Elizabeth Bryant Silverstein (; 27 June 19203 October 2005), better known as Betty Bryant, was a British-born Australian actress known for playing the lead character in ''

Forty Thousand Horsemen ''Forty Thousand Horsemen'' (aka ''40,000 Horsemen'') is a 1940 Australian war film directed by Charles Chauvel. The film tells the story of the Australian Light Horse (mounted rifleman as distinct from cavalry) which operated in the desert at t ...

''.

Early life

Bryant was born on 27 June 1920 in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...

. At age four, her father died and she emigrated to

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia, with her mother, who was a professional singer. In 1932, the family relocated to

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

after Bryant's mother remarried. As a teenager, Bryant was featured on the local radio show ''The Youth Show''.

Career

Bryant began her career as an actress playing minor characters in film as '' The Broken Melody'' (1938) and '' Gone to the Dogs'' (1939). Her film breakthrough came when she played the lead character in ''

'' (1940), which was the "first Australian film to win international success". Reportedly discovered by screenwriter Elsie Blake-Wilkins, she was described by the film's director Charles Chauvel as "the most important film personality discovered in Australia since

Errol Flynn Errol Leslie Thomson Flynn (20 June 1909 – 14 October 1959) was an Australian-American actor who achieved worldwide fame during the Golden Age of Hollywood. He was known for his romantic swashbuckler roles, frequent partnerships with Olivia ...

". In June 1941, while in

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

promoting ''Forty Thousand Horsemen'', Bryant fell in love with

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

sales manager Maurice "Red" Silverstein (died 1999), and they got married a few days later in

; the couple would go on to have three children. She became pregnant with her first child in 1942 and had to withdraw from her role as Carol Beldon (later played by

Teresa Wright Muriel Teresa Wright (October 27, 1918 – March 6, 2005) was an American actress. She was nominated twice for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress: in 1941 for her debut work in ''The Little Foxes'', and in 1942 for ''Mrs. Miniver'', ...

) in ''

Mrs. Miniver ''Mrs. Miniver'' is a 1942 American romantic war drama film directed by William Wyler, and starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon. Inspired by the 1940 novel '' Mrs. Miniver'' by Jan Struther, it shows how the life of an unassuming British h ...

''. Bryant was initially chosen to play the female lead in '' Jungle Captive'' (1945). However, due to a combination of factors, including her inability to find a babysitter for her then two-year-old son, her disengaged attitude, and her falling sick during production, Bryant was ultimately replaced by

Amelita Ward Amelita Ward (July 17, 1923 – April 26, 1987) was an American film actress. She played supporting roles in over 20 films between 1943 and 1949, generally in B Pictures such as ''Gangway for Tomorrow'' and '' The Falcon in Danger'' (1943). She w ...

Later years

In her later years, Bryant spent her time campaigning for

humanitarian aid Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance to people who need help. It is usually short-term help until the long-term help by the government and other institutions replaces it. Among the people in need are the homeless, refugees, and ...

. She founded the Foundation for the Peoples of the South Pacific (FSP) together with her husband and Australian Marist priest Stan Hosie in 1966; at the time of her death, the organisation had some sixty branches worldwide. Bryant and Hosie were awarded the Humanitarian Service Award by

Hillary Rodham Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States senat ...

in 2000. Bryant died on 3 October 2005 in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, aged 85.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bryant, Betty 20th-century Australian actresses Australian film actresses 1920 births 2005 deaths British emigrants to Australia