Get Glamorous With This Golden Age of Hollywood Quiz

The 1950 showbiz drama “All About Eve” featured an all-star cast of actresses who stood out above the rest. Bette Davis and Anne Baxter were both nominated for Best Actress, while Celeste Holm and Thelma Ritter were up for Best Supporting Actress. Though none of the actresses ended up winning, the film did score six awards, including Best Picture.

Only a few films in history have won all five of the major Oscar categories, and the first to do so was the 1934 romantic comedy “It Happened One Night,” starring Clark Gable. At the 1935 Oscars, the film took home the awards for Best Actor, Actress, Director, Screenplay, and Picture. (As of 2021, the only other “Big Five” sweeps are “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” in 1975 and “The Silence of the Lambs” in 1992.)

Most movie directors would consider themselves lucky if they made just one blockbuster in their career, but Victor Fleming made two — in the same year. Lightning struck twice in 1939, when Fleming directed both "The Wizard of Oz" and "Gone With the Wind," which are widely considered two of the greatest movies of all time.

When future movie icon John Wayne was born in 1907 in Winterset, Iowa, his parents named him Marion Morrison. At an early age, he adopted the nickname “Duke,” and even used this moniker for his first film in 1928. Shortly after, his friend, film director John Ford, suggested Morrison use a shorter, snappier stage name. Although he retained his nickname, Morrison became John Wayne.

Screenwriter Truman Capote’s top choice for the starring role of Holly Golightly in 1961’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” was Marilyn Monroe, though Paramount preferred Audrey Hepburn, who was ultimately cast. Monroe supposedly turned down the role in part because her acting coach said she shouldn’t play a “lady of the evening.”

Issur Danielovitch was born to Russian Jewish immigrants near Albany, New York, in 1916. A few years later, the family name became “Demsky” and he was known as “Izzy Demsky.” He pursued a career in Hollywood, and as was common in the 1940s and ’50s, studio heads advised him to change his name if he wanted to be successful. With roles as Spartacus and Doc Holliday, Kirk Douglas became a household name.

In 1917, the Goldwyn Picture Corporation — now Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, or MGM — needed a new mascot. A publicist working for the company, Howard Dietz, was tasked with designing the new logo. As it happened, Dietz was a recent graduate of Columbia College (now Columbia University) in New York City. Columbia's lion mascot became the inspiration for "Leo," the iconic MGM mascot that still roars before each of its films.

The Hollywood sign was erected in 1923 as an advertisement for a real estate development called Hollywoodland. In fact, that's what the sign originally spelled — in 50-foot illuminated letters. However, by the 1940s, the sign was so dilapidated that the neighborhood wanted it removed. In 1949, the Department of Parks and Recreation teamed up with the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to repair and rebuild the sign, minus the "land" portion.

Legendary dance duo Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire teamed up on nine films together for RKO Pictures, starting with 1933’s “Flying Down to Rio.” Their star power continued to rise with musicals such as “The Gay Divorcee” (1934), “Roberta” (1935), and “Top Hat” (1935), and they were bona fide box-office draws by the time “Follow the Fleet” (1936) and “Swing Time” (1936) came around.

When Rick’s lost love Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) walks into his bar in Casablanca, she requests that pianist Sam play the song “As Time Goes By” — a romantic song that Rick (Humphrey Bogart) and Ilsa considered theirs during their love affair. This line is often misquoted as “Play it again, Sam,” which is never said in the film.

On May 19, 1962, a huge fundraiser gala was planned for President John F. Kennedy. The Madison Square Garden event would also honor the President’s birthday, which was 10 days later. The highlight of the night was when Marilyn Monroe took to the stage in a sparkling, skintight gown. In front of 15,000 people at the venue, as well as thousands watching the event on television, the actress sang a sultry rendition of "Happy Birthday" to the President.