TCM

Ben-Hur movie: Christian epic was biggest and most expensive Blockbuster until Gone with the Wind. Mexican Ramon Novarro played Jewish hero.

Pat O’Brien: Actor was James Cagney Partner was one of Hollywood’s busiest leading men and favorite priest of the studio era.

Norma Shearer: Queen of MGM and the movies’ Early Liberated Woman often played roles well ahead of both their and our own time.

Susan Hayward Movies: Best Actress Academy Award Winner for I Want to Live and 4-time Oscar nominee Is TCM Star of the Month.

Gary Cooper Movies: Playing Lover-Daddy to Joan Leslie, Audrey Hepburn in two of the weakest (but successful) films of his career.

Greta Garbo movies: Rare Silent Era Superstar is still remembered Today in 2 of her biggest hits and best-known MGM films.

Debbie Reynolds Movies: The Singing Nun Offers Sunny Contrast to Tragic Life of Sister Jeanne Deckers whose song Dominique became global hit.

Vivien Leigh Movies: Anglo-Indian-Armenian Scarlett O’Hara in Gone with the Wind and Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire?

Patricia Neal Movies: ‘The Day the Earth Stood Still,’ ‘A Face in the Crowd’ are two old classics that are more pertinent than ever.

Groucho Marx Movies: From classic A Night at the Opera to disastrous The Story of Mankind plus still pertinent political satire Duck Soup.

Ann-Margret Movies: From Elvis Presley leading lady to Oscar nominations for provocative Tommy and Carnal Knowledge.

Robert Mitchum Movies: The Yakuza surprising casting and effectively cast against type in David Lean’s troubled Ryan’s Daughter with Sarah Miles.

Joan Crawford Movies: The Women 1939, Controversial Christian-Themed Drama (banned in parts of the U.S.) and going berserk for love.

Raymond Massey Movies: From Oscar-nominated Abraham Lincoln to Boris Karloff in addition to H.G. Wells visionary and James Dean’s father.

Katharine Hepburn Movies: Women in Drag, in Love and in Danger in classic movies that ultimately earned her 12 Academy Award nominations.

Fred Astaire Movies: Dancing in the Dark, dancing on the Ceiling and with Ginger Rogers in several RKO and MGM classic musicals.

Teresa Wright Movies: Deceptively Demure Heroine in The Little Foxes, The Pride of the Yankees and Alfred Hitchcock drama Shadow of a Doubt.

Adolphe Menjou Movies: Old Hollywood (pseudo) Sophisticated Charmer in A Star Is Born and Stage Door, rabid right-winger off screen.

Young Robert Redford goes from political candidate and youthful journalist fighting corruption to CIA agent fearing for his life and ambitious skiier.

Luis Buñuel Movies: Subversive, Challenging Viridiana (‘blasphemous’ according to the Vatican) and The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.

Robert Redford: The Great Gatsby 1974 was 1 of biggest artistic misfires of the decade and Redford was part of the problem.

Loretta Young Films: Conservative Catholic actress featured in suggestive, socially and sexually daring pre-Code motion pictures.

Jean Arthur Films: 3 Frank Capra Classics Starring Progressive-Minded Actress that was 1 of the greatest performers during the studio era.

Cary Grant Films: Gender-Bending Comedy I Was a Male War Bride with Grant as French wife but badly miscast in macho roles.