Hazel Keener

Hazel Keener
Keener in 1925
Born
Hazel Ona Keener

(1904-10-22)October 22, 1904
Fairbury, Illinois, U.S.
DiedAugust 7, 1979(1979-08-07) (aged 74)
Pacific Grove, California, U.S.
Other nameBarbara Worth
OccupationActress
Years active1922–1956

Hazel Ona Keener (October 22, 1904 – August 7, 1979) was a motion picture actress, primarily in silent films, during the 1920s.

Early life and career

Born in Fairbury, Illinois and raised in Davenport, Iowa, Keenan attended Lincoln School.

Keener won a national beauty contest sponsored by the Chicago Tribune and used her success to begin her film career. In 1923, Keener was selected as "Miss Hollywood" at the annual musical comedy fete put on by Hollywood artists. As tribute to Miss Keener's beauty, her bust was sculpted by sculptor Finn Haaken Frolich for the Norse club.[citation needed] She was a 1924 WAMPAS Baby Star.

Her acting career ran from 1922 through 1956. She also had roles in movies such as The Freshman (1925), The Gingham Girl (1927), Whispering Sage (1927), The Silent Partner (1927), and Vanishing Hoofs (1926).

In the 1930s, 1940s, and early 1950s, Keener had small parts in approximately twenty movies. She acted in television with roles in episodes of Judge Roy Bean (1956) and Hopalong Cassidy (1954).[citation needed]

Partial filmography

References

  1. ↑ Lowe, Denise (2005). An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early Films, 1895–1930. London: The Haworth Press. p. 296. ISBN 0-7890-1843-8. "During the early years of her film career, she often appeared under the name 'Barbara Worth,' but by the mid-1930s she received billing only under her real name. [...] Her most popular silent film was The Freshman (1925) opposite Harold Lloyd. Although she never attained the stardom predicted for her, she did remain in films through the early 1950s, but often in uncredited or walk-on parts."
  2. 1 2 "Graduates and Honor Students: Davenport Grammar Schools; Largest Class in City's History; 264 Graduates Receive Diplomas". Quad-City Times. June 20, 1917. p. 11. Retrieved May 2, 2026 – via Newspapers.com. Lincoln School: Eugene S. S. Ballore, Eliot Barber, Robert Ace Branson [...] Ruth Ives, Dan R. Keeler, Hazel Ona Keener
  3. ↑ Katchmer, George A. (2015). A Biographical Dictionary of Silent Film Western Actors and Actresses. Jefferson, NC; McFarland & Company. p. 186. ISBN 978-0-7864-4693-3. "Hazel Keener was born in Fairbury, Illinois, on October 22, 1904, and died in Pacific Grove, California, on August 7, 1979, at age 74. [...] Her first feature was The Married Flapper (1922), a comedy in which she supports Marie Prevost and Kenneth Harlan. [...] At the end of 1927, Hazel Keener may have realized that her carer was taking a downward turn. She dropped out of movies only to return for one last fling in 1941, playing a supporting role in Murder by Invitation. In her late 60s, according to Who's Who in Hollywood, she was a minister in the Church of Religious Science."
  4. ↑ "Hazel Keener Was Prettiest Girl". Decorah Public Opinion. May 18, 1921. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  5. ↑ Newspapers.com website, Miss Hazel Keener, article published in Quad City Times, May 27, 1923
  6. ↑ Mosness, Carissa (May 11, 2024). "Clara Bow — The Tragic and Triumphant Life of Hollywood's First 'It' Girl". Woman's World. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  7. ↑ Liebman, Roy (2000). The Wampas baby stars: a biographical dictionary, 1922-1934. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-0756-9.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Hazel Keener". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved May 2, 2026.
  9. 1 2 ""The Gingham Girl" Coliseum Tomorrow". The daily Alaska empire. September 26, 1928. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  10. ↑ "Flapper Craze Basis of New Universal Feature". The Daily Star-Mirror. p. 4. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  11. ↑ Blake, Doris (November 8, 1925). "Taking the Rocky Road: Hazel Keener Tells Her Own Vivid Story Of the Long, Uphill Road to Success In Pictures". New York Daily News. p. 32. Retrieved May 2, 2026 – via Newspapers.com. 'Then I was entered in the contest for Miss Los Angeles, who was to go to Atlantic City for the big contest. I came second, and the next day I signed a contract to do the second lead in An Old Sweetheart of Mine with Elliot Dexter. That was my first real part. In this picture they changed my name to Barbara Worth, as they thought it a better screen name, but I changed it back, as I was known to the studios by my own name.'
  12. ↑ Lowe, Denise (2005). An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Women in Early Films, 1895–1930. London: The Haworth Press. p. 296. ISBN 0-7890-1843-8. "During the early years of her film career, she often appeared under the name 'Barbara Worth,' but by the mid-1930s she received billing only under her real name. [...] Her most popular silent film was The Freshman (1925) opposite Harold Lloyd. Although she never attained the stardom predicted for her, she did remain in films through the early 1950s, but often in uncredited or walk-on parts."
  13. ↑ "Hazel Keener". River Falls Journal. September 13, 1923. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Style Display Found in "Tea with a Kick"". Casper Daily Tribune. January 16, 1924. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  15. ↑ "'Galloping Gallagher' at State Tonight". East St. Louis daily journal. October 6, 2026. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Grand: Home of the Symphony Organ". Newark Leader. March 7, 1924. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Famous Horse Appears Here in Good Film". Imperial Valley Press. August 30, 1924. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  18. ↑ R-C Pictures Corporation (1924). "Phantom Justice; and The Mask of Lopez. Motion picture copyright descriptions collection. Class L, -1977". Library of Congress. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
  19. ↑ "His Forgotton Wife". The Advance. February 3, 1925. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Insure Horse Actor for 100,000". Windham County Observer. September 10, 1924. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  21. ↑ Monogram Pictures Corporation (1924). "The Fighting Sap. Motion picture copyright descriptions collection. Class L, -1977". Library of Congress. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
  22. ↑ "Answers to Movie Fans". The Lincoln Sunday Star. July 5, 1925. p. 66. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  23. ↑ Famous Players-Lasky Corporation (1924). "(1924) Empty Hands. Motion picture copyright descriptions collection. Class L, -1977". Library of Congress. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Hippodrome Tonite". The Elkins inter-mountain. February 25, 1925. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  25. ↑ "Grand Thu. Nite Only Clara Bow Special". The Elkins inter-mountain. October 19, 1927.
  26. ↑ "Harold Lloyd Confused by Boob Football Play". Adams County Witness. November 11, 1925. Retrieved April 30, 2026.
  27. ↑ "Vanishing Hoofs". catalog.afi.com. Retrieved May 2, 2026.
  28. ↑ "Hippodrome Tonight". The Elkins inter-mountain. January 20, 1927.
  29. ↑ "Hippodrome Tonight". The Elkins inter-mountain. February 17, 1927. Retrieved May 1, 2026.
  30. ↑ "The Magnificent Flirt. Motion picture copyright descriptions collection. Class L, -1977". Library of Congress. 1928. Retrieved May 1, 2026.