She was the aunt of fellow actresses Eva and Jane Novak.

[1] Schaefer was born to German parents, Mr. and Mrs. Herman Schafer,[2] on July 10, 1870, in St. Louis, Missouri, and attended Notre Dame Convent school in St.

[3] She also studied at a dramatic school founded by Lawrence Hanley in St. Louis and acted in his summer stock company.

After acting on stage for several years, she signed with the Vitagraph film company.

[2] This article about a United States film actor born in the 1870s is a stub.