Famous Residents
December, 2004
Homestead Valley can claim several famous residents. Some were famous when they lived here, for example, Ed Radenzel who reported the news on KQED’s Newsroom for several years starting in 1968. Others gained fame later, for example, Jack Kerouac, who lived here in 1956 before “On the Road” was published. There are many others. A sampling of three internationally famous Homestead Valley residents includes an actor/playwright, a musician and a scientist.
SAM SHEPARD
From 1977 to 1983, Sam Shepard, his actress wife, O-Lan Jones, and their son, Jesse, lived at 33 Evergreen Ave. In 1979, he won a Pulitzer prize for his play, “The Buried Child.” In 1983, he was nominated for an Academy Award as best supporting actor for his role as Chuck Yeager in the film, “The Right Stuff.” He was later inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Letters.
JON HENDRICKS
In 1966, Jon Hendricks bought the large house at 328 Ridgewood Ave. and raised a family there. He still owns the house, but lives in New York and spends much of his time on tour throughout the world. He is a singer, song writer and professor of jazz at the University of Toledo. He has performed with many of the great jazz musicians and was part of the famous jazz trio, Lambert, Hendricks and Ross.
PETER SHOR
In the early 1970s, Will and Jobi Shor and their two children moved to 318 Montford Ave. Their son, Peter, attended Edna Maguire Middle School and graduated from Tamalpais High School in 1977. That summer, he helped the US team win the International Math Olympiad in Yugoslavia, – he won 2nd prize. He then went to Cal. Tech., and on to MIT for a Ph.D. He did post doctoral work at U.C.-Berkeley before joining Bell Laboratories. His research there made him one of the most famous mathematicians in the world. “Shor’s Algorithm” is well known in the field of quantum computing. A recent experiment proved its validity. He has won many awards, including a MacArthur Fellowship.
If you have comments or questions about this article or other topics
pertaining to the history of Homestead Valley,
please feel free to e-mail Chuck Oldenburg.