I first became aware of Rudolph Valentino's "cursed ring" from a paperback book I bought back when I was a young boy, maybe 10 years old
back then I ate these kinds of books up -- all of Hans Holzer's ghost books and things like "Stranger than Science" and others like it . . . for some reason, this legend of the ring stayed with me
after all, my first name IS Rudolph . . . and, not knowing it at the time, I have an eerie past life connection to the players in this cosmic drama
after Rudolph's death in 1926, the ring passed on to Pola Negri, a femme fatale silent film star of the 1920's
her next film after his death was a World War I spy film, "Hotel Imperial" (1927), directed by Mauritz Stiller (the man who brought Garbo to Hollywood) and produced by Erich Pommer, who had produced such classic films as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler"
his next film, after "Hotel Imperial", would be the sci-fi classic "Metropolis". He would also produce "The Blue Angel" with Marlene Dietrich in 1930
soooooooo, how does all this round about "curse" tie in to me
in 1927, a beautiful young debutante from Texas, Adrienne Ames, went to Hollywood and her first film "job" was being the stand-in for Pola Negri in "Hotel Imperial" . . . later, after Adrienne's career fizzled in the late 1930's, she sold her home in Beverly Hills -- later to be purchased by Marlene Dietrich
and moved to NYC, where she died of cancer at age 43
The leading actors in "Hotel Iimperial" would all be dead shortly after filming -- George Siegmann, an actor with over a 100 films to his credit, died the following year (June 22, 1928) at age 46 of pernicous anemia
James Hall, later the co-star of Howard Hughes' famous film "Hell's Angels", saw his career flounder shortly after. He died in 1940 at age 39
Mikhail Vavich, a Russian actor and opera singer, would be killed in a car accident in 1930; he was in his mid-40's
Otto Fries died in 1938, at the age of 50
the director, Mauritz Stiller, the mentor of Greta Garbo and the man who brought her to Hollywood, died the following year (1928) of pleurisy at age 45
after "Hotel Imperial", Pola Negri's career took a sudden nose-dive, largely due to negative publicity about her behavior at Valentino's funeral and her rebound marriage
the following year (1928) saw her lose her contract at Paramount and miscarry her child. "Hotel Imperial" was the last film she starred in that was a "success"
anyway . . . I have always found this story super fascinating
the cursed ring of Rudolph Valentino !!
back then I ate these kinds of books up -- all of Hans Holzer's ghost books and things like "Stranger than Science" and others like it . . . for some reason, this legend of the ring stayed with me
after all, my first name IS Rudolph . . . and, not knowing it at the time, I have an eerie past life connection to the players in this cosmic drama
after Rudolph's death in 1926, the ring passed on to Pola Negri, a femme fatale silent film star of the 1920's
her next film after his death was a World War I spy film, "Hotel Imperial" (1927), directed by Mauritz Stiller (the man who brought Garbo to Hollywood) and produced by Erich Pommer, who had produced such classic films as "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and "Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler"
his next film, after "Hotel Imperial", would be the sci-fi classic "Metropolis". He would also produce "The Blue Angel" with Marlene Dietrich in 1930
soooooooo, how does all this round about "curse" tie in to me
in 1927, a beautiful young debutante from Texas, Adrienne Ames, went to Hollywood and her first film "job" was being the stand-in for Pola Negri in "Hotel Imperial" . . . later, after Adrienne's career fizzled in the late 1930's, she sold her home in Beverly Hills -- later to be purchased by Marlene Dietrich
and moved to NYC, where she died of cancer at age 43
The leading actors in "Hotel Iimperial" would all be dead shortly after filming -- George Siegmann, an actor with over a 100 films to his credit, died the following year (June 22, 1928) at age 46 of pernicous anemia
James Hall, later the co-star of Howard Hughes' famous film "Hell's Angels", saw his career flounder shortly after. He died in 1940 at age 39
Mikhail Vavich, a Russian actor and opera singer, would be killed in a car accident in 1930; he was in his mid-40's
Otto Fries died in 1938, at the age of 50
the director, Mauritz Stiller, the mentor of Greta Garbo and the man who brought her to Hollywood, died the following year (1928) of pleurisy at age 45
after "Hotel Imperial", Pola Negri's career took a sudden nose-dive, largely due to negative publicity about her behavior at Valentino's funeral and her rebound marriage
the following year (1928) saw her lose her contract at Paramount and miscarry her child. "Hotel Imperial" was the last film she starred in that was a "success"
anyway . . . I have always found this story super fascinating
the cursed ring of Rudolph Valentino !!
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