13 Extraordinary Women Who Broke The Mold And Paved The Pathway For Many

“Give a girl the right shoes, and she can conquer the world.” ~Marilyn Monroe

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Let’s get this straight… there are some pretty damn amazing women out there. Here are some incredible women who have broken molds so that they could create a better future for society and also pave pathways for ones to follow.

Mary Pickford (1892-1979)

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Mary Pickford was an Canadian-American film actress and producer who was known as the “sweetheart” of the silent film era. She was also a shrewd businesswoman, who by the age of 27 co-founded United Artists which gave her the ability to produce and distribute her own films. She was not only an Oscar winner herself, but she also co-founded The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Between 1919 and her retirement, her salary per year was at least $1 million, which would be equivalent to $14 million today.

Ida Lupino (1918-1995)

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Ida Lupino was an English-American actress, singer, director, and producer. Though she was a pretty well known actress in the 30s and 40s, she decided she wanted to tackle “The Interesting Work”, and went on to form her own independent production company so that she could write, produce, and direct her own featured films. During the 1950s she was the only woman film director in the studio system. In 1953 she was the first women to direct a film noir with her movie “The Hitch-Hiker”. Her many movies tackled complex topics such as, unwed mothers, rape, and bigamy.

Dorothy Arzner (1897-1979)

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Dorothy Arzner was an American film director whose career lasted from the 20s to the early 40s. She was the only female director during the “Golden Age”; and had created 20 featured films. She was the first female on The Directors Guild of America. Her films specialized in depicting nuanced women and female friendships. She is also credited to be the inventor of the boom microphone. In a 1930s interview she talked about the importance of being a female director saying, “Try as a man may, he will never be able to get the woman’s viewpoint in telling certain stories.”

Alice Guy-Blaché (1873-1968)

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Alice Guy-Blaché was an French filmmaker and the first ever female director, producer and narrative film maker. She experimented with special effects, diverse casting, and gender reversed roles. She over saw at least 1000 films between 1896-1922, though only about 130 have survived. She is credited with creating the Position of Head Production, which is the basis for the studio system today. She knew that what she was doing was unheard of saying in her memoir, “It is true that I passed for a phenomenon.”

Hedy Lamarr (1914-2000)

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Hedy Lamarr was an Austrian born American actress. Though she acted in 30 films during her 28 year career, she had another passion—inventing. Using the information given to her from her ex-husband, a wealthy arms manufacturer, she was able to invent a radio-guided torpedo that used the same spread spectrum technology that would one day be used in cellphones, WiFi connections, and GPS. Because of her beauty, she struggled with being taken seriously for her mind saying that her looks brought her “tragedy and heartache for five decades” and that her “face was a mask she cannot remove.” It wasn’t until 1997 that she was credited for her invention with the Electronic Frontier Foundation honouring her with pioneer award.

Hattie McDaniel (1893-1952)

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Hattie McDaniel was an African-American actress born to slaves and the first African-American to ever win an Oscar. She won Best Supporting Actress for her role as Mammy in the popular controversial film “Gone With the Wind” in 1940. She was also the first black woman to sing on the radio. Over her career she was unfortunately type casted in the role of a maid, a role she played 74 times though she insisted always that it didn’t bother her saying, “I’d rather make $700 a week playing a maid than earn $7 a day being a maid.”

Olivia de Havilland (1916-2020)

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Olivia de Havilland was an British-American actress. She was a two time Oscar winner who also had multiple nominations. At the age of 27 she took on Warner Bros. in a bold battle that could have ended her career. The lawsuit would free actors and actresses from perpetual contract bondage. Her win changed Hollywood forever; levelling out the playing field for actors and the studios. It is known as one of the most significant legal battles in Hollywood’s history.

Lucille Ball (1911-1989)

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Lucille Ball was an American actress, model, studio executive and producer. Though she was usually portrayed as a disorganized housewife she was the complete opposite. She was an incredibly smart businesswoman. In 1962 she became the first woman to head a major production company after she bought her ex-husbands stake in their production company. The company was founded in the 1950s when CBS turned down their idea for a sitcom. She was so eager to create this sitcom that she decided to produce it herself alongside her ex, and “I Love Lucy” was born. After seeing its success CBS offered to buy the show for over $4 million. It became one of the most popular shows on TV and it’s still on today on reruns.

Anna May Wong (1905-1961)

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Anna May Wong was an Chinese-American actress. Though many of her roles were very stereotypical and are considered very problematic, she is considered one of the first Asian-American actresses, and the first one to gain major international recognition. Her career spanned through the silent films, the talkies, theatre, and television. Unfortunately due to racism and laws, this limited her in receiving lead roles that she was more than capable of playing.

Josephine Baker (1906-1975)

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Josephine Baker was an African-American-French actress and civil rights activist. After her breakout role in 1927, she faced continuous racism and misogyny. She did not let this stop her though! She moved to France and became the most successful American entertainer in Europe. In 1934 she starred in the French film, “ZouZou” making her the first black woman to star in a French major film. During WWll she joined the French Resistance and fought alongside them. In the 50s and 60s she devoted herself in fighting against racism and segregation in the United States. She was buried with military honours.

Rita Moreno (1931-Present)

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Rita Moreno is a Puerto Rican actress, singer and dancer. Best known for her incredible performance as Anita in West Side Story which landed her an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress making her the first Latinx woman to win an Oscar. She later acquired Emmy’s, Grammy’s, Tony’s and much more achievements to add to her collection. She is apart of the exclusive EGOT club which she is the only Latinx woman in the group.

Jane Fonda (1937-Present)

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Jane Fonda is a American actress, model, political activist, and environmentalist. She is a great role model for women everywhere. She’s very empowering and feels the need to talk about her own self esteem issues that she faced in order to help other women cope with their own. She is also an avid protester, protesting many different matters with many different groups. In totally she has been arrested 6 times for her protesting; recently being for climate change. She co-founded The Women’s Media Centre to amplify women’s voices.

Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993)

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Audrey Hepburn was an Belgium born British actress and humanitarian. Though she was a very popular actress and an icon, she was much more than that. During her final years of life she became a UNICEF ambassador devoting her time to making the world a better place for the children. She would travel to countries such as Bangladesh and Ethiopia and would meet with the families, help out with the schools, and help out with finding them food to eat and clean water to drink. In 1992 she was awarded with the Presidential Medal of Freedom and in 2002 UNCIEF headquarters in New York unveiled a statue dedicated to her called, “The Spirit of Audrey”.

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There you have it! Some of the most influential females of all time. With that being said, there are many, many, more! If you have any drop them down in the comments. I would love to hear some more stories about incredible women!