[Music]
for the following list of actors silence
was definitely golden
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
decade defining actors of the 1920s for
our series on the top ten decade
defining male actors / period we’ve made
our choices based on a combination of
their commercial success their
box-office scores their productivity
their awards and how they helped set the
tone and raise the standard in Hollywood
for the era number 10 Harold Lloyd
a standout performer of the silent movie
era who transitioned to talkies Harold
Lloyd was one of the most prolific
actors of his time
[Music]
performing many of his risky stunts
himself he reportedly made almost 16
million dollars in the 20s finding fame
as an on screen everyday man who could
display unwavering confidence and
optimism his glasses character was
particularly effective and reflective of
the average American
a sailor made man was his first feature
but his most famous moment came when he
hung from the clock tower in safety last
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
number nine rudolph valentino an actor
who achieved iconic status rudolph
valentino was one of the first
pop-culture sex symbols
born in Italy he had a sexy name a
pretty face and an attractive body a
historic Hollywood hunk
but the Latin lever could also entertain
and 19:21 s the Four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse was the sixth
highest-grossing silent movie of all
time
1921 was also the year he defined his
persona as the shape his death by
illness was tragically untimely but in
his 31 years he built a legacy
[Music]
number eight Walt Disney though not an
actor in the conventional sense Walt
Disney’s impact on the movie industry is
arguably unrivaled the man behind the
mouse
he spent the early part of the decade
building the beginnings of an animation
Empire he often worked as a voice actor
in his productions and provided all of
the largely unintelligible sounds in
Steamboat Willie though that film is
widely considered Mickey Mouse’s debut
he and Minnie actually appeared in an
earlier short plane crazy but both films
went a long way in establishing Walt
Disney as a Hollywood heavyweight
number seven John Barrymore
the head of a prominent acting dynasty
which stretches until the present day
with his granddaughter drew John
Barrymore enjoyed Fame throughout the
20s and 30s
[Music]
he was a strong performer in the silent
era who shifted easily to talkies
appearing with major roles in dr. Jekyll
and mr. Hyde as well as Sherlock Holmes
[Music]
he also took the lead in donjuan a
pioneering film in terms of sound
effects and music although there wasn’t
yet any dialogue
handsome charming and with a stage
trained voice Barrymore passed his
traits down his talented family tree
you
number six lon Cheney
next we have an actor who revolutionized
cinema even before the invention of
talkies lon chaney was a celebrated
versatile silent movie master and a
famous experimenter with makeup and
costume his roles in the hunchback of
notre dam and the Phantom of the Opera
garnered him particular praise within
the horror genre for their grotesque but
sympathetic natures his creative
costumes even led to the nickname the
man of a thousand faces which later
became the title for a film in which
James Cagney played Chaney
number five Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy
perhaps the greatest double act to ever
grace our screens Laurel and Hardy began
their reign in the 20s great friends
away from the camera
they were slapstick supremo’s in front
of it Stan Laurel a tall thin Englishman
and Oliver Hardy a portly American they
complemented each other and contrasted
for comedic effect often they’d have
difficulty performing the simplest of
tasks and jokes were found in their
repeated misfortunes putting pants on
Philip was their first official feature
together but the pair produced over 100
movies in their lifetime
number four Douglas Fairbanks
a founding member of United Artists and
of the Motion Picture Academy Douglas
Fairbanks was the husband of Mary
Pickford and the first to be titled the
king of Hollywood he was most famous for
swashbuckling roles in movies like the
Mark of Zorro and 1922 s Robin Hood
and he also starred in the black pirate
which was one of the first ever
full-length Technicolor films
his career didn’t flourish with the
invention of talkies but by then he’d
more than made his mark in the silent
era number three Groucho Marx sorry boys
but we haven’t got any vacancies gotta
know Vegas we got plenty of room
that’s all right do we take a room you
want a roll all right we take a vacant
spot boy Groucho was the youngest of the
three main marx brothers but also the
funniest and the most successful you can
beat that but you can’t tie it
he made 13 movies with his siblings most
notably the cocoa nuts and animal
crackers and later remained famous as
the host of a radio and TV quiz show you
bet your life miss back out emphasize
mistress I never take a drink unless
somebody’s buying Marx had worked as a
vaudeville performer before acting and
the stages influence showed in his
costume I’ll show you where I get off
the thick mustache eyebrows and rimmed
glasses look has since become iconic and
a staple component to any dress-up box
might be a wisecrack but I doubt it
number two Buster Keaton one of the most
influential figures of the decade Buster
Keaton spent the 20s directing and
acting in an incredible amount of movies
[Music]
the general is perhaps his greatest
contribution to cinema and the film is
still ranked among the best ever made he
worked primarily as a comedy actor
though it was rare that he himself would
smile his trademark deadpan expression
earned him the nickname the great stone
face as he chiseled out a career by
making people cry with laughter
[Music]
before we unveil our pick for decade
defining actor of the 1920s here are a
few honorable mentions
[Music]
number one charlie chaplin’s Charlie
Chaplin is not only one of the greatest
names in cinema he’s also one of the
icons of the modern world his character
the Tramp has come to be an almost
instantly recognizable figure in history
and his movies are considered
masterpieces of the era he was as
bumbling and slapstick II as many other
performers but his films also carried
social motivation and often political
controversy the war you saved my life me
strange and I always thought of you as
an add-in I’m a vegetarian
the kid was his first feature length the
toothbrush mustache will forever be his
and this decade was defined by him do
you agree with our list which 1920s
actor do you think is the most iconic
for more classic top 10s published every
day be sure to subscribe to
watchmojo.com
[Music]
you
[Music]
for the following list of actors silence
was definitely golden
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
decade defining actors of the 1920s for
our series on the top ten decade
defining male actors / period we’ve made
our choices based on a combination of
their commercial success their
box-office scores their productivity
their awards and how they helped set the
tone and raise the standard in Hollywood
for the era number 10 Harold Lloyd
a standout performer of the silent movie
era who transitioned to talkies Harold
Lloyd was one of the most prolific
actors of his time
[Music]
performing many of his risky stunts
himself he reportedly made almost 16
million dollars in the 20s finding fame
as an on screen everyday man who could
display unwavering confidence and
optimism his glasses character was
particularly effective and reflective of
the average American
a sailor made man was his first feature
but his most famous moment came when he
hung from the clock tower in safety last
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
number nine rudolph valentino an actor
who achieved iconic status rudolph
valentino was one of the first
pop-culture sex symbols
born in Italy he had a sexy name a
pretty face and an attractive body a
historic Hollywood hunk
but the Latin lever could also entertain
and 19:21 s the Four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse was the sixth
highest-grossing silent movie of all
time
1921 was also the year he defined his
persona as the shape his death by
illness was tragically untimely but in
his 31 years he built a legacy
[Music]
number eight Walt Disney though not an
actor in the conventional sense Walt
Disney’s impact on the movie industry is
arguably unrivaled the man behind the
mouse
he spent the early part of the decade
building the beginnings of an animation
Empire he often worked as a voice actor
in his productions and provided all of
the largely unintelligible sounds in
Steamboat Willie though that film is
widely considered Mickey Mouse’s debut
he and Minnie actually appeared in an
earlier short plane crazy but both films
went a long way in establishing Walt
Disney as a Hollywood heavyweight
number seven John Barrymore
the head of a prominent acting dynasty
which stretches until the present day
with his granddaughter drew John
Barrymore enjoyed Fame throughout the
20s and 30s
[Music]
he was a strong performer in the silent
era who shifted easily to talkies
appearing with major roles in dr. Jekyll
and mr. Hyde as well as Sherlock Holmes
[Music]
he also took the lead in donjuan a
pioneering film in terms of sound
effects and music although there wasn’t
yet any dialogue
handsome charming and with a stage
trained voice Barrymore passed his
traits down his talented family tree
you
number six lon Cheney
next we have an actor who revolutionized
cinema even before the invention of
talkies lon chaney was a celebrated
versatile silent movie master and a
famous experimenter with makeup and
costume his roles in the hunchback of
notre dam and the Phantom of the Opera
garnered him particular praise within
the horror genre for their grotesque but
sympathetic natures his creative
costumes even led to the nickname the
man of a thousand faces which later
became the title for a film in which
James Cagney played Chaney
number five Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy
perhaps the greatest double act to ever
grace our screens Laurel and Hardy began
their reign in the 20s great friends
away from the camera
they were slapstick supremo’s in front
of it Stan Laurel a tall thin Englishman
and Oliver Hardy a portly American they
complemented each other and contrasted
for comedic effect often they’d have
difficulty performing the simplest of
tasks and jokes were found in their
repeated misfortunes putting pants on
Philip was their first official feature
together but the pair produced over 100
movies in their lifetime
number four Douglas Fairbanks
a founding member of United Artists and
of the Motion Picture Academy Douglas
Fairbanks was the husband of Mary
Pickford and the first to be titled the
king of Hollywood he was most famous for
swashbuckling roles in movies like the
Mark of Zorro and 1922 s Robin Hood
and he also starred in the black pirate
which was one of the first ever
full-length Technicolor films
his career didn’t flourish with the
invention of talkies but by then he’d
more than made his mark in the silent
era number three Groucho Marx sorry boys
but we haven’t got any vacancies gotta
know Vegas we got plenty of room
that’s all right do we take a room you
want a roll all right we take a vacant
spot boy Groucho was the youngest of the
three main marx brothers but also the
funniest and the most successful you can
beat that but you can’t tie it
he made 13 movies with his siblings most
notably the cocoa nuts and animal
crackers and later remained famous as
the host of a radio and TV quiz show you
bet your life miss back out emphasize
mistress I never take a drink unless
somebody’s buying Marx had worked as a
vaudeville performer before acting and
the stages influence showed in his
costume I’ll show you where I get off
the thick mustache eyebrows and rimmed
glasses look has since become iconic and
a staple component to any dress-up box
might be a wisecrack but I doubt it
number two Buster Keaton one of the most
influential figures of the decade Buster
Keaton spent the 20s directing and
acting in an incredible amount of movies
[Music]
the general is perhaps his greatest
contribution to cinema and the film is
still ranked among the best ever made he
worked primarily as a comedy actor
though it was rare that he himself would
smile his trademark deadpan expression
earned him the nickname the great stone
face as he chiseled out a career by
making people cry with laughter
[Music]
before we unveil our pick for decade
defining actor of the 1920s here are a
few honorable mentions
[Music]
number one charlie chaplin’s Charlie
Chaplin is not only one of the greatest
names in cinema he’s also one of the
icons of the modern world his character
the Tramp has come to be an almost
instantly recognizable figure in history
and his movies are considered
masterpieces of the era he was as
bumbling and slapstick II as many other
performers but his films also carried
social motivation and often political
controversy the war you saved my life me
strange and I always thought of you as
an add-in I’m a vegetarian
the kid was his first feature length the
toothbrush mustache will forever be his
and this decade was defined by him do
you agree with our list which 1920s
actor do you think is the most iconic
for more classic top 10s published every
day be sure to subscribe to
watchmojo.com
[Music]
you
[Music]
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