Eva Novak
Acting
Eva Barbara Novak (February 14, 1898 – April 17, 1988) was an American film actress, who was quite popular during the silent film era. On February 14, 1898, Eva Barbara Novak was born in St. Louis, Missouri, to Joseph Jerome Novak, an immigrant from Bohemia, and Barbara Medek. Her older sister, Johana, also became an actress. Joseph Novak died when Eva was still a child and Barbara was left to raise five children. Novak began her acting career in 1917 in L-KO's Roped into Scandal, followed by another seven films that same year. She appeared in 17 films in 1918, and another eight in 1919. In 1920, she starred opposite Tom Mix in The Daredevil, one of six film roles she would have that year, and one of ten films in which she starred opposite Mix. In 1921, she married stuntman William Reed, whom she met while on location for a film. They had two daughters Vivian Barbara and Pamela Eve. Novak was interested in stunt performing herself, having been taught by Mix to perform many of her own stunts. From 1921 to 1928, she appeared in and starred in 48 films, including an early version of Boston Blackie. She also co-starred with Betty Bronson and Jack Benny in The Medicine Man (1930) and appeared in the 1922 film Chasing the Moon, which was an early forerunner of the 1950s film D.O.A. In the late 1920s, she and her husband moved to Australia, where she made numerous films, including The Romance of Runnibede. However, with the advent of "talking films", her popularity faded. She would continue to act, but mostly in obscure roles. She appeared in 123 films between 1917 and 1965, when she retired. She was residing in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles at the time of her death from pneumonia at the age of 90, on April 17, 1988. In May 1923, the Altoona Tribune held a contest to find the girl who most closely resembled Novak. An announcement in the newspaper said that the winner would receive $250 worth of clothes from a store.
TV Shows(1)
Movies(70)
Wild Seed
Mrs. Simms
1965
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
Townswoman (uncredited)
1962
Sergeant Rutledge
Courtroom Spectator (uncredited)
1960
Duel at Apache Wells
Mrs. Munn (uncredited)
1957
Tall Man Riding
Mrs. Henderson (uncredited)
1955
Sunset Boulevard
Courtier (uncredited)
1950
The Blonde Bandit
Jail Matron
1949
Hellfire
Indian Woman (uncredited)
1949
3 Godfathers
Townswoman (uncredited)
1948
Four Faces West
Mrs. Winston
1948
I, Jane Doe
Jury Woman
1948
Blackmail
Mamie, the Maid
1947
Robin Hood Of Texas
Guest
1947
That Brennan Girl
Miss Novak - Elderly Woman (uncredited)
1946
The Bells of St. Mary's
Nun (uncredited)
1945
Apology for Murder
Maid
1945
The Fatal Witness
Elsie - Vera's Maid (uncredited)
1945
Phantom of the Desert
Mary Van Horn
1930
The Medicine Man
Hilda
1930
The Romance of Runnibede
Dorothy Winchester
1928
For the Term of His Natural Life
Sylvia Vickers
1927
Red Signals
Mark Bryson
1927
30 Below Zero
Ann Ralston
1926
No Man's Gold
Jane Rogers
1926
The Dixie Flyer
Rose Rapley / Rose Jones
1926
Say It with Babies
1926
Irene
Eleanor Hadley
1926
The Northern Code
Marie La Fane
1925
Sally
Rosie Lafferty
1925
The Triflers
Beatrice Noyes
1924
Laughing at Danger
Carolyn Hollister
1924
Women First
Jennie Doon
1924
The Beautiful Sinner
Alice Carter
1924
The Fatal Mistake
Ethel Bennett
1924
Racing for Life
Grace Danton
1924
The Battling Fool
Helen Chadwick
1924
Listen Lester
Mary Dodge
1924
The Man Life Passed By
Joy Moore
1923
Boston Blackie
Mary Carter
1923
The Tiger's Claw
Harriet Halehurst
1923
Temptation
Marjorie Baldwin
1923
Making a Man
Patricia Owens
1922
The Great Night
Mollie Martin
1922
The Man Who Saw Tomorrow
Vonia
1922
The Man from Hell's River
Mabella
1922
Up and Going
Jackie McNabb
1922
Chasing the Moon
Jane Norworth
1922
Sky High
Estelle Halloway - his ward
1922
Trailin'
Sally Fortune
1921
The Last Trail
Winifred Samson
1921
The Rough Diamond
Gloria Gómez
1921
Wolves of the North
Aurora Norris
1921
The Smart Sex
Rose
1921
Society Secrets
Louise
1921
O'Malley of the Mounted
Rose Lanier
1921
The Torrent
Velma Patton
1921
The Testing Block
Nelly Gray
1920
Wanted at Headquarters
1920
Up in Mary's Attic
Mary
1920
Desert Love
Dolly Remington
1920
The Daredevil
Alice Spencer
1920
Silk Husbands and Calico Wives
Georgia Wilson
1920
The Feud
Betty Summers / Betty Brown
1919
The Speed Maniac
Pearl Matthews
1919
All Jazzed Up
Dainty Dotty
1919
The King of the Kitchen
Her niece
1918
The Belles of Liberty
Trixie
1918
A Blind Pig
The Sheriff's Daughter
1918
The Sign of the Cucumber
1917
Hearts and Flour
1917