The Ten Most Beautiful Redheads From The Golden Era Of Films

By Editorial Staff in Entertainment On 6th February 2017

Blondes and Brunettes were aplenty, but the fiery red-headed beauty was a rarity in Old Hollywood. And they weren't just given juicy roles for their looks either, they could all act and hold their own in any part they were given to portray.

#1 Rita Hayworth

She graced the cover of LIFE Magazine five times during her career and appeared in movies with Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly, showing off her roots in dance. When she broke away from always appearing as 'the other woman' in films to starring roles, she landed a huge film in 1941, starring James Cagney, The Strawberry Blonde, and soon became a much sought-after star. When the war started, Rita and pal Betty Grable were the top 'pin-ups' of the servicemen overseas. Her biggest role was that opposite Glen Ford in 1946's 'Gilda". She would later star with Ford in several other films, appearing in a total of 61 films over 37 years.

#2 Susan Hayward

She went to Hollywood in 1937 after being a photographer's model. Noted for portraying 'real woman' with a true story behind them, Hayward was nominated for five Academy Awards during her career and was in the consideration to play Scarlett in Gone With The Wind, which led her to be noticed by several other directors. She won her the Academy's highest honor for Best Actress for her portrayal of Barbara Graham in 1958's 'I Want to Live' about a death row inmate. Another of her 'real woman' roles was that of the true life story of actress Lillian Roth in 1955's 'I'll Cry Tomorrow' opposite Richard Conte where she imitates Roth's real-life alcoholism with perfection. She starred in many films alongside actors like Gary Cooper, John Wayne, and Clark Gable. Some of her best films include Smash-Up, The Conqueror, and Valley Of The Dolls.

#3 Maureen O'Hara

The famously red-headed O'Hara was known for her beauty and playing fiercely passionate but sensible heroines, often in westerns and adventure films. Her most fiery and most famous role was opposite frequent co-star John Wayne in The Quiet Man filmed in Ireland about a tumultuous relationship between she and Wayne. She grew up in Dublin, Ireland and moved to Hollywood in 1939 where she got her first role in Alfred Hitchcock's Jamaica Inn. She then went on to star in films such as How Green Was My Valley (1941) (her first collaboration with John Ford), The Black Swan with Tyrone Power (1942), The Spanish Main (1945), Sinbad the Sailor (1947), the Christmas classic Miracle on 34th Street (1947) with John Payne and Natalie Wood and Comanche Territory (1950). She was comfortable in musicals, pirate movies, westerns, and even comedies.

#4 Deborah Kerr

By Hollywood standards, Deborah Kerr was considered too prim and proper for sensual roles, and her costars often had to pry her appeal and sexiness out of her. But when they did, she was like a stick of dynamite. She was always classy and brought elegance to her seductive roles, and there were many. The Scottish-born actress was nominated six times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, more than any other actress without ever winning. In 1994, however, she received an Academy Honorary Award. Her films were plentiful regardless of the acclaim, and she starred in such classics as An Affair to Remember with Cary Grant, From Here to Eternity with Burt Lancaster, and Marriage on the Rocks with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. She starred in over 45 films before her death in 2007 at the age of 86.

#5 Greer Garson

From London, England, Garson was very popular during the Second World War, being listed by the Motion Picture Herald as one of America's top-ten box office draws from 1942-46. She brought elegance and charm to the screen but had her own sexual appeal for the viewing audience. Her very first American film was Goodbye Mr. Chips in 1939 which won her the first of seven Academy Award nominations and a win for Best Actor for her co-star, Robert Donat. In a similar role in Mrs. Miniver in 1942, she won the Oscar for her performance. She would have five consecutive Oscar nominations in the early 40's. None of her films had her in a seductive role, but she had a certain quality that lent itself to her resounding sexuality nevertheless. Some of her biggest roles were in the films Random Harvest, Madam Curie, That Forsyte Woman, and Pride And Prejudice.

#6 Ann Sheridan

She always played the gal that truly loved her man in every sense of the word and was always faithful to him no matter what he had done, or what had happened to him. She was always the girl next door with the sexy voice. She worked regularly from 1934 to her death in 1967, first in film and later in television. Notable roles include Angels with Dirty Faces (1938), The Man Who Came to Dinner (1942), Kings Row (1942), Nora Prentiss (1947) and I Was a Male War Bride (1949). Her honesty and sincerely had its own sexuality. Her beauty did not hurt, either. Sheridan was a popular pin-up girl in the early 1940s and was nicknamed "the Oomph Girl". She was only 51 when she died in 1967.

#7 Arlene Dahl

Dahl began her acting career in 1947 and her career peaked in the early 1950s, though she continued doing parts for many years later. Arlene was not a great actress, nor a truly popular film star. Everyone knew who she was because of her beauty and her red hair. One of the most beautiful in films, she made movies for over forty years. Her films were not those that remain with you, nor were they B films. They were mostly simple movies that brought a little entertainment into your life. Her films include Reign of Terror (1949), Three Little Words (1950), Slightly Scarlet (1956), and Journey to the Center of the Earth (1959). She also starred on several television series including a four-year stint on the ABC soap, One Life To Live. She is the mother of Lorenzo Lamas (who she had while married to Fernando Lamas) and she starred in her last film role with him in 1991, The Night Of the Warrior.

#8 Piper Laurie

Many may know Laurie as the wicked mother in 1976's 'Carrie' but Piper was acting for many years before that. Piper's first film was opposite Ronald Reagan in Louisa in 1950. She and the former president dated prior to his marriage to Nancy. She made several films throughout the 50's until her departure for stage work and study in New York. She was brought back to Hollywood to star opposite Paul Newman in The Hustler in 1961 which would bring her an Academy Award nomination for her role as a woman with no vanity, no self-importance or feelings of worth. She took herself out of character for this role by losing her beauty and charm to display this modest and defenseless type of woman. She still came across as sexy enough to lure the attentions of George C. Scott. Piper often went from light cheerful roles to those that depicted her as non-glamorous, or far from the mainstream. She is also known for her performance as Catherine Martell in the cult television series Twin Peaks, for which she won a Golden Globe Award in 1991.

#9 Rhonda Fleming

Of all the redheads, Rhonda probably looked best in color whereas the rest looked better in black and white. The innovation of Technicolor showed off her amazing beauty and gorgeous flaming red hair. She acted in more than forty films, mostly in the 1940s and 1950s, and became renowned as one of the most glamorous actresses of her day. She was nicknamed the "Queen of Technicolor" because her fair complexion and flaming red hair photographed exceptionally well in the format. After appearing uncredited in several films, she received her first substantial role in the thriller Spellbound (1945). She then went on to appear in films such as The Spiral Staircase, Out of the Past and Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. She made four films with Ronald Reagan whom she admired greatly. She appeared in her final film in 1990, Waiting for the Wind.

#10 Jeanne Crain

Jeanne was such a beautiful lady. She had a very tender and sweet face but could be sexy when the time came, and she did so with some of the best, Cary Grant, Frank Sinatra, Dana Andrews, Randolph Scott and Kirk Douglas. However, the film that Jeanne will always be remembered for is Pinky in 1949. This was a very controversial movie about an African-American woman who passed for white in the North. The performance earned Jeanne an Academy Award nomination. This film did not require any sexual connotations, but Jeanne still managed to appear sexy. She was also noted for her ability in ice skating, but her acting career spanned from 1943 to 1975. She played in movies such as State Fair, Leave Her To Heaven, Cheaper By The Dozen, and The Tattered Dress.

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