I knew about a few cool celebrities that have some familiar roots in Washington State, but I had no idea about any of the ones below. For starters, we have Jamie Kern Lima, Raquael Torres, and Brian Urlacher.
If you don’t recognize why they look so familiar, keep reading!
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Celebrities You Probably Didn’t Know Have Ties to Tri-Cities, WA
Celebrities from Pasco
Raquael Torres: You’ve seen her on the drama hit series, Animal Kingdom, as well as The Adventures of Lois & Clark, and American Princess!
Raquael Torres is from Pasco, WA
Jeannie Russell: Your parents and grandparents saw her on the classic black and white TV hit, Dennis the Menace, and you did, too, if you used to watch Nick at Nite as a kid like I did!
Brian Urlacher: If his last name seems familar, it’s because he’s got a lot of family spread throughout Washington State; and because Brian became a linebacker for the Chicago Bears!
Former NFL Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher is from Pasco, WA
Celebrities from Kennewick
Jamie Kern Lima: Founder of IT Cosmetics (now owned by L’Oreal Cosmetics) and is now available in ULTA and Sephora. She was born in Seattle and went to WSU. She was on the first season of Big Brother and after that, became a Morning News anchor on KNDU/KNDO. Jamie sold her cosmetics company to L’Oreal in 2016, and Forbes Magazine said she sold it for a reported $1.2 billion dollars!
Issac Carpenter: Drummer for Guns ‘N Roses: He was appointed the official new drummer in 2025!
Isaac Carpenter, drummer in Guns ‘N Roses, is from Kennewick, WA.
Erin J. Dean: You saw her in roles on Boy Meets World, Lovers Lane, and The Journey of Allen Strange on Nickelodeon!
Here’s a clip of Erin Dean that you might recognize from way back when (19997-2020) when she was on the Nickelodeon “Snick” show, The Journey of Allen Strange.
Celebrities from Richland
Randy Fullmer: He’s a big time film producer and Disney Visual Effects Animator. You’ve seen his work in Chicken Little, The Emperor’s New Groove, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, and She-Ra: Princess of Power!
Rachelle Henry: She played a big role in the Netflix hit, Dead to Me with Christina Applegate, and if you ever watched Biz Kid$ on PBS, yes, that was her!
Terence Knox: He’s been on popular shows including The Agency, Six Feet Under, Walker, Texas Ranger, and Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman!
Selina Wang: If you’re a news junkie, you’ve seen her on as a news correspondent on ABC News, CNN International, and Bloomberg News!
Selina Wang Photo Credit Cindy Ord Getty Images
You Probably Already Know About These Celebs from Tri-Cities
Most of Washingtonians already know that these stars are from Kennewick, Pasco, and Richland:
- Santino Fontana, who just so happens to be the voice of Hans in Disney’s Frozen. He was born in California, but grew up in Richland. His acting credits also include Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Greg), Sisters, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Nurse Jackie, and The Good Wife.
- Kristine W: Dance music artist, best known for “Feel What You Want”
- Chuck Palahniuk author of Fight Club
- Jim Mattis: Secretary of Defense (2017-2019)
- Nathan Gregor Mendel: Foo Fighters guitarist
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Follow the road to great food places, from start to finish and back again!
Gallery Credit: Rik Mikals