Time has the Person of the Year issue, Vogue has the September issue, and Vanity Fair has the Hollywood Issue. On Tuesday, the 2015 Vanity Fair Hollywood Issue photo was released and it features several award-winning actors and actresses. Gracing this year's cover are the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch, Eddie Redmayne, Amy Adams and more. And since this is the 20th year of the special issue, I think it's appropriate to reflect on past issues and remember all the people you forgot were in Vanity Fair's Hollywood Issue over the years.
In 2012, Vanity Fair bragged that the actors who appeared on their covers over the years had nabbed "135 Oscar nominations and carried away 28 statuettes." But the magazine's special cover wasn't always dedicated to Oscar nominees. In fact, they've featured some odd choices over the years. Actors who quit acting, people who didn't become famous until later, and people you just plain forgot about.
Sure, there are the staples: Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Brad Pitt. (Interestingly Angelina Jolie has never been featured.) But Hollywood is full of people and over the last 20 years Vanity Fair has featured some interesting choices and faces. Let's take a look back at the people you may have forgotten appeared.
1995
Gwyneth Paltrow
Back before Paltrow had her big feud with the magazine, she appeared in their first ever Hollywood Issue in 1995. The cover displayed several actresses in lingerie of their choosing — with the exception of Paltrow who appeared in a ball gown.
Linda Fiorentino
The actress was well-known in 1995 for her role in the 1994 movie The Last Seduction. It gave her enough star power to be featured on the magazine's first Hollywood Issue cover. Since then she's faded into obscurity, and her last movie role was six years ago in 2009.
1996
Michael Rapaport
He's best known now as "Phoebe's cop boyfriend" from Friends. But that role came three years after he landed on the cover in 1996.
Johnathon Schaech
He landed the 1996 cover thanks to his star power in the Tom Hanks movie That Thing You Do!
Skeet Ulrich
Remember the original Scream? The 1996 cover did as they featured the actor behind the mask. Ulrich hasn't done much today, but he'll always be remembered for being creepy killer Billy.
Matthew McConaughey
Look at little baby Matthew! He's come so far in the last two decades.
1998
Tobey MacGuire
He was featured on the 1998 cover when he was just 23 years old. He hadn't even started filming Spider-Man yet. Instead MacGuire was known as the actor from Pleasantville.
1999
Monica Potter
The Parenthood mom was given cover space in 1999 for her work in Patch Adams alongside Robin Williams.
Julia Stiles
10 Things I Hate About You hit big in 1999, which helped launch Julia Stiles career and landed her this cover.
Giovanni Ribisi
Sure, he was in Saving Private Ryan, but you probably know him best as Phoebe's younger brother in Friends.
Norman Reedus
The Walking Dead star was famous long before the AMC show.
Anna Friel
She's best remembered for her work in the tragically canceled Pushing Daisies. But Friel was also popular in the last 90s for her work on Broadway's Closer, for which she won a drama desk award for outstanding actress.
2000
Paul Walker
It seems like so long since the fresh-faced actor appeared on the Hollywood Issue in 2000.
The American Pie Cast
Okay, not the whole cast, but the 1999 hit landed both Chris Klein and Mena Suvari on the cover.
Wes Bentley
He played the fancy-bearded Seneca Crane in the first Hunger Games movie. But before that he landed the 2000 cover because he was well-known for his role in American Beauty.
2002
Brittany Murphy
Surprisingly, Murphy didn't get the Hollywood issue nod after Clueless, but seven years later after her work in 8 Mile.
2003
Dennis Quaid
Look, I know he's been in a lot of movies and I've even liked some of them (Parent Trap, anyone?) But his placement alongside Hollywood's other great men who had staying power (Harrison Ford, Brad Pitt, Tom Hanks, Jude Law, Matt Damon, and more) makes him stick out like a sore thumb.
2003 - Young Hollywood Issue
Absolutely Everyone
In 2003 Vanity Fair dropped two Hollywood-themed issues. The first was the aforementioned men's club version and the second was dedicated the the young women of Hollywood. It featured everyone who mattered that year and is perhaps the best collection of my childhood in one photo. It featured Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore, the Olsen twins, Amanda Bynes, Alexis Bledel, Evan Rachel Wood, and Raven Symone. Sadly, the photographic evidence of all my favorite actresses in one room was tainted a bit after Evan Rachel Wood revealed how terrible the shoot was. She said she was so uncomfortable and left feeling like a piece of meat, which is all too indicative of how women are treated in Hollywood on a daily basis.
2005
Kerry Washington
Long before she starred in Scandal, Washington was recognized by Vanity Fair for her outstanding role in Ray.
2006
Tom Ford
No one can forget this ridiculous cover with a naked Scarlett Johansson and Keira Knightley. But I often forget who the man was because I'm so focused on my anger over the ladies' treatment. It's Tom Ford, better known for his fashion skills, who landed this super sexist cover in 2006.
2007
Year of the Funnymen
Rather than picking Oscar winners to grace the cover in 2007, Vanity Fair opted to go with the comedic stylings of Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Chris Rock, and several penguins.
2008
Ellen Page
I totally forgot she was on the cover, but she so deserved the honor.
Elizabeth Banks
Same goes for Elizabeth Banks. She's done so much since 2008 that I forgot she graced this issue, but she's amazing so I'm not surprised.
2009
Barack Obama
In 2009, Vanity Fair broke from tradition and featured the new president on their Hollywood Issue.
2012
Paula Patton
2012 was a simpler time for Paula Patton. "Blurred Lines" hadn't yet been released and Robin Thicke wasn't a total jerk. Or, he could have been, but we didn't know it yet.
Now that we've walked down memory lane, here's a sneak peek at the 2015 cover. Who knows where these people will be in another 20 years? But one thing is for sure: They're joining the ranks of a pretty special group of people.
Images: Vanity Fair (14)
