Betsy Blair
Actress
Betsy Blair Rank
About Betsy Blair
Betsy Blair, a dancer and child model, was born in Cliffside, New Jersey.
She started attending Swift Sisters School of Dance when she was 8 years old. By the time she turned 12 and joined the John Robert Powers modeling agency. She was inspired to pursue a dancing career after winning an amateur competition and performed on local radio before beginning her career as a chorus dancer at the young age of 15.
In 1940, she got her first small break on Broadway in ‘Panama Hattie’, singing the song “The Beautiful People.”
She made her big-screen debut in 1947 and acted in several dramas over the few years, including “The Guilt of Janet Ames” (1947) and “A Double Life” (1947).
Blair played the school teacher who wins the heart of a lonely Italian-American butcher in the 1955 movie "Marty". That role went on to become her best role because of her husband's threat to discontinue filming if they didn't allow her to work despite the blacklist, Betsy was given the role of the female lead.
She paused from acting to pursue a profession in speech therapy.
Personal Life
She got married while still a teen model. Her first marriage was to American filmmaker Gene Curran Kelly. The marriage lasted from 1941 to 1957. A few years after her divorce, she tied the knot with filmmaker Karel Reisz. She was married to Karel from 1963 until 2002, when he died.
Notable honor
Her performance in “Marty” enabled her to earn an Academy Award nomination for “Best Supporting Actress”.
Death
She died of cancer.
Betsy Blair Rank
F.A.Q. about Betsy Blair
When is her birthday?
Betsy Blair's birthday is on December 11, 1923.
In how many days is her birthday?
Betsy's birthday is in 258 days
How old was Betsy when she died?
She was 85 years old.
When did she die?
She died in March 13, 2009.
How old would she be today?
Betsy Blair would be 100 years old if she was alive today.
Where was Betsy from?
She was born in Cliffside Park, New Jersey, U.S..