Today's Birthday: 6 May
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Valentino, Rudolph
His father Giovanni had been in a travelling circus before meeting his mother and settling down as a veterinarian. Though his father was a strict authoritarian, his mother doted on her "beautiful baby" even to the exclusion of his older brother Alberto and younger sister Maria. By the time he was eleven he was an undisciplined, pampered bully. He was expelled from many schools, finally obtaining a diploma in the Science of Farming from the Academy of Agriculture. He went to Paris where he learned apache dancing, joined a gay crowd, returned brokw, took his inheritance of $4000 and, December 1913, sailed for New York. He worked as a busboy, then gigolo, while pursuing dance, especially the tango. In 1917 went to Hollywood and obtained a small dancing part in "Alimony". When he did get acting roles they were villains not lovers. Script writer 'June Mathis' and director 'Rex Ingram (I)' convinced Metro to do "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" and to cast Valentino in the lead. The first million dollar production saved Metro and made Rudy a star. It also brought him to the attention of Alla Nazimova who wanted him to play opposite her in "Camille". Alla's friend, 'Natacha Rambova' (nee Winifred Hudnut) became attached to Rudy and they eloped to Mexico 13 May 1922 in the belief his divorce from Jean was official. He was jailed as a bigamist and fined $10,000. After their re-marriage the following year she fled to Paris having never entered his new mansion, Falcon Lair. He took up her interest in seances a
nd the occult. He began dating sexy 'Pola Negri' partly to improve his image
as a man. While touring to promote his last film, an editorial in the
Chicago Tribune accused him of "effeminization of the American male".
He defended his manhood by challenging the writer of the article to a
boxking match (which never took place). He died shortly afterwards.
80,000 mourners caused a near riot at his New York funeral. Another
funeral followed in California. - Author: Ed Stephan
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Welles, Orson
His father was a well-to-do inventor, his mother a beautiful concert
pianist; he was gifted in many arts (magic, piano, painting) as a
child. When his mother died (he was eight) he traveled the world with
his father. When his father died (he was twelve) he became the ward of
Chicago's Dr. Maurice Bernstein. In 1931 he graduated from the Todd
School in Woodstock IL; he turned down college offers for a sketching
tour of Ireland. He tried unsuccessfully to enter the London and
Broadway stages, traveling some more in Morocco and Spain (where he
fought in the bullring). Recommendations by 'Thornton Wilder' and 'Alexander Woollcott' got him
into Katherine Cornell's road company, with which he made his New York
debut as Tybalt in 1934. The same year he married, directed his first
short, and appeared on radio for the first time. He began working with
John Housman and formed the Mercury Theatre with him in 1937. In 1938
they produced "The Mercury Theatre on the Air", famous for its
broadcast version of "The War of the Worlds" (intended as a Halloween
prank). His first film to be seen by the public was 'Citizen Kane (1941)' , a
commercial failure losing RKO $150,000, and regarded by many as the
best film ever made. Many of his next films were commercial failures
and he exiled himself to Europe in 1948. In 1956 he directed 'Touch of Evil (1958)' ;
it failed in the U.S. but won a prize at the 1958 Brussels World's
Fair. In 1975, in spite of all his box-office failures, he received the
American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 1984 the
Directors Guild of America awarded him its highest honor, the 'D.W. Griffith'
Award. His reputation as a film maker has climbed steadily ever
since. - Author: Ed Stephan
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Downey, Roma
Before starring as Monica in Touched By an Angel, Roma Downey was best
known to television audiences for her portrayal of Jacqueline Kennedy
in the mini-series A Woman Named Jackie. She was born and raised in
Derry City, Northern Ireland, and earned a bachelor's degree at
Brighton Art College in England, UK. She then attended the London Drama
Studio, where she starred in productions of many classics, including
the plays of Shakespeare, Shaw, and Chekhov. Downey toured the United
States with Dublin's famous Abbey Players in a production of The
Playboy of the Western World and was nominated for the Helen Hayes Best
Actress Award in 1991. Her additional stage credits include the
Broadway production of The Circle opposite Rex Harrison, and Off
Broadway productions of Love's Labour's Lost, Tamara, and Arms and the
Man. Downey's additional television credits include starring roles in
the films A Child Is Missing and Borrowed Hearts: A Holiday Romance,
both on CBS, and Getting Up and Going Home. Among her feature film
credits are The Last Word and Devlin. Downey has a daughter. Her
birthday is May 6.
Roma was raised in Derry, then went to the Brighton Art College in
England where she received her bachelor's. After that she attended the
London Drama Studio, where she was awarded Most Promising Student of
the Year when she graduated. Roma was nominated for the Helen Hayes
Best Actress Award in 1991 while touring the US with Abbey Theatre's
production of "The Playboy of the Western World." Her stage credits
include the Broadway production of "The Circle", opposite Rex Harrison,
and some Off Broadway Productions, including "Love's Labour's Lost",
"Tamara" and "Arms and the Man." - Author: DANIEL
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