Occupation Actress Years active 1931 - 1936 | Name Leila Bennett Role Film actress | |
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Born November 17, 1892 ( 1892-11-17 ) Newark, New Jersey, U.S. Died January 5, 1965, New York City, New York, United States Spouse Francis M. (Frank) Keough (m. 1934) Movies The Purchase Price, Gentleman's Fate, No Other Woman, Strictly Dynamite, Sunset Pass Similar People William A Wellman, Jack Conway, Henry Hathaway, J Walter Ruben, Mervyn LeRoy | ||
Leila Bennett (November 17, 1892 - January 5, 1965) was an American film actress who primarily appeared in supporting roles as either slapstick sidekicks, mousy maids, and scatterbrains. Her biggest trade mark was her long thin lips. Despite the last name likeness she was in no way related to actresses Constance Bennett, Joan Bennett, and Barbara Bennett.
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Early life
She was born in Newark, New Jersey into a working-class family; her father worked as a newspaper editor and her mother was a part-time stenographer and housewife. The whole family was affiliated with the church of Christian Science.
Acting career
In 1931, she made her film debut in an uncredited role in Gentleman's Fate playing a lunch counter attendant. Her next role came in the film Emma (1932) playing a maid opposite the likes of Marie Dressler and Myrna Loy followed by a role in Taxi! (1932) opposite James Cagney and Loretta Young. In 1932 alone she appeared in six films; others being The Purchase Price with Barbara Stanwyck, Tiger Shark, and Doctor X with Lee Tracy and Fay Wray. In 1933, she appeared as Anna May Wong's ladies maid in A Study in Scarlet. She was very much a freelancer and floated around Hollywood doing numerous films at such studios as Warner Bros., RKO Radio Pictures, Columbia Pictures, and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In 1936 she appeared as Edna Hopper in Fury opposite Spencer Tracy and Sylvia Sidney. It was her last film appearance.