Another friend (bless her!) sent two hard-bound special editions of, yes, Entertainment Weekly, one devoted to The 100 Greatest Entertainers (1950-2000) and the other to The 100 Greatest TV Shows of the past century (more on that in a future issue).
For all it’s worth, Funfare is putting out a list of The 100 Greatest Entertainers (of the second half of the 20th century) which Funfare readers will, I’m sure, find interesting.
Why only from 1950 to 2000?
The editors of Entertainment Weekly explained:
"We chose to focus on the century’s second half, not because we have anything against D.W. Griffith, but because the modern pop-cult era truly got started after World War II, with the arrival of television, rock & roll, and an itchy, omnivorous youth audience. That mix has created figures who’ve changed the way we see the world –Elvis and Madonna, Kubrick and Spielberg, Mary Tyler Moore and the cast of Saturday Night Live.
"But also making their mark have been behind-the-scenes creators like Norman Lear, ahead-of-their-time groundbreakers like James Brown, unstinting artists like Joni Mitchell, and those who’ve just entertained so well that they’ve put their stamp on an era (everyone from Jackie Gleason to Julia Roberts).
"You’ll also find a section on key influences from around the world. As for ranking our 100 Greatest –sure, it may ultimately be silly to compare, say, the Beatles with Meryl Streep. But there is a certain calculus of pop impact, artistic legacy, entertainment value, and (okay) sheer gut instinct behind our chutzpah.
"In short, these are the people we feel our great-grandchildren will still recognize in 2099, in the same way we know the names Sarah Bernhardt, Mark Twain, and Enrico Caruso."
Okay... Ready for the list? Here it is:
1. The Beatles
2. Elvis Presley
3. Marilyn Monroe
4. Steven Spielberg
5. Madonna
6. Frank Sinatra
7. Saturday Night Fever
8. Michael Jackson
9. Lucille Ball
10. The Simpsons
11. Bob Dylan
12. Marlon Brando
13. Barbra Streisand
14. Alfred Hitchcock
15. The Rolling Stones
16. Audrey Hepburn
17. John Wayne
18. Elizabeth Taylor
19. Aretha Franklin
20. Robert De Niro
21. Stephen King
22. Mary Tyler Moore
23. Jack Nicholson
24. Bill Cosby
25. Robert Redford
26. Woody Allen
27. Clint Eastwood
28. Tom Wolfe
29. Stevie Wonder
30. Martin Scorsese
31. Oprah Winfrey
32. Paul Newman
33. Star Trek
34. Richard Pryor
35. Bruce Springsteen
36. James Brown
37. Harrison Ford
38. Meryl Streep
39. Miles Davis
40. Norman Lear
41. James Dean
42. Francis Ford Coppola
43. Tom Hanks
44. Bob Marley
45. Johnny Carson
46. James L. Brooks
47. Jackie Gleason
48. Jane Fonda
49. Julia Roberts
50. Chuck Berry
51. Jimi Hendrix
52. Tom Cruise
53. Dustin Hoffman
54. David Bowie
55. The Beach Boys
56. Jerry Seinfeld
57. Stanley Kubrick
58. Cher
59. Prince
60. Willie Nelson
61. Jim Henson
62. Warren Beatty
63. Jodie Foster
64. Joni Mitchell
65. David Letterman
66. Jim Carrey
67. Aaron Spelling
68. Ed Sullivan
69. The Sex Pistols
70. Paul Simon
71. Steve Martrin
72. Kurt Cobain
73. Neil Young
74. Michael Crichton
75. The X-Files
76. Run DMC
77. Monty Python
78. Bob Newhart
79, Diana Ross
80. Michael Jordan
81. Agnes Nixon
82. Eric Clapton
83. John Grisham
84. Sean Connery
85. Carol Burnett
86. Mel Brooks
87. Steven Bochco
88. Loretta Lynn
89. Janis Joplin
90. The Grateful Dead
91. Robin Williams
92. Oliver Stone
93. Bob Fosse
94. Elvis Costello
95. James Cameron
96. Diane Keaton
97. James Garner
98. Garth Brooks
99. Spike Lee
100. Chrissie Hynde