It's apparently birthday week for Oscar-winning actresses. On Monday, Nicole Kidman celebrated her 44th, and today, Meryl Streep rings in her 62nd anniversaire. With a record-setting 16 Academy Award nominations, the New Jersey-born actress averages one nod every 3.87 years. In honor of this feat and today's Meryl milestone, let's cut ourselves 3.87 servings of sheet cake each and decide which onscreen moment of hers is the very best in a Sophie's Choice-themed celebration.
How to even begin choosing one moment from the filmography of the most critically acclaimed actress of the modern era? Well, we could start with her two heartbreaking Oscar-winning performances in Sophie's Choice and Kramer vs. Kramer.
Or sift through the many, many films for which she was nominated for a statuette, including The Deer Hunter, The French Lieutenant's Woman, Silkwood, Out of Africa, Ironweed, A Cry in the Dark, Postcards from the Edge (below), The Bridges of Madison County, One True Thing, Music of the Heart, Adaptation, The Devil Wears Prada, Doubt and Julie & Julia.
Or if you're feeling bold today, maybe you'll choose a sequence from one of Streep's less celebrated films, like Defending Your Life, Death Becomes Her, Mamma Mia! or The Manchurian Candidate remake ...but probably not Prime or Stuck on You. Actually, maybe Stuck on You. Pay your respects to Meryl by wishing her a happy birthday and discussing your favorite performance of hers below.
[Photo: Getty Images]