Popular Women From 1970s: Where Are They Now?

Julie Andrews

Julie Andrews became a musical sensation, in the mid 1960s, as Mary Poppins and, Maria in “The Sound of Music.” Andrews continued to have a flourishing career, even doing voice overs in movies such as “Shrek” and “Despicable Me.” She is currently filming “Julie’s Greenroom,” an educational series for Netflix.

Sophia Loren

Sophia Loren started acting in 1950 at the tender age of 15. She landed insignificant roles until she was signed by Paramount with a 5-film contract. She then blew up and gained international fame for her performance as Cesira in “Two Women.” She won an Academy Award for Best Actress for this performance. She will always be known as one of the integral women of this era.

Kate Jackson

Born Lucy Kate Jackson, Jackson is best known for her role as Sabrina Duncan in the hit 1970s TV series Charlie’s Angels. She left the show in 1979, at the end of the third season. Jackson later moved onto TV series like Scarecrow and Mrs. King and Baby Boom. She is currently writing an memoir, titled The Smart One, that is set to be released in 2020. She still looks beautiful.

Morgan Fairchild

Morgan Fairchild became a Hollywood sensation, after landing the role of Jennifer Pace on the soap opera “Search for Tomorrow,” from 1973-1977. However, her career really exploded from “Flamingo Road” and “Falcon Crest,” in the 80s. She continues to act even today, with her most recent role in 2016’s “A Christmas in Vermont,” with Chevy Chase. She still looks just as beautiful.

Jane Fonda

She won her first Academy Award for Best Actress, in 1971, for her performance as a prostitute in Klute. However, after this film, work was few and far between for a while. Jane made a strong comeback in 2005 as Viola Fields, in Monster-In-Law, alongside Jennifer Lopez. She currently co-stars alongside Lily Tomlin, in the Netflix series, Grace and Frankie.

Jaclyn Smith

Smith rose to fame in the hit Charlie’s Angels, becoming a true hottie in Hollywood. After that Smith continued her career on the small screen, appearing in several made-for-TV movies and as Vanessa Cavanaugh on The District. As the only original Angel who remained on the show for the entire five-year duration of Charlie’s Angels, Smith’s legacy has endured long past its 1981 end date. In fact, Smith made a special cameo in the 2003 action flick Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle — the only original cast member to do so.

Linda Ronstadt

Linda made quite a name for herself as the “Queen of Rock” and “First Lady of Rock. She made 31 gold and platinum records and won an astounding 10 Grammys. Unfortunately, in 2013, Linda announced she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. However, she remains strong and recently released her memoir: “Simple Dreams: A Musical Memoir.”

Goldie Hawn

Goldie quickly became a Hollywood star and icon. She still acts to this day and recently returned to the big screen for the first time since 2002 in the mother-daughter comedy, “Snatched,” with famous comedian Amy Schumer. Her daughter Kate Hudson is a famous actress, and she is still happily in love with Kurt Russell. We love Goldie.

Pam Grier

Pam became a 1970s staple, playing Jack Hill’s Coffy (1973) and continuing with movies like Foxy Brown and Sheba, Baby. Since then, Grier has appeared in the films Jackie Brown and The Man with the Iron Fists, and starred on the series The L World. She’s currently set to star in a dark comedy feature film about four grandmothers who accidentally kill a con man.

Kim Basinger

Kim started as a model, but made her acting debut on the TV series “Gemini Man.” Throughout the 70s, she landed different roles on TV, and in the 1980s she began to land big roles in feature films. Her most memorable performance was as Lynn Bracken in “L.A. Confidential,” for which she won the Oscar Best Actress in a Supporting Role. She most recently appeared alongside Russell Crowe in 2016’s “The Nice Guys,” and appeared in 2017’s “Fifty Shades Darker.”

Barbara Streisand

Barbara Streisand’s career shot its way to the top in the 1970s. After having a successful music career, in the 1960s, Streisand transitioned to movies. In 1968, came her breakthrough role in “Funny Girl,” winning an Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. Barbara has platinum albums and amazing acting performances under her belt. She will soon combine both, with her appearance in the movie adaptation of “Gypsy.”

Billie Jean King

In 1981, she became the first influential female athlete to come out as gay. King continued to have success inside and out of the tennis world. In 1987, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and in 2009 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 2014, she launched the Billie Jean King Leadership Initiative to focus on inclusion and diversity issues in the workplace.

Mindy Cohn

Mindy Cohn is best known as Frenchie, in the popular TV series “The Facts of Life”. After “The Facts of Life”, she landed returning roles on different TV shows, including “The Second Half”, “The Kids From Room 402”, and “The Secret Life of an American Teenager”.  Her most recent role was in 2017’s drama-film “Hollywood Dirt”.

Ann-Margret

Ann-Margret gained  attention as the red headed bombshell after she played Kim Mcafee in “Bye Bye Birdie.” This helped to sky rocket her career during the 1970s. She received academy award nominations for her work in “Carnal Knowledge” and “Tommy.” Her most recent role was in 2014, on the Showtime series “Ray Donovan.”

Allison Arngrim

Alison Arngrim can be recognized as Nellie Oleson in “Little House on the Prairie,” from 1974-1982. Since her days as nasty little Nellie, she continued to act in many different TV movies and TV films. In 2010, she released “Confessions of A Prairie Bitch: How I Survived Nellie Oleson and Learned to Love Being Hated.”  Today she spends a lot of time involved in charity to raise awareness for diseases such as aids and to stop child abuse.

Debbie Harry

This rock chic is best known as the lead singer of the band “Blondie.” After Blondie’s debut album in 1976, their success was magnanimous. In June 1979, Blondie was featured on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. In 2011, Harry Told Britain’s The Sun that Elton John inspired her to get involved in more charity work. She has helped organizations like the Endometriosis Foundation of America and Amnesty International Human Rights. In 2014, the band released its tenth studio album, Ghosts of Download. Blondie will always remain an icon.

Jane Seymour

Jane became a Hollywood hottie from her role as Bond Girl, Solitaire, in the 1973 film, Live and Let Die. Jane continued the 70s with landing roles on TV series and movies, like Battlestar Galactica and The Four Feathers. In the 1980s, Seymour started utilizing her passion for writing, with self-help and inspirational books, which she still focuses on. She also continues to act.

Diane Keaton

We love Diane Keaton! Her first notable film role was Kay Adams-Corleone in “The Godfather.” However, it was her films with Woody Allen that really cemented her name as a player in Hollywood:  Her performance as the title role in Annie Hall, won her the Academy Award for Best Actress. Diane continues to act, and recently appeared in the TV series “The Young Pope” as Sister Mary.

Faye Dunaway

Faye Dunaway began making her mark, in the 60s on Broadway. However, her screen debut was in 1967 in “The Happening.” Later that year, her role as the notorious Bonnie Parker in the “Bonnie and Clyde.” won the viewers attention. She received a Academy Award for the memorable performance. Faye’s career has only continued to be on the up. She is still acting today, and currently is credited with 2 roles for movies set to be released in 2018.

Sissy Spacek

Spacek began gaining attention in the 1970s when she played the iconic title-role in the 1976 horror film, Carrie. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress. Spacek became the first person to act in an Academy Award nominated film in each of the 4 most recent decades: Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980), Missing (1982), JFK (1991), In the Bedroom (2001) and The Help (2011). What an icon.

Katharine Ross

Katharine Ross played the very famous Mrs. Robinson’s daughter in the iconic movie “The Graduate,” in 1967. From then on she got lead roles, as Joanna Ingalls Eberhart in “The Stepford Wives,” in 1975 and “Voyage of the Damned,” “The Betsy,” and “The Swarm.”  She has also co-authored numerous children books. Imagine being Mrs Robinson’s daughter!

Beverly Johnson

In August 1974, Beverly Johnson made history when she became the first African-American model to appear on the cover of American Vogue. In 1975, she became the first African-American woman to appear on the cover of the French edition of Elle. In 2015, she released her memoir, The Face That Changed It All.

Karen Lynn Gorney

From 1970 to 1974, Gorney played Tara Martin on the soap opera All My Children. In 1977,  she got her biggest role, as Stephanie Mangano in Saturday Night Fever, alongside John Travolta. She returned after a break in the 1990s, taking on roles in TV shows like Law & Order and The Sopranos. She most recently appeared in a short film titled Behind the Wall.

Lorraine Gary

Gary is the fresh faced beauty who played Ellen Brody in the Jaws films. She retired from acting after her appearance in Spielberg’s 1941. However, she came out of retirement for a reprisal of Ellen Brady in Jaws: The Revenge in 1987. Since then, Gary has stepped away from the spotlight.  She is a member of the Humans Rights Watch Africa Advisory Committee and the Human Rights Watch Women’s Rights Advisory Committee.

Ellen Burstyn

In 1971, Burstyn received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Last Picture Show. She also received a Best Actress nod for playing Chris MacNeil in the cult classic The Exorcist. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress, in 1975, for playing Alice Hyatt in the Martin Scorsese film Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. Recently, Burstyn appeared in Interstellar and The Age of Adaline.

Meryl Streep

Streep  is one of the most famous actresses in Hollywood. In 1977, her film debut came in the TV movie, “Deadliest Season”, following a performance as Joanna Kramer in the film “Kramer v Kramer.” She received both Golden Globe & Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for this performance. Streep continues to have huge success on screen. Streep has more nominations for an Academy Award than any other actor or actress. We loved her in Devil Wears Prada.

Marilu Henner

Marilu began the 70s playing the part of Marty in the broadway musical Grease. Her first film appearance was in Between the Lines in 1977. However, it was when she became Elaine Nardo in the comedy sitcom Taxi that her career exploded. She has written many books including her most recent, Changing Normal: How I Helped My Husband Defeat Cancer.

Carol Kane

Carol Kane played Gitl in “Hester Street,” for which she won a Golden Globe nomination and landed a role in the Woody Allen Film “Annie Hall.” In the early 80s she featured in the popular TV series “Taxi.” Kane continued to land roles in movies such as “The Princess Bride” and “Adams Family Values.” From 2005-2014, she played the evil headmistress Madame Morrible in the Broadway musical “Wicked,” with various productions. Beginning in 2015, she landed the reoccurring role of Lillian Kaushtupper in Netflix’s “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.”

Talia Shire

Talia is most well known for her roles as Connie Corleone in The Godfather films, and Adrian Pennino in the Rocky series. She was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress and Best Actress, for these roles.  She most recently appeared in Dreamland, which also co-starred another one of her sons, Jason Schwartzman.

Lynda Carter

Lynda is best known for starring in the TV series “Wonder Woman” from 1975 – 1979.  She recently appeared in the new CW series “Supergirl,” and is currently credited as being a cast member in the upcoming movie “Super Troopers 2.”

Cybill Shepherd

Cybill first appeared in The Last Picture Show in 1971. It was a box office hit. She then went on to play Kelly in The Heartbreak Kid in 1972, and Betsy in Taxi Driver in 1976. In 2012, Cybill made her Broadway debut in the revival of The Best Man, along side John Stamos. In 2015, she featured in the Christian-themed film, Do You Believe?.

Agnetha Faltskog

Agnetha Faltskog, is one of A’s from the famous Swedish pop group ABBA. ABBA brought us hits like “Dancing Queen” and “Take a Chance on Me.” Unfortunately, ABBA disbanded in the early 80’s and Agnetha took a shot at a solo career. Her first solo album was “Wrap Your Arms Around Me,” which achieved moderate success. In 2016, a biography titled “Agnetha Fältskog: The Girl with the Golden Hair,” was released in the UK.

Raquel Welch

Ending the 1960s with her iconic bikini wearing role in One Million Years BC, Raquel continued to rise to fame in 1970s. She won an Golden Globe award for her performance in The Three Musketeers in 1973, and appeared in the thriller The Last of Shelia. Raquel expanded her influence in pop culture with releasing a Total Beauty and Fitness Program book and videos, as well as, a signature line of wigs called “HAIRuWEAR.” Raquel also recently appeared in the TV movies, House of Versace and The Ultimate Legacy.

Carly Simon

Carly Simon released her first self-titled album in 1971, which included her first hit “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard It Should Be.” She didn’t waste much time and released her second album “Anticipation,” later that year, which saw the same success. However, she was sky rocketed in superstardom, in 1972, when she released “You’re so Vain.” Even today, people still debate about who the song is actually referring to. In 2015, she released “Boys in the Trees: A Memoir.” Her memoir includes details from her childhood through her marriage to James Taylor.

Catherine Bach

Bach is best known for her role as denim cut-off shorts wearing Daisy Duke, in the Dukes of Hazzard TV series from 1979-1985. After the series ended, Bach had roles in a number of low-profile films. In 2012, Bach joined the cast of daytime soap opera, The Young and the Restless, in the recurring role of Anita Lawson. She had a roles in the feature film “You Again,” and appearances on TV shows “Monk” and “Hawaii Five-O.”

Chris Evert

Chris Evert is a former world champion of tennis. She began playing tennis at age 5, and by the time she was 16, she had already made a name for herself in the sport. She was the World champion in 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, and 1981. She was voted the Associate Press Female Athlete of the year 4 times and was the first female athlete to receive Sport Illustrated’s “Sportswoman of the Year award,” in 1976. She has since opened a tennis academy in Boca Raton, Florida, and has created a line of tennis apparel for women.

Ali Macgraw

Ali Macgraw began her acting career appearing in commercials. However, she gained international attention after playing Jenny, in “Love Story,” in 1970. However, she only appeared in 3 more films in the 1970s: “The Getaway,” “Convoy,” and “Players.” In the 80s, she appeared in TV series “The War of Winds” and “Dynasty.” In 2008, GQ magazine listed her as one of the “Sexiest 25 Women in Film Ever.” In 2016, she reunited with “Love Story” co-star, Ryan O’Neal, in the stage production of “Love Letters.”

Dolly Parton

In 1974, Dolly took the world by storm with 3 solo songs, Jolene, I Will Always Love you, and Love is Like a Butterfly, that reached #1 on the country chart. She consistently continued to top the country charts throughout the decade. She also hosted her own variety show, Dolly!, from 1976-1977. In 2016, Dolly had her largest U.S. tour to date, performing in 60 cities throughout the country. She also recently released a new cover of Jolene with the a cappella group the Pentatonix.

Lauren Hutton

Lauren Hutton, made the gap-tooth look good, and paved the way for imperfections to be labeled as beautiful. She appeared on the cover of Vogue a record of 27 times. She also dabbled in acting, receiving high praise for her role as Billie in “The Gambler,” in 1974. She continued to act and model. One of her most recent roles was in 2013, alongside Demi Moore and David Duchovny, in “The Joneses.”

Jacqueline Bisset

British-Actress Jacqueline Bisset gain worldwide attention, in 1968, after she played the role of Norma MacIver, in “The Detective,” opposite Frank Sinatra. Therefore, the 1970s only continued to be a huge success for Bisset. She appeared in 17 movies throughout the decade including, “Airport,” “The Mephisto Waltz,” and “Day for Night.” In 2015, she appeared along side Drew Barrymore and Toni Collette in “Miss You Already.” A lesser known fact about her is she is godmother to actress Angelina Jolie.

Carrie Fisher

Carrie Fisher became a Hollywood star after she landed the role of Princess Leia Organa in the “Star Wars” franchise. However, she also appeared in other hit movies like “The Blue Brothers,” “When Harry Met Sally,” and “Heartbreakers.” She is also an author of 2 books: “Postcards from the Edge,” and “Wishful Drinking.” Unfortunately, Fisher passed away, from a heart attack at the age of 60, in December 2016. She is remembered by her daughter Billie Lourd.

Dawn Wells

From 1964-1967, Dawn Wells was stranded on “Gilligan’s Island.” She played the role of Mary Ann Summers, which she reprised in 1978 for TV movie “Rescue from Gilligan’s Island” and in 1979, “The Castaways on Gilligan’s Island.” After Gilligan’s Island, she spent most of her time touring with musical theater productions. Unfortunately, Wells never landed any major TV or films roles after Gilligan’s Island. In 2014, she released “What Would Mary Ann Do? A Guide to Life,” which she co-wrote with Steve Stinson. In May 2016, she was named Marketing Ambassador to MeTV network.

Olivia Newton John

Olivia is best known for her playing Sandy in the film adaptation of Grease. After her role as Sandy, Olivia returned to her roots as a singer and released her second studio album, Totally Hot. In 2015, Olivia released a song co-featuring her daughter, Chloe, titled You Have to Believe. The track was the first mother-daughter song to reach number-one single on Billboard’s Dance Club Play chart. Today, you can still find her touring internationally with her music.

Linda Gray

After performing as Mrs. Robinson’a body double in “The Graduate,” it was Linda Gray’s time to shine. Grays breakthrough role came as the beautiful Sue Ellen in “Dallas.” She reprised her role of Sue Ellen in the “Dallas” remake from 2012 to 2014. However, she also appeared in various movies including “The Entertainers,” “Expecting Mary, and “Hidden Moon.” Most recently, in 2016, she appeared in the TV series “Hollyoaks,” as Tabby Maxwell-Brown.

Christie Brinkley

Supermodel, Christie Brinkley gained international fame, after landing 3 covers of the Sport Illustrated swimsuit edition, in the late 1970s. She went on to become the face of Covergirl for 25 years, and landed campaigns in hundreds of magazines. However, it doesn’t look like Christie has aged a day. For the 2017 Sport Illustrated Swimsuit edition, at the age of 63, Christie returned to the cover. She is featured with her 2 daughters.

Cheryl Ladd

Cheryl Ladd is most well known for her role as Kris Munroe in the popular series “Charlie’s Angels,” from 1977-1981. In 1978, she released her first single “Think It Over,” which landed at #34 on the Top 100 Billboard chart. She released 3 more albums after that which all did well. Since the 70s, her most notable performances were in “Millennium” in 1989, and “Poison Ivy,” in 1992. Her most recent role in 2016, was in the hit TV mini-series “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.”

Beth Chapman

Beth Chapman hails from Denver, Colorado. When she was just 29-years-old, she became the youngest licensed bail bondsman in Colorado history. Funnily enough, the record was to later be broken by her step-daughter, Lyssa Chapman. Beth is now known for being one of the main characters in the series Dog the Bounty Hunter and Dog and Beth: On The Hunt. In 2017, she was diagnosed with cancer and fortunately made a full recovery.