Iconic Beauties

Iconic Beauties

 Many women are beautiful, but not all have achieved icon status. Some women just have "it" -- the attitude, the allure and the enchanting looks that make them unforgettable and endlessly fascinating. Meet the iconic beauties of yesterday and today that we just can't get enough of.

Lauren Bacall

Trademark looks: husky voice and The Look -- chin down, eyes up

Most known for: "The Big Sleep," "How to Marry a Millionaire"

Husbands: Humphrey Bogart, Jason Robards

Lucille Ball

Trademark looks: red hair, heart-shaped lips

Most known for: impeccable comedic timing, hit TV show "I Love Lucy"

Husbands: Desi Arnaz, standup comedian Gary Morton

Brigitte Bardot

Trademark looks: smoky eyes, pouty lips, the Bardot updo hairstyle

Most known for: popularizing the bikini, the original "sex kitten," many French films, animal rights activism

Husbands: Roger Vadim, Jacques Charrier, Gunter Sachs, Bernard d'Ormale

Ingrid Bergman

Trademark looks: Film critic Wanda Hale said of Ingrid: "She has a combination of rare beauty, freshness, vitality and ability that is as uncommon as a century plant in bloom."

Most known for: "Casablanca," "The Bells of St. Mary's"

Husbands: Petter Lindstrom, Roberto Rossellini, Lars Schmidt

Halle Berry

Trademark looks: beauty-queen looks and the official face of Revlon and Versace

Most known for: "Jungle Fever," "Monster's Ball," Bond girl, first African-American woman to win the Best Actress Oscar.

Husbands: baseball player David Justice, Eric Benet

Cyd Charisse

Trademark looks: great gams

Most known for: dancing with Gene Kelly in "Singin' in the Rain"

Husbands: Nico Charise, Tony Martin

Cleopatra

Trademark looks: Plutarch wrote of her: "what ultimately made Cleopatra attractive were her wit, charm and sweetness in the tones of her voice."

Most known for: last pharaoh of Egypt, affair with Mark Antony, suicide by asp

Husbands: royal consorts, including Julius Caesar and Marc Antony

Cindy Crawford

Trademark looks: mole above her upper lip, all-American girl

Most known for: supermodel status

Husbands: Richard Gere, Rande Gerber

Dorothy Dandridge

Trademark looks: sultry, flirtatious style, dark eyes and beauty mark on her chin

Most known for: singer-dancer-actress, "Carmen Jones," "Porgy and Bess," first African-American woman to earn Academy Award nomination for Best Actress

Husbands: Harold Nicholas, Jack Denison

Bette Davis

Trademark looks: those pretty peepers

Most known for: "Jezebel," "All About Eve," "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?," first female president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Husbands: Ham Nelson, Arthur Farnsworth, William Grant Sherry, Gary Merrill

Catherine Deneuve

Trademark looks: flawless Gallic features

Most known for: "Repulsion," "Belle de Jour"

Husband: British photographer David Bailey, relationship with Marcello Mastroianni produced a daughter

Princess Diana

Trademark looks: short blond hair, shy demeanor, glamorous gowns

Most known for: fairy-tale wedding, two princely sons, charity work, international style icon, paparazzi frenzy, untimely death

Husband: Prince Charles

Marlene Dietrich

Trademark looks: blue eyes, arched eyebrows; her New York Times obituary observed that "Her masculinity appeals to women and her sexuality to men."

Most known for: "The Blue Angel" (German), "Morocco"

Husband: Rudolf Sieber

Greta Garbo

Trademark looks: A New York Times film critic once wrote of her: "Set in the face of classic structure were large, sad, luminous eyes that expressed a limited but intense emotional range."

Most known for: "Anna Karenina," "Anna Christie" and the nickname "Swedish Sphinx"

Husbands: none, though reportedly had liaisons with both men and women

Ava Gardner

Trademark looks: her "earthy femininity"

Most known for: "Mogambo," "The Barefoot Contessa"

Husbands: Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw, Frank Sinatra

Jean Harlow

Trademark looks: platinum-blond hair, she was the "original blond bombshell"

Most known for: "Hell's Angels," "Dinner at Eight"

Husbands: Charles McGrew, Paul Bern, Harold Rosson, William Powell (she died before they wed)

Rita Hayworth

Trademark looks: Red hair

Most known for: dancing with Fred Astaire; the films "Gilda," "The Strawberry Blonde," "You'll Never Get Rich"

Husbands: Edward Charles Holmgren Judson, Orson Welles, Prince Aly Khan, Dick Haymes, James Hill

Helen of Troy

Trademark looks: the face that launched a thousand ships

Most known for: overwhelming beauty that triggered the Trojan War; daughter of Leda and Zeus

Husband: Menelaus

Audrey Hepburn

Trademark looks: angelic face, poise, elegance

Most known for: Holly Golightly, "Roman Holiday," the little black dress, UNICEF ambassador

Husbands: Mel Ferrer, Andrea Dotti

Katharine Hepburn

Trademark looks: "a lithe, horsey beauty with a haughty voice" (American Theater Guide)

Most known for: "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," "The Lion in Winter," "African Queen," "The Philadelphia Story"

Husband: Ludlow Ogden Smith, lifelong affair with Spencer Tracy; romance with Howard Hughes

Lena Horne

Trademark looks: sparkling smile, smooth-as-silk voice

Most known for: pioneering jazz singer and actress, career lasting six decades; signature song "Stormy Weather," triumphant Broadway show "Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music."

Husbands: Louis Jordan Jones, songwriter Lennie Hayton

Angelina Jolie

Trademark looks: pouty lips, long brown hair, sultry eyes

Most known for: humanitarian work, her large family, films "Girl, Interrupted," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith"

Husbands: Jonny Lee Miller, Billy Bob Thornton, domestic partner Brad Pitt

Grace Kelly

Trademark looks: With her white gloves and string of pearls, this classic beauty was sometimes described as "virginal"

Most known for: "Dial M for Murder," "Rear Window," princess of Monaco, tragic death

Husband: Prince Rainier III of Monaco

Vivien Leigh

Trademark looks: Catlike smile, raised right eyebrow

Most known for: "Gone With the Wind," "A Streetcar Named Desire"

Husbands: Herbert Leigh Holman, Lawrence Olivier

Sophia Loren

Trademark looks: voluptuous brunette, the "Italian Marilyn Monroe"

Most known for: "La Ciociara," "The Black Orchid," "It Started in Naples"

Husband: Carlo Ponti

Jayne Mansfield

Trademark looks: ample cleavage, platinum-blond hair

Most known for: films "The Wayward Bus," "The Girl Can't Help It"; sexy pinup girl and first leading actress to pose nude in a mainstream film ("Promises! Promises!"); dying young

Husbands: Paul Mansfield, bodybuilder Mickey Hargitay, Matt Cimber

Marilyn Monroe

Trademark looks: Platinum blond, buxom bombshell

Most known for: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," "How to Marry a Millionaire," "Seven Year Itch," singing "Happy Birthday" to JFK

Husbands: James Dougherty, Joe DiMaggio, Arthur Miller

Nefertiti

Trademark looks: long neck, delicate features

Most known for: Queen of Egypt, the limestone bust of her uncovered in a dig at Marna; a name meaning "the beautiful one has come"

Husband: Pharaoh Akhenaten

Kim Novak

Trademarks: Husky, seductive voice

Most known for: "The Man With the Golden Arm," "Vertigo"

Husbands: Richard Johnson, Robert Malloy

Julia Roberts

Trademark looks: megawatt smile, voluminous hair, her laugh

Most known for: "Pretty Woman," "Erin Brockovich"

Husbands: Lyle Lovett, Daniel Moder

Jane Russell

Trademark looks: statuesque (aka busty) figure

Most known for: "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," World War II pinup girl, later in life was popular spokeswoman for Playtex full-figure bras

Husbands: high school sweetheart & NFL Hall of Famer Bob Waterfield, actor Roger Barrett, John Calvin Peoples

Brooke Shields

Trademark looks: teenage model of virginal innocence

Most known for: "Nothing comes between me and my Calvins," "Suddenly Susan" TV show, speaking out about postpartum depression

Husbands: Andre Agassi, Chris Henchy

Elizabeth Taylor

Trademark looks: dark hair, dramatic eyebrows, porcelain skin

Most known for: "National Velvet," "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" and befriending Michael Jackson

Husbands: Conrad Hilton Jr., Michael Wilding, Michael Todd, Eddie Fisher, Richard Burton (twice), John Warner, Larry Fortensky

Gene Tierney

Trademark looks: green eyes and a slight overbite

Most known for: "Laura," "Leave Her to Heaven"

Husbands: Oleg Cassini, W. Howard Lee

Lana Turner

Trademark looks: "The Sweater Girl," WWII pinup

Most known for: "The Postman Always Rings Twice," "Peyton Place" and a stormy affair with a mobster who was stabbed and killed by Turner's daughter during an altercation

Husbands: Artie Shaw, Stephen Crane, Henry Topping, Lex Barker, Fred May, Robert Eaton, Ronald Dante

Twiggy

Trademark looks: doe eyes, boyish bob and waifish figure

Most known for: supermodel and icon of the "psychedelic '60s," movie "The Boy Friend"

Husbands: Michael Whitney, Leigh Lawson

Mae West

Trademark looks: 38-24-38

Most known for: "Night After Night," "She Done Him Wrong"

Husbands: Guido Deiro, Paul Novak

Natalie Wood

Trademark looks: Life magazine called her "The Most Beautiful Teenager in the World" in 1956

Most known for: "Rebel Without a Cause," "Splendor in the Grass," mysterious death by drowning

Husbands: Robert Wagner (married twice), Richard Gregson

Source: msn

Elizabeth Taylor - one of the greatest actresses of Hollywood.

Elizabeth Taylor – one of the greatest actresses of Hollywood.

Elizabeth Taylor was considered one of the greatest actresses of bollywood films of all times. If the golden era, that is the 50s and 60s is associated with everlasting performances of towering actresses like Sofia Lorrain, Audrey Hepburn, Ava Gardner, Marylyn Monroe, etc, then Liz Taylor (Elizabeth Taylor) can be considered the superstar who ruled the industry inspite of performance of the other beautiful actresses.

Liz Taylor, the other name of Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor, was born on 27th February, 1932, in Hampstead, UK. Her parents Francis Lenn Taylor and Sara Viola Warmbrodt were Americans who settled in UK. After the second world war II, Liz Taylor settled in Los Angeles, California, US. Hedda Hopper, a famous columnist entered Liz Taylor’s father’s art gallery and recommended her to known directors of Hollywood films. After being introduced to Andrea Berens, John Considine, Liz Taylor got a scope of performing in the film There’s Born Every Minute, at an age of nine years. In 1941, she signed a six month’s contract with Universal Pictures.

Her notable films during young age included National Velvet, Life with Father (1947), A Date with Judy (1948). With short time she got adult roles and stormed Hollywood with her matured performances. Her journey in the 50s started with romantic comedy Father of the Bride. In 1954 she acted in the film Rhapsody, opposite Vittoria Gasman. Her following films included blockbusters like Giant (1956) opposite Rock Hudson, Raintree County (1957) opposite Montgomery Clift, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958) opposite Paul Newman. In 1963, she acted in the epic film Cleopatra opposite her husband Richard Burton who played the role of Mark Anthony. She became the highest paid Hollywood actress of all times. Taylor won the academy award for best actress for her performance in the film Butterfield 8, in 1960, where her husband Eddie Fisher acted opposite her. She married a number of times, but the marriage with Richard Burton created the greatest gossip of all times.

She acted opposite Burton in other films like The VIPs (1963), The Sandpiper (1965), The Comedians, etc. She also acted opposite superstar Marlon Brando in the film Reflections in a Golden Eye. After The Only Game In Town, in 1970, she reduced her performances in Hollywood films. With eight husbands, some having died, while the other divorced, Liz Taylor was in the media even after she left acting in films. Critics argue that apart from her beauty, Liz Taylor can be considered one of the best five actresses that Hollywood had ever produced. Her films should be preserved.

Was Cleopatra as beautiful as Elizabeth Taylor?

Was Cleopatra as beautiful as Elizabeth Taylor?

In the early 60s, Elizabeth Taylor’s classic Hollywood film Cleopatra created history with its pomp, grandeur and outstanding acting of the leading characters. Elizabeth Taylor was considered as one of the most beautiful Hollywood actresses of all times and Cleopatra raised her box-office popularity a lot. Besides, Richard Burton impressed the viewers with his manly performance in the role of Anthony.

The viewers associated Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen with Elizabeth Taylor and thought that she looked like Liz Taylor. A lot of curiosity was created with Cleopatra as she mesmerized both Julio Ceaser and Mark Anthony with her heavenly beauty. But eminent Egyptian historian Sally An Ashton at Cambridge University had given a different account of the features of Cleopatra.

The research showed that Cleopatra’s complexion was brownish, as opposed the reddish complexion of Elizabeth Taylor. She had both Greek and Egyptian features. Even her forehead was broader and cheeks were more pointed than Liz Taylor. Different descriptions of Cleopatra had been given by William Shakespeare, George Bernard Shaw and others.

The research of Sally An Ashton was based on gold ornaments, Egyptian statues, rings carrying the image of Cleopatra. Some of the ornaments were two thousand years old. The research is still going on. But it was disclosed before the media that other than the nose of Elizabeth Taylor there was hardly any similarity between Cleopatra.

Even if viewers accept the fact that Cleopatra had different features than Elizabeth Taylor, her epic performance still haunts viewers of Hollywood films. She had been considered as one of the princess who had lot of self-respect and the brilliant communication skills impressed both Julius Ceaser and Mark Anthony. In the Shakespearean play Julius Ceaser, he was killed by Brutus, Cassious and other conspirators of Rome who never wanted him to be the emperor. Mark Anthony was very loyal to Ceaser and after his death created public awareness about the brutal killing of Julius Ceaser.

Whenever Ceaser and Anthony went to Egypt they fell in love with Cleopatra, the Egyption queen. History apart, the film Cleopatra had exotic locations, romantic performance of the actors, actresses and colourful locations.

If the research is accepted worldwide, in that case a new Hollywood film should be made on the new description of Cleopatra given by Historian Sally An Ashton.