The old African Queen shipmates are the top male and female screen legends, respectively, of the 20th century, according to those prolific list-makers at the American Film Institute.
The AFI revealed its complete picks for Hollywood's Top 50 (25 men, 25 women) in a three-hour special airing tonight on CBS.
Rounding out the Top Five for the women: Bette Davis (No. 2), Audrey Hepburn (No. 3), Ingrid Bergman (No. 4) and Greta Garbo (No. 5). Their male counterparts: Cary Grant (No. 2), James Stewart (No. 3), Marlon Brando (No. 4) and Fred Astaire (No. 5).
Also in the Top 10 (women): Marilyn Monroe (No. 6), Elizabeth Taylor (No. 7), Judy Garland (No. 8), Marlene Dietrich (#9), Joan Crawford (No. 10). And for the men: Henry Fonda (No. 6), Clark Gable (No. 7), James Cagney (No. 8), Spencer Tracy (No. 9), Charlie Chaplin (No. 10).
Notably absent from the Top 25: Doris Day, Rock Hudson, Natalie Wood, Steve McQueen, Laurel & Hardy and Frank Sinatra.
Other milder surprises: No nods for comic Bob Hope, his Road to... partner Bing Crosby, Myrna Loy ("King" Gable's "Queen of the Movies" counterpart) and pioneering 'toon Mickey Mouse.
On the subject of Mickeys: While Judy Garland rated a Top 10 finish, Mickey Rooney, her let's-put-on-a-show comrade, who once reigned as the nation's biggest box-office draw, was nowhere to be found on the list.
Among the stars who did rate, arguably questionable rankings include:
Relatively non-iconic actresses Barbara Stanwyck (No. 11) and Claudette Colbert (No. 12) placing ahead of American princess Grace Kelly (No. 13);
James Dean settling for 18th position even as fellow famous-for-dying-young star Marilyn Monroe soared to No. 6; and,
Laurence Olivier (No. 14) placing so high despite numerous latter-day, career-tarnishing stinkers like Neil Diamond's The Jazz Singer.
The legends list offers a bit of something for everyone--even conspiracy theorists. Example: Were Hollywood politics behind fan perennial (and right-wing cowboy) John Wayne placing no higher than 13th, or for movie-land Moses (and NRA president) Charlton Heston not placing at all?
Whatever the case, AFI is no stranger to sparking debate with its take on movie history. Last year, it provoked film fans with its boy-movie-dominated Top 100 U.S. films list. Because of that compendium's tilt toward ammunition extravangazas (not to mention post-1970 works), several of the stars listed as "greatest" screen legends don't have a corresponding "great" film--Garbo, Shirley Temple (No. 18), Sophia Loren (No. 21), Mae West (No. 15), Carole Lombard (No. 23), Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers (No. 14), and Buster Keaton (No. 21), included.
AFI's top 50 actors and actresses were culled from 500 nominees. Finalists were selected by critics, historians and Industry types. To be eligible for legend status, a star must have started his or her career in or before 1950. Dead people got a special waiver--they were eligible even if their careers started post-1950 provided they left behind a so-called significant body of work. Plus, they, um, had to be dead.
Among the women legends, five are real-live living ones: Hepburn, Taylor, Temple, Lauren Bacall (No. 20) and Loren. Four men managed that distinction: Brando, Gregory Peck (No. 12), Kirk Douglas (No. 17) and Sidney Poitier (No. 22).
The Marx Brothers (No. 20) are the only group entry.
The list includes several famed romantic pairings, including Tracy and Hepburn, and Bogie and Bacall. On the opposite end of the love-coupling spectrum, it should be assumed that somewhere Bette Davis is toasting her lofty No. 2 finish to bitter rival Joan Crawford's (relatively) lowly No. 10.
Tonight's CBS special featured testimonials from several modern-day (and ineligible) celebs including Sharon Stone, Jim Carrey and Kevin Costner.
Here's a complete look at AFI's 50 Greatest American Screen Legends:
Male Stars: Female Stars: 1. Humphrey Bogart 1. Katharine Hepburn 2. Cary Grant 2. Bette Davis 3. James Stewart 3. Audrey Hepburn 4. Marlon Brando 4. Ingrid Bergman 5. Fred Astaire 5. Greta Garbo 6. Henry Fonda 6. Marilyn Monroe 7. Clark Gable 7. Elizabeth Taylor 8. James Cagney 8. Judy Garland 9. Spencer Tracy 9. Marlene Dietrich 10. Charles Chaplin 10. Joan Crawford 11. Gary Cooper 11. Barbara Stanwyck 12. Gregory Peck 12. Claudette Colbert 13. John Wayne 13. Grace Kelly 14. Laurence Olivier 14. Ginger Rogers 15. Gene Kelly 15. Mae West 16. Orson Welles 16. Vivien Leigh 17. Kirk Douglas 17. Lillian Gish 18. James Dean 18. Shirley Temple 19. Burt Lancaster 19. Rita Hayworth 20. The Marx Brothers 20. Lauren Bacall 21. Buster Keaton 21. Sophia Loren 22. Sidney Poitier 22. Jean Harlow 23. Robert Mitchum 23. Carole Lombard 24. Edward G. Robinson 24. Mary Pickford 25. William Holden 25. Ava Gardner