re: who is considered the greatest/biggest movie star of all time?

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James Dean probably has the most fame/movie. Guy basically did 3 feature films and is still an icon.

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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.