Classic actresses

[dbCooper]

Natalie Wood (the big screen closeup of her in West Side Story sent chills down my spine)

Grace Kelly

Barbara Stanwyck

All three were the epitome of beauty in my opinion! But really, there have been so many it's hard to pick just three!

[epifanatic]

Grace and Ingrid

[danj]

That picture of the young Barbara Stanwyck has got to be the OMG picture of this entire thread! That look defines "erotic" in my book.

[goraman]

Madhubala Her name in Arabic means damsil of honey.

[danj]

Two more great movie ladies. Both were in many films but their most famous roles are in "horror" pictures. I present:

Fay Wray

and Julie Adams, sometimes billed as "Julia" Adams (shown with co-star George Nader)

[macfreak]

Guys, all your suggestions are superb, beautiful and talented ladies. My favorite is Rita Hayworth, who from early childhood was schooled in the art of dance by her father. She could sing too. Her best role was Gilda in the picture of the same name with Glenn Ford. The poor gal never had a husband who was worthy of the name.

May I suggest a sleeper who had the looks of the best of them? -- Virginia Mayo. Although she made several movies with Danny Kaye, she proved she could act when she played a superficial bitch in one of my favorite movies, The Best Years of Our Lives. Two other great ladies are in that one--Myrna Loy and Theresa Wright.

One final suggestion for consideration -- Jeannette McDonald. She had a wonderful screen presence and a voice that could melt your heart. As a young boy, I fell hard for her in I Married an Angel, but actually her role in San Francisco with Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable was her best. Her role in Rose-Marie was good too. James Stewart was the bad guy and Nelson Eddy ( who else?) played the Canadian Mountie-good guy.

[macfreak]

Originally Posted by Noborigama

Ava Gardner

The pic is of the lovely Elizabeth Taylor. But Ava Gardner is certainly one of the top ten actresses mentioned here.

[macfreak]

Ok, here is something to throw rocks at -- my ranking of the top classic actresses from 1932 to 1965 based on screen beauty, acting ability, and talent, (the ability to sing and dance, and do comedy as well as drama), in that order because I am basically a male chauvinist pig. Second and third tiers are just for fun.

1. Katherine Hepburn. She has the Oscars to prove she could act. Young Kate was very attractive.

2. Rita Hayworth. Scintillating screen beauty and talent to burn. Got typed early as a screen sex goddess. What's wrong with that?

3. Ingrid Bergman. Screen presence in spades. Acting ability enough to break your heart.

4. Elizabeth Taylor. Top beauty and acting ability even as a child. Hard to say who could look more beautiful on the screen than Liz.

5. Audrey Hepburn. Captivating screen presence with a feminine personna that was exemplified by her iconic smile. Was there ever a more beautiful screen princess?

6. Marilyn Monroe. Unappreciated as a serious actress, but she was the blonde bombshell of all time. For acting chops, see: Bus Stop or The Misfits.

7. Grace Kelly. Classic beauty whose short career still displayed great acting ability.

8. Claudette Colbert. Sophisticated and classy, she could do comedy and drama.

9. Ginger Rogers. What a smile! Could she act? See Kitty Foyle. Could she dance? Ask Fred.

10. Bette Davis. Her beauty was an acquired taste. But her acting ability was perhaps without peer, except possibly for Kate Hepburn.

The B-list: Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow, Paulette Goddard, Theresa Wright, Judy Garland, Greta Garbo, Loretta Young, Eleanor Parker, Deborah Kerr, and Vivien Lee.

The third string: Jeanette McDonald, Myrna Loy, Ava Gardner, Yvonne De Carlo, Debbie Reynolds, Susan Hayward, Sophia Loren, Kim Novak, Julie Andrews, Shirley Jones

[Jailtime]

my old thread resurrected! nice work from you newcomers to the thread. It's good to see my favorites, Ingrid and Grace making a comeback after the early lead by Kim Novak. and I'll have to agree with those picks for Virginia Mayo and Marlene Dietrich. and a new one...Margaret Lockwood, British, I believe.

[OldSkool]

Mmmmmmm Yvonne DeCarlo!

[Eric H]

Lizabeth Scott, she never achieved the level of success that she deserved but she was great in Noir, and she's still alive I think.

Also Barbara Stanwyck, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford...

[bluelake07]

Here's another photo of Barbara Stanwyck. This is from "A Lost Lady" (1934) and she would have been about 27 years old at this time:

[arrow 68]

Originally Posted by Eric H

Lizabeth Scott, she never achieved the level of success that she deserved but she was great in Noir, and she's still alive I think.

Also Barbara Stanwyck, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford...

And she liked other women.

[donoghue]

Originally Posted by macfreak

10. Bette Davis. Her beauty was an acquired taste. But her acting ability was perhaps without peer, except possibly for Kate Hepburn.

I love her style and she cleaned up nice when she was in her twenties.

[danj]

There's not a single nominee here that I can disagree with and I hope to see this thread continue to grow.

Two more classic ladies from my list of favorites:

1. LOUISE BROOKS - Arguably the greatest silent screen actress of them all (if one discounts European wonders like Maria Falconetti).

2. CAROLE LOMBARD - Quite possibly the penultimate screen comedienne. A great actress and a genuine American hero. Her tragic death was a huge loss but sealed her legend.