4. Clara Bow
Peak Years: 1923-1931
Best Film: The Plastic Age (1925) A flapper of the "Roaring 20s," Clara Bow was the biggest box office draw of any actress in the late 1920s. Also hounded by the press for details on her various sexual depravities, or perhaps more truthfully the press desperately hoped she had various sexual depravities, Bow was known for playing women who actively seduced men. Her films lacked the high-browed artistry that was later attributed to Buster Keaton's work but her pictures were meant to be crowd-pleasers. Bow wasn't just a sexualized flapper, she also played tomboys and even took pictures dressed up as a boxer as a contrast to her other male-oriented roles. The Plastic Age showcases Bow at her fanciful best as woman that coerces the male protagonist and then brings him on the downward spiral you would see on a VH1 Behind the Music special, albeit in a cute and antiquated way. Her role as the flighty seductress is ultimately tempered by the need of a happy and "moral" ending, but up until that point she radiates energy and her fun-loving nature is contagious. She was the biggest female star in the world for a reason. Her career was another that was cut short, this time due to a marriage, but Clara Bow was an actress with a talent for making good times look good.