Irene Bentley

Irene Bentley (1869 or 1870 – June 3, 1940) was an American stage actress and vocalist born in Baltimore, Maryland, to William H. Bentley and Alexina Mabee Bentley. Her Broadway career spanned from 1899 to 1908, during which she established herself as a prominent figure on the New York stage.

Bentley made her stage debut in April 1895 at Palmer's Theatre in New York, appearing in Little Christopher. Her subsequent career brought her roles in numerous musical productions, including The Belle of Bohemia, The Rounders, The Strollers, The Belle of New York, The Wild Rose, Sally in Our Alley alongside Marie Cahill, It Happened in Nordland, and The Belle of Mayfair. She starred in The Mimic World in 1908, among her final Broadway appearances.

In her personal life, Bentley was married twice. Her first marriage was to J. T. Sothoron. She later wed librettist Harry B. Smith. Bentley died on June 3, 1940, at her home in Allenhurst, New Jersey, at the age of 70.

A niece of Harry B. Smith adopted the Bentley name and pursued a career as a film actress, creating a source of potential confusion in stage and film biographical records. This younger Irene Bentley, born in 1904 and died in 1965, appeared in films including My Weakness (1933), Smoky (1933), and Frontier Marshal (1934), and is a distinct individual from the Broadway performer.