Denton Arthur Cooley (August 22, 1920 – November 18, 2016) was an American heart surgeon. He was known for doing the first implantation of a complete artificial heart. Cooley was also the founder and surgeon in-chief of The Texas Heart Institute, chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital, consultant in Cardiovascular Surgery at Texas Children's Hospital, and a clinical professor of Surgery at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston.