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Rudolph Valentino was one of the most famous
of the silent movie stars. Born Rodolfo Alfonso Raffalello Piero
Filiberto Gugleilmi in Castellaneta, Italy, he earned an agricultural
degree, but left Italy to find work. In the US, he worked as a
busboy, a waiter and a
taxi dancer (a professional dancer who is hired to dance with a
partner). He found employment as a dancer in traveling vaudeville
productions, until a friend convinced him to audition for the
pictures. His first roles were villains, but it was a part and a
famous tango scene in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse that vaulted
him into the spotlight. His film, The Sheik, established him
firmly as a leading man. His later films included Blood and Sand
and Beyond the Rocks, which was lost until 2002 when it was discovered
in a film vault. Valentino was one of the first film stars to be
beset with reporters and photographers, who followed him
everywhere. A disagreement with his studio prevented him from
making any films for a time,
but he toured the country as a dancer, sponsored by a womens cosmetics
company
and was a huge success. He went back to making films and was again a
hit.
At the height of his career, Valentino suffered a perforated ulcer and
died
after surgery. He was 31. Even Valentinos funeral was a
major
theatrical event with fans breaking windows to get into the funeral
home,
hysterical actresses and actors portraying an honor guard that was
supposedly
sent from Italy by Benito Mussolini. He remains to this day one
of
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