20 Favorite Actresses

J.C. Loophole of The Shelf tagged me for a fun game currently circulating among classic movie blogs: name your 20 favorite actresses.

Click the title of this post for J.C.'s list...then click over to check out the list by The Siren, who had tagged J.C. You can find several more links at each site...it's fun to compare the various lists.

This was harder than it looks...I think I generated a second list of 20 just trying to decide who to put in the last four or five places on my list! I followed the Siren's basic criteria in that I would watch any of these actresses in pretty much anything she ever made. It's been fun mulling over this list at the back of my mind while engaged in other tasks today, like Christmas shopping.

My list isn't in any particular order, although I'll say the first 8 names on the list are the very first names that immediately came to mind, without giving it a second thought.

My Favorite Top 20 Actresses:

Loretta Young:


Gene Tierney:


Maureen O'Hara:


Jeanne Crain:


Linda Darnell:


Ginger Rogers:


Myrna Loy:


Carole Lombard:


Doris Day:


Cyd Charisse:


Jean Arthur:


Irene Dunne:


June Allyson:


Kay Francis:


Claudette Colbert:


Hedy Lamarr:


Ida Lupino:


Rosalind Russell:


Maureen O'Sullivan:


Eleanor Parker:


Looking at the above list, I guess you could generally say I like girls next door and screwball comediennes, along with a few more glamorous actresses. I'd note that many of these women had multiple talents: some could sing and/or dance in addition to excelling at both drama and comedy...the list also includes a pair of actresses who were groundbreakers as TV pioneers (Loretta Young, Ida Lupino) and as a female director (Lupino again)...and a rather remarkable inventor (Hedy Lamarr).

Some of the names lingering just outside my Top 20: Deborah Kerr, Esther Williams, Grace Kelly, Olivia de Havilland, Rita Hayworth, Jane Powell, Ava Gardner, Marsha Hunt, Priscilla Lane, Julie Andrews, Donna Reed, Norma Shearer, Deanna Durbin, Jennifer Jones, Betty Grable, Greer Garson, Eve Arden, Margaret O'Brien...well, you get the the idea! A top 40 list would have been a lot easier (grin). And I have a feeling I must be forgetting someone important...

So...when do we list the Top 20 Favorite Actors?

It would be fun to see lists by Carrie at Classic Montgomery, Moira at Skeins of Thought, Carrie at Classic Ramblings (I can guess your No. 1 choice!), and Missy at Missyisms, if any of you are inclined to play! It's a busy time of year, so no pressure. :)

If anyone else wants to participate, feel free to post your list or a link in the comments!

Update: Check out the big roundup at Film Experience!

Monday Update: Here's a great list from Jacqueline at Another Old Movie Blog. It's nice to know there are so many Cyd Charisse fans out there. :)

Tuesday Update: Here are links to more lists from the Self-Styled Siren.

I'd also like to add a welcome to new readers who have stopped by to check out my list!

Tuesday Late Update: Here's Carrie's list at Classic Montgomery. More great choices! Ruth Hussey would probably be in my "Top 40" list along with Priscilla Lane...

Thursday Update: More fun lists: Asleep in New York, Out of the Past, Hollywood Dreamland, and Cine Classics.

December 22nd Update: Here's Carrie's list at Classic Ramblings. A wonderful list. (And finally, someone else picked Eleanor Parker!)

December 28th Update: Here's a very interesting list from the Bookworm Room.

I have now posted a similarly styled list of 20 Favorite Actors.