Customer Reviews

Dark Lover: The Life and Death of Rudolph Valentino

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(8)
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I have read so many books on Rudy Valentino that my first instinct was to pass on this. I was sure no one could do much with the life of an actor who has been dead nearly 77 years. Fool that I am, I figured I'd give it a cursory look/see and probably put it down in quick order and move on to better things.
The shocker here is that this is really one of the best biographies I've picked up in a very long time and it has as much to do with the writer/researcher as it does with the subject itself.

This is no rehash of the same tired Rudy V. stories that have been perpetuated since his death. It contains a lot of fresh material and new insights into the personality and public persona of Valentino.
Leider is the rare combination of gifted biographer and tireless researcher. In the process of writing this book, she managed to really get down to the bare bones of her subject. She managed to do this while creating a mood and setting for all the action. In other words, she seemed to really understand the environment under which Valentino and all the other early screen stars worked and flourished in.
Where as other Valentino biographers seem to spit out questionable or unsubstantiated "facts", Ms. Leider to the best of her ability deals honestly with the material given her and attempts to authenticate information to the best of her ability and she deals honestly with rumors and innuendos and labels them as such.
One aspect of Leider's research that I found particularly interesting is that she not only researched her subject, but also the secondary players who interacted with Valentino during his life. She developed full profiles of people such as Pola Negri, Natacha Rambova, George Ullman......people who interacted with Valentino and were important components in the story of his life.
I am a huge fan of Jean Harlow and Clara Bow's biographer David Steen. Now Emily Leider also has my admiration. She and Steen have set a standard for celebrity biographers to follow.

Anyone can write a biography of a film star. However not everyone's efforts are worth the time to read or the money spent. Luckily, Emily W. Leider is one of a rare breed, a writer who truly respects her subjects. DARK LOVER: THE LIFE AND DEATH OF RUDOLPH VALENTINO doesn't give into the all too easy route of sexy gossip combined with careless writing.

Rudolph Valentino, like Leider's previous subject Mae West, radiated sex, sin and sensuality from the silver screen even to this day. DARK LOVER explores Valentino's youth in Italy, his early years in America, his peak as a Hollywood love god and his tragic death at the age of 31.

Under the costumes and behind the smoldering eyes was a man seeking love and family even as he make some disasterous life choices. Case in point, Valentino's two marriages to women who for their own reasons were light years away from the Madonna of the Hearth Valentino longed for.

The end result is a beautifully researched and fully fleshed portrait. Even buying DARK LOVER for the pictures alone is well worth the cover price for the evolution from gawky Italian boy to Hollywood legend.

If you have an unlimited book budget or save your pennies for books, DARK LOVER is a must have for the Hollywood fanatic.

This is everything a good celebrity biography should be--scholarly, thoroughly researched, entertaining, insightful, giving detailed profiles of people who were very important in the star's life instead of just focusing on the subject himself, and giving off the genuine feel that the writer really has respect for her subject. Too many celebrity biographies, sadly, are little more than tabloids, reporting every bit of gossip as undisputed fact, even if there's zero evidence, repeating the same old unverified or exaggerated anecdotes, and giving credence to misinformation provided by questionable sources, many of whom have some sort of agenda. Ms. Leider's book is nothing like the type of sleaze churned out by people such as Geoffrey Giuliano and the late Albert Goldman. It's easy to fall into a trap of writing a sensationalised account when you're dealing with a star about whom there's been so much misinformation, gossip, and outright slander for so many decades, but she rises above that and reports only the truth (though of course people who have long cherished and believed in said gossip aren't going to be too happy their longtime fantasies are discredited).

There were a couple of tidbits in this book I found to be a little too much information, but even those things were presented in a tasteful and respectful way, not just put in there to be to shocking or sensational. There were also a lot of great pictures, and a LOT of sources listed in the back to go to for additional information (books, magazine articles, websites, etc.). Having heard that this book was very positively and heartily endorsed at the annual memorial service on Valentino's Jarhzeit (death anniversary), I was sold on reading it. And since this book has been written, happily, 'Beyond the Rocks' is no longer a lost film as it's reported in these pages. It's the perfect combination of scholarly research, lively storytelling, and genuine respect and love for the biographer's subject.

Considering the fact that Valentino was with us for all of 31 years, and the passing of an entire century has obscured his activities for much of that time, I was a bit shocked when I saw the size of this book. I knew he had immeasurable impact on popular culture and all of that, but still!

Imagine my surprise when I read the book! The sources seem to be fairly reliable upon review, and Leider does an admirable job steering us through the obscure (his childhood and early years in the USA were surprisingly informative). However, the book takes a bizarre turn after "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse", which made Rudy a star. After that, the details are so thorough it doesnt feel like I'm reading so much a biography as it does an almost daily chronicle of someones' life.

Previous reviews indicated the book was tabloid-like, but i did not find that to be the case at all. Quoting individuals who were present and knew the subject, or referencing publications like newspaper or magazine articles is not gossipy at all. If anything, the author tries to disprove some of the sensational speculation about Valentino over the years...one example was his sexuality- she comes off as biased in this regard and a few others, but fortunately, the book is so massive these instances are rare.

Overall, this book was an enjoyable read, and did help me to appreciate Valentino as a complex, charismatic individual. Just be prepared to do ALOT of reading!

I have seen other books on Rudolph Valentino but was always skeptical since 'Rudy' has been dragged through so many tabloid type write-ups but this one appeared to be a valid and thoroughly researched work. I am delighted that I bought it. At long last, Rudy is shown as both the man and the actor. There are times when Ms. Leider has to state that "he may have..." but it is necessary when Rudy's early days in New York are open to guessing what he may have done. When there is no record available, Ms. Leider takes the high road rather than interjecting a definite action the young immigrant made. I found it difficult to put this book down. It is a page turner. I found myself feeling as if I knew Rudy and I liked him. I didn't want him to die! Like Jean Harlow, he didn't seek medical help until it was too late.
Both Harlow and Valentino have been subjects of author Irving Shulman. Those books are to be avoided at all costs. Instead, go with David Stenn's definitive biography on Jean entitled "Bombshell: The Life and Death of Jean Harlow". Like Emily Leider, he did his research leaving no stone unturned. As for those reviews who call Leider's work "homophobic", I disagree. There is simply no evidence that Valentino was gay or bisexual. He was not homophobic and there may have been one fling with a man but if no evidence is present then one cannot assume otherwise that Valentino was heterosexual. Like James Dean, people often want him to have been bisexual or gay. Ms. Leider states that both women and men were attracted to Rudy and that is true. The same holds true for Valentino. There is a certain vulnerability and boyishness about him that is attractive. But take note how she refutes Pola Negri's statements that she and Rudy were engaged. Rudy was down to earth and not histrionic like Pola.
The films themselves are crucial and it is sad to learn how many are lost such as "The Young Rajah". Hopefully, it may be discovered like "Beyond The Rocks", his only film with Gloria Swanson.
This book is a keeper. It is alive and the author brings Rudy from his pedestal and shows the young man and his many turmoils with the press and insecure American men! If anyone were to ask me what book to read on Valentino, this is the one. I am grateful to Emily Leider for showing us Rudy, warts and all. He was often foolish in spending, in love and he was no businessman
What we have here is, after so many years, the real Rudy.

Emily Leider's well reseached biography of Valentino is most welcome after a drought of over 20 years since the last good biography. This book is well annotated as to sources and offers many new insights to Valentino's early life as well as his life in New York before he became a star in Hollywood. I think that Valentino himself would welcome this book, he is treated with fairness and a level-headedness and without an agenda, other than telling his story. Leider traveled the globe from Castellaneta to Hollywood Forever Cemetery to search out sources for Valentino and the results in the book show!

An easy read, it was a pure joy and I could scarely put it down. This has my highest recommendation as the Valentino biography to read above all others currently in print (and many of those out of print as well!)

I came to this book as a feminist and as a student of American racism.

A pernicious and powerful form of racism took root in the US during the time of the c. 1880-1924 immigration of Eastern and Southern Europeans. Scientists, academics, journalists and politicians in the US, during this era, decided that Eastern and Southern Europeans were different and lesser peoples than those of Northwestern Europe, whom they labeled "Nordics."

This racism was so powerful that these Eastern and Southern Europeans, along with East Asians, became the only immigrants in American history whose numbers were limited by the US Congress on the basis of their racial inferiority.

It is more than ironic, it is utterly fascinating, that the most desirable man in America at this time, a man whose very name has come to signify romance, and whose film role, "Sheik," has become the name for a brand of prophylactics, was an Italian immigrant, once so poor he had to sleep outdoors, and his consorts were Natacha Rambova, a WASP who took a Slavic name, and, then, Pola Negri, a Polish-born actress.

Emily W. Leider does an excellent job of presenting the popular press reaction to the racial and sexual threat Valentino posed. I wish she had had presented more and wider background on the racist literature of the day, but readers can find this literature elsewhere, in, for example, Higham's "Stranger in the Land."

I also came to this book as a feminist. Valentino may have been unique. He was a star of the first order whose career was built on his ability to arouse women. Valentino had other talents - he was a dancer, and, as his performance in "The Eagle" shows, a fine comic actor. He was no bimbo; Leider notes that copies of Proust, in the original French, were among his possessions. He could converse in several languages.

But his career was ultimately about his ability to please women erotically. That cost him. The press hounded him. Men criticized him. Panic can be sensed in some reactions to him. Would his career, his willingness to wear such a feminine item of apparel as a *wristwatch,* cause "matriarchy" to break out? This panic is, again, fascinating.

We are missing the point if we consider ourselves to be more advanced than those in Valentino's day. No star has taken up the mantel that was dropped when Valentino met his untimely death. And attractive male stars today have to work to prove themselves to men by, for example, fighting and damaging their prettiness, as Brad Pitt did in "Fight Club."

I came to this book for an in-depth discussion of issues of race, class, gender and eroticism, issues that have, by no means, been settled in our own day. I got that discussion, and so much more. I found Leider's style to be distant and careful. She dots her i's and crosses her t's; her sources are cited and she is careful not to cross the line into intense psychoanalyzing, or into fervent or even just highly detailed critiques of the Valentino filmography.

But I was unexpectedly moved by the Valentino I met in these pages. Leider quotes H.L. Mencken's account of his encounter with Valentino, shortly before the star's death. I came away from Leider's book feeling similarly to how Mencken felt after his real life encounter with Valentino. I felt as if I had crossed paths with a tender, boyish, charismatic, uniquely gifted/cursed, somewhat lost young man, whom I would never forget, and whom I couldn't help but, however distantly, cherishing.

I just finished "Dark Lover" and I have only one thing to say.....WOW!!! I can honestly say that it is the most thoroughly researched book on Rudy to date, and Emily dug deep to uncover every Valentino morsel that could be found. While there are no "smoking guns" (as some folks had hoped for), it is a treasure trove of incidents, insights, and opinions that previously were overlooked. I found many new details I was unaware of, such as the souvenir coins minted for "The Eagle" or Rudy falling off the stage at the premiere of "Son of the Sheik." Also, that Natacha apparently had an affair at the end of their relationship, or the seriousness of Rudy's relationship with Andre. RV's later years have more depth than ever before, but where Emily really scoops is on Rudy's childhood....peeling away the years like the layers of an onion. One can almost feel the hot, yellow sun beating down on Rudy's back as he plays mischievously in Taranto...

I closed the book with regret that I had no more to read.

Emily, you outdid yourself. Well done!

Rudolph Valentino was Hollywood's first Latin lover, and the prototype for all who came after. This detailed bio by Leider traces his boyhood in Castellenata, Italy, where young Rodlpho Guglielmi was a poor student, myopic, with a love of technology and gadgets, costumes and daydreams. He responded well to the nurturing of his mother, Gabriella, but not to the authority of his father, Giovanni. Restless and full of energy, as a child he was nicknamed "Mercurio," for the wing-sandaled messenger of the gods.

This olive-skinned, kinetic boy sailed to America (type "Rodolfo Guglielmi" into a search box at ellisisland.org and you will see the ship's manifest and view his entry, where the 18-year-old listed himself as an agriculturist at a height of 5'9") and eventually became "The Sheik," whose cinematic exploits were filled with adventure, violence-tinged sex, and plenty of hot tango dancing. Leider points out that Valentino's brand of European sexiness, where men wear jewelry and are not afraid of showing their emotions, grated on the nerves of post-WWI American men, who were annoyed by giddiness he inspired in their shingle-haired shebas and decried him as effeminate. Sexuality was beginning to be more pronounced in the `Teens and `Twenties, and Rudy's romantic but slightly dangerous style fit in beautifully.

Alas, Rudy's real life was not so serendipitous. Always seeking the nurturing control of mama, he married two women who were controlling but little else. Jean Acker was an actress and lesbian who slammed the door in her bewildered husband's face on their wedding night with no explanation. The exotic-sounding Natasha Rambova (really Winifred Hudnut from Salt Lake City, Utah), probably the love of Valentino's life, was reserved and icy, and eventually alienated Rudy's friends, co-workers, and studio bosses. His most consistent mother figure was undoubtedly June Mathis, the screenwriter who adapted the Vicente Blasco Ibanez novel "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" for the screen and insisted on the lithe Valentino for the part of Julio, which made him a star. He smoldered on the screen for five scorching years after that in such monster hits as "The Sheik," "Blood and Sand," and his last film, "Son of the Sheik" before his untimely death from peritonitis at the age of 31. Fans were so upset at this dreadful occurrence that a few committed suicide surrounded by his photos.

Although his wives may have had ambiguous sexuality, Leider (who seems touchingly besotted with her subject), consigns to the dustbin of history the notion that Valentino was bisexual, the much-ballyhooed slave bracelet be damned. Ironically, the screen's great lover lamented, "...In every love union there is one who loves more than the other...In my romances...that one has been I."

I would recommend this book to any lover of early cinema and Hollywood lore. Leider also includes postscripts on his two wives, both of whom exploited him shamelessly after his death, and his brother who attempted to fashion himself in the same mold but came up short.

Up to the very last page, I was able to still see in the heartsick, twice-divorced screen idol the dreamy-eyed Italian boy who came to America to seek fame and fortune, and blazed such a trail he still resonates 77 years after his death.

This is one of those well written biographies of the present day that captures my attention like few others: a well researched, well investigated study of a life that was encompassed with scores of urban myths and mock-biographies. Emily Leider does an excellent job both desconstructing the myths surrounding Rudolph Valentino's life, and explaining just how calculated many of the legends and misrepresentations were.

It's shocking, even in this day and age of papparazzis and tabloids, to read about the publicity machines involved in the silent stars. We read not only about the energetic fans and jealous critics of Valentino's celebrity, but the obsession his own employers had with controlling his public behavior to the point of sending private detectives to spy in on his every move.

Ms. Leider did well in portraying Valentino as a real human being rather than a man defined by his alluring mystique. She clearly illustrates the labor, the strokes of luck, the blunders, and often the tedium involved in Rudolph Valentino's climb to stardom. While many have seen Valentino the Lover, we read about the years he spent barely making a living as a dancer; the numerous bit roles and stereotypical "exploitive foreigner" roles he had to play; his naivete, along with the insecurity and heartbreak he experienced with Jean Acker and Natacha Rambova, all the while being known as the ultimate Casanova.

Rudolph Valentino's real life was legitimately fascinating without having to exaggerate his ups and downs. While it can be said he had much enjoyment and adventures few got to experience, it is difficult to read how many of his tragedies come about by close friends (and even his first wife Jean Acker) who use his celebrity for their own gains. Particularly appalling is the account of a friend who, after Valentino's death, exploits the auctioning of his estate's items.

The rumors of Valentino's marriage to Natacha Rambova as being "a marriage of convenience" are cleared up too. There were several sources and write-ups throughout the years citing both parties as gay, and the marriage as being a cover up. While Ms. Leider does say it is likely both were bisexual, their love and passion for each other was very real. She also illustrates how their working too closely in the same business strained, and eventually destroyed, their marriage.

If there is one criticism I would zero in on, it is the frequent over-analysis of Rudolph Valentino's films. This is not to say that the stories and motivations behind the films are not interesting, and much of it is key to the story of Rudolph Valentino himself; there is just a bit too much space devoted to the many intricate details of the films' plots and backstories.

If you want a biography that deifies its subject, this is not the book for you. This book shows us the complexeties of the Rudolph Valentino who at times was quite naive, but also aware of how superficial and misleading fame could be. Emily Leider did such an excellent job showing us the three-dimensional Rudolph Valentino, that I'm going to begin reading her biography of Mae West very soon.