All-Time Top Winning Tourney Actresses

As we approach another favorite classic movie actress tourney, I thought it would be a great time to list the all time top winning actresses. I did a list last year featuring the top five but I have expanded it to the top 12. So here we go:

12.) MYRNA LOY (10-4) - Myrna has been a consistent performer in the tourney and usually goes quite far in the 30's era bracket in which she competes in. She is a very popular actress so don't be surprised if she makes a strong run in this upcoming tourney.

11.) ELIZABETH TAYLOR (10-4) - While Liz only did so-so in the previous three tourneys when she competed in the 50's era with a 4-3 record, she did much better once she transferred to the 60's era last year with a great 6-1 record and reaching the final four. So look out everyone here comes Liz!

10.) INGRID BERGMAN (10-3) - The Swedish actress has amassed 10 solid wins and this despite not playing in the inaugural tourney back in 2011. She competes in the 40's era bracket and does really well. And now that Bette Davis, who won last year is out of the picture, look for another strong run by Ingrid.

9.) JUDY GARLAND (11-3) - Another 40's era competitor who also missed the first tourney, Judy has done amazingly well with 11 wins so far. Can the singer/dancer/actress add another hyphenate to her already impressive resume.

8.) BARBARA STANWYCK (12-4) - The overall top seed for this year's tourney due to her runner-up finish last year, Missy is the favorite to win it all this year. Competing in the 30's era, she is a cinch to make it to at least the sweet sixteen round.

7.) AUDREY HEPBURN (13-5) - Audrey finally got over the hump of beating her 50's era nemesis Grace Kelly last year to make her first final four appearance. Audrey had lost to Grace twice before but not last year and is poised to make another strong run this year.

6.) DORIS DAY (14-4) - The ever popular Doris has been a feisty competitor in the tourneys, even reaching the final four back in 2013. She competes in the 50's era so expect her to mix it up with Grace and Audrey once again for that final spot.

5.) NATALIE WOOD (16-5) - Two- time final four finalist, Natalie has pretty much dominated the 60’s era portion of the tourneys, with the exception of 2013's early exit in the sweet sixteen round. But her 16 wins proves that she is definitely a contender and one of the most loved actresses competing.

4.) GRETA GARBO (16-4, winner of the 2014 Favorite Silent Actress Tourney) Recently crowned Favorite Silent Actress thanks to her solid performance in that year’s earlier tourney, Greta has established herself as a proven force. Now she seeks to add another crown to her collection.

3.) CAROLE LOMBARD ( (16-3, winner 2013 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney) I was so happy my beloved Carole finally broke through and won a tourney. She had come so close in the two previous tourneys only to lose to Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers in the 30’s era finals, but would not be denied a 3^rd time. It was a long time coming.

2.) BETTE DAVIS (18-3, winner 2014 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney) Bette has been in the mix in all three previous tourneys, reaching the final four in 2013 only to lose to my girl Carole. But she would not be denied a second time as she won the crown last year, posting her 18th win.

1.)    GRACE KELLY (20-4, winner 2012 Favorite Alfred Hitchcock Leading Lady) And the all-time most winning actress in tourney history is none other than Princess Grace. Two-time final four finalist that has owned the 50’s era bracket with the exception of 2013’s early exit during the sweet sixteen round. Grace did manage to win another tourney though…Favorite Alfred Hitchcock Leading Lady, quite easily might I add.

There you have it, the top 12 actresses who are the most successful in tourney history. I will also mention IRENE DUNNE (7-1, 2011 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney) and GINGER ROGERS (8-1, 2012 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney). After winning the earlier tourneys, they are ineligible to compete in future tourneys, and since they won so soon, they didn't get to rack up the wins like every one else. But they have the distinction of each having only 1 loss. No other actresses can say that! 

Please join me on Sunday, March 1st for the start of the 2015 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tournament to see who will become the 5th champion actress!

Round 4 results: DORIS DAY edges DEBORAH KERR in a thrilling match, everything else is a blow-out

The Sweet Sixteen Round has come to a close and out of the 8 matches only one had any real drama. In one of the best matches all tourney so far, Doris Day and Deborah Kerr traded blows all week long with multiple lead changes to see Doris finally escape with a one vote win 38-37. In the other 50's era match-up, it was Audrey Hepburn finally beating Grace Kelly after losing two previous times, 54-20. That is the worst loss Grace Kelly has ever had in tourney play. Hell it makes for only her 4th loss compared to her 20 wins. Here are the complete scores of all the other matches in the other eras:

30'S ERA:

BARBARA STANWYCK defeated GRETA GARBO 49-16
MYRNA LOY defeated JOAN BLONDELL 43-22

40'S ERA:

BETTE DAVIS defeated RITA HAYWORTH 50-7
OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND defeated TERESA WRIGHT 50-10

60'S ERA:

ELIZABETH TAYLOR defeated LEE REMICK 45-17
NATALIE WOOD defeated ROMY SCHNEIDER 46-18

50'S ERA:

DORIS DAY defeated DEBORAH KERR 38-37
AUDREY HEPBURN defeated GRACE KELLY 54-20

Round 5 (THE ELITE EIGHT) will begin Sunday and we are looking at some great match-ups.

In the 30's era championship match it will be Barbara Stanwyck vs Myrna Loy
In the 40's era championship match it will be Bette Davis vs Olivia de Havilland
In the 50's era championship match it will be Audrey Hepburn vs Doris Day
In the 60's era championship match it will be Elizabeth Taylor vs Natalie Wood

You couldn't have asked for better era final matches as each winner will move on to the final four. I will write a post tomorrow detailing the above matches. Can't wait to get started!

Round 3 Final Results: Veteran tourney actresses roll on

Round 3 has just wrapped up and for the most part the veteran tourney actresses rolled to easy victories. Here are the complete scores from each era:

30's era:

GRETA GARBO defeated ANN DVORAK 33-24
MYRNA LOY defeated JEAN HARLOW 33-25
BARBARA STANWYCK defeated NORMA SHEARER 40-19
JOAN BLONDELL defeated BILLIE BURKE 45-10

Greta Garbo and Myrna Loy rolled to easy victories which was not too surprising. But it was surprising that Stany had such an easy time beating Norma Shearer. Thought that match would have been much closer. And Joan Blondell had the biggest margin of victory by crushing Billie Burke by 35 votes



40's era:

BETTE DAVIS defeated JUDY GARLAND 53-16
RITA HAYWORTH defeated GENE TIERNEY 36-29
TERESA WRIGHT defeated JOAN LESLIE 45-19
OLIVIA DE HAVILLAND defeated INGRID BERGMAN 38-37

Wow...Bette decimated Judy by 37 votes for this era's biggest blow-out. The best match though was between Ingrid Bergman and Olivia de Havilland. It has been back and forth for the longest before Livvie eventually won by a single vote!

50's era:

DORIS DAY defeated MARILYN MONROE 44-32
DEBORAH KERR defeated JANET LEIGH 51-24
AUDREY HEPBURN defeated SUSAN HAYWARD 51-23
GRACE KELLY defeated LANA TURNER 51-22

Talk about blow-outs. Every match in this era was decided by 12 or more votes with the closest match being between Day and Monroe. The other three matches were decided by 25 or more votes. History making too when Grace Kelly notched her 20th tourney win, the most by any actress in tourney and match play.


60's era:

ROMY SCHNEIDER defeated CATHERINE DENEUVE 36-29  
NATALIE WOOD defeated SHIRLEY MACLAINE 45-28
ELIZABETH TAYLOR defeated JEAN SIMMONS 46-26
LEE REMICK defeated ANNE BANCROFT 40-29

Romy Schneider edged out Catherine Deneuve in this era's closest match. While Elizabeth Taylor advances to the sweet sixteen for her very first time. When she competed in the 50's era in previous tourneys, she never made it past round 3. So looks like moving to the 60's era was a very smart idea.

Round 4 (the Sweet Sixteen) will begin tomorrow morning. I will have the match-ups posted later on this evening.

All-Time Top Winning Tourney Actresses

As we are currently underway with first round action of the 2014 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney, I thought it would be a good idea to rank the all-time tourney leaders in match wins. I wanted to do a top ten list but that would take a little more time and research to compile all the numbers. So I settled with the top 5 women with the most matches won in tourney play. And not just counting this tourney but all the tourneys I have done or partnered up with, like the recent Favorite Silent Actress Tourney I did with Catherine. But I am counting only individual matches and not something like my other recent tourney, the favorite classic movie couples I did with Desiree. So here we go, beginning with #5..

5.) BETTE DAVIS (11-3) Bette has been in the mix in all three previous tourneys, reaching the final four last year only to lose to my girl Carole. And this year she is off to a great start as she is running roughshod over Katharine Hepburn. Look for Bette’s win tally to increase by quite a bit.

4.)  NATALIE WOOD (12-4) Two- time final four finalist, Natalie has pretty much dominated the 60’s era portion of the tourney, with the exception of last year’s early exit in the sweet sixteen round. But her 12 wins proves that she is definitely a contender and one of the most loved actresses competing.

3.) GRETA GARBO (13-3, winner 2014 Favorite Silent Actress Tourney) Recently crowned Favorite Silent Actress thanks to her solid performance in this year’s earlier tourney, Greta has established herself as a proven force. And with her currently beating the brakes off Fay Wray in the first round of the 30’s era bracket, she has picked up right where she left off…winning.

2.) CAROLE LOMBARD (16-3, winner 2013 Favorite Classic Movie Actress Tourney) I was so happy my beloved Carole finally broke through and won a tourney. She had come so close in the two previous tourneys only to lose to Irene Dunne and Ginger Rogers in the 30’s era finals, but would not be denied a 3^rd time. It was a long time coming.

1    1.)    GRACE KELLY (17-3, winner 2012 Favorite Alfred Hitchcock Leading Lady) And the all-time most winning actress in tourney history is none other than Princess Grace. Two-time final four finalist that has owned the 50’s era bracket with the exception of last year’s early exit during the sweet sixteen round. Grace did manage to win another tourney though…Favorite Alfred Hitchcock Leading Lady, quite easily might I add.

Once this year’s tourney wraps, I will update this all-time list and probably expand it to a top ten.

If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly

Just a photo in my recurring series spotlighting Grace. Here she is in photos with Audrey Hepburn, backstage at the Oscars. Two amazing women together! To be there that night would have been awesome!

I Love It When Things Work Out Perfectly....Happy Birthday Grace Kelly!

So today is Grace Kelly's birthday, which I already posted about on my Facebook blog page. But then I realized today happens to be Tuesday, which anyone who follows my blog knows that I have a series called If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly. I usually post photos, reviews of her films and just anything I feel like about Grace on those specific days. So the fact that her birthday happens to fall on a Tuesday this year is just wonderful timing that I had to post about it. Here are some lovely photos of Princess Grace on this special day!

Myrna Loy and Natalie Wood duked it out in one of the most thrilling matches in week 3 of The LOMBARD CUP....

Kristen has just posted the final tallies for week 3 matches of The Lombard Cup and her team Veronica won 4 of the 5 matches. Three were blow-out matches and two were very close. My team Carole was able to squeak out one win so now the point totals stand at 9 and a 1/2 points for Team Carole and 5 and a half points for Team Veronica. Here are the complete scores below:

GINGER ROGERS (Team Veronica) throttled ESTHER WILLIAMS (Team Carole) 76-20 - once again proving how dominant Ginger is when it comes to tourney play.

JOAN BLONDELL (Team Veronica) beat the dickens out of LOUISE BROOKS (Team Carole) 68-28 - showing that Joanie has a huge fanbase as well.

Grace had to stage a late rally to overtake Lauren Bacall

GRACE KELLY (Team Carole) edged out LAUREN BACALL (Team Veronica) 50-46 - wow Grace came back to win and notch her 17th win in tourney play. I knew I could count on Grace.

INGRID BERGMAN (Team Veronica) defeated MARLENE DIETRICH (Team Carole) 59-36...this was never close at all

and finally in the premiere match...MYRNA LOY (Team Veronica) held off a furious rally from NATALIE WOOD (Team Carole) to hold on and win 49-47. So this match totally delivered the goods!

Thanks to all those who voted and got the word out as the vote count increased from the previous weeks.

The fourth and final week of matches will begin on Sunday and I will post the matchups tomorrow. The action comes back here to All Good Things.

The 2013 Lombard Cup: Week 3 Matches

The action moves back over to Kristen's blog, Journeys In Classic Film, with the next five matches. And there are some choice ones plus one of the biggest matches ever to take place. I will save that one for last....

ESTHER WILLIAMS (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

GINGER ROGERS (TEAM VERONICA)

*****************

LOUISE BROOKS (TEAM CAROLE)

VS 

JOAN BLONDELL (TEAM VERONICA)

**********************

GRACE KELLY (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

LAUREN BACALL (TEAM VERONICA)

****************

MARLENE DIETRICH (TEAM CAROLE)

VS

INGRID BERGMAN (TEAM VERONICA)

*********************

and lastly...the big one...

NATALIE WOOD (TEAM CAROLE)

VS



MYRNA LOY (TEAM VERONICA)

Matches begin on Sunday and will run through Friday. Here's the link to go vote for your favorites..http://journeysinclassicfilm.com/

If It's Tuesday, Then It Must Be Grace Kelly

I haven't done a Grace Kelly Tuesday post in awhile so I figure I would do one right quick before Tuesday ends. Just a few choice quotes from Princess Grace herself.

Hollywood amuses me. Holier-than-thou for the public and unholier-than-the-devil in reality.

I'll tell you one of the reasons I'm ready to leave. When I first came to Hollywood five years ago, my makeup call was at eight in the morning. On this movie it's been put back to seven-thirty. Every day I see Joan Crawford, who's been in makeup since five, and Loretta Young who's been there since four in the morning. I'll be god-damned if I'm going to stay in a business where I have to get up earlier and earlier and it takes longer and longer for me to get in front of a camera.

I hated Hollywood. It's a town without pity. I know of no other place in the world where so many people suffer from nervous breakdowns, where there are so many alcoholics, neurotics, and so much unhappiness.

Two Marquee Matches highlight 3rd round of 50's era bracket

The 3rd round of the favorite actress tourney is underway in all eras except for the 40's, where a tie-breaker question will decide the winner between Lauren Bacall and Ida Lupino. That runs till this evening. But over in the 50's era there are two top notch matches taking place. Audrey Hepburn vs Deborah Kerr and Grace Kelly vs Marilyn Monroe. How's that for some heavyweight matches. Hepburn and Kerr faced each other last year and Audrey won in a rout, 73-45. Will this year be different? We shall soon find out. And the other marquee match has Grace Kelly facing Marilyn Monroe for the very first time. They head into this match kind of differently. Grace crushed Gloria Grahame 57-11 while Marilyn held on to outlast Lana Turner 35-33. So these two matches could be very exciting...or blow-outs. I hope they turn out to be very competitive. Click on the 50's era banner on the right side bar to go cast your vote.

AUDREY HEPBURN

VS

DEBORAH KERR

***********************************

GRACE KELLY

VS

MARILYN MONROE

Oh and the other two matches in this era are Ava Gardner vs Eleanor Parker

and Doris Day vs Jane Russell