http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts View famous American women in entertainment, literature and the arts. en Copyright 2013, History.com Thu, 23 May 2013 04:00:00 GMT History.com 2013-05-23T04:00:00Z en Copyright 2013, History.com http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo1 Kathryn Bigelow is an award-winning film director, best known for her work in "Strange Days" and "The Hurt Locker." http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo1 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo2 Lucille Ball (1911-1989) was a beloved actress and comedian, best known for her role in the TV series "I Love Lucy" from 1951 to 1957. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo2 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo3 The "First Lady of Song," jazz great Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996) made her singing debut at the Apollo Theater at age 17. She won 13 Grammy Awards during her lifetime. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo3 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo4 A leading actress from the 1930s to 1980s, Katharine Hepburn won four Academy Awards for her work. She died in 2003 at the age of 96. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo4 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo5 Born in 1954, Oprah Winfrey is an American television host, philanthropist, entrepreneur and media personality. Her self-titled talk show attracts millions of viewers a day. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo5 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo6 Born in 1949, Meryl Streep is a renowned film actress. She has won two Academy Awards and received 16 nominations as of 2010, more than any other actor. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo6 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo7 George O'Keeffe (1887-1986) was a central figure in 20th-century American art known for her abstract paintings and representations of natural forms. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo7 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo8 Born Madonna Louise Ciccone in 1958, Madonna is an entertainment icon best known for her lengthy music career. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo8 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo9 Born in 1928, Maya Angelou is a noted African American poet, autobiographer and civil rights activist. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo9 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo10 Mary Cassatt (1844-1926) was a leading American Impressionist painter who often portrayed the private lives of women in her work. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo10 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo11 Pearl S. Buck (1892-1973) was an acclaimed American writer and the first American woman to win the Nobel Prize in literature. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo11 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo12 Born in Alabama in 1926, Harper Lee wrote the best-selling novel "To Kill a Mockingbird," which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo12 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo13 Eudora Welty (1909-2001) was a Pulitzer-Prize winning short story writer and novelist. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo13 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo14 Louisa May Alcott (1832-1888) was an American writer best known for the classic novel "Little Women." http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo14 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo15 Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, in 1830, Emily Dickinson is regarded as one of the greatest American poets. Most of her work was published after her death in 1886. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo15 http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo16 Marian Anderson (1897-1993) was the first African American singer to perform at the Metropolitan Opera. She famously sang at the Lincoln Memorial at the height of the struggle for civil rights. http://www.history.com/photos/women-in-the-arts/photo16