Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress who became the highest-paid woman in the United States in the early 1940s. During her era, women were mostly depicted either as a damsel in distress or a contented housewife, but Barbara Stanwyck was one of the few stars who challenged the stereotype and helped to redefine women’s roles in contemporary Hollywood films. Born Ruby Catherine Stevens into a working-class family and orphaned at the age of four, she had a very tough childhood. Raised by her older sister, she started smoking at nine, working at thirteen, and had an abortion at fifteen. However, all through this turmoil, she was steadfast in her goal and, at sixteen, entered the entertainment industry, winning the lead role of a cabaret dancer in The Noose. After around three years on Broadway, she entered the film industry, and by the age of twenty-three, she had established herself as a star. In a career spanning almost half a century, she acted in 85 films and several television series. Although she failed to win an Academy Award, her talent and dedication were recognized with the Academy Honorary Award and several other lifetime achievement awards.