Jeremy Renner? George Lucas? These 10 celebrities once called the Modesto area home
Over the years, Modesto has been called home by several celebrities, from superhero actors to acclaimed filmmakers.
They include George Lucas, Jeremy Renner and Timothy Olyphant.
Here are just some of the celebrities who were born or raised in the Modesto area:
Jeremy Renner
Actor Jeremy Renner was born and raised in Modesto. He attended several Modesto schools, including Somerset Middle School and Beyer High School.
During his time at Modesto Junior College, Renner explored various fields, including computer science, criminology and psychology.
Ultimately, “the theater department, with its freedom of emotional expression, drew him in,” according to the California Community Colleges website.
Retired Modesto Junior College instructor Charline Freedman told The Modesto Bee in 2010 that Renner was one of her top two acting students during her 12-year career. He quickly caught on to her rigorous Stanislavsky acting method at just 19 years old, she said.
“Within a month, I knew we had somebody very special in this young man,” Freedman told The Bee in 2014.
After earning an Academy Award nomination for “The Hurt Locker,” Renner found international fame playing superhero archer Hawkeye in the “Avengers” film franchise and an eponymous Disney+ series.
His other movie and television credits include “Arrival,” “Wind River” and the “Mayor Of Kingstown” series on HBO, according to IMDb.com.
Timothy Olyphant
Honolulu-born actor Timothy Olyphant grew up on Norwegian Avenue in Modesto and attended local schools including Standiford Elementary School and Somerset Middle School.
He graduated from Beyer High School.
During a 2017 appearance on late-night show “Conan,” Olyphant described his days as a teenage troublemaker playing pranks on McHenry Avenue involving cinder blocks and fire extinguishers, The Bee reported in 2017.
Though the Emmy nominee’s mom still lives in Modesto, Olyphant told The Bee in 2023 that he does not visit “as often as (he) should.”
Olyphant found fame as the star of TV series “Justified” and its follow-up miniseries, “Justified: City Primeval.”
His other credits include “Deadwood,” “The Girl Next Door” and “Santa Clarita Diet.”
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George Lucas
Filmmaker George Lucas, best known as the creator of “Star Wars,” was born and raised in Modesto.
He attended Thomas Downey High School and raced cars on Paradise Road in the west side of the city.
Before heading to Los Angeles, Lucas enrolled at Modesto Junior College, where he studied anthropology, sociology and literature, according to the California Community Colleges website.
To honor Lucas, the city installed a statue at the Five Points intersection in downtown Modesto and placed plaques around town highlighting locations featured in the movie “American Graffiti,” which Lucas wrote and directed.
The American Graffiti Festival and Car Show, organized by the North Modesto Kiwanis Club, is held in Modesto every June to showcase vintage cars.
In addition to several “Star Wars” movies, Lucas’ screen credits include “THX 1138” and “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” He founded special effects company Industrial Light & Magic and co-founded film production company American Zoetrope.
Ginger Gonzaga
Actor Ginger Gonzaga is a Modesto native and Beyer High graduate, according to The Bee’s archives.
In 2014, she told The Bee that her goal while growing up was to be a lawyer.
She eventually earned a degree in political science from University of California, Santa Barbara.
“I have used none of it,” she told The Bee. “While I was at college, I just realized it definitely wasn’t what I wanted to do. I like performing and being funny.”
Gonzaga has appeared in “She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,” “Family Guy” and the TV adaptation of “True Lies,” among other credits, according to IMDB.
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Harve Presnell
Golden Globe Award-winning actor and singer Harve Presnell was born and raised in Modesto, The Bee previously reported.
He was a graduate of Modesto High School.
While growing up in Modesto, he helped pick peaches on his family’s ranch on Ladd Road in north Modesto near the Del Rio Country Club.
Presnell, who died in 2009, starred in a number of Broadway musicals, including “The Unsinkable Molly Brown” and “Annie.” He was also known for his roles in the films “Paint Your Wagon” and “Fargo.”
Janet Leigh
Best known for her starring role in “Psycho,” actor Janet Leigh was born in Merced and raised in Stockton, HERLIFE Magazine reported.
Leigh was discovered when actor Norma Shearer spotted her photo at the Sugar Bowl Lodge in Placer County, the publication said
Shearer helped the 19-year-old secure a contract with MGM Productions.
Leigh starred in a number of movies, including “Bye Bye Birdie,” “The Manchurian Candidate,” “Touch of Evil” and “The Fog.”
Her show business legacy lives on in the daughters she shared with movie star Tony Curtis, actors Jamie Lee Curtis and Kelly Curtis.
These celebrities also have ties to the Central Valley
Here are four other celebrities who once called the Central Valley home, according to previous reporting from The Bee:
“Glee” actor Dot-Marie Jones is a Hilmar native.
Actor James Mitchell, who starred in popular soap opera “All My Children,” was raised in Turlock.
Actor Dennis Weaver attended Manteca schools. He starred as the title character in the TV show “McCloud” and played Chester Goode in “Gunsmoke.”
Country music artist Roy Clark, whose hit songs include “Yesterday When I Was Young,” was a Riverbank native.
This story was originally published July 24, 2024 at 5:00 AM.
