Lester Cuneo

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Lester Cuneo
Lester Cuneo

Lester H. Cuneo (October 25, 1888 - November 1, 1926) was an American stage and silent film actor.

Born in Chicago, Illinois, he began acting in live theatre while still in his teens then embarked on a film career in 1912 with the Chicago-based Selig Polyscope Company then joined Essanay Studios in 1914. Working in early Hollywood, his popularity increased after he switched from comedic roles to the increasingly popular western film genre. However, his career was temporarily interrupted when he served with the United States Army during World War I.

At war's end, Lester Cuneo returned to film and in the early 1920s set up his own production company making primarily western films. He married actress Francelia Billington in 1920 and the two made fourteen films together until their divorce in October of 1925.

Despondent over the breakdown of his marriage and the downhill slide of his film career, Lester Cuneo took his own life in 1926. He was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.