Humanity has always relied on fun, easy-going people to entertain the masses, starting with the court jesters in medieval times and ending with modern actors, singers, and comedians. And when we speak of the greatest entertainers of all time, it’s always an impossible task to pick the most influential ones. A top-something list simply won’t do them justice, but on the other hand, people on the internet don’t like reading long articles.
So, instead of making an extended list, we’ll try to pick three entertainers in three different categories: music, movies, and comedy. Hope you enjoy it!
1. Jimi Hendrix
During his short career, Jimi Hendrix managed to record only three studio albums, but this did not prevent him from gaining the status of one of the most important musicians of the 20th century. Hendrix made his guitar sound like an alien space ship ready to take us all away.
2. Freddie Mercury
His voice became something of a Holy Grail for countless singers around the world. For years, Freddie Mercury struggled with his inner troubles, but he never backed down. And after learning about his deadly disease, the singer continued to work on new songs, dreaming of leaving his name in history. Freddie Mercury did not only have a unique voice, but he was also the best showman, who could turn any stage into a theater.
3. Ella Fitzgerald
Ella grew up in a very poor family. After her mother died, the 14-year-old girl dropped out of school and moved in with her aunt. After some issues with the local mafia, she was sent to a boarding school in the Hudson, from which she quickly escaped and was homeless for some time. This horrible life made her the woman we all know and love. In the end, even the shiniest of diamonds is just carbon under a lot of pressure. In 1934, she performed on stage for the first time, which was the start of Ella’s long and dizzying career.
4. Bruce Lee
Actor, director, philosopher, and martial artist – Bruce Lee only lived to be 32 years old. But he had a rich and extraordinary life, without giving up, and constantly working on improving his mind and body. His whole life was in the state of perpetual motion: from dancing the Cha-Cha to the clear and well-defined kung-fu techniques. We would not have any of the John Wick movies if it weren’t for Bruce Lee.
5. Betty White
Betty White is an American actress, comedian, and TV presenter. She is famous not only for her longevity but also for her role in the Golden Girls series. All three Golden Girls were instrumental to today’s sitcoms, of course, but Betty is to most famous of them. Weirdly enough, that show still has some amazing zingers!
6. Robin Williams
It is highly unlikely that there are people in the world who don’t know about Robin. He was an award-winning actor, who’d often been referred to as the “sad clown.” Can you guess why people called him that? Funniest man on the screen, but when it came to real life he was a deeply depressed individual. On August 11, 2014, Robin Williams was found dead in his house. Wow, it’s been six years already.
7. George Carlin
Carlin was the cornerstone of American stand-up genre as we know it today. Most of his jokes, especially the dark humor, were in one way or another a form of ironic social criticism. And it did not matter if he was talking about small things or global phenomena. His routine about the “Seven Words You Can’t Speak on TV” was at the center of a scandal, triggered a lawsuit, and became a milestone in the history of censorship. And no, we won’t say them here for obvious reasons.
8. Jim Carrey
Everyone already knows that old Jimbo used to be a stand-up comedian, before becoming the best actor on the planet. Many of you have heard this story of him dreaming about performing on stage, and honing his facial skills in front of the mirror for days. The actor started in the parody genre, which immediately made a big noise on TV and managed to catch a couple of commercial offers. Carrey did not do the stand-up gigs for as long as he would have liked it, and before he knew it, Hollywood snagged him to star in the movies.
9. Walt Disney
And last but not least, we have Walt Disney. Before building a whole entertainment empire out of multiple franchises, Walt has suffered crushing defeats more than once. He was once fired from the Kansas City Star newspaper for lack of imagination or ideas. Yeah, I’d like to see how that interviewer is doing these days. Then the TV channels didn’t want to show Mickey Mouse cartoons because they “scared women.” Nobody was interested in Three Little Pigs, because there were only four characters. But step by step, overcoming setbacks, he created the Walt Disney Company, which is now worth billions of dollars and provides entertainment to bilions of viewers all over the planet.
