1940's Hollywood - The Leading Ladies

Nothing says glamour like classic Hollywood. The glitter, the poise, the extravaganza, and most importantly the glamorous actors and actresses who seemed to be living the dream.

Let's take a closer look on some of the actresses who defined 40's Hollywood.


Katherine Hepburn
                          

Katherine Hepburn was one of Hollywood's leading ladies for more than 60 years, and the 1940's was no exception! Some of the films she appeared in, in that decade include: The Philadelphia Story, Woman Of The Year and Adam's Rib.
She was characterised as being a very independent and private person. She refused to conform to the glamorous celebrity lifestyle of her time, and valued comfort over glamour which really made her stand out from everyone else.


Judy Garland
                        

At only 17 Judy Garland was thrown into instant stardom after her success in The Wizard Of Oz. In the 40's she was at the top of her career and went to star in a number of musicals, some of the most known being Meet Me In St Louis, For Me And My Gal and Easter Parade.


Rita Hayworth
                         

Today Rita Hayworth is considered one of the most iconic actresses of the 40's. Back then she was considered the ultimate glamorous screen idol and was described as a "love goddess".
In the early 40's she appeared opposite both Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in You Were Never Lovelier and Cover Girl - the very first woman to do so. But the movies she is most famous for today are the dramas, for instance Gilda and The Lady From Shanghai.


Ginger Rogers
                               

I think most people today remember Ginger Rogers from the "Fred & Ginger" movies in the 30's. But she actually rose to another level of stardom in the 40's, when she went to win an Oscar for her role in Kitty Foyle. In the mid-40's she was the highest paid actress in Hollywood after making successful films like Lady In The Dark and Weekend At The Waldorf.


Lauren Bacall
                         

Lauren Bacall started her acting career in 1942, and during the 40's she was an icon of film noir. Some of her successes include To Have And Have Not, The Big Sleep and Key Largo. Her sultry looks and voice were considered her trademarks and made her hugely popular in the role of femme fatale.


Ingrid Bergman
                           

Ingrid Bergman was a Swedish actress who achieved Hollywood fame in the 40's. Her best known movie is no doubt Casablanca, but she also appeared in the movies For Whom The Bells Tolls and Gaslight which both got her an Oscar nomination (and a win for the latter). Later on she also appeared in several Hitchcock movies. At the top of her career she was considered an absolutely outstanding and conscientious actress besides being described as the ideal of American womanhood.


Veronica Lake
                           

Veronica Lake was another film noir icon of the time. She was, among others, in the movies The Glass Key and The Blue Dahlia. However, her breakthrough role was in the 1941 movie I Wanted Wings. Her physical trademark was her distinct peek-a-boo hairstyle, where her hair fell over one eye - a hairstyle that was widely copied by women of the time.


Gene Tierney
                           

Gene Tierney was acclaimed as a great beauty of the time. She was in the movies Heaven Can Wait and Leave Her To Heaven, but her best known role was in the movie Laura.


I'm sure there were many other great actresses of that time that I have forgotten, but these are my collection of the defining actresses of the 40's.

Do you see any of your favourites on this list?