Personal Info
Known For:
Acting
Birthday:
September 9, 1898
Place of Birth:
Midland, Texas, USA
Social Media
Bessie Love
Biography
Bessie Love (born Juanita Horton, September 10, 1898 - April 26, 1986) became one of the most recognizable faces of early American cinema. After her family moved to Los Angeles, she was sent to Biograph Studios, where legendary director D.W. Griffith noticed her talent and cast her in several films, including Intolerance (1916).
During the silent era, she gained popularity for her lively, wholesome screen presence and worked with major stars such as Douglas Fairbanks. Her career soared in the 1920s, and she was named a WAMPAS Baby Star in 1922, marking her as one of Hollywood’s most promising young actresses.
Love made a successful transition to sound films—something many silent stars struggled with. Her performance as Hank Mahoney in The Broadway Melody (1929) earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, cementing her place in film history.
In the 1930s, she moved to the United Kingdom, where she continued acting in film, theatre, radio, and later television. Her career ultimately spanned from 1915 to 1983, making her one of the longest‑working performers of her generation.
She died on April 26, 1986, in London at age 87.
Known For
Filmography
| Year | Movie | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché | Self (archive footage) |
| 2000 | Gareth Hughes | Self (archive footage) |
| 1997 | Alice Guy-Blaché | Self |
| 1983 | The Hunger | Lillybelle |
| 1981 | Reds | Mrs. Partlow |
| 1981 | Lady Chatterley's Lover | Flora |
| 1981 | Ragtime | Old Lady - T.O.C. |
| 1978 | Edward & Mrs. Simpson | Lady Cunard |
| 1977 | Gulliver's Travels | (voice) |
| 1976 | The Ritz | Maurine |
| 1974 | Mousey | Mrs. Richardson |
| 1974 | Vampyres | American Lady |
| 1971 | Sunday Bloody Sunday | Answering Service Lady |
| 1971 | Catlow | Mrs. Frost |
| 1969 | On Her Majesty's Secret Service | Baccarat Player (uncredited) |
| 1968 | Isadora | Mrs. Duncan |
| 1967 | Battle Beneath the Earth | Matron |
| 1967 | I'll Never Forget What's'isname | American tourist (uncredited) |
| 1966 | Promise Her Anything | Pet Shop Customer |
| 1965 | The Pistol | Martha Burroughs |
| 1965 | The Wild Affair | Marjorie's Mother |
| 1964 | I Think They Call Him John | Narrator (voice) |
| 1964 | Children of the Damned | Mrs. Robbin |
| 1961 | The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone | Bunny |
| 1960 | Too Young to Love | Mrs. Busch |
| 1958 | Nowhere to Go | Harriet P. Jefferson |
| 1958 | Next to No Time | Becky Wiener |
| 1957 | The Story of Esther Costello | Art Gallery Customer |
| 1955 | Touch and Go | Mrs Baxter |
| 1954 | The Weak and the Wicked | Prisoner |
| 1954 | The Barefoot Contessa | Mrs. Eubanks |
| 1952 | The Magic Box | Bride's Mother in Wedding Group |
| 1951 | No Highway in the Sky | Plane Passenger (uncredited) |
| 1945 | Journey Together | Mrs. Mary McWilliams |
| 1942 | London Scrapbook | Herself |
| 1941 | Atlantic Ferry | Begonia Baggot |
| 1931 | Morals for Women | Helen Hutson |
| 1931 | Round About Hollywood | Self |
| 1930 | Conspiracy | Margaret Holt |
| 1930 | Chasing Rainbows | Carlie Seymour |
| 1930 | Good News | Babe |
| 1930 | They Learned About Women | Mary |
| 1930 | See America Thirst | Ellen |
| 1929 | The Hollywood Revue of 1929 | Self |
| 1929 | The Broadway Melody | Harriet 'Hank' Mahoney |
| 1929 | The Idle Rich | Helen Thayer |
| 1929 | The Girl in the Show | Hattie Hartley |
| 1928 | The Matinee Idol | Ginger Bolivar |
| 1928 | The Swell Head | |
| 1928 | Anybody Here Seen Kelly? | Mitzi Lavelle |
| 1928 | Sally of the Scandals | Sally Rand |
| 1927 | Rubber Tires | Mary Ellen Stack |
| 1927 | Dress Parade | Janet Cleghorne |
| 1927 | The American | Jane Wilton |
| 1927 | A Harp in Hock | Nora Banks |
| 1926 | The Song and Dance Man | Leola Lane |
| 1926 | Young April | Victoria |
| 1926 | Going Crooked | Marie |
| 1926 | Lovey Mary | Lovey Mary |
| 1925 | The Lost World | Paula White |
| 1925 | The King On Main Street | Mary Young |
| 1925 | Soul-Fire | Teita |
| 1925 | New Brooms | |
| 1925 | A Son of His Father | Nora Shea |
| 1924 | Those Who Dance | Veda Anargas |
| 1924 | Dynamite Smith | Violet |
| 1924 | The Silent Watcher | Mary, his wife |
| 1924 | Torment | Marie |
| 1924 | The Woman on the Jury | Grace Pierce |
| 1924 | Sundown | Ellen Crawley |
| 1924 | Tongues of Flame | Lahleet |
| 1923 | The Eternal Three | Hilda Gray |
| 1923 | Souls for Sale | Self - Celebrity Actress (uncredited) |
| 1923 | Human Wreckage | Mary Finnegan |
| 1923 | Three Who Paid | John Caspar / Virginia Cartwright |
| 1923 | The Purple Dawn | Mui Far |
| 1923 | The Strange Adventures of Prince Courageous | Bernice |
| 1923 | Mary of the Movies | Herself (uncredited) |
| 1923 | St. Elmo | Edna Earle |
| 1923 | The Ghost Patrol | Effie Kugler |
| 1923 | Slave of Desire | Pauline Gaudin |
| 1923 | Gentle Julia | Julia |
| 1922 | Screen Snapshots, Series 3, No. 12 | Self |
| 1922 | The Village Blacksmith | Rosemary Martin |
| 1922 | Deserted at the Altar | Anna Moore (The Country Girl) |
| 1922 | The Wampas Baby Stars of 1922 | Self |
| 1922 | The Vermilion Pencil | Hyacinth |
| 1922 | Night Life in Hollywood | Self |
| 1922 | Bulldog Courage | Gloria Phillips |
| 1922 | Forget Me Not | Ann, The Girl |
| 1921 | The Sea Lion | Blossom Nelson |
| 1921 | Penny of Top Hill Trail | Penny |
| 1921 | The Swamp | Mary |
| 1921 | The Spirit of the Lake | |
| 1921 | The Honor of Rameriz | The Geologist's Wife |
| 1920 | Pegeen | Pegeen O'Neill |
| 1920 | Bonnie May | Bonnie May |
| 1920 | The Midlanders | Aurelie Lindstrom |
| 1919 | Carolyn of the Corners | |
| 1919 | The Wishing Ring Man | Joy Havenith |
| 1919 | The Enchanted Barn | Shirley Hollister |
| 1919 | A Yankee Princess | Patsy O'Reilly |
| 1919 | The Little Boss | Peggy Winston (The Little Boss) |
| 1919 | Cupid Forecloses | Geraldine Farleigh |
| 1919 | Over the Garden Wall | Peggy Gordon |
| 1919 | A Fighting Colleen | Alannah Malone |
| 1918 | The Great Adventure | Rags |
| 1918 | How Could You, Caroline? | Caroline Rogers |
| 1918 | The Dawn of Understanding | Sue Prescott |
| 1918 | A Little Sister of Everybody | Celeste Janvier |
| 1917 | Cheerful Givers | Judy |
| 1917 | A Daughter of the Poor | Rose Eastman |
| 1917 | Polly Ann | Polly Ann |
| 1917 | The Sawdust Ring | Janet Magie |
| 1917 | Wee Lady Betty | Wee Lady Betty |
| 1917 | Nina, the Flower Girl | Nina |
| 1916 | Intolerance: Love's Struggle Throughout the Ages | The Bride of Cana (Judean Story) |
| 1916 | The Good Bad-Man | Amy |
| 1916 | The Flying Torpedo | Hulda |
| 1916 | The Mystery of the Leaping Fish | The Little Fish Blower |
| 1916 | Reggie Mixes In | Agnes |
| 1916 | The Aryan | Mary Jane Garth |
| 1916 | A Sister of Six | Prudence |
| 1916 | Hell-to-Pay Austin | Briar Rose Dawson |
| 1916 | Acquitted | Helen Carter |
| 1916 | Stranded | The Girl |
| 1916 | The Heiress at Coffee Dan's | Waffles |
| Year | TV Show | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | Hollywood | Self |
| 1978 | Edward and Mrs Simpson | Lady Cunard |
| 1964 | Story Parade | Mrs. Arquette |
| 1963 | The Sentimental Agent | Mamie |
| 1962 | Man of the World | Mrs Van Kempson |
| 1959 | International Detective | Marta Steibel |
| 1959 | International Detective | Mrs. Morgan |
| 1955 | ITV Play of the Week | Mrs Strong |