25 Famous People You Didn’t Know Were From Rockland County, New York

Main Street in Nyack, Rockland County, New York. Photo by Brian Logan Photography / Shutterstock.com.

Tucked between the Hudson River and the New Jersey state line, Rockland County is the smallest county in New York State outside the five boroughs of New York City. With roughly 174 square miles of land, it has nevertheless produced an impressive group of actors, musicians, athletes, writers, artists, broadcasters, and other nationally known figures.

Every person on this list has a documented connection that fits the premise of being from Rockland County: they were born in the county, raised there, or graduated from a Rockland County school. From Nyack and New City to Suffern, Spring Valley, Pearl River, Tappan, Pomona, Congers, and Stony Point, these 25 people all have genuine roots in Rockland County, New York.

1. Edward Hopper – Nyack

• Rockland Roots: Edward Hopper was born in Nyack in 1882 and grew up at the family home at 82 North Broadway. He graduated from Nyack High School in 1899. The house where he was born and raised is now the Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center.
• Claim to Fame: Hopper became one of the most important American realist painters of the 20th century. His best-known works include Nighthawks, Early Sunday Morning, and New York Movie.

2. Joseph Cornell – Nyack

• Rockland Roots: Joseph Cornell was born in Nyack in 1903 and spent his early childhood there before his family moved to Queens after the death of his father.
• Claim to Fame: Cornell became one of America’s most influential assemblage artists, celebrated for his glass-fronted shadow boxes filled with found objects, photographs, maps, and fragments of popular culture.

3. Skylar Astin – New City

• Rockland Roots: Born in New York City, Skylar Astin spent his childhood in New City and graduated from Clarkstown High School North in 2005.
• Claim to Fame: Astin became widely known as Jesse Swanson in Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2. He also appeared in the original Broadway production of Spring Awakening and starred in the television series Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.

4. Claudio Sanchez – Suffern and Nyack

• Rockland Roots: Claudio Sanchez was born in Suffern and grew up in Rockland County, attending Nyack High School. His musical career developed in the same local scene where Coheed and Cambria first took shape.
• Claim to Fame: Sanchez is the lead singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter of Coheed and Cambria. He also created the science-fiction comic-book series The Amory Wars, which provides the conceptual framework for much of the band’s music.

5. Hayden Panettiere – Palisades

• Rockland Roots: Hayden Panettiere was born in Palisades, in the Town of Orangetown, and spent part of her childhood in Rockland County.
• Claim to Fame: Panettiere became a major television star as Claire Bennet on NBC’s Heroes and later as Juliette Barnes on Nashville. She also appeared in the Scream film series and earned two Golden Globe nominations for her work on Nashville.

6. Grace VanderWaal – Suffern

• Rockland Roots: Grace VanderWaal grew up in Suffern, where she began writing songs and developing the musical style that eventually brought her national attention.
• Claim to Fame: VanderWaal won Season 11 of America’s Got Talent in 2016 at age 12 while performing original songs with her ukulele. She later recorded several releases and starred in the Disney films Stargirl and Hollywood Stargirl.

7. Julianna Margulies – Spring Valley

• Rockland Roots: Julianna Margulies was born in Spring Valley in 1966 before spending portions of her childhood overseas and elsewhere in the United States.
• Claim to Fame: Margulies became one of television’s most acclaimed dramatic actresses through her roles as Carol Hathaway on ER and Alicia Florrick on The Good Wife, earning multiple Emmy Awards during her career.

8. Stephanie Courtney – Stony Point

• Rockland Roots: Stephanie Courtney was born and raised in Stony Point and graduated from North Rockland High School. She was active in school theater long before moving into professional comedy and acting.
• Claim to Fame: Courtney became nationally recognizable as Flo in the long-running Progressive Insurance advertising campaign. Her acting credits also include Mad Men, The Goldbergs, Blades of Glory, and work with The Groundlings comedy company.

9. Michael Rispoli – Tappan

• Rockland Roots: Michael Rispoli was raised in Tappan and attended Tappan Zee High School, where he played football before studying theater at SUNY Plattsburgh.
• Claim to Fame: Rispoli is best known for playing Jackie Aprile Sr. on HBO’s The Sopranos. His long film and television career has also included The Deuce, The Taking of Pelham 123, and numerous stage productions.

10. Brooke Smith – Orangetown

• Rockland Roots: Brooke Smith attended Tappan Zee High School in Orangetown before training at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts.
• Claim to Fame: Smith is remembered for playing Catherine Martin in The Silence of the Lambs and Dr. Erica Hahn on Grey’s Anatomy. Her extensive television career has also included Ray Donovan, Bates Motel, and Big Sky.

11. Christopher Carley – Suffern and Pearl River

• Rockland Roots: Christopher Carley was born in Suffern, grew up in Pearl River, and graduated from Pearl River High School in 1996.
• Claim to Fame: Carley starred opposite Clint Eastwood as Father Janovich in Gran Torino. His credits also include Broadway’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane and television appearances on The Sopranos, House, Veronica Mars, and Blue Bloods.

12. Dave Annable – Suffern

• Rockland Roots: Dave Annable was born in Suffern in 1979 before growing up in Walden, New York.
• Claim to Fame: Annable became widely known as Justin Walker on ABC’s Brothers & Sisters. His later credits include Yellowstone, Special Ops: Lioness, Red Band Society, and Heartbeat.

13. Adam Rodriguez – New City

• Rockland Roots: Adam Rodriguez was born in Yonkers but graduated from Clarkstown High School North in New City in 1993.
• Claim to Fame: Rodriguez became a television fixture as Eric Delko on CSI: Miami and later played Luke Alvez on Criminal Minds. Movie audiences also know him from the Magic Mike film series.

14. Philip Rosenthal – New City

• Rockland Roots: Philip Rosenthal was born in Queens but spent most of his childhood in New City and graduated from Clarkstown High School North in 1977.
• Claim to Fame: Rosenthal created, wrote, and executive-produced the hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. He later became the host of the food-and-travel series Somebody Feed Phil.

15. Rupert Holmes – Nanuet

• Rockland Roots: Born in England, Rupert Holmes moved with his family to Nanuet as a child and grew up in Rockland County. He attended Nyack High School before studying music in New York City.
• Claim to Fame: Holmes scored a No. 1 pop hit with “Escape (The Piña Colada Song)” and later became an award-winning playwright and composer. His Broadway musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood earned him Tony Awards for both book and score.

16. Paul Teutul Sr. – Pearl River

• Rockland Roots: Paul Teutul Sr. was born in Yonkers and raised in Pearl River, where he spent his formative years before building a career in metal fabrication and custom motorcycles.
• Claim to Fame: Teutul founded Orange County Choppers and became a television personality through the Discovery Channel series American Chopper, which turned custom motorcycle building into a national television phenomenon.

17. Keith Bulluck – Suffern and New City

• Rockland Roots: Keith Bulluck was born in Suffern and became a standout athlete at Clarkstown High School North in New City.
• Claim to Fame: Bulluck played 11 seasons in the NFL, primarily with the Tennessee Titans, and earned All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors as one of the league’s most productive linebackers of his era.

18. Dan Fortmann – Pearl River

• Rockland Roots: Dan Fortmann was born in Pearl River in 1916 and graduated from Pearl River High School, where he excelled in multiple sports before attending Colgate University.
• Claim to Fame: Fortmann became an All-Pro guard for the Chicago Bears, won three NFL championships, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He also became a respected physician and surgeon.

19. Seth Joyner – Spring Valley

• Rockland Roots: Seth Joyner was born in Spring Valley and graduated from Spring Valley High School before playing college football at the University of Texas at El Paso.
• Claim to Fame: Joyner became one of the Philadelphia Eagles’ signature defensive players of the late 1980s and early 1990s. He earned three Pro Bowl selections and later won Super Bowl XXXIII with the Denver Broncos.

20. Tracy Wolfson – Congers

• Rockland Roots: Tracy Wolfson was born and raised in Congers and attended Clarkstown High School North before graduating from the University of Michigan.
• Claim to Fame: Wolfson built a nationally recognized career as a CBS Sports reporter, covering the NFL, college football, NCAA basketball, and many of the biggest championship events in American sports.

21. Welles Crowther – Upper Nyack

• Rockland Roots: Welles Remy Crowther grew up in Upper Nyack and attended Nyack schools, graduating from Nyack High School before going on to Boston College.
• Claim to Fame: Crowther became known around the world as “The Man in the Red Bandana” for repeatedly helping people escape the South Tower of the World Trade Center during the September 11 attacks before losing his own life.

22. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah – Spring Valley

• Rockland Roots: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah was raised in Spring Valley before studying at the University at Albany and Syracuse University.
• Claim to Fame: His debut story collection, Friday Black, became a major literary success, while his novel Chain-Gang All-Stars was a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction and was named one of the year’s best books by numerous publications.

23. Katelyn Tuohy – North Rockland

• Rockland Roots: Katelyn Tuohy grew up in Rockland County and became a national running sensation while competing for North Rockland High School.
• Claim to Fame: Tuohy shattered numerous high-school distance-running records and won multiple national championships before continuing her career at North Carolina State University, where she added NCAA titles to one of the most celebrated résumés in American distance running.

24. Connie Sellecca – Pomona

• Rockland Roots: Connie Sellecca moved with her family to Pomona at age 12 and attended Ramapo High School, where she became involved in student productions and developed an interest in performing.
• Claim to Fame: Sellecca became a major television star through The Greatest American Hero and Hotel. Her work on Hotel earned her a Golden Globe nomination.

25. David Zaslav – Ramapo

• Rockland Roots: David Zaslav moved with his family to Ramapo as a child and graduated from Ramapo High School before attending Binghamton University and Boston University School of Law.
• Claim to Fame: Zaslav became one of the most prominent executives in American media, leading Discovery and later Warner Bros. Discovery through major periods of corporate expansion and transformation.

Rockland County Roots: Quick Reference Guide

Readers interested in more New York personalities can continue with our look at 25 Famous People You Didn’t Know Were From the Hudson Valley, New York, our list of 25 Famous People You Didn’t Know Were From Westchester County, New York, and 25 Famous People You Didn’t Know Were From Upstate New York.