Bessie Eyton

Bessie Eyton (née Harrison; July 5, 1890 – January 22, 1965) was an American actress of the silent era. Eyton appeared in 200 films between 1911 and 1925. From 1911 to 1918, the period when the majority of her films were made, she was under contract to Selig Polyscope Company.

Biography

Bessie Harrison was born on July 5, 1890 to musician Edgar Thomas Harrison (1868–1924) and Claribel Harrison (née. Mead, 1873–1959). She had a brother, Elbert Harrison.

Harrison married her first husband and namesake, actor Charles Eyton, on September 3, 1908. While attending a studio tour at Selig Polyscope Company, she was spotted by a director who wanted to cast her as an extra in a film. She made her film debut in The Sheriff of Tuolomne (1911) opposite Tom Mix. Although she made up to 200 films while signed to Selig, she is best known for her roles in The Spoilers (1914) and the 12-reel adaptation of Winston Churchill's The Crisis (1916). In addition to acting, she is also credited with being the screenwriter of the 1914 short The Smuggler's Sister.

Eyton was one of Selig's biggest stars until the studio closed in 1918. Her career began to slow after that, and she only appeared in 9 films between 1919 and 1925, mostly for independent studios.

In 1919, she made her stage debut in Civilian Clothes, which opened on September 12, 1919. Her final screen appearance was in The Girl of Gold (1925), starring Florence Vidor.

Eyton married her second husband Clark Brewer Coffey on September 29, 1916, a year after her divorce from Charles Eyton. The marriage ended in divorce in 1923, and neither unions produced children.

In 1935, following an argument with her mother, Eyton disappeared from her friends and family. Her whereabouts remained unknown until her death in 1965.

Bessie Eyton died on January 22, 1965 in Thousand Oaks, California and was buried at Ivy Lawn Memorial Park in Ventura, California.

Partial filmography