13 Iconic Women From Old Hollywood We’ll Never Forget
Hollywood is considered the place where the beautiful people live and work. There’s no other city in the world quite like it.
Like many things in life, the standards for celebrity beauty have changed over the years. What may have been ordinary at one moment in time is seen as beautiful in a different time.
The golden age of Hollywood produced iconic actresses whose beauty is transcendent. No matter how much time passes, these women will always be among the most beautiful of the beautiful.
1. Dorothy Dandridge
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Dorothy Dandridge was a standout in an industry that marginalized women of color. She was stunningly beautiful, and her talent opened doors for her that were closed off to other Black actresses. Her career began in childhood when she performed in a singing and dancing act with her sister before transitioning to films as a teenager.
Her starring role as the title character in Carmen Jones (1954) opposite Harry Belafonte made her a bona fide star. That role distinguished her as the first Black American woman to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. She never replicated her success after the film, but her effortless look stands the test of time.
2. Marlene Dietrich
The German-born actress and singer attracted attention for her looks, but she was more than just another Hollywood beauty. She was intelligent, demonstrated by her multilingualism, having studied English and French as a child, and learning piano, ballet, and violin while homeschooled. She starred in films like Morocco (1930) and Destry Rides Again (1939). Dietrich also defied the conventions of what a Hollywood actress should be.
She frequently wore menswear on-screen and in real life and supported the United States during World War II, and was a major asset to the Allied campaign. Dietrich gave up her German citizenship to become an American, assisting in the war effort by selling war bonds and recording American songs in German as part of the country’s propaganda against the Axis powers.
3. Rita Hayworth
When you think of Old Hollywood beauty, Rita Hayworth comes to mind. Very few women embodied the beauty and vibrance of Old Hollywood the way she did. Looking at her life, it’s clear Hayworth was destined for stardom: Her parents were performers and she was a professional dancer by age 12.
After being discovered by a film producer, Hayworth signed her first movie contract while still in her teens. She achieved fame starring opposite Cary Grant in Only Angels Have Wings (1939), and partnered with James Cagney in The Strawberry Blonde (1941). Her most famous role was the title character in the 1946 film Gilda.
4. Audrey Hepburn
Known as much for her appearance as she was for her acting skills and humanitarian work, Audrey Hepburn personified class and elegance in everything she did. Hepburn, an accomplished actress on the stage and silver screen, won numerous awards for her Broadway and film performances, including a Tony, a BAFTA, a Golden Globe, and an Academy Award.
Her natural beauty is evident in all of her roles. It’s especially notable with her star turns as the title character in Sabrina (1954) and her portrayal of the delightful Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961). In addition to her status as an Old Hollywood beauty, Hepburn was a fashion icon with her impeccable style.
5. Katharine Hepburn
Like Marlene Dietrich, Katharine Hepburn refused to conform to Hollywood’s standards of how women should look and behave. After starring on Broadway and in breakout film roles throughout the 1930s, like her Oscar-winning turn in Morning Glory (1934). Hepburn was ostracized for her rejection of Hollywood’s rigid standards, refusal to wear makeup, and insistence on wearing pants.
Her critically acclaimed role in The Philadelphia Story on Broadway in 1938 led to her resurgence in Hollywood. She bought the rights to the play and released it as a film in 1940, playing the lead opposite Cary Grant. Not only was it a hit, but her acting career thrived for decades. Her beauty and independent streak only grew as her career advanced through the decades.
6. Lena Horne
At a time when Black actresses were relegated to roles as domestic workers, Lena Horne broke the mold. Initially, Hollywood mostly cast her in singing roles but determined not to be typecast, she refused to portray demeaning characters on film. She displayed her immense talent and beauty by taking the lead parts in Stormy Weather (1943) and Cabin in the Sky (1943).
Horne was a strong believer in social justice and was an active member of Progressive Citizens of America, which ended in her being blacklisted from Hollywood for several years as part of Joseph McCarthy’s crusade. She also participated in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington in 1963, lending her star power to one of the most important historical events in U.S. history.
7. Grace Kelly
Before she became Princess Grace of Monaco, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s own Grace Kelly was an award-winning actress who received an Oscar for her performance in The Country Girl (1954). Kelly effectively combined her wholesome, girl-next-door looks and charm with a touch of femme fatale that made her irresistible to men and made women want to emulate her.
Fans of Alfred Hitchcock movies remember that she was featured in three in the mid-1950s: Dial M for Murder (1954), Rear Window (1954), and To Catch a Thief (1955). She left Hollywood behind when she married Prince Rainier of Monaco, but wasn’t content with being a royal. She spent the rest of her life as a philanthropist supporting several charitable causes.
8. Veronica Lake
The photogenic blonde siren had a short-lived career as an actress, but she made her mark with her long locks that covered one eye and her classic beauty. Lake starred in a few film noir movies in the 1940s, including This Gun for Hire (1942) and The Glass Key (1942). After what seemed to be a meteoric rise in Hollywood, Lake’s acting career crashed after several less successful films.
She was also derailed as a result of issues in her personal life, including multiple marriages and divorces. By the early 1960s, Lake worked as a cocktail waitress at a hotel restaurant in Manhattan. While she never achieved the same level of fame as her contemporaries of that era, Veronica Lake continues to appeal to movie fans.
9. Vivien Leigh
Famed for her spot-on portrayals of two Southern belles: debutante Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind (1939) and Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire (1951), the British actress became an icon. Leigh won the Best Actress Academy Award for both roles. Being one of the most beautiful people in the world only cemented her celebrity status.
Leigh had some stiff competition for the part of Scarlett O’Hara. At the time of casting, she was relatively unknown, while some of the leading actresses of the era, including Bette Davis and Katharine Hepburn auditioned for the role. It’s hard to imagine any other actress fulfilling either of those classic roles besides Leigh.
10. Carole Lombard
One of the original blonde bombshells, Carole Lombard was more than a gorgeous face. She was a tremendously talented actress who provided comic relief to American movie-going audiences during the hardships of the Great Depression. She made audiences laugh and forget their cares in Twentieth Century (1934) and Nothing Sacred (1937).
Lombard was an early feminist, standing up to studio bosses and ensuring that her preferred crew members were hired for her movies. If her comedic roles made her America’s sweetheart, that status was only cemented when she married one of the most handsome men in Hollywood history, Clark Gable. Their marriage was cut short when Lombard tragically died in a plane crash, but to this day she remains a Hollywood icon.
11. Jayne Mansfield
Born Vera Jayne Palmer, Jayne Mansfield was an actress and one of the original Playboy models. She may have played the part of someone who wasn’t that bright, but she was highly intelligent in real life. She was an above-average school student who studied at Southern Methodist University and the University of Texas in Austin.
Mansfield started acting in local plays before starting a career in Hollywood, with roles in The Wayward Bus (1957) and It Takes a Thief (1960). Because of the similarities in their appearance, she was frequently compared to Marilyn Monroe, a comparison Monroe resented. Acting runs in her family: one of Mansfield’s children, Mariska Hargitay, is the star of the long-running television show Law & Order Special Victims Unit.
12. Marilyn Monroe
The actress, who came to prominence for her roles in films like The Seven Year Itch (1955) and Some Like It Hot (1959), remains a Hollywood legend 50 years after her death. Even though she was among the biggest celebrities to come out of Hollywood, Marilyn Monroe remains an enigma to many.
She was just as famous for her films as she was for her complicated personal life. This includes marriages to baseball player Joe DiMaggio, and playwright Arthur Miller, and an alleged relationship with President John F. Kennedy. Despite all the controversy surrounding her life and untimely death, Monroe is still a once-in-a-lifetime stunner.
13. Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor was already a gorgeous woman, but her captivating rare violet eyes and acting talent sealed the deal. Taylor started her career as a child actress with the film National Velvet (1944) making her a superstar at age 12. As an adult, she starred in films opposite Spencer Tracy, James Dean, and of course, Richard Burton.
During her decades-long career in Hollywood, she starred in critically acclaimed films like Giant (1956) and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958). She later won two Oscars for her performances in Butterfield 8 (1960) and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1965). In her later years, Taylor earned several awards for her philanthropic work.
