Pop Culture Icons

I was thinking lately about pop culture icons, and which ones reflect our times. Of course, every country is going to be a different, just as the list is constantly shifting to reflect “contemporary” culture, but for the U.S., I think the following list is a pretty good reckoning for the early 2020s.

Disclaimers: Only looking at icons from the 20^th and 21^st centuries (No Sherlock Holmes, Ebenezer Scrooge, Alice, Dracula, et al.). There are no mascots – brand, sports, or otherwise (No Ronald McDonald, Mr. Met, Smoky the Bear, et al.). Finally, there are no political figures, who certainly have an enormous impact of pop culture, but felt wrong for this list (No Gandhi, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Princess Diana, Hitler, et al.).

Here, unranked and alphabetized, are what I’d consider the top 150 Pop Icons:

ABBA

Muhammad Ali

Julie Andrews

Ang (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Louis Armstrong

David Attenborough

Avatar Na’vi

The Avengers

Lucille Ball

Barbie

Batman and The Joker

The Beatles

Beyonce

Humphrey Bogart

James Bond (Skyfall, Dr. No, Goldeneye, etc.)

Bono

David Bowie

Tom Brady

Marlon Brando

Garth Brooks

Charlie Brown and Snoopy

Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck

Calvin and Hobbes

Al Capone

Mariah Carey

Johnny Cash

Charlie Chaplin

Dave Chappelle

Cheers Cast

Cher

George Clooney

Sheldon Cooper (Big Bang Theory, Young Sheldon)

Simon Cowell

Lara Croft (Tomb Raider)

Tom Cruise

Ellen DeGeneres

Don Draper (Mad Men)

Dr. Dre

Dr. Seuss (Cat in the Hat, The Grinch, The Lorax, etc.)

Dr. Who

Bob Dylan

Clint Eastwood

Albert Einstein

Eleven (Stranger Things)

Eminem

Tina Fey

Aretha Franklin

Sigmund Freud

Friends Cast

The Fonz (Happy Days)

Game of Thrones

Judy Garland

Bill Gates

Ghostbusters

Godzilla

Goku (Dragon Ball)

Grateful Dead

Rick Grimes (Walking Dead)

Meredith Grey (Grey’s Anatomy)

Tom Hanks

Stephen Hawking

Hello Kitty

Audrey Hepburn

Alfred Hitchcock

Jack and Rose (Titanic)

Michael Jackson

Steve Jobs

Indiana Jones (Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Last Crusade, etc.)

Michael Jordan

Frida Kahlo

The Kardashians

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Stephen King

King Kong

Hannibal Lecter (Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, etc.)

Bruce Lee

Jay Leno

David Letterman

Link (Legend of Zelda)

The Lion King

Omar Little (The Wire)

Jennifer Lopez

The Lord of the Rings

Madonna

Bob Marley

Freddie Mercury

Hiyao Miyazaki (My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, etc.)

Marilyn Monroe

Mickey Mouse and Gang

MrBeast

The Muppets

Peter Pan

Sarah Jessica Parker

Rosa Parks

Dolly Parton

PewDiePie

Pablo Picasso

Pokémon

Harry Potter

Elvis Presley

Prince

Jackie Robinson

The Rock

Mister Rogers

Cristiano Ronaldo

Bob Ross

Run DMC

Arnold Schwarzenegger

Scooby Doo Gang

Michael Scott (The Office)

Jerry Seinfeld

Sesame Street

Tupac Shakur

Shrek

The Simpsons

Frank Sinatra

Will Smith

Tony Soprano (The Sopranos)

South Park

Britney Spears

Spider-Man

Steven Spielberg

SpongeBob SquarePants

Star Trek

Star Wars

Jon Stewart

Martha Stewart

Meryl Streep

Superman

Super Mario Bros.

Taylor Swift

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Tom & Jerry

Toy Story

Transformers

Tina Turner

Twilight

Andy Warhol

John Wayne

Betty White

Walter White (Breaking Bad)

Robin Williams

Serena Williams

Oprah Winfrey

Winnie the Pooh

Stevie Wonder

Wonder Woman

Tiger Woods

X-Men

Daddy Yankee

Notable icons representing various genres