Mercersburg Academy is proud of our 12,000+ alumni. They live and work in all 50 states and more than 90 countries. More than 160 have given their lives in the service of our country. Our alumni are stewards of our school and bearers of its legacy, leading the world in academia, the arts, athletics, business, the military, and other industries. Below is a snapshot of some of these alums.
Jimmy Stewart ’28
Academy Award winner (best actor, The Philadelphia Story)
Burton Richter ’48
Nobel Laureate in Physics (1976)
Dick Thornburgh ’50
Pennsylvania governor (1979–1987), United States attorney general (1988–1991)
Benicio Del Toro ’85
Academy Award winner, Golden Globe Award winner (best supporting actor, Traffic)
Rebecca Lowe ’99
NBC sportscaster, former ESPN UK and BBC sports journalist
Vincent Rey ’06
Cincinnati Bengals linebacker, NFL Man of the Year Award nominee
Dr. William H. "Bill" Harris ’44 | Author of Vanishing Bone; Founder and Director Emeritus of the Massachusetts General Hospital Harris Orthopaedics Laboratory
Burton Richter ’48 | Nobel Laureate in Physics (1976)
Dr. Walter Pae ’67 | Inventor of transplant heart pump
Denise Dupré ’76 | Adjunct professor at Harvard University and author of industry textbook Hospitality World!
Ann Blair ’79 | Historian, Henry Charles Lea Professor of History at Harvard University, and MacArthur Fellows Program recipient
Dr. Deirdre Marshall ’79 | Director of plastic and reconstructive surgery at Miami Children’s Hospital
Jimmy Stewart ’28 | 1941 Academy Award recipient (best actor, The Philadelphia Story) and star of multiple major motion pictures including It’s a Wonderful Life, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Rear Window, and Vertigo
John Payne ’32 | Actor best known for Miracle on 34th Street
Walter Farley ’35 | Author of The Black Stallion series
James Snyder ’69 | Director of the Israel Museum and deputy director of the Museum of Modern Art
R.F. Laird ’70 | Author of The Boomer Bible
Margaretta “Peggy” Northrop ’72 | Editor-in-chief of Reader’s Digest and Sunset magazine
William Davies ’79 | Annie Award winner and screenwriter of several films, including Flushed Away and Twins
Michael Davies ’85 | Daytime Emmy recipient for ABC’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? in 2000 and 2001 and co-host of NBC Sports Network’s Men in Blazers
Benicio Del Toro ’85 | 2000 Academy Award winner (best supporting actor, Traffic), Golden Globe/Screen Actors Guild Award winner, and star of multiple major motion pictures including The Usual Suspects and Sicario
Luke Ebbin '85 | Multi-platinum, five time Grammy-nominated record producer, composer and songwriter
Sean Kanan ’85 | Actor in The Karate Kid III, General Hospital, and The Bold and the Beautiful
Ben Mendelsohn ’86 | Actor in Bloodline, The Dark Knight Rises, Mississippi Grind, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Darkest Hour, Ready Player One, and Captain Marvel
Vanessa Branch ’90 | Actress in Pirates of the Caribbean films and numerous television shows
Joe L. Brown ’37 | General manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates
Charles Moore ’47 | Olympic gold medalist in the 400 metre hurdles, silver medalist in the US team's 4x400 metre relay, and member of the United States National Track & Field Hall of Fame
Dick Cass ’64 | President of Baltimore Ravens
Jim Irsay ’78 | Owner of Indianapolis Colts
Mark Talbott ’78 | Top-ranked professional squash player in the world (1983-1995), U.S. Squash Hall of Fame member, and head squash coach at Stanford University
Betsy Mitchell ’83 | Three-time Olympic medalist (one gold, two silver) in swimming and director of athletics at California Institute of Technology
Melvin Stewart ’88 | Three-time Olympic medalist (two gold, one bronze) in swimming
Vincent Rey ’06 | Cincinnati Bengals linebacker and NFL Man of the Year Award nominee
Steven Zhang ’11 | Chairman of Inter Milan soccer club
Rebecca Lowe ’99 | NBC sportscaster, formerly with ESPN UK and the BBC
Josh Edgin ’06 | Major League Baseball pitcher
Benjamin Mahoney ’18 | Owner of Ryan Airlines and builder of Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis
Max Grumbacher ’31 | Chairman, Bon-Ton department stores
Robert Weis ’37 | Chairman of Weis Markets
Stanley Fulton ’49 | Founder of Anchor Gaming
Alan Kennedy ’49 | President of Tupperware
H.F. “Gerry” Lenfest ’49 | Philanthropist and media entrepreneur
Nicholas Taubman ’53 | Founder of Advance Auto Parts and U.S. ambassador to Romania (2005–2008)
Tim Grumbacher ’57 | Chief executive officer, Bon-Ton department stores
Jim Perdue ’69 | Chairman of Perdue Farms
John Rich ’71 | President of Waste Management Processing
Deborah Simon ’74 | Philanthropist and chair of the Simon Youth Foundation
Eddie Kang ’99 | Artist and fashion/accessories designer
Joel Boone ’09 | U.S. Navy admiral, White House physician under Presidents Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt, and recipient of Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, and six Silver Stars
Ralph Talbot ’16 | World War I flying ace and Medal of Honor recipient
Eugene Fluckey ’30 | U.S. Navy rear admiral; recipient of Medal of Honor and four Navy Crosses
Harry Hughes ’44 | Governor of Maryland (1979–1987)
León Febres Cordero ’49 | President of Ecuador
Dick Thornburgh ’50 | Pennsylvania governor (1979–1987) and U.S. attorney general (1988–1991)
John Jones III ’73 | U.S. District Court judge
Tony Trenga ’67 | U.S. District Court judge