Rutgers University Notable Alumni

James Gandolfini was an American actor who achieved the rare feat of being identified more as the character he performed rather than as himself. Years of immaculately performing the role of a powerful crime boss for the TV series, The Sopranos, defined Gandolfini’s legacy forever as a character actor, a legacy he gracefully carried over to the big screen.

Paul Wesley is an American actor and filmmaker. The Vampire Diaries star has had significant roles in the 2014 Tribeca Film Festival and the 2020 Mastercard Off Camera film festival, serving as a jury member on both occasions. Also a well-known humanitarian, Wesley was honored with the Humane Generation Award for his contribution to the Humane Society.

Milton Friedman was an American economist. Widely regarded as one of the most influential economists of the 20th century, Friedman was honored with the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1976. One of the most influential personalities of the Chicago school of economics, Friedman mentored people like Gary Becker and Thomas Sowell who went on to become leading economists.

Kristin Davis is an American actress best known for portraying Charlotte in the popular comedy-drama TV series Sex and the City. Also renowned for her philanthropic work, she has campaigned in support of Oxfam's work as the confederation's global ambassador since 2004. As part of her philanthropic work, Kristin Davis has traveled to places like South Africa, Haiti, and Mozambique.

Mike Colter is an American actor known for portraying the eponymous character in the popular streaming television series Luke Cage. Thanks to his association with Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2015, Mike Colter is often credited with playing an important role in improving Marvel Television's business over the last few years.

Brandon Flynn is an American actor who gained recognition after portraying Justin Foley in the popular teen drama TV series 13 Reasons Why. An openly gay actor, Brandon Flynn serves as an inspiration to the LBGT community; in September 2017, he criticized Australia's aerial message, which discouraged the legalization of same-sex marriage in the country.

Mario Batali is an American chef, restaurateur, writer, and media personality. He started hogging the limelight after appearing on some of Food Network's shows, such as Iron Chef America and Molto Mario. Also a well-known philanthropist and social activist, Batali established the Mario Batali Foundation in 2008, which funds pediatric disease research and various children's educational programs.

Andrea Anders is an American actress who started her career on TV, appearing in a commercial for Dannon. She then went on to play important roles in series, such as Joey and The Class. Also known for her work in theatre, Anders was part of the Broadway production of Proof where she was Mary-Louise Parker's understudy.

Best remembered for his contributions to the National Basketball Association, David Stern began his stint with the NBA as an outside counsel before becoming its General Counsel, eventually the Commissioner, holding the post for thirty years. Credited with broadening the NBA's audience, he made the game popular both in and outside USA and helped to found Women's National Basketball Association.

Considered a progressive, American politician Elizabeth Warren has been an US senator from Massachusetts since 2013. She is known as a supporter of worker representation on board of corporations, harsher punishment for white-collar crimes and a higher minimum wage, among other things. She ran in the Democratic Party presidential primaries for the 2020 elections, but later pulled out of the race.

A.M. Turing Award-winning Israeli-American computer scientist Judea Pearl is known for his work on artificial intelligence and for creating the Bayesian network. He has penned several books on causality, too. He is also known as the father of Daniel Pearl, the journalist who was beheaded by Islamic terrorists in Pakistan.

Junot Díaz is a Dominican-American writer who works at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as a creative writing professor. He is also known for his association with the quarterly political and literary magazine Boston Review, where he works as a fiction editor. In 2017, he was made an inductee of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

Known for his extensive research, Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Caro began his career as journalist. Fascinated by the vast power enjoyed by Robert Moses, he published a biography on him, concurrently dealing in prevalent political practices. Taking up Lyndon B. Johnson as his next subject, he has already published four volumes on him and is currently working on the fifth.   

Haitian-American rapper and actor Pras Michel initially gained fame as part of the Fugees, a hip-hop group that also had Wyclef Jean and Lauryn Hill as its members. He once got into trouble for filming a controversial documentary in Somalia. He has also produced films such as The Mutant Chronicles.