The below famous movie stars were the very definition of glitz and glamour in in the 1930s. Despite the recent stock market crash and the start of the Great Depression, the 1930s were part of the Golden Age of Hollywood, when "actors" were movie stars, and "films" were genre-based masterpieces. This era contains some of the best actors and actresses of all time, many of whom are Academy Award winners, as well as classic film stars.
Who is the most popular movie star of the 1930s? James Stewart tops our list. Known for playing everyday men with real-life problems, James Stewart appeared in some of the most popular films of all-time in his over 50-year career. Other great 1930s male actors include Carey Grant, Humphrey Bogart, and Henry Fonda.
Many great actresses thrived in the 1930s as well. Bette Davis, known for her bewitching eyes and cynical characters, started her career by appearing in the 1931 film, The Bad Sister. She was certainly one of the most famous people in the 1930s. She went on to win two Academy Awards in her over 50-year career.
Scroll on below to read more about these beloved 1930s celebrities.
Known for playing everyday men with real-life problems, James Stewart appeared in some of the most popular films of all-time in his over 50-year career. In the 1930s, he starred in such classics as Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and Destry Rides Again.
Credits (Film): It's a Wonderful Life, Vertigo, Rear Window, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Philadelphia Story
Holiday and Bringing Up Baby are just two of the great 1930s films that featured Cary Grant. He was named the second Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute, losing the top spot to fellow 1930s movie star Humphrey Bogart.
Credits (Film): North by Northwest, Bringing Up Baby, His Girl Friday, The Philadelphia Story, Arsenic and Old Lace
Known for his stoic performances in Western films, Henry Fonda first got his start in the 1935 movie The Farmer Takes a Wife. He has three children including Jane and Peter Fonda.
Credits (Film): Once Upon a Time in the West, 12 Angry Men, The Grapes of Wrath, The Longest Day, How the West Was Won
Birthplace: Grand Island, Nebraska, United States of America
Katharine Hepburn was one of Hollywood's most beloved actresses for over 60 years, but she got her start in the 1930s. Holiday,Bringing Up Baby, and Alice Adams are just a few of the films in which Hepburn starred during the golden age of cinema. She appeared in nine films with her longtime love Spencer Tracy.
Credits (Film): Bringing Up Baby, The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, On Golden Pond
Birthplace: Hartford, Connecticut, United States of America
Clark Gable appeared in some of the best films of the 1930s, and all-time, including It Happened One Night, Mutiny on the Bounty, andGone with the Wind. His 1935 Oscar was purchased by Steven Spielberg, and given back to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to protect its legacy.
Credits (Film): Gone with the Wind, It Happened One Night, Mutiny on the Bounty, Cinema Paradiso, The Misfits
Gary Cooper successfully transitioned from the silent film era by portraying an honest, heroic man in action films and award-winning dramas. A Farewell to Arms and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town are two of his best films from the 1930s.
Credits (Film): High Noon, Cinema Paradiso, The Pride of the Yankees, Mr. Deeds Goes to Town, Wings
Birthplace: Helena, Montana, United States of America
