The "Latin Lover" - Rudolph Valentino Quiz

Answer: He was a taxi dancer.

"The Great Train Robbery" (1903 )was a western by Edwin S. Porter and did, in fact, star a young Gilbert M. "Broncho Billy" Anderson. The film was only 12 minutes long, but was considered a landmark in its time.

Although Melville Bissell did invent a vacuum cleaner way back in 1876, I've seen no history of Rudolph entering that vocation.

A taxi dancer, or "taxi" for short, was usually performed by a female partner with a male, who paid for the dance. The term came from the fact that the dancer's pay was relative to the amount of time she spent with the partner, similar to the amount of time charged in a taxi. Male taxi dancers were the exception to the rule. I made up the gigolo part.

Answer: Maxim's

As far as I know, Maxims restaurant in NYC had no association with the famous Maxim Restaurant in Paris, or, the fashion magazine "Maxim". It was, however, where Valentine hobnobbed with some of Europe's elite, who exiled to the states for numerous reasons.

The other answers are all ficticious.

Answer: Alimony

Not much is known about the film "Alimony" (1917). Margaret Livingston, who was also a silent film star and appeared in over 50 films, worked with Valentino in "Alimony". There has been some question as to what Valentino's original role actually was, but most think he got the role because he was an exceptional dancer and may have been a dress extra in a ballroom scene. Valentino had earlier uncredited roles in the 1914 silent film, "My Official Wife," which starred Clara Kimball Young, and in the "The Foolish Virgin" (1916).

Early in Rudolph's initial roles, he usually played the "heavy" or gangster. He finally caught the eyes of screenwriter June Mathis, and got his first big break, only a bit part, in the Clara Kimball Young film, "The Eyes of Youth" (1919). Mathis saw her star and used Valentino in the film, "The Sheik" (1921). "The Sheik", was a silent movie produced by Famous Players-Lasky, directed by George Melford and starred Valentino, Agnes Ayres and Adolphe Menjou. It was based on the bestselling romance novel, "The Sheik", by Edith Maude Hull.

Answer: Famous Players

Famous Players' top bill, at the time, was Mary Pickford, and it was Pickford's $7,000 a week contract that helped push Valentino to "Latin Lover" red.

Paramount is owned by Viacom and is the oldest existing American film studio.
Universal is second in existence, only by a month, to Viacom (Paramount).

Valentino did have a chance to work with Goldwyn Pictures in the film "Ben-Hur" (1925), but was blocked by Famous Players and his contract was extended. It never happened.

Answer: one dollar

On May 13, 1922, Valentino married a costume designer and art director named Natacha Rambova, in Mexicali, Mexico. Valentino was jailed for bigamy, since his divorce from Jean Acker was not ruled as final.

Rudolph Valentino's last will (1925): Natacha Rambova, who was supposed to be the only heir, was cut off by Valentino and awarded one dollar. One third of an estimated $1 million estate was left to his brother and sister and to Teresa Werner, who was the aunt of the slighted Natacha. Valentino also noted that anyone who challenged his position and won would be awarded $1. Despite this attempt to limit legal problems, relatives and previous women associated with Valentino battled each other for years.

Answer: Castellaneta, Italy

His real name, Rodolfo Alfonso Raffaello Piero Filiberto Guglielmi, was a real doozy. His mother was French, Marie Berthe Gabrielle Barbin and father, Giovanni Antonio Giuseppe Fidele Guglielmi was, obviously, Italian. Young Rudolph was not a particularly a good student but did, however, get a degree in agriculture.

Answer: Church of St. Malachy

Saint Malachy's Roman Catholic Church is located at West 49th Street in Manhattan's Broadway district and is known as "The Actor's Chapel". Douglas Fairbanks married Joan Crawford at St. Malachy's. Bob and Delores Hope attended mass there. Other faithful members were Perry Como, Spencer Tracy, Florence Henderson and Danny Thomas.

Answer: endocarditis and septicemia

Valentino suffered an agonizing death. On August 15th, he was taken to Polyclinic Hospital where it was found that Valentino had a perforated ulcer in his abdomen that needed immediate surgery to hopefully keep infection from spreading. Unfortunately, the surgery did not help, even with the area being cleansed and treated properly.

The infection spread over the next five days, August 16th-20th. On the morning of August 20th Valentino woke up in tremendous pain and could not breathe. He was given ether to help alleviate the pain and help him sleep.

After Valentino woke up later on that day, the doctor checked him out, looked over his bandages and dressings, and noticed that was Rudolph not in pain any longer. The doctor, knowing that this seemingly good sign was a bad one, allowed Valentino to rest. Just hours later, he was suffering again, had a fever, and was moaning during each breath. Further X-rays were taken which confirmed pleurisy has set in and no hope of recovery was possible.

His official cause of death was endocarditis and septicemia.

Answer: Son of the Sheik

Starring Rudolph Valentino and Vilma Bánky, "Son of the Sheik", was a romance novel by Edith Maude Hull. It was a sequel to the best selling novel, "The Sheik". Both novels were made into films. "Son of the Sheik" was rushed to market because of Valentino's untimely death and funeral. It did very well at the box office.

In 2003, the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress selected "Son of the Sheik" as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

In "Monsieur Beaucaire" (1924), Valentino was the lead character, the Duke of Chartres. The film did not do well and because the film was under Natacha's Rambova's control, it was generally used as proof of her controlling nature and would subsequently cause her to be barred from Valentino's sets.

"The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" was released in 1921, and was one of the first films to gross $1,000,000 at the box office.

"Beyond the Rocks" (1922), where he stared with Gloria Swanson, was thought to be lost, but in 2002 the film was discovered by the Netherlands Film Museum.

Answer: Hollywood Forever Cemetary

Hollywood Forever Cemeteries' location is something out of a Nicolas Cage movie - you can see the HOLLYWOOD sign on the nearby hills, from in between the crypts. It's so Hollywood, that today they sell maps to the stars' grave sites and even show classic films in the summer.

In Glendale, the Forest Lawn Memorial Park is another famous cemetary. Dozens of classic Hollywood names, such as Bogart, Stewart, Harlow, Gable and Flynn are buried there.

At Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park you can see celebs from Dean Martin to rock guitarist Frank Zappa, and movie mogul Darryl F. Zanuck. Even "Green Acres" star Eva Gabor and author Truman Capote are "neighbors" there.