(Click on name for more information.)
Garner Ted Armstrong - Controversial radio & television evangelist. Son of Herbert W. Armstrong. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Herbert W. Armstrong - Controversial evangelist, founder of the "Radio Church of God/Worldwide Church of God", publisher of "The Plain Truth" magazine, & presenter of "The World Tomorrow" radio & television programs. Father of Garner Ted Armstrong. 6th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Kenneth H. Bacon - Journalist who was the spokesperson for the Department of Defense during the Clinton administration & later served as President of Refugees International. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Corbin Bernsen - Actor, best known for his roles as divorce attorney Arnold Becker on the NBC drama series "L.A. Law", as Dr. Alan Feinstone in "The Dentist", as retired police detective Henry Spencer on the USA Network comedy-drama series "Psych", and as Roger Dorn in the films "Major League", "Major League II", and "Major League: Back to the Minors". Son of actress Wilma "Jeanne" Cooper and 9th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Larry Joe Bird - College and NBA basketball player. Collegiate Player of the Year in 1979 and winner of the John Wooden Award. Member of 1979 All-America team. NBA Rookie of the Year in 1980, several times League MVP, All Star MVP, and finals MVP. Elected to Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998. After retirement as player, coached Indiana Pacers for 3 season, attaining NBA Finals in 2000. Currently President of Basketball Operations for the Pacers. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Barzilla Worth Clark - Served as the 16th Governor of Idaho from 1937-1939. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Chase Addison Clark - Served as the 18th Governor of Idaho from 1941-1943. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
David Worth Clark - Served as U.S. Representative from Idaho 1935-1939 and U.S. Senator from Idaho 1939-1945. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
William Frederick Cody - "Buffalo Bill", the famous frontiersman. 4th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Stephen Weaver Collins - Famous movie & television actor, notable roles include Commander Will Decker in "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" and most recently as the Reverend Eric Camden on the TV series "7th Heaven". Nominated for an Emmy for his role in the 1987 made for TV movie, "The Two Mrs. Grenvilles". Interestingly, he played a character named Mr. Maris (father of the character Nicole Maris played by Melissa Joan Hart) in the movie "Drive Me Crazy". 9th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Timothy Daniel "Tim" Considine - Actor, starred in the "Spin and Marty" and "Hardy Boys" features on the original Mickey Mouse Club TV show. Also appeared in several Disney movies including "The Shaggy Dog". He later played the oldest brother, "Mike" on the "My Three Sons" TV series. One of his most memorable scenes, although in a minor role, was as the soldier slapped by General Patton in the movie "Patton". 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Wilma Jeanne Cooper - Actress who went by her middle name & was best known for her role as Katherine Chancellor on the CBS soap opera "The Young and the Restless (1973-2013)". Also appeared in several movies and other television series. Mother of actor Corbin Bernsen and 8th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Cathy Lee Crosby - Actress and television personality, most famous for hosting the series "That's Incredible". Daughter of Rachelle Fern Mendenhall, aka actress Linda Hayes. 9th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
John Foster Dulles - Former Secretary of the State of the U.S. (1953-1959). Brother of Allen Welsh Dulles. 6th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Allen Welsh Dulles - 1st civilian Director of the C.I.A. (1953-1961). Brother of John Foster Dulles. 6th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Orval Eugene Faubus - Served 4 terms as Governor of Arkansas, infamous for his stand agains the integration of Little Rock, AR schools in 1957, in defiance of Supreme Court rulings. 9th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Herman Guy Fisher - Co-founder of the Fisher-Price toy company. 6th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Mahlon Bush Hoagland - Biochemist who discovered transfer RNA (tRNA), the translator of the genetic code. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Ernest Jennings Ford - Better known by his stage name, Tennessee Ernie Ford, famous recording artist & television host, his biggest hit was "Sixteen Tons". Hosted "The Ford Show" on NBC from 1956 to 1961 and "The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show" on ABC from 1962 to 1965. Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1990. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Albert Arnold Gore Jr. - Served as the 45th Vice-President of the U.S. (1993-2001), unsuccessful candidate for President in 2000. Previously served in the House of Representatives and Senate from Tennessee. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Edward Hunter - A prominent early member of the Church of Latter Day Saints (Morman), friend and associate of Joseph Smith, and ordained by Brigham Young. Served as Presiding Bishop at the time of his death. 3rd great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Lindley Armstrong "Spike" Jones - Famous musician & comedian, he & his band the City Slickers had 7 top ten hits from 1942 to 1949, the most famous of which was "Der Fuehrer's Face", which mocked Adolf Hitler and was also the title of a Disney cartoon that featured the song. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Leslie Ann Jones - Multiple Grammy Award-winning recording engineer working as Director of Music Recording and Scoring at Skywalker Sound, a Lucasfilm, Ltd. company. Past Chair of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Board of Trustees, the organization that awards Grammys.. Daughter of Lindley Armstrong “Spike” Jones Sr. and 9th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Lindley Armstrong “Spike” Jones Jr. - American television producer/director of award shows and live television events including the Daytime Emmy Awards, the Film Independent Spirit Awards, the Writers Guild of America Awards and the Jerry Lewis Telethon. Son of Lindley Armstrong “Spike” Jones Sr. and 9th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Henry "Hank" King Ketcham - Cartoonist, most famous as the creator of "Dennis the Menace". 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Paul Beattie MacCready Jr. - Inventor of the Gossamer Condor, winner of the Kremer prize for first man-powered flight, on 23 Aug 1977. Inventor of the Gossamer Albatross, winner of the Kremer prize for the first man-powered flight across the English Channel, in 1979. Inventor of the Solar Challenger, first solar-powered flight across the English Channel. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Herbert Leonard Maris - Philadelphia attorney who was famous for working on behalf of unjustly convicted prisoners. His efforts were the basis for a television series called "Lock-Up" which aired in the late 1950's. 5th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Marc “Bronco”
Clay Mendenhall - Prominent college football coach; head coach at BYU
(2005-2015) and UVA (2015-?). 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Rachelle Fern Mendenhall - AKA "Linda Hayes". Movie actress who appeared in mostly medium budget dramas and westerns for RKO studios. Mother of movie actress & TV personality Cathy Lee Crosby. 8th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Edward Roscoe Murrow - The famous Edward R. Murrow, pioneer of television news broadcasting, most noted for producing a series of TV news reports that helped lead to the censure of Senator Joseph McCarthy. His 1st name at birth was "Egbert" but he changed it to Edward during his 2nd year of college. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Richard Milhous Nixon - Served as Vice-President (1953-1961) and President (1969-1974) of the U.S. Only U.S. President to resign from office. 7th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Alfred G. Packer - One of only 2 persons in the U.S. ever convicted of a crime related to cannibalism. Believed to be the 5th great-grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Herbert Jefferis Pennock - Hall of Fame major league baseball pitcher. Played from 1912 to 1915 for the Philadelphia Athletics, from 1915 to 1917 and 1919 to 1922 for the Boston Red Sox, from 1923 to 1933 for the New York Yankees, and in 1934 for the Red Sox. Had career record of 240 wins and 162 losses, with over 1,200 strikouts in over 3,500 innings. 6th great-grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Stephen Jay Pierron - TV Editor for programs such as "Capitol", "The Bold and the Beautiful" and "The Young and the Restless". 19 Daytime Emmy nominations and 5 wins. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Howard Pyle - Famous author and illustrator, primarly of books for young audiences. Among his more popular books were "The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood" a four volume set on King Arthur, and "Men of Iron" which was made into the movie "The Black Shield of Falworth". 5th great-grandson of George and Alice Maris.
William Sydney Porter - Famous as author "O. Henry". 6th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Marjorie Armstrong Post - "Markie" Post, television actress, best know for her roles in "The Fall Guy" (1982-1985), "Night Court" (1985-1992), and "Hearts Afire" (1992-1995). 8th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Ashley Nicolle Simpson - "Ashlee" Simpson, famous pop singer, dancer, & actress. 9th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Jessica Ann Simpson - Famous pop singer & actress. 9th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Robert Pershing Wadlow - The tallest person in history for which there is irrefutable evidence. Was 8 feet 11.1 inches tall and weighed 439 pounds at the time of his death. 8th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
James Baird Weaver - Member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Iowa as a member of the Greenback Party. Ran for President two times on third party tickets in the late 19th century. Most famous as the presidential nominee of the Populist Party in the 1892 election, when he received over a million popular votes, and won four states (Colorado, Kansas, Idaho, and Nevada) and 22 electoral votes. His strategy was to form alliances with African Americans in the South, which was not well received by Whites in the South and led to violence and intimidation against black voters. 5th great grandson of George and Alice Maris.
Mary Jessamyn West - Known by her middle name, famous
author of "The Friendly Persuasion" and many other books. 7th great granddaughter of George and Alice Maris.
Jonathan Thompson Walton Zachary - Known as Tom Zachary, Major League Baseball pitcher from 1918 to 1936, most famous for giving up Babe Ruth's 60th home run in 1927.6th great-grandson of George and Alice Maris.