Spencer Bell

Spencer Bell (September 25, 1887 – August 18, 1935) was an American stage and film actor, best known for playing opposite Larry Semon in many of his silent comedy shorts from the late 1910s to 1928. Bell was one of the first African American comedic actors of the silent film era, and was the first to be signed to film contract. Over the course of his fifteen-year film career, Bell appeared in more than seventy comedy shorts.

Career Bell was born in Lexington, Kentucky. Prior to his Hollywood film career, he worked as a chauffeur and performed in vaudeville and minstrel shows. He enlisted in the United States Army and served in World War I. He is buried at Sawtelle Military Cemetery (now known as Los Angeles National Cemetery).

Selected filmography