The 30 Funniest Women in Hollywood History

The world of comedy has always been dominated by dudes, and even the most prolific comedy writers have been silenced because of gender. The stories of sexism on Saturday Night Live are as a part of its legend as the camaraderie between castmates. Even a comedy hero like John Belushi was guilty of it. Writers like Anne Beatts, an SNL writer who admitted that Belushi would purposefully perform female-written sketches poorly so they'd never make it past rehearsal, and Irma Kalish, who created more than 300 scripts for TV on shows like All in the Family and Maude, are the unsung heroes of comedy. Television executives and film producers clung stubbornly to the idea that no one would watch something starring, or written by, a woman.

For years, women weren't the leads on sitcom, let alone feature films. And, if a woman did find herself in a starring role, it was because of her her romantic relationship with a man. Now, we have heroes like Melissa McCarthy and Amy Poehler taking the baton that was passed to them from Gilda Radner and Mary Tyler Moore.

In honor of Kristen Wiig's birthday, click through our list of the funniest women ever to grace the screen.

Written by Hope Schreiber (@HopeSchreiber)

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Notable role: Ashburn in The Heat (2013)

There's no denying that Sandra Bullock starred in a movie called The Blind Side, and that it will haunt her credibility forever; but there's also no denying her comedic talent. Her ability to use physical comedy is often overlooked but we'd like to draw some well-needed attention back to Miss Congeniality to prove that The Heat was no fluke.

The way she embodied a rough-around-the-edges federal agent trying to get glamorous on the pageant circuit was a real feat of physicality. (Not to mention the film kinda puts in work revealing masculinity and femininity to be constructions, roles we dress up.) Convincing audiences of her own clumsy gangliness in Miss Congeniality was a far more interesting feat than affecting a twang and saving a black boy in that other movie.

Notable role: Sandy Lester in Tootsie (1982)

Garr played one of the most endearing "dumb blondes" in movie history in Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein (1974), as Igna, but she's far from a one-note actress. She's had a role in a number of classic comedies (Oh, God, Dumb and Dumber), most notably as Dustin Hoffman's girlfriend, Sandy, in Tootsie. She earned an Oscar nomination for her work.

Notable role: Cookie Fleck in Best in Show (2000)

It's no surprise that most of O'Hara's costars go on record about how absolutely, balls-to-the-walls, excited they are to work with her. She got her start at Second City, as the understudy of fellow funniest woman in Hollywood, Gilda Radner, and has moved on to be in some of the most rewatched comedies ever. Namely, Home Alone and Best in Show. Her voice and high-strung facial expressions are instantly recognizable. No one else could shout "KEVIN!" quite like O'Hara.

Notable role: Dorothy Zbornak in The Golden Girls (1985-1992)

We are not even going to mess around with all the things Bea Arthur has done for woman-kind in her career, let along comedy. Arthur not only made 'em laugh, she's a large part of the foundations of contemporary feminism. She wasn't afraid to tackle huge issues during the time they were first being discussed in American politics, like an episode about abortion on her groundbreaking show Maude in the '70s, and openly discussing AIDS on The Golden Girls in 1990.

Notable role: Barbara Baran in The New Adventures of Old Christine (2006-2010)

Sykes has a kid-friendly persona now; her voice is easily recognized in Over the Hedge and Ice Age: Continental Drift. But once upon a time she was one of the crass Crank Yankers. Sykes has been doing standup since '89 and her material has always been innovative and fresh, so much so that Chris Rock hired her after she opened for him for his show, The Chris Rock Show, and she hasn't slowed down since.

She was the first African American, and first openly LGBT person to entertain at the annual White House Correspondents Association and is now in syndicated sitcom history for her role on The New Adventures of Old Christine.

Notable role: Hildy Johnson in His Girl Friday (1940)

Russell just isn't a hero to the comedy world—women everywhere look up to her as a no-nonsense boss in the workplace for her role in His Girl Friday, as the fast-talking, hat-wearing, unstoppable Hildy Johnson. Proving her comedic chops weren't a fluke, Russell played the eccentric, rich bohemian title character in Auntie Mame. Need further proof? Would her winning all five of the Golden Globes she was nominated for convince you?

Notable role: Henrietta Lowell in A New Leaf (1971)

Are you a fan of Bill Murray, David Letterman, or Steve Martin? Then thank Elaine May. May and her comedy partner, Mike Nichols (director of, among other things, The Graduate), were kicked out of the Compass Players (which came before Second City) because they were too good. Like, literally, when has that ever happened? Together they created a new type of comedy, one of relationships and performed sketches where one wasn't just the "smart one" or the "dumb one."

She appeared in her first film, which she wrote and directed, A New Leaf, but it was her writing that earned her an Oscar nomination for Heaven Can Wait.

Notable role: Jerri Blank in Strangers With Candy (1999-2000)

It might be hard to believe, but the comedy genius behind one of the ugliest characters in television history, Jerri Blank, is gorgeous. Sedaris got her start at Second City Theater, along with her Strangers With Candy co-stars and co-creators, Stephen Colbert and Paul Dinello, but has since only made a few guest apperances in film and TV, which is, actually, the only thing she wants to do. You've probably caught a glimpse of her in Raising Hope, Elf, and Dolly Parton's music video, "You Better Get to Living."

There's no substitute for Sedaris and her elastic face. Since you can't get your fix with TV, pick up her cooking and craft books, I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence and Simple Times: Crafts for Poor People.

Notable role: Tracey Ullman in The Tracey Ullman Show (1987-1990)

So much of your comedy education is owed to Tracey Ullman and you probably don't even know it. Her sketch comedy show, The Tracey Ullman Show, in addition to introducing amazing sketches that the British comedian helped pen, it was the first showcase for The Simpsons. (What can we say? We guess talent recognizes talent.) On her HBO show, Tracy Takes On..., Ullman showed off her amazing character work, regardless of the gender or race of her characters, and earned eight Emmys.

Notable role: Lillian in Bridesmaids (2011)

We first fell in love with Rudolph during her eight-year run on SNL, where she stole the show toward the end of her stint at the sketch show. Her portrayals of Oprah and Donatella Versace changed the way we all look at those celebs.

Since wrapping her work on SNL, Rudolph has only continued to steal the show, be it a show in Brooklyn where she and her best friend covered Prince songs with The Roots, to Bridesmaids and even lesser known, understated comedies like the Dave Eggers-penned Away We Go.

Notable role: Fran Kubelik in The Apartment (1960)

Of course Shirley MacLaine won the highest honor for a career in American filmmaking, the AFI Life Achievement Award, in 2012. She's a national treasure. Her gift is the ease of blending comedy and drama perfectly, like for her roles in Steel Magnolias and Terms of Endearment. Her most notable comedy role, however, remains The Apartment, which earned the Oscar for Best Picture and is still considered one of the greatest comedies of all time.

Notable role: Sue Sylvester in Glee (2009-present)

The reason Lynch's Sue Sylvester of Glee is the best part of the show is simple, really. She's amazing at improvising, a skill in no small part honed by all those Christopher Guest movies (Best in Show, A Mighty Wind, For Your Consideration), and that lends real personality to a show that often trades in stereotypes, i.e., the dork, the jock, etc. In fact, every time we see Lynch is set to guest star in a show or movie we get our notebooks ready to write down her biting one-liners.

She's also killed it on Party Down, and look for her in the upcoming indie, Afternoon Delight, where she plays a shrink who shares too much.

Notable role: Megan in Bridesmaids (2011)

No contemporary female comedic actress has experienced instant fame like Melissa McCarthy after Bridesmaids. Which is odd, because she's been in the business for a long time—we've been watching her since Gilmore Girls—no shame—and Samantha Who?. If you think she popped out of nowhere, you've just been missing out.

Now, McCarthy has the distinction of being one of the craziest, and funniest, performers out. She carried the otherwise lacking Identity Theft and starred opposite one of the most recognizable actresses of our time, Sandra Bullock, in The Heat. The Heat 2 rumors started flying as soon as the credits rolled. Because you can now bank on McCarthy.

Notable role: Beth in Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

The world is all a'twitter with people asking Aubrey Plaza to play Daria in a live-action adaptation of the MTV cartoon, but everyone knows that the role should go to the original sarcastic queen, Janeane Garafolo. Of course, in 2013, Plaza is closer to high school age, but in a perfect world it'd be Garafolo in that green jacket and black skirt.

There's something amazing about Garafolo's dry, mean wit, like in Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion, or her '80s-soap-inspired acting in Wet Hot American Summer.

Notable role: Mary Katherine Gallagher in Superstar (1999)

Molly Shannon and physical comedy go together like peanut butter and jelly, or radio hosts and Schweddy Balls. Case in point: her two most popular characters (drawn from a pool of many, the result of a six-year run on SNL) the high-school-superstar Mary Katherine Gallagher and 50-year-old Sally O'Malley.

Kristen Wiig sums up what makes Shannon great perfectly: "The amazing Molly Shannon, she's just completely fearless." There was no fear each and every time she plunged her fingertips into those damp, stubbled armpits.

Notable role: Roseanne Conner in Roseanne (1988-1997)

There is a fine, fine line between the comedy and the offensive, and Roseanne Barr walking it every day. She botched up the national anthem on purpose—ouch; she wears a Hitler mustache one day, talks about Jewish mind control—FOH; she created Roseanne—OK, finally. Thank you, thank you for this gift.

Roseanne was one of the first shows on TV to focus on the struggles of a matriarchal lower-middle class family—to hilarious ends. For that, Roseanne Barr remains on our list of hilarious women, even when we're not sure if we should laugh or not.

Notable role: Ellen Morgan in Ellen (1994-1998)

Ellen happens to be the least offensive person to ever exist. That's why we're not upset that she gets to keep Portia de Rossi all to herself. Ellen is just nice, Ellen is just fun, Ellen is just safe. But it wasn't always that way, right? There was a time where the crap hit the fan during her sitcom, Ellen, where her character came out of the closet. Not a big deal now, of course, but it changed television forever. And now she voices Disney fish. This is how the world changes.

Notable role: Mindy Lahiri in The Mindy Project (2012-present)

Who isn't super obsessed with Mindy Kaling? But not in a creepo way, you know? The world was first introduce to Kaling via The Office, where she played Kelly Kapoor. It was hard not to relate, given her obsession with pop culture. She'd be the girl we'd hang out with at the office the most, and despite her rapid-fire non-stop talking we don't think we'd get annoyed. She knew the gossip.

Since moving on from writing/performing on The Office, Kaling has penned a bestseller, Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (a concern we have, constantly) and writes and stars in her own sitcom, The Mindy Project.

Notable role: Sarah Silverman in The Sarah Silverman Program (2007-2010)

It's bogus to write Silverman off as a shock comic. She's actually using her comedy as a mirror, bouncing back the world's bullshit with a chipper smile. She's not racist or uncouth, she's using those things so you realize how ridiculous racism and sexism actually are. That's not to say that her appearance on a late-night show won't bring a host to cold sweats.

Silverman's stand-up is just one aspect of her career now though. Her Comedy Central show, The Sarah Silverman Program, was filled with laughs over its three seasons, and her book, Bedwetter, is poignant, funny as hell and just as sad. Don't sleep on her film career either, where she's captured hearts and minds in Wreck-It Ralph and Take This Waltz.

Notable Role: Elaine Benes in Seinfeld (1989-1998)

The girl has balls. Louis-Dreyfus dropped out of college her junior year, that time when you're supposed to be struggling through stats and trying to hook up with anything moving, to be part of the cast of SNL. After that, she appeared in the most recognized comedy about nothing, Seinfeld.

Currently, she's beating the "Seinfeld Curse" by portraying the foul-mouthed vice president, Selina Meyer, in Veep. Out of everyone to come out of Jerry Seinfeld's landmark series, Louis-Dreyfus has produced the most exciting work.

Notable role: Lili Von Shtupp in Blazing Saddles (1974)

Of course we know that Mel Brooks created some of the greatest comedy films to date, but what's less acknowldeged is that he owes a lot of that success to Madeline Kahn, who repeatedly showed off her skills and skin in his flicks. She earned an Oscar nomination for singing about how tired of sex she was in Blazing Saddles. But her comedy prowess doesn't end there. She also handled the stress of being a woman host on the first seasons of SNL, creating some of the most memorable sketches alongside Gilda Radner like "Not For Ladies Only," and the amazing sketch where she and the girls of the cast played child versions of themselves—she tried to explain sex during a sleepover. Instant comedy gold.

Notable role: Rose Nylund in The Golden Girls (1985-1992)

We understand the love affair the world has with Betty White. Like Fort Knox, she is a national treasure and needs to be protected at all costs. She's our Queen. We know you know her for playing the bubbly and naive Rose Nylund in Golden Girls, but we'd like to inform you of White's true power. She had creative control in front and behind the camera in the '50s with her sitcom Life With Elizabeth, something that was absolutely unheard of during that time and is still rare today.

Her success train doesn't run express to the Golden Girls—she stopped along the way to make the memorable Sue Ann Nivens on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. And Nivens, if you aren't familiar, is one of the most killer man-eaters in all of TV.

Notable Role: Violet Newstead in Nine to Five (1980)

Tomlin's been on the comedy radar since the '60s, when she began her stand-up career and appeared on the great sketch show Laugh-In. She hasn't been far from Hollywood since. In fact, we can almost guarantee that your mom could quote the best lines from her nosy and heartless telephone operator, Ernestine, or the five-year-old who spends her time questioning life and the universe, Edith Ann. You probably most fondly remember her talent in the released shit-hitting-the-fan behind-the-scenes arguments of I Heart Huckabees or as the voice of Ms. Frizzle on The Magic School Bus.

Notable role: Leslie Knope in Parks and Recreation (2009-present)

There's a reason why we refer to her as the Poehler-coaster. From her humble beginnings as the Conan-obsessed little sister of Andy Richter, to one of the funniest personalities on SNL, to the parks worker Leslie Knope, Poehler has introduced us to endless optimism. Along with Tina Fey, she co-anchored the Weekend Update desk on SNL, a first for the show, and she continues to inspire the creative, funny and intelligent women through her work with Smart Girls at the Party.

Notable role: Mary Richards in The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1970-1977)

Someone who makes us laugh so hard, like with her original and groundbreaking TV show The Mary Tyler Moore Show, should not also have the ability to make us painfully weep through two hours of a movie, as is the case in Ordinary People. And yet Mary Tyler Moore exists and has accomplished just that. After playing the well-to-do wife on The Dick Van Dyke Show, Moore showed a woman didn't have to be married, widowed or with children by the time she was 30 to remain relevant.

Notable role: Annie Walker in Bridesmaids (2011)

While she hasn't been on the scene as long as some of her SNL colleagues, Wiig is quickly being regarded as one of the funniest people in Hollywood for her prolific work on the late-night sketch comedy show and her hit Bridesmaids. In fact, we haven't seen such a domination of sketches since Eddie Murphy resurrected the show from the dead in the early '80s. Her departure from the show, along with her memorable characters like Gilly, the Target Lady,, and her sister from the Fingerlakes, Dooneese, left a noticeable gap in the lineup that the feature players are still trying to fill.

Now, Wiig is box office gold, as evident from the now-classic movie she penned along with Annie Mumolo, Bridesmaids. Top that off with hilarious voice work for Despicable Me, How To Train Your Dragon, and smaller apperance in movies like Frends with Kids and you have a comedy titan in the making.

Notable role: Liz Lemon in 30 Rock (2006-2013)

For many of us, we witnessed history without even realizing it. SNL has always had the reputation of being a Boys' Club, as horror stories for female writers are etched into the history of the sketch show. But then Fey was made headwriter in 1999, the first woman to hold the title. And, actually, even before she graced the desk of Weekend Update, she was most likely the one behind all of your favorite sketches. After that, she quickly took over the comedy world.

Each bit of Fey's career has been a success, from her first feature movie, Mean Girls, to her own sitcom (which has won numerous awards) 30 Rock, to her first book, Bossypants. Fey is comedy personified in glasses and a sarcastic smile.

Notable role: Carol Burnett in The Carol Burnett Show (1967-1978)

A lot of comedians give all the credit to Carol Burnett and her hour-long variety show, The Carol Burnett Show, for inspiring them to make people laugh in the first place. With her groundbreaking program, she not only proved that a sketch comedy show could be successful without a man running it, she proved that it could thrive. Just check out the shows 23 Emmy awards.

Notable role: Roseanne Roseannadanna on Saturday Night Live (1975-1980)

To say that Radner paved the way for women at studio 6H (and for that matter, the world of comedy) would be a gross understatement. Gilda Radner, one of the OG Not Ready for Primetime Players, stole the hearts of a nation and seemingly everyone else she met, too, during her time at SNL. Can you blame people for falling for her charms? Her smiles were as boundless as her hilarious characters, like the kind of disgusting Roseanne Roseannadanna and the endearing Emily Litella (based on her own nanny growing up who would comically mishear just about everything). Hell, Radner basically invented the "dork" with Lisa Loopner. Honestly, if you want to see some comedy history at its finest we recommend a viewing of her "Best Of Gilda Radner" DVD and picking up her heartbreaking funny book It's Always Something.

Notable role: Lucy Ricardo in I Love Lucy (1951-1957)

Between all her floundering, her missteps, and faux pas, we worry that people write off Lucille Ball as a ditz. That she's denied her genius status because of how harebrained her most famous character was. Of course, we know she's funny. Her sitcom, I Love Lucy, still runs in syndication, people still quote her iconic lines and if we close our eyes we can still see the chocolate factory and grape-stomping scenes.

Ball was a legit boss, beyond her ability to turn a phrase and topple over. She co-owned Desilu Productions, a company responsible for popular TV shows like Star Trek. If equality looks like ownership and power, Ball ran the world for a time.