Betty Blythe
Betty Blythe
Biography
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Betty Blythe (born Elizabeth Blythe Slaughter, September 1, 1893 – April 7, 1972) was an American actress best known for her dramatic roles in exotic silent films such as The Queen of Sheba (1921). She appeared in 63 silent films and 56 talking pictures (known as talkies) over the course of her career. She is famous for being one of the first actresses to appear on film in the nude, or nearly so, during the Roaring Twenties. She is reported to have said, "A director is the only man besides your husband who can tell you how much of your clothes to take off." Blythe began her stage work in such theatrical pieces as So Long Letty and The Peacock Princess. She worked in vaudeville as the "California Nightingale" singing songs such as "Love Tales from Hoffman". After touring Europe and the States, she entered films in 1918 at the Vitagraph Studios in Brooklyn, then she was brought to Hollywood's Fox studio as a replacement for actress Theda Bara. 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) (in which she wore nothing above the waist except a string of beads), Chu-Chin-Chow (made in 1923; released by MGM in the US 1925) and She (1925). She was also seen to good advantage in less revealing films like Nomads of the North (1920) with Lon Chaney and In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter (1924), produced by Samuel Goldwyn. Other roles were as an opera star, unbilled in Garbo's The Mysterious Lady. She continued to work as a character actress. One of her last roles was a small uncredited role in a crowd scene in 1964's My Fair Lady. Betty Blythe's name lives on through the Betty Blythe Vintage TeaRoom in West Kensington.
Known For
Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Known Credits
101
Gender
Female
Birthday
1893-08-31 (131 years old)
Place of Birth
Los Angeles, California, USA
Acting

1964

My Fair Lady as Lady at Ball (uncredited)

1956

Runaway Daughters as Party Guest (uncredited)

1951

Hollywood Story as Herself

1948

Letter from an Unknown Woman as Frau Kohner (uncredited)

1948

Shed No Tears as Mrs. Peet (Uncredited)

1948

Madonna of the Desert as Mrs. Brown

1948

Luxury Liner as Miss Fenmoor (uncredited)

1947

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty as Floor Manager (uncredited)

1947

Something in the Wind as Society Matron (uncredited)

1947

Jiggs and Maggie in Society as Mrs. Vacuum

1946

Undercurrent as Saleslady (uncredited)

1946

The Postman Always Rings Twice as Customer (uncredited)

1946

Joe Palooka, Champ as Mrs. Stafford

1946

The Undercover Woman as Cissy Van Horn

1945

They Were Expendable as Officer's Wife (uncredited)

1945

Bud Abbott and Lou Costello in Hollywood as Mrs. Murdock (uncredited)

1945

Adventure as Mrs. Buckley (uncredited)

1945

Docks of New York as Mrs. Darcy

1944

Charlie Chan in The Chinese Cat as Mrs. Manning

1944

A Fig Leaf for Eve as Lavinia Sardham

1943

Crime Doctor as Mrs. Harrington

1943

Presenting Lily Mars as Dowager

1943

Girls in Chains as Mrs. Grey

1943

Bar 20 as Mrs. Stevens

1943

Spotlight Scandals as Mrs. Baker

1943

Mr. Muggs Steps Out as Not available

1943

Sarong Girl as Miss Ellsworth

1942

Dawn on the Great Divide as Mrs. Elmira Corkle

1942

Inflation as Next Door Neighbor Who Begins Hoarding (uncredited)

1942

Freckles Comes Home as Minerva Potter

1942

House of Errors as Mrs. Martha Randall

1942

Piano Mooner as Society Woman

1941

Honky Tonk as Mrs. Wilson

1941

Our Wife as Minor Role (uncredited)

1941

Puddin' Head as Mrs. Bowser

1941

Top Sergeant Mulligan as Mrs. Lewis

1941

Sis Hopkins as Mrs. Farnsworth

1941

Tuxedo Junction as Miss Hornblower

1941

The Miracle Kid as Madame Gloria

1941

Federal Fugitives as Marcia

1940

Misbehaving Husbands as Effie Butler

1940

Earl of Puddlestone as Millicent Potter-Potter

1939

The Women as Mrs. South (uncredited)

1938

Hold That Kiss as Wedding Guest at Piermont's

1938

Gangster's Boy as Mrs. Davis

1938

Romance of the Limberlost as Mrs. Parker

1938

Delinquent Parents as Mrs. Wharton

1938

Life in Sometown, U.S.A. as Mrs. Himber (uncredited)

1937

Topper as Mrs. Goodrich (uncredited)

1937

Espionage as Train Passenger

1937

What Do You Think? (Number Two) as Not available

1936

Murder at Glen Athol as Ann Randel

1936

Yours for the Asking as May (uncredited)

1936

The Gorgeous Hussy as Mrs. Wainwright

1936

Rainbow on the River as Flower Buyer (uncredited)

1935

Cheers of the Crowd as Lil Langdon Walton

1935

I've Been Around as Not available

1935

The Spanish Cape Mystery as Mrs. Godfrey

1935

Western Courage as Mrs. Hanley

1935

The Perfect Clue as Ursula Chesebrough

1934

Two Heads on a Pillow as Mrs. Agnes Walker

1934

The Scarlet Letter as Innkeeper

1934

Night Alarm as Mrs. Elizabeth Van Dusen

1934

Badge of Honor as Mrs. Claire van Alstyne

1934

Money Means Nothing as Mrs. Ferris

1934

A Girl of the Limberlost as Mrs. Parker

1934

Ever Since Eve as Mrs. Vandergrift

1933

Only Yesterday as Mrs. Vincent (Uncredited)

1933

Pilgrimage as Janet Prescot

1933

Before Midnight as Mavis Fry

1932

Back Street as Gossip (uncredited)

1932

Tom Brown of Culver as Dolores Delight

1932

Lena Rivers as Mathilda Nichols

1931

Stars of Yesterday as Self

1928

Glorious Betsy as Princess Fredericka

1928

Stolen Love as Modiste

1928

Into No Man's Land as The Countess

1928

Sisters of Eve as Mrs. Wenham Gardner

1928

Domestic Troubles as Carrie

1927

A Million Bid as Mrs. Gordon

1927

Snowbound as Julia Barry

1927

The Girl from Gay Paree as Mademoiselle Fanchon

1925

Folly of Vanity as Mrs. Ridgeway (modern sequence)

1925

Percy as Lolita

1925

She as Ayesha

1924

Chu-Chin-Chow as Zahrat

1924

Southern Love as Not available

1923

The Truth About Wives as Helen Frazer

1922

How Women Love as Rosa Roma

1922

Fair Lady as Countess Margherita

1921

Disraeli as Not available

1921

The Queen of Sheba as Queen of Sheba

1921

Charge It as Mille Garreth

1920

The Silver Horde as Mildred Wayland

1920

Nomads of the North as Nanette

1920

Burnt Wings as Helen

1919

Beating the Odds as Hebe Norse

1919

The Undercurrent as Mariska

1918

Over the Top as Madame Arnot

1916

Slander as Not available