Many years ago, using the weekly TV guide that came with the Sunday Chicago Tribune, I started keeping track of all of the movies I had seen over the course of my lifetime. The guide would list the two main stars for each movie, and that is a tradition that I’ve carried on in my database ever since. So, given those guidelines, it is time to look at the most prolific actors that have starred in the movies that I have seen in the last half of the decade of the 1990s, corresponding with the end of college and the transition into adulthood and real life.
1996
| Name | Films |
|---|---|
| Gil Bellows | 3 |
| Alyssa Milano | 3 |
| Bill Pullman | 3 |
| Liv Tyler | 3 |
A four way tie that covers a lot of bad movies, most of which I don’t even remember. Gil Bellows starts things off with Miami Rhapsody, Love And A .45, and Black Day Blue Night. Alyssa Milano made her case by doffing her top in Poison Ivy II: Lily, Deadly Sins, and the cult classic Embrace of the Vampire. Bill Pullman shows up thanks to legitimate big screen blockbusters in Independence Day, Sibling Rivalry, and While You Were Sleeping. Rounding things out is Liv Tyler, who appeared in That Thing You Do!, Stealing Beauty, and Heavy.
1997
| Name | Films |
|---|---|
| Patricia Arquette | 3 |
| John Cusack | 3 |
The number of leaders is cut in half, as Patricia Arquette appeared in the classics Daddy, Lost Highway, and Flirting With Disaster. John Cusack plied his wares in City Hall, the tremendous Grosse Pointe Blank, and The Grifters.
1998
| Name | Films |
|---|---|
| Jennifer Aniston | 3 |
The Friends star makes her move to the big screen with starring roles in The Object Of My Affection, Picture Perfect, and Dream For An Insomniac.
1999
| Name | Films |
|---|---|
| Janeane Garofalo | 4 |
| Gwyneth Paltrow | 4 |
A strange pairing, with comic Janeane Garofalo starring in Sweethearts, Mystery Men, Larger Than Life, and The Matchmaker. Meanwhile, the glamorous Gwyneth Paltrow appeared in A Perfect Murder, Shakespeare In Love, Great Expectations, and Hush.
2000
| Name | Films |
|---|---|
| Maria Ford | 5 |
| Tori Spelling | 5 |
As we wrap things up, your first question is probably who the hell is Maria Ford? If you were perusing the late night offerings on Cinemax back at the turn of the century, you might be very familiar with her body of work. Tori Spelling, however, was a constant presence on Lifetime, appearing in Death Of A Cheeleader, Coed Call Girl, Deadly Pursuits, Mother, May I Sleep With Danger?, and Perpetrators Of The Crime.