The biggest box-office hit the year you were born
Box-office earnings have been a reliable predictor of what we love and, sometimes, continue to love
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Moviegoing has been one of America's favorite ways to kill time for about a century now, and box-office earnings have been a reliable predictor of what we love and, sometimes, continue to love.
Using lists of the highest-grossing films by year from IMDb, Box Office Mojo, and The Numbers, Business Insider has compiled a chronology of the biggest box-office hits every year since 1930*.
We adjusted global box-office receipts for inflation through 2016 using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' inflation calculator. We've also included critic ratings from Metacritic (on a scale of 1 to 100) and fan ratings from IMDb (on a scale of 1 to 10) for each film where available.
However, we used 1975 as the cutoff for global box office because worldwide figures before then were spotty and inconsistent. For films prior to 1975, we've provided adjusted and unadjusted domestic box office instead.
Several franchises are represented — “Star Wars,” “Terminator,” “Harry Potter” — as are Academy Award winners and classics like “The Sound of Music” and “Rocky.”
Read on to find out the highest-grossing movie released the year you were born:
*Note: A couple years in the 1930s are missing due to lack of information. Movies before 1930 were not included due to unreliable box-office data.
This post has been updated and expanded from its original version.
2015: “Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens”
Adjusted gross: $2.07 billion
Unadjusted gross: $2.07 billion
Critic rating: 81
Fan rating: 8.3
Plot summary: “Three decades after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, a new threat arises. The First Order attempts to rule the galaxy and only a ragtag group of heroes can stop them, along with the help of the Resistance.”
2014: “Transformers: Age of Extinction”
Adjusted gross: $1.12 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.1 billion
Critic rating: 32
Fan rating: 5.7
Plot summary: “Autobots must escape sight from a bounty hunter who has taken control of the human serendipity: Unexpectedly, Optimus Prime and his remaining gang turn to a mechanic, his daughter, and her back street racing boyfriend for help.”
2013: “Frozen”
Adjusted gross: $1.31 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.28 billion
Critic rating: 74
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “When the newly crowned Queen Elsa accidentally uses her power to turn things into ice to curse her home in infinite winter, her sister, Anna, teams up with a mountain man, his playful reindeer, and a snowman to change the weather condition.”
2012: “The Avengers”
Adjusted gross: $1.58 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.52 billion
Critic rating: 69
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “Earth's mightiest heroes must come together and learn to fight as a team if they are to stop the mischievous Loki and his alien army from enslaving humanity.”
2011: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2”
Adjusted gross: $1.43 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.34 billion
Critic rating: 87
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “Harry, Ron, and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord as the final battle rages on at Hogwarts.”
2010: “Toy Story 3”
Adjusted gross: $1.17 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.06 billion
Critic rating: 92
Fan rating: 8.3
Plot summary: “The toys are mistakenly delivered to a day-care center instead of the attic right before Andy leaves for college, and it's up to Woody to convince the other toys that they weren't abandoned and to return home.”
2009: “Avatar”
Adjusted gross: $3.1 billion
Unadjusted gross: $2.78 billion
Critic rating: 83
Fan rating: 7.9
Plot summary: “A paraplegic marine dispatched to the moon Pandora on a unique mission becomes torn between following his orders and protecting the world he feels is his home.”
2008: “The Dark Knight”
Adjusted gross: $1.12 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1 billion
Critic rating: 82
Fan rating: 9
Plot summary: “When the menace known as the Joker wreaks havoc and chaos on the people of Gotham, the caped crusader must come to terms with one of the greatest psychological tests of his ability to fight injustice.”
2007: “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End”
Adjusted gross: $1.11 billion
Unadjusted gross: $963 million
Critic rating: 50
Fan rating: 7.1
Plot summary: “Captain Barbossa, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swann must sail off the edge of the map, navigate treachery and betrayal, find Jack Sparrow, and make their final alliances for one last decisive battle.”
2006: “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest”
Adjusted gross: $1.27 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.07 billion
Critic rating: 53
Fan rating: 7.3
Plot summary: “Jack Sparrow races to recover the heart of Davy Jones to avoid enslaving his soul to Jones' service, as other friends and foes seek the heart for their own agenda as well.”
2005: “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire”
Adjusted gross: $1.1 billion
Unadjusted gross: $897 million
Critic rating: 81
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “Harry finds himself mysteriously selected as an under-aged competitor in a dangerous tournament between three schools of magic.”
2004: “Shrek 2”
Adjusted gross: $1.17 billion
Unadjusted gross: $920 million
Critic rating: 75
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “Princess Fiona's parents invite her and Shrek to dinner to celebrate her marriage. If only they knew the newlyweds were both ogres.”
2003: “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”
Adjusted gross: $1.46 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.12 billion
Critic rating: 94
Fan rating: 8.9
Plot summary: “Gandalf and Aragorn lead the World of Men against Sauron's army to draw his gaze from Frodo and Sam as they approach Mount Doom with the One Ring.”
2002: “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”
Adjusted gross: $1.23 billion
Unadjusted gross: $923 million
Critic rating: 88
Fan rating: 8.7
Plot summary: “While Frodo and Sam edge closer to Mordor with the help of the shifty Gollum, the divided fellowship makes a stand against Sauron's new ally, Saruman, and his hordes of Isengard.”
2001: “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone”
Adjusted gross: $1.32 billion
Unadjusted gross: $975 million
Critic rating: 64
Fan rating: 7.5
Plot summary: “Rescued from the outrageous neglect of his aunt and uncle, a young boy with a great destiny proves his worth while attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.”
2000: “Mission: Impossible II”
Adjusted gross: $759 million
Unadjusted gross: $546 million
Critic rating: 59
Fan rating: 6.1
Plot summary: “A secret agent is sent to Sydney, to find and destroy a genetically modified disease called 'Chimera.'”
1999: “Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace”
Adjusted gross: $1.41 billion
Unadjusted gross: $984 million
Critic rating: 51
Fan rating: 6.5
Plot summary: “Two Jedi Knights escape a hostile blockade to find allies and come across a young boy who may bring balance to the Force, but the long dormant Sith resurface to reclaim their old glory.”
1998: “Armageddon”
Adjusted gross: $813 million
Unadjusted gross: $554 million
Critic rating: 42
Fan rating: 6.6
Plot summary: “After discovering that an asteroid the size of Texas is going to impact Earth in less than a month, N.A.S.A. recruits a misfit team of deep core drillers to save the planet.”
1997: “Titanic”
Adjusted gross: $3.17 billion
Unadjusted gross: $2.13 billion
Critic rating: 74
Fan rating: 7.7
Plot summary: “A seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind, but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.”
1996: “Independence Day”
Adjusted gross: $1.25 billion
Unadjusted gross: $817 million
Critic rating: 59
Fan rating: 6.9
Plot summary: “The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy Earth. Fighting superior technology, mankind's best weapon is the will to survive.”
1995: “Die Hard: With A Vengeance”
Adjusted gross: $575 million
Unadjusted gross: $366 million
Critic rating: 58
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “John McClane and a Harlem store owner are targeted by German terrorist Simon Gruber in New York City, where he plans to rob the Federal Reserve Building.”
1994: “The Lion King”
Adjusted gross: $1.59 billion
Unadjusted gross: $988 million
Critic rating: 83
Fan rating: 8.5
Plot summary: “Lion cub and future king Simba searches for his identity. His eagerness to please others and penchant for testing his boundaries sometimes gets him into trouble.”
1993: “Jurassic Park”
Adjusted gross: $1.71 billion
Unadjusted gross: $1.03 billion
Critic rating: 68
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “During a preview tour, a theme park suffers a major power breakdown that allows its cloned dinosaur exhibits to run amok.”
1992: “Aladdin”
Adjusted gross: $860 million
Unadjusted gross: $504 million
Fan rating: 8
Plot summary: “When a street urchin vies for the love of a beautiful princess, he uses a genie's magic power to make himself off as a prince in order to marry her.”
1991: “Terminator 2: Judgment Day”
Adjusted gross: $913 million
Unadjusted gross: $520 million
Critic rating: 75
Fan rating: 8.5
Plot summary: “A cyborg, identical to the one who failed to kill Sarah Connor, must now protect her young son, John Connor, from a more advanced cyborg, made out of liquid metal.”
1990: “Ghost”
Adjusted gross: $926 million
Unadjusted gross: $506 million
Critic rating: 52
Fan rating: 7
Plot summary: “After an accident leaves a young man dead, his spirit stays behind to warn his lover of impending danger, with the help of a reluctant psychic.”
1989: “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade”
Adjusted gross: $915 million
Unadjusted gross: $474 million
Critic rating: 65
Fan rating: 8.3
Plot summary: “When Dr. Henry Jones Sr. suddenly goes missing while pursuing the Holy Grail, eminent archaeologist Indiana Jones must follow in his father's footsteps and stop the Nazis.”
1988: “Rain Man”
Adjusted gross: $718 million
Unadjusted gross: $355 million
Critic rating: 65
Fan rating: 8
Plot summary: “Selfish yuppie Charlie Babbitt's father left a fortune to his savant brother Raymond and a pittance to Charlie; they travel cross-country.”
1987: “Fatal Attraction”
Adjusted gross: $674 million
Unadjusted gross: $320 million
Critic rating: 67
Fan rating: 6.9
Plot summary: “A married man's one-night stand comes back to haunt him when that lover begins to stalk him and his family.”
1986: “Top Gun”
Adjusted gross: $779 million
Unadjusted gross: $357 million
Fan rating: 6.9
Plot summary: “As students at the United States Navy's elite fighter weapons school compete to be best in the class, one daring young pilot learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.”
1985: “Back to the Future”
Adjusted gross: $847 million
Unadjusted gross: $381 million
Critic rating: 86
Fan rating: 8.5
Plot summary: “A young man is accidentally sent thirty years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his friend, Dr. Emmett Brown, and must make sure his high-school-age parents unite in order to save his own existence.”
1984: “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom”
Adjusted gross: $767 million
Unadjusted gross: $333 million
Critic rating: 57
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “A skirmish in Shanghai puts archaeologist Indiana Jones, his partner Short Round, and singer Willie Scott crossing paths with an Indian village desperate to reclaim a rock stolen by a secret cult beneath the catacombs of an ancient palace.”
1983: “Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi”
Adjusted gross: $1.14 billion
Unadjusted gross: $475 million
Critic rating: 52
Fan rating: 8.4
Plot summary: “After rescuing Han Solo from the palace of Jabba the Hutt, the rebels attempt to destroy the second Death Star, while Luke struggles to make Vader return from the dark side of the Force.”
1982: “E.T. - The Extra Terrestrial”
Adjusted gross: $1.97 billion
Unadjusted gross: $793 million
Critic rating: 94
Fan rating: 7.9
Plot summary: “A troubled child summons the courage to help a friendly alien escape Earth and return to his home-world.”
1981: “Raiders of the Lost Ark”
Adjusted gross: $1.03 billion
Unadjusted gross: $390 million
Critic rating: 90
Fan rating: 8.5
Plot summary: “Archaeologist and adventurer Indiana Jones is hired by the US government to find the Ark of the Covenant before the Nazis.”
1980: “Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back”
Adjusted gross: $1.56 billion
Unadjusted gross: $538 million
Critic rating: 79
Fan rating: 8.8
Plot summary: “After the rebels have been brutally overpowered by the Empire on their newly established base, Luke Skywalker takes advanced Jedi training with Master Yoda, while his friends are pursued by Darth Vader as part of his plan to capture Luke.”
1979: “Moonraker”
Adjusted gross: $693 million
Unadjusted gross: $210 million
Fan rating: 6.3
Plot summary: “James Bond investigates the mid-air theft of a space shuttle and discovers a plot to commit global genocide.”
1978: “Grease”
Adjusted gross: $1.45 billion
Unadjusted gross: $395 million
Critic rating: 70
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “Good girl Sandy and greaser Danny fell in love over the summer. But when they unexpectedly discover they're now in the same high school, will they be able to rekindle their romance?”
1977: “Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope”
Adjusted gross: $3.06 billion
Unadjusted gross: $775 million
Critic rating: 92
Fan rating: 8.7
Plot summary: “Luke Skywalker joins forces with a Jedi Knight, a cocky pilot, a wookiee, and two droids to save the galaxy from the Empire's world-destroying battle-station, while also attempting to rescue Princess Leia from the evil Darth Vader.”
1976: “Rocky”
Adjusted gross: $946 million
Unadjusted gross: $225 million
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “Rocky Balboa, a small-time boxer, gets a supremely rare chance to fight the heavy-weight champion, Apollo Creed, in a bout in which he strives to go the distance for his self-respect.”
1975: “Jaws”
Adjusted gross: $2.09 billion
Unadjusted gross: $471 million
Critic rating: 79
Fan rating: 8
Plot summary: “When a gigantic great white shark begins to menace the small island community of Amity, a police chief, a marine scientist and a grizzled fisherman set out to stop it.”
1974: “Blazing Saddles”*
Adjusted gross: $584 million
Unadjusted gross: $119.6 million
Fan rating: 7.8
Plot summary: “To ruin a western town, a corrupt political boss appoints a black sheriff, who promptly becomes his most formidable adversary.”
*NOTE: Domestic grosses are shown for movies before 1975.
1973: “The Exorcist”
Adjusted gross: $1.2 billion
Unadjusted gross: $232.9 million
Critic rating: 82
Fan rating: 8
Plot summary: “When a teenage girl is possessed by a mysterious entity, her mother seeks the help of two priests to save her daughter.”
1972: “The Godfather”
Adjusted gross: $776.6 million
Unadjusted gross: $134.9 million
Critic rating: 100
Fan rating: 9.2
Plot summary: “The aging patriarch of an organized crime dynasty transfers control of his clandestine empire to his reluctant son.”
1971: “Billy Jack”
Adjusted gross: $582 million
Unadjusted gross: $98 million
Fan rating: 6.2
Plot summary: “Ex-Green Beret hapkido expert saves wild horses from being slaughtered for dog food and helps protect a desert ”freedom school“ for runaway.”
1970: “Love Story”
Adjusted gross: $659.3 million
Unadjusted gross: $106.3 million
Critic rating: 84
Fan rating: 6.9
Plot summary: “A boy and a girl from different backgrounds fall in love regardless of their upbringing - and then tragedy strikes.”
1969: “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”
Adjusted gross: $670.8 million
Unadjusted gross: $102.3 million
Critic rating: 58
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “Two Western bank/train robbers flee to Bolivia when the law gets too close.”
1968: “Funny Girl”
Adjusted gross: $361 million
Unadjusted gross: $52.2 million
Fan rating: 7.5
Plot summary: “The life of Fanny Brice, famed comedienne and entertainer of the early 1900s. We see her rise to fame as a Ziegfield girl, subsequent career and her personal life, particularly her relationship with Nick Arnstein.”
1967: “The Jungle Book”
Adjusted gross: $531 million
Unadjusted gross: $73.7 million
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “Bagheera the Panther and Baloo the Bear have a difficult time trying to convince a boy to leave the jungle for human civilization.”
1966: “The Bible: In The Beginning...”
Adjusted gross: $259.2 million
Unadjusted gross: $34.9 million
Fan rating: 6.2
Plot summary: “Extravagant production of the first part of the book of Genesis. Covers Adam and Eve, Noah and the Flood and Abraham and Isaac.”
1965: “The Sound of Music”
Adjusted gross: $1.2 billion
Unadjusted gross: $158.6 million
Fan rating: 8
Plot summary: “A woman leaves an Austrian convent to become a governess to the children of a Naval officer widower.”
1964: “Mary Poppins”
Adjusted gross: $240.6 million
Unadjusted gross: $31 million
Fan rating: 7.8
Plot summary: “A magic nanny comes to work for a cold banker's unhappy family.”
1963: “Cleopatra”
Adjusted gross: $453.8 million
Unadjusted gross: $57.7 million
Fan rating: 7
Plot summary: “Historical epic. The triumphs and tragedy of the Egyptian queen, Cleopatra.”
1962: “The Longest Day”
Adjusted gross: $311.6 million
Unadjusted gross: $39.1 million
Fan rating: 7.8
Plot summary: “The events of D-Day, told on a grand scale from both the Allied and German points of view.”
1961: “101 Dalmatians
Adjusted gross: $1 billion
Unadjusted gross: $144.8 million
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “When a litter of Dalmatian puppies are abducted by the minions of Cruella de Vil, the parents must find them before she uses them for a diabolical fashion statement.”
1960: “Swiss Family Robinson”
Adjusted gross: $327.6 million
Unadjusted gross: $40.3 million
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “A Swiss family must survive being shipwrecked on a deserted island.”
1959: “Ben-Hur”
Adjusted gross: $612 million
Unadjusted gross: $74 million
Critic rating: 89
Fan rating: 8.1
Plot summary: “When a Jewish prince is betrayed and sent into slavery by a Roman friend, he regains his freedom and comes back for revenge.”
1958: “South Pacific”
Unadjusted gross: $306.4 million
Unadjusted gross: $36.8 million
Fan rating: 6.9
Plot Summary: “On a South Pacific island during World War II, love blooms between a young nurse and a secretive Frenchman who's being courted for a dangerous military mission.”
1957: “The Bridge on the River Kwai”
Adjusted gross: $233 million
Unadjusted gross: $27.2 million
Fan rating: 8.2
Plot summary: “After settling his differences with a Japanese PoW camp commander, a British colonel co-operates to oversee his men's construction of a railway bridge for their captors - while oblivious to a plan by the Allies to destroy it.”
1956: “The Ten Commandments”
Adjusted gross: $579.5 million
Unadjusted gross: $65.5 million
Fan rating: 7.9
Plot summary: “The Egyptian Prince, Moses, learns of his true heritage as a Hebrew and his divine mission as the deliverer of his people.”
1955: “Lady and the Tramp”
Adjusted gross: $326 million
Unadjusted gross: $36.3 million
Fan rating: 7.4
Plot summary: “The romantic tale of a sheltered uptown Cocker Spaniel dog and a streetwise downtown Mutt.”
1954: “White Christmas”
Adjusted gross: $268.4 million
Unadjusted gross: $30 million
Fan rating: 7.6
Plot summary: “A successful song-and-dance team become romantically involved with a sister act and team up to save the failing Vermont inn of their former commanding general.”
1953: “Peter Pan”
Adjusted gross: $366.8 million
Unadjusted gross: $40.7 million
Fan rating: 7.3
Plot summary: “Wendy and her brothers are whisked away to the magical world of Neverland with the hero of their stories, Peter Pan.”
1952: “The Greatest Show on Earth”
Adjusted gross: $327 million
Unadjusted gross: $36 million
Fan rating: 6.7
Plot summary: “The dramatic lives of trapeze artists, a clown, and an elephant trainer are told against a background of circus spectacle.”
1951: “Quo Vadis?”
Adjusted gross: $277.7 million
Unadjusted gross: $30 million
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “A fierce Roman commander becomes infatuated with a beautiful Christian hostage and begins questioning the tyrannical leadership of the despot Emperor Nero.”
1950: “Cinderella”
Adjusted gross: $100 million
Unadjusted gross: $10 million
Fan rating: 7.3
Plot summary: “When Cinderella's cruel stepmother prevents her from attending the Royal Ball, she gets some unexpected help from the lovable mice Gus and Jaq, and from her Fairy Godmother.”
1949: “Samson and Delilah”
Adjusted gross: $291.2 million
Unadjusted gross: $28.8 million
Fan rating: 6.8
Plot summary: “When strongman Samson rejects the love of the beautiful Philistine woman Delilah, she seeks vengeance that brings horrible consequences they both regret.”
The Snake Pit (1948)
Adjusted gross: $100 million
Unadjusted gross: $10 million
Fan rating: 7.7
Plot summary: “A detailed chronicle of a woman during her stay in a mental institution.”
“Forever Amber” (1947)
Adjusted gross: $173 million
Unadjusted gross: $16 million
Fan rating: 6.8
Plot summary: “In seventeenth-century England, Amber St. Clair aims to raise herself from country girl to nobility, and succeeds, but loses her true love in the process.”
“Song of the South” (1946)
Adjusted gross: $802 million
Unadjusted gross: $65 million
Fan rating: 7.4
Plot summary: “Uncle Remus draws upon his tales of Brer Rabbit to help little Johnny deal his confusion over his parents' separation as well as his new life on the plantation. The tales: The Briar Patch, The Tar Baby and Brer Rabbit's Laughing place.”
“The Bells of St. Mary's” (1945)
Adjusted gross: $285 million
Unadjusted gross: $21.3 million
Fan rating: 7.5
Plot summary: “Father O'Malley, the unconventional priest from 'Going My Way', continues his work for the Catholic Church. This time he is sent to St. Mary's, a run-down parochial school on the verge of condemnation. He and Sister Benedict work together in an attempt to save the school, though their differing methods often lead to good-natured disagreements.”
“Going My Way” (1944)
Adjusted gross: $223 million
Unadjusted gross: $16.3 million
Fan rating: 7.2
Plot summary: “Youthful Father Chuck O'Malley led a colorful life of sports, song, and romance before joining the Roman Catholic clergy, but his level gaze and twinkling eyes make it clear that he knows he made the right choice. After joining a parish, O'Malley's worldly knowledge helps him connect with a gang of kids looking for direction and handle the business details of the church-building fund, winning over his aging, conventional superior, Father Fitzgibbon.”
“This Is the Army” (1943)
Adjusted gross: $271 million
Unadjusted gross: $19.5 million
Fan rating: 6.0
Plot summary: “In WWI dancer Jerry Jones stages an all-soldier show on Broadway, called Yip Yip Yaphank. Wounded in the war, he becomes a producer. In WWII his son Johnny Jones, who was before his father's assistant, gets the order to stage a new all-soldier show, called This is the Army. But in his personal life he has problems, because he refuses to marry his fiancée until the war is over.”
“Bambi” (1942)
Adjusted gross: $1.5 billion
Unadjusted gross: $103 million
Fan rating: 7.4
Plot summary: “The story of a young deer growing up in the forest.”
“Sergeant York” (1941)
Adjusted gross: $268 million
Unadjusted gross: $16.4 million
Fan rating: 7.8
Plot summary: “A hillbilly sharpshooter becomes one of the most celebrated American heroes of WWI when he single-handedly attacks and captures a German position using the same strategy as in turkey shoot.”
“Pinocchio” (1940)
Adjusted gross: $1.4 billion
Unadjusted gross: $84.3 million
Fan rating: 7.5
Plot summary: “A living puppet, with the help of a cricket as his conscience, must prove himself worthy to become a real boy.”
“Gone with the Wind” (1939)
Adjusted gross: $3.4 billion
Unadjusted gross: $198.6 million
Fan rating: 8.2
Plot summary: “Scarlett is a woman who can deal with a nation at war, Atlanta burning, the Union Army carrying off everything from her beloved Tara, the carpetbaggers who arrive after the war. Scarlett is beautiful. She has vitality. But Ashley, the man she has wanted for so long, is going to marry his placid cousin, Melanie. Mammy warns Scarlett to behave herself at the party at Twelve Oaks. There is a new man there that day, the day the Civil War begins. Rhett Butler. Scarlett does not know he is in the room when she pleads with Ashley to choose her instead of Melanie.”
“Alexander's Ragtime Band” (1938)
Adjusted gross: $68 million
Unadjusted gross: $4 million
Fan rating: 7.0
Plot summary: “Roger Grant, a classical violinist, disappoints his family and teacher when he organizes a jazz band, but he and the band become successful. Roger falls in love with his singer Stella, but his reluctance to lose her leads him to thwart her efforts to become a solo star. When the World War separates them in 1917, Stella marries Roger's best friend Charlie. Roger comes home after the war and an important concert at Carnegie Hall brings the corners of the romantic triangle together.”
“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (1937)
Adjusted gross: $3 billion
Unadjusted gross: $185 million
Fan rating: 7.7
Plot summary: “The beautiful and kindhearted princess Snow White charms every creature in the kingdom except one - her jealous stepmother, the Queen. When the Magic Mirror proclaims Snow White the fairest one of all, she must flee into the forest, where she befriends the lovable seven dwarfs - Doc, Sneezy, Grumpy, Happy, Bashful, Sleepy and Dopey. But when the Queen tricks Snow White with an enchanted apple, only the magic of true love's kiss can save her!”
“Top Hat” (1935)
Adjusted gross: $30 million
Unadjusted gross: $1.7 million
Fan rating: 7.8
Plot summary: “Showman Jerry Travers is working for producer Horace Hardwick in London. Jerry demonstrates his new dance steps late one night in Horace's hotel, much to the annoyance of sleeping Dale Tremont below. She goes upstairs to complain and the two are immediately attracted to each other. Complications arise when Dale mistakes Jerry for Horace.”
“It Happened One Night” (1934)
Adjusted gross: $45 million
Unadjusted gross: $2.5 million
Fan rating: 8.2
Plot summary: “Ellie Andrews has just tied the knot with society aviator King Westley when she is whisked away to her father's yacht and out of King's clutches. Ellie jumps ship and eventually winds up on a bus headed back to her husband. Reluctantly she must accept the help of out-of- work reporter Peter Warne. Actually, Warne doesn't give her any choice: either she sticks with him until he gets her back to her husband, or he'll blow the whistle on Ellie to her father. Either way, Peter gets what (he thinks!) he wants .... a really juicy newspaper story.”
“King Kong” (1933)
Adjusted gross: $185 million
Unadjusted gross: $10 million
Fan rating: 8.0
Plot summary: “Carl Denham needs to finish his movie and has the perfect location; Skull Island. But he still needs to find a leading lady. This 'soon-to-be-unfortunate' soul is Ann Darrow. No one knows what they will encounter on this island and why it is so mysterious, but once they reach it, they will soon find out. Living on this hidden island is a giant gorilla and this beast now has Ann in it's grasps. Carl and Ann's new love, Jack Driscoll must travel through the jungle looking for Kong and Ann, whilst avoiding all sorts of creatures and beasts.”
“Frankenstein” (1931)
Adjusted gross: $190 million
Unadjusted gross: $12 million
Fan rating: 8.0
Plot summary: “Henry Frankenstein is a doctor who is trying to discover a way to make the dead walk. He succeeds and creates a monster that has to deal with living again.”
“Tom Sawyer” (1930)
Adjusted gross: $159 million
Unadjusted gross: $11 million
Fan rating: 6.5
Plot summary: “The classic Mark Twain tale of a young boy and his friends on the Mississippi River. Tom and his pals Huckleberry Finn and Joe Harper have numerous adventures, including running away to be pirates and, being believed drowned, attending their own funeral. The boys also witness a murder and Tom and his friend Becky Thatcher are pursued by the vengeful murderer.”
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