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AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars facts for kids

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AFI 100 Years... series
1998 100 Movies
1999 100 Stars
2000 100 Laughs
2001 100 Thrills
2002 100 Passions
2003 100 Heroes & Villains
2004 100 Songs
2005 100 Movie Quotes
2005 25 Scores
2006 100 Cheers
2006 25 Musicals
2007 100 Movies (Updated)
2008 AFI's 10 Top 10

AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars is the American Film Institute's list ranking the top 25 male and 25 female greatest screen legends of American film history and is the second list of the AFI 100 Years... series.

The list was unveiled through a CBS special on June 15, 1999, hosted by Shirley Temple (who is herself honored on the female legends list), with 50 then-current actors making the presentations.

AFI defines an "American screen legend" as "an actor or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films (films of 40 minutes or more) whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950, or whose screen debut occurred after 1950 but whose death has marked a completed body of work." In other words, the list generally honors actors recognized for their contributions to classical Hollywood cinema. Jurors selected the final lists from 250 male and 250 female nominees.

Twenty-one male stars were born in the United States; the other four are Charlie Chaplin, Laurence Olivier and Cary Grant, who were born in the United Kingdom, and Edward G. Robinson, born in Romania.

Sixteen female stars were born in the United States; the other nine are Vivien Leigh, born in India; Elizabeth Taylor, the United Kingdom; Audrey Hepburn, Belgium; Mary Pickford, Canada; Marlene Dietrich, Germany; Sophia Loren, Italy; Claudette Colbert, France; and Ingrid Bergman and Greta Garbo, Sweden.

When the lists were unveiled, Gregory Peck, Katharine Hepburn, Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, Shirley Temple, Lauren Bacall, Kirk Douglas (the longest-lived star at 103) and Sidney Poitier were still living, but have since died. Sophia Loren is the sole surviving star from both lists.

List of 50 greatest screen legends: Top 25 Male and Top 25 Female stars

No. Male legends Female legends
1 Bogart, HumphreyHumphrey Bogart

(1899–1957)

Humphrey Bogart 1940.jpg Known for:

The Petrified Forest (1936)

High Sierra (1941)

The Maltese Falcon (1941)

Casablanca (1942)

To Have and Have Not (1944)

The Big Sleep (1946)

Dark Passage (1947)

The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)

Key Largo (1948)

In a Lonely Place (1950)

The African Queen (1951)

The Caine Mutiny (1954)

Sabrina (1954)

The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

The Left Hand of God (1955)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for The African Queen.

Hepburn, KatharineKatharine Hepburn

(1907–2003)

Katharine Hepburn promo pic.jpg Known for:

Morning Glory (1933)

Little Women (1933)

Alice Adams (1935)

Stage Door (1937)

Bringing Up Baby (1938)

Holiday (1938)

The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Woman of the Year (1942)

Adam's Rib (1949)

The African Queen (1951)

Summertime (1955)

Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

Long Day's Journey Into Night (1962)

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

The Lion in Winter (1968)

On Golden Pond (1981)

Nominated for 12 Academy Awards, won for Morning Glory, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, The Lion in Winter, and On Golden Pond.

2 Grant, CaryCary Grant

(1904–1986)

Grant, Cary (Suspicion) 01 Crisco edit.jpg Known for:

Blonde Venus (1932)

She Done Him Wrong (1933)

Sylvia Scarlett (1935)

The Awful Truth (1937)

Bringing Up Baby (1938)

Holiday (1938)

Gunga Din (1939)

Only Angels Have Wings (1939)

His Girl Friday (1940)

The Philadelphia Story (1940)

Penny Serenade (1941)

Suspicion (1941)

Arsenic and Old Lace (1944)

None but the Lonely Heart (1944)

Notorious (1946)

Monkey Business (1952)

To Catch a Thief (1955)

An Affair to Remember (1957)

North by Northwest (1959)

That Touch of Mink (1962)

Charade (1963)

Nominated for two Academy Awards, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1969

Davis, BetteBette Davis

(1908–1989)

Jezebel-1938-Bette-Davis-cropped.jpg Known for:

Of Human Bondage (1934)

Dangerous (1935)

The Petrified Forest (1936)

Jezebel (1938)

Dark Victory (1939)

The Old Maid (1939)

The Letter (1940)

The Little Foxes (1941)

Now, Voyager (1942)

Old Acquaintance (1943)

Mr. Skeffington (1944)

The Corn Is Green (1945)

All About Eve (1950)

The Star (1952)

The Catered Affair (1956)

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte (1964)

The Nanny (1965)

The Whales of August (1987)

Nominated for 10 Academy Awards, won for Dangerous and Jezebel.

3 Stewart, JamesJames Stewart

(1908–1997)

Annex - Stewart, James (Call Northside 777) 01.jpg Known for:

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (1939)

Destry Rides Again (1939)

The Philadelphia Story (1940)

It's a Wonderful Life (1946)

Winchester 73 (1950)

Harvey (1950)

Rear Window (1954)

The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)

Vertigo (1958)

Anatomy of a Murder (1959)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

How the West Was Won (1962)

Nominated for five Academy Awards, won for The Philadelphia Story.

Hepburn, AudreyAudrey Hepburn

(1929–1993)

Audrey Hepburn 1959.jpg Known for:

Roman Holiday (1953)

Sabrina (1954)

Funny Face (1957)

Love in the Afternoon (1957)

The Nun's Story (1959)

Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961)

The Children's Hour (1961)

Charade (1963)

My Fair Lady (1964)

Two for the Road (1967)

Wait Until Dark (1967)

Robin and Marian (1976)

Nominated for five Academy Awards, won for Roman Holiday, posthumously earned Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1992.

4 Brando, MarlonMarlon Brando

(1924–2004)

Marlon Brando in The Men.jpg Known for:

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

Viva Zapata! (1952)

Julius Caesar (1953)

The Wild One (1953)

On the Waterfront (1954)

Guys and Dolls (1955)

The Young Lions (1958)

Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967)

Queimada (1969)

The Godfather (1972)

Last Tango in Paris (1972)

Apocalypse Now (1979)

Nominated for eight Academy Awards, won for On the Waterfront and The Godfather.

Bergman, IngridIngrid Bergman

(1915–1982)

Ingrid Bergman, Gaslight 1944.jpg Known for:

Intermezzo (1939)

Casablanca (1942)

For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943)

Gaslight (1944)

Spellbound (1945)

The Bells of St. Mary's (1945)

Notorious (1946)

Joan of Arc (1948)

Stromboli (1950)

Anastasia (1956)

Cactus Flower (1969)

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Autumn Sonata (1978)

Nominated for seven Academy Awards, won for Gaslight, Anastasia, and Murder on the Orient Express.

5 Astaire, FredFred Astaire

(1899–1987)

Astaire, Fred - Never Get Rich.jpg Known for:

Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers' Partnership

The Gay Divorcee (1934)

Top Hat (1935)

Swing Time (1936)

Shall We Dance (1937)

Holiday Inn (1942)

Yolanda and the Thief (1945)

Easter Parade (1948)

Royal Wedding (1951)

The Band Wagon (1953)

Funny Face (1957)

The Pleasure of His Company (1961)

Finian's Rainbow (1968)

Ghost Story (1981)

Nominated for one Academy Award, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1949

Garbo, GretaGreta Garbo

(1905–1990)

Garbo in Inspiration.jpg Known for:

Flesh and the Devil (1926)

Love (1927)

The Kiss (1929)

Anna Christie (1930)

Susan Lenox (Her Fall and Rise) (1931)

Mata Hari (1931)

Grand Hotel (1932)

Queen Christina (1933)

The Painted Veil (1934)

Anna Karenina (1935)

Camille (1936)

Conquest (1937)

Ninotchka (1939)

Two-Faced Woman (1941)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1954.

6 Fonda, HenryHenry Fonda

(1905–1982)

Henry Fonda, 1940.jpg Known for:

The Trail of the Lonesome Pine (1936)

You Only Live Once (1937)

Jezebel (1938)

Young Mr. Lincoln (1939)

The Grapes of Wrath (1940)

The Return of Frank James (1940)

The Lady Eve (1941)

The Ox-Bow Incident (1943)

My Darling Clementine (1946)

Mister Roberts (1955)

The Wrong Man (1956)

12 Angry Men (1957)

The Longest Day (1962)

Fail Safe (1964)

Yours, Mine and Ours (1968)

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

On Golden Pond (1981)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for On Golden Pond, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1980.

Monroe, MarilynMarilyn Monroe

(1926–1962)

Monroe 1953 publicity.jpg Known for:

Ladies of the Chorus (1948)

The Asphalt Jungle (1950)

Clash by Night (1952)

Don't Bother to Knock (1952)

Monkey Business (1952)

Niagara (1953)

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)

How to Marry a Millionaire (1953)

River of No Return (1954)

The Seven Year Itch (1955)

Bus Stop (1956)

The Prince and the Showgirl (1957)

Some Like It Hot (1959)

The Misfits (1961)

7 Gable, ClarkClark Gable

(1901–1960)

Clark Gable - publicity.JPG Known for:

A Free Soul (1931)

Possessed (1931)

Red Dust (1932)

No Man of Her Own (1932)

Hold Your Man (1933)

It Happened One Night (1934)

Forsaking All Others (1934)

Call of the Wild (1935)

Mutiny on the Bounty (1935)

San Francisco (1936)

Test Pilot (1938)

Gone with the Wind (1939)

Strange Cargo (1940)

Somewhere I'll Find You (1942)

Mogambo (1953)

Teacher's Pet (1958)

Run Silent, Run Deep (1958)

The Misfits (1961)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for It Happened One Night.

Taylor, Dame ElizabethDame Elizabeth Taylor

(1932–2011)

Studio publicity Elizabeth Taylor.jpg Known for:

National Velvet (1944)

Life with Father (1947)

Father of the Bride (1950)

A Place in the Sun (1951)

Ivanhoe (1952)

Elephant Walk (1954)

Giant (1956)

Raintree County (1957)

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958)

Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

BUtterfield 8 (1960)

Cleopatra (1963)

The Sandpiper (1965)

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)

Reflections in a Golden Eye (1967)

Secret Ceremony (1968)

Ash Wednesday (1973)

The Mirror Crack'd (1980)

Nominated for five Academy Awards, won for BUtterfield 8 and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, earned Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1992.

8 Cagney, JamesJames Cagney

(1899–1986)

James cagney promo photo.jpg Known for:

The Doorway to Hell (1930)

The Public Enemy (1931)

Smart Money (1931)

Taxi! (1932)

The Crowd Roars (1932)

Jimmy the Gent (1934)

Here Comes the Navy (1934)

The Irish in Us (1935)

Angels with Dirty Faces (1938)

Each Dawn I Die (1939)

The Roaring Twenties (1939)

The Fighting 69th (1940)

City for Conquest (1940)

Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)

Johnny Come Lately (1943)

13 Rue Madeleine (1947)

White Heat (1949)

Kiss Tomorrow Goodbye (1950)

The West Point Story (1950)

Love Me or Leave Me (1955)

Mister Roberts (1955)

Tribute to a Bad Man (1956)

These Wilder Years (1956)

Man of a Thousand Faces (1957)

Shake Hands with the Devil (1959)

The Gallant Hours (1960)

One, Two, Three (1961)

Ragtime (1981)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for Yankee Doodle Dandy

Garland, JudyJudy Garland

(1922–1969)

Judy Garland 1943 publicity photo.jpg Known for:

Thoroughbreds Don't Cry (1937)

Everybody Sing (1938)

Love Finds Andy Hardy (1938)

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Babes in Arms (1939)

Little Nellie Kelly (1940)

Ziegfeld Girl (1941)

For Me and My Gal (1942)

Presenting Lily Mars (1943)

Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)

The Clock (1945)

The Harvey Girls (1946)

The Pirate (1948)

Easter Parade (1948)

In the Good Old Summertime (1949)

Summer Stock (1950)

A Star Is Born (1954)

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

A Child Is Waiting (1963)

I Could Go On Singing (1963)

Nominated for two Academy Awards, earned Academy Juvenile Award in 1939

9 Tracy, SpencerSpencer Tracy

(1900–1967)

Spencer Tracy.jpg Known for:

20,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932)

Fury (1936)

San Francisco (1936)

Libeled Lady (1936)

Captains Courageous (1937)

Mannequin (1937)

Test Pilot (1938)

Boys Town (1938)

Northwest Passage (1940)

Edison, the Man (1940)

Boom Town (1940)

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1941)

Woman of the Year (1942)

Tortilla Flat (1942)

A Guy Named Joe (1943)

The Seventh Cross (1944)

Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo (1944)

State of the Union (1948)

Adam's Rib (1949)

Father of the Bride (1950)

Pat and Mike (1952)

Bad Day at Black Rock (1955)

The Old Man and the Sea (1958)

Inherit the Wind (1960)

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (1963)

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Nominated for nine Academy Awards, won for Captains Courageous and Boys Town

Dietrich, MarleneMarlene Dietrich

(1901–1992)

Marlene Dietrich in No Highway (1951) (Cropped).png Known for:

The Blue Angel (1930)

Morocco (1930)

Dishonored (1931)

Shanghai Express (1932)

Blonde Venus (1932)

The Scarlet Empress (1934)

The Devil Is a Woman (1935)

Desire (1936)

Angel (1937)

Destry Rides Again (1939)

The Flame of New Orleans (1941)

Manpower (1941)

The Spoilers (1942)

Pittsburgh (1942)

Kismet (1944)

Golden Earrings (1947)

A Foreign Affair (1948)

Stage Fright (1950)

No Highway in the Sky (1951)

Rancho Notorious (1952)

Witness for the Prosecution (1957)

Touch of Evil (1958)

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

Nominated for one Academy Award

10 Chaplin, CharlieCharlie Chaplin

(1889–1977)

Charlie Chaplin portrait.jpg Known for:

The Tramp character

The Kid (1921)

The Gold Rush (1925)

City Lights (1931)

Modern Times (1936)

The Great Dictator (1940)

Nominated for three Academy Awards (one for acting), won Academy Award for Best Original Dramatic Score for Limelight (1952), earned Academy Honorary Awards in 1927/28 and 1971.

Crawford, JoanJoan Crawford

(190? – 1977)

Joan Crawford - 1936 - Hurrell.JPG Known for:

Our Dancing Daughters (1928)

Possessed (1931)

Grand Hotel (1932)

Letty Lynton (1932)

Rain (1932)

Forsaking All Others (1934)

The Bride Wore Red (1937)

Mannequin (1937)

The Women (1939)

A Woman's Face (1941)

Mildred Pierce (1945)

Humoresque (1946)

Possessed (1947)

The Damned Don't Cry (1950)

Sudden Fear (1952)

Johnny Guitar (1954)

Female on the Beach (1955)

Autumn Leaves (1956)

What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962)

Strait-Jacket (1964)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for Mildred Pierce.

11 Cooper, GaryGary Cooper

(1901–1961)

Gary Cooper 1936.jpg Known for:

A Farewell to Arms (1932)

Design for Living (1933)

Desire (1936)

Mr. Deeds Goes to Town (1936)

Beau Geste (1939)

Meet John Doe (1941)

Sergeant York (1941)

Ball of Fire (1941)

The Pride of the Yankees (1942)

For Whom the Bell Tolls (1943)

Saratoga Trunk (1945)

The Fountainhead (1949)

High Noon (1952)

Friendly Persuasion (1956)

They Came to Cordura (1959)

The Wreck of the Mary Deare (1959)

Nominated for five Academy Awards, won for Sergeant York and High Noon, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1960.

Stanwyck, BarbaraBarbara Stanwyck

(1907–1990)

BarbaraS39.jpg Known for:

Night Nurse (1931)

Stella Dallas (1937)

The Lady Eve (1941)

Meet John Doe (1941)

Ball of Fire (1941)

Lady of Burlesque (1943)

Double Indemnity (1944)

Christmas in Connecticut (1945)

The Strange Love of Martha Ivers (1946)

Sorry, Wrong Number (1948)

The Furies (1950)

Titanic (1953)

Nominated for four Academy Awards, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1981.

12 Peck, GregoryGregory Peck

(1916–2003)

Gregory Peck 1948.jpg Known for:

The Keys of the Kingdom (1944)

Spellbound (1945)

The Yearling (1946)

Duel in the Sun (1946)

Gentleman's Agreement (1947)

Twelve O'Clock High (1949)

Moby Dick (1956)

The Big Country (1958)

The Guns of Navarone (1961)

To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

Nominated for five Academy Awards, won for To Kill a Mockingbird, earned Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award in 1967.

Colbert, ClaudetteClaudette Colbert

(1903–1996)

Claudette Colbert 1931.jpg Known for:

The Smiling Lieutenant (1931)

The Sign of the Cross (1932)

It Happened One Night (1934)

Cleopatra (1934)

Imitation of Life (1934)

Private Worlds (1935)

Midnight (1939)

Arise, My Love (1940)

The Palm Beach Story (1942)

So Proudly We Hail! (1943)

Since You Went Away (1944)

The Egg and I (1947)

Three Came Home (1950)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for It Happened One Night.

13 Wayne, JohnJohn Wayne

(1907–1979)

John Wayne 1940.jpg Known for:

Stagecoach (1939)

Red River (1948)

The Quiet Man (1952)

The Searchers (1956)

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

True Grit (1969)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for True Grit.

Kelly, GraceGrace Kelly

(1929–1982)

Grace Kelly 1955.jpg Known for:

The Country Girl (1954)

High Noon (1952)

Mogambo (1953)

Dial M for Murder (1954)

Rear Window (1954)

To Catch a Thief (1955)

Nominated for two Academy Awards, won for The Country Girl.

14 Olivier, LaurenceLaurence Olivier

(1907–1989)

Laurence Olivier - Rebecca.jpg Known for:

Wuthering Heights (1939)

Rebecca (1940)

Pride and Prejudice (1940)

That Hamilton Woman (1941)

Henry V (1944)

Hamlet (1948)

Richard III (1955)

Sleuth (1972)

Marathon Man (1976)

Nominated for 11 Academy Awards (ten for acting), won for Hamlet, earned Academy Honorary Awards in 1946 and 1978.

Rogers, GingerGinger Rogers

(1911–1995)

Ginger Rogers - Tender Comrade.jpg Known for:

Partnership with Fred Astaire

The Gay Divorcee (1934)

Top Hat (1935)

Swing Time (1936)

Shall We Dance (1937)

Stage Door (1937)

Carefree (1938)

Bachelor Mother (1939)

Kitty Foyle (1940)

The Major and the Minor (1942)

I'll Be Seeing You (1944)

Storm Warning (1950)

Monkey Business (1952)

Won Academy Award for Kitty Foyle.

15 Kelly, GeneGene Kelly

(1912–1996)

Gene kelly.jpg Known for:

Cover Girl (1944)

Anchors Aweigh (1945)

On the Town (1949)

Summer Stock (1950)

An American in Paris (1951)

Singin' in the Rain (1952)

Brigadoon (1954)

Xanadu (1980)

Nominated for one Academy Award, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1951.

West, MaeMae West

(1893–1980)

Mae West - 1936.jpg Known for:

She Done Him Wrong (1933)

I'm No Angel (1933)

Belle of the Nineties (1934)

Goin' to Town (1935)

Klondike Annie (1936)

Every Day's a Holiday (1937)

My Little Chickadee (1940)

Myra Breckinridge (1970)

16 Welles, OrsonOrson Welles

(1915–1985)

Orson Welles 1937.jpg Known for:

Citizen Kane (1941)

The Stranger (1946)

Macbeth (1948)

The Third Man (1949)

Touch of Evil (1958)

Nominated for three Academy Awards (one for acting), won Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Citizen Kane, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1970.

Leigh, VivienVivien Leigh

(1913–1967)

Vivien Leigh - Anna Karenina.jpg Known for:

Gone with the Wind (1939)

Waterloo Bridge (1940)

That Hamilton Woman (1941)

Caesar and Cleopatra (1945)

Anna Karenina (1948)

A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)

The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone (1961)

Ship of Fools (1965)

Won Academy Awards for Gone with the Wind and A Streetcar Named Desire.

17 Douglas, KirkKirk Douglas

(1916–2020)

Kirk douglas photo signed.JPG Known for:

Champion (1949)

The Bad and the Beautiful (1952)

20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954)

Paths of Glory (1957)

Spartacus (1960)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1995.

Gish, LillianLillian Gish

(1893–1993)

Lillian Gish-edit1.jpg Known for:

The Birth of a Nation (1915)

Broken Blossoms (1919)

The Wind (1928)

Duel in the Sun (1946)

The Night of the Hunter (1955)

Nominated for one Academy Award, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1970.

18 Dean, JamesJames Dean

(1931–1955)

James Dean - publicity - early.JPG Known for:

Rebel Without a Cause (1955)

East of Eden (1955)

Giant (1956)

Nominated for two Academy Awards.

Temple, ShirleyShirley Temple

(1928–2014)

Shirley Temple 1949.jpg Known for:

Bright Eyes (1934)

Curly Top (1935)

Wee Willie Winkie (1937)

Heidi (1937)

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm (1938)

The Little Princess (1939)

Earned Academy Juvenile Award in 1934.

19 Lancaster, BurtBurt Lancaster

(1913–1994)

Burt Lancaster - publicity 1947.JPG Known for:

The Killers (1946)

From Here to Eternity (1953)

Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

Separate Tables (1958)

Elmer Gantry (1960)

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

Birdman of Alcatraz (1962)

The Leopard (1963)

Atlantic City (1980)

Nominated for four Academy Awards, won for Elmer Gantry.

Hayworth, RitaRita Hayworth

(1918–1987)

Rita Hayworth-publicity.JPG Known for:

Only Angels Have Wings (1939)

You'll Never Get Rich (1941)

You Were Never Lovelier (1942)

Cover Girl (1944)

Gilda (1946)

The Lady from Shanghai (1947)

The Loves of Carmen (1948)

Affair in Trinidad (1952)

Salome (1953)

Miss Sadie Thompson (1953)

Separate Tables (1958)

20 Brothers, MarxMarx Brothers

Chico (1887–1961)

Harpo (1888–1964)

Groucho (1890–1977)

Marx Brothers 1931.jpg Known for:

Animal Crackers (1930)

Horse Feathers (1932)

Duck Soup (1933)

A Night at the Opera (1935)

A Day at the Races (1937)

Groucho was presented with an Academy Honorary Award in 1973 for "his brilliant creativity and for the unequalled achievements of the Marx Brothers."

Bacall, LaurenLauren Bacall

(1924–2014)

Lauren Bacall 1945 (cropped).jpg Known for:

To Have and Have Not (1944)

The Big Sleep (1946)

Dark Passage (1947)

Key Largo (1948)

Written on the Wind (1956)

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Nominated for one Academy Award, earned Academy Honorary Award in 2009.

21 Keaton, BusterBuster Keaton

(1895–1966)

Busterkeaton edit.jpg Known for:

Sherlock Jr. (1924)

The General (1926)

The Cameraman (1928)

Steamboat Bill, Jr. (1928)

Earned Academy Honorary Award in 1959.

Loren, SophiaSophia Loren

(born 1934)

Sophia Loren - 1959.jpg Known for:

The Millionairess (1960)

Two Women (1961)

El Cid (1961)

Marriage Italian Style (1964)

Nominated for two Academy Awards, won for Two Women, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1990.

22 Poitier, SidneySidney Poitier

(1927–2022)

Sidney Poitier 1968.jpg Known for:

No Way Out (1950)

The Blackboard Jungle (1955)

The Defiant Ones (1958)

Porgy and Bess (1959)

A Raisin in the Sun (1961)

Lilies of the Field (1963)

A Patch of Blue (1965)

To Sir, with Love (1967)

In the Heat of the Night (1967)

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967)

Nominated for two Academy Awards, won for Lilies of the Field, earned Academy Honorary Award in 2001.

Harlow, JeanJean Harlow

(1911–1937)

Harlow-publicity.jpg Known for:

Hell's Angels (1930)

Red Dust (1932)

Dinner at Eight (1933)

Reckless (1935)

Saratoga (1937)

23 Mitchum, RobertRobert Mitchum

(1917–1997)

Robert Mitchum 1949 (no signature).jpg Known for:

Out of the Past (1947)

The Night of the Hunter (1955)

Cape Fear (1962)

Ryan's Daughter (1970)

Nominated for one Academy Award

Lombard, CaroleCarole Lombard

(1908–1942)

Carole Lombard - Paramount.JPG Known for:

Hands Across the Table (1935)

My Man Godfrey (1936)

Mr. & Mrs. Smith (1941)

To Be or Not to Be (1942)

Nominated for one Academy Award.

24 Robinson, Edward G.Edward G. Robinson

(1893–1973)

Edward G. Robinson 1948.jpg Known for:

Little Caesar (1931)

Double Indemnity (1944)

Key Largo (1948)

The Ten Commandments (1956)

Posthumously earned Academy Honorary Award in 1972.

Pickford, MaryMary Pickford

(1892–1979)

Mary Pickford cph.3c17995u.jpg Known for:

Hearts Adrift (1914)

Pollyanna (1920)

My Best Girl (1927)

Coquette (1929)

Won Academy Award for Coquette, earned Academy Honorary Award in 1975.

25 Holden, WilliamWilliam Holden

(1918–1981)

Holden-portrait.jpg Known for:

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Stalag 17 (1953)

The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957)

Network (1976)

Nominated for three Academy Awards, won for Stalag 17.

Gardner, AvaAva Gardner

(1922–1990)

Ava Gardner Show Boat 1951.jpg Known for:

The Killers (1946)

Show Boat (1951)

Mogambo (1953)

The Barefoot Contessa (1954)

The Night of the Iguana (1964)

Nominated for one Academy Award.

Nominees

The legends were chosen out of a list of 250 male and 250 female nominees. The adjoining reference gives the lists of the original selection.

With the death of Sidney Poitier in January 2022, all male living legends and nominees have now died. There is one surviving female living legend, Sophia Loren (88), and 6 remaining female nominees: Ann Blyth (94), Claire Bloom (92), Mitzi Gaynor (91), Rita Moreno (91), Piper Laurie (91) and Margaret O'Brien (86). The most recent nominee to pass away is Gina Lollobrigida, aged 95, in January 2023.

The 250 male nominees

The Actors that are part of the complete list of nominees are:

The 250 female nominees

The Actresses that are part of the complete list of nominees are:

NOTE: Those listed in bold indicate that the star is still living.

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