Movie Stars of the 1930’s

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire was very popular throughout the 1930’s. His defining role was “Funny Face” with Audrey Hepburn. Not only was Fred Astaire an outstanding actor, however he was a great singer and dancer.

Charlie Chaplin Charlie Chaplin was one of the very first superstars of the cinema to convert from silent films to “talkies”(movies with sounds). His defining role was in the smash hit “City Lights”.

W.C. Fields W.C.Fields was a famous comical actor. His defining role was in “My Little Chickadee”. He also starred in the first version of “Alice in Wonderland”.

Errol Flynn Errol Flynn’s most memorable role was probably “The Adventures of Robin Hood”. However his career ended quickly when he was accused of taking advantage of an underage girl.

Clark Gable The camera loved the 1930’s superstar Clark Gable. He starred in the Civil War classic “Gone With the Wind”. During his last movie opposite of Marilyn Monroe, Marilyn claimed, “Can you imagine what being kissed by him meant to me?”

Greta Garbo Ms. Garbo was an actress who was known for her versatility between comedies and dramas. Her defining role was in “ANNA KARENINA”. She also received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress in her first “talkie” film “ANNA CHRISTIE”.

Myrna Loy Myrna Loy was labeled “the queen of Hollywood”. Her most memorable role was in the series of six “Thin Man” films. She charmed audiences with her cute look, musical voice, sophistication, and last but not least her great sense of humor.

Shirley Temple The camera absolutely loved the sweet little bundle of joy, Shirley Temple, her defining role was in the smash hit “ The Little Colonel”. She also starred in the 1930’s classics “Curly Top”, “Heidi” and “Little Miss Maker”.

Ginger Rogers Ginger Roger’s defining role was as Fred Astaire’s dancing partner in the smash hit “Top Hat”. She also won best actress for the movie “Kitty Foyle”.

During the 1930’s the majority of films were comedies. A logical theory to this would be that during the 1930’s The Great Depression was occurring, thus causing more people to go see comedies to relieve their depression. On the other hand, the majority of films in the 1960’s were action films because they were more technologically advanced than the 1930’s.

What actors and actresses dominated the screen in the 1960’s? Click here to find out

In the 1930’s the greatest feat of technology was having movies with color and sound. Also another good portion of the movies during the 1960s were romance. This was probably because there was a lot of hippies who strongly treasured l ve.

Sources Pekkala, K., Interview, 5 May