Valentino's not a Dandy...really!
Unfortunately for him this film really did not help that belief. By today's standards Valentino would be quite a sexy handsome manly man...yet any man would look quite foppish in silk tights, wigs, and more jewels than Liberace. Yes it is distracting and jarring (what film did Natacha work on that WASN'T?) BUT that's a shame: because Monsieur Beaucaire is a damn good movie.
In 1922 after several broken promises from Famous Players-Lasky (including the fact that he was barely making what bit players made) Valentino went on what could be called a 'public rant' against the studio and the movie industry. He was sick of being lied to, and sick of having to make what he saw as subpar pictures. He went on strike for almost 2 years, during which time Famous Players sued his ass and won a ruling barring him from performing on film unless it was for their company.
Valentino liked to spend, and he didn't exactly like math or business things (which is what got him into trouble in the first place), so he needed to find a way to pay his debts and keep his head a float. He made some recordings, did several magazine articles and publicity things, and a dance tour with his now again legal wife Natacha Rambova.
Finally in 1924 Ritz Carlton Pictures (ironically via Famous Players) worked with Natacha Rambova to solidify a new deal (in fairness to her she was actually good in this arena, unlike Valentino): 2 pictures for Famous Players, and then he would be given free reign to make 4 at Ritz Carlton. After that little 'Hooded Falcon' debacle only one film would actually be made with Ritz Carlton (Cobra, which Valentino found lacking). However he did fulfill his Famous Players obligation with A Sainted Devil, and Monsieur Beaucaire.
Monsieur Beaucaire was the first time the public had seen him on screen in those 2 years (minus the newsreel 'Valentino and his 88 American Beauties' from the Dance tour). It was his 'comeback' of sorts and VERY important. Which probably explains why I have an inexplicable amount of pictures and promo stuff from it. He and Natacha were on their best behavior and did everything they could to win over the press. Unfortunately at least from our point of view in history this was a misfired comeback in every form and way.
The dandy costumes did not help the accusations of Valentino being effeminate. And much to my surprise Monsieur Beaucaire was mostly an action comedy...making it one of 3 to my knowledge. The Eagle would be in the same vein but even that did not do as well as hoped, so one can assume the costumes killed this picture from the start. However elements of Valentino the Great Lover were still there...did you know he could rape you via French etiquette? Now that's hot.
Plot
The film opens in Regal 17th century France at the Palace. Princess Henriette (Bebe Daniels) who is fresh from a stint at a convent, The Queen (Lois Wilson), and the bored sewing King (Lowell Sherman) sit and watch performances by various acts. The King says none of them are entertaining enough and demands The Duke de Chartres (Rudolph Valentino) be brought forth, as he is always able to entertain him.
The Duke is brought out and performs a dance with a female dancer. Princess Henriette finds him attractive and makes googly eyes at him, but a gossip whispers to her how the Duke is close with the scandalous Madame de Pompadour (Paulette Duval) which would be an insult to her as she is close with the Queen. The Duke begins performing a song and again tries to make eyes with her, but when he realizes she is snubbing him he is SHOCKED...as no woman has ever snubbed his attentions before! So trying to get back at her he makes googly eyes with another woman, while watching to see if she is jealous. He ends his song and he and the Princess go back and forth sniping at each other, with everyone watching. She is cold to him, and he wants her bad.
The next day we see the servants appalled at something weird and abnormal: the fact the Duke is SHAVING HIMSELF (scandalous apparently)! He's quite proud that he is able to do this, and we see an extended dressing scene involving at least 5 minutes of torso nude Valentino. God bless whoever insisted upon it. 80 million people are involved in dressing him and as they do so they gossip, telling the Duke he must assist the King in putting that mouthy Princess in her place. The Duke gladly agrees.
The King is obviously a little well...wimpy. He commands that the Princess and the Duke will be married and that the Princess must accompany the Duke to another gathering. However he's so scared of commanding something that the Duke ends up saying it, which causes the Princess to snap at him saying she doesn't have to listen to him. The King backs him up and very reluctantly the Princess holds out her arm to accompany him.
She tells the Duke how she hates him and the Duke teases her saying she'll make a fine wife. She says she will never speak to him again. He smiles and says in that case she will make a VERY fine wife indeed. Together they arrive at the gathering and the Princess quickly leaves his side. To retaliate the Duke begins to flirting with another woman, and the Princess tries to pretend to not care. A young servant accidentally trips and breaks the Queen's fan, and the Duke in a gesture of kindness calms and helps the servant, taking blame for the broken fan. The Princess is impressed by his kindness, and starts to believe maybe he is more than just a self centered ladies man (apparently his number of conquests his legendary).
Upset by her new feelings she goes out onto the porch for what will be a very hot scene. The Duke joins her and tries to make his feelings known, most of which she refutes by claiming it is too well rehearsed. She eventually does admit feeling for him and they kiss. However when the Duke claims she was making a 'rendezvous' with him she takes offense and says he is self centered and too caught up with his image. She calls him a ladies man and says she'd rather marry a latchkey if he had a pure heart than a King of conquests. The Duke's ego is SHATTERED and at an ill opportune time the rest of the party catches up with them and insist they join them for dinner back at the Palace.
At Dinner The Duke sits stewing, extremely hurt and his ego bruised. The Princess sits smug, proud she got her point across. The King moves to make a toast to their marriage (as he has decreed it and his word is law) and the Duke stops him. Heart broken he denounces the Princess and says since she has called him worse then a latchkey he will marry whom he pleases. Madame Pompadour stands up excitedly but the Duke makes a bold insult by saying her heart belongs to the King...in front of everyone. The King orders him arrested and the guards surround him. The Duke says he will do them no harm as they don't deserve it, and instead of sword fighting them he uses his bare hands and runs like hell out the window.
Now a wanted man the Duke hides with the French Ambassador in Bath, England. He pretends to be the Ambassador's Barber under the name Monsieur Beaucaire. He's quite excited about his new life as he gets freedom, no women are chasing him around expecting him to 'make love' (flirt), and if he could just get his first real sword fight he'd 'die of joy'. The Ambassador is extremely nervous about this endeavor, even more so when a decree reaches him summoning him to London to help hunt down the wanted Duke. The Duke insists on joining him...until he spots 'The Belle of Bath' Lady Mary (Doris Kenyon). With a new conquest in mind he decides to stay in Bath, much to the Ambassador's relief.
Soon after The Duke is speaking with a British acquaintance when he spots Lady Mary and her man posse. He asks to be introduced but the British acquaintance is shocked by such behavior (being commanded to do something so bold by a nobody!) He insists its no use anyways, only a man with a title will turn Lady Mary's head. The Duke, unfazed, rushes to retrieve a rose Lady Mary had dropped and return it to her. Her man posse is not thrilled by this, but she doesn't seem offended. She apparently gives roses out to men who have her favor. Its her thing.
One night the Duke goes to play cards where all the blue bloods are. They seem weary of him, but since he has gold they let him play. Until someone spots him and recognizes him as 'The Ambassador's BARBER!' Scandalous! After making a scene The Duke is called out and told to leave, in front of Lady Mary. He's deeply embarrassed (that whole 'wanting to crawl into a hole and die' look) but since he wants to win her favor he quickly saves face. He declares he doesn't really care what they think, and if anyone wants to play cards they are welcome over to his place, to play any sort of game for any sort of money.
Apparently he is such a good loser and winner he soon becomes popular and many people come over to play with him. A nobleman recognizes him from a visit long ago to Versailles, but The Duke pleads his cover be kept. The nobleman agrees. The Duke then asks a favor. Everyone knows Lady Mary's favorite boy toy (the one who called him out at the card game earlier) is a card cheat (which is scandalous). He asks to help him catch the guy in the act. The nobleman agrees.
Boy toy comes to play, and is caught in front of a bunch of witnesses. He insists no one will believe a Barber over a nobleman...until he realizes the other nobleman was behind the door and seen the whole thing. The Duke insists the boy toy will take him to the party tomorrow and introduce him to Lady Mary, and to 'save him face' he'll pretend 'Monsieur Beaucaire' is a Duke as well. He grudgingly accepts. At the party the boy toys plan to take the Duke out via sword fight...not realizing he's quite good at it. The Duke wins and afterwords is introduced to Lady Mary, who falls for him.
More time passes and its insinuated The Duke is now Lady Mary's favorite boy toy. After dinner, out in the yard, the Duke declares his love for her, saying he'd die for her. She says she gladly accepts. Being in the country side swords are not illegal (they are in the city) and the boy toy posse plan more revenge on The Duke. They ambush him with about 5 on 1 sword fighting. The Duke takes them on and basically wins, though his arm is injured and later he is stabbed in the chest.
Lady Mary denounces her boy toys...and insist they bring her coach so she can take the Duke somewhere to heal. However the main boy toy begins to tell her the Duke is really a 'barber' (everyone is still unaware he is REALLLLY the Duke de Chartres). She refuses to listen but the Duke insists she does. When she hears 'the truth' she denounces the Duke and takes her old boy toy home instead!!!
The Duke's heart is broken, and his friends (who are aware of his real status) take him to the countryside to heal. He lies there, saying its not the physical wounds but the emotional ones. Saturday comes and it is the day of another party at the boytoy's place. The Duke had vowed to show up, basically as a big fuck you. However boytoy promised to have 20 constables outside so he could not get in. The Duke gets around this by DISGUISING HIMSELF AS A CLOAKED WOMAN!!! AMAZING. Just amazing.
When inside he gives Lady Mary one more chance, asking if its really a man's title that matters. She continues to spurn him and boytoy arrives, accusing the 'Barber' of stealing a Prince's clothing. The whole party is made aware that the 'barber' is now there and everyone watches in awe of the scandal unfolding. Until one of the Duke's friends recognizes him and brings him over a letter, which declares he is now a free man as the King is 'bored to death' without him. Everyone is in shock that such a high ranking man is 'kissing a lowly barber!' Until the truth is made known (quite hilariously at that...the Duke's titles take up over 2 full title cards).
Boytoy is humbled, and Lady Mary is horrified that she shunned such a high ranking man, a blood relative to the King of France! She tries to make nicey nice to him, but he basically tells her to fuck off, and thanks, because she helped him realize there is only ONE woman who loves him. As he had sat waiting for Lady Mary to arrive earlier a vision of the Princess had appeared, from the night she said she'd rather marry a lowly latchkey than a King of conquests. He realized that he was still a good man without his titles, and he deserved a woman who loved him regardless of his titles...even if he was a 'latchkey'.
The Duke returns to France and the Palace. He meets up with the Princess in the garden of Versailles and proclaims his love for her and apologizes for leaving her like he did (due to his bruised ego). She forgives him and they kiss. He thanks her for letting him have this 'interview' with her, and she smiles saying it was more like a 'rendezvous'. The End.
Thoughts and Best Scenes
After the soul wrenching experience that was Camille, I was maybe a little gun shy about this one. For such a publicized film the weird thing is there just isn't much about it out in the Valentino fandom world. No one talks about it, its no one's favorite, and you just don't hear about it other then the cringe worthy pictures of Valentino all powdered and wigged up.
However much to my surprise and relief I loved it. It was extremely long being only about 30 minutes shorter than Four Horsemen, and with a lot less heavy subject matter. And that may be part of its problem. It started out extremely fresh and hot, but about the time Valentino and Lady Mary are getting lovey in the Garden well...you wonder if its the end yet. Not because its boring, but because its just very long. Especially for an action comedy. However in fairness once that initial lag was over and you realized there was more you could enjoy it. I feel they wrapped up all the ends nicely. And I liked that. The last scene with the Princess in the Garden was extremely beautiful, and a perfect ending.
I also think maybe audiences back in the day did not fully appreciate the self deprecating humor going on. They really (and sadly some people do still) thought Valentino was 'the Sheik' in real life. So when he mocked that they didn't realize it was because in real life he was just a shy quiet French/Italian man who loved animals and liked to cook...and hated dancing and womanizing (I'll take a wild stab in the dark and say Valentino was subservient in his relationships...Rambova wore the pants and he LOVED it). So when the Princess shuns him during his performance, and he acts horrified with the title card informing us, "This was something he wasn't used to! No woman had ever shunned him before!" they just didn't get why that was funny. Of course in real life women shunned him...Jean Acker anyone? I think that should be the official lesbian test...if you would lock Valentino out of your bedroom you are 100% not into men!
And that really was the great thing about "Monsieur Beaucaire": for the most part it was witty, fast shooting, dialogue and acting. June Mathis will have to forgive me but this film definitely differs from most Valentino ones in this respect, and it really worked. At least for me. Obviously the June Mathis style was the 6th best selling silent of all time, and the Sheik style was legendary, while Monsieur Beaucaire flopped harder than anything else he ever did during his leading man days. However I hope audiences now can enjoy it.
As for best scenes Valentino again was just amazing. AMAZING. The last time I laughed this hard was when I first seen "My Best Girl" by Mary Pickford in the theatre. Just perfection as always. However in fairness Valentino couldn't have been amazing if it weren't for Miss Bebe Daniels. She was a great actress (her husband created the Marilyn Monroe name...who knew?) and her verbal sparring with Valentino made for the best scenes. Oh if ONLY this could have been a talkie. Random side note: the DVD release apparently uses a score in which they claim Valentino sings. I have not seen the DVD so I do not know what it is but I have no clue what they could stick in there...Valentino only recorded two songs in his lifetime ("Kashmiri Love Song" from the Sheik, and "El Relacario" from Blood and Sand) and neither have anything to do with this movie. Also being 1924 it would have been possible to sync bits of dialogue with a film (the process having been introduced publicly the year before) but seems that would have been HEAVILY advertised if it had been the case...so I just have serious doubts as if that's either a) original or b) really Valentino at all.
Back on track. The opening scene with Valentino performing stage was extremely good. He may have hated dancing but he was good at it. And his guitar performance (to make The Princess jealous) reminded me heavily of Elvis...I wonder if Elvis ever seen "Monsieur Beaucaire" (he obviously was made aware of the Sheiks judging by "Harum Scarum")? The "you will make a fine wife indeed" scene had me laughing for 5 minutes straight. One has to wonder what Natacha thought of that line...
When Valentino played heartbroken he played it well. His fight with the Princess in the Garden is probably one of the best scenes in the whole movie. It's also one of the hottest scenes he ever did. More recognition needs to be given! And of course finally the Garden scene. Extremely beautiful and sweet.
You know just one question really begs to be answered here: why didn't Valentino and Bebe Daniels ever spar on screen again? Was it the failure of this film? If so I find that one of the greatest silent tragedies, up there with the fact Anna May Wong was refused leading lady status, Olive Thomas died in 1920, and that Theda Bara was passe by 1921.
Oh and a...that dressing scene. Yes its amazing to watch (as a woman) and a little pointless. I feel alongside the 'no woman had shunned him' and the 'no women expect me to make love to them' jokes this was also done tongue in cheek. But no one back then would have noticed it. I'll give it at least one thing: it doesnt DETRACT from the film. And besides: Valentino in tights and no shirt of 5 or so minutes...heaven.
Let's talk about Natacha
Someday soon (probably next week) I'd like to do a piece on her. Since I'm sure I sound anti Rambova. I have given this some thought...of Natacha were not associated with Valentino then she would be on that list of 'people who did things but it never appealed to me'. Like Jean Harlow. Much like Nazimova there is just no reason for Rambova to appeal to me...she pretty much specialized in things I find dull (arty films being her passion). So I swear up and down it is not a vendetta against her, she just really was not of my tastes.
However obviously when discussing Valentino's life and career, and given how submissive he was, its impossible to NOT have to anaylize her at some point. She's not alone in the matter. In the Four Horsemen review June Mathis was anaylized, in Camille it was Nazimova, for Monsieur Beaucaire it MUST be Rambova. Her fingerprints were all over this period in his life let alone this film, she just cant be glossed over. And unfortanitly I cant say I admire her like June Mathis, I put her in the Nazimova category.
Valentino had legitimate gripes against Famous Players. They were corporately and artistically raping him. However anytime Valentino got heavily into 'artistic insistence' it was usually with Rambova behind him. He wanted to make good pictures yes (as evidenced by The Eagle which she was barred from and eventually divorced him during) but he wasnt stupid, he didnt want to alienate his fanbase. Natacha on the other hand wanted to make Farmer Joe appreciate Camille.
When the Valentinos returned to Famous Players they were offered two screenplays to choose from: a sea adventure, or Monsieur Beaucaire. They had just been to France, Valentino was half French (his mother was from France), and this was obviously one of those possible 'artsy' pieces they had so desperately wanted. Natacha was put in charge of sets and costumes, and also helped produce the picture.
As much as I loved the film its obvious where the misfires were here. Valentino had been tortured in the press from his early days for being 'effeminate' as they found his Sheik costumes and his Spanish costumes 'un-American' because they were baggy and thus womanly. This bothered him GREATLY. At least in this films he kinda got a little rapey or was at least forceful, so he could defend himself. Monsieur Beaucaire he is obviously the more masculine of the French men but thats not saying a lot. Yes he could fence with the best of em...but when Douglas Fairbanks wore tights (Robin Hood) he didnt have a powdered wig on too and a history of his mascualinity being called into question.
Valentino's last film, before the 'strike', was "The Young Rajah" which had bombed as well. It was too mystical a role, and the character didnt get particularly rapey at any point (he was a perfect gentleman and an All American boy...who happened to be of Indian blood) . He needed another "Blood and Sand" but instead of something along those lines he and Rambova went for a "Camille". A note worth making is every film of his she worked on bombed: Camille, Young Rajah, and Monsieur Beaucaire. I have trouble finding that to be a coincidence. Of them Young Rajah is the ONLY one where the costumes FIT...where they DONT jar you out of the story. Which leads me to my next point.
Setting this film in 17th century France was not going to help masculanity matters; and the costumes were basically a death sentence in the matter. Americans have a history of finding that time period and place 'effeminate' so how they could not realize that is beyond me. Wigs, tights, powdered faces, lots of jewels...its hard to pull it off and be taken seriously. Even to this day. Given the odd fact that Valentino had not really established his films or himself in Europe I think that just hammers home the odd choice. In this day in age he could have pulled it off indie for overseas but back then neither thing existed.
I'm going to give Natacha one thing: IF this film were in color...IF...then the costumes may have been breath taking. But in black and white it just is jarring once again, much like Camille. The costumes should not be louder then the story, which they again are. Color films existed from 1922 (Anna May Wong in "Toll of the Sea" was one of the first) but they did not win serious favor until the late 40s thanks to that Depression and War thing) and had a boom in 1928-1929 but Natacha was obviously aware they werent getting that treatment. She just couldnt seem to use her artistic talents in a way that wouldnt overshadow (and smother) a whole film.
The sets aren't noteworthy really until the very final scene, with the Garden of Versailles. I'm giving her this: that was perfect. It didnt smother the scene, and it wasnt out of place. Why that was so hard for her I'll never fully understand.
When the film flopped even Lasky gave Natacha the full blame. I give her the usual amount of blame, but she wasnt alone. Someone gave her control to do the sets, costumes, and associate produce. Considering she negotiated Valentino's contract I have a wild guess as to WHO insisted upon it. Also Leider suggests in her book that Valentino himself had wanted her in those positions and had choosen the picture to show off her talents. His strike against Famous Players (amongst other things) was set off by the fact they did not help him out during that whole Bigmay thing...and he seen that as an insult to Natacha. So it is possible he seen Monsieur Beaucaire as a way to show Natacha was talented, and just as important as he was. Or maybe he just wanted to make her happy since he loved her so much. Why and how we'll never know but it does give something to speculate on.
Also given what happened next one wonders what was going on with Natacha and Rudy privately. They had their troubles. For starters Valentino wanted a traditional housewife who would cook and pop out babies (he LOVED children deeply). However Natacha hated the idea of being a housewife, Valentino was probably the better cook, and according to Nita Naldi she accompanied Natacha on 3 aborition trips...whether true or not Natacha always made it clear she wanted no children and did not care for them. Natacha and Rudy had things in common (antiques, the finer things, animals) but those serious things and her lack of respect for his home country and family (she threw a fit during their travels to Italy) may have also been chipping away by this point.
After Monsieur Beaucaire and the Hooded Falcon debacle (there shall be an article soon on that one), Rudy couldnt get a contract WITH Natacha. Ritz terminated the 4 picture deal (having only made one, Cobra, which Valentino found lacking) and United Artist agreed to take him on...as long as Natacha wasn't part of the picture: literally. She couldnt even be on set.
This humiliated her greatly and she set off for New York just days after the contract was signed. Valentino was surprised and shocked when she announced she was filing for divorce once on the other coast. And thus his broken hearted end of life began. But given ALLLLLL that it does make one wonder: what was going on during Monsieur Beaucaire? Was this a last ditch effort to save the marriage? Or was it the final nail in the coffin? Fascinating stuff.
The saddest thing about this film is that if it werent for the two major misfires (Valentino in a foppish role, Natacha controlling the scenery and costumes...or on the other hand no one thought to shoot it in color) there is pretty solid stuff at the core. Yes the movie is long, and maybe some of the script could have been cut or condenced. BUT beyond that the writing was extremely good and solid, the cast was solid, and the acting was spectacular. It didnt have a chance in hell to begin with...but everyone was spectacular anyways.
Behind the Scenes Tidbits
*This was Valentino's comeback film, after 2 years away from the screen
*This was the 2nd to last film he'd make for Famous Players-Lasky
*The film was shot at Astoria Studios
*To make nice, the press was invited to the set during filming
*It was said the prop men even got into the film's spirit by putting jewels and lace on their tools
*350 wigs (costing $40,000 not adjugted for inflation), $85,000 worth of antique jewelry, and $90,000 worth of costumes were used in the film. 40 of the costumes were made in France, with the rest being made in New York.
*There were 15 principal players and 100 extras
*Bebe Daniel's skirt caught on fire during filming, Sidney Olcott tackled her and put it out...scaring the hell out of her
*Natacha insisted on being called 'Madam' on set...most likely to one up Nazimova. Meanwhile Valentino insisted he could be called 'Rudy'
*Actress Jetta Goudal bowed out of the film after clashing with Natacha one too many times (Goudal claimed Natacha was a know it all)
Reception: Then and Now
This was supposed to be Valentino's major comeback vehicle...and it BOMBED. Well in fairness its a little more complex then that. Unlike Camille it's not so cut and dry (much like the feelings towards this film). Monsieur Beaucaire did well in major cities, and it was a major hit in Europe (this was a first, before Valentino had travelled to Europe most of his films did not get screened there). It even had a reception for Queen Alexandra on her birthday! But Farmer Joe didnt like it...and it bombed in small town USA.
On top of that, even with the Farmer Brown's of the world shunning the film, Monsieur Beaucaire would have done well enough if it didnt have such a lavish budget, and Famous Players-Lasky wasnt on its last leg (they were in deeeep financial trouble at the time). It was no Sheik, but it was no Camille either. Overall high expectations were had, and the film just could not live up to them. So it was dubbed a flop and a low point, to be forever shunned.
Most reviewers agreed: we're glad to see Valentino back but quite trying to be so damned artistic. Many seen it as a clothes horse styled vehicle and nothing more. Which just proves my point: it was a good movie underneath Natacha's frills. An interesting note is Stan Laurel made a film (sadly now lost) in response called "Monsieur Don't Care". I'm sure it was hilarious.
Now the reception was something else entirely. I was sad to see the theatre maybe 10% less full then last time. Maybe word got out about Camille being so unbearable? There were still women, but a lot more men and a lot more (to my eye) film enthusiast then last time. I also got the impression there were a lot of first timers there, and a lot of people who weren't even familiar with the particular film. That is really cool honestly, because I think they were impressed. Especially by the fact there is live accompniament. On that note Bob Mitchell was again on the piano, and did wonderful as always. He even played "Red Red Rose" the theme song to Monsieur Beaucaire.
Every silent showing the theatre shows usually 2 shorts before the feature (as they did in the olden days). I really enjoyed the ones tonight: An early Keystone Cops (with what I believe to be Mabel Normand in it though there were no credits), and a film by Will Rogers called "Big Moments from Small Pictures". It spoofed "Blood and Sand", "Robin hood" and a Keystone Cops. AHHH the Blood and Sand one was hilarious! Poor Rudy though...the insinuation was he was too pretty to fight real bulls, and at the end of the day even found that too draining. In reality the truth was quite different (Valentino wanted to fight a real bull but the studio wouldnt let him).
On top of the shorts there is always a little introduction done by the lovely staff about the feature. I almost died when they mentioned, "And gay marriage has been in the news of late...and thats interesting because BOTH of Valentino's wives were lesbians as you know..." Someone corrected her during the break but there is truely no rumor that annoys me more because it has its roots in 'gay by association' and 'gay by effeminate rumors' (both of which I find personally very homophobic.) Jean Acker was gay and married Valentino to escape Nazimova (Valentino was in the dark, its possible she led him on). Natacha Rambova could have been bi but was most likely 100% straight. She just hated children, and proclaimed feminisim. Valentino was 100% straight. There.
Kenneth Anger (author of the dreadful unresearched book series "Hollywood Babylon") once showed up to a Carmen Miranda screening unannounced. He is the reason most people believe that rumor (as he stated Valentino married two lesbians, and gave Ramon Navarro a signed dildo...both false) and he just stopped short of calling Valentino gay. He also made several unsavory insinuations about Olive Thomas and perpetuated the Karl Dane talkie myth. I sat for the whole screening wondering if I should walk over and punch him in the face or not. I decided he wasnt worth the assault charge...but I hope someone else finds him worthy of it.
Back on track. The crowd seemed to enjoy Monsieur Beaucaire, with laughter and "ooohs" where appropriate. Everyone clapped again for a few minutes, much longer then Camille's pity claps. Everyone seemed very surprised and pleased with the film, which I am glad for.
Alright loves...we have now officially begun...SHEIK WEEK! AHHHH!!! I'll be posting about that in a minute. But despite the obvious lets sell that bitch out. Click here to purchase tickets!
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