Tags
actress, Angelina Jolie, Audrey Hepburn, beauty, Charlize Theron, future icon, glamour, Hollywood, icon, Katharine Hepburn, Old Hollywood, talent
Ladies first.
Their names tell stories written by their bodies, their looks, and sometimes their personal lives. You know who they are: Audrey, Marilyn, Katharine, Rita, Lana, Grace. No last names needed.
The gamine, the tragedienne, the trailblazer, the love goddess, the sweater girl, the princess.
Whether they have one iconic role or several to their names, you still know who they are by virtue of the fact that they embody at least one ideal.
So, who are their contemporary equivalents? People who are famous now won’t necessarily be famous in thirty or forty years. Ever hear of Linda Darnell? A beautiful woman and a good actress, but not an icon.
Angelina? She’s one of the two closest we have to a future icon, to be honest. She’s carved out her own screen persona without the benefit of having a studio to do it for her. She’s an action star (and a believable one at that), beautiful (and super believable at that), a humanitarian, and unapologetically herself. I’ll call her the temptress for now, but I think a term with more depth will be needed for posterity’s sake.
Charlize? A fellow shoo-in. As beautiful as she is, Charlize has worked hard to take on interesting, challenging roles that totally set her apart from her contemporaries. If I had to label her, I’d call her the risk-taker.
Who’s next? One of the Jennifers? Frankly, there are too many to count, and I’ll have to let history sort them out. For my money, Jennifer Lawrence has the best shot at future icon status. She has a personality that extends beyond the reach of her looks, and for all of the burping, farting, etc., she’s very well-respected for her acting ability. What would I call Jennifer Lawrence? Maybe the paradox.
Natalie, Reese, Drew, Kiera, Lupita, and so many more possibilities. The future for all of these actresses will be interesting, and I have no doubt full of iconic performances. What I do hope is that women will someday be as powerful behind the scenes as they are beautiful in front of the cameras. Perhaps then we’ll have a whole new category of glamour to talk about.
She Can't Refuse 