Earlier this year, we shared a post highlighting the ten most famous CU Boulder attendees according to the Ranker website.
We didn't know everyone on the CU Boulder list, despite the "most famous" designation. That's true for the Ranker list of the most famous Colorado State University attendees, too.
But the CSU roster stands out for other reasons, too.
Included on it is a terrorist, a U.S. Senate who resigned in the face of an ethics investigation, two astronauts and a porn star whose most prominent mainstream movie credit involves a flick made by two of the people featured in the CU Boulder post.
The photo-illustrated top ten is below, complete with text from each person's Wiki page. But before we get started, a caveat. Ranker labels all of the following alumni of CSU, but that's not quite right. Several attended but didn't graduate, and one only intended to go but reportedly didn't do so, despite plenty of online references saying he did.
Number 10: Anwar al-Awlaki
From his Wikipedia page:
Anwar al-Awlaki (April 21, 1971 – September 30, 2011) was an American and Yemeni imam and Islamic militant. US government officials said that he was a senior talent-recruiter and motivator who was involved in planning terrorist operations for the Islamist militant group al-Qaeda, and he became the first United States citizen to be targeted and killed in a United States drone strike (his son Abdulrahman al-Awlaki was also killed by an American drone strike two weeks later). With a blog, a Facebook page, the al-Qaeda magazine Inspire, and many YouTube videos, the Saudi news station Al Arabiya described him as the "bin Laden of the Internet." After a request from the US Congress, in November 2010 Google removed many of al-Awlaki's videos from its websites.[21] However, al-Awlaki's influence continues to be apparent amongst Islamists in the West and internationally, and his statements, articles and lectures are regularly cited and used as inspiration by extremists in the West and worldwide....Number 9: John Ensign
In 1991, al-Awlaki returned to the US state of Colorado to attend college. He earned a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Colorado State University (1994), where he was president of the Muslim Student Association. He attended the university on a foreign student visa and a government scholarship from Yemen, claiming to be born in that country, according to a former US security agent. He spent a summer of his college years training with the Afghan mujahideen.....
From his Wikipedia page:
John Eric Ensign (born March 25, 1958) is an American veterinary physician and former politician. He was a United States Senator from Nevada, serving from January 2001 until he resigned amid an investigation of an ethics violation in May 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party and the former chairman of the Senate Republican Policy Committee.,,,Number 8: Val Venis
Ensign attended the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, becoming a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, and later graduated from Oregon State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1981. He went on to receive his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the Colorado State University in 1985 and entered veterinary practice soon after. He became a successful businessman, opening a 24-hour animal hospital in Las Vegas. He owned two animal hospitals before entering politics....
From his Wikipedia page:
Sean Allen Morley (born March 6, 1971)[2][4] is a Canadian professional wrestler better known by his ring name Val Venis. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestling Entertainment from 1998 to 2009. Venis is also known for his appearances with Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling....
From Markham Month, 1999:
Morley, however, did not always have visions of bodyslams and dropkicks as a career goal. "Actually I wanted to become a helicopter pilot at the time," he says of his days at Markham District High School. The summer before he was to attend Colorado State University for Aeronautical Science, Morley started wrestling in England as a part-time job. "But what happened was I stayed (in England) for a year and I've kept wrestling every since...."
Number 7: Walter Scott Jr.
From his Wikipedia page:
Walter Scott Jr. (born 1931) is an American civil engineer, philanthropist, and former CEO of Peter Kiewit Sons' Incorporated....
He graduated from Colorado State University in 1953 with a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering....
Number 6: Keith Carradine
From his Wikipedia page:
Keith Ian Carradine (born August 8, 1949) is an American actor who has had success on stage, film and television. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Tom Frank in Robert Altman's Nashville, Wild Bill Hickok in the HBO series Deadwood and FBI agent Frank Lundy in Dexter. In addition, he is a Golden Globe and Academy Award winning songwriter. As a member of the Carradine family, he is part of an acting dynasty that began with his father, John Carradine....
After high school, Carradine entertained the thought of becoming a forest ranger but opted to study drama at Colorado State University. He dropped out after one semester and drifted back to California, moving in with his older half-brother, David. David encouraged Keith to pursue an acting career, paid for his acting and vocal lessons, and helped him get an agent....
Number 5: Kent Rominger
From his Wikipedia page:
Kent Vernon "Rommel" Rominger (born August 7, 1956) is an American former astronaut, former NASA Chief of the Astronaut Office at Johnson Space Center, and a Captain in the United States Navy. He joined ATK Launch Systems Group in 2006 as Vice President of Advanced Programs....
Kent Rominger was born in Del Norte, Colorado. He graduated from Del Norte High School in 1974. In 1978, he received a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Colorado State University, and in 1987 a master of science degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School....
Number 4: James van Hoften
From his Wikipedia page:
James Dougal Adrianus "Ox" van Hoften (born June 11, 1944) is a former NASA Astronaut....
Graduated from Mills High School, Millbrae, California, in 1962; received a bachelor of science degree in Civil Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1966; and a master of science degree in Hydraulic engineering and a Doctorate of Philosophy in Hydraulic Engineering from Colorado State University in 1968 and 1976, respectively...
Number 3: Denver Pyle
From his Wikipedia page:
Denver Dell Pyle (May 11, 1920-December 25, 1997) was an American film and television actor. He was best known for portraying Briscoe Darling, Jr. in several episodes of The Andy Griffith Show and Uncle Jesse in The Dukes of Hazzard from 1979 to 1985....
Pyle was born in Bethune in Kit Carson County, Colorado, to farmer Ben H. Pyle (1895-1988) and his wife Maude (1899–1985); After graduating from high school, Pyle briefly attended Colorado State University,[3] but dropped out to enter show business.....
Number 2: Juli Ashton
From her Wikipedia page:
Juli Ashton (born October 5, 1968) is an American pornographic actress and television host....
After Ashton graduated from Colorado State University with a degree in Spanish and history, she taught Spanish at a junior high school for a year.....
In 1997, Ashton played "Saffi" in the movie Orgazmo, a comedy-action film by Trey Parker and Matt Stone — the creators of the animated TV series South Park....
Number 1: John Amos
From his Wikipedia page:
John Amos (born December 27, 1939) is an American actor who played James Evans, Sr. on the 1970s television series Good Times. His television work includes roles in The Mary Tyler Moore Show, the miniseries Roots, for which he received an Emmy nomination, and a recurring role as Admiral Percy Fitzwallace on The West Wing. He also played the father of Will Smith's character's girlfriend, Lisa Wilkes, in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air....Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
Amos was born John A. Amos, Jr. in Newark, New Jersey, the son of Annabelle P. and John A. Amos, Sr., who was an auto mechanic. He graduated from East Orange (NJ) High School in 1958. He enrolled at Long Beach City College and graduated from Colorado State University qualifying as a social worker with a degree in sociology. Amos also played on the Colorado State Rams football team....
