Rudolph Valentino and his wife, Natacha Rambova, during their Mineralava Dance Tour of 1923.
"The tango can be debated, and we have debates over it, but it still encloses, as does all that which is truthful, a secret."
- Jorge Luis Borges
1921 marks the 100th anniversary of 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the film that transformed Rudolph Valentino from minor film player to superstar.
The following essay arose from a simple question: how did Valentino come to learn the tango? The more I watched his famous 4 Horsemen tango - both with the eye of a dancer, and the eye of a film scholar - the more I began to question the official version of events. Is Valentino's dance really as inauthentic as some have suggested - or does it actually bear the imprimatur of one of the great early figures of Argentine tango?
Much remains to be uncovered from Spanish language sources, but what can be proved is a fascinating, little-known connection between two legends in their respective fields - actor Rudolph Valentino, and tanguero extraordinaire, Casimiro 'El Vasco' Aín.
Read on!
- Jorge Luis Borges
1921 marks the 100th anniversary of 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse, the film that transformed Rudolph Valentino from minor film player to superstar.
The following essay arose from a simple question: how did Valentino come to learn the tango? The more I watched his famous 4 Horsemen tango - both with the eye of a dancer, and the eye of a film scholar - the more I began to question the official version of events. Is Valentino's dance really as inauthentic as some have suggested - or does it actually bear the imprimatur of one of the great early figures of Argentine tango?
Much remains to be uncovered from Spanish language sources, but what can be proved is a fascinating, little-known connection between two legends in their respective fields - actor Rudolph Valentino, and tanguero extraordinaire, Casimiro 'El Vasco' Aín.
Read on!
This essay is Brooksie At The Movies' contribution to the Silent Movie Day Blogathon, part of the inaugural National Silent Movie Day on 29th September 2021!
Please click on the banner to the right to view other contributions, or click here to read more about National Silent Movie Day.
Please click on the banner to the right to view other contributions, or click here to read more about National Silent Movie Day.
