10 Fabulous Single Mothers: The New 'Nuclear' Family

Photo by: Image: People Magazine
Sandra Bullock-
Academy-Award winning actress Sandra Bullock lost one boy while gaining another. In March 2010 -- surrounding biker husband Jesse James's infidelity confession leading to their separation -- Bullock welcomed adopted son Louis Bardo as a single parent.


Not too long ago - when the poster child for "family" was displayed on "Father Knows Best," "Leave It to Beaver" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show" - a woman raising a child without a husband was not widely accepted. In fact, some people - perhaps, at one time, even you - frowned upon such women. Since then, be it from forward-thinking Gloria Steinem, "That Girl" or "Murphy Brown," we've grown to realize that women are more than capable of single-handedly running a household. Women can have complete lives (careers, children, fun) without a spouse. Today, we do not have to wait to find Mr. Right to start a family. Or, if Mr. Right turns out to be Mr. Wrong and the marriage ends, a woman can be the sole wearer of the pants. From Diane Keaton and Sandra Bullock to Joan Crawford, here are 18 well-known women who helped to re-define our image of "nuclear" family and shaped single motherhood into the fabulous role that it is today.


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