Who do you think is the greatest actor of all time?

I chose Tom Hanks. While I love all the awesome quirky characterizations that Johnny Depp can do, Tom Hanks has an Every Man quality that gets inside your head. Philadelphia, Saving Private Ryan, Cast Away....

I'm leaving an additional comment on my own post because a) I want to see how very cool it is to make comments using livefyre and b) I forgot to mention two character actors that I greatly admire: Vincent D'Onofrio (known as an actor's actor) who has appeared in Law and Order, Men in Black and Full Metal Jacket. Also Peter Sarsgaard (Knight and Day, Garden State).

I'm not really a fan of any of the choices. I would have nominated Alan Rickman, Colin Firth, and Hugh Grant.

"Don't be content with being average. Average is as close to the bottom as it is to the top."

Jane blogs as "Mamacita" at Scheiss Weekly, ( http://janegoodwin.net/ )hitting the fan like nobody can.

A very notable exception was Rutger Hauer, who was brilliant as Roy Blatty, the Nexus 6 Replicant in Bladerunner. His "tears in the rain" soliloquy at the end of the film is one of the greatest cinema death speeches ever. He was also nominated for a Best Supporting Actor Academy Award for this role, although sadly he did not win.

My choice for 'greatest' actor will probably surprise most, but Brent Spiner, when he played Data on Star Trek:NTG deserved much acclaim a couple of different times for his work on that show. And I'm not talking about his portrayal of an android. Rather I'm talking about his ability to transcend caricature and truly create complex characters. There was one episode where he had various personalities to portray and he did it exquisitely. I know, most people don't think of sci-fi when thinking of good to great acting...but it is there.

Linda C Smith, Artist and Writer

http://www.intlnat.com

Just like the Academy Awards...we'll split the "Bloggies" by gender and do women actors separately from the men! I totally agree about Theron in Monster, and she did win the Best Actress Oscar for that role.

You get the blame for putting the song in my head. #earworm

nellewrites ( http://nellewrites.net/ )

Nicholson. The range of his work is like no other.

Since the thread title is actor, I don't differentiate by gender, although the poll does. Of my lifetime, I believe the best acting performance I've ever witnessed is Charlize Theron in Monster.

nellewrites ( http://nellewrites.net/ )

Currently, I think Johnny Depp is astounding. I don't always like his films, but his skill is just astounding. Most important, when he plays a role, you see the character, not Johnny Depp.

That's the mark of a great. Jimmy Stewart, Gary Cooper -- they disappeared into their roles. And of course Lawrence Olivier.

Susan Getgood blogs at Marketing Roadmaps ( http://getgood.com/roadmaps ), Snapshot Chronicles ( http://snapshotchronicles.com ) and Snapshot Chronicles Roadtrip ( http://snapshotchronicles.com/roadtrip ).

Since I had to pick, I did. But the rest of them most certainly take an award.

My, oh-my... And then there's the ones not mentioned on the list: Jimmy Stewart, Dustin Hoffman, Gregory Peck, Sir Lawrence Olivier, Robert Downey Jr., just to name a few.

I agree, this should have been a top 50 list. Just too many greats to choose from.

~Virginia

The choices are a little American-centric but I think Robert De Niro is fantastic as is Tom Hanks. Denzil is as intense as they come.

I'd go for Daniel Day Lewis, Robert Carlyle and Ben Kingsley.

Interesting that no one has mentioned Lawrence Olivier yet. There was a time in film when that title was widely considered his.

It would be interesting to compare this list to a list of greatest movie stars. In my view that list would have to be topped by Cary Grant, the absolute epitome of movie star-ness. But he doesn't tend to get much recognition for his acting ability itself.

Preaching to the Choir ( http://rantsofapublicdefender.blogspot.com/ )

I'm continually awed by his performances. I chose Johnny Depp from the given list, but if I had my pick, Spacey would come out on top!

- Erin posts photos and stories of her travels and experiences over at Brownie Bites -  Tales, Trips, & Tastes of Life ( http://www.browniebites.net )

Highly underrated as an actor. Many of his horror flicks, like the Raven and A Comedy of Terrors worked because he played the deadpan straight man to Peter Lorre. And he made many a film before that, His Kind of Woman and Laura are both must sees!

My sister and I have a constantly evolving top 10 list of greatest looking actors, and Sean Connery has been #1 on the list for decades. We say he can be on the list if he's bald. He can be on the list if he's 100. He can even be on the list as a ghost when he's dead. He's practically 100 in this Louis Vuitton ad, but who cares? http://cdn.purseblog.com/images/sean-connery-for-l...

Outlaw, I love your comment. It shows the passion some of us feel for this topic. If I got up on my soap box, I could go on for hours. Of course Dustin Hoffman and Robert Downey Jr. should be on the choice list. And so should Burt Lancaster and Robert Mitchum and Gene Hackman and even comic actors like Bill Murray. Ahhh maybe it's impossible to pick. Let's just have a big party to celebrate them all!

Tossup between Sean Connery & Robert Duvall!

Off the list, I would heavy-heartedly pick Johnny Depp as legend material. Although Tom Hanks has immense array of character-types in his resume. My all-time favorite is actually Denzel - but that could just be my hormones talking. ;)

Other actors I'd have voted for would be Pierce Brosnan, Sean Connery, Tommy Lee Jones and Ewan McGregor.

What it takes to be legendary? Well, talent is definitely right on top. Vast types of character would be the essential denominator. While I admire Robert Downey Jr, or Nicholas Cage I'm yet to be able to call them 'legendary' - considering their general characters' traits only differ oh-so-slightly. It seems that they turn the char 'into' themselves, instead of the other way around.

Okay, stopping myself before this turns to a darn blog entry. :D

I love him whether in "Vertigo", "It's a Wonderful Life" or "The Man who Shot Liberty Valance."