The future actress was born on January 14, 1901 in Dallas. Her real name was Phyllis Virginia Daniels. Her parents were involved in the cultural life. Her mom was a stage actress and her dad was a manager of a traveling theater. For the first time, the girl appeared on stage at the age of 10 weeks. Her father carried her on stage, although there was no role for the baby during the performance. Read more about her life on i-dallas.
Acting debuts
In early childhood, she moved to Los Angeles with her family. Her theater career began at the age of four. She participated in the play The Squaw Man and Shakespeare’s Richard III. When the girl was 9 years old, she debuted as a film actress. In 1910, she acted as Dorothy Gale in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. This was the oldest surviving adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s novel that was written in 1900.
The American producer, director and owner of the film studio Hal Roach contacted the young actress when she was a teenager. They signed a contract, according to which she played secondary roles in comedy short movies together with the famous comedian Harold Lloyd. They were combined into the series Lonely Luke. Phyllis Daniels was paid five dollars a day for this. After some time, a love affair started between the actors, which quickly gained wide publicity. In Hollywood, they received the nicknames ‘The Boy’ and ‘The Girl’.
After four years at Hal Roach’s studio, Phyllis decided she wanted to try more serious dramatic roles. She left the studio and ended her relationship with Harold. Instead, the actress signed a contract with producer and director Cecil B. DeMille, who invited her to act in secondary roles in the films Male and Female, Why Change Your Wife? and The Affairs of Anatol.
Collaboration with Paramount
In her twenties, Bebe signed a contract with Paramount Pictures, where she appeared in supporting roles in more than 50 films. Among them was the 1924 film Monsieur Beaucaire, which also starred Rudolph Valentino. Working on this film allowed Bebe Daniels to move away from children’s images and work on more complex and deep characters.
During the 1920s, she appeared in many movies in a variety of genres. Still, she was especially good in light comedies such as Wild, Wild Susan, Miss Brewster’s Millions and The Campus Flirt. She became one of the most popular stars of the silent era.
The path toward a successful movie star
When sound films appeared, Paramount unexpectedly terminated the contract with the actress. Then, she began to cooperate with the studio Radio Pictures (RKO). The first was a role in the comedy musical Rio Rita with John Boles in the lead role. The film was released in 1929 and became a very successful project. Bebe was the main star. After some time, the actress became associated only with musical comedies, which gradually lost popularity. Thus, RKO stopped cooperating with Bebe. Instead, a new contract is being offered to her by Warner Bros. studio. They understood that Bebe was a favorite of the audience and would help increase the box office. She starred in the films My Past, Honor of the Family, Silver Dollar and many others.
Latest projects
Her Hollywood career ended in 1935. Then, the actress moved to England with her husband Ben Lyon, who was also an actor. They collaborated with the BBC, taking part in plays and radio shows. During World War II, while her husband was at the front, she created her own radio show.
In the 1960s, Bebe suffered several strokes, due to which she stopped acting. She died in London at the age of 70 from a brain hemorrhage. The actress was cremated and the ashes were brought to America to be buried in the Chapel Columbarium at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.