Hollywood's Handsomest Leading Men

Have decided to devote a page to the Hollywood Leading Men who make my heart skip a beat. Some might quibble with the fact that I've neglected to include some more modern heartthrobs - Ryan Gosling, for instance - but much like the governing bodies of sports halls of fame, I believe it's necessary to allow 10-20 years to pass before it's possible to reliably identify the men with true classic appeal. 

This list is in no particular order ... they all have a similar effect on my pulse!




George Clooney.  Classic good looks
plus charm, humility, a social conscience
and a sense of humor? Seems too good
to be true, except apparently it is!



Clark Gable.  He was gorgeous, charming,
rakish, and just a little bit bad ...
which is just the way we like them,
isn't it, ladies?



Dennis Quaid. That rougish grin! 



Gregory Peck.  To me, Peck is the epitome of
the hot college professor you lust after all year
but who you know would be far too principled
to ever make a pass. 



Cary Grant.  When you think Hollywood
Leading Man, this is the picture that pops
pops into your head, isn't it?  Cary Grant was
suave, sophisticated, witty, and he established
for once and all the standard against which all
men in tuxedos would be judged. 



Brad Pitt.  Handsome without
lapsing into pretty, and he does this
simmering thing with his eyes
that I can't explain but that
makes women swoon.



Colin Firth.  Sexy
for the thinking woman.



Hugh Jackman. Sexy for the woman
who doesn't want to have to think about it.



Jimmy Stewart. One inevitably thinks of him
as the desperate husband and father in
It's a Wonderful Life, but before that he was
was a romantic lead. I, for one, was definitely
jealous of Grace Kelly in Rear Window!





Sean Connery. I was going to choose one
of his young James Bond photos, but
this is one Hollywood hunk who just
keeps getting better looking with age.

 

 



Denzel Washington. You know what
they say - smart is the new sexy.



Robert Redford.  If Gregory Peck is the
 college professor you'd most want to sleep
 with, Robert Redford was the coed
you most wanted to bring home for Spring
Break to introduce to your parents.

 

Johnny Depp.  One forgets how good he looks
beneath all those layers of eyeliner.



 

 

Tony Curtis. 
Almost too beautiful to be a dude.

Humphrey Bogart.  Not conventionally handsome,
but he had that husky voice and that dangerous glint in his eye
that let you know he was a bad boy.



Rock Hudson. His looks draw you in,
but it's his ability to laugh at himself

that makes women fall in love with him.

Michael Caine. Beautiful in an indefinable British way.
 

    








Daniel Craig.  The epitome of steely-eyed sex appeal.
 




Erol Flynn. He made even a pair
of green tights look good!



Lawrence Olivier. I'd play Ophelia to his Hamlet any day!