Betty Jewel (born Julia Baroni; April 29, 1899 – October 20, 1963) was an American actress active in the 1920s.

Biography

Betty was born in Omaha to an Italian father, Attilio, and a French mother (who seems to have died when Betty was young). She later graduated from a convent before deciding to pursue a career in show business. Early on, she was a Ziegfeld showgirl. Her father owned a number of Italian restaurants, and he managed to secure his daughter a meeting with D.W. Griffith through some of his customers. Griffith took a liking to her and christened her "The Third Orphan of the Storm" (the other two being Dorothy and Lillian Gish). Soon she was tapped to feature in films like ''

The Silent Command ''The Silent Command'' is a 1923 American silent film, silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards (director), J. Gordon Edwards featuring Bela Lugosi as a foreign saboteur in his American film debut. The film, written by Anthony Paul Kell ...

'' and '' The New Commandment''; she'd later win star status in Westerns like '' The Mysterious Rider'' and ''Arizona Bound''. She reportedly spent a year learning to ride horses at

Griffith Park Griffith Park is a large municipal park at the eastern end of the Santa Monica Mountains, in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. The park includes popular attractions such as the Los Angeles Zoo, the Autry Museum of the Amer ...

in Los Angeles, California, to prepare for roles in these Westerns. She married Max Schlesinger in 1927; the pair eventually divorced, at which point she seems to have retired from the business. She later married Frank Elfred. She was also briefly linked to British actor

Ronald Colman Ronald Charles Colman (9 February 1891 – 19 May 1958) was an English-born actor who started his career in theatre and silent film in his native country, then emigrated to the United States where he had a highly successful Cinema of the United ...

Filmography

* ''

Orphans of the Storm ''Orphans of the Storm'' is a 1921 American silent melodrama film by D. W. Griffith set in late-18th-century France, before and during the French Revolution. The last Griffith film to feature both Lillian and Dorothy Gish, it was a commercial ...

'' (1921) * ''

'' (1923) * '' Mile-a-Minute Romeo'' (1923) * '' The Necessary Evil'' (1925) * '' The New Commandment'' (1925) * ''

Partners Again ''Partners Again'' is a 1926 American silent comedy film that was produced by Samuel Goldwyn, released through United Artists, and directed by Henry King. This ethnic Jewish humor film is based on the 1922 Broadway play ''Partners Again'' star ...

'' (1926) * '' The Mysterious Rider'' (1927) * '' Arizona Bound'' (1927) * '' The Last Outlaw'' (1927)

References

External links

* 1899 births 1963 deaths American film actresses American silent film actresses Actresses from Omaha, Nebraska 20th-century American actresses {{US-film-actor-1890s-stub