Career: Wayne began doing bit parts in westerns and adventures and appeared in about 70 movies before his breakthrough role in John Ford's Stagecoach (1939). He went on to star in more than 20 John Ford pictures, including Fort Apache (1948), She Wore a Yellow Ribbon (1949), Rio Grande (1950), The Searchers (1956) and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962). Other notable films included Sands of Iwo Jima (1949), The Alamo (1960), The Green Berets (1968), True Grit (1969) and The Shootist (1976). He died of stomach cancer on June 11, 1979 at the age of 72.

Career: In Cape Cod, Massachusetts, Fonda landed his first professional role in the University Players production of The Jest. It wasn't long before he headed to New York. Along with roommate James Stewart, he developed his acting skills on Broadway and appeared in a number of stage productions between 1926 and 1934. Fonda got his big break when he made his first film appearance in The Farmer Takes a Wife (1935). His movie career took off and in 1936 he starred in The Trail of the Lonesome Pine, the first Technicolor movie filmed outdoors. He went on to star in The Grapes of Wrath (1940), Rings On Her Fingers (1942), and The Ox-Bow Incident (1943). He served in the Navy during the Second World War. In 1948, Fonda won a Tony Award for playing the title role in Mister Roberts, a role he would later play on the big screen in 1955. He went on to star in War in Peace (1956), The Wrong Man (1956), 12 Angry Men (1957), How the West Was Won (1962) and Spencer's Mountain (1963). Fonda continued to act throughout his final years and he won his only Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in On Golden Pond (1981). He died a year later in Los Angeles at the age of 77.

Career: Lawford signed a contract with MGM and made his Hollywood debut in a minor part in the film Lord Jeff (1938). His first significant role came in A Yank at Eton (1942), where he played a snobbish bully. His first leading role came in Son of Lassie (1945). He starred with Frank Sinatra for the first time in the musical It Happened in Brooklyn (1947). He went on to have supporting roles in a number of other MGM films. His first film after leaving MGM was It Should Happen to You (1954) alongside Jack Lemmon and Judy Holliday. In 1959, Frank Sinatra invited him join the Rat Pack. Ocean's 11 (1960) was the first project to feature all five main Rat Pack members, Lawford, Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr and Joey Bishop. Later films included The Longest Day (1962) and Advise & Consent (1962). When a planned visit to Sinatra's home by President John F Kennedy broke down, Sinatra blamed Lawford, who was Kennedy's brother-in-law at the time, and Lawford was never associated with the Rat Pack again. Lawford went on to star in more films and made appearances in a number of TV shows, including The Doris Day Show, Fantasy Island, and The Love Boat. Lawford died in Los Angeles on December 24, 1984 at the age of 61, from cardiac arrest.

Career: While still a bodybuilder, Sean was offered the chance to appear in a West End production of South Pacific, which kick-started his acting career. His film debut came in 1955's Lilacs in the Spring, but he didn't become a major star until he appeared as Bond in 1962's Dr No. It remains his most famous role, despite hits including The Man Who Would Be King, Rising Sun, A Bridge Too Far, Time Bandits, Highlander, The Rock, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade and Entrapment. He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for The Untouchables in 1987.