Betty Blythe

Betty Blythe was an American actress best known for her dramatic roles in exotic silent film

Silent film

A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...

s such as The Queen of Sheba

The Queen of Sheba (film)

The Queen of Sheba is a silent film produced by Fox studios about the story of the ill-fated romance between Solomon, King of Israel, and the Queen of Sheba. Written and directed by J. Gordon Edwards, it starred Betty Blythe as Sheba and Fritz Leiber as King Solomon...

(1921).

Career

Blythe began her stage work in such theatrical pieces as So Long Letty and The Peacock Princess. After touring Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

 and the States, she entered films in 1918 at the Vitagraph Studios

Vitagraph Studios

American Vitagraph was a United States movie studio, founded by J. Stuart Blackton and Albert E. Smith in 1897 in Brooklyn, New York. By 1907 it was the most prolific American film production company, producing many famous silent films. It was bought by Warner Bros...

 in Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...

, then she was brought to Hollywood's Fox studio as a replacement for actress Theda Bara

Theda Bara

Theda Bara , born Theodosia Burr Goodman, was an American silent film actress – one of the most popular of her era, and one of cinema's earliest sex symbols. Her femme fatale roles earned her the nickname "The Vamp" . The term "vamp" soon became a popular slang term for a sexually predatory woman...

. As famous for her revealing costumes as for her dramatic skills, she became a star in such exotic films as The Queen of Sheba (1921), Chu-Chin-Chow

Chu-Chin-Chow (1925 film)

Chu-Chin-Chow is a 1925 British-German adventure film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Betty Blythe, Herbert Langley and Randle Ayrton....

(made in 1923; released by MGM in the US 1925) and She

She (1925 film)

She is a 1925 British-German fantasy adventure film directed by Leander de Cordova and G.B. Samuelson and starring Betty Blythe, Carlyle Blackwell, Mary Odette. It was filmed in Berlin as a co-production, and based on H. Rider Haggard's novel of the same name.The book has been a popular subject for...

(1925). She was also seen to good advantage in less revealing films like Nomads of the North

Nomads of the North

Nomads of the North is a 1920 American film. A Canadian Mountie allows an innocent fugitive to escape with the woman he loves.-Cast:*Betty Blythe - Nanette Roland*Lon Chaney - Raoul Challoner*Lewis Stone - Corporal O'Connor...

(1920) with Lon Chaney

Lon Chaney, Sr.

Lon Chaney , nicknamed "The Man of a Thousand Faces," was an American actor during the age of silent films. He was one of the most versatile and powerful actors of early cinema...

 and In Hollywood With Potash and Perlmutter (1924) both from First National

First National

First National was an association of independent theater owners in the United States that expanded from exhibiting movies to distributing them, and eventually to producing them as a movie studio, called First National Pictures, Inc. It later merged with Warner Bros.-Early history:The First National...

. Other roles were as an opera star, unbilled in Garbo's The Mysterious Lady

The Mysterious Lady

The Mysterious Lady is an MGM silent film starring Greta Garbo, Conrad Nagel, and Gustav von Seyffertitz, directed by Fred Niblo, and based on the novel War in the Dark by Ludwig Wolff.-Synopsis:...

.

One of her last roles was in a crowd scene in 1964's My Fair Lady

My Fair Lady

My Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...

.

Death

Betty Blythe died of a heart attack in Woodland Hills, California

Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California

Woodland Hills is a district in the city of Los Angeles, California.Woodland Hills is located in the southwestern area of the San Fernando Valley, east of Calabasas and west of Tarzana, with Warner Center in its northern section...

 in 1972 at the age of 78. She is buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park

Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale

Forest Lawn Memorial Park is a privately owned cemetery in Glendale, California. It is the original location of Forest Lawn, a chain of cemeteries in Southern California. The land was formerly part of Providencia Ranch.-History:...

 in Glendale, California

Glendale, California

Glendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...

. For her contribution to the motion picture industry, Betty Blythe has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Hollywood Walk of Fame

The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...

 located at 1706 Vine Street

Vine Street

Vine is a street in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California that runs north-south from Melrose Avenue up past Hollywood Boulevard. The intersection of Hollywood and Vine was once a symbol of Hollywood itself...

.

Blythe was married to the movie director Paul Scardon

Paul Scardon

Paul Scardon was an actor, a producer, and a director on both Australian and New York stages. He directed Blanche Sweet in Unwilling Husband, Bessie Barriscale in some of her most successful productions, and most of the melodramas which starred his wife, actress Betty Blythe...

 from 1919 until his death in 1954.

Selected filmography

Film
Year	Film	Role	Notes
1917	His Own People	Lady Mary Thorne
1918	Hoarded Assets	Claire Dawson
1919	Dust of Desire	Corrinne Torrence
1920	Nomads of the North Nomads of the North Nomads of the North is a 1920 American film. A Canadian Mountie allows an innocent fugitive to escape with the woman he loves.-Cast:*Betty Blythe - Nanette Roland*Lon Chaney - Raoul Challoner*Lewis Stone - Corporal O'Connor...	Nanette Roland
1921	Mother o' Mine Mother o' Mine Mother o' Mine is a 1921 silent drama film directed by Fred Niblo. This film is one of the many lost films from the silent era.-Cast:* Lloyd Hughes - Robert Sheldon* Betty Ross Clarke - Dolly Wilson* Betty Blythe - Fan Baxter...	Fan Baxter
1922	How Women Love	Rosa Roma
1923	Chu-Chin-Chow Chu-Chin-Chow (1925 film) Chu-Chin-Chow is a 1925 British-German adventure film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Betty Blythe, Herbert Langley and Randle Ayrton....	Zahrat
1924	Southern Love Southern Love Southern Love is a 1924 British drama film directed by Herbert Wilcox and starring Betty Blythe, Herbert Langley and Randle Ayrton. It is based on the poem The Spanish Student by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It is known by the alternative title Woman's Secret...	Dolores
	The Spitfire	Jean Bronson
1925	Speed	Mary Whipple
	She She (1925 film) She is a 1925 British-German fantasy adventure film directed by Leander de Cordova and G.B. Samuelson and starring Betty Blythe, Carlyle Blackwell, Mary Odette. It was filmed in Berlin as a co-production, and based on H. Rider Haggard's novel of the same name.The book has been a popular subject for...	Ayesha
1927	The Girl from Gay Paree	Mademoiselle Fanchon
1928	Glorious Betsy Glorious Betsy Glorious Betsy is a 1928 mostly-silent film with talking sequences, based on a play of the same name by Rida Johnson Young and starring Dolores Costello. It was produced by Warner Brothers and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Writing, Adaptation in 1929. The film was directed by Alan...	Princess Fredericka
1931	Adventure
1932	Tom Brown of Culver	Dolores Delight
1933	Pilgrimage Pilgrimage (1933 film) -Cast:* Henrietta Crosman - Mrs. Hannah Jessop* Heather Angel - Suzanne* Norman Foster - Jim 'Jimmy' Jessop * Lucille La Verne - Mrs. Kelly Hatfield* Maurice Murphy - Gary Worth* Marian Nixon - Mary Saunders...	Janet Prescot
	Only Yesterday Only Yesterday (1933 film) Only Yesterday is a 1933 drama film about a young woman who becomes pregnant by her boyfriend before he rushes off to fight in World War I. It stars Margaret Sullavan and John Boles. The film was based on the novel Briefe einer unbekannten by Stefan Zweig, though he was not credited...	Mrs. Vincent	Uncredited
1934	Night Alarm	Elizabeth Van Dusen
1935	Ann Karenina Anna Karenina (1935 film) Anna Karenina is a 1935 film directed by Clarence Brown. The film stars Greta Garbo, Fredric March, Basil Rathbone and Maureen O'Sullivan. It is the most famous and critically acclaimed film adaptation of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. There are several other film adaptations of the novel.In New...	Woman	Uncredited
1936	Yours for the Asking Yours for the Asking Yours for the Asking is a 1936 film starring George Raft as a casino owner and Dolores Costello as the socialite he hires as hostess. The movie also features Ida Lupino and was directed by Alexander Hall.-Cast:* George Raft as Johnny Lamb...	May	Uncredited
	The Gorgeous Hussy The Gorgeous Hussy The Gorgeous Hussy is a 1936 film directed by Clarence Brown, and starring Joan Crawford and Robert Taylor. The film's plot tells a fictionalized account of President of the United States Andrew Jackson and an innkeeper's daughter...	Mrs. Wainwright
1937	Topper Topper (film) Topper is a 1937 American comedy film which tells the story of a stuffy, stuck-in-his-ways man who is haunted by the ghosts of a fun-loving married couple. It was adapted by Eric Hatch, Jack Jevne and Eddie Moran from the novel by Thorne Smith. The film was directed by Norman Z. McLeod, produced by...	Mrs. Goodrich	Uncredited
	Conquest	Princess Mirska	Uncredited Alternative title: Marie Walewska
1938	Romance of the Limberlost Romance of the Limberlost - Cast :*Jean Parker as Laurie*Eric Linden as Wayne*Marjorie Main as Nora*Edward Pawley as Corson*Betty Blythe as Mrs. Parker*Sarah Padden as Sarah*George Cleveland as Nathan*Hollis Jewell as Chris*Guy Usher as Judge*Jean O'Neill as Ruth...	Mrs. Parker
1939	The Women The Women (1939 film) The Women is a 1939 American comedy-drama film directed by George Cukor. The film is based on Clare Boothe Luce's play of the same name, and was adapted for the screen by Anita Loos and Jane Murfin, who had to make the film acceptable for the Production Code in order for it to be released.The film...	Mrs. South	Uncredited
1940	Misbehaving Husbands	Effie Butler
1941	Honky Tonk Honky Tonk (1941 film) Honky Tonk is a 1941 black-and-white western film starring Clark Gable and Lana Turner.-Plot:Con man "Candy" Johnson and his friend "Sniper" flee town using quick wits and magic tricks. They catch a train to Yellow Creek, Nevada, where a gold rush is in progress. Aboard, he meets Elizabeth Cotton...	Mrs. Wilson
1942	Dawn on the Great Divide	Mrs. Elmira Corkle
1943	Presenting Lily Mars Presenting Lily Mars Presenting Lily Mars is an American musical motion picture produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and released in 1943. The film starred Judy Garland and Van Heflin and was based on the novel by Booth Tarkington...	Dowanger	Uncredited
1944	Charlie Chan in The Chinese Cat	Mrs. Manning	Alternative title: The Chinese Cat
	A Fig Leaf for Eve A Fig Leaf for Eve A Fig Leaf for Eve is a 1944 American film directed by Don Brodie.The film is also known as Desirable Lady, Flaming Girls, Hollywood Nights, Not Enough Clothes...	Lavinia Sardham	Alternative titles: Desirable Lady, Flaming Girls, Hollywood Nights, Not Enough Clothes. Reckless Youth, Room for Love, Strips and Blondes
1945	Her Highness and the Bellboy Her Highness and the Bellboy Her Highness and the Bellboy is a 1945 film starring Hedy Lamarr and Robert Walker.- Plot synopsis :In a fictional European country, a beautiful princess meets a handsome American reporter and falls in love with him. On a trip to New York, she hopes to find him again. While staying at one of the...	Diplomat's Wife	Uncredited
	They Were Expendable They Were Expendable They Were Expendable is a 1945 American war film directed by John Ford and starring Robert Montgomery and John Wayne. The film is based on the book by William L. White, relating the story of the exploits of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Three, a PT boat unit defending the Philippines against Japanese...	Officer's Wife	Uncredited
	Adventure Adventure (1945 film) Adventure is a 1945 film, based on the novel The Anointed by Clyde Brion Davis. Clark Gable and Greer Garson star as a sailor and a librarian...	Mrs. Buckley	Uncredited
1946	The Kid from Brooklyn The Kid from Brooklyn The Kid from Brooklyn is a 1946 comedy film starring Danny Kaye and co-starring Virginia Mayo, Vera-Ellen, Steve Cochran, and Eve Arden, about a milkman who becomes world boxing champion....	Mrs. LeMoyne's friend	Uncredited
	The Postman Always Rings Twice	Customer	Uncredited
	Undercurrent	Saleslady	Uncredited
1947	The Secret Life of Walter Mitty The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (film) The Secret Life of Walter Mitty is a 1947 comedy film, loosely based on the short story of the same name by James Thurber. It stars Danny Kaye as a young daydreaming editor for a book publishing firm. The film was adapted for the screen by Ken Englund, Everett Freeman, and Philip Rapp, and directed...	Floor Manager	Uncredited
	Song of Love Song of Love (film) Song of Love is a biopic starring Katharine Hepburn, Paul Henreid, Robert Walker, and Leo G. Carroll, directed by Clarence Brown and released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer....	Lady with Opera Glasses	Uncredited
	Cass Timberlane Cass Timberlane Cass Timberlane is a novel written by Sinclair Lewis, published in 1945. It is Sinclair Lewis' nineteenth novel and one of his last.It was made into a romantic drama film starring Spencer Tracy and Lana Turner, directed by George Sidney, and released in 1947.Timberlane is a minor character in...	Nurse	Uncredited
1948	Letter from an Unknown Woman Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948 film) Letter from an Unknown Woman is a film directed by Max Ophüls. It was based on the novella of the same name, which was written by Stefan Zweig...	Frau Kohner	Uncredited
1949	The Barkleys of Broadway The Barkleys of Broadway The Barkleys of Broadway is a 1949 musical film from the Arthur Freed unit at MGM that reunited Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers after ten years apart...	Guest in Theater Lobby	Uncredited
1950	Jiggs and Maggie Out West	Society Woman	Uncredited
1951	Hollywood Story	Betty Blythe - Old-time Movie Star
1955	The Lonesome Trail	Mrs. Wells	Uncredited
1956	Lust for Life Lust for Life (film) Lust for Life is a MGM biographical film about the life of the Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, based on the 1934 novel by Irving Stone and adapted by Norman Corwin.It was directed by Vincente Minnelli and produced by John Houseman...	Dowanger	Uncredited
1957	The Helen Morgan Story The Helen Morgan Story The Helen Morgan Story is a 1957 American biographical film directed by Michael Curtiz starring Ann Blyth and Paul Newman.The screenplay by Oscar Saul, Dean Riesner, Stephen Longstreet, and Nelson Gidding is based on the life and career of torch singer/actress Helen Morgan, with fictional touches...	Party Guest	Uncredited
1964	My Fair Lady My Fair Lady (film) My Fair Lady is a 1964 musical film adaptation of the Lerner and Loewe stage musical, of the same name, based on the 1938 film adaptation of the original stage play Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. The ballroom scene and the ending were taken from the previous film adaptation , rather than from...	Lady at Ball	Uncredited
Television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1952	Racket Squad Racket Squad Racket Squad is an American TV crime drama series starring Reed Hadley as Captain John Braddock, a fictional detective working for the San Francisco, California Police Department....	Mrs. Burton	1 episode
1958	The Lineup The Lineup (TV series) The Lineup is an American police drama which aired on CBS radio from 1950 to 1953 and on CBS television from 1954 to 1960, possibly in response to NBC's hit Dragnet....	Mrs. DeSues	1 episode

External links