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1-7 of 7
- Actress
Brunette, buxom matinee idol Betty Blythe capitalised on the 'roaring 20's' infatuation with exotic screen sirens to achieve a brief period of stardom. She was, notoriously, one of the first actresses to ever appear nude (or in various stages of undress) on screen. It wasn't that Betty couldn't act, as well; in fact, she had studied art in Paris and at USC and had appeared on stage in a number of traditional plays like "So Long Letty" in both London and New York. In 1918, she joined a roommate on a visit to the Vitagraph Studio in Brooklyn and found immediate employment when one of the directors needed a leading lady. Two years later, she wound up in Hollywood, was signed by Fox Studios as a replacement for Theda Bara and became the protégée of J. Gordon Edwards (grandfather of Blake Edwards of 'Pink Panther' fame. She was eventually cast as the star of one of the most lavishly produced films of the decade, The Queen of Sheba (1921), directed, of course, by Edwards. Betty later recalled that she was given 28 costumes to wear, all of which would have fit comfortably into a shoe box. Alas, only a few stills of the movie survive, a fate shared by most of her other silent films.
Betty's career was put on hold when Edwards quarreled with Fox and left the studio. For a while, she freelanced, playing leads in films for lesser studios. She did have a couple of hits in England with Chu-Chin-Chow (1923) and She (1925), in addition to doing theatrical work, which helped her to smoothly make the transition from silent to talking pictures. By that time, however, public tastes had changed and Betty had aged sufficiently to be classified as a character actress. To her credit, she persisted and appeared in support in many an A-grade production, her swan song being a small role in the ballroom scene of My Fair Lady (1964).- Victor Wong was born on 24 September 1906 in Los Angeles, California, USA. He was an actor, known for Son of Kong (1933), War Correspondent (1932) and The Phantom Submarine (1940). He died on 7 April 1972 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- Joe Gallo was born on 7 April 1929 in Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA. He was married to Sina Essary and Jeffie Lee Boyd. He died on 7 April 1972 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.
- Harald Svensson was born on 9 February 1897 in Helsinki, Finland. He was an actor, known for Den gamla herrgården (1925), Hattmakarens bal (1928) and Sun Over Klara (1942). He died on 7 April 1972.
- Thelma Rea was born on 25 August 1895 in Leytonstone, Essex, England, UK. She was an actress, known for The Secret Tunnel (1948), They Travel by Air (1947) and Another Case of Poisoning (1949). She died on 7 April 1972 in Wandsworth, London, England, UK.
- Hodding Carter was born on 3 February 1907 in Hammond, Louisiana, USA. Hodding was a writer, known for TV Reader's Digest (1955). Hodding died on 7 April 1972 in Greenville, Mississippi, USA.
- Composer
- Actor
Fred Kassen was born on 7 August 1903 in Bochum, Germany. He was a composer and actor, known for The Wrong Husband (1931), Abduction (1936) and Bette sich wer kann (1958). He was married to Ethel Louise Wright, Alexandra Kassen and Alexandra Kassen. He died on 7 April 1972 in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.