The following is a list of notable alumni of Choate Rosemary Hall, also known informally simply as Choate. A private, college-preparatory, boarding school located in Wallingford, Connecticut, it took its present name and began a coeducational system with the merger in 1971 of two single-sex establishments: the Choate School (founded in 1896 in Wallingford) and Rosemary Hall (founded in 1890 in Wallingford, moved later to Greenwich, Connecticut).
A
Edward Albee '46, Pulitzer-winning playwright
Lauren Ambrose (did not graduate), film and TV actress
William Attwood '37, diplomat and journalist
B
William Sims Bainbridge '58, sociologist
Felix Barker (exchange student), British historian, theatre and film critic, president of The Critics' Circle David N. Barkhausen, Illinois state legislator and lawyer Florieda Batson '21, hurdler, 1922 Olympian Nat Benchley '64, writer, actor, producer Joseph Beninati, real estate developer and private equity investor Stephen Bogardus '72, Obie-winning stage actor Chester Bowles '19, governor of Connecticut, US ambassador to India
C
Arne H. Carlson '53, governor of Minnesota
Dov Charney '87, head of American Apparel
Noah Charney '98, novelist and art historian
Tanay Chheda 2014, film actor
Julie Chu 2001, Olympic hockey player
Kristen Clarke '93, Civil Rights lawyer
Glenn Close '65, actress
Jeff Coby '13, Haitian-American basketball player
Lewis Augustus Coffin 1908, architect
Geoffrey Cowan '60, American lawyer, professor, author, and non-profit executive. Cason Crane 2011, mountain climber Caresse Crosby 1910 (Mary Phelps Jacob, Mrs. Harry Crosby), socialite, poet Jamie Lee Curtis '76, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Oscar-winning actress
D
John Danilovich '68, diplomat, U.S. ambassador to Brazil and Costa Rica, CEO of Millennium Challenge Corporation Mathieu Darche '96, NHL ice hockey player Chris Denorfia '98, MLB baseball player Bruce Dern (did not graduate), actor Tom Dey '83, film director Lorenzo di Bonaventura '76, film producer, president of Warner Brothers Donna Dickenson '63, philosopher, medical ethicist John Dos Passos 1911, novelist Michael Douglas '63, two-time Oscar-winning actor John T. Downey '47, spy, prisoner of war, judge Paul Draper '54, winemaker Andres Duany '67, architect, urban planner, founder of the New Urbanism movement Avery Dulles '36, educator, philosopher, Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church Matt Dunne '88, Vermont state senator and state representative
E
James R. Eddy '49, veteran, lawyer, politician, judge
Walter D. Edmonds '21, historical novelist
F
Caterina Fake '86, founder of Flickr
Robert Fitzgerald '29, poet, critic, classicist, translator
Geoffrey S. Fletcher '88, Oscar-winning screenwriter and film director
Katherine B. Forrest '82, U.S. federal judge
G
Oliver M. Gale '27, advertising and public relations pioneer
Bruce Gelb '45, president of Clairol, U.S. ambassador to Belgium
Paul Giamatti '85, Emmy- and SAG-winning actor
Philip Gourevitch '79, journalist, author
James Griffin '51, philosopher
Roy Richard Grinker '79, anthropologist
H
Jin Ha 2008, American actor known for his roles in the TV series Devs and Love Life in addition to the musical Hamilton William O. Harbach '40, Emmy- and Peabody-winner, founding producer of The Tonight Show and The Steve Allen Show Amanda Hearst 2002, heiress, journalist, philanthropist Buck Henry '48, comedian, actor, director, and screenwriter Hong Jung-wook '89, Korean entrepreneur and ex-politician Brian Hartzer '85, chairman, BeyondPay
I
Kim Insalaco '99, Olympic hockey player
Brett Icahn businessman
J
Eric M. Javits '48, American ambassador, nephew of Senator Jacob Javits
Hardy Jones '61, conservationist filmmaker, author
K
Bob Kasten '60, U.S. Senator from Wisconsin
William Kaufmann '35, Cold War strategist
John F. Kennedy '35, 35th President of the United States
Joseph Kennedy Jr. '33, naval pilot
Sarah Kernochan '65, novelist, screenwriter, songwriter, and Oscar-winning director Whitman Knapp '27, U.S. federal judge Hilary Knight 2007, Olympic hockey player John K. Koelsch '41, Medal of Honor recipient Herbert Kohler, Jr. '57, president of the Kohler Company Ben Kurland (did not graduate), film and TV actor