Alma Tell

Alma Tell (March 27, 1898 – December 29, 1937) was an American actress who worked in both stage and film, building a career that spanned silent pictures, early sound films, and Broadway productions between 1915 and 1925. A native of New York City, she was the younger sister of stage and film actress Olive Tell.

Tell received her formal training in London and Paris before completing her studies alongside her sister Olive at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, from which both graduated in 1915. She launched her professional stage career in Syracuse, spending twelve weeks in stock theater before taking on work in Boston and eventually leading her own stock company in Newark.

Her screen career began the same year as her graduation, with a debut in Simon, the Jester, a drama directed by Edward José and released in September 1915. Through the 1920s she appeared in films opposite prominent silent-era actresses including Mae Murray, Corinne Griffith, and Madge Kennedy. A notable turning point came in 1923 when she achieved leading lady status in The Silent Command, a production that also featured Edmund Lowe, Martha Mansfield, and Béla Lugosi in his first American film role. Her final screen appearance came in the 1934 romantic drama Imitation of Life, starring Claudette Colbert.

On Broadway, Tell appeared in a number of productions during the decade spanning 1915 to 1925, including It Is the Law, Lass O'Laughter, Aren't We All?, Odd Man Out, and These Charming People. Her stage credits also included The Squab Farm in 1918.

In her personal life, Tell was married to actor Stanley Blystone from 1932 until her death in 1937. She was buried at Pierce Brothers Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery in North Hollywood, Los Angeles, California.