America's Sweethearts Of the Past

CULTURE | March 11, 2017

Written by Jacob Shelton

Over the years, there have been more than a few women that America has fallen in love with. Some of them have been officially labeled as 'America's Sweethearts', while others have just won our hearts, and the hearts of almost everyone else on the planet. These gals don't have to be from America to be loved by the good ol' U S of A, and as you'll come to see we're equal opportunity lovers. 

From actresses who were all over the silver screen in the Golden Age of Hollywood, to beautiful Vaudevillians and babes of the 1980s, there's a sweetheart on here for you. Let's take a look at some of America's most loved women!

Mary Pickford Was A Multi-Continent Sweetheart

Ironically, America's very first sweetheart wasn't even American-born. Silent-actress Mary Pickford, who was born in Canada, became an international superstar by 1914. The actress went on to become not just America's sweetheart, but also Japan's, Canada's, France's and the United Kingdom's sweetheart. 

Throughout her career Pickford appeared in 52 films, sometimes as a girl like she did in Pollyanna and The Poor Little Rich Girl, but in the last 20 years of her career she produced and starred in The Taming of the Shrew before moving onto just being a producer, talk about upward mobility. 

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Jacob Shelton

Writer

Jacob Shelton is a Los Angeles based writer. For some reason this was the most difficult thing he’s written all day, and here’s the kicker – his girlfriend wrote the funny part of that last sentence. As for the rest of the bio? That’s pure Jacob, baby. He’s obsessed with the ways in which singular, transgressive acts have shaped the broader strokes of history, and he believes in alternate dimensions, which means that he’s great at a dinner party. When he’s not writing about culture, pop or otherwise, he’s adding to his found photograph collection and eavesdropping on strangers in public.