June 21, 1944

Betty Blake Rogers died of cancer in Santa Monica, California. Betty Rogers, a native of Rogers (Benton County), was a partner in the career of her husband, actor Will Rogers, encouraging him to start on the lecture circuit and helping him choose film scripts. The Rogers family moved to California and bought a ranch in the Santa Monica hills in 1919 as Will Rogers’s film career began to flourish. His popularity continued to grow, and frequent tours kept him on the road. Though far away, she kept her ties to her hometown, and she and her husband regularly contributed to charities in Rogers.