Juanita Hansen - Early Life

Early Life

She was born in Des Moines, Iowa. Her family moved to California when she was a girl and Juanita graduated from Los Angeles High School. There she secured her first acting job with L. Frank Baum's "Oz Film Manufacturing Company". She appeared in the The Patchwork Girl of Oz, a film based on Baum's book. Given a minor role as the bell ringer, Hansen had a major role in her next "Oz" film that same year titled The Magic Cloak of Oz. This was an adaptation of Queen Zixi of Ix, in which she played the title role.

Early in her career the actress was also associated with Famous Players-Lasky and acted opposite Jack Pickford. In 1915 Juanita appeared in six films. One was her first feature role starring opposite Tom Chatterton in The Secret of the Submarine. The following year her good looks landed her work as one of the Sennett Bathing Beauties doing comedy shorts at Keystone/Triangle Studios. Although she told reporters she liked working for Mack Sennett, she wanted to do more than slapstick comedy.

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