Lela Bliss

Lela Bliss (May 11, 1896 – May 15, 1980) was an American actress born in Los Angeles, California, whose career spanned stage, film, and television across more than five decades. She made her screen debut in the 1915 silent film Pretty Mrs. Smith and went on to appear in at least 40 films through the 1960s.

Bliss established herself on Broadway between 1924 and 1947, with credits including the play Mary Rose and the musical The Dream Girl. Her stage work ran concurrently with a busy Hollywood career in which she took on supporting roles and bit parts, frequently cast as mothers, neighbors, and society women. Among her film appearances were The Dark Mirror (1946), Miracle on 34th Street (1947), The Snake Pit (1948), and Intruder in the Dust (1949). Her filmography also includes Since You Went Away (1944), To Please a Lady (1950), and Auntie Mame (1958), among others dating back to The Loves of Letty (1916).

From the 1950s onward, Bliss became a recurring presence on American television. She appeared on My Little Margie, playing Trixie Wilson, the mother of Margie's boyfriend, in the 1952 episode "Vern's Chums," and went on to guest on The Twilight Zone, Maverick, Mister Ed, and The Addams Family. Her final acting credit was a guest role on That Girl in 1967.

Bliss was married to Canadian actor Harry Hayden from 1924 until his death on July 24, 1955. The couple had one child together and jointly operated the Bliss-Hayden School of Acting, located at 254 South Robertson Boulevard in Beverly Hills. Among the students who trained there were Veronica Lake, Mamie Van Doren, and Betty White. In 1954, the school was acquired by Douglas Frank Bank and Jay Manford and subsequently became the Beverly Hills Playhouse, which endured as one of the oldest acting institutions in Los Angeles. Bliss died in Los Angeles in 1980 at the age of 84.