Here's a short list with links:
MilkShape 3D (Low cost($25), and used by many)
http://www.swissquake.ch/chumbalum-soft/
Caligari GameSpace (Also has a Free 'Lite' version)
http://www.caligari.com/gamespace/
Caligari TrueSpace (GameSpace's Big Brother)
http://www.caligari.com/
Blender (Free, but has a bit more of a learning curve; tutorials are avaliable though)
http://www.blender.org/cms/Home.2.0.html
Carrara (Currently in version 5; you can get their 'Hexagon Modeler seperately for less)
http://www.eovia.com/
Wings 3D (Another free modeling program)
http://www.wings3d.com/
Anim8tor (Also free; you'll here about this one quite a bit around these forums)
http://www.anim8or.com/main/index.html
3D Canvas Pro (A nice little gem that doesn't get the attention it deserves)
http://3dcanvas.thegamecreators.com/
...And now for some of the "Heavy-Hitters" (these will cost you some real money)
3DS Max(current version is 8)
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/index?id=5659302&siteID=123112
Maya (Currently in version 7; they also have a free learning edition "Maya PLE"...be aware that Discreet (3DS Max) bought out Alias (Maya)
http://www.alias.com/glb/eng/products-services/family_details.jsp?familyId=3900009
LightWave (Currently in version 9)
http://www.newtek.com/lightwave/index.php
XSI (Currently in version 5. The Foundation version is the least expensive choice out of all the "Heavy-Hitters", and has just about everything you need for creating game content.)
http://www.softimage.com/Products/Xsi/v5/default.asp
Cinema 4D (Currently at version 9.5; not used quite as much for gamemaking, but still very good)
http://www.maxoncomputer.com/
This is a list of most of the Major ones used today. Other modelers include:
Silo,
Modo,
Houdini(VERY expensive), to name a few more.
You will also need a good paint program to create the model's textures:
Paint Shop Pro (now in version 10; used to belong to Jasc, now it belongs to Corel)
http://www.corel.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=Corel3/Products/Display&pfid=1047024307383&pid=1047025487586
PhotoShop (now in version 9 (CS2))
http://www.adobe.com/products/photoshop/main.html
GIMP (A free paint editor)
http://www.gimp.org/
There's lots of ways to get started. Hope this helps anyone else with this question.
-Keith
"Some people are only alive because it's illegal to kill them".