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Betsy Russell

Betsy Russell

Elizabeth "Betsy" Russell (born September 6, 1963) is an American actress who is best known for her roles in Private School (1983), Tomboy (1985), and as Jill Tuck, one of the primary characters of the Saw film series from 2006 to 2010. Russell was born in San Diego, California, the daughter of Constance (née Lerner) and Richard Lion Russell, a stock analyst, and the granddaughter of journalist and educator Max Lerner. Her father and maternal grandfather were Jewish. Russell wanted to be an actress since the age of eight and started acting in school plays. She appeared in a Pepsi commercial that was taped locally while in high school. After graduating from Mission Bay High School in 1981, she moved to Los Angeles and began taking acting classes before landing her first role. She did a masters program in Spiritual Psychology at the University of Santa Monica and is a certified hypnotist and life coach, also from the University of Santa Monica. Russell's first role was in the 1982 film Let's Do It! That same year, she landed roles on T. J. Hooker, Family Ties, and The Powers of Matthew Star. In 1983, Russell's breakout role came as Jordan Leigh-Jensen in the sex comedy Private School. While shooting the action film Avenging Angel, she was offered to audition for the 1985 film Silverado but turned it down. She said in an interview, "Everything happens for a reason. I always believe my career would have been different had I done that part. I can't say if it would have been better or worse. I’ve had a great run." She went on to star in a series of B movies in the 1980s, including the comedy Tomboy and the slasher film Cheerleader Camp. Russell also appeared on TV series such as The A-Team, Murder, She Wrote, 1st & Ten, and an episode of Superboy, which was a reunion with her Tomboy co-star Gerard Christopher. Russell resides in Malibu, California. In August 1988, Russell was engaged to actor Vincent Van Patten, son of Dick Van Patten. They were married nine months later on May 27, 1989, in North Hollywood. Their wedding reception was at Van Patten's father's Sherman Oaks home which was attended by numerous A-list celebrities. They divorced in 2001 and have two sons: Richard Van Patten (March 1993) and Vincent Van Patten, Jr. (September 3, 1995) Russell was previously engaged to film producer Mark Burg. After a brief retirement from acting, Russell appeared in a small role in Saw III playing John Kramer's ex-wife, Jill Tuck. She went on to star in the sequels, Saw IV, Saw V, Saw VI, and Saw 3D. She played a role in the 2010 film Chain Letter, the SyFy film Mandrake, and My Trip Back to the Dark Side. Description above from the Wikipedia article Betsy Russell, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.

Personal information

Birthday

1963-09-06

Birth Place

San Diego, California, USA

Movies and TV shows :

Amore!

Amore!

1993

3.8

Movie
Avenging Angel

Avenging Angel

1985

5.1

Movie
Blood of 1000 Virgins

Blood of 1000 Virgins

2013

5.8

Movie
Bully High

Bully High

2022

10.0

Movie
Camp Fear

Camp Fear

1991

3.8

Movie
Celebrity Nude Revue: Easy 80's Volume 1

Celebrity Nude Revue: Easy 80's Volume 1

2011

7.0

Movie
Chain Letter

Chain Letter

2010

4.4

Movie
Cheerleader Camp

Cheerleader Camp

1988

5.1

Movie
Chiller 13: The Decade's Scariest Movie Moments

Chiller 13: The Decade's Scariest Movie Moments

2010

0.0

Movie
Delta Heat

Delta Heat

1992

4.5

Movie
poster

Family Ties

1982

7.3

TV
Knock 'em Dead

Knock 'em Dead

2014

6.6

Movie
Let's Do It!

Let's Do It!

1982

3.0

Movie
Mandrake

Mandrake

2010

3.5

Movie
poster

Murder, She Wrote

1984

7.5

TV
My Trip Back to the Dark Side

My Trip Back to the Dark Side

2014

3.5

Movie
Non-Stop

Non-Stop

2013

5.8

Movie
Out of Control

Out of Control

1985

4.1

Movie
poster

Platypus Man

1995

2.0

TV
Private School

Private School

1983

5.7

Movie
Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer

Roxanne: The Prize Pulitzer

1989

1.0

Movie
Saw 3D

Saw 3D

2010

6.0

Movie
Saw III

Saw III

2006

6.4

Movie
Saw IV

Saw IV

2007

6.2

Movie
Saw V

Saw V

2008

6.2

Movie
Saw VI

Saw VI

2009

6.3

Movie
Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies

Skin: A History of Nudity in the Movies

2020

6.6

Movie
poster

Superboy

1988

6.4

TV
poster

T. J. Hooker

1982

6.3

TV
poster

The A-Team

1983

7.5

TV
poster

The Adventures of Superboy

1966

4.7

TV
The Break

The Break

1995

6.8

Movie
Tomboy

Tomboy

1985

4.9

Movie
Trapper County War

Trapper County War

1989

3.5

Movie