36 thoughts on “April 19th – Top 25 AFI Actress Rankings By UMR Commenters”

1. Flora, Lupino, Bob Cox,
   Three very interesting lists. Hard to argue with any of these picks. Bob has a mix of classic and modern actresses, but Flora’s and Lupino’s idols are all from the ancient past. I see that Bob has repaired the injustice he felt had been made to Greer Garson in our top 25 classic actresses list, by placing her as #5 in his list; Flora is a Lauren Bacall fan, so she probably did not appreciate I had cut off her my top 25 list (sorry I didn’t know), and Lupino may have inspired his name from his #10 pick 🙂

   1. Hi, Phil.

      We all have our preferences. I love classic Hollywood even though I was born in the 1970s. I do not mind you leaving off Ms. Bacall.

      1. Hey Flora…..good points. As for Bacall…..she is probably one of the least deserving actresses on the AFI list….I liked her but she did not have the career or legacy of Kerr, Dunne or Loy.

         1. Hey Bruce, you may be a bit harsh on Bacall. She did co-star with Bogart in at least 3 great classics: To Have and Have Not, The Big Sleep and Key Largo. I think Sophia Loren is the one AFI pick who is perhaps less deserving in terms of her Hollywood career. Her biggest classic, Two Women, was an Italian film. However, Loren is of course more well-known and loved internationally for other reasons than just her films.

2. here we go. I am not as familiar with the ladies. their careers are shorter and they rarely got the best roles. there are lots more to consider. started with all UMR listings, then UMR top 100, then AFI legends, then UMR 1950-2010, then Oscar best actress and best supporting actress, then Flora, then Cogerson top 10, then lupino. added some of my own.
   1. Katharine Hepburn
   2. Ingrid bergman
   3. Barbra Streisand
   4. meryl streep
   5. greer garson
   6. Jodie foster
   7.sally fields
   8. emma Thompson
   9. Shirley mclaine
   10. Myrna loy
   11. Julia Roberts
   12. Julie Andrews
   13. Barbara stanwyck
   14. bette davis
   15. cate blanchett
   16. anne Bancroft
   17. joan Crawford
   18. Elizabeth taylor
   19. judy garland
   20. maurene ohara
   21. norma shearer
   22. meg ryan
   23 Olivia dehaviland
   24. rene russo
   25. Sandra bullock
   26. susan Sarandon
   27. diane Keaton
   28. Deborah kerr
   29. Irene dunne
   30. ginger rogers
   31. glenn close
   32. lauren bacall
   33. Helen hunt
   34. winona ryder
   35. julianne moore
   36. geena davis
   37. joanne woodward
   38. doris day
   39. anne-Margaret
   40.angelina jolie
   41. Hilary swank
   42. michelle Pfeiffer
   43. Gwyneth paltrow
   44. Helena Bonham carter
   45. judy dench
   46. Sigourney weaver
   47. holly hunter
   48. Claudette colbert
   49. carole Lombard
   50. Cameron diaz
   I intentionally left out 19 out of our 38 legend vote getters. including the sexiest woman I have ever seen , marilyn could take down a presidency, be worshipped in a musical movie by my favourite rock group the Who’s Tommy, be THE female cultural icon , play the female lead in 8 movies and co-lead female in 5 more. I always felt she was best when type cast as a ditzy blonde “want to be” actress (all about eve, some like it hot, gentlemen prefer blondes). my toughest cuts faye dunaway, charlize theron, shelley winters, kate winslet, Jessica tandy, Rachel Weiss, greta garbo. happy we did not include television or mary tyler moore and Lucille ball and carol burnett and gilda radner might be in.

   1. Thanks for sharing your list of favourite actresses and who your cuts from your original list were. Interesting that you left off a large number of AFI legends. These lists are fun to read.

   2. Hi bob,

      Barbra Streisand at number 3? Great birthday present for the most successful actress of the late 60’s and right into in the 80’s! We couldn’t agree more on Marilyn- in fact, if I had written my list 40 years ago, she would have been my number one hands down instead of being just a “contender” for the top spot. If we were to include tv actresses, Jessica Lange would join all the others, as I really came to appreciate her after various great performances on different series of American Horror Story, as would another stunning blonde, Donna Mills, with only a few movies to her credit, but who scared me to death on an early Horror Antology series in the 70’s.

3. Hello Lupino,

   Nice to read you again, and i am sorry but i am not interrested by the rank and the list of the ladies and gents stars;
   As i write it there is some different level between them , the myths , the stars and the actors;
   After that you can put what’s you like ou want it is up to you but in the mean time there is some recognization in all the world;
   Monroe, Dietrich and Garbo are the three myths in all the world for ladies screen and for the gents
   Bogart, Dean and Brando ( sorry Phil, i forgot him in my last comment but he is a Myth, you were right )
   I just remark that now the new generations : 20 AND 30 remenbered only Maryline Monroe because she is everywhere and i am not sur they know the others;
   My first comment about the Olympic gods was because i am just reading something very interresting by DAN SIMMONS, ILIUM and OLYMPOS inspired by the poem of Homere
   The Troy War and with all the Gods, and the heroes, etc
   And i was thinking to myself what a great film to do but we need very very big stars for the heroes and for the Gods and also a very big big big budget!!!!
   But what a film, it is really incredebil because everything is change with the poem of Homere and you have a war between Gods end heroes at the end;
   À bientot,
   Pierre

   1. Hello Pierre,
      My list contains the 50 actors and actresses that were most influentual in making me the crazy movie lover I am today- no boxoffice, awards or global love by fans influenced this list, just the black and white tv that had me glued to its screen as a child and was later exchanged in favor of technically more advanced color tv sets- and of course the big screen. Otherwise, legendary people like Lillian Gish or Charlie Chaplin would have to take a prominent spot on these lists.

      This said, I haven’t been able to read up on all the comments posted here during my absence, but your movie idea sounds very intriguing indeed! Have a pleasant evening, hope talking to you again soon 🙂

4. My Top 25 Favourite Actress List:

   Again, you will see how my list is full of the Golden Age of Hollywood. That’s no accident. I started with a list of 80. This list is personal preference only. Lots of musical stars on both my lists.

   1. Audrey Hepburn
   2. Bette Davis
   3. Lauren Bacall
   4. Shirley MacLaine
   5. Gene Tierney
   6. Barbara Stanwyck
   7. Debbie Reynolds
   8. Judy Garland
   9. Marilyn Monroe
   10.Elizabeth Taylor
   11.Katherine Hepburn
   12.Ingrid Bergman
   13.Cyd Charisse
   14.Ginger Rogers
   15.Lana Turner
   16.Kim Novak
   17.Eva Marie Saint
   18.Jane Powell
   19.Maggie Smith
   20.Myrna Loy
   21.Margaret Sullivan
   22.Grace Kelly
   23.Joan Bennett
   24.Greta Garbo
   25.Olivia DeHaviland
   26.Joan Fontaine
   27.Maureen O’Hara
   28.Hedy Lamarr
   29.Merle Oberon
   30.Claudette Colbert
   31.Leslie Caron
   32.Betty Grable
   33.Doris Day
   34.Jane Wyman
   35.Vivien Leigh
   36.Dorothy McGuire
   37.Joan Crawford
   38.Rita Hayworth
   39.Ava Gardner
   40.Jean Harlow
   41.Sophia Loren
   42.Jane Russell
   43.Norma Shearer
   44.Deborah Kerr
   45.Jean Simmons
   46.Irene Dunne
   47.Carole Lombard
   48.Judy Holliday
   49.Dorothy McGuire
   50.Elsa Lanchester

   1. Names on my master list I cut include Susan Hayward, Lillian Gish, Mary Pickford, Shirley Temple, Dorothy Lamour, Betty Hutton, Esther Williams, Gina Lollabridgida, Janet Leigh, Tippi Hedrin, and Thelma Ritter

      1. Hello Flora,

         interesting picks! You mention Dorothy McGuire twice, not that she doesn’t deserve it, but do you happen to mean another Dorothy? Dorothy Lamour, perhaps? Nice to see Margaret Sullavan making an appearance on your list 🙂 🙂 🙂

         1. Oops! Thanks for the catch Lupino. Dorothy Malone was supposed to be on that list. 🙂

   2. As Lupino mentioned, I mentioned Dorothy McGuire twice. Number 49 was supposed to be Dorothy Malone. Thanks again, Lupino for the heads up.

   3. Nice list of favorite actresses Flora. Good to see Myrna Loy on there. A little surprised to see Susan Hayward isn’t one of your 50 favorites.

      Scanning your list I think I’ve done videos on 43 of them, not bad eh? 🙂

      1. Susan Hayward just missed making the top 50. It was a difficult cut. As for your videos, 43 out of my favourite 50 is great! 🙂

5. Been away for a while due to heavy problems at work and it seems I missed a lot of fun that is going on here. Though it looks a bit like a private party, I’d like to add my 2 cents- if only to sing the glory of some yet unmentioned screen legends.
   I put my favorite actresses in groups of ten, since even I don’t know who is my alltime favorite. Sounds strange? Well, not to me…So, putting award and boxoffice glory aside, these are the actresses who had the biggest effect on me during the last 5 decades:

   Margaret Sullavan
   Jennifer Jones
   Marilyn Monroe
   Sylvia Sidney
   Audrey Hepburn
   Bette Davis
   Luise Rainer
   Barbara Stanwyck
   Marlene Dietrich
   Ida Lupino

   Linda Darnell
   Hedy Lamarr
   Veronica Lake
   Joan Fontaine
   Merle Oberon
   Jean Arthur
   Maureen O’Hara
   Barbra Streisand
   Claudette Colbert
   Jane Wyman

   Katharine Hepburn
   Gene Tierney
   Dorothy McGuire
   Vivien Leigh
   Margaret Lockwood
   Thelma Ritter
   Deborah Kerr
   Jean Simmons
   Joan Bennett
   Diana Dors

   Teresa Wright
   Frances Farmer
   Irene Dunne
   Agnes Moorehead
   Lana Turner
   Ginger Rogers
   Myrna Loy
   Doris Day
   Gina Lollogrigida
   Priscilla Lane

   Carole Lombard
   Meryl Streep
   Judy Holliday
   Greta Garbo
   Ethel Barrymore
   Joan Crawford
   Mae West
   Judy Garland
   Rita Hayworth
   Susan Hayward

   50 already…and still no mention of Geraldine Page, Kim Stanley, Margaret Leighton, Tippi Hedren, Jean Peters, June Haver, Betty Grable, Ingrid Bergman, Judy Dench, Susan Sarandon…certainly all within my top 100- which means still very close to this movie lover’s heart 😉

   1. Already noticed two major omissions: Jodie Foster, who is someone I grew up with (from Taxi Driver to Panic Room and beyond) and one of my alltime favorite supporting actresses, the Bride of Frankenstein herself, the wonderful Elsa Lanchester 🙁

   2. Great list. It is not a private party. It’s fun to do these lists. Thanks for posting your Actress list on The UMR Commentator Top Actress list. It makes sense to have actress lists on this page rather than both actors and actresses on the actor list.

      1. Lupino favors Lupino. inspiring. any relation?

         1. Hello bob,

            no relation, but pure inspiration 😉

      2. Hello Flora,

         thanks for not making me feel like a party crasher 🙂

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