MARION, Beth

(1912–2003)

   Born Betty Goettsche, Beth Marion starred in numerous low-budget Westerns in the 1930s. She perhaps typified the classic virginal blonde female lead of 1930s B Westerns as well as anyone. Invariably, her character stands in the background of the plot, always dependent on the protection of an all-wise cowboy hero, coming forward to the camera only when a visual break is needed. In Between Men (1935), John Wellington (William Farnum), a good-hearted outlaw feels he must protect Gail Winters (Marion) from the suspicious intentions of Johnny Wellington Jr. (Johnny Mack Brown). Marion went on to play lead opposite such stars as Tom Tyler, Clifford Jones, Ken Maynard, and Buck Jones. She married stuntman Cliff Lyons in 1938 and withdrew from acting.