French actress Brigitte Bardot is one of the best-known sex symbols of the 1950s and 1960s, and she was one of the only European actresses at the time to be famous worldwide. She started out as a model, but in 1953 she appeared in the film Crazy For Love, which grabbed the attention of admirers all around the world. She appeared in 47 films over the course of her career, including the controversial 1956 film And God Created Woman and the 1965 film Viva Maria!,. However, Brigitte didn’t particularly enjoy all the attention, and in 1973, she retired from acting after only 21 years! She decided to make a drastic lifestyle change, and she established herself as a prominent animal rights activist instead. She even started her own foundation for the cause!
Tina Louise had a brief stint as a child model that started when she was only two years old, but her career really began in the mid-1950s when she began working as a stage actress. Over the course of her 50 year long career, she went on to become a well-known American actress, singer, and author. Tina’s breakthrough role came in 1958, when she was cast in the drama film God’s Little Acre. She received Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year for the film, and went on to star in other works like The Trap, The Hangman, and Day of the Outlaw. Fans of Gilligan’s Island will also recognize her as the beautiful movie star Ginger Grant. Tina retired from acting in 2002, but is making a comeback in the upcoming film Tapestry!
Born in Brooklyn, Mary Tyler Moore decided when she was 17 that she was going to be a dancer. She made her dreams come true by getting the role of a dancing kitchen appliance in the well-known Hotpoint Appliance commercials, but everything came crashing down when she got pregnant and could no longer fit into her costume! However, she eventually redeemed herself by getting her very own TV show when she was in her mid-twenties. On the Mary Tyler Moore Show, she played the role of local news producer Mary Richards. In 1961, Mary landed another starring role on the Dick Van Dyke Show. She went on to star in dozens of television Shows and movies throughout the course of her career. Mary Tyler Moore has since passed away on January 25, 2016, but her smile, style and legacy will forever remain.
In 1957, Kelly Ann McGillis was born. This lovely actress became an iconic face of American movies in the 80’s. Most people know her for the 1986 blockbuster hit Top Gun, which famously launched the career of Tom Cruise. Kelly also starred in the 1985 film Witness alongside Harrison Ford, a role which earned her both Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations. In 1988, Kelly starred in The Accused beside Jodie Foster, another role she is well remembered for. Her film career became a bit more sporadic in the 1990s when she gave birth to two daughters and decided to prioritize spending time with her family. In 2009, Kelly publicly came out as a lesbian. She shared a civil union with Melanie Leis, a sales executive, from 2010 to 2011. Today, Kelly is still acting, and is a proud mother and grandmother.
Born in 1957, Lori Singer is the Jewish beauty from the 1984 film Footloose, a classic that’s withstood the test of time. The lovely lady is also a music prodigy; she was accepted into the Juilliard Performing Arts School in New York when she was only 14! Given her talent, it’s no surprise that she’s well-known for her role as dancer and cellist Julie Miller in the television series Fame, which ran from 1982-1983. After taking a break from the silver screen for a few years, Lori returned to acting with a guest role on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. More recently, she’s worked as a producer, with her documentary Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God winning a Peabody Award. When she’s not working, she loves to play the cello and give her time to charity!