Notable Alumni
Early alumni of Exeter include US Senator Daniel Webster (1796); US President Franklin Pierce (1820); Abraham Lincoln's son and 35th Secretary of War Robert Lincoln (1860); Ulysses S. Grant, Jr. (1870), Richard and Francis Cleveland; "grandfather of football" Amos Alonzo Stagg (1880); and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Booth Tarkington (1889). John Knowles, author of A Separate Peace and Peace Breaks Out, was a 1945 graduate; both novels are set at the fictional Devon School, which serves as an analog for his alma mater.
Exeter alumni pursue careers in various fields. Alumni noted for their work in government include Daniel Webster, Franklin Pierce, Gifford Pinchot, Lewis Cass, Judd Gregg, Jay Rockefeller, Kent Conrad, John Negroponte, Bobby Shriver, Robert Bauer and Peter Orszag. Those choosing military careers include historian George Bancroft and Charles C. Krulak. Authors George Plimpton, John Knowles, Gore Vidal, John Irving (whose stepfather taught at Exeter), Robert Anderson, Dan Brown (whose father taught at Exeter), Peter Benchley, James Agee, Chang-Rae Lee, Debby Herbenick, Stewart Brand, Norb Vonnegut and Roland Merullo attended the academy.
Other notable alumni include businessmen Joseph Coors, David Rockefeller, Jr., Pierre S. du Pont and Mark Zuckerberg; journalists Drew Pearson, Dwight Macdonald, James F. Hoge, Jr., Paul Klebnikov, Trish Regan, Suzy Welch and Sarah Lyall; actors Michael Cerveris, Jack Gilpin, and Alessandro Nivola; film director Howard Hawks; musicians Benmont Tench, China Forbes, Ketch Secor, Win Butler and William Butler; historians Robert Cowley and Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.; baseball player Sam Fuld; educators Jared Sparks and Benno C. Schmidt, Jr.; and composer Adam Guettel. Humorist Greg Daniels also attended.
Read more about this topic: Phillips Exeter Academy
Famous quotes containing the word notable:
“a notable prince that was called King John;
And he ruled England with main and with might,
For he did great wrong, and maintained little right.”
—Unknown. King John and the Abbot of Canterbury (l. 2–4)