served two terms on the Los Angeles Unified School District and, as of 2011, is the Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Los Angeles Harbor (BGCLAH).^[32]
• Vincent Thomas: Originally a Croatian immigrant, Thomas moved with his family to San Pedro when he was ten years of age. Thomas was elected as a California Assemblyman representing the 68th District from 1940 through 1978—he served nineteen consecutive terms. The famous Vincent Thomas Bridge was named in his honor in 1961, for his diligence and dedication, after the California Legislature passed Concurrent Resolution 131.^[33]

Science

• John Olguin: Director of the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium—from 1949 until 1987—founding member of the American Cetacean Society, and referred to as the "father of recreational whale watching."^[34]

Sports

• Joe Amalfitano: Born in San Pedro, Almafitano's baseball career began with the New York Giants (1954–1960), and then continued on with the San Francisco Giants (1960–1962 and 1963), the Houston Colt .45s (1962), and the Chicago Cubs (1964–1967).^[35]
• Alan Ashby: Born in Long Beach, California, Ashby attended high school in San Pedro. He was a catcher for the Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays, and the Cleveland Indians between 1973 and 1989.^[36]
• Denise Austin: A fitness instructor, author, and celebrity who has created eighty-two workout videos/DVDs, with high sales totals leading to her 2003 induction into the Video Hall of Fame.^[37]
• James Cotton Jr.: The 6-foot-5 forward was raised in San Pedro, attended high school in Lakewood, California, and returned with his family to San Pedro to be near family and friends. Cotton was a shooting guard for the Chicago Bulls (1999) following terms playing for the Seattle SuperSonics (1997–1999) and the Denver Nuggets (1997)—as of 1999, Cotton's NBA status is "Unrestricted Free Agent".^[38][39]
• Joe Danelo: Former kicker for the Washington Cougars and the New York Giants, who, as of 2011, had raised three sons in San Pedro where he was working as a foreman on the city's docks.^[40][41]
• Mario Danelo: Record-setting ex-placekicker for the 2006 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national champions, USC Trojans. Danelo fell to his death at the cliffs near Point Fermin lighthouse in early 2007.^[42][43]
• Gary Gabelich (1940–1984): Born in San Pedro, Gebelich achieved a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for a world land speed record of 622.287 miles per hour (1,001.474 km/h) at Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah, US on October 23, 1970—he was driving his rocket-powered "Blue Flame" vehicle. The record remained unbeaten until 1983.^[44]
• Bob Gross: Starting small forward for the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1977 NBA championship.^[45]
• Brian Harper: The former starting baseball catcher for the 1991 World Champions, the Minnesota Twins was born in Los Angeles, California, but attended high school in San Pedro.^[46]
• Dennis Johnson: Boston Celtic basketball player (guard) during the 1970s and 1980s who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2010. Born in Compton, California, he was discovered playing in local leagues in San Pedro—Johnson died in 2007.^[47]
• Richard Johnson: The 1984 USFL Receiver of the Year who played for the Houston Gamblers attended San Pedro High School.^[48]
• Ed Jurak: Utility infielder for the Boston Red Sox during the 1970s and 1980s who attended San Pedro High School.^[49]
• Garry Maddox: Eight-time Golden Glove-winner and starting center-fielder for the 1980 World Champions, the Philadelphia Phillies.^[50]
• Haven Moses: Former starting wide receiver for the Denver Broncos in the 1970s who completed 116 catches in his first four full seasons. Moses remained with the Broncos until his retirement in 1981 and appeared in two Super Bowls, one of which was the Super Bowl XII versus the Dallas Cowboys.^[51] Moses attended the San Pedro school Fermin de Lasuen Catholic High.^[52]
• Willie Naulls: former University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) basketball player who was a power forward/center for the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics. Naulls was a four-time National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star, won three NBA Championships with the Celtics in the 1960s, and was the first African-American captain in the history of integrated professional sports. At the age of nine years, Naulls' family relocated to a government housing project in San Pedro.^[53]
• Robb Nen: Former relief pitcher for the Texas Rangers, Florida Marlins, and San Francisco Giants. Nen's birthplace is San Pedro.^[54]
• Angela Nikodinov: Finished third at the 2001 U.S. figure skating championships and fifth at the world championships.^[55] San Pedro is her listed as Nikodinov's hometown.^[56]
• Norm Schachter: Deceased longtime Super Bowl referee for the National Football League (NFL) who refereed the first Super Bowl match. Schachter died in a San Pedro convalescence home.^[57]
• Tim Wrightman: Former UCLA star and starting tight end (TE) for the champions of the 1985 Super Bowl XX, the Chicago Bears. Wrightman was known as San Pedro's "Golden Boy".^[58]
• Petros Papadakis: Sports broadcaster who started the daily show Petros & Money on the AM 570/Fox Sports station in 2007. Papadakis, who is a regular college football commentator on Fox Sports Net and hosted Spike TV’s Pros vs. Joes, was born in San Pedro.^[59]

Writers and poets

• Louis Adamic (1899–1951): Slovenian-American novelist who frequently wrote about the city of Los Angeles. Adamic settled in San Pedro after serving in World War I and worked as a watchman in the office of the harbor pilot during the 1920s.^[60]
• Richard Armour: Poet and author who wrote over sixty books. Armour was born in San Pedro and died of Parkinson's disease.^[61]
• Charles Bukowski: Author and poet who lived in San Pedro during his later years.^[62] Bukowski is interviewed in his San Pedro home for the 2004 documentary Bukowski: Born Into This^[63] and stated in a 1987 interview with film critic Roger Ebert: "San Pedro is real quiet. It used to be a seaport full of whorehouses and bars. I like the quietness. They ask you how you're doing, they really want to know."^[64]
• Richard Henry Dana, Jr.: Author of the famous memoir Two Years Before the Mast. Dana was not a resident, but rather a famous visitor to San Pedro who wrote about the experience in his chronicle; San Pedro's first middle school is named after him:"Two days brought us to San Pedro, and two days more (to our no small joy) gave us our last view of that place, which was universally called the hell of California and seemed designed in every way for the wear and tear of sailors. Not even the last view could bring out one feeling of regret. No thanks, thought I, as we left the hated shores in the distance, for the hours I have walked over your stones barefooted, with hides on my head, – for the burdens I have carried up your steep, muddy hill, --for the duckings in your surf; and for the long days and longer nights passed on your desolate hill, watching piles of hides, hearing the sharp bark of your eternal coyotes, and the dismal hooting of your owls." – excerpt from Two Years Before the Mast (at the time, a dock did not exist in San Pedro and stock was loaded onto smaller boats and rowed ashore).^[65][66]
• Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston: Author of the popular memoir Farewell to Manzanar on the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. Wakatsuki Houston briefly lived in East San Pedro (Terminal Island): "In those days it [East San Pedro] was a company town, a ghetto owned and controlled by the canneries. The men went after fish, and whenever the boats came back-day or night-the woman would be called to process the catch while it was fresh. One in the afternoon or four in the morning, it made no difference...I can still hear the whistle—two toots for French's, three for Van Camp's—and she [Mom] and Chizu would be out of bed in the middle of the night, heading for the cannery." – excerpt from Farewell to Manzanar
• Louis L'Amour: Western fiction writer L'Amour chronicled some of his San Pedro beach experiences in the 1980 book Yondering: "The worst times were when he was "on the beach" – on shore, in San Pedro, California, between ships and broke. "I slept in boxcars and under piles of lumber, and took jobs no one else wanted. I was 18 and looked 24. There were several times I went three and four days without eating. I didn't beg or steal, just went without. I'd like to recover for my readers what it's really like to be hungry. I have a penchant for stories about survival, lessons in survival. I've been a survivor most of my life."^[67]
• Scott O'Dell (1898–1989): Deceased author of young adult literature, O'Dell lived in East San Pedro (Terminal Island) during his childhood: "Island of the Blue Dolphins, though it is based upon the true story of a girl who lived alone on a California island for eighteen years, came from the memory of my years at San Pedro and Dead Man's Island, when, with other boys my age, I voyaged out on summer mornings in search of adventure."^[68]
• John Shannon: Author of the "Jack Liffey" series of noir thrillers who grew up in San Pedro: "It was interesting. San Pedro may have been the last great place to grow up in the L.A. area – a harbor, a real sense of community, a real Left, even a literary history: Charles Bukowski, Louis Adamic, even Richard Henry Dana stayed [here] for a time. I could ride the ferry across to Terminal Island, hang out at the docks, walk down the harbor among the commercial fishing boats with old Sicilians and Croatians mending their nets, catch crawdads in Averill Park."^[69]

Film and television

• Tony Scott: Producer, director, actor, cinematographer, writer, and editor. On August 19, 2012, Scott committed suicide at age 68 by jumping off the Vincent Thomas Bridge in the San Pedro port district.^[70]
• Robert Towne: Four-time Academy Award-winning writer, director, producer, and actor who was raised in San Pedro, where he worked as a tuna fisherman. Towne's body of work includes screenplays Chinatown (1974), Mission: Impossible (1996), Mission: Impossible II (2000), The Last Detail (1973), Shampoo (1975), The Firm (1993), and Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984).^[71] The Writers Guild of America, West recently ranked Chinatown, behind Casablanca and The Godfather, as the third greatest English language screenplay of all time.^[72]

Organized crime

• Joe "Pegleg" Morgan: The former head of a Mexican Mafia prison gang, Morgan was born in San Pedro, before he moved to East Los Angeles as a teenager. During the 1960s, he was the link between the Mexican Mafia and the West Coast Italian crime syndicates.^[73] The character "JD", in the 1992 Edward James Olmos movie American Me, was based on Morgan.^[74]

References