Alma Tell (March 27, 1898 – December 29, 1937) was an American stage and motion picture actress whose career in cinema began in 1915 and lasted into the sound films of the early 1930s.

Early years

Tell was born in New York City, the younger sister of stage and film actress

Olive Tell Olive Tell (September 27, 1894 – June 8, 1951) was a stage and screen actress from New York City. Biography Tell was educated in several cities in Europe. She and her younger actress sister Alma graduated from the American Academy of Dramati ...

. She attended schools in London and Paris and, with her sister, Olive, graduated from the

American Academy of Dramatic Arts The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (AADA) is a private performing arts conservatory with two locations, one in Manhattan and one in Los Angeles. The academy offers an associate degree in occupational studies and teaches drama and related art ...

in 1915.

Career

Tell began her career as an actress in Syracuse, working for 12 weeks in stock theater. She acted in Boston and headed a stock company in Newark. She made her screen debut in the

Edward José Edward José (5 July 1865 – 18 December 1930) was a Belgian film director and actor of the silent era. He directed 42 films between 1915 and 1925. He also performed in 12 films between 1910 and 1916.Mae Murray Mae Murray (born Marie Adrienne Koenig; May 10, 1885 – March 23, 1965) was an American actress, dancer, film producer, and screenwriter. Murray rose to fame during the silent film era and was known as "The Girl with the Bee-Stung Lips" and "Th ...

Corinne Griffith Corinne Griffith (née Griffin; November 21, 1894 – July 13, 1979) was an American film actress, producer, author and businesswoman. Dubbed "The Orchid Lady of the Screen," she was widely regarded as one of the most beautiful actresses of the ...

and

Madge Kennedy Madge Kennedy (April 19, 1891 – June 9, 1987) was a stage, film and TV actress whose career began as a stage actress in 1912 and flourished in motion pictures during the silent film era. In 1921, journalist Heywood Broun described her as "the ...

and then achieved leading lady status in 1923's ''

The Silent Command ''The Silent Command'' is a 1923 American silent drama film directed by J. Gordon Edwards featuring Bela Lugosi as a foreign saboteur in his American film debut. The film, written by Anthony Paul Kelly and Rufus King, also stars Edmund Lowe, A ...

'', opposite actors

Edmund Lowe Edmund Dantes Lowe (March 3, 1890 – April 21, 1971) was an American actor. His formative experience began in vaudeville and silent film. Biography Lowe was born in San Jose, California. His father was a local judge. His childhood home was a ...

Martha Mansfield Martha Mansfield (born Martha Ehrlich; July 14, 1899 – November 30, 1923) was an American actress in silent films and vaudeville stage plays. Early life She was born in New York City to Maurice and Harriett Gibson Ehrlich. She had a younger sis ...

and

Béla Lugosi Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), known professionally as Bela Lugosi (; ), was a Hungarian and American actor best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 horror classic Dracula (1931 English-lan ...

, in his first American film role. Tell made her last film appearance in the 1934 romantic-drama '' Imitation of Life'', which starred

Claudette Colbert Claudette Colbert ( ; born Émilie Claudette Chauchoin; September 13, 1903July 30, 1996) was an American actress. Colbert began her career in Broadway productions during the late 1920s and progressed to films with the advent of talking pictures ...

Personal life and death

Tell was married to actor

Stanley Blystone William Stanley Blystone (August 1, 1894 – July 16, 1956) was an American film actor who made more than 500 films appearances between 1924 and 1956. He was sometimes billed as William Blystone or William Stanley. Early years Blystone was ...

from 1932 until her death. She died in 1937 and was buried at Pierce Brothers

Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery is located at 10621 Victory Boulevard in North Hollywood and Burbank, California. The cemetery has an entrance called the Portal of the Folded Wings Shrine to Aviation that is the final resting place for aviation ...

North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...

Selected filmography

* ''

The Smugglers ''The Smugglers'' is the completely missing first serial of the fourth season in the British science fiction television series '' Doctor Who'', which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 10 September to 1 October 1966. In this serial ...

'' (1916) * ''

Nearly Married ''Nearly Married'' is a 1917 American silent comedy film directed by Chester Withey and starring Madge Kennedy. It is based on a 1913 stage play of the same name by Edgar Selwyn. It also featured an early film appearance by future gossip columni ...

'' (1917) * '' Right to Love'' (1920) * '' On with the Dance'' (1920) * ''

Paying the Piper ''Paying the Piper'' is a 1949 Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes'' cartoon directed by Robert McKimson. The short was released on March 12, 1949, and stars Porky Pig. It is a parody of the fairy tale The Pied Piper and it involves Porky trying to stop a ...

'' (1921) * ''

The Iron Trail ''The Iron Trail'' is a 1921 American silent film, silent adventure film directed by Roy William Neill and written by Dorothy Farnum. The film stars Wyndham Standing, Thurston Hall, Reginald Denny (actor), Reginald Denny, Alma Tell, and Harlan K ...

'' (1921) * '' Broadway Rose'' (1922) * ''

'' (1923) * ''

San Francisco Nights ''San Francisco Nights'' is a 1928 American silent drama film directed by Roy William Neill and starring Percy Marmont, Mae Busch, and George E. Stone.''Guide to the Silent Years of American Cinema'', p. 60 Cast * Percy Marmont as John Vicker ...

'' (1928) * ''

Love Comes Along ''Love Comes Along'' is a 1930 American romantic film directed by Rupert Julian, written by Wallace Smith, based on the uncompleted play ''Conchita'' by Edward Knoblock. It was a vehicle specifically picked to highlight the vocal talents of Bebe ...

'' (1930)

Theater appearances

*''

The Squab Farm ''The Squab Farm'' was a musical comedy about the film industry staged on Broadway in 1918. It was written by Fanny Hatton and Frederic Hatton, and staged at the Bijou Theatre on Broadway. It starred several former film directors as well as actre ...

'' (1918)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tell, Alma 1898 births 1937 deaths American film actresses American stage actresses American silent film actresses Actresses from New York City Burials at Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery 20th-century American actresses