# Present Day counterparts... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 11, 2010, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932 "2010-08-11T13:43:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 11, 2010, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/1 "2010-08-11T13:43:13Z")
…to Golden Age stars. Who would be an adequate portrayer of the real life version of: 1. Robert Mitchum 2. Cary Grant 3. Maureen O’Hara 4. Jane Russell 5. Robert Ryan 6. Burt Lancaster 7. Ginger Rogers 8. Jean Simmons 9. James Stewart 10. Elizabeth Taylor ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/2 "2010-08-28T14:59:00Z")
Okay, I’ll play my silly game: 1. Robert Mitchum – Michael Madsen 2. Cary Grant – Jon Hamm 3. Maureen O’Hara – Reba McEntire 4. Jane Russell – Salma Hayek (looks only!) 5. Robert Ryan – Scott Glenn 6. Burt Lancaster – Russell Crowe 7. Ginger Rogers – Jennifer Beals 8. Jean Simmons – Gemma Arterton 9. James Stewart – Chris Cooper 10. Elizabeth Taylor – Sherilyn Fenn (already played her at least once) Surely you can improve on some of these. Is there a modern day Maureen O’Hara, Jane Russell, Ginger Rogers or Jean Simmons? ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/3 "2010-08-28T15:17:07Z")
Cary Grant is definitely George Clooney – Hamm, though handsome, doesn’t have the intelligence and wit needed to be a Cary Grant. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/4 "2010-08-28T15:24:43Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > Cary Grant is definitely George Clooney – Hamm, though handsome, doesn’t have the intelligence and wit needed to be a Cary Grant. Good points! I had real trouble with almost everyone, Grant especially. Burt is hard to reproduce, too. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/5 "2010-08-28T15:29:14Z")
Most of your others I don’t care about, but who’s our: 1. Barbara Stanwyck 2. Bette Davis 3. Humphrey Bogart 4. Jimmy Cagney ? ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/6 "2010-08-28T15:43:29Z")
I’ve always thought there was a good similarity between Virginia Madsen and Stanwyck. And, yes, I do have a thing for the Madsens. When you deal with the uniqueness of the other three, you’re going to have to focus on looks or style, since nobody is going to have both. Otherwise, all you have is a caricature at best. I’ve seen [Rob Morrow](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001555/) do some things that approximate aspects of Bogart. ---
**Author:** ![Quercus\_alba](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quercus_alba/32/4061_2.png) [@Quercus\_alba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quercus_alba)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/7 "2010-08-28T15:52:22Z")
I really think that Tom Hanks would need to be considered as our generation’s Jimmy Stewart. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/8 "2010-08-28T16:25:32Z")
Would anybody buy Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis? ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/9 "2010-08-28T16:31:25Z")
> [@Quercus\_alba](#): > > I really think that Tom Hanks would need to be considered as our generation’s Jimmy Stewart. Yeah, that works. > [@Zeldar](#): > > Would anybody buy Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis? 'Cause of the eyes? I was thinking more of Sigourney Weaver, in terms of the roles they play – the unconventional woman vibe. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/10 "2010-08-28T16:39:18Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > > [@Zeldar](#): > > > > Would anybody buy Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis? > > 'Cause of the eyes? I was thinking more of Sigourney Weaver, in terms of the roles they play – the unconventional woman vibe. The eyes, of course, but also the brassiness. I don’t see Sigourney at all, except maybe as Joan Crawford. Tom Hanks is a bit too glib to be Stewart for my tastes. Not that I have a better answer. Cagney is hard to nail down! Too many aspects to his persona. What we need is a website that shows all the current day people. Like a high school annual or something. Is there anybody in the old school that Johnny Depp could play? Edward Norton? Ed Harris? ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/11 "2010-08-28T17:08:45Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > Cagney is hard to nail down! Too many aspects to his persona. Not in looks, but in talent I think Steve Martin could be Jimmy Cagney. He does serious drama, comedy, and is not a terrible song-and-dance man. Cagney could dance rings around Martin, but watch Steve in a Herbert Ross film and he’s pretty good. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/12 "2010-08-28T17:18:59Z")
> [@Bill\_Door](#): > > > [@Zeldar](#): > > > > Cagney is hard to nail down! Too many aspects to his persona. > > Not in looks, but in talent I think Steve Martin could be Jimmy Cagney. He does serious drama, comedy, and is not a terrible song-and-dance man. Cagney could dance rings around Martin, but watch Steve in a Herbert Ross film and he’s pretty good. I can see that as a stretch if it came down to a serious effort at a biopic. I spent quite some time looking at Yahoo! Images of Cagney and the only faces that tried to come to my mind were of Kenneth Branagh and Arliss Howard, neither of whom would get the essential Cagney across. Just for resemblance alone I see a little (and only a little) [David Rasche](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0711058/) and maybe a touch of Jeremy Irons. If you want to find a perfect fit for Steve Martin, try Vanderbilt’s departing head football coach Bobby Johnson. [http://nashvillecitypaper.com/files/citypaper/imagecache/story\_center/images/Bobby-Johnson.jpg](http://nashvillecitypaper.com/files/citypaper/imagecache/story_center/images/Bobby-Johnson.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2010, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/13 "2010-08-28T18:36:35Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > Okay, I’ll play my silly game: > > 1. Robert Mitchum – Michael Madsen > 2. Cary Grant – Jon Hamm > 3. Maureen O’Hara – Reba McEntire > 4. Jane Russell – Salma Hayek (looks only!) > 5. Robert Ryan – Scott Glenn > 6. Burt Lancaster – Russell Crowe > 7. Ginger Rogers – Jennifer Beals > 8. Jean Simmons – Gemma Arterton > 9. James Stewart – Chris Cooper > 10. Elizabeth Taylor – Sherilyn Fenn (already played her at least once) > > Surely you can improve on some of these. Is there a modern day Maureen O’Hara, Jane Russell, Ginger Rogers or Jean Simmons? Rogers: Reese Witherspoon ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/14 "2010-08-29T03:17:35Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > > [@Zeldar](#): > > > > Would anybody buy Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis? > > 'Cause of the eyes? I was thinking more of Sigourney Weaver, in terms of the roles they play – the unconventional woman vibe. How about Virginia Madsen? ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/present-day-counterparts/549932/15 "2010-08-29T03:21:55Z")
This will probably get some protest, but I’m going with Bruce Willis as the modern counterpart to Robert Mitchum.