57 Notable alumni of
Niagara University
Updated:
Niagara University is 1214th in the world, 435th in North America, and 407th in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 57 notable alumni from Niagara University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff.
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Jim Hutton
- Occupations
- actorfilm actortelevision actor
- Biography
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Dana James Hutton, known as Jim Hutton, was an American actor in film and television best remembered for his role as Ellery Queen in the 1970s TV series of the same name, and his screen partnership with Paula Prentiss in four films, starting with Where the Boys Are. He is the father of actor Timothy Hutton.
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John Beilein
- Occupations
- basketball coach
- Biography
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John Patrick Beilein is an American professional basketball coach who currently serves as the Senior Player Development Advisor for the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Before being hired by Detroit, Beilein served as the head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Prior to joining the Cavaliers, he coached the Michigan Wolverines (2007–2019), West Virginia Mountaineers (2002–2007), Richmond Spiders (1997–2002), Canisius Golden Griffins (1992–1997) in NCAA Division I as well as the Le Moyne Dolphins (1983–1992), Nazareth College (1982–1983) and Erie Community College (1978–1982). Beilein has won 754 career games at four-year universities and 829 games altogether, including those at the junior college level. Beilein's overall career wins counting the time spent in Cleveland is 843 games.
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William J. Donovan
- Occupations
- diplomatlawyerpoliticianmilitary officerintelligence officer
- Biography
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William Joseph "Wild Bill" Donovan was an American soldier, lawyer, intelligence officer and diplomat. He is best known for serving as the head of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor to the Bureau of Intelligence and Research and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), during World War II. He is regarded as the founding father of the CIA, and a statue of him stands in the lobby of the CIA headquarters building in Langley, Virginia.
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Hubie Brown
- Occupations
- coachbasketball coachbasketball player
- Biography
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Hubert "Hubie" Jude Brown is an American retired basketball coach and player and active television analyst. Brown is a two-time NBA Coach of the Year, the honors separated by 26 years. Brown was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.
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Calvin Murphy
- Occupations
- basketball coachbasketball player
- Biography
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Calvin Jerome Murphy is an American former professional basketball player who after a prolific collegiate career at Niagara, where he averaged 33.1 points per game over his three years, played in the National Basketball Association as a guard for the San Diego/Houston Rockets from 1970 to 1983. He is a currently a member of the Houston Rockets' AT&T SportsNet TV broadcast team. Standing at a height of 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m), Murphy has the distinction of being the shortest NBA player inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and to play in an NBA All-Star Game (the latter since tied by Isaiah Thomas in 2016).
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John O'Hara
- Occupations
- writernovelistcolumnistscreenwriterjournalist
- Biography
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John Henry O'Hara was one of America's most prolific writers of short stories, credited with helping to invent The New Yorker magazine short story style. He became a best-selling novelist before the age of 30 with Appointment in Samarra and BUtterfield 8. While O'Hara's legacy as a writer is debated, his work was praised by such contemporaries as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and his champions rank him highly among the major under-appreciated American writers of the 20th century. Few college students educated after O'Hara's death in 1970 have discovered him, chiefly because he refused to allow his work to be reprinted in anthologies used to teach literature at the college level.
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John Katko
- Enrolled in Niagara University
- In 1984 graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- politicianemployeelawyer
- Biography
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John Michael Katko is an American attorney and politician who served as the U.S. representative for New York's 24th congressional district, based in Syracuse, from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was an Assistant United States Attorney who led the organized crime division at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Syracuse. In that role, he helped to prosecute gang members under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
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Eric Gale
- Occupations
- jazz guitaristmusicianjazz musicianguitarist
- Biography
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Eric Gale was an American jazz and R&B guitarist.
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Michael J. McGivney
- Occupations
- Catholic priest
- Biography
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Michael Joseph McGivney was an Irish-American Catholic priest based in New Haven, Connecticut. He founded the Knights of Columbus at a local parish to serve as a mutual aid and insurance organization, particularly for immigrants and their families. It developed through the 20th century as the world's largest Catholic fraternal organization.
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Frank Layden
- Occupations
- coachgeneral managerbasketball playerbasketball coach
- Biography
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Francis Patrick Layden is an American former basketball coach and executive of the National Basketball Association's Utah Jazz as well as former head coach of the Women's National Basketball Association's Utah Starzz.
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Bill Press
- Occupations
- journalistwritertelevision producerradio personality
- Biography
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William H. Press is an American talk radio host, podcaster, liberal pundit and author. He was chairman of the California Democratic Party from 1993 to 1996, and is a senior political contributor on CNN. He hosts The Bill Press Pod podcast, and his weekly column is syndicated by Tribune Content Agency.
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T. J. Cline
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Timothy Joseph Cline is an American-Israeli professional basketball player for Hapoel Eilat of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. and is also a member of the Israeli national basketball team. He played college basketball for the Richmond Spiders and the Niagara Purple Eagles. Cline is the son of Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame player Nancy Lieberman.
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Tremmell Darden
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Tremmell Lequincy Dushun Darden is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for Crailsheim Merlins of the German Basketball Bundesliga. Standing at 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m), he plays at the small forward and power forward positions.
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Nick Langworthy
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Nicholas A. Langworthy is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 23rd district since 2023. He was formerly the chair of the New York State Republican Committee. Langworthy was named chair of the committee in July 2019 after having chaired the Erie County, New York Republican Committee since 2010. He was the youngest state chair in party history.
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Ben Harpur
- Occupations
- ice hockey player
- Biography
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Ben Harpur is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Ottawa Senators in the fourth round, 108th overall, in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
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John P. Bobo
- Occupations
- military officer
- Biography
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John Paul Bobo was a United States Marine Corps second lieutenant who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Vietnam War on March 30, 1967.
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Nelson Baker
- Occupations
- priest
- Biography
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Nelson Henry Baker was a Catholic priest and church administrator in the Buffalo, New York, area. At the time of his death in 1936, he had developed a "city of charity" at Our Lady of Victory Basilica in Lackawanna, New York. It consisted of a minor basilica, an infant home, a home for unwed mothers, a boys' orphanage, a boys' protectory, a hospital, a nurses' house, and a grade and high school.
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David M. O'Connell
- Occupations
- Catholic bishopCatholic priest
- Biography
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David Michael O'Connell is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church, serving as the bishop of the Diocese of Trenton in New Jersey since 2010. He is a member of the Congregation of the Mission and a past president of the Catholic University of America.
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Earle Mack
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Earle Thaddeus McGillicuddy, known as Earle Mack, was an American player and coach in Major League Baseball, and, during parts of two seasons, manager of the Philadelphia Athletics when his father, Connie Mack, was too ill to manage. He also became a part-owner of the franchise. His nephew Connie Mack III became a U.S. Senator.
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Antoine Mason
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Antoine Mason is an American basketball player for Al Wehdat of the Jordanian Premier Basketball League. He spent his first three years of college eligibility at Niagara University. He then transferred to Auburn University. Mason went undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft and subsequently signed with Apollon Limassol in Cyprus.
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Tahjere McCall
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Tahjere McCall is an American professional basketball player for the Cairns Taipans of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Niagara Purple Eagles and Tennessee State Tigers.
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Daniel Schaefer
- Enrolled in Niagara University
- In 1961 graduated with Bachelor of Arts
- Occupations
- politicianconsultant
- Biography
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Daniel Schaefer was an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for Colorado's 6th congressional district from 1983 to 1999.
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Joe McCarthy
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Joseph Vincent McCarthy was an American manager in Major League Baseball, most renowned for his leadership of the "Bronx Bombers" teams of the New York Yankees from 1931 to 1946. The first manager to win pennants with both National and American League teams (doing so with the Chicago Cubs in 1929 and the Yankees in 1932), he won a total nine league pennants and seven World Series championships – the latter is a record tied only by Casey Stengel. McCarthy was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1957. He recorded a 100-win season six times, a record matched only by Bobby Cox. McCarthy's career winning percentages in both the regular season (.615) and postseason (.698, all in the World Series) are the highest in major league history. His 2,125 career victories rank ninth all-time in major league history for managerial wins, and he ranks first all-time for the Yankees with 1,460 wins.
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Dennis H. Holtschneider
- Biography
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Dennis Henry Holtschneider is president of the Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities.
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Venla Hovi
- Occupations
- ice hockey coachice hockey player
- Biography
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Venla Hovi is a Finnish ice hockey coach and retired ice hockey forward. She is an assistant coach for the Harvard Crimson women's ice hockey program, and was head coach of the Metropolitan Riveters in the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) during the 2022–23 PHF season.
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Dave Levac
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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David Joseph Levac is a retired Canadian politician who was the 41st speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2011 to 2018. Levac was elected to the Legislative Assembly in 1999 as a member of the Ontario Liberal Party. He served as the member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Brant until 2018 and is the Ontario legislature's longest serving speaker.
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George Fell
- Occupations
- surgeoninventor
- Biography
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George Edward Fell was an American surgeon and inventor. He was an early developer of artificial ventilation and also investigated the physiology of electrocution, a line of research that led to Fell creating the final design for the first electric chair.
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Alexandra Sahlen
- Occupations
- association football player
- Biography
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Alexandra Elizabeth Sahlen is a former American professional soccer player and entrepreneur. She played for the Western New York Flash of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) and was also the club's president.
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Chris Watson
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Chris Watson is an American–Israeli former basketball player, who has played on the Israel national basketball team, and whose positions have been power forward and center. He is 6' 7" (200 cm) tall.
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Benny Bengough
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Bernard Oliver "Benny" Bengough was an American professional baseball player and coach. He played the majority of his Major League Baseball career as a catcher for the New York Yankees during the 1920s when the team garnered the nickname of Murderers' Row, due to their potent batting lineup. He played the final two seasons of his career with the St. Louis Browns. Bengough was a light-hitting, defensive specialist. After his playing career, he spent 18 seasons as a major league coach.
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Manny Leaks
- Occupations
- basketball player
- Biography
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Emanuel Leaks Jr. is an American former professional basketball player.
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Vincent E. Boles
- Years
- 1954-.. (age 70)
- Enrolled in Niagara University
- Graduated with Bachelor of Arts in history
- Occupations
- military officer
- Biography
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Vincent E. Boles is a retired major general in the United States Army and served as the 33rd Chief of Ordnance and Commandant of the U.S. Army Ordnance School at Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland.
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Louis Iasiello
- Enrolled in Niagara University
- Graduated with master's degree in education
- Occupations
- military officerLatin Catholic priest
- Biography
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Louis V. Iasiello, OFM, USN is a Catholic priest retired US Navy officer who served as the 23rd Chief of Chaplains of the United States Navy from 2003 to 2006.
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Matt Ryan
- Occupations
- ice hockey player
- Biography
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Matthew Ryan is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played for several teams in Europe as well as the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL.
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Walter C. Young
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Walter Croston "Walt" Young was an American educator and politician.
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Walter Kross
- Occupations
- military officer
- Biography
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General Walter Kross is a retired United States Air Force four-star general who served as Commander in Chief, United States Transportation Command/Commander, Air Mobility Command from 1996 to 1998.
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Shad Barry
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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John Charles "Shad" Barry, known also as "Jack" Barry, was an American professional baseball player who spent ten seasons, from 1899 to 1909, in Major League Baseball. Barry was a utility player, having played every position with the exception of catcher and pitcher during his career.
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Leo William O'Brien
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Leo William O'Brien was an American journalist, radio and television commentator, and politician. A Democrat, he was most notable for his service as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York for 14 years (1952-1966).
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Ray Keating
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Raymond Herbert Keating was an American professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball for the New York Highlanders / Yankees of the American League from 1912 to 1916 and in 1918 and for the Boston Braves of the National League in 1919. In 1914, Keating was caught throwing an emery ball, and the pitch was declared to be illegal.
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Jim Doyle
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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James Francis Doyle was a professional baseball infielder he played for two seasons in Major League Baseball for the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs. Doyle played in college at Niagara University. Doyle's appendix burst early in 1912, killing him.
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Alfred F. Beiter
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Alfred Florian Beiter was an American businessman and politician who served four terms as a United States Representative from New York from 1933 to 1939 and from 1941 to 1943. He was a Democrat.
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Earl Brydges
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Earl William Brydges was an American lawyer and politician from New York. He was Temporary President and Majority Leader of the State Senate from 1966 to 1972.
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Theodore B. Basselin
- Years
- 1851-1914 (aged 63)
- Occupations
- businessperson
- Biography
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Theodore B. Basselin was an American lumber magnate, best remembered for an endowed scholarship he created at the Theological College of the Catholic University of America. The Basselin scholarship has funded the philosophical education of many notable American churchmen.
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Dusty Miller
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Charles Bradley Miller was a Major League Baseball outfielder. He played all or part of seven seasons in the majors, between 1889 and 1899, for the St. Louis Browns/Perfectos, Cincinnati Reds, and Baltimore Orioles.
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Micah Mariano
- Occupations
- association football player
- Biography
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Micah Paulino is a Guamanian footballer who plays as a defender who plays for the American club the Niagara Purple Eagles and the Guam national team.
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David Franczyk
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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David A. "Dave" Franczyk is a councilmember of the Buffalo Common Council, which is the representative legislative branch of the government of Buffalo, New York. He is also a former Liberal Party and Democratic Party nominee for the United States House of Representatives.
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Thomas Francis Lillis
- Years
- 1861-1938 (aged 77)
- Occupations
- Catholic bishopCatholic priest
- Biography
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Thomas Francis Lillis was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Leavenworth in Kansas (1905–1910) and as bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City in Missouri (1913–1938).
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Joseph L. Carrigg
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
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Joseph Leonard Carrigg was a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania.
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John J. Feely
- Occupations
- politicianlawyer
- Biography
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John Joseph Feely was a U.S. Representative from Illinois.
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Vince Rocco
- Occupations
- ice hockey player
- Biography
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Vincent Rocco is a Canadian-born Italian professional ice hockey player who is currently playing for IF Troja/Ljungby in the Swedish second tier HockeyAllsvenskan ice hockey league, previously playing for Alleghe Hockey in the Italian top tier Serie A.
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Thomas F. Burchill
- Occupations
- politician
- Biography
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Thomas Francis Burchill was an American businessman and politician who served one term as a United States representative from New York from 1943 to 1945.
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Ed Kelleher
- Occupations
- basketball coachhead coach
- Biography
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Edward Ambrose Kelleher was an American college basketball head coach. He served as the head coach at St. John's University, Fordham University, and the United States Military Academy and amassed an overall career record of 257 wins and 105 losses.
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Vince Molyneaux
- Occupations
- baseball player
- Biography
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Vincent Leo Molyneaux was a relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Browns (1917) and Boston Red Sox (1918). Listed at 6' 0", 180 lb., Molyneaux batted and threw right-handed. A native of Lewiston, New York, he attended Niagara University and Villanova University.
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John J. Hanlon
- Years
- 1854-1902 (aged 48)
- Biography
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The Rev. John Joseph Hanlon was chancellor of the Diocese of Albany and pastor of St. Vincent De Paul Parish at Madison Avenue and Partridge Street in west Albany's Pine Hills neighborhood.
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Peter Makuck
- Years
- 1940-.. (age 84)
- Occupations
- poet
- Biography
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Peter Makuck is an American poet, short story writer, and critic. He is distinguished professor emeritus of English at East Carolina University, where he was also the first distinguished professor of arts and sciences; he has also served as visiting writer in residence at Brigham Young University, visiting distinguished professor at North Carolina State University, and visiting distinguished writer-in-residence at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington. In 1993 Makuck received the Charity Randall Citation from the International Poetry Forum. Poems, stories, and reviews by Makuck have been published in many leading journals, including Poetry, The Southern Review, The Hudson Review, Ploughshares, and others, and his work has been featured on the Poetry Daily website and on Garrison Keillor's Writer's Almanac. Makuck was the founding editor of the journal Tar River Poetry. He lives with his wife, Phyllis, on Bogue Banks, one of North Carolina's barrier islands.
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Kristen Richards
- Occupations
- athlete
- Biography
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Kristen Richards is a Canadian professional ice hockey player. She is currently a member of the Professional Women's Hockey Players Association (PWHPA), following four seasons with the Markham Thunder (formerly the Brampton Thunder) of the Canadian Women's Hockey League (CWHL). Prior to that, she played NCAA Division I hockey for Niagara and Robert Morris.
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Jan Pitass
- Biography
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Rev. Jan Pitass was a Polish priest who was the founder and first pastor of the oldest Polish parish (St. Stanislaus - Bishop & Martyr Church) in the diocese of Buffalo, New York. He was a graduate of Niagara University before moving to Buffalo.
