Betty Bronson
Encyclopedia
Betty Bronson was an American television and film actress who began her career during the silent film
era. She was a famous actress in silent
and sound film
s.
to Frank and Nellie Smith Bronson. She began her film career began at age of sixteen with a bit part
in the film Anna Ascends. At seventeen, after she had pleaded with every friend she had at Paramount Pictures
, she finally got an interview with J. M. Barrie
, author of Peter Pan. Barrie personally chose her to play the lead in a film of his work Peter Pan
which would be released in 1924. This film role had been sought by both Gloria Swanson
and Mary Pickford
, but Bronson won the role through her natural lightness and grace, probably refined through training with the Ballet Russes. Though she was with them for only a short time, perhaps a couple of weeks, it proved helpful in enhancing her portrayal of Peter Pan, especially in the flight sequences.
She starred with Mary Brian
(Wendy Darling) and Esther Ralston
(Mrs Darling), and the three of them became very close friends for the rest of their lives.
Bronson became an instant success in the year following the release of Peter Pan. She had a major role in the 1925 silent film adaptation of Ben-Hur
. In 1926, she starred in another Barrie story A Kiss for Cinderella
, an artfully-made film that failed at the boxoffice. She had moderate success for the rest of her career. She made a very successful transition into sound films. Her first sound film was in The Singing Fool
(1928) with Al Jolson
, and she also starred in the follow-up film Sonny Boy (1929) with Davey Lee
. She was the leading lady opposite Jack Benny
in the romantic drama The Medicine Man
(1930).
Bronson continued film roles until 1933 when she married Ludwig Lauerhass, with whom she had one child, Ludwig Lauerhass, Jr. She did not appear in films again until Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge (1937), starring Gene Autry
. She resumed acting in the 1960s appearing in episode television roles and feature films. Her last film role was an uncredited part in the television biopic Evel Knievel (1971).
. He had his first childish crush on her, and as he remembered in his autobiography The Salad Days, he stated:
"Another important picture had just started. It was Peter Pan, directed by a clever caricature of a wildly temperamental movie director, Herbert Brenon. After exhaustive tests, Betty Bronson, a pretty and gifted girl in her middle teens, was given this famous role... I fell for Betty! It was my first intensely juvenile, deep-sighs-and-bad-sonnets love. It was not fully requited. She only flirted with me. My rival was a fellow in his twenties, a newspaperman who was to become one of New York's most respected theater critics, Richard Watts, Jr. ...In any event, I was so smitten with Betty, I could think of little else, except when I could call on her, even though her overprotective mother was always just in the next room."
In any case, it is known that Bronson kept all of his letters, bad sonnets and all, and she spoke of him fondly until her dying day.
and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale
.
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...
era. She was a famous actress in silent
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...
and sound film
Sound film
A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades would pass before sound motion pictures were made commercially...
s.
Film career
She was born Elizabeth Ada Bronson in Trenton, New JerseyTrenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
to Frank and Nellie Smith Bronson. She began her film career began at age of sixteen with a bit part
Bit part
A bit part is a supporting acting role with at least one line of dialogue . In British television, bit parts are referred to as under sixes...
in the film Anna Ascends. At seventeen, after she had pleaded with every friend she had at Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, she finally got an interview with J. M. Barrie
J. M. Barrie
Sir James Matthew Barrie, 1st Baronet, OM was a Scottish author and dramatist, best remembered today as the creator of Peter Pan. The child of a family of small-town weavers, he was educated in Scotland. He moved to London, where he developed a career as a novelist and playwright...
, author of Peter Pan. Barrie personally chose her to play the lead in a film of his work Peter Pan
Peter Pan (1924 film)
Peter Pan is a 1924 adventure silent film released by Paramount Pictures, the first film adaptation of the play by J. M. Barrie. It was directed by Herbert Brenon and starred Betty Bronson as Peter Pan, Ernest Torrence as Captain Hook, Mary Brian as Wendy, and Virginia Browne Faire as Tinker Bell...
which would be released in 1924. This film role had been sought by both Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson
Gloria Swanson was an American actress, singer and producer. She was one of the most prominent stars during the silent film era as both an actress and a fashion icon, especially under the direction of Cecil B. DeMille, made dozens of silents and was nominated for the first Academy Award in the...
and Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford
Mary Pickford was a Canadian-born motion picture actress, co-founder of the film studio United Artists and one of the original 36 founders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
, but Bronson won the role through her natural lightness and grace, probably refined through training with the Ballet Russes. Though she was with them for only a short time, perhaps a couple of weeks, it proved helpful in enhancing her portrayal of Peter Pan, especially in the flight sequences.
She starred with Mary Brian
Mary Brian
Mary Brian was an American actress and movie star who made the transition from 'silents' to 'talkies'.-Early life:...
(Wendy Darling) and Esther Ralston
Esther Ralston
Esther Ralston was an American movie actress whose greatest popularity came during the silent era.-Early life and career:...
(Mrs Darling), and the three of them became very close friends for the rest of their lives.
Bronson became an instant success in the year following the release of Peter Pan. She had a major role in the 1925 silent film adaptation of Ben-Hur
Ben-Hur (1925 film)
Ben-Hur is a 1925 silent film directed by Fred Niblo. It was a blockbuster hit for newly merged Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. This was the second film based on the novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace...
. In 1926, she starred in another Barrie story A Kiss for Cinderella
A Kiss for Cinderella (film)
A Kiss for Cinderella is a silent fantasy taken from the stage play by James M. Barrie. The film stars Betty Bronson and Tom Moore and was made at Paramount's Astoria Studios in Astoria, Queens...
, an artfully-made film that failed at the boxoffice. She had moderate success for the rest of her career. She made a very successful transition into sound films. Her first sound film was in The Singing Fool
The Singing Fool
The Singing Fool is a 1928 musical drama Part-Talkie motion picture which was released by Warner Brothers. The film starred Al Jolson and was a follow-up to his previous film, The Jazz Singer...
(1928) with Al Jolson
Al Jolson
Al Jolson was an American singer, comedian and actor. In his heyday, he was dubbed "The World's Greatest Entertainer"....
, and she also starred in the follow-up film Sonny Boy (1929) with Davey Lee
Davey Lee
Davey Lee was an American child actor. He was born in Hollywood, California, USA. He appeared in six feature films between 1928 and 1930....
. She was the leading lady opposite Jack Benny
Jack Benny
Jack Benny was an American comedian, vaudevillian, and actor for radio, television, and film...
in the romantic drama The Medicine Man
The Medicine Man (1930 film)
The Medicine Man is an American comedy film directed by Scott Pembroke, released by Tiffany Pictures, and starring Jack Benny, Betty Bronson and Eva Novak. The son and daughter of a shopkeeper fall in with a travelling medicine man. The film was adapted from a play by Elliot Lester.- Cast :*Jack...
(1930).
Bronson continued film roles until 1933 when she married Ludwig Lauerhass, with whom she had one child, Ludwig Lauerhass, Jr. She did not appear in films again until Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge (1937), starring Gene Autry
Gene Autry
Orvon Grover Autry , better known as Gene Autry, was an American performer who gained fame as The Singing Cowboy on the radio, in movies and on television for more than three decades beginning in the 1930s...
. She resumed acting in the 1960s appearing in episode television roles and feature films. Her last film role was an uncredited part in the television biopic Evel Knievel (1971).
Bronson, the Media and Douglas Fairbanks, Jr
Bronson was always rather reclusive with the press, but she did get some attention after being seen with Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.Douglas Fairbanks, Jr.
Douglas Elton Fairbanks, Jr. KBE was an American actor and a highly decorated naval officer of World War II.-Early life:...
. He had his first childish crush on her, and as he remembered in his autobiography The Salad Days, he stated:
"Another important picture had just started. It was Peter Pan, directed by a clever caricature of a wildly temperamental movie director, Herbert Brenon. After exhaustive tests, Betty Bronson, a pretty and gifted girl in her middle teens, was given this famous role... I fell for Betty! It was my first intensely juvenile, deep-sighs-and-bad-sonnets love. It was not fully requited. She only flirted with me. My rival was a fellow in his twenties, a newspaperman who was to become one of New York's most respected theater critics, Richard Watts, Jr. ...In any event, I was so smitten with Betty, I could think of little else, except when I could call on her, even though her overprotective mother was always just in the next room."
In any case, it is known that Bronson kept all of his letters, bad sonnets and all, and she spoke of him fondly until her dying day.
Death
On October 19, 1971, Bronson died after a protracted illness in Pasadena, CaliforniaPasadena, California
Pasadena is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Although famous for hosting the annual Rose Bowl football game and Tournament of Roses Parade, Pasadena is the home to many scientific and cultural institutions, including the California Institute of Technology , the Jet...
and was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale
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:...
.
Filmography
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 1922 | Anna Ascends | Bit part | Uncredited |
| 1923 | Java Head Java Head (1923 film) Java Head is an American drama film directed by George Melford and starring Leatrice Joy, Jacqueline Logan, Frederick Strong, Alan Roscoe, and Betty Bronson in a bit part. It was based on the novel Java Head by Joseph Hergesheimer.... |
Janet Ammidon | |
| The Go-Getter | Bit part | Uncredited | |
| His Children's Children | Uncredited | ||
| The Eternal City The Eternal City (1923 film) The Eternal City is a silent film directed by George Fitzmaurice, from a script by Ouida Bergère based on a Hall Caine novel, starring Barbara La Marr, Lionel Barrymore and Bert Lytell. The film was produced by the Samuel Goldwyn Company and distributed by First National Pictures. It was a remake... |
Page | Uncredited | |
| Twenty-One | Uncredited | ||
| 1924 | Peter Pan Peter Pan (1924 film) Peter Pan is a 1924 adventure silent film released by Paramount Pictures, the first film adaptation of the play by J. M. Barrie. It was directed by Herbert Brenon and starred Betty Bronson as Peter Pan, Ernest Torrence as Captain Hook, Mary Brian as Wendy, and Virginia Browne Faire as Tinker Bell... |
Peter Pan | |
| 1925 | Are Parents People? Are Parents People? Are Parents People? is a comedy film starring Betty Bronson, Florence Vidor, Adolphe Menjou, George Beranger, and Lawrence Gray. The film was directed by Malcolm St. Clair and released by Paramount Pictures.-Plot:... |
Lita Hazlitt | |
| Not So Long Ago | Betty Dover | ||
| The Golden Princess | Betty Kent | ||
| A Kiss for Cinderella A Kiss for Cinderella (film) A Kiss for Cinderella is a silent fantasy taken from the stage play by James M. Barrie. The film stars Betty Bronson and Tom Moore and was made at Paramount's Astoria Studios in Astoria, Queens... |
Cinderella (Jane) | ||
| Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ Ben-Hur (1925 film) Ben-Hur is a 1925 silent film directed by Fred Niblo. It was a blockbuster hit for newly merged Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. This was the second film based on the novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace... |
Mary | Alternative title: Ben-Hur | |
| 1926 | The Cat's Pajamas | Sally Winton | |
| Paradise | Chrissie | ||
| Everybody's Acting | Doris Poole | ||
| 1927 | Paradise for Two | Sally Lane | |
| Ritzy | Ritzy Brown | ||
| Open Range | Lucy Blake | ||
| Brass Knuckles | June Curry | ||
| 1928 | Companionate Marriage | Sally Williams | Alternative title: The Jazz Bride |
| The Singing Fool The Singing Fool The Singing Fool is a 1928 musical drama Part-Talkie motion picture which was released by Warner Brothers. The film starred Al Jolson and was a follow-up to his previous film, The Jazz Singer... |
Grace | ||
| 1929 | A Modern Sappho | ||
| Bellamy Trial | Reporter | ||
| Sonny Boy | Aunt Winigred Canfield | ||
| One Stolen Night | Jeanne | ||
| The Locked Door The Locked Door The Locked Door is an American drama film featuring Barbara Stanwyck in her second film appearance, first starring role, and first talking picture. The film is based on the play The Sign on the Door by Channing Pollock. A previous version was the silent film The Sign on the Door starring Norma... |
Helen Reagan | ||
| 1930 | The Medicine Man The Medicine Man (1930 film) The Medicine Man is an American comedy film directed by Scott Pembroke, released by Tiffany Pictures, and starring Jack Benny, Betty Bronson and Eva Novak. The son and daughter of a shopkeeper fall in with a travelling medicine man. The film was adapted from a play by Elliot Lester.- Cast :*Jack... |
Mamie Goltz | |
| 1931 | Lover Come Back | Vivian March | |
| 1932 | The Midnight Patrol | Ellen Gray | |
| 1937 | Yodelin' Kid from Pine Ridge | Milly Baynum | Alternative title: The Hero from Pine Ridge |
| 1961 | Pocketful of Miracles Pocketful of Miracles Pocketful of Miracles is a 1961 American comedy film that stars Bette Davis and Glenn Ford, directed by Frank Capra. The screenplay by Hal Kanter and Harry Tugend is based on the screenplay Lady for a Day by Robert Riskin, which was adapted from the Damon Runyon short story "Madame La Gimp".The... |
Mayor's wife | Uncredited |
| 1962 | Who's Got the Action? Who's Got the Action? Who's Got the Action? is a comedy film about a man suffering from an addiction to gambling starring Dean Martin, Lana Turner, Eddie Albert, and Walter Matthau... |
Mrs. Boatwright | Uncredited |
| 1964 | The Naked Kiss The Naked Kiss The Naked Kiss is a 1964 neo-noir film written and directed by Samuel Fuller, starring Constance Towers as Kelly, Anthony Eisley as Captain Griff and Michael Dante as J.L. Grant.-Plot:... |
Miss Josephine | Alternative title: The Iron Kiss |
| 1968 | Blackbeard's Ghost Blackbeard's Ghost Blackbeard's Ghost is a 1968 live-action fantasy comedy Disney film starring Peter Ustinov, Dean Jones, and Suzanne Pleshette, directed by Robert Stevenson. It is based upon the novel of the same name by Ben Stahl and was shot in Walt Disney Studios. The Disney Channel aired this film until the... |
Old Lady | |
| Television | |||
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1960 | My Three Sons My Three Sons My Three Sons is an American situation comedy. The series ran from 1960 to 1965 on ABC, and moved to CBS until its end on August 24, 1972. My Three Sons chronicles the life of a widower and aeronautical engineer named Steven Douglas , raising his three sons.The series was a cornerstone of the CBS... |
Mrs. Butler | 1 episode |
| 1964 | Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre Bob Hope Presents the Chrysler Theatre is an anthology television series, sponsored by Chrysler Corporation, which ran on NBC from 1963 through 1967... |
1 episode | |
| Grindl Grindl Grindl is an American situation comedy that began in the fall of 1963 on NBC, originally sponsored by Procter & Gamble. The show, starring Imogene Coca in the title role, lasted for one season.-Synopsis:... |
Mrs. Cooper | 1 episode | |
| 1965 | Run for Your Life Run for Your Life (TV series) Run for Your Life is an American television drama series starring Ben Gazzara as a man with only a short time to live. It ran on NBC from 1965 to 1968. The series was created by Roy Huggins, who had previously explored the "man on the move" concept with The Fugitive.-Synopsis:Gazzara plays lawyer... |
Alma Sloan | 1 episode |
| 1971 | Evel Knievel | Sorority House Mother | Television movie Uncredited |