Jesse Robinson

A Hero in His Own Town : Jesse Robinson, Compton’s Favorite Resident, Honored by Park in His Name BY TERRY SPENCER DEC. 6, 1987 12 AM PT TIMES STAFF WRITER COMPTON —   When Jesse Robinson was a young man establishing himself in Watts during the 1930s, it is unlikely the people of neighboring Compton could envision the day […]

Joel Malcolm Davis [American MMA professional]

Joel Malcolm Davis (born December 29, 1993) is an American professional mixed martial artist and graduated folkstyle wrestler who currently competes in the welterweight division of Bellator MMA. As a wrestler at Notre Dame College, he was the only four-time undefeated NCAA Division II National Champion in history and one of the three to do so across all NCAA divisions. Wrestling career High school Born in Compton, California, Davis attended Santa […]

Leslie Sykes

Marvin Lawrence Fleming

Marvin Lawrence Fleming (born January 2, 1942) is a former professional American football player, a tight end in the National Football League for 12 seasons, seven with the Green Bay Packers and five with the Miami Dolphins. He was a member of five NFL championship teams. Fleming is the first player in NFL history to play in five Super Bowls—with Green Bay (I, II) and Miami (VI, VII, VIII). He played under hall […]

Dennis Johnson

Keb’ Mo’ (Kevin Roosevelt Moore)

Violet Renice Palmer – first female NBA official

Carol Denise “Niecy” Nash

Jeron Johnson – NFL Strong Safety

Seattle Seahawks Johnson was signed by the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent following the end of the 2011 NFL lockout.[1] He made the 53-man active roster as a reserve safety behind Kam Chancellor. The Seahawks placed him on injured reserve on December 11, 2013, causing him to miss the last three games of the regular season and the team’s playoff […]

Keisean Nixon

Keisean Nixon (born June 22, 1997) is an American football cornerback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at South Carolina. He was signed by the Oakland Raiders as an undrafted free agent in 2019. Nixon grew up in Compton, California and attended Salesian High School in Los Angeles, where he ran track and played running back and cornerback on the football team. He missed […]

Jeanette Bolden

Jeanette Bolden is the first coach in Olympic history to have won a medal as an Olympic athlete A Compton native, Bolden attended Centennial High School in Compton. There, she won a state title for the 100m dash. During the Liberty Bell Games in 1980, Bolden came in second in the 100m; she also finished […]

Lionel Larry is an American sprinter

Lionel Larry is an American sprinter who specializes in the 400 meters. Collegiately, he ran for the University of Southern California. Larry won a gold medal at the 2009 World Championships after running in the preliminary heat of the 4 x 400 meter relay. Wikipedia Born: 1986 (age 36 years), Compton, CA Education: University of Southern California, Manuel Dominguez High School

Earlene Brown [American Olympian]

Earlene Brown (née Dennis; June 11, 1935 – May 1, 1983) was an American athlete notable for her careers in track and field and roller games. She competed at the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympics in the shot put and discus throw and won a bronze medal in the shot put in 1960; she finished fourth in the discus in 1956. […]

Malachi Moore [full-time major league umpire]

THE PRESSURE OF BEING A ROOKIE MLB UMPIRE? THIS COMPTON NATIVE DEALT WITH MUCH MORE Malachi Moore has worked 156 major league games in the last three seasons, including a Baltimore Orioles-Toronto Blue Jays matchup on Sept. 7, 2022. (Julio Cortez / Associated Press) LOS ANGELES TIMES BY MIKE DIGIOVANNA STAFF WRITER MARCH 24, 2023 5 […]

DR. TONNI JOHNSON CHAVEZ

Dr. Tonni Johnson Chavez Born and raised in the City of Compton. Kept her practices in the city she loves. Graduate of Compton High School. Mission Dr. Toni Johnson-Chavis and Clinica Wee Care’s mission is to provide direct access to comprehensive, quality, primary, and preventive healthcare to improve the health status and well being of […]

Gonzales Park Baseball Phenoms

Hall of Famers Eddie Murray, Ozzie Smith and Duke Snider all played at Gonzales Park in their youth as well as such future major leaguers Darryl Strawberry, Eric Davis, Kenny Landreaux and Hubie Brooks.

Edwin D. “Duke” Snider

Edwin D. “Duke” Snider was the pitcher for Enterprise Junior High School’s softball team in Los Angeles beginning in 1937. During three of the four years he played there, the team won the league championship. Snider recalled that three of the best hitters on the team were Japanese Americans. In February 1942, he said the […]

Isaiah Cooper, 16yr. – Record-breaking Flight

Isaiah Cooper, 16, made history after completing a record-breaking flight across the continental US. The Compton native has since been recognized as the youngest black pilot to accomplish such a feat during a trip that lasted approximately two weeks. Cooper’s 8,000-mile flight, which concluded on Monday (July 18), did not come without challenges. However, he […]

Dr. Michelle Odette Green (Author, Be Succesful)

If you are not getting the results in life that you desire, there is an excellent chance that you are stuck, uncertain of what you really want to achieve or unsure of your purpose. Whatever the reason might be, you are the solution to move your life forward. When you want to achieve success in […]

Johnny Lewis Davis

https://www.foxsports.com/florida/video/1603177027753?utm_campaign=share_buttons&utm_medium=fscom&utm_term=post&utm_content=return_visit&utm_source=share_url Johnny Lewis Davis Born: 4/26/1990 in Compton, CA Draft: 2013, Milwaukee Brewers, Round: 22, Overall Pick: 662 College: West Los Angeles JC, West Los Angeles JC, CA Debut: 9/11/2019

Kelvin D. Filer, Superior Court Judge, City of Compton

Their story actually starts with Kelvin’s father, Maxcy Filer, who left rural Arkansas and landed in Compton in the 1950s with a wife and seven kids. He worked as a milkman, a factory laborer, and a parking lot attendant, but he dreamed of becoming a lawyer. Kelvin Filer remembered how, when he was 9, his […]

Kim Renard Nazel (Arabian Prince or Professor X)

Kim Renard Nazel (born June 17, 1965), better known by his stage names Arabian Prince or Professor X, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. He is best known as a founding member of N.W.A. Nazel was born in Compton, California to the son of Joseph “Skippy” Nazel Jr., a prominent African-American author and radio talk show host. His musical […]

N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes)

N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip hop group whose members were among the earliest and most significant popularizers and controversial figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, and the group is widely considered one of the greatest and most influential groups in the history of hip hop music. Active from 1987 to 1991, the rap group endured controversy […]

Morton ‘Morty’ Sahl

Sahl was discharged in 1947 and enrolled in Compton College, followed by the University of Southern California. He received a B.S. degree in 1950 with majors in traffic engineering and city management. He continued with the masters program, but dropped out to become an actor and playwright Upon graduating from high school, his father tried to get him into West Point and had […]

Alonzo Williams

Alonzo Williams (born June 16, 1957) was a member and promoter of the World Class Wreckin’ Cru. He was also the owner of Kru-Cut Records. World Class Wreckin’ Cru debuted in a club owned by one of the early West Coast DJs, Alonzo Williams. Before he opened “Eve After Dark” in 1979, Alonzo being one of the most […]

Problem

Jason L. Martin (born May 8, 1985), better known by his stage name Problem, is an American rapper. He has released nineteen mixtapes in his career, the most recent being S2, released 2018. His debut EP, Understand Me, was released on December 10, 2013. He is best known for his single “Like Whaaat” and for featuring on E-40‘s “Function“ Problem was born in Würzburg, West […]

Compton City Attorney Eric J. Perrodin

Eric Joseph Perrodin (born February 26, 1959) is an American politician who served as Mayor of Compton, California from 2001 to 2013. Perrodin grew up in Compton, California. Soon after graduation from California State University, Dominguez Hills, he began working for the Compton Police Department. While serving as a police officer, he pursued a law degree at Loyola Law School.[4] After 12 years […]

Dr. Theresa Price founded the Black College Expo

N.W.A?s album titled “Straight Outta of Compton,” holds more meaning for those born in a city most known for its hip-hop groups and gangsta rappers. Theresa Price, founder of the National College Resources Foundation (NCRF) and the Black College Expo, speaks proudly about being born and raised in Compton, California, a city that is notorious […]

Coolio

Artis Leon Ivey Jr. was born in Compton, California. After attending Compton Community College, he worked in jobs such as volunteer firefighting and security at the Los Angeles International Airport, before becoming a rapper Artis Leon Ivey Jr. (born August 1, 1963), known professionally as Coolio, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, and actor. Coolio achieved mainstream success in the mid-to-late 1990s […]

Anthony Wayne Franklin

Franklin graduated from Centennial High School in Compton, California, and attended Los Angeles City College.  Anthony Wayne Franklin (born June 9, 1950, at Portland, Maine) is an American manager in minor league baseball and a former infielder in the minor leagues.  He spent eight seasons as manager of the Trenton Thunder, Double-A affiliate of the […]

Steve Lacy

Steve Lacy was born on May 23, 1998, in Compton, California. His mother, Valerie, is African-American and his father was Filipino.  Lacy did not really know his father and said that he came only around for special occasions, such as birthdays; he died when Lacy was ten years old.  Lacy attended private school for most […]

Guy Rochester Crowder

Guy Rochester Crowder (1940–2011) was an African-American photographer whose work appeared in many publications including the Los Angeles Sentinel. He was the first staff photographer for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and the first African-American to work for that agency. Born in 1940 in Beaumont, Texas, Crowder moved with his family to Los […]

Deonte Deron Burton

Deonte Deron Burton (born July 26, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Salt Lake City Stars of the NBA G League. He completed his college career for the University of Nevada, where he was named an All-American in 2012. Burton, a 6’1″ point guard, played for Centennial High School in Compton, California. He […]

Charles Everett “Charlie” Dumas

Charles Everett “Charlie” Dumas (February 12, 1937 – January 5, 2004) was an American high jumper, the 1956 Olympic champion, and the first person to clear 7 ft.(2.13 m) While attending Compton College, Dumas, from Tulsa, Oklahoma, made his memorable jump on June 29, 1956, in the US Olympic Trials in Los Angeles, breaking a […]

Arron Agustin Afflalo

Arron Agustin Afflalo (born October 15, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. As a junior, he was named a consensus All-American and was voted the player of the year in the Pac-12 Conference. After forgoing his senior year in […]

Archie Ivy, George Clinton’s Manager

Centennial High School

Datone Wayne Jones

Datone Wayne Jones (born July 24, 1990) is an American football defensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He played college football at UCLA from 2008 to 2012 as a defensive end and defensive tackle. In 2008, he was named to the Rivals.com All-Pac-10 freshman team. In 2009, he earned sophomore All-America honorable mention honors from College Football News after finishing the season with 4 sacks and 11 tackles. […]

Johnny Davis

 Johnathan Lewis Davis ‘Johnny Davis‘ was born on Thursday, April 26, 1990, in Compton, California. Davis was 29 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 11, 2019, with the Tampa Bay Rays. Compton High School Grgad.

Doris Davis, Mayor

Doris A. Davis (born circa 1935) is a former mayor of Compton, California, who earned a place in history as the first African-American woman mayor of a metropolitan city in the United States. In 1965, 33-year-old Davis defeated incumbent Clyde Harland to become Compton‘s first black City Clerk. Eight years later she challenged and defeated another incumbent, Compton Mayor Douglas Dollarhide. By doing so, […]

Dougals Dollarhide, Mayor

Pictured L to R: Shirley Chisolm, Douglas Dollarhide, Dr. Ross MIller Douglas F. Dollarhide witnessed first hand the transformation of Compton, California from a predominantly white Los Angeles suburb into one of the most heavily concentrated African American communities in the United States. He was elected to the City Council in 1963, becoming its first African American member. In 1969, Dollarhide made […]

Dr. Ross Miller

BY MYRNA OLIVERFEB. 27, 1996 12 AM PTTIMES STAFF WRITER Dr. Ross M. Miller Jr., surgeon and civic leader who spearheaded a 1960s effort to place Compton’s political power in the hands of African Americans, has died. He was 68. Miller, a former member of the Compton City Council and president of the Compton School Board, died […]

Anthony Anderson

James Harden’s Journey From Compton To NBA MVP

JOSH CHILDRESS

Joshua Malik Childress (born June 20, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player. An All-EuroLeague Second Team member in 2010, he played with the Atlanta Hawks, Phoenix Suns, Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA), and Olympiacos Piraeus of the Greek Basket League and EuroLeague. Childress grew up in Compton, California where he and his brother, Chris, played basketball and did their best to stay out of trouble. The […]

Richard Dove Williams Jr

James Coburn – actor

Kenneth Francis Landreaux 

Kenneth Francis Landreaux (born December 22, 1954) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball for the California Angels, Minnesota Twins, and Los Angeles Dodgers from 1977 through 1987. After graduating from Dominguez High School in Compton, California, Landreaux was drafted by the Houston Astros in the eighth round of the 1973 Major League Baseball draft, but chose to attend Arizona State University. While at […]

George & Barbara Bush

Tiny Lister

Rex David Johnston

Rex David Johnston (November 8, 1937 – December 15, 2019) was an American professional athlete who played Major League Baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates and in the National Football League for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is the only athlete to have played for both of Pittsburgh’s iconic baseball and football teams.[1] He attended the University of Southern California, where he played both sports, standing 6 feet 1 inch (1.85 m) tall and weighing 202 […]

Calvin Jones

Calvin Jones was born on Thursday, September 26, 1963, in Compton, California. Jones was 27 years old when he broke into the big leagues on June 14, 1991, with the Seattle Mariners. 

B2K / J-BOOG

J-Boog, the youngest of three children, was born and raised in Compton, California and has been rapping, singing, and dancing since the age of two. He is the first cousin of Marques Houston.

Joseph Harrison ‘Joe’ Cain

Joseph Harrison Cain (born June 11, 1965) is a former American football linebacker who played nine seasons in the National Football League. Cain graduated in 1983 from Compton High School in Compton, California. He attended Stanford University on an academic scholarship, and joined the football team as a walk-on. He later transferred to Oregon Institute of Technology, after Greg McMackin, who was the assistant linebackers coach at Stanford, obtained the head coaching position. Joe Cain […]

Mickey Cureton

“Mickey Cureton, Greatest High School Running Back of All-Time, Graduate of Centennial High School, Educator, Community Icon!” – Compton Mayor Omar Bradley Cureton will receive the Helms Medallion award at Helms Hall, Saturday morning. El Rancho placed four players on the first team. Semifinalist Mater Dei placed three while Anaheim and Centennial had two each. […]

Lisa Deshaun Leslie [American former professional basketball player]

Lisa Deshaun Leslie (born July 7, 1972) is an American former professional basketball player. She is currently the head coach for Triplets in the BIG3 professional basketball league, as well as a studio analyst for Orlando Magic broadcasts on Fox Sports Florida. Leslie played in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is a three-time WNBA MVP and a four-time Olympic gold medal winner. The number-seven pick […]

“Pete” Rozelle, Alvin Ray

Alvin Ray Rozelle was born in South Gate, California, and grew up in neighboring Lynwood, suburban communities southeast of Los Angeles. He was nicknamed “Pete” by a favorite uncle, who, like his father, encouraged his interest in sports and the outdoors. He played basketball and tennis at Compton High School and served as sports editor […]

Glenn Vaughan

Glenn Vaughan was born on Wednesday, February 16, 1944, in Compton, California. Vaughan was 19 years old when he broke into the big leagues on September 20, 1963, with the Houston Colt .45s. 

Mark Christopher Lawrence

The Most Dangerous Joke Ever Told. Mark Christopher Lawrence- Full Special

Kimberly Anyadike – youngest woman to complete a transcontinental flight across the United States

Gregory Townsend Sr. -defensive end NFL Los Angeles Raiders 4TH round of the 1983 Draft

Ulis C. Williams

Ulis C. Williams (born October 24, 1941) is an American former athlete, winner of a gold medal in the 4×400 meter relay at the 1964 Summer Olympics. He later served as President of Compton Community College in Compton, California, from 1996 to 2005. Born in Hollandale, Mississippi, Williams won the AAU championships in the 440-yard dash in 1962 and 1963. In 1962, he was named Track and Field News High School […]

Frank K. Wheaton – attorney, agent, & actor

Keenon Daequan Ray Jackson – “YG” rapper & actor

James Wheaton – motion picture, stage, and television actor

TQ – RB Singer

Jacqueline Devon Taylor – Our Gang

Robin Coste Lewis – poet

Siedah Garrett – singer and songwriter

Travon Free – comedian, actor and TV writer