Tuesday 25 August 2009

Some Great Actors - See more at The Film Experience

Nat Rogers, of the excellent Film Experience Blog, has laid down a somewhat tough gauntlet. He has named his favourite actors. It's a well thought out and considered list, even if he says that to him it's more of a personal thing. He then asks the readers to submit their own top twenty. That's tough. Who do you include, who do you exclude.

I've written 5 or 6 lists; agonised over Cary Grant vs. Jimmy Stewart and Clark Gable vs. John Wayne and Matt Damon vs. Jake Gyllenhaal. I didn't want to leave any one out. I could have easily gone on for 200 names. In the end I decided to list 20 actors who Nat hasn't included, all of whom are no longer with us. Some of them I'm sure came close to his list, others are no doubt more obscure. I hope that anyone who sees this list takes the time out to check their work out - all fine filmographies - and maybe a couple will find their way onto revised lists.



They are:

Olivier; Tracy; Muni; Cooper
March; Kennedy; Boyer; Guinness
Rains; Huston; Brennan; Colman
Quinn; Scott; Bogart; Robards
Douglas; Laughton; Ferrer; Mason

8 comments:

Wayne B said...

hahaha, i'm using the same pictures of De Niro and Harris for my own list.

Andrew K. said...

Spencer Tracy all the way....I was tempted to include Robards...but he didn't quite make it.

Wayne B said...

Some great additions. I like what I've seen so far of Olivier, Bogart and Robards but not enough to ever describe them as "favourites."

NATHANIEL R said...

I actually love this list so much. great less heralded choices. I need to see more old movies, I know.

Runs Like A Gay said...

Thanks for the comments. It's really tough doing this sort of thing, isn't it.

I'm still fretting over missing out:

Charles Bickford, Clark Gable, Walter Matthau, Charles Coburn and Peter Ustinov.

Runs Like A Gay said...

Among many many others.

Alex Constantin said...

I have never made such a list and it would be very difficult to do. I don't tend to like a certain actor, but a certain performance. If I'd put my hopes on a different name, I'd most likely get disappointed. (exception: Streep, Bette...)

but a very nice politically corrent vintage list

Ted said...

Muni - yes!