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re: who is considered the greatest/biggest movie star of all time?
Posted on 5/27/14 at 9:09 pm to JawjaTigah
Posted on 5/27/14 at 9:09 pm to JawjaTigah
Those crapping on Cruise are just looking the other way. His career is starting to span decades as some have stated.
That said Monroe, Chaplin, Wayne, Dean, Brando, Hep, Bergman, Sellers, and my personal favorite Jimmy Stewart cannot be weighed by any scale yet made. Add others as well of course.
And Its been most agreeable to see so many names presented and not forgotten
That said Monroe, Chaplin, Wayne, Dean, Brando, Hep, Bergman, Sellers, and my personal favorite Jimmy Stewart cannot be weighed by any scale yet made. Add others as well of course.
And Its been most agreeable to see so many names presented and not forgotten
0
Posted on 5/27/14 at 9:10 pm to JawjaTigah
Lot of good names mentioned. But not a single Clark Gable shoutout? He's gotta be at least in the discussion, right?
Clark Gable
Fred Astaire
Humphrey Bogart
Jimmy Stewart
Marlon Brando
Charlie Chaplin
-My list would look something like that without a lot of thought
Clark Gable
Fred Astaire
Humphrey Bogart
Jimmy Stewart
Marlon Brando
Charlie Chaplin
-My list would look something like that without a lot of thought
Posted on 5/27/14 at 9:59 pm to Jamohn
I'd have to throw Robert Redford in there somewhere too.
Going with Marilyn Monroe or John Wayne as #1 though.
Going with Marilyn Monroe or John Wayne as #1 though.
Posted on 5/27/14 at 10:14 pm to BluegrassBelle
I'm not quite sure he is deserving of being called the biggest movie star of all-time. But my personal favorite is Denzel Washington. I dont think there has been a movie of his that I did not thoroughly enjoy
Posted on 5/28/14 at 8:01 am to QJenk
John Wayne, easy. He was the GOAT. Even his early 30's movies were the schnitz.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 8:10 am to JawjaTigah
quote:
I lean toward cultural icons as a major factor:
cultural icon is a major factor, but its ironic that the 2 biggest cultural icons in the history of film both had relatively short careers as they died very young(james dean and monroe). James Dean is in no way the greatest male film star of all time, but he is probably a bigger cultural icon than any other male actor(I'm not considering elvis as he was a musician first than turned to acting).
Posted on 5/28/14 at 8:50 am to 632627
This is tough because of time, modern media saturation, dilution (modern stars simply don't have the cachet of a Cary Grant or Frank Sinatra, for example - and can't achieve it, regardless of what they do).
So - I would argue you need a break line - roughly 1970 - arbitrary, but it gets us there.
Prior to 1970, and limited only to Talkies, you had, at various times, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, and Bogie - probably nudge out anybody else (Hank Fonda, Gary Cooper, William Powell, might be second tier guys at the cusp).
Bing Crosby, Sinatra and Elvis might need their own category - but all were singers first and movie stars second (honestly - the only newer example I could think of was Cher).
Beginning around 1970 (just a rough break) - you had a "realism" to films and the "stars" since that time have reflected that - very few are "larger than life" stars.
Reynolds
Beatty
Redford
Nicholson
Pacino
Deniro
Ford
Murphy
Stallone
Arnold
Cruise
Depp
Leo
3 guys I would suggest as "transitional" guys who might fit this category are Brando, Newman and Eastwood - big, big stars who had pretty significant work on each side of this line.
There are probably solid arguments for Gable, Grant, Stewart, Bogie, Wayne, Brando, Reynolds, Eastwood and Cruise. I start to see a big separation after this group.
(ETA: And - as for females, there is a clear winner - Marilyn Monroe wins against the field, any way you want to draw it up.)
So - I would argue you need a break line - roughly 1970 - arbitrary, but it gets us there.
Prior to 1970, and limited only to Talkies, you had, at various times, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, John Wayne, and Bogie - probably nudge out anybody else (Hank Fonda, Gary Cooper, William Powell, might be second tier guys at the cusp).
Bing Crosby, Sinatra and Elvis might need their own category - but all were singers first and movie stars second (honestly - the only newer example I could think of was Cher).
Beginning around 1970 (just a rough break) - you had a "realism" to films and the "stars" since that time have reflected that - very few are "larger than life" stars.
Reynolds
Beatty
Redford
Nicholson
Pacino
Deniro
Ford
Murphy
Stallone
Arnold
Cruise
Depp
Leo
3 guys I would suggest as "transitional" guys who might fit this category are Brando, Newman and Eastwood - big, big stars who had pretty significant work on each side of this line.
There are probably solid arguments for Gable, Grant, Stewart, Bogie, Wayne, Brando, Reynolds, Eastwood and Cruise. I start to see a big separation after this group.
(ETA: And - as for females, there is a clear winner - Marilyn Monroe wins against the field, any way you want to draw it up.)
This post was edited on 5/28/14 at 8:52 am
Posted on 5/28/14 at 8:54 am to DallasTiger11
quote:
Tom Cruise? Are you all serious? Over Marilyn Monroe and/or John Wayne?
Marilyn Monroe?
I'd posit that 95% of people who adore her today couldn't name one movie she ever did.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 9:05 am to Feral
quote:
I'd posit that 95% of people who adore her today couldn't name one movie she ever did.
Some Like it Hot
The Misfits
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes
How to Marry a Millionaire
The Asphalt Jungle
The Seven Year Itch
Let's Make Love
The Prince and the Showgirl
Bus Stop
Niagra
I could have watched her read the phonebook.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 9:28 am to 632627
The correct answer IMHO is John Wayne. The man made movies from the mid 20's to the mid 70's and his fame and appeal never diminished. Today we buy movie tickets based on the storyline and the film's perceived ability to entertain us. Few of us fork over our cash just to see a certain actor. However, that was the case with John Wayne. If he was in it then storyline didn't matter. It was simply a John Wayne movie and that alone is what brought people to the theater.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 9:48 am to Ace Midnight
Seven Year Itch and Niagara were the two decent movies she did, and Tom Ewell is the one who made SYI a great movie.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 9:54 am to Feral
quote:
Seven Year Itch and Niagara were the two decent movies she did, and Tom Ewell is the one who made SYI a great movie.
Some Like it Hot - is one of the best comedies of all time - Curtis (doing his somewhat famous impersonation of Cary Grant) and Lemmon did the heavy work - in drag, no less - but that movie is just so-so without Marilyn. Her musical finale is one of the finest musical moments in film history.
If Marilyn isn't #1 female movie star (NOT ACTRESS) - of all time, who is? One of the Hepburns? Bette Davis? Garbo?
Seriously - it is Marilyn and all others... (sorry).
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:01 am to 632627
I am gonna go with Tom Hanks, only because a man that has experienced that amount of success and has no tabloid or controversy about him is one of the most impressive untold stories in Hollywood.
I see why they call him the most normal man in Hollywood.
I see why they call him the most normal man in Hollywood.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:09 am to Tactical1
John Wayne is probably the correct answer, with just sheer name power.
James Dean probably has the most fame/movie. Guy basically did 3 feature films and is still an icon.
James Dean probably has the most fame/movie. Guy basically did 3 feature films and is still an icon.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:15 am to barry
quote:
James Dean probably has the most fame/movie. Guy basically did 3 feature films and is still an icon.
You have a few guys/gals that did so much with so little - Judy Garland is like that.
That's why I can't see Dean as GOAT movie star, because of the small filmography - if you want to see what might have been, look at Brando's career - they were more or less co-equal for that period.
Cultural icons are somewhat different, although on the female side, Marilyn probably gets that tag as well - certainly for the 1950s - it was James Dean, perhaps neck and neck with Elvis. In the 1960s, for example, no actor would even be mentioned - you would have The Beatles and Muhammad Ali. For the 1970s - Farrah Fawcett, perhaps? But not a movie star.
Do we have cultural icons anymore? Cobain, perhaps.
The closest analogue to James Dean for the modern era would be Heath Ledger, who is somehow a legendary actor because of 1 film, and perhaps 6 leading roles.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:23 am to Ace Midnight
quote:
If Marilyn isn't #1 female movie star (NOT ACTRESS) - of all time, who is? One of the Hepburns? Bette Davis? Garbo? Seriously - it is Marilyn and all others... (sorry).
I just don't see Monroe as much of a movie star. She was a "Hollywood Starlet" but to line her up with the Hepburns of the world would be like lining up Howard Hughes as a movie director next to Scorcese.
Monroe was more famous as a pin-up, model, socialite, and just a chick who fricked rich high-profile dudes than she was for acting in movies.
If we're talking female movie stars, I'd think the nod has to go to Kat Hepburn.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:23 am to Ace Midnight
quote:
The closest analogue to James Dean for the modern era would be Heath Ledger, who is somehow a legendary actor because of 1 film, and perhaps 6 leading roles
in terms of male movie stars being cultural icons, nobody really comes close to Dean.
And it looks like the most common answer for biggest movie star of all time is john wayne and marilyn monroe.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:41 am to Jamohn
quote:
I just don't see Monroe as much of a movie star. She was a "Hollywood Starlet" but to line her up with the Hepburns of the world would be like lining up Howard Hughes as a movie director next to Scorcese.
Monroe was more famous as a pin-up, model, socialite, and just a chick who fricked rich high-profile dudes than she was for acting in movies.
If we're talking female movie stars, I'd think the nod has to go to Kat Hepburn.
This.
Marilyn was a pinup girl who was simply a pretty face. She played Marilyn Monroe in every movie. Seriously, her character in Seven Year Itch is simply "The Girl."
Calling her the greatest actress of all time is like saying Kim Kardashian is the greatest TV star of all time simply because of her fame.
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:45 am to 632627
While he probably isnt, John Cazale deserves recognition. You all know him as the guy who played Fredo Corleone, but he only starred/co-starred in 5 films, and all of them were nominated for Best Picture.
The guy was one of the greatest actors of his generation and went far too soon.
The guy was one of the greatest actors of his generation and went far too soon.
This post was edited on 5/28/14 at 10:46 am
Posted on 5/28/14 at 10:46 am to Feral
quote:
Calling her the greatest actress of all time is like saying Kim Kardashian is the greatest TV star of all time simply because of her fame.
Nobody was talking about "acting" or "greatest actress" in this thread. The character actors tend to wipe the floor with the leads in that discussion.
We're talking "movie star" - "film star" - however you want to qualify it - and Marilyn is probably it on the female side. Were Kate and Audrey Hepburn big stars? Yes. Were they great actresses? Kate was, Audrey was okay - I wouldn't say great. Is Meryl Streep a great actress? Certainly. Is she one of the greatest movie stars of all time? Certainly not.
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