VALENTINO WEEK

DeLongpre Park

 By Allan R. Ellenberger

Developed in 1924 for $66,000, De Longpre Park is named after painter Paul De Longpre, whose celebrated home at Hollywood Boulevard and Cahuenga Avenue was the first tourist attraction in Hollywood.

On May 5, 1930 (Valentino’s 35th birthday), at twelve o’clock in De Longpre Park, actress Dolores del Rio drew back a velvet curtain to reveal the bronze figure of a man with face uplifted.

The statue, entitled “Aspiration,” was designed by sculptor Roger Noble Burnham and was paid for with contributions from fans and admirers. The inscription reads: “Erected in the Memory of Rudolph Valentino 1895-1926. Presented by his friends and admirers from every walk of life — in all parts of the world, in appreciation of the happiness brought to them by his cinema portrayals.”

A week later, neighbors, who insisted that they were not consulted on the matter (and that the only statue in the park should be of De Longpre himself), made an official protest. Regardless, nothing came of the matter and the statue remained. No more was heard of the statue until a few years later when a woman named Zunilda Mancini came forward, claiming to have donated $6,900 towards the statue, which actually cost only $1,500. She sued Valentino’s former manager, George Ullman in court and was awarded the difference of $5,400.

“Aspiration” as it appeared in the 1930s

The year after the unveiling, a fourteen-year-old girl was found on a bench near the statue. Police said she had been chloroformed and most likely sexually assaulted. She died at Hollywood Hospital without regaining consciousness. Three years later, on November 1, 1934, the caretaker of the park found the lifeless body of thirty-year-old Ann Johnston in a rest room just a few feet away from “Aspiration.” Next to her was an empty poison bottle. Since she left no note, it remained unclear whether her suicide was related to Valentino or, as the police surmised, was due to a nervous breakdown she recently suffered.

The statue has been the object of vandalism several times over the years. On February 2, 1952, it was found broken from its base and lying on the park lawn. Taken to the city service yard for repairs, it was not returned for nearly twenty years.

Close-up of repairs made in the 1970s

In July 1979 a bronze bust of Valentino sculpted by Richard Elllis and paid for from the estate of one of his fans, was mounted on a tall, white pedestal several feet from “Aspiration.”

 Bust of Valentino that has stood in DeLongpre Park for almost thirty years

Shortly afterward a group of concerned neighbors initiated a campaign to revamp the neglected park. To this day, “Aspiration” is the only monument ever erected to honor an actor in Hollywood.

Warning: De Longpre Park is located in a rather shabby part of town, surrounded by a metal fence and locked up at night. Please take reasonable precautions when visiting.

If you are in the Los Angeles-Hollywood area this Saturday, August 23, be sure to drop by the Rudolph Valentino Memorial at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The service is held at the Cathedral Mausoleum and begins at 12:10 p.m. - the time of Valentino’s death in New York. Arrive early as seats go quickly. See you there.

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BREAKING NEWS

Ricky Martin is father of twins: representative

SAN JUAN (AFP) — Latin pop star Ricky Martin is the new father of twin baby boys, born by a surrogate mother, representatives for the spunky Puerto Rican crooner said Wednesday.

Martin, 36, known for his hits “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” and “She Bangs,” became a father a few weeks ago and plans to spend the rest of the year with the babies, according to a statement by Perfect Partners.

“In recent weeks, Ricky Martin became a proud father by the birth of twin sons. The children, delivered via gestational surrogacy, are healthy and already under Ricky’s full-time care,” the statement said.

“Ricky is elated to begin this new chapter in his life as a parent and will be spending the remainder of the year out of the public spotlight in order to spend time with his children.”

No further details were released about the mother or the babies.

The singer, who has been active in children’s causes through his Ricky Martin Foundation, maintains residences in New York and Miami.

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VALENTINO WEEK

Valentino’s Crypt

How Valentino came to be in his final resting place 

By Allan R. Ellenberger

Once Rudolph Valentino had been interred and the obsequies completed, the thought of how the actor would be remembered was foremost in everyone’s mind. The city of Chicago, home of the infamous “Pink Powder Puffs” editorial, formed the Rudolph Valentino Memorial Association in the hopes of erecting a remembrance of some kind. The Arts Association of Hollywood proposed a monument that would be the forerunner of a series of memorial to pioneers of the film industry. A committee of local Italians, which included director Robert Vignola, Silvano Balboni, and his wife June Mathis, suggested the construction of an Italian park on Hollywood Boulevard with a memorial theater and a large statue of Valentino as its central feature. Despite those grandiose projects, no memorials actually materialized — and it slowly became apparent that the same would happen with Valentino’s final resting place.

After Valentino’s death, a decision could not be made as to where the actor’s body would finally rest. George Ullman, Valentino’s manager, was confident that Alberto, the actor’s brother and the person who would have the final say, would consent to interring the body in Hollywood. The Mayor of Castellaneta, Valentino’s birthplace, cabled Alberto imploring him to have the actor’s body returned there for burial with ceremony. Valentino’s sister Maria, who at first wanted her brother brought back to Italy, later concurred with the Hollywood delegation, thanks in part to the suggestion of William Randolph Hearst. To solve the problem – at least temporarily – June Mathis offered her own crypt at Hollywood Cemetery mausoleum until an appropriate memorial could be decided upon or built.

When Mathis died in New York less than a year later and now was in need of her crypt, a decision had to be made about what to do with Valentino. As a good-will gesture, Silvano Balboni offered to have Valentino’s casket moved to his crypt next to Mathis’ until the Valentino estate ironed out its problems. On August 8, 1927, cemetery workers entered the Cathedral Mausoleum and, what proved to be one last time, moved Valentino’s remains to the adjoining crypt, number 1205.

While public memorials were being considered, Valentino’s body continued to lay in a borrowed tomb. At the time of his death, architects were asked to submit designs for a mausoleum, with an estimated cost placed at $10,000. Photoplay magazine published plans for a proposed tomb by architect Matlock Price in the November 1926 issue.

 The Memorial that might have been…

The design incorporated an exedra, a half-circle of columns standing serene and dignified against a dark background and curving towards the observer. Within that half-circle, a “heroic” bronze figure of Valentino as the Sheik, seated on an Arabian horse, towered above the onlooker. Following the curve of the exedra, a broad bench sat under two pergolas running across the ends of the terrace, which was paved with red Spanish tile.

These plans also went nowhere, and a permanent mausoleum for Valentino has never materialized. In May 1930 a memorial to Valentino was finally erected in De Longpre Park in central Hollywood, the only one of its kind dedicated to an actor in the film capitol.

The Valentino statue, “Aspiration,” in De Longpre Park 

In April 1934, after Valentino’s body lay in a borrowed tomb for almost eight years, Silvano Balboni sold the crypt to Alberto. Balboni returned to Italy and never returned to the United States; Valentino now had his own resting place.

Rudolph Valentino’s crypt in the 1930s (LAPL)

Every year on August 23rd at 12:10 p.m. (the time that Valentino died in New York), scores of fans gather near his crypt at Hollywood Forever Cemetery to remember the man. Regardless of the circus atmosphere that once prevailed at these events during the past eighty-two years, whether it be reports of the actor’s ghost or the appearance of mysterious, dark-veiled women, it is hoped that somehow the spirit of Rudolph Valentino, the “Great Lover,” now rests in peace.

If you are in the Los Angeles-Hollywood area this Saturday, August 23, be sure to drop by the Rudolph Valentino Memorial at Hollywood Forever Cemetery. The service is held at the Cathedral Mausoleum and begins at 12:10 p.m. - the time of Valentino’s death in New York. Arrive early as seats go quickly. See you there.

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VALENTINO WEEK

The 82nd Annual Rudolph Valentino Memorial Service

HOLLYWOOD FOREVER CEMETERY

6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood

Cathedral Mausoleum foyer

Saturday, August 23, 2008

12:10 pm

By Tracy Ryan Terhune

This coming Saturday - August 23, 2008 marks the date of the 82nd anniversary of the passing of Rudolph Valentino. And keeping with long time tradition, once again we will be celebrating the LIFE and legacy of Rudy in the annual Valentino Memorial Service. (Contrary to some misguided opinions we do NOT celebrate his death. Only a person who’s never attended the respectful recent memorials would think in that way.)

This year our key-note speaker will be Tim Considine. He himself was named a “Disney Legend” in 2006 for his classic Walt Disney television work in the Spin and Marty serials as well as the Hardy Boys and co-starring in The Shaggy Dog and much more.

Tim’s father was United Artist producer John W. Considine Jr. - who produced Valentino’s final two films: The Eagle (1925) and Son of the Sheik (1926). His father was, along with Charlie Chaplin, (and others) a pall bearer for Valentino’s West Coast Funeral on September 7, 1926. He will speak for the first time publicly on his father’s stories and association with Rudolph Valentino.

Also there will be a new introduction video on John W. Considine Jr which is being edited by Bob Birchard. Also a complete new Valentino Tribute video will be shown.

Legendary musician Bob Mitchell (who will turn 96 next month) will once again be on hand to both play the music and sing two Valentino related songs.

Much more is in the works - and I hope anyone who’s in Hollywood next Saturday will make plans to be there. 12:10 is the time it starts, which is the exact time of day that Valentino died.

Please note: there will be NO outdoor Valentino screening this year.

Tracy Ryan Terhune has been the emcee of the Valentino Memorial Service for several years and is the author of Valentino Forever: The History of the Valentino Memoral Service (2004) and Valentino The Unforgotten (2007). He is also the moderator of the Valentino Yahoo Group and has a website dedicated to the silent film actor.

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1896-1936

Olympic Posters

NOTE: The 1916 Olympics was not held because of World War I

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BREAKING NEWS

DeGeneres marries girlfriend

U.S. comedian and talk show host weds actress Portia de Rossi

Reuters

August 17, 2008

 BREAKING NEWS

Eighth wonder! Phelps wins record gold

Brendan Hanson, left, Aaron Peirsol and Michael Phelps react as Jason Lezak brings home the gold in world record time during the men’s 4 x 100m medley relay swimming final . (Carl De Souza/AFP/Getty Images)

By Randy Harvey

BEIJING — Bob Beamon won a gold medal 40 years ago with a long jump that still stands as an Olympic record. It was such an amazing jump that feats considered comparable for years to become were called Beamonesque.

Will spectacular achievements now be known as Phelpsian? The remarkable Michael Phelps won his eighth gold medal Sunday, breaking Mark Spitz’s single Games record of seven gold medals that stood almost as long as Beamon’s, 36 years.

Phelps, 23, of Baltimore, won the record breaker in a relay, the 400-meter medley. Unlike the 400 freestyle relay last Monday, in which his record quest was kept alive by Jason Lezak’s phenomenal come-from-behind anchor leg, Phelps had to rely to a great extent on himself in this one.

The United States was in third place when he dived into the water on the third leg, the butterfly. He swam it in 50.15, more than seventh-tenths ahead of Japan’s Takuro Fujii, who had hit the water first, and almost a full second ahead of Australia’s Andrew Lauterstien, who had dived in just ahead of Phelps.

He handed over a relatively comfortable lead to Jason Lezak, whose heroics weren’t necessary this time to bring the United States home in a world-record time of 3:29.34. Australia finished second in 3:30.04. Japan was third in 3:31.18.

In eight finals, Phelps either produced or helped produce seven world records.

“It’s been such an unbelievable roller coaster,” Phelps said. “It’s been such an unbelievable ride. With so many people saying it couldn’t be done, all it took was a little imagination.

“I don’t know what to feel right now. It’s so emotional. All I want to do is go see my mom.”

For his career, Phelps now has 14 gold medals, five more than anyone else in history, and 16 medals, second only to Soviet gymnast Laryssa Latynina’s 18.

London calling?

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BREAKING NEWS

Michael Phelps speeds to 7th gold

Michael Phelps celebrates winning the gold in the men’s 100-meter butterfly final. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

By Randy Harvey 

BEIJING — Milo Cavic, the Serbian who grew up in Tustin, said he wanted to be the spoiler in Michael Phelps’ quest to become the first athlete to win seven gold medals in a single Olympics since Mark Spitz. Cavic almost pulled it off.

Phelps won the 100-meter butterfly Saturday, but it was his closet individual race yet. Cavic appeared to make a mistake right at the end, gliding after the last stroke instead of swimming all the way to the wall, and enabled Phelps to touch first.

Although it was the seventh gold for Phelps, it was the first time he hasn’t set or been part of a world record here. He won in an Olympic record of 50.68. Cavic was second in 50.59.

Cavic, who swam for UC Berkeley, dominated the first half of the race, swimming the first 50 in 23.42. Phelps actually was sixth in the eight-man final at 24.04. But he came on strong in the final 50, setting up his attempt to break the all-time record when he swims in the 400 medley relay Sunday (Saturday night in Los Angeles). If he wins, that will give him eight gold medals for Beijing and 14 for his remarkable career.

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OLYMPICS SPECIAL

Many of the Olympic athletes and medal winners over the past 112 years have become household names including Jim Thorpe, Jesse Owens, Cassius Clay (Muhammad Ali), Joe Frazier, Mark Spitz, Peggy Fleming and Bruce Jenner, just to name a few. However, only a handful have gone on to successful film careers. Following are five Olympic medalists who also made a name for themselves on screen:

 Johnny Weismuller

JOHNNY WEISMULLER (June 2, 1904, Freidorf, Banat, Austria-Hungary (now Romania) — January 20, 1984, Acapulco, Mexico).

He won five gold medals as a swimmer at the 1924 and 1928 Olympics, setting many free-style records. Weissmuller appeared in several sports shorts, then was hired by MGM to play Tarzan onscreen. Beginning in 1932, he starred in 12 Tarzan adventures, meanwhile doing almost no other film work. In the late ’40s he quit Tarzan and began starring in a new series, Jungle Jim, while occasionally appearing in other films through the mid ’50s, after which he retired from acting. He was married six times. His stormy marriage to actress Lupe Velez (1933-38) received much coverage in scandal sheets. He authored an autobiography, Water, World and Weissmuller (1967). ~ All Movie Guide 

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 Sonja Henie

SONJA HENIE (April 8, 1912, Kristiania (Oslo), Norway — October 12, 1969, en route by air to Oslo, Norway)

Upon receiving a pair of skates for her sixth birthday, Norwegian entertainer Sonja Henie decided to forego a dancing career for a life on the ice. To refine her technique, Henie continued taking ballet lessons, at one point studying with a former teacher of Anna Pavlova. She won the first of her ten World Skating titles in Oslo at age 14; she went on to win honors at the 1928, 1932 and 1936 Olympics. In 1936 she turned professional, touring the world in her own ice show. Thus, Henie was already a very wealthy woman when she was signed to a Hollywood contract at 20th Century-Fox. From her American film debut in One in a Million (1936) onward, Henie was one of Fox’s biggest box-office attractions. Her film career waned in the late 1940s, but Henie retained her popularity through her sellout appearances with the Hollywood Ice Capades and via sporadic television appearances. In 1960, Sonja Henie retired, a millionaire many times over; nine years later, she died of leukemia while flying on an ambulance plane from Paris to Oslo. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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 Buster Crabbe

BUSTER CRABBE (February 17, 1907, Oakland, California — April 23, 1983, Scottsdale, Arizona) 

Athletic actor Buster Crabbe, born Clarence Crabbe, grew up in Hawaii where he developed into a first-rate swimmer and athlete, going on to win the gold medal in 400-meter swimming at the 1932 Olympics (he broke the record held by another actor-athlete, Johnny Weissmuller). After the Olympics he found work in Hollywood playing Tarzan, branching out from this character to eventually play Flash Gordon, Billy the Kid, and Buck Rogers, among other action heroes. He became enormously popular with young audiences for his appearances in many serials and action flicks of the ’30s and ’40s, and ultimately starred in over 100 films. He also made westerns (in the ’40s he was teamed with sidekick Al “Fuzzy” St. John), and was on the list of Top Ten Western Stars at the box office in 1936. Crabbe went on to star in the ’50s TV series Captain Gallant, which also featured his son Cullen “Cuffy” Crabbe. He considerably slowed down his acting output in the ’50s and ’60s, becoming the athletic director for a resort hotel in the Catskills and investing in the swimming pool business. He also authored ~Energetics, a book on physical fitness for people over 50. Crabbe later returned to the screen once, for a large role in The Alien Dead (1980). ~ All Movie Guide

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 Herman Brix (Bruce Bennett)

HERMAN BRIX / BRUCE BENNETT (May 19, 1906, Tacoma, Washington — February 24, 2007, Santa Monica, California)

When Tarzan creator Edgar Rice Burroughs set about to produce his own talking pictures based on his jungle-man creation, he decided to emulate the example of the MGM Tarzan pictures, which starred Olympic champion Johnny Weissmuller. Using the 1932 Olympics as his talent pool, Burroughs selected shot-put champ Herman Brix, who’d already played a few bits in such films as Student Tour (1934) and Death on the Diamond (1934). Brix was quickly dispatched to Guatemala to film the 12-chapter serial The New Adventures of Tarzan (1935). In 1937, Brix took some time off to learn the rudiments of acting, then re-emerged on screen in 1938 with a new name: Bruce Bennett. His parts increased in size and importance when he moved to Warner Bros. in 1945; here he was assigned such choice roles as Joan Crawford’s ex-husband in Mildred Pierce (1945) and the lone prospector who is killed off in the middle of Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948). A ubiquitous second lead and character actor throughout the 1950s, Bruce Bennett left films in the early 1960s to make a bundle in real estate, briefly returning before the cameras in 1972. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

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 Duke Kahanamoku