As they have done for 89 years since, Rudolph Valentino’s fans gathered at 12:10 pm in the mausoleum at Hollywood Forever Cemetery to pay tribute—songs, praise, sermons about the eternal life of fame.
Dreams do come true, and sometimes wilder than anyone could have imagined them, but sometimes they have to lay dormant—or get left behind, or rot, or even be given to someone else—for a long time before they can.
Americans know where the Star-Spangled Banner was written (Baltimore harbor) and where Lincoln was shot (Ford’s Theatre). But where on this planet did the Wicked Witch of the West melt or Bogie say, “Here’s looking at you, kid.” The Alamo happened at the Alamo, but where did Darth Vader say, “Luke, I am your father.”? It happened somewhere.
Ironically, the heedless way the world viewed silent movies was the very thing that allowed these copies to survive unnoticed at the end of the consumption chain.
At the time? Embarrassing. Now? Fun! Strange how a few years makes you see the joy that was intended.
You may think the musical Oklahoma! is a sweet little show about friendly farmers and cowmen, but I’ve got an arousing awakening for you. Oklahoma! is drenched in sexual innuendo, rape metaphor, and bestiality references. After all, the whole plot revolves around who gets to take Laurey to the “box social” — a coded consummation… Read more »
One of the fascinating things about studying American history is that it’s so full of contradictions. In order for a country of our size and variety to cohere at all, we require a group acceptance of some pretty romantic mythology. And often, the real story is a lot uglier than the prettified conventional wisdom we’re… Read more »