The American Film Institute in Los Angeles, California selected the 50 greatest American Film Star Legends (composed of the top 25 women and top 25 men - defined as actors or a team of actors with a significant screen presence in American feature-length films whose screen debut occurred in or before 1950, or whose screen debut occurred after 1950 but whose death marked a completed body of work).

Fifty of today's stars paid tribute to the 50 screen legends (hence, 100 stars) during a 3-hour CBS television broadcast in June of 1999.

From a list of 500 nominees (250 in each gender category, as compiled by AFI historians, the following criteria was used in vote-casting by a jury of film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, etc.), critics, historians, executives and other cultural leaders to select the 25 greatest men and 25 greatest women screen legends of all time:

Criteria for Star Legends Selection:

• Star Quality: An actor's charisma and unique personal characteristics that create a strong on- and off-screen presence which is often embraced by audiences as a separate, mythic persona.
  
  
• Craft: An actor's ability to embody distinctly different characters through the use of strong acting techniques and other creative methods.
  
  
• Legacy: An actor's body of work that enriches American film heritage and continues to inspire artists and audiences today.
  
  
• Popularity: An actor's public following over time.
  
  
• Historical Context: The role of world events, politics, and changing social mores in shaping, promoting or curtailing a legend's status and career.