Betsy Blair (born Elizabeth Winifred Boger;[1] December 11, 1923 – March 13, 2009) was an American actress of film and stage, long based in London.

Her interest in Marxism led to an investigation by the House Un-American Activities Committee, and Blair was blacklisted for some time, but resumed her career with a critically acclaimed performance in Marty (1955), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Her father, William Kidd Boger, was a partner in a small insurance brokerage firm; her mother, Frederica Ammon, was a schoolteacher.

[citation needed] Blair left Rose's show to accept an offer from choreographer Robert Alton to join the chorus of Panama Hattie, an illustrious line-up which included June Allyson, Doris and Constance Dowling, and Vera-Ellen.

"[8] In 1945, she understudied the role of Laura Wingfield, played by Julie Haydon, in the original Broadway production of The Glass Menagerie, starring Laurette Taylor.

Her film career, nonetheless, was damaged during the "red scare" era and she had to seek work on stage in New York and in Europe.

[9] Following her divorce from Kelly, Blair moved permanently to Europe where she paired with French actor and director Roger Pigaut, and continued to appear in films, including Juan Antonio Bardem's Calle Mayor (1956) and Michelangelo Antonioni's Il Grido (1957).

[10] Blair married Czech-born British director/producer Karel Reisz in 1963 and performed sporadically in later years, working with Costa-Gavras in 1988 on the film Betrayed and on the mini-series Scarlett in 1994.

[11] Blair filmed scenes for Stephen Daldry's The Hours (2002), initially playing the older version of Julianne Moore's character.