Knowing that a famous person was born or raised in Minnesota feels like knowing a little piece of arcane trivia. Even Minnesotans may have an easier time naming five famous people from California or Texas off the top of their head than those from their own state. Some of this is due to the size of those other states, but a large part could also owe to Minnesota’s famously chilled-out demeanor and reluctance for spotlight attention.
Like nearly every other Middle American state, Minnesota celebrities usually move away to chase their dreams and only move back to find solace. For example, actor Josh Hartnett moved back to the Twin Cities at the height of his career so he could take a break from the limelight and recuperate his mental health after an early ‘00s stint as a Hollywood heartthrob. Now that’s a piece of arcane trivia. Here’s four more living Minnesotan celebrities we love and why we love them. – James Schaak
Paul Westerberg: Best known as the lead singer of Minneapolis’ most famous band, The Replacements, Paul Westerberg first formed the raucous and truly chaotic punk rock band with Bob Stinson, Tommy Stinson and Chris Mars in 1979. From there, Westerberg led the band with what he learned from playing in local Twin Cities venues, taking The Replacements from local talent to national sensation. The “Let It Be” album cover, which was shot on the roof of the Stinson brothers’ mom’s house on Bryant Avenue, brought national attention to Minneapolis. Two years later, a different kind of attention was attracted when Westerberg dropped the f-bomb on national television and got The Replacements banned for life from “Saturday Night Live!” Through it all, Westerberg has held an undeniably bittersweet punk legacy in the Twin Cities. Special bonus points for the fact Westerberg still lives in the state, residing in Edina. – Maya Marchel Hoff
Jessica Lange: Everyone’s favorite former “American Horror Story” regular, Jessica Lange was born and raised in Cloquet and briefly attended the University of Minnesota. Through the ups and downs of her career, Minnesota has continued to summon Lange home. The renowned actress even made a point to raise her family here, and in 2016, Architectural Digest took readers on an in-depth tour of the sprawling grounds of her former Stillwater home. Lange also moonlights as a photographer, with her most recently published work, “Highway 61”, being a collection of photographs paying tribute to the route that begins northeast of Minneapolis. “My most powerful connection is to Minnesota, to that part of the land,” Lange said in a 1982 interview with the New York Times. “I have a certain love for it I have for nothing else. I feel better there than anywhere else in the world.” – Sophia Zimmerman
Winona Ryder: After a prolific acting career in her teens and 20s (“Heathers,” “Beetlejuice,” “Girl, Interrupted”) and a brief fall from grace after a 2001 shoplifting scandal, Ryder has practically made a Britney-level comeback in recent years. The star, born in the state and named after the southeastern city of Winona, has quickly become associated with pop culture phenomenon “Stranger Things” through her role as harrowed mother Joyce Byers and lives on as a well-loved figure in Hollywood. Ryder even starred in a 2020 Super Bowl commercial for Squarespace featuring a tongue-in-cheek exploration of the city of Winona in an effort to find herself, creating a website that ultimately serves as a love letter to small town Americana. The site features a collection of photos of interesting people and places throughout the city that Ryder turned into a photobook, with all proceeds going to the American Indian College Fund. – Bel Moran
Kris Humphries: Much like Tristan Thompson, the Chaska-raised Kris Humphries’ name recognition perhaps has more to do with the Kardashian-industrial-complex than with basketball. In 2011, the University basketball star turned NBA player was married to Kim Kardashian for 72 days in a stint so infamous that in 2021 Kim even said she doesn’t “really want to explain, like, who Kris Humphries is” to her kids. Amidst all the reality television mess distracting from Humphries’ legacy as one of Minnesota’s greatest basketball players ever, there’s also a hint at just how great of an athlete the 6 foot 9 inch Humphries was in another sport. In season 6, episode 11 of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” Kim comments on Humphries’ leg hair and he briefly mentions shaving his legs for big swim meets as a kid. What Humphries did not mention is that he was such a fast young swimmer that he beat Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte at elite competitions before quitting the sport at age 12. There’s more arcane trivia! – James Schaak
