Rudolph Valentino (1895–1926) was an Italian-born actor who became one of the most prominent stars of the American silent film era. His screen career spanned from uncredited appearances in short films in the mid-1910s to major starring roles that helped define the romantic leading man of the 1920s. He made 35 films in total 19 extant, 3 incomplete and 13 lost.

Valentino was alleged to have appeared as an extra in an early film by D. W. Griffith. Some writers have tentatively identified a shadowy figure in a still from The Battle of the Sexes (1914) as Valentino. However, according to two Griffith scholars, the film was a hastily produced "quickie," shot over four or five days in December 1913. As Valentino did not arrive in New York from Italy until December 23, 1913, his involvement is considered unlikely. Moreover, Valentino never mentioned meeting Griffith during his early years in New York in interviews or autobiographical writings, which further casts doubt on the claim.

He was also alleged to have appeared as an uncredited extra in My Official Wife (1914), according to Albert E. Smith, head of Vitagraph Studios, who claimed that Valentino approached him and was cast. The assertion cannot be independently verified, and Smith’s later recollections have been treated with skepticism by historians due to inaccuracies in other claims.

While still dancing in New York, Valentino appeared in a few uncredited film roles, including The Quest of Life(1916) and Seventeen (1916). After he moved to California, he devoted more time to acting, and he had bit roles in several films between 1917 and 1920—many of which are now lost. In 1921, he got his major break when he appeared in the role of Julio in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. According to Valentino's biographer, Noel Botham, the film was "hailed ... [as] a masterpiece and Valentino as a star"; the film grossed $4.5 million at the North American box office.

Valentino played leading roles in fourteen films as a romantic figure. His status as a sex symbol was cemented with his appearance in The Sheik (1921), which reportedly prompted women to faint in theater aisles and grossed $1.5 million. Valentino’s second wife, Natacha Rambova, assumed increasing influence over his career and public image, a shift that some contemporaries and critics felt rendered his screen persona "increasingly effeminate." The films in which he played a romantic role within the action genre were the more successful at the box office; these included his final two works The Eagle (1925) and The Son of the Sheik (1926).

Valentino died suddenly of peritonitis on August 23, 1926, at the age of 31. His death at the height of his fame and extensive media coverage turned his funeral into a national event, at which large crowds attended. According to his biographer, Carl Rollyson, Valentino had a "... trim body, athletic grace, and dark good looks [which] made him an action hero and a romantic legend—the epitome of the silent screen's Latin lover".

In 1995, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse was inducted into the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant"; a second Valentino film was inducted in 2003 when The Son of the Sheik was selected.

Filmography

Year Title Role Credited as Notes Extra Uncredited Lost film Extra Uncredited Lost film Seventeen Extra Uncredited Lost film Alimony Dancer Uncredited Lost film Patria Extra Incomplete Lost film (original version) Survives (1924 re-release) All Night Survives Survives Survives Lost film Apache dancer Lost film Dance extra Uncredited Lost film Virtuous Sinners Bit part Survives Out of Luck/Nobody Home Lost film Eyes of Youth Survives Stolen Moments Lost film (original version) Survives (1922 re-release) Survives Extra Lost film Passion's Playground Lost film Once to Every Woman Juliantimo Lost film Survives Survives Uncharted Seas Lost film Survives Survives Camille Survives Moran of the Lady Letty Survives Beyond the Rocks Survives Blood and Sand Survives Incomplete Monsieur Beaucaire Survives Lost film Cobra Survives Survives Ahmed/The Sheik Survives

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