This is a list of dentists who have gained a degree of notability, particularly with regard to the history of those in the field.
Real-life dentists A Sam Aanestad – former Californian politician Michele Aerden - the first female president of the FDI World Dental Federation Harold Albrecht – Conservative Party of Canada politician Tomas Albrektsson – implant dentistry Henry Aldridge – politician from North Carolina Bill Allen – former president of the British Dental Association. Theodore C. Almquist – Brigadier General, US Air Force Edward Angle – father of orthodontics Arif Alvi – President of Pakistan Steve Arlin – became a dentist after playing Major League Baseball Gunadasa Amarasekara – Sinhala language writer Amalia Assur (1803–1889) first woman dentist in Sweden and possibly Europe. Rafiuddin Ahmed (dentist) – Indian dentist. founded the First Dental College of India Ana Bedran-Russo (Brazilian) Professor of Restorative Dentistry and Chair of the Department of General Dental Sciences in Restorative Dentistry at Marquette University School of Dentistry
B Franz Bäke – Nazi Panzer ace Britt Baker – American professional wrestler currently performing with All Elite Wrestling; also has a full-time dental practice in Florida Charles Spence Bate – authority on crustaceans, five species are named for him William George Beers – established the Montreal Lacrosse Club and the Canada Journal of Dental Science Samuel Bemis – photography pioneer who became an eccentric recluse Hedvig Bensow - the first female dentist in Finland Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow – President of Turkmenistan André Bolhuis – Netherlands Field Hockey Player Daniel Bukantz – American fencer Paul Beresford – Conservative Party (UK) politician David Bernier – Secretary of State of Puerto Rico Greene Vardiman Black – invented a foot-driven dental drill and is classed as a father of modern dentistry Robert Blake – wrote, An Essay on the Structure and Formation of the Teeth in Man and Various Animals. Jan Boubli – French professional poker player and retired dentist Allan G. Brodie – American dentist who established the Prize Essay Award to promote research Edgar Buchanan – primarily known for his later career as an actor in shows like Petticoat Junction (1702–1748), French dentist in enamel hypoplasia research. Julius Bruck – also designed a water-cooled diaphanoscopic instrument for translumination of the bladder via the rectum Martin van Butchell – Eccentric who put his wife's head on display at his home/practice after her death Donald J. Butz – U.S. Air Force Major General
C Madeleine-Françoise Calais - the first female dentist to obtain a license as a master dentist from the Surgical Society of Paris Héctor José Cámpora – President of Argentina Billy Cannon – American football player and counterfeiter Georg Carabelli – court dentist to the Austrian Emperor who founded a clinic in the University of Vienna Gerald Cardinale – Republican Party (United States) politician with a dental office in Fort Lee, New Jersey James Carlisle – Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda and member of the British Dental Association Margaret Caro - the first woman to be listed on the Dentists' Register of New Zealand Emma Gaudreau Casgrain - the first licensed female dentist in Canada Henri-Edmond Casgrain - Canadian dental surgeon, inventor, city councillor and the first motorist in Quebec. Allen M. Christensen – American politician, Utah state senator Steve Christian – one of the Pitcairn Island sex abusers who did dentistry and was Mayor Dipak Chudasama – cricketer called "The Doc" because he's a qualified dentist Antoni Cieszyński – Polish head of a Stomatology Institute who was killed in the Massacre of Lwów professors Bernard J. Cigrand – possibly the "Father of Flag Day" Barney Clark – first recipient of the Jarvik 7 artificial heart Henry D. Cogswell – designed a method of securing dental plates, and in the temperance movement Frederick J. Conboy – secretary of the Ontario Dental Association and later mayor of Toronto Thomas Connelly – American dentist, works on teeth of celebrities Pierre Corbeil – Canadian politician, Quebec cabinet minister Dan Crane – American dentist/politician. Republican Party L. Adele Cuinet - pioneer American dental surgeon Gerry Curatola
D Miles Dewey Davis, Jr. – ran for a seat on the State Legislature, NAACP member, and father to Miles Davis Bessie Delany – second black woman to be granted a dentistry license in New York state G. Walter Dittmar – former president of the American Dental Association Robert Dudley – actor Winfield Dunn – governor of Tennessee
E Bill Emmerson – California State Assembly member who had a 22-year practice Thomas W. Evans – founded the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine
F Sheila Faith – British politician of the Conservative party Pierre Fauchard – wrote the first complete scientific description of dentistry Polonia Sanz y Ferrer - the first female dentist in Spain Rabab Fetieh – first Saudi female orthodontist Charles Finnigan (1901–1967) – Surgeon Rear Admiral in the Royal Navy who was Honorary Dental Surgeon to the Queen from 1955 to 1960 Alfred Fones (1869–1938) – came up with the name "dental hygienist" and founded that profession Sten Forshufvud – Swedish dentist who drew on his professional knowledge when theorizing about the poisoning of Napoleon Rosalie Fougelberg – Sweden's first female dentist after the profession was opened to women
G Samir Ghawshah – Leader of the Palestinian Popular Struggle Front Michael Glick – dean of SUNY Buffalo Dental School John Goodsir – wrote a noted essay on teeth Paul Gosar – American politician, representative in Congress from Arizona George Franklin Grant – first African-American professor at Harvard. He also invented a wooden golf tee Zane Grey – author of Riders of the Purple Sage and practicing dentist William Guy – Scottish dentist, creator of the Dental Act of 1921 in UK
H John "Dok" Hager – cartoonist whose nickname came from his days as a dentist Jim Harrell, Jr. – past chairman of the American Dental Association Council on Governmental Affairs, and a Democratic Party (United States) politician Chapin A. Harris – co-founded the first dental school in the US, and possibly anywhere Gillette Hayden - served as the first female president of the American Academy of Periodontology Horace H. Hayden – architect of the American system of dental education & organizer of professional dentistry Heimir Hallgrímsson – Icelandic football player and manager, former manager of the Iceland men's national football team, has practiced dentistry throughout his playing and managing career. Harold G. Hillam – General Authority of LDS Church Henriette Hirschfeld-Tiburtius - the first woman to take a full college course in dentistry, as Lucy Hobbs Taylor received credit for her time in dental practice before attending dental college John Henry "Doc" Holliday – Dentist and American Folklore icon, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral participant Matthew Hopcraft – public dentistry expert and MasterChef Australia contestant Les Horvath – winner of Heisman Trophy who became a dentist Edward Hudson – eminent dentist when the field was new, he is also noted for making fake "ruins" Lester C. Hunt – Democratic Party (United States) politician who served in the Dental Corps in World War I.(Committed suicide)
I Francis Brodie Imlach – Scottish dental pioneer. First dentist to use chloroform as an anaesthetic
J Cheddi Jagan – former president of Guyana Fatima Jinnah – sister of Muhammad Ali Jinnah and "Mother of the Nation" in Pakistan Emeline Roberts Jones - the first woman to practice dentistry in the United States Minnie Evangeline Jordon - established the first dental practice in the United States devoted only to pediatric patients, also published the first textbook on pedodontics, titled Operative Dentistry for Children
K Erhard Keller – speed skater at the Winter Olympic Games and professional dentist for over thirty years Ryan Kohlmeier – former professional baseball player in Major League Baseball Michael Krop – Democratic Party (United States) politician with a school named for him Peter Kunter – football player for Eintracht Frankfurt
L Gordon R. Lawson -New Zealand rugby player Donald Leake – dentist, inventor of the alloplastic tray, and oboist Charles Goodall Lee – first licensed dentist of Asian ancestry in the United States of America. He was a founder of Chinatown, Oakland, California, and helped fund the founding of the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Robert Lee – African-American emigrant to Ghana Faith Sai So Leong, also called Sai So Yeong - the first Chinese-American woman to graduate from a school of dentistry and become a dentist in the United States Petra Lie - the first female dentist in Norway Hardy Limeback – proponent who led water fluoridation efforts in Canada Göran Lindblad – Swedish politician John Linder – American politician, representative in Congress Lilian Lindsay the first licensed female dentist in Britain Jim Lonborg – in the Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame, he is now a dentist Mahlon Loomis – known for a wireless telegraph patent Jiko Luveni – Fijian dentist who works on combatting AIDS Alexander Gordon Lyle – United States Navy dentist and World War I Medal of Honor recipient and first military dentist to be promoted to Flag rank (Admiral/General).
M Bernie Machen – president of University of Florida and University of Utah Edward Maynard – treated United States Congressmen and in 1888 he held the chair of Dental Theory and Practice at the National university in Washington. (Better known for firearms inventions) Stanley McInnis – Canadian who moved a motion at a meeting of the Canadian Dental Association to adopt a code of ethics, also a politician Markus Merk – FIFA referee from Germany Ramón Mestre – former Governor of Córdoba Frederick B. Morrehead – helped save the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry Jack Miller – "racing dentist" who was in the Indianapolis 500 Bill Mlkvy – former professional basketball player for the Philadelphia Warriors Mike Morton – football player
N John Newbrough – of Oahspe Phil Northrup – Spiritualist author Charlie Norwood – served in the Dental Corps and was a member of the United States Congress Hessam Nowzari – founder of the Taipei Academy of Reconstructive Dentistry in Taiwan Frederick Bogue Noyes – organized the first course on dental pathology in the United States
O Giovanni Battista Orsenigo – monk/dentist Weedon E. Osborne – United States Navy dentist and World War I Medal of Honor recipient Rodrigues Ottolengui – Sephardic Jewish dental pioneer who was one of the first to use X-rays (also wrote mystery novels)
P Ron Packard – Navy Dental Corps and a private practice, he was later on the U.S. House Committee on Appropriations Painless Parker – dentist and huckster William Paulus – swimmer Guillermo Peschard – Mexican founder of the UJED School of Dentistry Steve Petryk – curler Rudy Perpich – American dentist/politician of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party William Albert Pommer – Canadian politician Fritz Pfeffer – dentist who hid with Anne Frank
Q
R Bessie Raiche – aviation pioneer Earl W. Renfroe – broke barriers for African Americans, headed a dentistry department Charles Richard – Canadian politician Jessica Rickert - the first female American Indian dentist in America Ida Rollins - the first African-American woman to earn a dental degree in the United States, which she earned from the University of Michigan
S Harry Sagansky – gangster trained in dentistry who had a practice Ben L. Salomon – American military dentist and World War II Medal of Honor recipient Hugo Sánchez – Mexican football player