You could fill a Playbill with all the famous actors who've performed at the Bucks County Playhouse

NEW HOPE may lie some 70 miles southwest of New York's theater district, but the Bucks County Playhouse takes a back seat to no Broadway house when it comes to entertainment history.

The roster of performers who trod the stage in the converted riverside mill is a Who's Who of mid-20th-century show business. Some, such as Helen Hayes (often cited as the greatest stage actress of all time) were already superstars. Others - Grace Kelly and Robert Redford among them - were just starting out.

For a true showbiz milestone, look no further than the summer 1941 production of the madcap farce "The Man Who Came to Dinner." Not only did its legendary authors, George S. Kauffman and Moss Hart, act in it, but so did Harpo Marx - in the speaking role of Banjo, a free-spirited entertainer. It's no secret that the authors based the character on their friend, the celebrated silent comic.

Here's a look at some of the greats who appeared at Bucks County Playhouse:

Robert Redford ("Tiger at the Gates," "Nobody Loves Me").

Merv Griffin ("The Moon Is Blue").

Alan Alda ("Sunday in New York," "King of Hearts").

Arthur Godfrey ("Our Town").

Grace Kelly ("The Torch-Bearers, "Accent on Youth," "The Heiress").

George C. Scott ("The Lion in Winter").

Helen Hayes ("Alice Sit-By-The-Fire").

Angela Lansbury ("Affairs of State).

Liza Minnelli ("Time Out for Ginger").

John Lithgow ("The Roar of the Greasepaint, The Smell of the Crowd").

- Chuck Darrow