The Biggest Icons of the 1970s

I’d love to go back to my childhood. The 1970s and '80s seemed more carefree and relaxed. Thinking about the biggest icons of the '70s, some actors, singers, models, and fashion designers instantly come to mind. While I spent a lot of my time outside, movies, TV, and music were just as important then as they are now.

In the 1970s, I watched every episode of “Charlie’s Angels” and dreamed of being a detective “angel” like the "girls." “One Day at a Time” was another favorite, as I related to Barbara, played by Valerie Bertinelli, the first actor ever to send me an autographed photo, which was much easier then. You mailed a letter to celebrities, and in return, they’d send a free autographed 8x10 photo.

I overplayed several albums that I purchased at the grocery store with the allowance I saved up. Even back then, my tastes were eclectic and ranged from The Bay City Rollers to ABBA, and Blondie to Queen.

The '70s were a time filled with multiple popular genres of music ranging from disco to glam rock. Fashion trends ranged from bell bottoms and tube tops to the ever-popular wrap dress. It was a decade where some of the most iconic actors, singers, and designers took center stage.

For my list of 1970s icons, I’m choosing a mix of celebrities and fashion designers I remember the most. They are in alphabetic order. It’s time to explore the 20 biggest icons of the 1970s. (Also read about forgotten artists from the 1970s that once dominated the charts.)

"Space Oddity" came out in 1969, but Bowie's success in glam rock grew tremendously in the early 1970s when his alter-ego "Ziggy Stardust" came out and showed the world it was OK to be unique. Over the years, his music style would delve into other genres, and his career only advanced each time. "Under Pressure" with Freddie Mercury, another popular celebrity in the 1970s, remains one of my absolute favorite Bowie songs.

Cher became a popular celebrity in the 1970s due to her busy music career and popular variety show. Her skills in both acting and music became clear as she and her husband, Sonny, parted ways. Cher went from being half of Sonny and Cher to a singer with hits like "Gypsys, Tramps, & Thieves." She'd go on to win a Golden Globe and Oscar for Best Actress for her role in "Moonstruck."

She was one of the angels on "Charlie's Angels," but Fawcett became one of the biggest stars in the '70s. Watch her in "The Burning Bed" where her performance was amazing and landed her an Emmy nomination. She was in commercials, and the 1976 poster of her in her famous red swimsuit became one of the best-selling celebrity posters. The swimsuit she wore in that photo shoot went to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in 2011.

Fonda's career started well before the 1970s, but during this decade, she won an Oscar twice for roles in "Coming Home" and "Klute." She was nominated several more times for "The China Syndrome," "Julia," "The Morning After," and "On Golden Pond," a movie she starred in with her father, Henry Fonda. Her career didn't stop in the 1970s. She's been a powerhouse through each decade since, right up to her most recent show, "Grace and Frankie." It ended in 2022 and led to another Emmy nomination.

Franklin was a 1970s star known as the "Queen of Soul." The late artist sold well over 75 million records in her career. Among her top songs are "Respect," "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman," and one of my favorites, "I Knew You Were Waiting." That more recent song was a collaboration with the late George Michael.

She's best known for her work in blaxploitation films and is one of Hollywood's first female action stars. She showed the movie industry that women could be just as good at kicking butt and taking names as any man. Grier is well known for her 1974 film "Foxy Brown." She continued showing off her talent in the 1970s and on to Quentin Tarantino's "Jackie Brown" in 1997. She's well known for playing strong, independent females who often are out to rid the world of bad guys.

Debbie Harry fronts the popular rock band Blondie, and the 1970s kickstarted her popularity. She began her career in the 1960s as a background singer for a folk psych rock group. When she met guitarist Chris Stein in 1973, they left the band they were in and founded Blondie in 1974. Their first two albums gained some attention, but "Parallel Lines" in 1978 turned them into a household name. Harry would continue into the 1980s with "Rapture" becoming the first song featuring rap to become a 1. hit.

While he died on Sept. 18, 1970, Hendrix would remain an icon throughout the '70s and into the present day. His headlining performance at Woodstock in 1969, in which he played a guitar rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner," stunned audiences. That performance appeared on 1970's "Woodstock Music from the Original Soundtrack and More," an album that reached No. 1. His album "Band of Gypsys" came out in June of 1970 and reached No. 5. Posthumously, he was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991 and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1992.

Jagger is the lead singer for the Rolling Stones, and his status as a 1970s star is clear. Like Bowie, Jagger embraces who he is, even if some might call it androgynous. He has an impressive style and fashion sense. Among the many smash hits that brought Jagger into the limelight in the 1970s are hits like "Angie" in 1973 and "It's Only Rock 'n Roll" in 1976. The Rolling Stones are still popular today.

Most know of McCartney as one of the Beatles, but he's also a very talented solo musician. McCartney's career skyrocketed in the 1970s with Wings, a band he and his wife, Linda, were in together. He has had many hits throughout his long career, including several No. 1 albums in the 1970s, including "McCartney" (1970), "Red Rose Speedway" (1973), "Band on the Run" (1973), "Venus and Mars" (1975), and "Wings at the Speed of Sound" (1976).

He was the frontman of the immensely popular band Queen right up to his death from complications of HIV/AIDS in 1991. Mercury's vocal range and theatrical style helped him stand out as one of the best singers of all time. While his work is mostly with Queen, he did have a few solo singles, including 1973's "I Can Hear Music/Goin' Back" under the stage name Larry Lurex. A statue of him is found in Montreux, Switzerland.

The song "Chelsea Morning" is a song I'll never forget, as my shorthand teacher used to put on Mitchell's albums and have us practice dictation to the songs. "Chelsea Morning" is one of the songs I almost got 100%, a goal we were all trying to reach. Mitchell won a Grammy for "Best Arrangement Accompanying Vocalists" in 1974 and garnered many other Grammy nominations or wins in each decade since. I love her song "Both Sides, Now," which was covered by '80s star Paul Young and a band I love, Clannad.

Morrison was the lead singer of The Doors, a band well-known for songs like "Roadhouse Blues" (1970), "Love Her Madly," (1971), and "Riders on the Storm" (1971). The Doors' final album came out seven years after Morrison's death. The album included some of his spoken word poetry. His poetry and songs have influenced many of today's artists, including Alice Cooper and Skrillex.

Newton-John shot to stardom in the 1970s thanks to her appearance as Sandy in "Grease," opposite John Travolta. She also had a popular music career that has earned her a spot on my list of the biggest icons of the '70s. "Have You Never Been Mellow" (1975) and "Hopelessly Devoted to You," one of three hits from "Grease" (1978), are a couple of highlights. And, that's just a small selection as she kept recording up to her death from breast cancer in 2022. She sold well over 100 million records while alive and founded the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre in Australia.

While I was never as big a Led Zeppelin fan as my husband, Plant's solo career and work with Allison Krauss are amazing. His status as a '70s icon continued well after Led Zeppelin broke up following John Bonham's death. "Stairway to Heaven" remains one of the songs I think Led Zeppelin will forever be best known for, but "Kashmir" is my favorite.

Her career started as one of the members of The Supremes in the 1960s. Ross's solo career has spanned decades and led to massive hits like "Mahogany" (1975). She won a 1972 Golden Globe for her portrayal of Billie Holliday in "Lady Sings the Blues," and Billboard named her "Female Entertainer of the Century" in 1976.

Summer is known as the "Queen of Disco." Her hits are plentiful and include these No. 1 hits: "MacArthur Park" (1978), "Hot Stuff" (1979), "Bad Girls" (1979), and "No More Tears (Enough is Enough)" with Barbra Streisand (1979). While it didn't reach No. 1, I love "On the Radio" and "Dim All the Lights" from the "Bad Girls" album and feel those are other songs that should go into disco playlists.

Turner and her husband Ike were huge in the 1960s and '70s, but they went their separate ways in 1976. Together, they released major hits like "Proud Mary" (1971), "Nutbush City Limits" (1973), and "River Deep – Mountain High" (1966). Her career as a solo artist would take off in 1984, landing her a Grammy for Record of the Year. She also had an acting career spanning from "Tommy" in 1975 to "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome" in 1985.

Von Furstenberg goes on this list as she was one of the fashion industry's biggest icons of the 1970s. She created the wrap dress in 1974. The dress goes on like a kimono and wraps one side over the other with a front closure that usually includes a belt or tie. It's still a popular fashion today, having been worn in recent years by Jennifer Garner, Princess Kate, and Michelle Obama.

Warhol was a leader in the pop art movement. His Campbell's Soup Cans paintings gained tremendous success, but he also painted portraits of many of the '70s icons like Mick Jagger and Diana Ross. Today, his art is seen in the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh. (Now that you've discovered some of the biggest icons of the 1970s, check out the best R-rated movies of the 1970s.)