This is a list of notable Romanian-Americans, including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.

Academics
Literary Critics

• Matei Călinescu – professor at Indiana University Bloomington[1]

Mathematicians

• Alexandra Bellow – mathematician, Professor Emeritus at Northwestern University
• Ioana Dumitriu – mathematician, professor at the University of Washington
• Ciprian Foias – mathematician, distinguished professor at Texas A&M University
• Tudor Ganea – mathematician, known for his work in algebraic topology
• Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen – mathematician, statistician, and economist[2]
• Murray Gerstenhaber (born 1927) – mathematician and lawyer, professor at the University of Pennsylvania
• George Lusztig – mathematician, professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Ciprian Manolescu – mathematician, professor at the University of California, Los Angeles
• Irina Mitrea – mathematician, professor at Temple University
• Mircea Mustaţă – mathematician, professor at the University of Michigan
• Florian Pop – mathematician, professor at the University of Pennsylvania
• Mihnea Popa – mathematician, professor at Northwestern University
• Sorin Popa – mathematician, professor at the University of California, Los Angeles
• Cristian Dumitru Popescu – mathematician, professor at the University of California, San Diego
• Ovidiu Savin – mathematician, professor at Columbia University
• Rodica Simion – mathematician, known for her work in combinatorics
• Ileana Streinu – mathematician, professor at Smith College
• Bogdan Suceavă – mathematician, professor at California State University Fullerton
• Daniel Tătaru – mathematician, professor at the University of California, Berkeley
• Dan-Virgil Voiculescu – mathematician, professor at the University of California, Berkeley
• Richard Wurmbrand – minister, author and educator[3]

Historians, sociologists and philosophers

• Eugene Borza – professor of history at Pennsylvania State University[4]
• Radu Florescu – emeritus professor of history at Boston College[5]
• Ioan Petru Culianu – historian of religion [6]
• Alexandru Groza – Historian specializing in political relations between the United States and Communist Romania, working at both University of Bucharest and the University of California, Berkeley.[7]
• Mircea Eliade – philosopher, writer, historian of religions[8]

Architects

• Max Abramovitz – architect of Avery Fisher Hall, of Romanian-Jewish descent[9]
• Haralamb H. Georgescu[10] – architect

Business

• John DeLorean – engineer, founder of the DeLorean Motor Company[11]
• M. B. “Bud” Seretean – former businessman and author, he founded Coronet Industries, a subsidiary of the RCA Corporation, and served as its President and Chairman of the Board.[12]

Entertainment
Actors

• Jillian Bell – actress and screenwriter
• Jennifer Ehle – actress
• Dustin Hoffman – of Jewish descent, seven Academy Awards nominations, winning two (for his performances in Kramer vs. Kramer and Rain Man), thirteen Golden Globes nominations, winning six (including an honorary one) and has won four BAFTAs, three Drama Desk Awards, a Genie Award, and an Emmy Award. Hoffman received the AFI Life Achievement Award in 1999, and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2012.
• Natalie Portman – Academy Award-winning actress of Jewish descent
• Fran Drescher – of Jewish descent
• Amanda Bynes
• Sebastian Stan – actor[13]
• Harvey Keitel – of Jewish descent
• Andrew Garfield – of Jewish descent
• Brooke Lewis – actress
• Jon Lovitz – of Jewish descent
• Edward G. Robinson – actor, of Jewish descent[14][15]
• Adrian Zmed – actor best known from the T.J. Hooker television series.[16]
• Brian Unger – actor, comedian, writer, producer, and commentator.
• Tim Conway – comedic actor (“The Carol Burnett Show“) (Romanian mother)
• Michael Lerner (actor)
• Lauren Bacall – actress (Romanian Jewish mother)[17]
• Ray Wise – actor (Romanian mother)

Screenwriter, directors and producer of films and theatre

• Stanley Kubrick – his father’s parents and paternal grandparents were of Romanian Jewish origin. He won numerous awards (including an Oscar) and is considered among the most important contributions to world cinema in the twentieth century and he is frequently cited as one of the greatest and most influential directors of all time. The song from the orgy scene from Eyes Wide Shut is a Romanian orthodox prayer played backwards.
• Jean Negulesco – film director and screenwriter[18]
• Petru Popescu – screenwriter from Hollywood and best-selling author[19]
• Andrei Șerban – director of theater and opera[20]
• Harry From – screenwriter, director of theater (staged Rhinoceros in 1974 in NYC, off Bday) Film Director, directed 12 Documentaries, 5 with Stanley Milgram His Professor when he took his Doctorate at CUNY, shot the film “Water Water Water” all over the world , never finished it b/c of his untimely death.

Singers and musicians

• Laura Bretan – soprano singer
• Andrea Marcovicci — actress and singer-songwriter
• Sergiu Comissiona – conductor and musician[21][22]
• Lucian Ban – jazz piano player, composer[23]
• Shelby Cinca – punk rock guitarist[24]
• Angela Gheorghiu – soprano[25]
• Alma Gluck – soprano[26]
• Virginia Zeani – soprano[27]
• Beverly Sills – soprano[21]
• Margareta Paslaru – pop singer, whose style and manner of performing is also very similar to the 1960s light pop music of Petula Clark and Barbra Streisand, with homes in both Bucharest and New Jersey, the latter where she has lived for over 30 years, ever since emigrating from Romania in 1983.
• Art Garfunkel
• Christina Grimmie
• The Alchemist
• Necro (rapper)
• Mihaela Modorcea, Gabriela Modorcea akka Indiggo Twins (composers, singers, dancers)

Sports

• Mike Bercovici (born 1993) – American football quarterback
• Ron Blomberg (born 1948) – major league baseball player
• Scarlett Bordeaux (born 1991) – wrestler
• Alexandra Botez (born 1995) – chess player
• Nadia Comăneci – Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics (defected to the US in 1989)[28]
• Nick Denes (1906–1975) – American football and basketball player
• John Ghindia (1925–2012) – American football player and coach
• Bill Goldberg (born 1966) – professional NFL football player and undefeated wrestler, of Jewish descent
• Marshall Goldberg (1917–2006) – NFL All Pro football player
• Hroniss Grasu – NFL center for the Chicago Bears
• Hank Greenberg (born Hyman Greenberg; 1911–1986) – Baseball Hall of Famer, of Jewish descent
• Lou Groza (1924–2000) – American football placekicker and offensive tackle (Cleveland Browns).
• Ernie Grunfeld (born 1955) – former basketball player and current general manager of Washington Wizards
• Simona Halep (born 1991) – top ranked tennis player
• Red Holzman (1920–1998) – NBA Hall of Fame basketball player and coach, of Jewish descent
• Sabrina Ionescu (born 1997) – current basketball player at the University of Oregon; 2019 recipient of the Wooden Award and Wade Trophy as the top player in NCAA Division I women’s basketball;[29][30]two-time first-team All-American, Nancy Lieberman Award winner as the top point guard in Division I women’s basketball, and Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year (2018 and 2019)[31][32]
• Dominique Moceanu – US Olympic gymnast[33]
• Corina Morariu – female former professional tennis player[34]
• Gheorghe Mureșan – former NBA player; lives in USA[35]

• Sam Paulescu – NFL punter[36]

• Nick Roman (1947–2003) – American football player
• Danny Schayes (born 1959) – college and professional basketball player, son of Dolph Schayes
• Katerina Stewart (born 1997) – tennis player, Romanian father
• Kevin Youkilis (born 1979) – MLB All Star player

Comics Writers

• Will Eisner – comics writer, artist, and entrepreneur, of Jewish descent[37][38]
• Elena Kucharik – illustrator
• Sandu Florea – illustrator, comic book, and comic strip creator[39]
• Stan Lee (1922–2018) – comic book writer, editor, publisher and former president and chairman of Marvel Comics, of Jewish descent

Military

• Nicolae Dunca – (1837–1862), Captain in the 12th New York Infantry Regiment in the American Civil War
• George Pomutz – Brevet Brigadier General, commanded the 15th Iowa Infantry Regiment in the American Civil War[40]
• Alexander Vraciu – World War II Navy pilot; ace[41]
• Teodora Baldwin – First Romanian woman who joined the US Army in 2006.

Religious

• Nathaniel Popp – Romanian Orthodox Archbishop[42]
• Valerian Trifa – former archbishop of Romanian Orthodox Church of America and Canada[43]
• Alexander Ratiu – former Romanian Greek-Catholic priest, political prisoner, and author
• Solomon Schechter – educator and theologian, of Jewish descent [44]
• Alexander Rațiu – author, priest, and political prisoner[45]

Scientists

• George Emil Palade – Nobel Prize-winning biologist[46][47]
• Adrian Bejan – Benjamin Franklin Medal Laureate[48]
• Nicolae Popescu – doctor, scientific researcher at the National Institute of Health[49]
• Gideon Rodan – biochemist and osteopath[50]
• Horațiu Năstase – physicist and professor in the High energy physicsgroup at Brown University in Providence, RI, USA.[51]
• Napoleon Săvescu – physician[52]
• Liviu Librescu – engineer at Virginia Tech
• Vasile M. Popov
• Rodica Baranescu
• Mihai Nadin
• Dana York – inventor of the periodontal bone growth using Low level laser therapy that was also one of the grounds for her becoming a US citizen; clinical assistant professor at New York University School of Dentistry, author of the Laser Encyclopedia edited in Switzerland 2007; also a painter on glass, the Holder of the Price of the Jury 2017 for the ” Salon des Artistes de Monde”, the Price of the Art & Design Magasin, and the Silver Medal from Academy de Art Lettre e Science. She lived in between New York, London, and Cannes in France.

Writers

• Elie Wiesel – Romanian-born Jewish writer, professor, political activist, holocaust survivor, and Nobel Laureate
• Ion Cârja – writer and anti-communist activist[53]
• Nina Cassian – poet, journalist, film critic[54]
• Andrei Codrescu – poet, writer, radio host[55]
• Thomas Pavel – literary theorist, critic, and novelist currently teaching at the University of Chicago[56]
• Norman Manea – writer[57]
• Valery Oișteanu – poet, art critic, writer, essayist, and photographer[58]
• Virgil Nemoianu – essayist, literary critic, and philosopher of culture[59]
• Saviana Stănescu – writer (poet, playwright)[60]
• Bogdan Suceavă – mathematician and writer, professor of mathematics at California State University, Fullerton
• Dorin Tudoran – poet, writer, journalist[61]
• Naomi Wolf – American author, of Jewish descent [21]
• Grid Modorcea – writer (poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, art critic, journalist, encyclopaedist).

Others

• Alexandra Nechita – painter[62]
• Michael Radu – Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institutein Philadelphia[63]
• Mircea Răceanu – diplomat[64]
• Andrei Alexandrescu – C++ programmer and author[65]
• Florin Felecan – chess FIDE Master[66]
• Ion Mihai Pacepa – general of Securitate [67]
• Dan Moldea – author and investigative journalist[68]
• Cristian Gheorghiu – contemporary artist
• Catherine Caradja – philanthropist, aristocrat, Romanian expatriate to the U.S.[69]
• Vladimir Tismăneanu – specialist in political systems and comparative politics[70]
• De Hirsh Margules – painters
• Michael Dukakis – educator and politician (two times Governor of Massachusetts)
• George de Bothezat – born in St Petersburg to Bessarabian family. engineer, inventor and pioneer of helicopter flight
• George Julian Zolnay – Hungarian sculptor, called the “sculptor of the Confederacy“
• The Count – iconic Sesame Street personality and counting enthusiast

References