the rudolph valentino society

Despite protests from her higher ups Mathis got her way. "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" was released in 1921 and became a smash hit. The film was the first to make a million dollars the box office, was the top grossing film of 1921, and the 6th best selling silent film ever. The film made Valentino a star and he became known as "The Latin Lover" due to the role. However Metro continued only paying him $350 a week (when most stars made several thousand a week). Valentino was never wise with business dealings and suffered from similar contract and money issues his entire career.When he died his estate was heavily in debt, something not expected of a star of his stature.

To add to his troubles Metro threw him into a b picture, "Uncharted Seas" (now lost), which would foreshadow his artistic and power struggles with studios and movie moguls his entire career. However some good came of it, it was on this film set that Valentino met his future wife Natacha Rambova. Rambova had grown up in a wealthy family where she rebelled and took joy in dancing, mythology, and art. She eventually began an affair with the well known married 32 year old dancer Theodore Kosloff (she was just 17). Kosloff kept her as part of his 'arty harem' abusing and controlling her. When Kosloff entered films with Cecil B DeMille he ordered Rambova to design costumes for which he took credit (her work can be seen in such films as "Why Change your wife?" and "The Woman God Forgot").

When eccentric actress Nazimova hired Kosloff to design costumes for a film of hers she discovered Rambova was the designer and hired her as an artistic director on the spot. He would soon get more time to know her as work began on his next picture, Nazimova's "Camille" for which Rambova designed the sets and costumes. The film was a flop as audiences found it 'too arty' however Valentino enjoyed making it. Many critics praised his natural performance (an excellent example would be when Armand finds Camille's note to him) and apparently some of his scenes were cut as Nazimova feared being upstaged. Rambova and Nazimova were of the artistic mind frame and wanted to make films into high art whether it would be commercially successful or not (ironically 'Camille' was basically the death knell in Nazimova's career). Valentino and Rambova soon grew close over their shared interests and while he trusted his scripts and business moves to Mathis, he trusted Rambova with her artistic and creative advice.

Despite wanting better and more creative films, Valentino was still desperately in need of money. He signed with Famous Players Lasky where he made $1250 a week (still much less than other stars). However Famous Players was much more commercially focus, and Valentino had made the move without consulting anyone including his friends and Rambova. Though she believed this would hinder their artistic vision and that he was making much less than he deserved, she soon joined him as did Mathis. Valentino's first film for Famous Players was "The Sheik" also in 1921. The film is the one appearance where Valentino abandons his naturalistic style (as portrayed in all his early films and Four Horsemen) for a more exaggerated one sadly leading some to believe all his film portrayals were as such. It seems this misstep was at the suggestion of the director, George Melford. Despite this Valentino got along well with the crew and cast and the film was a major success.

The term "Sheik" entered popular vocabulary and the fashion and styles from the film became major fads. Valentino became a certified star, with this role usually overshadowing his Latin Lover one in modern times. Valentino was given some less stereotypical roles with his follow up vehicles such as "Moran of the Lady Letty" (where he played a white man) and co-starring with Gloria Swanson in "Beyond the Rocks". However these films weren't as successful and Valentino was once again given 'exotic styled' roles. With Mathis writing his screenplays once more the films relied less on stereotypes and more on story.

Work began on "Blood and Sand" which was released in 1922. Valentino and Rambova were told they could shoot on location in Spain, but were upset when the film took place on a Hollywood back lot. He was also upset that he was forbidden to do his own bull fighting stunts, feeling the final look was silly and cheap. Despite the couples artistic complaints the film did extremely well and kept up the demand for more Valentino films. Critics hailed it as on par with D.W. Griffith's "Broken Blossoms" and it was the 4th top grossing movie of the year. Valentino would later consider it one his best films. "Blood and Sand" was also the first film Valentino acted alongside last generation vamp Nita Naldi, who would be a close friend and his most frequent co-star. Naldi was one of the few friends of his who also liked Natacha, even starring in her one production "What Price Beauty?" (now lost).

After filming Valentino and Rambova married in Mexicali, Mexico on May 13th, 1922. However his divorce to Acker had taken place less than a year before and an overzealous district attorney charged Valentino with bigamy (at the time it was illegal to remarry in California if one's divorce had not been finalized in under a years time). Valentino was arrested and put in jail. His studio didn't bail him out (fearing negative press and scandal) and it took the combined efforts of his friends including June Mathis and actor Thomas Meighan before he was bailed out. The pair was forced to separate until the heat died down, with Rambova going to New York. Valentino was devastated by the separation and extremely bitter at those he perceived as forcing it. Despite being separated the pair began work on his next film the Mathis penned, "The Young Rajah" (now all but a few seconds lost).

Valentino complained the entire time and felt the production was again cheap. He also felt his performance was affected by his personal troubles. The film was his first flop and Valentino was extremely unhappy about it. Despite the studios claims that he was beginning work on "The Spanish Cavalier" (never made) Valentino consulted with Rambova and his lawyers about how to leave his studio. He was already bitter over the handling of the bigamy charges, the reneged promise of filming "Blood and Sand" in Spain, "The Young Rajah" handling, and now once again he was told he would not be able to film in Spain despite the studios earlier promises. Probably eschewing their advice Valentino began a self proclaimed 'One Man Strike' against Famous Players. He began refusing his paychecks (despite owing them for paying off Jean Acker) and swore he would not make any more pictures for them until they paid him enough (he was still earning only $1,250) and gave him creative and artistic control. He wasn't kidding about the artistic part: when the studio offered him $7,000 a week to behave, he threw it back in their faces. He then wrote a letter to Photoplay pleading his case for artistic control.

Many fans seen it as a ploy for more money, which Famous Players played up in a publicity war. Famous Players sued him and got a ruling barring him from any work of any kind. Rambova refused to take money from her wealthy parents and Valentino was soon $80,000 in debt. He eventually had the ruling reduced to barring him from acting work only. The effects of this probably will never fully be known. Other studios including Goldwyn had wanted to hire him. Joseph Schenck was interested in playing him opposite the extremely popular Norma Talmadge. But barred from acting Valentino was unable to legally accept any of these offers. Valentino soon met a man named George Ullman who soon became his manager. Ullman secured him a deal promoting Mineralava Beauty Clay which then led to a dancing tour.

The Mineralava Dance Tour took place during most of 1923 and involved Valentino and Rambova touring several cities in the US and Canada. They would dance, a beauty contest was held, and Valentino usually got in a rant about the movie industry and how they wouldn't let him be artistic. He also made radio appearances about this time (during one such interview he got so upset they had to cut him off before his words got too fiery). At the end of the tour a final beauty contest was held at Madison Square Gardens and a short film titled "Rudolph Valentino and his 88 American Beauties" was later sold newsreel style of the events. During the tour the Valentinos were able to at least pay off some of their debts, and they were finally able to legally remarry which they did on a stop in Indiana on March 14th, 1923.