Rudolph Valentino Anniversary

Ninety-eight years ago today, Silent Screen actor Rudolph Valentino died in New York City at the age of thirty-one. While the TikTok crowd probably doesn’t know of him, approximately 100,000 fans lined the streets of Manhattan for his funeral at Campbell’s Funeral Home (also where Judy Garland’s service was held). An art deco statue titled “Aspiration” was erected in 1930 in DeLongpre Park, Hollywood.  Roger Noble Burnham, who also created USC’s mascot, The Trojan, was the sculptor. While the fans loved Valentino, City Commissioners required that the tribute honor but not resemble the dead matinee idol.



Still there today!



And this not-so-stellar bust of the actor is there, too.



For many years, a mysterious woman in black would arrive at the Hollywood Forever mausoleum where Valentino was buried, deliver a single red rose, and disappear. Others have taken over the duty as the years have gone by. When I went in 2014, Hollywood Forever Cemetery tour guide Karie Bible was filling in for that role.





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Rudolph Valentino Tribute, Pt. 1

Last Saturday, August 23, marked the 88th anniversary of the passing of silent screen star legend Rudolph Valentino at the age of 31. Those of you who visited Disneyland's Main Street Cinema back when it showed silent movies may have caught a glimpse of the latin lover in one of his movies, such as "The Sheik," "The Eagle," or his final film, "The Son of the Sheik."





Here he is with costar Vilma Banky in "Son of the Sheik."



His smoldering eyes made women go bananas.



Two more images from the same film:





Valentino's untimely death from peritonitis, due to a botched appendectomy, prevented him from making any talkies. Whether he would have survived the transition into the new medium can only be speculated upon, but the mass hysteria exhibited by his throngs of fans when he passed would seem to indicate that he had a good chance. A number of suicides (both sexes) were reported as a result of Valentino's death, and more than 100,000 people showed up for his New York City funeral.

In Hollywood, two tributes to Valentino can be found in DeLongpre Park, just a few blocks from Sunset Boulevard. This Art Deco statue called "Aspiration," sculpted by Roger Noble Burnham, was dedicated on the 35th anniversary of Valentino's birthday, May 6, 1930.



The statue is still there, although its surroundings have definitely not weathered the years quite as well. Mainly a hangout for the homeless, this is not exactly a place you'd want to spend the afternoon.



A bust of Valentino can also be found in DeLongpre park, which was sculpted by Richard Ellis in 1979.



Which one do you think looks more like Valentino?



More to come…

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