Rudolph Valentino: A Wife's Memories of an Icon by Natacha Rambova
Release Date: December 1st, 2009
Genre: Reprint - Memoir - Biographies
Author: Natacha Rambova (with additional content by Hala Pickford)
Cover Photo by Kevin Scrantz
ISBN: 098164404X
Price: $27
Page Count: 340
Author's Site: Natacha Rambova at the Rudolph valentino society
Excerpt at
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About
In 1926 Silent Film Icon,
Rudolph Valentino, died
unexpectedly at the age of 31. That same year, he had finalized a bitter
divorce from his wife of four years, Natacha Rambova. Valentino had been
madly in love with the gorgeous and very talented designer, yet they had
been unable to make their marriage work. Since their first marriage in 1922,
the public had been critical of Rambova, blaming her for any mistakes in
Valentino's career or life. As Valentino laid on his deathbed in New York,
Rambova was in Paris. The two exchanged telegrams to the very end, with both
sides believing they would soon reunite and a reconciliation had taken
place. Upon hearing the news of his death, Rambova was so distraught she
locked herself in her room for three days. With many estate issues to
fulfill, Valentino's manager George Ullman took the reigns.
To help keep Valentino's name in the spotlight, Ullman wrote a book
detailing his time with the gifted actor. Ullman and Rambova had never
gotten along, fighting for control of Valentino's career. Feeling she had
been unfairly portrayed not only by Ullman, but also by the press, Rambova
decided to write her own book. First published in the UK in 1927, "Rudy: An
Intimate Portrait by His Wife", presented Rambova's side of the story,
providing many amusing stories and anecdotes about her time with Valentino.
Both Valentino and Rambova had been firm believers in the practice of
Spiritualism. Rambova decided to utilize her beliefs for this book, adding a
section titled "Revelations", consisting of things supposedly told to her by
Valentino's soul, through seances. Rambova felt the need to publish these
'messages', believing these were things his soul wished to communicate with
the world. However things soon got out of hand, with boisterous fans and
attention seekers bombarding the legacy of Rudolph Valentino with their own
claims. Rambova would remain firm in her beliefs, eventually becoming a
renowned Egyptologist.
After the publication of this book, she never spoke of her time with
Valentino again. "Rudolph Valentino: An Intimate Portrait by his wife" is
proudly reprinted by The Rudolph Valentino Society for the first time in
over 80 years, under a new title, "Rudolph Valentino: A Wife's Memories of
an Icon". In addition to the original text there is a new section containing
biographies, filmographies, bibliographies, notes, and new forwards. This
section also contains groundbreaking biographies on screenwriter and film
executive June Mathis; as well as silent film vamp Nita Naldi. 70% of
proceeds from this book benefit The Rudolph Valentino Society and Film
Festival.
About the Author: Natacha Rambova was a set designer, fashion designer and artistic director. Though well known for her marriage to Rudolph Valentino, she had actually made a name for herself before meeting him; working on films for both Alla Nazimova and Cecil B. DeMille.
While married to Valentino her influence on films such as The Young Rajah, A Sainted Devil and Camille was evident. Though blamed as controlling, Valentino sought and highly respected her opinions on such films.
After his death in 1926, Natacha wrote "Rudolph Valentino Recollections" (reprinted as "Rudolph Valentino: A Wife's Memory of an Icon") and set up a fashion shop on 5th avenue. Eventually she remarried and moved to Spain, before WWII forced her return to the United States.
She spent most of her later years devoted to researching Egyptology and various Occult subjects.
Price: $27 (Domestic and International)
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