Barbara Jill Walters was born and raised in Boston, the third generation of a Jewish immigrant family. She was the youngest of three children. Her brother died as a toddler, and her sister had mental disabilities. Still, Walters said she was one of the most significant people in her life, making her compassionate, empathic, and ambitious. Her father, Louis “Lou,” was in entertainment and show business. He ran nightclubs, produced on Broadway, and was a booking agent. The family moved from Boston to Miami Beach and then to New York City following his business, so Walters changed schools every several years, but growing up surrounded by celebrities and talents helped her feel comfortable and natural around them and create intimacy during interviews. After graduating from Sarah Lawrence College in New York in 1953, Walters went to speed writing school and finished at the top of her class. A skill she used extensively throughout her career. The local NBC station hired her as the assistant due to her connection as Lou Walter’s daughter and her speed typing skills. She started writing stories about fashion, beauty, and other subjects she nicknamed the “tea pourers.” The managers admired her writing skills, and in 1961 Walters joined the panel team of NBC’s The Today Show. Soon she became the regular Today Girl and was sent to cover stories, receiving more and more airtime. Her breakthrough occurred when the network temporarily hired her to cover a convention. The temporary assignment lasted for 13 years. Since the conception in those days was that people could not hear the hard news from a woman, her college Frank McGee asked the hard questions, while Walters was allowed to do remote interviews and ask a question only after McGee asked four questions. When McGee passed away in 1974, Walters officially became the co-host of the Today show. The first female co-host of a news program in the United States. In 1976 ABC signed Walters on a 5-year $5 million contract, making her the highest-paid news anchor. She co-anchored ABC Evening News from 1976 to 1978, the first US female network news anchor. From 1984 till her retirement, she co-hosted ABC newsmagazine 20/20. Walters appeared in ABC specials, covering events like the Oscar lineups and presidential inaugurations. She became famous for her Barbara Walters Specials interview program, interviewing celebrities, sports icons, world leaders, and royalties, including the Shah of Iran, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, and his wife, Empress Farah Pahlavi, and Cuba’s leader Fidel Castro. From 1997 until her retirement in 2014, Walters co-hosted, co-created, and co-produced the daytime talk show The View. In the show, women of different generations, backgrounds, and viewpoints discussed current events. Other networks copied the concept. Her last on-air interview was in December 2015, and she made her final public appearance in 2016. After she paved the way for women in television and inspired many to join the field, Walters passed away in her home in Manhattan in 2022 after suffering from Alzheimer’s in recent years. Read more...

Viola Davis was born in St. Matthews, South Carolina, and grew up in Central Falls, Rhode Island. The family often struggled to survive because her parents’ incomes were insufficient. She attended Central Falls High School, where she participated in school productions and theatre competitions. These performances earned her a scholarship at the Young People’s School for the Performing Arts in West Warwick, Rhode Island. She continued studying theater at Rhode Island College and furthered her education at the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City. In 1992, while still in school, she starred in her first off-Broadway production, As You Like It, by William Shakespeare. Four years later, at 31, she made her Broadway debut in August Wilson’s Seven Guitars, for which she earned her first Tony Award nomination. She continued to perform in various Broadway productions and had television guest appearances before landing the role of Nurse Lynnette Peeler in the TV drama City of Angels in 2000. A year after, Davis returned to Broadway to play Tonya in King Hedley II. For her portrayal of the married woman who advocates for her right to an abortion, she won her first Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play. During the early 2000s, she played several small roles in films, mainly Steven Soderbergh’s, including Out of Sight, Solaris, and Traffic. In 2010, she performed in her third August Wilson Broadway play, Fences, which earned her second Tony Award, and made her the second African-American to win the Tony for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play. Later, Davis played in the movie adaptation of the play, for which she won several more awards, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. By then, Davis had become an acclaimed actress, playing roles in various TV shows and films, including The Help, Beautiful Creatures, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby. In 2014, she got her first leading TV role as Annalise Keating in Shonda Rhimes’ How to Get Away with Murder. This character not only made her a household name but also gained her an Emmy award, becoming the first African-American to win the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. Over time, Davis took on various positions behind the camera. With her husband, in 2011, she established a production company named JuVee Production. By 2022 they have released more than a dozen feature films, documentaries, and TV shows, including the political docuseries Two-Sides which explores police brutality towards the African-American community, Emanuel about the mass shooting at the Emanuel AME Church, and The Woman King about the warrior leader of the kingdom of Dahomey in the 19th century. Davis uses her fame and fortune to support and promote causes close to her heart. She donated funds for the public library in her hometown of Central Falls, Rhode Island, and for the theater program of her alma mater Central Falls High School; she also collaborates with the Hunger Is, a program for eradicating childhood hunger in the US. Davis in known for her strong voice, which she often uses to inspire and empower black women and men, communities struggling with poverty, and race and gender equality. Read more...

Lucille Désirée Ball was born in Jamestown, New York. When she was 3 years old, her father had died, and she moved with her mother and little brother to her grandparents’ house in Celoron, New York. At the age of 12, while auditioning for the chorus line of her stepfathers’ Shriner’s organization, Ball discovered her passion for performing, realizing that this was a great way to earn praise and recognition. At 17, Ball came to NYC, auditioning for various productions while working as a house model for Hattie Carnegie. At 21, after two years of hiatus due to rheumatoid arthritis, she landed some chorus work on Broadway, using the name Diane Belmont. Afterward, she moved to Hollywood and acted in various minor movie roles. In 1937, at the age of 26, Ball was cast in her first credited part, starring alongside Ginger Rogers and Katharine Hepburn in the film The Three Musketeers. During the 1940s, Ball became known as the current “Queen of the B’s” for starring in numerous B-movies. One of them was the musical Too Many Girls, where she and Desi Arnaz, who already played together in her previous movie, became a couple. They got married that same year. Between one acting job to another, Ball gained exposure working in radio shows, including The Phil Baker Show and CBS’s My Favorite Husband. Ball’s portray of the wacky wife caught the attention of the producers, who asked her to develop a TV show. Insisting on working with her real-life husband, the network rejected the pilot, claiming that the audience will not believe that a Cuban and a red-haired Caucasian is a couple. Instead, Ball and Arnaz created a vaudeville act, in which she played a housewife who wants to get into her husband’s show. In light of the act’s successes, I Love Lucy got into the CBS lineup. The show was produced by Desilu – the production company that Ball and Arnaz had founded, for which Ball became the first woman to head a TV production company. In I Love Lucy, Ball played a witty housewife who finds creative ways to leave the house. Ball charmed the audience with her range, physical comedy, and timing. Premiered on October 15, 1951, the show immediately became the #1 watched sitcom, with a record of an overall of 67.3 on Nielsen ratings over its six years course. The show was innovative in television broadcasting, being the first production to film before a live studio audience and to use three cameras. While I Love Lucy was on the air, Ball was also teaching a comedy workshop at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute. During the show’s time off, she and Arnaz starred together in two films and produced various movies and TV shows, including The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Untouchables, Mission: Impossible, and Star Trek. In 1957, after the show ended, 46 years old Ball returned to Broadway and the radio, hosting a radio talk show called Let’s Talk to Lucy. She continued to star in two more successful sitcoms – The Lucy Show (1962-1968) and Here’s Lucy (1968-1974). In 1960, she and Arnaz got divorced, and in the following year, she married her second husband, Gary Morton, who was 13 years younger than her. During the 1980s, Ball performed in various television specials and had a TV comeback with the sitcom Life with Lucy. Ball died at the age of 78 from a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm, leaving behind her a legacy of joy and laughter, inspiring many comediennes and actresses to follow her path. Read more...

Diana Ross was born and raised in Brewster Housing Projects in Detroit, Michigan. As a child, she used to play baseball and learned tap dancing at the Community Center. Ross attended Cass Technical High School, where she studied millinery, tailoring, pattern making, and clothing design, aiming to become a fashion designer. While at school, Ross worked at Hudson’s Department Store and as a hairdresser. In 1960, at the age of 15, Ross joined a women vocal group named the Primettes, singing together with Florence Ballard, Mary Wilson, and Betty McGlown. A year later, the group won a talent competition and got an invitation to audition for Motown Records. Though they did not get accepted, the four members used to go to the labels’ headquarters to offer their help for other’s recording, providing background vocals and handclaps. Their persistence paid off, and in 1961, they signed with Berry Gordy, Motown Records’s executive, under the condition that they will rename the group. In the following year, Martin left the group, and the trio began to record under their new name – the Supremes. Their first hit, “When The Lovelight Starts Shining Through His Eyes,” was released in 1963, reaching NO. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart. At the end of that year, 19 years old Ross became the group’s lead singer. The following year, their single “Where Did Our Love Go” scored their first No. 1 hit, which paved the way to a streak of top of the chart’s singles. In 1967, the group was renamed Diana Ross & the Supremes, embarking on her path to a solo career. In 1969, at the age of 25, Ross recorded her first solo album and began to release one hit after another, among them are “Reach Out” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” During that time, Ross and Motown’s CEO, Gordy, became romantically involved. They broke up in 1971 while Ross was pregnant with her first child. A few months later, she married the music producer, Robert Ellis Silberstein, with whom she had two daughters. The couple divorced in 1977. In 1971, at 27, Ross made her film debut, portraying Billie Holiday in the feature film “Lady Sings the Blues,” for which she got nominated for a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for best actress. Afterward, Ross starred in a few more films, including “Mahogany” and “The Wiz.” During the 1970s, she released more than 10 albums and performed in numerous TV specials while touring throughout the country. In 1980, at the age of 36, Ross released her bestselling album “Diana,” which included the singles “Upside Down” and “I’m Coming Out.” In the following year, Ross left Motown and signed with RCA Records, receiving a music history severance of US$250,000. In the coming years, she released more albums, established her own production company called Anaid Productions, and participated in movies. In the early 2000s, Ross had some turbulences. First, the cancelation of the highly anticipated Supreme reunion tour, then she got arrested for a DUI, followed by a rehab from alcohol. At 62, fully recovered, Ross returned to the stage, performing in the televised concert “For One & for All,” which won the Land Awards’ Viewer’s Choice for Television’s Greatest Music Moment. Ross continued to release albums, especially collections and shelved recordings from the 70s. In her long-life career, Ross has earned 18 NO. 1 singles, recorded 24 studio albums, 5 soundtrack albums, and 5 live albums, and starred in 5 movies. Read more...

Gertrude Jeannette was born in Urbana, Arkansas, where she grew up on a farm with her six siblings. During the Great Depression, the family moved to Little Rock, Arkansas. She attended the segregated Dunbar High School and planned to enroll at Fisk University. On her prom night, she met Joe Jeannette, who was 35 years older than her, and just before her graduation, the couple eloped to NYC. There, Jeannette became involved in the civil rights movement. Jeannette’s husband, a heavyweight boxer and the president of the Harlem Dusters motorcycle club taught her how to drive a motorcycle. In 1935, she became the first woman in NYC to have a motorcycle license. During WW2, the city had a shortage of taxi drivers, Jeannette took the call, and in 1942, at the age of 28, she passed the cab driver’s test and became the first woman in NYC to have a taxi driver license. With her new income, Jeannette wanted to further her education, and while attending bookkeeping classes, she took a speech class at the American Negro Theatre to correct her stammer. As part of the theater’s curriculum, Jeannette was obliged to take an acting class, which changed the course of her life. At 31, Jeannette began her acting career, landing her first lead role in the play “Our Town,” and four years later, she performed in her first Broadway production – “Lost in the Stars.” Jeannette saw the lack of authentic black characters in the theater, so she started to write her plays. Her first production, “The Way Forward,” premiered in 1950. In this autobiographical play, Jeannette depicted the life of the sharecroppers in the South. As in her other plays, she presented strong African-American characters and dealt with topics such as racism, education, politics, and family issues. In the same year, Jeannette was featured in the TV Hour production of the “God’s Trombones,” adding another first to her list as the first African-American actress to appear on National Television. Jeannette continued to appear in various Broadway productions, films, and TV shows. Her credits include titles such as “Nothing but a Man,” “Cotton Comes to Harlem,” “Shaft,” and “Black Girl.” In 1979, Jeannette founded the H.A.D.L.E.Y. Players (Harlem Artist’s Development League Especially for You), a theater company, which gave artists a place to develop their skills, enriching the cultural life in Harlem. Jeannette acted, directed, and wrote until her retirement at the age of 98. She died at her home in Harlem at the age of 103. Read more...

Niki Caro was born in Wellington, New Zealand. From a young age, she was interested in art, and after graduating from Diocesan School for Girls, she attended the Elam School of Fine Arts, where she studied sculpture. During school, she realized that her true passion is cinema, and chanced her academic path. After receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, she continued her studies at the Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia, earning her Postgraduate Diploma in Film when she is 22 years old. Her theoretic knowledge wasn’t enough to be a director, and with no formal training, she mastered the filed by reading narrative film books and writing scripts. She began directing TV commercials, and in 1992 she got her breakthrough when she was signed to write and direct for the television series “Another Country.” She began working on short films, which were accepted in film festivals all over the world. In 1994, her short film “Sure to Rise” was nominated for the Golden Palm Award at Cannes. Four years later, she released her first feature film, “Memory & Desire.” Though the film did not succeed at the box office, it was chosen for Critics’ Week at Cannes and won the best new film at the New Zealand Film Awards. The next movie Caro wrote and direct was “Whale Rider,” in which she tells the story of a Māori girl who fights for her right to be a candidate for tribal chief. The film earned more than $41 million worldwide and was nominated for over 50 awards. Afterward, Caro gained world recognition and was asked to direct her first Hollywood feature – North Country, for which two of the actresses, Charlize Theron and Frances McDormand, were nominated for Academy Awards. Caro kept on directing films, both in New Zealand and in the US, featuring A list actors, such as Kevin Costner, Keisha Castle-Hughes, and Chloë Sevigny, and screening them in the most prestigious film festivals. In 2017, she directed the film “The Zookeeper’s Wife,” depicting the true story of the Polish couple, who hide and saved hundreds of Jews during WW2. For this adaptation, Caro won the Truly Moving Picture Award at the Heartland Film Festival. In that same year, she was elected to direct Disney’s live-action adaptation of “Mulan,” becoming the second woman and second New Zealander to direct a Disney film in a budget higher than $100 million. In “Mulan,” like in many of her films, Caro explores strong women characters that have to prove their strength and courage facing the society they live in. Read more...

Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Her parents were administrators of Indian affairs and supported Native Americans in need. She completed her undergraduate studies in music and education in the Tennessee State Agricultural and Industrial College, and continued to graduate school at the University of Chicago. In Chicago, she became active in the Civil Rights Movement, working undercover for the National Urban League, investigating racial discrimination for African-American employees. At that time, she met her first husband, Ed Clayton, who was also a civil rights activist. In 1965, upon the request of Martin Luther King, the Claytons’ moved to Atlanta, GA, where she continued her political and activism work. Along with Coretta Scott King, she organized events for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, and they traveled together for Mrs. Kings’ concert tours across the state. In the following years, she was appointed as a coordinator for the Doctors’ Committee for Implementation, advocating for the desegregation of hospital facilities in Atlanta. The project became a model for desegregation throughout the country, receiving national honor from the National Medical Association. Through the program, she met Calvin Craig, the Grand Dragon of the Georgia Ku Klux Klan, and persuade him to denounce the KKK. In 1968 Clayton became the first African-American in the South to host a daily prime time television show when she started hosting her talk show – “The Xernona Clayton Show,” which ran for seven years. In 1979, she joined Turner Broadcasting as a documentary producer and retired after 30 years as the director and vice-president of public affairs. In 1993 she founded the Trumpet Awards Foundation Inc, honoring accomplishments of African-Americans every year. After retiring from Turner Broadcasting, she began serving on boards of various organizations, including the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change and the Board of Review for the state of Georgia’s Department of Labor. In 2004 she initiated the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame at the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site in Atlanta.   Read more...

Dolly Rebecca Parton was born in Pittman Center, TN, the fourth of 12 children. The family had struggled to make ends, as reflected in Parton’s early songs, such as “Coat of Many Colors.” From an early age, music had a significant role in her life, at 6 she began to perform at her church, and by the age of 7 years old, she learned to play the guitar. In the next few years, she sang on local radio and television programs, and at 13, she recorded her first single. A day after her high school graduation, she moved to Nashville. After a year of working mainly as a songwriter, she signed a contract with Monument Records. The label defined her as a “bubblegum pop” singer and rejected her tendency to country music. That changed after she composed and recorded “Put It Off Until Tomorrow” with Bill Phillips, and the song reached #6 on the country chart of 1966. Afterward, she recorded her first country song “Dumb Blonde,” which reached #24 on the country chart of the following year. At 21, Parton was offered by Porter Wagoner a regular spot on his television program “The Porter Wagoner Show,” as well as on his road show. She signed a contract at the same label as Wagoner, and in the next 6 years, the two recorded a streak of top-10 singles. Simultaneously, Parton recorded solo songs, and in 1971 she released her first number-one single, “Joshua.” In 1974, 28 years old Parton parted from Wagoner and launched a solo career, within 6 years she had 8 singles reaching #1 in the country Top 10 chart. Towards the late 70’s she began to aim her music in a more pop mainstream direction and took an active role in her productions. In 1977, the album “Here You Come Again” became Parton’s first million-seller, reaching both the country chart and the pop chart. As she released one hit after another, her commercial success grew, and when “9 to 5” came out, Parton became one of the few female country singers to have a #1 single on the country charts as well as on the pop charts. Since then, she has established herself as a music icon, recording album after album, cooperating with other artists, and winning multiple awards for her music. To this day, she released more than 60 albums and received more than 100 awards. In addition to being a successful singer-songwriter, she proved her abilities as an actress; she starred in various TV shows and movies, including her own television variety show “Dolly,” “Steel Magnolias,” “Straight Talk,” and the groundbreaking film “9 to 5,” for which she was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. Parton is also a businesswoman and philanthropist. At age 40, she established the “Dollywood Company,” which operates the theme park “Dollywood” and other entertainment facilities. She is the co-owner of the television production company “Sandollar Productions,” which produced the TV shows “Babes,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” and the movies “Father of the Bride” and “Sabrina.” Her foundations take part in charity initiations and support various causes, including cancer facilities, HIV/AIDS-related charities, and the American Red Cross. Read more...

Shonda Lynn Rhimes was born in Chicago, IL, the youngest of six children. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English Literature and Film Studies at Dartmouth College. While at college, Rhimes wrote for the college newspaper and performed and directed in students’ productions. She moved to LA to study screenwriting at the University of Southern California. Ranking top of her class, Rhimes granted the Gary Rosenberg Writing Fellowship. After earning her Master of Fine Arts degree, at the age of 28, she directed her first short film, “Blossoms and Veils,” starring Jada Pinkett-Smith. Then, she co-wrote the TV movie “Introducing Dorothy Dandridge,” starring Halle Berry. Rhimes’ career was on the rise, screenwriting Britney Spears’ movie “Crossroads” and working with her mentor Debra Martin Chase on “The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement”. The first series Rhimes wrote, about war correspondents, wasn’t picked up, but in 2005, she had her breakthrough when “Grey’s Anatomy” was first aired. Since its premiere, the show became a hit, going into its 16th season in 2019. While developing the series, Rhimes founded the production company “Shondaland,” which enabled her to have control of her own show. Under Shondaland, Rhimes produced other shows she created, including the “Grey’s Anatomy” spin-off “Private Practice,” the political drama “Scandal,” and the legal drama “How to Get Away with Murder.” Rhimes is also a producer of other creators’ shows, such as “For the people” and “Station 19.” When “Scandal” premiered in 2011, it became the first network drama in 4 decades to feature an African-American actress as the lead (Kerry Washington). In 2017, Netflix announced the multi-year development deal that they made with Rhimes, which is estimated to be more than $100 million. All of Rhimes’ shows are featuring strong female characters, and they all dealing with current social issues, such as race, sexuality, and gender gap. Rhimes was among the 300 women in the entertainment industry to launch the Time’s Up movement. Her point of view is reflected in her self-help book “Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, stand in the Sun, and Be Your Own Person,” as well as in the Dove’s #RealBeauty campaign, where she serves as the creative director. Read more...

Born in Israel to a middle-class family. Gadot was athletic from childhood, playing volleyball, basketball, and taking dance lessons, wanting to be a choreographer when she grows up. At 18, she won the 2004 “Miss Israel” beauty pageant and represented Israel at the Miss Universe beauty pageant of the same year. Not long after, she was drafted into the Israeli Defense Forces, serving the mandatory two-years as a fitness instructor for combatants. After completing her military service, Gadot began a professional modeling career, leading campaigns both in Israel and abroad. Throughout the years, she has been featured as the cover girl on international magazines such as Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and Entertainment Weekly. At the age of 22, she started studying law and international relations, but after completing the first year of college, she was called to an audition for the part of a Bond girl in the film Quantum of Solace. Though she didn’t get the role, this experience led her to pursue acting opportunities, and she stared in numerous Israeli productions. A few months after the James Bond audition, the same casting director contacted her once again, this time for the role of Gisele Yashar in the Fast & Furious franchise. She got the part, and after the first film, Gisele’s part was expanded, and Gadot returned to play the role in the next three sequels. In those movies, she performed her own stunt work. Soon she began to play small roles in various films, including Date Night, Knight and Day, and Triple 9. In 2013, Gadot was cast as Wonder Woman – the warrior princess of the Amazons. This was the first time that the superhero appeared in a movie, after appearing only on TV (starring Lynda Carter). Wonder Woman, or by her civilian name – Diana Prince, is the first widely recognizable female superhero and a symbol of female empowerment. She’s known for her physical strengths as well as her compassion and sense of justice. Gadot’s first appearance as the superhero was in the film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, for which she received training in various martial arts, such as kickboxing, Kung Fu, Capoeira, Swordsmanship, and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Five years later, she starred as Wonder Woman in a standalone film. The Wonder Woman movie was the biggest opener for a movie directed by a woman ever, and had one of the biggest openings for a superhero movie worldwide, earning a total of $821.74 million. Gadot continues to portray the superhero in other movies, including Justice League and Wonder Woman 1984. In addition to acting, Gadot, alongside her husband Jaron Varsano, established the production company “Pilot Wave,” and she is serving as a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Read more...