Follow AHF on Twitter  
Go to AHF's Homepage Founded in 1906, AHF is one of the nation's oldest ethnic organizations Read all AHF news Buy books and see articles written by AHF members See member links and external resources AHF Action Alerts - get involved! Unity is strength Join AHF, Donate and help AHF help our community
 
Search Search the Web Search AHF
Sign up for the AHF mailing list Subscribe Unsubscribe
Master Name Index

Hungarian Coat of Arms
 Nobel Prize Winners and Famous Hungarians
 by Bryan Dawson

Did you know... the developers of the atomic bomb and nuclear engineering; the holograph; the moon and mars rovers; the Model T Ford; Microsoft Office; the fathers of the seat belt and passive safety; binary code, BASIC and computer programming; supersonic flight and the U.S. aerospace industry; the California wine industry; the U.S. light cavalry; matches; color television; full-length motion pictures; jet propulsion, the carburetor and the automatic gearbox; the Zeppelin; and the founder of Intel Corporation are all Hungarian-Americans? And what about Joseph Pulitzer, of "Pulitzer Prize" fame? There's much more to his story. And can you believe there was a Hungarian Emperor of Madagascar? Finally, would you believe Hungary ranks 8th in the world in Olympic Medals!

This list is far from inclusive, but exemplifies, along with the other sections, the Hungarian genius! Many of these will surprise you. They sure surprised me. The number of these incredible people is astounding given the size of the Hungarian population in the entire world is around 20 million. I have received submissions from all over the world (see "Special Thanks").

       Sections:

COPYRIGHT: Please ask for permission and CITE this source before using this information. [Submit] a Famous Hungarian. Please include a Web resource for verification purposes. Submissions cannot be accepted without a verifiable resource.

Master Name Index (Alphabetical with Appropriate Section in Link)

  1. Don Adams - Record setting, Triple Emmy Award and Clio Award Winning Actor, Director, Screenwriter of Get Smart Fame!
  2. Florian Albert - Soccer Great - World Cup scoring title and European Soccer Player of the Year: the "Gold Ball" of 1967
  3. Franz (Gabriel) Alexander - Physician and Psychoanalyst: Psychoanalytic Pioneer - Father of Psychosomatic Medicine 
  4. Count Ede Laszlo Almasy - Explorer, Double Agent! Immortalized in "The English Patient"
  5. Geza Anda - Acclaimed Pianist: The "Troubador of the Piano"
  6. Anonymous - Inventor of the Carriage or "Coach"
  7. Lt. Colonel Albert Anzelm - Civil War Hero: General Fremont's Chief-of-Staff
  8. General Alexander Asboth - US Chief-of-Staff, US Minister to Argentina
  9. Oscar Asboth - Engineer - Student of Theodore Kármán and Helicopter Pioneer
  10. Bob Babbitt - Legendary, Two-time Grammy-award winning Electric Bass Player earning 25 Gold and Platinum records playing on over 200 top 40 hits.  An "Icon of the Groove" helping to "define the era of the 1960's." Part of the Funk Brothers: "the Greatest Hit Machine in Modern Music."
  11. Donat Banki - Co-Invented the Carburetor
  12. Robert Barany - Nobel Prize 1914 - "For his work on the physiology and pathology of the vestibular apparatus"
  13. Bela Barenyi  - Engineer, Auto Safety Pioneer - Father of the Volkswagen Beetle, Passive Safety, Occupant Safety Cell, Collapsible Steering System, the "Crumple Zone," Crash Tests, AND the Seat Belt! A prolific inventor with over 2500 patents.
  14. Victor Barna - Legendary Table Tennis Champion  - "The Greatest Table Tennis Player that ever Lived"
  15. Madeleine Forro Barnothy - Astrophysicist, Pioneer in the study of Cosmic Radiation, Bio-Magnetism and Magnetic Therapy, first Woman to earn a doctorate in physics in Hungary!
  16. Drew Barrymore - Actress, Model, Producer, Philanthropist, "America's Sweetheart"
  17. Bela Bartok - Composer, ethnomusicologist
  18. Zoltan Bay - Physicist: First to use radar to take measurements of the moon
  19. Antal Bejczy - Engineer - Developed Mars Rover "Sojourner," and Pathfinder's Remote Control System
  20. George von Bekesy  - Nobel Prize 1961 - "For his discoveries concerning the physical mechanisms of stimulation within the cochlea."
  21. Laszlo "Laci" Bellak - Table Tennis Legend - Seven-time World Champion, Hall of Famer
  22. Laszlo Benedek - Producer/Director/Writer of "The Wild One" fame
  23. Pal Benko - Legendary Chess Champion Grand Master - only man to beat Bobby Fisher in ' 62 and US Chess Hall of Famer
  24. Les Besser - Engineer: “Father of microwave computer-aided design” Microwave Engineering
  25. Cicciolina (Ilona Staller) - Actress, Politician - Queen of Euro Porn through the 80's and 90's - Member of Parliament! Co-founder of Italy's Green Party
  26. Count Moric Benyovszky - Emperor of Madagascar!
  27. Count Laszlo Bercsenyi - Huszár, Founder of the modern French Cavalry! Marshal of France
  28. Gabor Bernath - Inventor, Computer Prodigy: at 15 Invented the commercially viable 3d Scanner, "ScanGuru," and won the 50th Intel ISEF
  29. Peter Besenyei  - World Champion Aerobat
  30. Jozsef Laszlo Biro - Inventor - Developed the ballpoint pen in 1938 AND the automatic gearbox for automobiles.
  31. Otto Blathy - One in the "Great Triad"of Electrical Engineers at Ganz: Father of the electric transformer, the tension regulator,  the watt meter, the alternating current motor, the turbogenerator and high efficiency turbogenerator.
  32. Hugo Bockh - Geologist who discovered Iran's oil fields
  33. Ladislau (Laszlo) Boloni - Soccer Player and Rumanian National Team Head Coach
  34. Farkas Bolyai -  Mathematician
  35. Janos Bolyai - Mathematician - Discovered non-Euclidian hyperbolic geometry
  36. Julius Boros - Golf Legend
  37. Adrien Brody - Actor - Oscar Nominated for "The Pianist"
  38. Imre Brody - Physicist: Father of the Krypton Electric Bulb
  39. J. Edward Bromberg, AKA Joe Bromberg - Actor on the Big Screen and Broadway, McCarthy Black-listee
  40. Joe Bugner - (WBF) World Heavyweight Boxing Champion, Australian Heavyweight Champion - Fought Muhammad Ali for the world title twice!
  41. Robert Capa - Acclaimed Photojournalist: "One of the greatest photojournalists of the 20th century" and "The Greatest War Photographer in the World"
  42. Louis CK - Emmy Award-winning comedian and writer, television and film producer and director
  43. Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - Renowned Psychologist - Father of "Flow Theory," former Chair of University of Chicago's Department of Psychology, and Bestselling Author
  44. Marton Csokas - Acclaimed Actor - "The Kiwi who Infiltrated Hollywood"
  45. Sandor Korosi Csoma - (Alexander Csoma de Koros) Explorer and Scholar "Father of Tibetan Studies and Buddhist Culture" Walked from Hungary to Tibet and presented the world with the first Tibetan dictionary and grammar and became a Buddhist Saint!
  46. Janos Csonka - Co-Invented the carburetor
  47. Larry Csonka - Miami Dolphins' Perfect Season Super Bowl Runningback, Super Bowl VIII MVP and Hall of Famer.
  48. Tivadar Csontvary (Kosztka)  - Famed Painter: Picasso once chided Chagall that he could not produce a painting half as good as one of Csontvary's!
  49. Gabor Csupo - Leader of the new generation of animation. 5 EMMYS and 2 CABLE ACE Awards - produced Rugrats and the Simpsons
  50. Charles Csuri - "Father of Digital Art!"
  51. George Cukor - Double Oscar-Winning Director
  52. Jamie Lee Curtis - Actress...Best Legs in Hollywood?
  53. Tony Curtis - Oscar-Nominated Actor, Artist, and Hollywood Legend!
  54. Michael Curtiz - Oscar Winning Director of "Casablanca"
  55. Huba Wass de Czege - Brigadier General, US Army Founding Director of the US Army’s School of Advanced Military Studies and Architect of AirLand Battle Doctrine
  56. Georges Cziffra - World-renowned, Legendary Concert Pianist: The "virtuoso showman at the keyboard!"
  57. Joseph Dallos - Physician - The First Modern, Molded Contact Lenses!
  58. Frank Darabont - Director/Writer - Two Oscar Nominations for The Green Mile, "One of the best writer/directors of his generation"
  59. Nicholas Deak - Banker, Finanacier. Received the surrender of the Japanese in Burma in WWII.  Founder of Deak-Perera, the nation's "oldest and largest foreign exchange and precious metals investment firm
  60. Robert Deak - Banker, Financier and Father of the Secured Credit Card
  61. Mihaly Denes  - Mechanical Engineer - Father of Sound Film and Television Broadcasting: Produced the first television program in history!
  62. Miksa Deri - One in the "Great Triad"of Electrical Engineers at Ganz: Developed A/C electric generator
  63. Dr. Hans von Dohnanyi - WWII hero of German resistance! Plotted Hitler's Assasination. Yad Vashem "Righteous Among Gentiles"
  64. Kristof (Christoph) von Dohnanyi - Conductor (Cleveland) of the "Country's Greatest Orchestra"
  65. Erno (Ernst) von Dohnanyi - Pianist, composer, conductor, and pedagogue
  66. Antal Dorati - Acclaimed Conductor and Composer
  67. Istvan Dorogi - Chemical Engineer / Inventor: Father of Mass Produced Inflatable Toys, Forms and Figures!
  68. Lawrence Dorr - Pulitzer Prize Nominated Author / Professor - The "Christian Hemingway"
  69. Albrecht Durer - Reniassance Master - perhaps the Greatest "German" artist of the Renaissance era. Also the most important of the Renaissance Mathematicians - Father of Descriptive Geometry
  70. Krisztina Egerszegi - 5-time Olympic Gold Medalist: "Greatest Backstroke Swimmer of All Time," youngest Olympic Champion of all time, and only woman to win five gold medals in individual swimming events!
  71. St. Elizabeth of Hungary - Giver of Charity, Patroness of Hospitals
  72. Baron Lorand Eotvos - Mathematician: Developed one of the first steps towards relativity theory.  Inventions made it possible to explore for natural resources like oil, coal, and different ores
  73. Zsolt Erdei - WBO light heavyweight champion, former World Amateur Champion
  74. Arthur Erdelyi - Mathematician - His works are cited as "the most widely cited mathematical works of all time and a basic reference source for generations of applied mathematicians and physicists throughout the world." 
  75. Paul Erdos - Legendary Mathematician: Revered by colleagues and considered to be the "most brilliant mind in his field," he collaborated with so many mathematicians that the phenomenon of the "Erdos Number" evolved
  76. Joe (Joszef) Eszterhas - Prolific Screenwriter (Basic Instinct, Sliver, Flashdance) "Highest-paid writer in Hollywood"
  77. Jeno Fejes - Engineer, Inventor - first in the world who submitted patents for manufacturing automobile parts by cold-forming, pressing, torch- or spot-welding.
  78. Gyula Fenyi - Physicist: First to prove that the frequency of solar protuberances varies according to the number of sun spots
  79. Philip Figyelmessy - US Inspector General during Civil War
  80. Charles Fleischmann - Founder of the famous Standard Brands Yeast Company of Fleischmann's Yeast fame
  81. Eugene Fodor - Founder of "Fodor's Travel Guides"
  82. Albert Fono - Mechanical Engineer - Received the first patent on airplane jet propulsion and enabled aircraft to fly faster than the speed of sound. Also developed Aerial Torpedoes, Jet Artillery, Air Compressors
  83. William Fox - Producer and Hollywood Mogul - Founder of Fox Studios!
  84. Milton Friedman - Nobel Prize 1976 - "for his achievements in the fields of consumption analysis, monetary history and theory and for his demonstration of the complexity of stabilization policy" - the best known living economist 
  85. The Gabor Sisters - Glamorous Actresses with a Hungarian Temper!
  86. Dennis Gabor - Nobel Prize 1971 - "for his investigation and development of holography"
  87. Daniel Carlton Gajdusek - Nobel Prize 1976 - For discovering "new mechanisms for the origin and dissemination of infectious diseases." 
  88. Joseph Galamb - Ford Chief Engineer: Designed the Model T and Model A Ford, the Fordson Tractor, invented the Ignition Plug and the Planetary Gearbox, and prepared the production of Liberty aircraft engines
  89. Eva Gardos - Acclaimed Screenwriter, Director, and Editor
  90. Charles Gati - Political Scientist, Author, Foreign Policy Advisor, Professor
  91. Mitzi Gaynor - Legendary Actress / Singer / Dancer: Star of "South Pacific"
  92. Uri Geller - Psychic/Entertainer
  93. Peter Gergely  - Architect and Structural Engineer: Founder of the National Center for Earthquake Engineering
  94. Peter & Charlie Gogolak - All-Pro Football Players - Longest Field Goal and all-time leading scorer in New York Giants history!
  95. Karl Goldmark - Composer
  96. Peter Carl Goldmark - Engineer, CBS Chief Scientist - Invented the Color Television, 33 1/3 LP Record, and the Electronic Video Recorder! National Medal of Science
  97. Peter Goldmark, Jr. - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the International Herald Tribune
  98. Pal Greguss - Chemical Engineer and Physicist:  invented the Pál-Optic used in NASA's Deep Space Program
  99. Andy Grove - Former President/CEO, and Chairman of Intel.  Time's Man of the Year for 1998! That's the second Hungarian to be awarded this honor!
  100. Lou "The Toe" Groza - NFL Football Player: Record-setting Tackle and Placekicker for the Cleveland Browns - 9 Pro-Bowls, Hall of Famer
  101. Alfred Haar - Mathematician: Introduced a measure on groups, now called the Haar measure, used by von Neumann, and other notables
  102. Count András Hadik - Legendary Hussar - Cavalry Hero, General: executed the most famous hussar action in history
  103. Eugene Hainer - US Congressman, 1893, 1895, from Lincoln, Nebraska
  104. George "Papa Bear" Halas - Legendary Hall of Fame Football Coach: Father of the NFL
  105. Robert Halmi, Sr. - Producer, "Tele-Visionary," Chairman of Hallmark Entertainment, the most prolific producer in TV history: multiple Emmy Award winner and 1999 Peabody Award winner
  106. Col. Agoston Haraszthy - "Father of California Wine Culture!" - Ronald Reagan
  107. Mariska Hargitay - Actress (Law and Order. ER, Leaving Las Vegas)
  108. Mickey (Miklos) Hargitay - Mr. Universe! 
  109. John Harsanyi - Nobel Prize 1994 - "For his pioneering analysis of equilibrium in the theory of non-cooperative games." Shared prize with A Beautful Mind's John Nash
  110. Stefan Hatos - Television producer of "Let's Make a Deal" fame
  111. Goldie Hawn - Very Cute Actress and Academy Award Nominee for Private Benjamin. Tentative honoree
  112. Robert Hegyes - Actor, Director - immortalized as "Juan Epstein" on Welcome Back Kotter!
  113. Miksa Herz - Architect - known in Egypt as Pasha Herz
  114. Theodor Herzl - Founder of the Zionist Movement
  115. George de Hevesy - Nobel Prize 1943 - "For his pioneering work with isotopes as tracers." Winner of Atom for Peace Award 1959
  116. Martina Hingis - Tennis Superstar! At 17, she became the youngest #1 ranked player ever and is the youngest to ever win and defend a Grand Slam Title.
  117. Dezo (Dezso) Hoffmann / Hofmann / Hoffman - Acclaimed Photographer - the Beatles' photographer! "One of the Greatest Photographers in Entertainment"
  118. Csaba Horvath - Renowned Professor of Chemical Engineering at Yale. Father of high-pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC)
  119. Joseph Rudolph "Bronco" Horvath - All-Star Hockey Player
  120. Les Horvath - Football Player - Ohio State's First Heisman Trophy Winner
  121. Harry Houdini - The "Greatest Magician on Earth," Actor, Pioneer Pilot
  122. Alan Mackenzie Howard - Actor
  123. Leslie Howard - Actor -  'Gone With the Wind"
  124. Tim Howard - England's Premier League Goalkeeper of the Year for 2004 - first American to win the coveted AF Cup title with Champion Manchester United. US National Team keeper.
  125. Al Hrabosky - "The Mad Hungarian" Great relief pitcher
  126. Jeno Hubay - Violin Virtuoso, Romantic Composer - The "Prince of the Violin" and Founder of the legendary modern Hungarian Violin School
  127. Janos Hunyadi - Military leader and statesman. First to stop the Ottoman Turks!
  128. Emeric (Imre) Ienei - Soccer Player and Rumanian National Team Head Coach
  129. Janos Irinyi - Chemist - Invented safety matches!
  130. Ernest Istook - US Congressman, Republican from Oklahoma, Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee, Co-Chair of the Hungarian Caucus in the US House of Representatives
  131. General Robert Ivany (Iványi) - West Point Graduate; West Point (Army) Football Coach; Commanding General, Military District of Washington; Commandant of the War College; and President of the University of St. Thomas
  132. Geza Jako - Physician, scientist, educator. Father of soft tissue microsurgery, laser surgery, minimally invasive surgery. White House Advisor for Cancer to Presidents Reagan and Bush Sr. Pioneer of human cochlear stimulation for deafness.
  133. Anyos Jedlik - Priest, Engineer, Physicist, Inventor - Father of the Dynamo
  134. Stephen (Steven, Istvan) Kaali - Medical Pioneer, Inventor - Patented Bio Electrical Blood Cleansing Device for AIDS and other blood diseases
  135. Janos Kabay - First to isolate morphine directly from the plant
  136. Frida Kahlo - Acclaimed Artist and Mexican Icon: One of the most influential artists of the middle twentieth century
  137. Rudolf Emil Kalman - Developed the Kálmán Filter which is the " greatest discovery in statistics in our century." Kalman filtering is also the method used in GPS (Global Positioning Systems) for navigation
  138. Kalman Kando - Inventor, Engineer - Discovered triple phase high tension current for electric locomotion and industrial applications.  Father of Modern Electric Trains!
  139. Moricz Kohn Kaposi - Physician and Dermatologist: Discovered Kaposi's Sarcoma
  140. Theodore von Karman - Aeronautical Engineer & Mathematician. The Father of the Supersonic Flight and a founder of the aeronautical and astronautical sciences. Designed the first rocket to  reach interstellar space!
  141. Bela and Marta (Martha) Karoly - U.S. Gymnastics Coaches to Nadia and Mary Lou
  142. Sgt. Leopold Karpeles - Civil War Hero - Congressional Medal of Honor Winner
  143. John Kemeny -  Mathematician, President of Dartmouth: "Father of Microcomputing," developed BASIC computer language
  144. Farkas Kempelen de Pazmand - Inventor - First Speaking Machine - first experimental phonetician
  145. Gyorgy Kepes - Painter, designer, author and educator who founded and directed the Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT 
  146. Andre Kertesz - Acclaimed photographer
  147. Imre Kertesz - Nobel Prize 2002 - "For writing that upholds the tragic experience of the individual against the barbaric arbitrariness of history"
  148. Kincsem - "The greatest racehorse of all time"
  149. Karch Kiraly - 3-time Olympic Gold Medalist and Professional Volleyball Player: "The King" and Player of the Century
  150. Christina Kiss - Renowned Pianist: one of the foremost Liszt interpreters of our time
  151. Max Kiss  - Pharmacist and Inventor of Ex-Lax!
  152. Calvin Klein - American Fashion King!
  153. Brigadier General Frederick Knefler - Civil War Hero: "Hungarian Patriot and American General" - highest rank attained in the Union army by a member of the Jewish faith.
  154. Mark and David Knopfler - Legendary, Grammy Award-winning Rock Musicians of Dire Straits: "The Sultans of Rock" and "the finest British band of all time."
  155. Sgt. Matej Kocak - WWI Hero - DOUBLE Congressional Medal of Honor Winner
  156. Sandor Kocsis - Soccer Legend: The "The Man With The Golden Head"
  157. Zoltan Kocsis - Piano Virtuoso and Composer
  158. Zoltan Kodaly - Composer, educator, ethnomusicologist, linguist, author and philosopher
  159. Arthur Koestler - Author/Playwright
  160. Lajos Koltai, HSC - Cinematographer - Oscar Nomination
  161. Sir Alexander Korda - Legendary, Oscar Nominated Producer / Director: A "Hollywood Renegade" & Founding Member of The Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers.  Founder and guiding force behind the British film industry and "Savior of the British film industry." 
  162. Michael Korda - Best-Selling Author and Superstar Publisher and over 40 years as Editor-In-Chief of Simon & Schuster
  163. Vincent Korda -Oscar Winning Film Art Director
  164. Zoltan Korda - Acclaimed Director
  165. Janos Kornai - Economist, Harvard Professor: Developed the "economics of shortage" theory
  166. Bernie Kosar - Superbowl winning Quarterback.  Played for the Browns, Cowboys and the Dolphins!
  167. Mihaly Kotai - Boxer - WBF Super Welterweight Champion and world-title contender - "The Ace of Tokai"
  168. Ernie Kovacs - Actor, Broadcast Pioneer, and Legendary Comedian and T.V. Personality Three Emmy Awardsin the 1956-57 TV season.
  169. Laszlo Kovacs ASC - Legendary Cinematographer
  170. Col. Michael de Kovats - US Military Hero!- Founding Father of the US Cavalry!
  171. Brigadier General Eugene A. Kozlay - Civil War Hero: Organized the 54th New York Infantry Regiment
  172. Hon. Tom Lantos - 11-term U.S. Congressman from California
  173. Erno Laszlo - Dermatologist and Cosmetics Tycoon: Father of Modern Skincare Products
  174. Estee Lauder - Cosmetic Queen! Founder of the current world cosmetics leader!
  175. Leonard A. Lauder - White House Advisor and Chairman, The Estée Lauder Companies, Inc.
  176. Ronald S. Lauder - US Ambassador to Vienna, Deputy Secretary of Defense for European and NATO Policy, philanthropist and businessman.
  177. Benjamin Lax - Electrical Engineer / Physicist: Founder and Director of Francis Bitter National Magnetic Laboratories (MIT); Professor of Physics, Emeritus (MIT); Semiconductor and magneto-optics pioneer; Radar Pioneer: developed the radar height and range finder and discovered radar meteorology.
  178. Peter Lax - Renowned and Prolific Applied Mathematician and "one of the greatest figures in pure and applied mathematics of our times."
  179. Franz Lehar  - Foremost composer of 20th century operettas
  180. Fulop von Lenard  - Nobel Prize 1905 - "For his studies in x-rays and the cathode ray tube"
  181. Menyhert Lengyel - Oscar Nominated Writer, Producer, and Broadway and Film Director
  182. Gyorgy Ligeti - Composer and 20th Century Musical Pioneer: One of the world’s best known living composers - featured on 2001: A Space Odyssey
  183. Franz Liszt - Classical Composer, "Greatest Pianist of All Time"
  184. Lajos Loczy - First to make geological survey of the Trans-Himalaya mountain chain
  185. Stefan Lorant - Photographer / Editor / Filmmaker / Pioneering Journalist - Widely regarded as the first major editor of modern photojournalism and "the Godfather of Photojournalism"
  186. Peter Lorre - Actor - Chaplin called him "the greatest actor alive"
  187. Laszlo Lovasz - Renowned Yale University Senior Faculty Mathematician, Microsoft Senior Researcher, Computer Scientist: 1999 Wolf Prize Winner
  188. Bela Lugosi - Actor - The Original Dracula!
  189. John Lukacs - Eminent Historian: Pulitzer Prize Nominated, Ingersoll Prize Winner - "one of America’s most respected historians - Yale"
  190. J. Anthony Lukas - Acclaimed Author and Journalist . "One of America's most brilliant writers" and Winner of TWO Pulitzer Prizes!
  191. Paul Lukas - Actor, Academy Award Winner for "Watch on the Rhine," in 1943
  192. Janos Luppis - Naval Captain and Engineer: Co-Inventor of  the Torpedo
  193. Dezso Magyar - Chair, American Film Institute Conservatory, Master Filmmaker-in-Residence
  194. The Magyar Tribes - Innovators: Invented The Stirrup and wooden-framed saddle; Leather Processing; the famous reflex bow; Beef Jerky; Mint Methods
  195. Eva Marton - Heavenly Soprano
  196. Kati Marton - Acclaimed journalist & best-selling author
  197. Ilona Massey - Actress
  198. Maria Mednyanszky - Legendary Table Tennis Champion - First official female World Champion
  199. Joe Medwick - Baseball Superstar: World-Series Slugger, Hall of Famer, "The Muscular Magyar"
  200. Zoltan Mesko - Super Bowl 46 (XXLVI) Punter for the New England Patriots, University of Michigan All-American
  201. Col. Geza Mihaloczy - Civil War Hero: Organized the famed "Lincoln Riflemen"
  202. Jozsef Mihalyi - Engineer / Inventor: Co-Developed Automatic Camera, Chief Designer at Kodak
  203. Ferenc Molnar - Playwright: part of the "Hungarian Invasion" of New York Theatre
  204. S/Sgt Frankie "Zoly" Molnar - Vietnam War Hero - Congressional Medal of Honor Winner
  205. Miklos Molnar - Soccer Star: Danish "Golden Boot," Kansas City Wizards, International - His nickname is "Danish Dynamite" for his explosive scoring ability
  206. Alanis Morrisette - Multi-Platinum-selling Singer, Songwriter - 7 Grammy Awards! One of the VH1: 100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll
  207. Peter Munk - Industrial Tycoon - One of the Richest Men in Canada: Founder of Barrick Gold and the multi-billion dollar Canadian construction and development firm TrizecHahn
  208. Charles Nagy - World Series Pitcher (Cleveland Indians), 3-time All Star, & Olympics Gold Medal Winner!  
  209. Laszlo Moholy - Nagy, Avant-Garde Painter, designer, and experimental photographer: A Founder of Constructivism, Professor and Director at the Bauhaus School of Design, Chicago, and Founder and head of the Chicago Institute of Design
  210. Joe Namath (Németh) Sports Hero, Super Bowl Quarterback and MVP (New York Jets), and Hall of Famer 
  211. John von Neumann - Legendary Mathematician, Physicist, Logician, and Computing Pioneer: Co-developed the Atomic Bomb. Father of Binary Code and the Stored Program Computer, Father of Game Theory. Key in development of U.S. ballistic missile program
  212. Paul Newman - Oscar Winning Actor - Eight Oscar Nominations!
  213. George Olah - Nobel Prize 1994 - "For his contribution to carbocation chemistry: the study of hydrocarbons, the ingredients of oil and natural gas, and his discovery of new ways to use them"
  214. Edward James Olmos - Oscar and Tony Nominated and Emmy Award Winning Actor, Producer, Director, and Activist. The "Olivier of the Latino World" and People's 2000 Sexiest Man Alive
  215. Eugene Ormandy - Renowned Conductor (Philadelphia)
  216. Tom Orosz - NFL Football Player - Superbowl Punter for the Miami Dolphins #3
  217. Egon Orowan (Orován) - Applied Physicist
  218. George Pal - Cartoonist/Animator of "War of the Worlds" - Winner of SIX Oscars, and pioneer of stop-action animation!
  219. Ziggy Pallfy - Hockey Phenom - Top Scorer for the NY Islanders and LA Kings - sixth in the NHL in scoring!
  220. Laszlo Papp - Legendary Boxer: Only man in history to win 3 consecutive Olympic Gold Medals
  221. Joseph Pasternak - Prolific Film Producer/Director: Multiple Oscar Nominations. Rescued Universal Studios
  222. Beatrix Aruna Pasztor - Costume Designer: designed costumes for 20 major feature films
  223. George Pataki - Governor, New York
  224. Ferenc Pavlics - Engineer: Developed NASA's Moon Rover and Directed Development of the Mars Rover
  225. Eszter Pecsi  - Structural Engineer - designer of the first reinforced-concrete skyscraper! First woman to receive a degree in engineering in Hungary (1920)
  226. Jozsef Petzval - Inventor: A Founder of Photography: His Work allowed for construction of modern cameras and made practical portrait-photography possible. Invented Photographic Objective Lens, Darkroom, Opera Glass, and perfected the telescope
  227. Sandor (Alexander) Pfitzner - Engineer: Designed the first American Monoplane for Curtiss
  228. Sylvia Plachy - Acclaimed Photographer, Mother of Actor Adrien Brody
  229. John Polanyi - Nobel Prize 1986 - "For contributions to the development of a new field of research in chemistry - reaction dynamics." Founder of Reaction Dynamics
  230. Zsuzsa (Susan), Judit (Judith), and Zsofia (Sofia) Polgar - Chess Grand Masters and Olympic Gold Medalists! - Judith has been called the Greatest Female Player of all Time!
  231. George Polya - Mathematician: "The Great Teacher"
  232. Colonel George Pomutz - Civil War Hero:  Appointed US Consul General to St. Petersburg, Russia.
  233. Geza Pozsar - U.S. Gymnastics National Team Coach and Choreographer
  234. Janos Prohaska - Actor/Stuntman
  235. Freddie Prinze, Jr. - Actor and Heart-Throb! "Young Hollywood's Leading Man"
  236. Freddie Prinze Sr. - Actor, Comedian
  237. Joseph Pulitzer - Publishing Tycoon: Responsible for building of the Statue of Liberty
  238. Ferenc Puskas - Soccer Legend: The "Greatest Soccer Player in History!"
  239. Tivadar Puskas - Inventor, Thomas Edison's Colleague - Devised the idea of using telephone exchanges  between subscribers, invented the switchboard and built Europe's first telephone exchange. Coined the term "Hello"
  240. S/Sgt. Laszlo Rabel - US Military Hero! Congressional Medal of Honor
  241. Elemer Ragalyi - Acclaimed, Emmy Award Winning Cinematographer
  242. Jessica Rakoczy - Boxer - IBA Lightweight World Champion! The "Ragin'" Rakoczy. Number 1 ranked overall!
  243. Tommy Ramone - Drummer and Producer of the Legendary, Pioneering Punk Rockers, The Ramones!
  244. Deszo Ranki - Renowned Concert Pianist - with Kocsis, the "Golden Boys of the Magyar Keyboard"
  245. Fritz Reiner - Legendary Conductor: A "Foremost Conductor of his Time" and "Genius Orchestra Builder"
  246. Imre Reiner - Painter, Sculptor, Illustrator, and Renowned Type Designer of "Reiner Script" fame!
  247. Maria Judith Reményi - Miss USA 1966
  248. Alfred Renyi - Mathematician. Discovered "one of the strongest methods of analytical number theory" 
  249. Frigyes Riesz - Mathematician. Riesz was a founder of functional analysis and his work has many important applications in physics
  250. Odon Riszdorfer - Engineer / Inventor: Co-Developed Automatic Camera and Automatic Shutter for Movie Cameras. Father of the hand held, battery operated light meter.
  251. Donald Lawrence Ritter - US Congressman, Republican from Pennsylvania
  252. Ferenc Rofusz - Animator: Oscar in 1981 for his animated film, "The Fly" (A Légy) - the first Hungarian Oscar for a cartoon.
  253. Anna M. Rosenberg - Under-Secretary of Defense in Truman Cabinet. Medal of Freedom in 1945 and Medal of Merit in 1947
  254. George Rosencrantz - Chemist, Businessman, Founder of Syntex, the number seventeen world-ranked drug firm, the developer of Aleve
  255. Miklos Rozsa - Triple Oscar Winning Film Music Composer
  256. Erno Rubik - Mathematician, Inventor of Rubik's Cube!
  257. Leopold Ruzicka  - Nobel Prize 1939 - "For his work on polymethylenes & higher terpenes"
  258. S.Z. "Cuddles" Sakall - Famed Character Actor, from Casablanca fame
  259. Anna Sandor - Emmy Award-Winning screenwriter
  260. Nicolas Sarkozy - French Minister of the Interior, Internal Security and Local Freedoms. Elected as French Prime Minister!
  261. Andrew Sarlos - Hungarian-born Canadian investor and financial guru, author, and great philanthropist
  262. Sylvia Sass - Another Heavenly Soprano, "the New Callas"
  263. Bela Schick - Pediatric Doctor / Researcher: Pioneer in immunology - Devised the "Schick test" for determining susceptibility to diphtheria.
  264. Andras Schiff - Acclaimed Classical Pianist
  265. Claude-Michel Schonberg - Acclaimed Grammy and Tony Award-winning Writer, Composer, and Producer of Les Miserables and Miss Saigon
  266. Friedrich Schorr - Renowned "mahogany-colored" Bass- Baritone
  267. Gerard Schurmann - World-renowned Double Oscar Winning Composer: Orchestrated Lawrence of Arabia and Exodus
  268. David Schwartz - Inventor - Father of the Dirigible Air Ship or Zeppelin
  269. Thomas A. Sebeok (Sebők) - Father of Modern Semiotics (the study of signs and non-verbal communication)
  270. Janos Andras Segner - Father of the Water Turbine: First scientist to use reactive force and made substantial contributions to the theory of Dynamics
  271. Jerry Seinfeld - Actor / Comedian: American Icon! The most successful and influential comedian of his generation!
  272. Paul Selenyi - Physicist and Father of Electrostatics / Photoconductivity Pioneer - first to record images with an electrostatic marking process: the foundation of Xerography!
  273. Monica Seles - Tennis Superstar - She has won 9 Grand Slam singles titles and bronze in Sydney 2000! 
  274. Hans Selye - Physician, Endocrinologist, Researcher - Founder of the concept of Stress: The "Einstein of Medicine!"
  275. Ignac Semmelweis - Physician, "The Mothers' Savior"
  276. Kate Seredy - Author and illustrator of children's books
  277. Don Shula - Legendary Hall of Fame Football Coach (the 17-0 Miami Dolphins!) Winningest Coach in NFL History
  278. Gene Simmons - Legendary Tongue and Rock-n-Roller of  KISS!
  279. Paul Simon - Musician, Singer, Songwriter - American Legend of Simon & Garfunkel" fame! 12 Grammys and Rock-n-Roll Hall of Famer
  280. Charles Simonyi - Computer Scientist and Chief Architect, Microsoft Corporation: Father of WYSIWYG and Hungarian Notation
  281. Denis Sinor - Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Indiana University Department of Central Eurasian Studies, Uralic and Altaic Studies
  282. Anna Sipos - Table Tennis Legend - first female player to use the "pen holder grip"
  283. Sir Georg Solti -Acclaimed Conductor: Record number of Grammys
  284. Mihaly Somogyi - Chemist: Produced first Child Insulin Treatment in US - Developed the "Somogyi test" for the diagnosis of diabetes
  285. George Soros - "The world's greatest money manager" and Great Progressive Philanthropist.
  286. Brent Spiner - Actor and Trekkies' favorite android, Lieutenant Commander Data!
  287. Major-General Julius H. Stahel (Számwald) - US Military Hero! Congressional Medal of Honor
  288. Ilona Staller (Cicciolina) - Actress, Politician - Queen of Euro Porn through the 80's and 90's - Member of Parliament! Co-founder of Italy's Green Party
  289. Sir Aurel Stein - "The most prodigious combination of scholar, explorer, archaeologist and geographer of his generation" - The "Sven Hedin of England" - pioneered the use of aerial photography in archaeology. 
  290. George Stigler - Nobel Prize 1982 - "For his seminal studies of industrial structures, functioning of markets and causes and effects of public regulation"
  291. Elvis Stojko - "King of the Ice" - 3-time World Champion, 7-time Canadian National Champion, and 2-time Olympic Silver Medalist!
  292. Miklos Szabados - Table Tennis Legend - second only to Barna
  293. Ekaterina (Katalin) Szabo - Champion Gymnast: Four Olympic Gold Medals and One Silver in Los Angeles 
  294. Gabor Szabo - JJazz Great: One of the "most original and outstanding improvisational guitarists of the 20th century"
  295. Istvan Szabo - Director, Writer, Producer - Academy Award in 1981
  296. Professor Szalay - Father of British Weightlifting
  297. Chef Louis Szathmary - Legendary Chef and founder of Chicago's "The Bakery" - father of the "Stouffer's frozen dinner"
  298. Victor Szebehely - Aerospace Engineer: Pioneer of Orbital Mechanics and key figure in the Apollo Space Program: "His work got us to the moon"
  299. Gabor Szego - Mathematician: Head of University of Stanford Mathematics 
  300. Pierre Szekely - Renowned Sculptor and Architect - the "Incessant Adventurer"
  301. George Szell - Conductor
  302. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi von Nagyrapolt - Nobel Prize 1937 - "For his discoveries in connection with the biological combustion process with special reference to vitamin C & the catalysis of fumaric acid." First to isolate Vitamin C  
  303. Leo Szilard - Physicist: Co-developed the Atomic Bomb. Physicist  - Co-developed the Atomic Bomb: Conceived the nuclear chain reaction and campaigned for nuclear disarmament, though the first to consider the application of the atom to making bombs. Achieved first sustained nuclear fission reaction with Enrico Fermi. Identified the unit or "bit" of information
  304. Kornel Szilvay - Officer in the Hungarian Fire Brigade: Father of the Dry Fire Extinguisher!
  305. Henrietta Szold - Founder of Hadassah
  306. Pvt. William L. S. Tabor - Civil War Hero - Congressional Medal of Honor Winner
  307. Jeffrey Tambor - Actor
  308. Count Samuel Teleki - Explorer! Led the famous East-Africa Expedition
  309. Maria Telkes - Chemist, Engineer: Pioneer of Solar Energy: "Mother of the Solar Home," "The "Sun Queen," and "world's most famous woman inventor in solar energy."
  310. Edward (Ede) Teller - Physicist: Co-developed the Atomic Bomb. Discovered BET equation. Father of the the H-Bomb
  311. Joe Theismann - Legendary Two-time Superbowl Quarterback for the Washington Redksins
  312. Lou Thesz - Legend of Professional Wrestling, "Wrestling's True Icon"
  313. Kalman Tihanyi - Physicist: Father of the Picture Tube and Television Pioneer (NOT Zworykin) - Invented the Picture Tube (Iconoscope), Infrared-sensitive (night vision) television, and Flat TV Tube
  314. Steve Tichy - Huge proponent of all things Hungarian, and world-renowned helpdesk technican from Boston, MA! Now he IS famous indeed (at least for a while!)
  315. Ivan Tors - Producer/Director, Underwater Film Pioneer
  316. Andre de Toth - Director - Oscar Nomination, "The Gunfighter"
  317. Paul Turan - Mathematician: Erdos's closest friend and collaborator and Great Hungarian number theorist
  318. Steven Ferencz Udvar-Hazy  - Business Tycoon, Aircraft Leasing Pioneer, and GREAT Philanthropist - Father of the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center
  319. Colonel George Utassy - US Civil War Hero:  Organized the famed Garibaldi Guard
  320. Albert Vadas (Wadas) - Spanish American War Hero - Congressional Medal of Honor Winner
  321. Janos Vas - Hockey Player - Dallas Stars
  322. Major Gyula Vari - Hungarian Air Force, Acclaimed Fighter Pilot - First pilot to win consecutive titles at Fairford's Royal International Air Tattoo
  323. Andrew Vajna -  Producer, Hollywood Legend: President of Cinergi Productions, co-Founder of Carolco Pictures
  324. Robert Varkonyi - Poker World Series Champion of 2002! First Ever to Win 2 Million!
  325. Viktor Vasarely - Famed painter known for his geometrical forms, he is the father of Op-Art
  326. Bishop Faustus Verancsics - Invented the air turbine
  327. Peter Vermes - Soccer Star: Kansas City Wizards, US National Team (captain), International
  328. Adrienne Vittadini - Renowned Fashion Designer and Businesswoman
  329. Andre Watts - Acclaimed Classical Pianist  - one of the "Great Pianists of the 20th Century"
  330. Johnny Weissmuller (sports, film) - The one and only Tarzan and FIVE-time Gold Olympic swimming legend! "The greatest swimmer of all time"
  331. Rachel Weisz - Actress and Model (The Mummy, Enemy at the Gates, Stealing Beauty, Sunshine, Beautiful Creatures)
  332. Jules White - Four-time Oscar-Nominated Producer / Director of "The Three Stooges" and More!
  333. Elie Wiesel  - Nobel Prize 1986 - "For his dedication to peace, atonement, and human dignity"
  334. Eugene Wigner  - Nobel Prize 1963 - "for his contributions to the theory of the atomic nucleus and the elementary particles, particularly through the discovery and application of fundamental symmetry principles" Co-developed the atomic bomb, developed first breeder reactor, and is known as the Founder of Nuclear Engineering
  335. Debra Winger - Actress - 2 Oscar Nominations!
  336. Major Charles Zagonyi - "The Union Forever!" Led the famous Civil War "Zágonyi Death Ride"
  337. Karoly Zipernowsky - A/C Electronics Pioneer! One in the "Great Triad"of Electrical Engineers at Ganz: Founder of heavy-current electrical engineering
  338. Vilmos Zsigmond (ASC) - Legendary Cinematographer - Oscar Winner and Multiple Oscar Nominations!
  339. Richard Zsigmondy - Nobel Prize 1925 - "For his work on methods in the study of colloid chemistry"
  340. Adolph Zukor - "Mr. Motion Pictures" and Oscar Winner

Special Thanks To:

  • Judit Györgyey Ries of the University of Texas, Department of Astronomy for her correction and information on John von Neumann.
  • M.E. Pflieger for his contribution of Peter Lorre and András Schiff.
  • Feri Zsuppán, Ph.D., of Duke University, for his quotation from Albert Szent-Györgyi seen under the title.
  • Paul Szilágyi, Ph.D., for his contributions of Zukor, Benedek, Rosencrantz, Tors, Udvarhelyi, Kertész, Benko, Gajdusek, and Deák.
  • Al Boyd, of the University of Maryland, for his contribution of Alfred Schorr.
  • The Lónyays for their contributions of de Kovats, Haraszthy, Puskás, Bolyai, Irinyi, Pólya, and Pázmánd! Great contributions! Thanks Amigos! You are now very "in" famous. Other information which the Lonyay's provided me was from the following books - Our Hungarian Heritage by Albert Wass (c)1975 Danubian Press and The Spirit of Hungary by Stephen Sisa. These are great books, check 'em out.
  • Gene Dannen, and his Leo Szilard Home Page!
  • Andrew J. Rózsa, Ph.D. in Birmingham, Alabama for Miklós Rozsa, General de Czege, Zinfandel info. on Haraszthy and Alexander Korda.
  • Mike & Naomi Tronzo for their contribution of Ilona Massey.
  • Johanne Tournier in Canada for her information and research on Béla Lugósi and contribution of Houdini! Great homepage!
  • Professor Edward Chászár in Virginia for lending me a copy of (which I returned late!) Rezsoe and Margaret Gracza's informative book, "The Hungarians in America, (c)1969 Lerner Publications. LOC #68-31503.
  • Miklós Békefi for his corrections on accent marks! Also his contribution of the Associated Press Article on Hungarians in the Arts.
  • Kása Zoltán from the University of Kolozsvár and Urszenyi Gábor from California for their contribution of Erdôs Pál.
  • George Furmann in Canada for Nicholas Hungaricus! Szathmary
  • "El Abogado" Juan Luis Boldizsár in Chicago for Chef Louis.
  • Andrew M. Gombos, Jr., in Houston, Texas for Hraboski, "The Mad Hungarian"
  • Zsolt Szalavari in Austria for Charles Csuri!
  • Szisz (Kiss Szilárd) from the University of Kolozsvár, Transylvania for his contribution of Rubik.
  • László Aranyos for his contribution of Goldmark and Vasarely.
  • Géza Hartai from Plano, Texas for Ferenc Rofusz.
  • Steve Colman (Kálmán Pista) for his contribution and editorial on Kémény and Mikes
  • Valentin Poncos in Canada for his contributions of Haar, Kalman, and Riesz.
  • The History of Mathematics Archive at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland for their superb collection.
  • Richard diSilvio, owner of the Franz Liszt Page for Christina Kiss.
  • Barry Hanger, for Frank Capa
  • Stephen Elekes in Hungary for S.Z. Sakall
  • Chris Golya at the Centre for New Media Research, School of Art, Design and Media, University of Portsmouth, UK for Moholy-Nagy, Kertesz, and additional biographical data on Biro
  • Miklos Racz in Virginia for Petzval, Herzl, Lehar, Hunyadi, Moholy-Nagy
  • Al Cunniff and Vladimir Korovkin for Gabor Szabo
  • Prof. Tom Barthel from the City College of New York for Joe Medwick
  • Andre Mommen in the Netherlands for Varga and Kornai
  • Gordon Woodworth for Peter Gogolak trivia!
  • Attila Zseni alias Zsenya in Hungary for contact lens developer, Dallos Joszef, Imre Kálmán, and Tivadar Csontvary.
  • Dezso Nyitray for Gene Simmons of KISS and Gábor Csupó!
  • Kati S. Maharry at Indiana University School of Medicine (Ooey Pooey) for Calvin Klein!
  • Laramie Banks for history and bibliography on Peter Karl Goldmark
  • Joseph Laszlo Kupan, in California, for biographical data on Charles Simonyi, Steven Udvar-Hazy, Jeffrey Tambor, Jerry Seinfeld, and Paul Simon
  • Prof. Tom Barthel for Joe Medwick
  • Mihaly Lorincz for Kincsem
  • USA Gymnastics for the information on Geza Pozar
  • Andrew Sarkany for submitting Kristina Egerszegi
  • Barry Hanger for biographical information on Robert Capa
  • Marc for Rachel Weisz
  • Paul Hazuda and Ricardo Creisstoff for the Freddy Prinzes
  • Enike Smith for Edward James Olmos and Mariska Hargitay
  • Gabor Piros for submission of Hans Selye
  • Janos Bimbo for Lou Thesz
  • Lászlo Gergely in Hungary for information related to pilot phenom Gyula Vári
  • Stephen Beszedits for his biographical data on many of many of the miltary heroes
  • Alice Egyed, Ph.D. and Martha Bihari for Andras Schiff
  • Amanda Sowards for Director/Writer Frank Darabont
  • Julianna Anda for her Father's cousin, renowned pianist, Geza Anda
  • Al Miller for Mitzi Gaynor
  • Dr. Daniel A. Lowy and Martha Bihari for Gyorgy Ligeti
  • György Takács in Sweden for the Knopflers of Dire Straits and Alanis Morissette
  • Joe Schmidt for Paul Simon (and Timothy Johnson), Joe Bugner, Claude-Michel Schonberg, Florian Albert, Jules White, Eugene Fodor, and Viktor Barna
  • Fred Mintz for Tommy Ramone
  • Martha Bihari for Gerard Schurmann
  • Marc Witorsch for Adrien Brody
  • Istvan Szoke for Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
  • Lola for Adrienne Vittadini, and Pierre Szekely
  • Lisa Doyle for Marton Csokas
  • Zsuzsanna Cseke for Ranki, Perenyi, Durer and Sarkozy
  • Andy Vella for Don Adams!
  • Judith Meszaros for Ziggy Palffy.
  • Gail Bernas for Peter Lax
  • Jozsef "Joe" Urmos for Janos Prohaska
  • Pál Breuer for Egon Orovan, Elemer Ragalyi, Charles Gati, Andrew Sarlos, Peter Munk
  • Veronica Saldanha Marinho in Brazil for her uncle, Artist and Typographer Imre Reiner
  • Ellen Rozsa for Kati Maton
  • Andy "New York Jets" Kovalev for Mihaly Kotai, Joe Theismann, Robert Hegyes, and Zsolt Erdei.
  • Major Eric Arnold for Laszlo Lovasz
  • Andrew Mihovics for Les Horvath, Bronco Horvath, Jessica Rakoczy
  • Don Mezei for Bob Babbitt
  • Lajos Bartucz for Lawrence Dorr
  • Nobel Prize Laureate, Dr. George Olah for John Lukacs
  • Giselle for comedian Louis C.K
  • Attila Ürményházi for Kate Seredy and Count András Hadik

Jump to:
DISCLAIMER: The American Hungarian Federation does not necessarily endorse the content or opinions expressed by its individual members
and member organizations. © American Hungarian Federation®, All Rights Reserved