The Pam Grier Collection (Columbia Tristar Home Video)

Though her persona may have been introduced to new generations through Foxy Cleopatra from 'Austin Powers 3' or even through rapper Foxy Brown, actress Pam Grier is the cloth from which these bad girls were cut. Arguably THE face of women from the '70s blaxploitation era, Grier's career started back in 1971 when Roger Corman introduced her in 'The Big Doll House.' A slew of prison flicks followed and these jail-house jaunts segued into what Grier is probably best known for -- action films with a strong, sexy, soul sister set dead center. 'Coffy,' 'Foxy Brown', 'Friday Foster,' 'Sheba, Baby' and 'Scream Blacula Scream' are what cemented Grier into popular consciousness, three of which are included in her recently released DVD collection. After her run in the '70s, Grier remained relevant with stints on 'Miami Vice,' in Quentin Tarantino's 'Jackie Brown,' with Snoop Dogg in 'Bones,' and these days as Kit on Showtime's 'The L Word.' With over 30 years in the film industry, as a bonifide female action hero decades before Halle Berry's 'Catwoman,' and standing 5'8'' with heyday measurements of 38-22-36, Grier's definitely a 'whole lotta woman' and then some.

John Singleton Box Set (Columbia Tristar Home Video)

In 1991, John Singleton screeched into our consciousness like a 64 on hydraulics as the daring 22-year-old who brought the violence of Compton to the masses via his seminal debut, 'Boyz in the Hood.' Sure, we'd seen visions of California on the big screen before, but somehow, this was a far cry from the Disney-tinged Hollywood of lore. Accolades and a nice film career soon befell the bespeckled USC graduate, starting off with the honor of becoming the youngest person ever to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. Since those auspicious beginnings, Singleton has stretched and challenged himself by touching on such dissimilar subjects as drag racing ('The Fast and the Furious'), Black history, ('Rosewood'), a remake of a classic ('Shaft'), another Compton coming-of-age story ('Baby Boy') and producing last year's Sundance coup 'Hustle and Flow.' Obviously a card-carrying member of the hip-hop generation, Singleton was one of the first directors to consistently feature rappers in his vehicles, namely Ice Cube, Tupac Shakur and Busta Rhymes.