Seventy years ago, the Hollywood studio system was in slow decline, with constant reshuffling in corporate suites and reduced attendance spurred by the rise of television. By the 1955–56 season, the number of US households with television access had risen to 71 percent, up from just 9 percent a mere five years earlier.
Once the world’s biggest moviemaker, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer was weakened by corporate warfare and on the brink of collapse. Shortly after Joseph Vogel became the studio’s third president in just two years, a Time magazine article summed up the situation as “A Gunfight at the M-G-M Corral.”
Early in 1956, Arthur B. Krim and Robert Benjamin took complete ownership of United Artists after acquiring Mary Pickford’s U.A. interest for $3 million. In July, two of the three Warner Brothers stepped aside after Harry and Albert sold their stock in Warner Bros., leaving Jack L. Warner as president.
On the positive side, Cecil B. de Mille’s “The Ten Commandments,” which would be the director’s last film, opened in cinemas on Oct. 5. Despite its then-astronomical cost of $13 million, it went on to become one of the most successful and popular films ever, now ranking at No. 8 on the list of all-time greatest moneymakers (when adjusted for inflation). Meanwhile, Elvis Presley’s first film, “Love Me Tender,” a Civil War–era romance, opened on Nov. 15 and made back its $1 million production cost on its opening weekend.
With that, here are some other cinematic firsts and lasts, with a focus on female filmmakers, for 1956:
The comeback of Ingrid Bergman: After being exiled for almost seven years, cinema icon returned to Hollywood to make “Anastasia” (1956); she had been banished for having an affair with director Roberto Rossellini and for having their child. She won her second Best Actress Oscar for this role as an amnesia victim who tries to pass herself off as the Grand Duchess Anastasia of Russia.
One and done: Bergman bested Nancy Kelly, nominated in the same year for “The Bad Seed” (1956), and who had won a Best Actress Tony for her role in the Broadway production. “The Bad Seed” also served as Kelly’s last theatrical film, and only Oscar nomination; though her film career stretched back to the silent era, when she was a child actress, she made only TV movies and series, and concentrated on Broadway afterward.
Also receiving an Oscar nomination, in the supporting actress category, was Eileen Heckart, as Hortense Daigle, the distraught mother of Claude, a victim in “The Bad Seed.” The year 1956 also marked Heckart’s screen debut, with roles in four films: “Miracle in the Rain,” “Somebody Up There Likes Me,” “The Bad Seed,” and “Bus Stop.”
Another “Bad Seed” footnote: Although stage actress Joan Croydon, as the headmistress Miss Fern, made a few television appearances, “The Bad Seed” was her only film role.
Swan song for Grace Kelly: Hollywood’s princess, who claimed her crown when she won the Best Actress Oscar for “The Country Girl” the year before, became royalty for real when she married Prince Rainier of Monaco on April 18, 1956. MGM arranged to have her penultimate film, “The Swan,” with its art-imitates-life storyline, released on April 18. Her last film, “High Society,” a musical adaptation of “The Philadelphia Story,” starring Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra, came out in July.
Despite attempts to lure her back to Hollywood, Kelly never made another film. Coincidentally, she became the first actress to appear on a USPS postage stamp, jointly issued by the United States and Monaco on March 24, 1993.
The ripening of two tomatoes: Two talents came fresh off the vine in 1956: Brigitte Bardot and Jayne Mansfield.
Shot in September and rushed into theaters in time for Christmas, writer-director Frank Tashlin’s “The Girl Can’t Help It” cemented the sexpot status of Jayne Mansfield, a classically trained violinist who spoke five languages. (Her daughter, Mariska Hargitay, star of the long-running series “Law and Order SUV,” explores the star’s complex legacy in her 2025 documentary “My Mom Jayne.”)
Although Brigitte Bardot, the so-called Princess of Pout, had small roles in several earlier films, “And God Created Woman” (1956) transformed her into an international movie star and sex symbol. Shot in Saint Tropez in spring 1956 by her then-husband, cinematic flesh peddler Roger Vadim, “And God Created Woman” brought in $12 million (nearly $145 million in 2026) on a $300,000 budget. Bardot, who died on Dec. 28, 2025, at age 91, tarnished her legacy over time with her right-wing views; a tribute to her at this year’s César Awards (the French Oscars) on Feb. 26 was booed.
Goodbye, Norma Jean: Speaking of sirens, Norma Jeane Mortenson legally changed her name to Marilyn Monroe on Feb. 23.
A rose blooms: Italian sensation Anna Magnani took on her first English-language portrayal in a Hollywood film: “The Rose Tattoo” (1955). Tennessee Williams had written the role of Serafina with her in mind, but she declined the part on Broadway, worried over her lack of fluency in English. Magnani’s film performance was widely acclaimed, and she won the 1956 Oscar for Best Actress, becoming the first Italian to win an Academy Award for acting.
A pathfinder: Magnani paved the way for fellow Italians such as Sophia Loren, who, for her American film debut, chose “A Boy on a Dolphin,” which was shot in 1956 but released in April 1957. It was the initial production of Loren’s four-picture deal with 20th Century Fox.
More Debuts
Other actresses, ranging from future stars to supporting talents, made their film debuts in 1956, including:
Cicely Tyson: The future Oscar nominee (for “Sounder,” 1972) made her film debut in the indie movie “Carib Gold” as Dottie, a member of a bunch of shrimpers searching for treasure.
Diana Sands: This actress, who costarred in the movie version of “A Raisin in the Sun,” also made her feature film debut in “Carib Gold.”
Angie Dickinson: After a series of supporting roles on TV,the future “Police Woman” advanced her film career with her first credited roles in the 1956 Westerns “Hidden Guns,” “Tension at Table Rock,” and “Gun the Man Down.”
Carroll Baker: Following a string of uncredited parts, she scored her leading-role debut in “Baby Doll,” for which she earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
Patty McCormack: Reprising her Broadway role as the murderous Rhoda Penmark in the film version of “The Bad Seed” (1956), she received a Supporting Actress Oscar nomination, marking one of the first times that a child had been nominated for an actual Academy Award. Before the 1950s, child and teenage stars such as Judy Garland, Mickey Rooney, and Margaret O’Brien received honorary juvenile Oscars.
Decades later, McCormack returned to the franchise, performing in a 2018 TV version and its 2022 sequel, “Bad Seed Returns,” as the killer child’s psychiatrist.
Births of 1956
Joan Allen: (Born Aug. 20) A founding member of Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theatre, she is a three-time Oscar nominee: Best Actress for “The Contender” (2000), and Supporting Actress for “The Crucible” (1996) and “Nixon” (1995).
Adam Arkin: (Born Aug. 19) An actor-director-producer and the son of Alan Arkin, Adam is best known for his roles on the series “Chicago Hope” and “Northern Exposure,” and the Coen Brothers’ “A Serious Man” (2009).
Steven Bauer: (Born Dec. 3) The Cuban-American actor-producer won a SAG award for best performance by the cast of a theatrical motion picture for “Traffic” (2000).
Michael Biehn: (Born July 31): The action-movie stalwart remains best known as Kyle Reese in “The Terminator” franchise.
Danny Boyle: (Born Oct. 20) The British filmmaker won a Best Director Oscar for “Slumdog Millionaire” (2008), along with DGA, BAFTA, and Golden Globe honors for the same title.
Kim Cattrall: (Born Aug. 21) The future “Sex and the City” costar had early roles in Otto Preminger’s “Rosebud” (1975) and “Tribute” (1980).
Leslie Cheung: (Born Sept. 12) A native of Hong Kong, the actor made his breakthrough in John Woo’s “A Better Tomorrow” (1986). He died in 2003.
Bryan Cranston: (Born March 7): A seven-time Emmy winner for the series “Breaking Bad” (which he also produced), he received a Best Actor Oscar nomination as blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo in “Trumbo” (2015).
Geena Davis: (Born Jan. 21) The “Thelma & Louise” costar (and Best Actress Oscar nominee for this film) won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for “The Accidental Tourist” (1987) and won the 2020 Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award Oscar.
Bo Derek: (Born Nov. 20) American actress best known for her breakout role as Dudley Moore’s object of desire in “10” (1979).
Carrie Fisher: (Born Oct. 21) Daughter of Debbie Reynolds and Eddie Fisher, she introduced the role of Princess Leia in the “Star Wars” (1977) original trilogy, wrote best-selling novels, acclaimed screenplays, and was a script doctor. She died in 2016.
Andy Garcia: (Born April 12) The Cuban-American actor-director-producer received a supporting actor nomination for “The Godfather, Part III” (1990) and has won two ALMAs, for best supporting actor in “Ocean’s Eleven” (2001) and the 2006 Anthony Quinn Achievement Award in Motion Pictures.
Mel Gibson: (Born Jan. 3) The actor-director-producer won two Oscars (best picture and director) for “Braveheart” (1995).
Linda Hamilton: (Born Sept. 26) Best known as Sarah Connor in the “Terminator” franchise.
Tom Hanks: (Born July 9) Actor-director-producer, a two-time Best Actor Oscar winner for “Philadelphia” (1993) and “Forrest Gump” (1994), he’s also the recipient of the 2002 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute.
Nicholas Hytner: (Born May 7) The British-born director of “The Madness of King George” (1994), he’s a BAFTA winner of the Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film 1995.
Nathan Lane: (Born Feb. 3) The Broadway mainstay made his movie breakthrough as the voice of Timon the meerkat in Disney’s “The Lion King” (1994), followed by Albert in “The Birdcage” (1996).
Guy Maddin: (Born Feb. 28) The Canadian-born filmmaker is best known for directing “The Saddest Music in the World” (2003) and “My Winnipeg” (2007).
Lesley Manville: (Born March 12) British actress known for her work with director Mike Leigh was a supporting actress nominee for “The Phantom Thread” (1997).
Eric Roberts: (Born April 18) American actor, brother of Julia Roberts, he was a best supporting actor nominee for “Runaway Train” (1985).
Mimi Rogers: (Born Jan. 27) The American actress-producer broke through with “Someone to Watch Over Me” (1987).
Christoph Waltz: (Born Oct. 4) The Austrian-German actor-producer has won two supporting actor Oscars, both for Quentin Tarantino films: “Inglourious Basterds” (2009) and “Django Unchained” (2012).
Rita Wilson: (Born Oct. 26) Actress-producer (and second wife of Tom Hanks), she arranged a movie deal for Nia Vardalos’ “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” (2002), one of the top-grossing independent film hits of all time.
Deaths of 1956
Anne Crawford: (Died Oct. 17) The Scottish actress, best known for MGM’s “Knights of the Round Table” (1953), succumbed to leukemia at age 33.
Jehanne D’Alcy: (Died Oct. 14) Best known as the mistress and eventual wife of French cinema pioneer Georges Méliès, D’Alcy acted in Méliès’ “Le Manoir du diable” (1896), “Jeanne d’Arc” (1900), and “Le Voyage dans la lune” (1902). In Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo” (2011), D’Alcy is portrayed by actress Helen McCrory.
Marie Doro: (Died Oct. 9) The American actress of the early silent film era (“The Heart of Nora Flynn,” “The White Pearl”) was known for her beauty and performances both on Broadway and in early cinema. One of the most popular actresses of the Edwardian era, she segued from the stage to silent films between 1915 and 1924.
Ruth Draper (Died Dec. 30): The American actress and dramatist, regarded as the mother of the monologue, was best known for “The Italian Lesson,” a day-in-the-life of a wealthy matron during the Jazz Age.
Edith Edwards: (Died March 6) The German-born actress was known for “The Love Pirate” (1925), produced by Germany’s UFA, with Rudolph Maté as one of its three cinematographers.
Marion Leonard: (Died Jan. 9) The silent film star was known for the Biograph Studios’ production of “In Old California” (1910), the first movie ever filmed in Hollywood. Leonard and Florence Auer were the first leading ladies of Biograph, working regularly for D.W. Griffith. With her husband, writer-director Stanner E.V. Taylor, Leonard started her own production company.
Katherine MacDonald: (Died June 4) A big box office attraction for First National Pictures during the silent era, the American star was one of the first actresses to set up her own production company, Katherine MacDonald Pictures (1919–1921).
Mary Mersch: (Died Feb. 26) Actress known for “The Rainbow Trail” (1918) and “Riders of the Purple Sage” (1918).
Mistinguett: (Died Jan. 5) Born as Jeanne Florentine Bourgeois, the French actress-singer was best known for her time at the Moulin Rouge, the Paris cabaret founded in 1889. But she made several movies, starting in the silent era, when she portrayed Éponine in a version of “Les Misérables” (1913).
Mary Warren: (Died Aug. 4) The silent era actress was married to fellow actor Lee Phelps, who, with 600 confirmed roles over 35 years, is among Hollywood’s most prolific but virtually unknown supporting players.
Margaret Wycherly: (Died June 6) The English actress had roles on Broadway and in Hollywood, most notably as Ma Jarrett in “White Heat” (1949), immortalized with the dying words of son Cody Jarrett (James Cagney): “Made it, Ma! Top of the world!”
