Comparing Actors/Actresses of Today Versus the Past

[The Voice of Reason]

The discussion about Anne Francis raised the point how both Anne and Elizabeth Montgomery were far better actresses than some of the current group that are on the air today.

Case in point was Paris Hilton, Jessica Simpson, and Snookie.

Maybe I'm from the old school, but to me actors and actresses from yesterday's generation are light years better than what the current generation is offering.

It seems all one needs to get a TV show today is to have their boobs inflated with silicone or make an x-rated home video.

Anyone agree or disagree?

 

[Cincinnati Kid]

Definitely do agree. What passes for entertainment and entertainers now is unfortunate. At the same time, you wonder why those who watch the TV shows and attend movies today, don't seem to catch on. Perhaps P. T. Barnum said it best..."There's a sucker born every minute".

 

[dmargalotti]

I certainly agree, however I wouldn't call Paris, Jessica, or Snookie actresses. Celebrities, yes...but actresses, no. There certainly are some talented young actresses today. However I think our perception of celebrities in general has changed over the years thanks to the proliferation of personal information about them that we are constantly exposed to.

Years ago, Hollywood stars were bigger than life, detached from regular society, insulated in their own special circles. Fans caught a glimpse of their private lives here or there but only when they wanted us to. Sure there were scandals but they were few are far between compared to what is "reported" today. And most of those scandals only made headlines in a handful of celebrity magazines and news publications.

Today we are subjected to every sleazy, personal detail of their lives and often times there is photographic and even video evidence to back up the reports. Celebrity news now dominates main stream media, the internet, talk shows, and news casts.

 

[Mark Giardina]

I wouldn't even call Paris, Jessica, those Kardashian broads, or Snookie celebrities.

I also could give a damn about their personal lives either.

As for the topic under discussion; there are actors today who are very good, or some better than those who preceded them say back in the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s.

For example: Matt Passmore is great on "The Glades."
Nathan Fillion - Castle
Hugh Laurie - House

Then again I liked. Telly Savalas- Kojak
Carrol O'Connor - All in the Family
Anne Francis - Honey West
Liz Montgomery- Bewitched
David Jansen - Harry O & The Fugitive.

 

[FreddyE1977]

I would dispute the point that Paris Hilton, Jessica Simpson, and Snookie are or ever
aspired to be actresses. What they aspired to be was famous...something that today's
tabloid TV culture can provide for them without the benefit of acting talent.

Back in the day, Anne Francis and Elizabeth Montgomery had to hone their skills in
acting if they wished to become famous, doing off-Broadway, summer stock, etc.
They spent many years perfecting a craft because the tabloid ten minutes of fame
simply was not available to them.

 

[flashback]

the actors and actresses were better in past decades.i am not sure when everything began to switch to where they are now .before we had older actors who have been around a while and younger up and coming actors who became new stars.there was a good balance.in movies there were older and younger actors in the cast.now they seem to go for a young cast mainly.

 

[easttxtv]

Back in the day, Anne Francis and Elizabeth Montgomery had to hone their skills in
acting if they wished to become famous, doing off-Broadway, summer stock, etc.
They spent many years perfecting a craft because the tabloid ten minutes of fame
simply was not available to them.

Because of all those years, it showed in their acting performances. Several other acting veterans could say the same, unfortunately some of those are no longer with us. Many who have worked in daytime also have had on/off-Broadway experience. It's not unheard of for a soap actor to have to memorize up to 40 pages of dialogue a DAY, 260 eps a year. Today's celebutantes couldn't dream of doing that now.

 

[landtuna]

I get a kick out of watching the syndicated TMZ daily show but one thing that strikes me is that I do not recognize virtually all of the people they "interview". And there is a lot of repetition. It seems to get your face on the celeb list all you have to do is something really out of whack then go to The Groves in L.A. (or Boa or any other "celeb' restaurant) and wait for the cameras to show up. This is not acting in the traditional sense and these people generally have little or no talent. It is fun to watch TMZ make fun of them though and most do not realize or care.

But you could say virtually the same thing about some so-called 'A' list movie stars. Most non-animated movies today feature both male and female 'actors' that would have had jobs as caterers 50 years ago. Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell, Jim Carrey, Nick Cage and Eddie Murphy come quickly to mind yet they continue to get roles.

Maybe one of the basic problems is that the movies of today tend to go for the flash of special effects and not the quality acting of years ago. Then again, there are so many 'actors' being pushed today that they have become largely a commodity as opposed to the "American royalty" of the studio system of years past.

 

[Corky Marlowe]

I think the last generation of really good actors were the people who came up in the 60s and 70s, like Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Dustin Hoffman, Gene Hackman, and Robert Duvall Those guys, and other actors and actresses of their time, had to plug away and do off-off Broadway, commercials, and walk-on roles on TV before they got their shots at major stardom. The only 2 male stars in the last quarter century, IMO, who really possess the old school "movie star" quality have been Tom Hanks and George Clooney. Someone brought up the studio system; The old movie studios really did focus on training and polishing their talent, and didn't put them in "A" pictures until they were ready. John Wayne did "B" westerns for a decade till he became a major star.