It's too bad there isn't a photograph of Louise Brooks and Rudolph Valentino together. What an iconic image that would be - Lulu and the Sheik, the flapper and the Latin Lover.
The two actors did know one another - if only in passing. Like many young women of the time, Brooks was a fan of Valentino and saw a number of his films, a fact she recorded in her diary. On January 1, 1921, the 15 year old Brooks began a diary. Four days later, she wrote that she saw Once to Every Woman, starring Dorothy Phillips and "Rodolph Valentino," at a local theater in Wichita, Kansas. Later that year, in September, she saw The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, and wrote in her diary that she had "cried a barrel-full." Two-months later, in November, she saw Valentino in The Sheik and declared him her favorite, adding "What female don't admire the con man stuff."
We also know from later letters that Brooks encountered Valentino - or at least observed Valentino - from afar at parties and social gatherings. She wrote as much in a letter to Jan Wahl, one of her long term correspondents in later life. She also spoke of the last time she ever saw Valentino alive during one of her 1962 radio broadcasts, emphasizing his mysterious presence. That was in 1926, just days before Valentino died at a tragically young age. From one newspaper account at the time, we also know that Brooks attended his Valentino's funeral mass in New York City.
For a time, there were other points of intersection. The two actors shared a studio, Paramount (Famous Players-Lasky), and a screenwriter, Monte Katterjohn. He wrote two of Valentino's best films, The Sheik (1921) and Moran of the Lady Letty (1922), as well as a few of Gloria Swanson's films, another favorite of the young Louise Brooks. Katterjohn also wrote Brooks' break-out film, A Social Celebrity (1926). One could go a bit further, and note the general resemblance between Brooks and Valentino's estranged wife, Jean Acker. Both were pretty, and both effectively sported a bob haircut.
After Valentino died, Paramount rushed Valentino's biggest hit, The Sheik, back into circulation. I have run across a number of instances when the Valentino film and a Brooks film, usually the August 1926 release The Show-Off, were paired as part of a double bill,or followed one another in theaters not only in the United States, but also in Latin America and elsewhere around the world.
I mention all this because on Friday, August 23rd I will be speaking briefly about Louise Brooks and Rudolph Valentino at the 92 annual Rudolph Valentino Memorial service at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California. I also plan to share some extremely rare material on the subject. At this annual event, fans from all corners of the globe come together to mark the passing of a true talent and legend. The Valentino Memorial, held each year on August 23rd (beginning at 12:10 pm, the time of Valentino's death), is the longest running annual event in Hollywood, pre-dating the Academy Awards. The event is free and open to the public. During the last few years, this event has also been streamed over Facebook, and I expect it to be so again.
I wish to thank the event's current organizer, Tracy Terhune, for inviting me to speak at the event. Not only is Tracy an authority on the life and films of Valentino, but he is also the author of a book on the remarkable history of the Valentino memorial, Valentino Forever: The History of the Valentino Memorial Services. I should also add that Tracy is the grandson of Max Terhune, one of the stars of the Three Mesquiteers series of Westerns which included Overland Stage Raiders (1938), Louise Brooks' last film! That is Max Terhune , with Brooks' hands on his shoulders.
The two actors did know one another - if only in passing. Like many young women of the time, Brooks was a fan of Valentino and saw a number of his films, a fact she recorded in her diary. On January 1, 1921, the 15 year old Brooks began a diary. Four days later, she wrote that she saw Once to Every Woman, starring Dorothy Phillips and "Rodolph Valentino," at a local theater in Wichita, Kansas. Later that year, in September, she saw The Four Horseman of the Apocalypse, and wrote in her diary that she had "cried a barrel-full." Two-months later, in November, she saw Valentino in The Sheik and declared him her favorite, adding "What female don't admire the con man stuff."
We also know from later letters that Brooks encountered Valentino - or at least observed Valentino - from afar at parties and social gatherings. She wrote as much in a letter to Jan Wahl, one of her long term correspondents in later life. She also spoke of the last time she ever saw Valentino alive during one of her 1962 radio broadcasts, emphasizing his mysterious presence. That was in 1926, just days before Valentino died at a tragically young age. From one newspaper account at the time, we also know that Brooks attended his Valentino's funeral mass in New York City.
For a time, there were other points of intersection. The two actors shared a studio, Paramount (Famous Players-Lasky), and a screenwriter, Monte Katterjohn. He wrote two of Valentino's best films, The Sheik (1921) and Moran of the Lady Letty (1922), as well as a few of Gloria Swanson's films, another favorite of the young Louise Brooks. Katterjohn also wrote Brooks' break-out film, A Social Celebrity (1926). One could go a bit further, and note the general resemblance between Brooks and Valentino's estranged wife, Jean Acker. Both were pretty, and both effectively sported a bob haircut.
After Valentino died, Paramount rushed Valentino's biggest hit, The Sheik, back into circulation. I have run across a number of instances when the Valentino film and a Brooks film, usually the August 1926 release The Show-Off, were paired as part of a double bill,or followed one another in theaters not only in the United States, but also in Latin America and elsewhere around the world.
I mention all this because on Friday, August 23rd I will be speaking briefly about Louise Brooks and Rudolph Valentino at the 92 annual Rudolph Valentino Memorial service at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Hollywood, California. I also plan to share some extremely rare material on the subject. At this annual event, fans from all corners of the globe come together to mark the passing of a true talent and legend. The Valentino Memorial, held each year on August 23rd (beginning at 12:10 pm, the time of Valentino's death), is the longest running annual event in Hollywood, pre-dating the Academy Awards. The event is free and open to the public. During the last few years, this event has also been streamed over Facebook, and I expect it to be so again.
I wish to thank the event's current organizer, Tracy Terhune, for inviting me to speak at the event. Not only is Tracy an authority on the life and films of Valentino, but he is also the author of a book on the remarkable history of the Valentino memorial, Valentino Forever: The History of the Valentino Memorial Services. I should also add that Tracy is the grandson of Max Terhune, one of the stars of the Three Mesquiteers series of Westerns which included Overland Stage Raiders (1938), Louise Brooks' last film! That is Max Terhune , with Brooks' hands on his shoulders.
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