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Florence Lake
actor · film actor
- January 1, 1904
- April 11, 1980
- 75 years
About Florence Lake
Florence Lake, 75, American actress.
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Full Biography
|Florence Lake Owens (born Florence Silverlake; November 27, 1904 – April 11, 1980) was an American actress best known as the leading lady in most of the Edgar Kennedy comedy shorts.
Early life
Florence Lake (née Silverlake) was born on November 27, 1904,[citation needed] in Charleston, South Carolina. In the early 1900s, her father Arthur Silverlake and uncle Archie Silverlake toured with a circus in an aerial act known as The Flying Silverlakes. Her mother, Edith Goodwin, was an actress. Her parents later appeared in vaudeville in a skit "Family Affair", traveling throughout the South and Southwest United States. Florence and her younger brother Arthur Silverlake, Jr. became part of the act in 1910. Their mother brought the children to Hollywood to get into the burgeoning film industry. Arthur changed his professional name to Arthur Lake and later achieved great success as Dagwood Bumstead in the movie series Blondie.
Early career
Before acting in films, Lake was the leading lady for the Raynor Lehr stock theater company. Her film debut came in New Year's Eve (1929).
Comic acting persona
Lake was petite, with a high-pitched speaking voice. She perfected a comical, sing-song delivery that established her in "dumb" roles. She personified flightiness in the Kennedy shorts as the scatterbrained Mrs. Kennedy. After the series ended with Kennedy's death in 1948, she continued to play character roles in films and television. Her best-known TV role was Jenny, the Calverton telephone operator in Lassie. Lake played the role for the entire 10-year "farm seasons" of the show (1954–1964), thus becoming the Lassie player with the longest run on the series. She played the role of Mama Angel in "The Angel and the Outlaw", and "Mission for Tonto" two 1957 episodes of the TV series The Lone Ranger. She also appeared in the first color episode of the TV series The Adventures of Superman in 1957 as a cave woman.
On old-time radio, Lake portrayed Jessie in Charlie and Jessie, Tess Terwilliger in David Harum, Mrs. Featherstone's daughter in The Gay Mrs. Featherstone, and Miss Smith in Phone Again Finnegan.
In her later years, Lake appeared as Elvira Norton on an episode of Dragnet titled "Frauds". She appeared in an episode of the 1973 sitcom A Touch of Grace, and later that year played a blind date for the character Lou Grant on The Mary Tyler Moore Show episode "Lou's First Date". Her last roles were in the TV series Emergency!, Baretta in 1976, and Most Wanted in 1977.
Death
She died in 1980 and was interred in Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery, Santa Monica, California.
Selected filmography
- New Year's Eve (1929) - Pearl
- Thru Different Eyes (1929) - Myrtle
- The Rogue Song (1930) - Nadja
- Romance (1930) - Susan Van Tuyl
- The Drums of Jeopardy (1931) - Anya Karlov
- The Spirit of Notre Dame (1931) - Trixie Hayes (uncredited)
- Secret Service (1931) - Miss Caroline Mitford
- Ladies of the Jury (1932) - Mrs. Dace (uncredited)
- Night World (1932) - Ms. Smith (uncredited)
- Westward Passage (1932) - Elmer's Wife
- Frisco Jenny (1932) - Ticklish Girl (uncredited)
- Midshipman Jack (1933) - Sally Withers
- The Sweetheart of Sigma Chi (1933) - Dizzy
- Only Yesterday (1933) - One of Jim's Friends (uncredited)
- Jimmy and Sally (1933) - Marlowe Employee (uncredited)
- Two-Fisted (1935) - Doris Pritchard (uncredited)
- Muss 'Em Up (1936) - Tony's Girlfriend (uncredited)
- The Singing Kid (1936) - Young Woman (scenes deleted)
- Women Are Trouble (1936) - Clara (uncredited)
- To Mary – with Love (1936) - Salesgirl
- Quality Street (1937) - Henrietta Turnbull (uncredited)
- Love in a Bungalow (1937) - The 'Ga-Ga' Prospect
- I Met My Love Again (1938) - Carol Towner
- Condemned Women (1938) - Prisoner
- Law of the Underworld (1938) - Mrs. Billy Winters (uncredited)
- Rebellious Daughters (1938) - Dizzy
- Having Wonderful Time (1938) - Camp Guest (uncredited)
- Next Time I Marry (1938) - Justice of the Peace's Wife (uncredited)
- Dramatic School (1938) - Factory Worker (uncredited)
- Convicts at Large (1938) - Hattie
- Pacific Liner (1939) - Miss Smith - Dancing with Crusher (uncredited)
- Stagecoach (1939) - Mrs. Nancy Whitney (uncredited)
- Union Pacific (1939) - Woman (uncredited)
- Bachelor Mother (1939) - Oliver's Wife (uncredited)
- When Tomorrow Comes (1939) - Waitress (uncredited)
- 5th Ave Girl (1939) - Slavey - the Cook's Helper (uncredited)
- Four Jacks and a Jill (1942) - Counter Girl (uncredited)
- Scattergood Survives a Murder (1942) - Phoebe Quentin
- Crash Dive (1943) - Doris - Jean's Roommate (uncredited)
- Hi'ya, Sailor (1943) - Secretary
- Her Primitive Man (1944) - Miss Crims (uncredited)
- Casanova Brown (1944) - Nurse Phillips (uncredited)
- San Diego, I Love You (1944) - Miss Lake
- Goin' to Town (1944) - Abigail
- Hi, Beautiful (1944) - Mrs. Bisbee
- George White's Scandals (1945) - Mother (scenes deleted)
- Riverboat Rhythm (1946) - Penelope Beeler Witherspoon
- Little Giant (1946) - (uncredited)
- The Time, the Place and the Girl (1946) - Kathy (uncredited)
- All Gummed Up (1947, Short) - Aged Serena (uncredited)
- My Wild Irish Rose (1947) - Diner at White Horse Tavern (uncredited)
- The Stratton Story (1949) - Mrs. Appling (uncredited)
- Ambush (1950) - Mrs. Wolverson (uncredited)
- Man from the Black Hills (1952) - Martha
- Fargo (1952) - Maggie
- The Maverick (1952) - Grandma Watson
- Bubble Trouble (1953, Short) - Old Serena Flint
- She Couldn't Say No (1953) - Mrs. Gruman (uncredited)
- The Flaming Urge (1953) - Mrs. Binger
- Bitter Creek (1954) - Mrs. Hammond
- The Desperado (1954) - Mrs. Cameron
- The Lone Ranger (1955) - Season 5 Episode 34 - Emmy Corkle
- The Adventures of Superman (1955) - Season 3 Episode 1, "Through the Time Barrier" - Cavewoman
- The Boss (1956) - Waitress (uncredited)
- Petticoat Junction (1966 - S3Ep30) as Mrs. Latimer
- The Ghost and Mr. Chicken (1966) - Occult Clubwoman (uncredited)
- The Big Mouth (1967) - Assaulted Lady (uncredited)
- Savage Intruder (1970) - Mildred
- Adam-12 - "The Grandmothers" (1971) as Mrs. Frieda Pine
- Time to Run (1973)
- Frasier, the Sensuous Lion (1973) - Old Woman on Porch
- Mary Tyler Moore (1973), Series 4, episode 8, “Lou’s First Date” - Martha Dudley
- Welcome to Arrow Beach (1974) - Landlady
- The Day of the Locust
(1974) - Old Woman
- ‘’Rockford Files’’, Season 1, episode 5
(1975) - Lee Sisters #2
- Emergency! (1976-S5Ep18) - as Maggie
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Sources
- Wikipedia
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Lake
- CC BY-SA 4.0
- Sep 26, 2026
- View article
- View record
- October 21, 2026
- Sep 26, 2026
Trivia & Knowledge· 16 questions
Questions drawn from Florence Lake's archived record and the sources above.
1.What was Florence Lake's birth name?
- A.Florence Goodwin
- B.Florence Kennedy
- C.Florence Owens
- D.Florence Silverlakecorrect
Florence Lake was born with the name Florence Silverlake.
Source: Early life
2.In which city was Florence Lake born?
- A.Los Angeles, California
- B.Charleston, South Carolinacorrect
- C.Santa Monica, California
- D.Dallas, Texas
Florence Lake was born in Charleston, South Carolina, on November 27, 1904.
Source: Early life
3.What was the name of the aerial act performed by Florence Lake's father and uncle?
- A.The Aerial Kennedys
- B.The Family Affair Act
- C.The Goodwin Troupe
- D.The Flying Silverlakescorrect
Florence Lake's father and uncle toured in an aerial act called The Flying Silverlakes.
Source: Early life
4.Which television series featured Florence Lake as the telephone operator Jenny for ten years?
- A.The Adventures of Superman
- B.Lassiecorrect
- C.The Lone Ranger
- D.Dragnet
Florence Lake played Jenny the telephone operator on Lassie for the ten-year farm seasons.
Source: Comic acting persona
5.What was the name of the movie series where Arthur Lake, the brother of Florence Lake, achieved great success?
- A.David Harum
- B.Charlie and Jessie
- C.Blondiecorrect
- D.The Lone Ranger
Arthur Lake gained fame for his role as Dagwood Bumstead in the Blondie movie series.
Source: Early life
6.Before working in films, for which stock theater company was Florence Lake the leading lady?
- A.The Kennedy Players
- B.The Grace Theater group
- C.The Raynor Lehr companycorrect
- D.The Silverlake Troupe
Florence Lake served as the leading lady for the Raynor Lehr stock theater company before her film career.
Source: Early career
7.What year did Florence Lake make her film debut?
- A.1910
- B.1929correct
- C.1957
- D.1948
Florence Lake made her first film appearance in the 1929 movie New Year's Eve.
Source: Early career
8.What character did Florence Lake play in the Edgar Kennedy comedy shorts?
- A.Elvira Norton
- B.Mrs. Kennedycorrect
- C.Mama Angel
- D.Jenny
In the Kennedy shorts, Florence Lake was known for playing the scatterbrained Mrs. Kennedy.
Source: Comic acting persona
9.In 1957, Florence Lake appeared as what type of character in The Adventures of Superman?
- A.A telephone operator
- B.A blind date
- C.A cave womancorrect
- D.A vaudeville performer
Florence Lake appeared in the first color episode of The Adventures of Superman in 1957 playing a cave woman.
Source: Comic acting persona
10.Which role did Florence Lake portray on the radio show David Harum?
- A.Jessie
- B.Tess Terwilligercorrect
- C.Miss Smith
- D.Mrs. Featherstone
On the radio program David Harum, Florence Lake portrayed the character Tess Terwilliger.
Source: Comic acting persona
11.Florence Lake played a blind date for the character Lou Grant on which show?
- A.Emergency!
- B.Dragnet
- C.A Touch of Grace
- D.The Mary Tyler Moore Showcorrect
Florence Lake appeared on The Mary Tyler Moore Show as a blind date for Lou Grant.
Source: Comic acting persona
12.In what year did Florence Lake die?
- A.1977
- B.1973
- C.1980correct
- D.1964
Florence Lake passed away in 1980.
Source: Death
13.Where is Florence Lake interred?
- A.Charleston Memorial Park
- B.Woodlawn Memorial Cemeterycorrect
- C.Forest Lawn Cemetery
- D.Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Florence Lake was interred at Woodlawn Memorial Cemetery in Santa Monica, California.
Source: Death
14.Which radio program featured Florence Lake as Miss Smith?
- A.Charlie and Jessie
- B.The Gay Mrs. Featherstone
- C.David Harum
- D.Phone Again Finnegancorrect
Florence Lake portrayed the character Miss Smith on the radio show Phone Again Finnegan.
Source: Comic acting persona
15.Florence Lake's mother, Edith Goodwin, was what type of professional?
- A.Actresscorrect
- B.Aerialist
- C.Theater owner
- D.Telephone operator
Edith Goodwin, the mother of Florence Lake, was an actress.
Source: Early life
16.What was the name of the episode of Dragnet that featured Florence Lake?
- A.Fraudscorrect
- B.A Touch of Grace
- C.Mission for Tonto
- D.Lou's First Date
Florence Lake appeared on an episode of Dragnet titled Frauds as the character Elvira Norton.
Source: Comic acting persona
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