The Real Pallbearer & Daven's Girlfriends - Part VI

Link to the Rudolph Valentino Podcast here:

Rudolph Valentino & The André Daven Hoax


In the interest of providing documentation and truth about André L. Daven and his affiliation with Rudolph Valentino, I recorded a podcast episode which I titled, "Rudolph Valentino & The André Daven Hoax". In this blog, I share further documentation, images and research material along with excerpts from the podcast script. Please view the podcast's accompanying video through this link: https://youtu.be/B-oaxXfm2sQ

I address the claim made that Daven was a love sick and grieving pallbearer at Valentino's funeral in August of 1926. In researching André Daven's port of entry and departure documents, it has now been proven Daven was not in America during the summer of 1926. Not at all.

Daven was not a pallbearer and the gentleman the perpetrators of the hoax have erroneously identified as Daven is actually Michael Romano, assistant state attorney of Illinois who is positioned between Douglas Fairbanks and Rudolph Valentino's Godfather, the great Italian gentleman, Frank Mennillo. I cite this to the article below as found in the New York Daily News, August 30, 1926, and cite also to the same publication on the 31^st.  Michael Romano was a friend of Valentino's who also organized the memorial for him in Chicago.

Michael Romano between Douglas Fairbanks and Frank Mennillo.

While researching Daven's comings and goings during the summer of 1926, we discovered how six months earlier around the end of January 1926, Daven was working a new angle exploiting those Hollywood connections he made through the Valentinos. It is obvious neither Rudolph Valentino or Natacha Rambova made any public statement about Daven's leaving them with an enormous and unpaid debt.

By 1926, Daven appears as a French press agent for stars such as the Talmadge sisters and Gloria Swanson. One has to think how brazen this was under the circumstances of his leaving in June of 1924. This surely demonstrates he was taking advantage of Valentino's and Ullman's silence to embark on a new career.

During the time frame when those perpetuating the hoax place a grief stricken Daven in New York City at Valentino's funeral in August of 1926, he was in fact in Paris and embroiled in a complicated breakup with his girlfriend Yvonne Legeay. In January of 1926, they ended their relationship which resulted in a lengthy lawsuit widely covered in the French news. Daven's lawsuit with Yvonne involved another great deal of money needing to be paid.

Considering the circumstances of how Daven left the Valentino's sponsorship, the details of his lawsuit with Yvonne Legeay are revealing and tell us more about who he was. He left New York and his benefactors holding a debt which he incurred personally. By 1926, he was being sued by a French furniture designer at the Maison Martine in Paris for another debt he incurred. A side note; the owner of this establishment was Natacha Rambova's favorite designer Paul Poiret. 

It was also learned Daven returned to New York City for two weeks the beginning of February 1926 and at that time Valentino was not in New York but in Kansas. He returned from his European trip with his brother Alberto and his family on the Leviathan which stopped in Le Havre, France on its way to New York. But by February 2, Valentino and family were on a westbound train headed home to California.

Daven garnered some press on February 2, 1926, upon his arrival with the nationally carried piece with photo reading:

   Corsicana - February 2, 1926

In researching the timing of Valentino's trip west, the following article was found which was published on February 2, 1926. I share it as it appeared by wire services in the Visalia Daily Times.

If André Daven was Valentino's great love, would Valentino not have known he was arriving in New York City around the same time? Would they not have traveled together or spent time together in New York? Would Valentino not have seen him in La Havre? Nothing was found to reveal they ever met again after June of 1924. I believe they did not.

By the time Daven arrives as the guest of his client Gloria Swanson, life was then seriously complicating for him. His lawsuit with Yvonne Legeay and the Maison Martine was being covered extensively by the Parisian press. Such as articles appearing in Le Petit Parisien and Candide with titles of the coverage being sentiments such as, “When Love Dies or the Danger of Not Knowing How to Hate” and “The Liquidation of Love”.

                      
                                                       Yvonne Legeay by Julien Pavil

The coverage of the Daven/Legeay lawsuit reads like a soap opera and reveals more about who André Daven truly was. André and Yvonne were lovers and lived together, sharing a household in Paris. They began dating sometime around 1922 and broke up in January of 1926. They had no children but according to court reports, they shared a dog and also shared the financial management of their household.

                                                                      Yvonne Legeay

Yvonne was seven years older than André and would claim in court that when she met him, he was broke and working as a gigolo and that it was she who financed their home and supported him. They both had expensive tastes and their home was finely appointed. 

When they broke up, Yvonne moved out and into a new apartment on the Rue Magellan and André refused to allow her take their commonly-owned furniture. Somewhat remorseful, he agreed to pay for a year of her rent and agreed to assist her in furnishing her new apartment. They were off to Poiret's Maison Martine where they placed an order for some 45,000 francs worth of fabulous furniture including lamps, carpets, throw pillows, etc.

When the bill came due in the summer of 1926, André had just returned from a trek to Africa where he was bitten by a tse tse fly which infected him with a debilitating sleeping sickness. He slept for most of the summer of 1926 and would contract pneumonia which further complicated his recovery. Meanwhile Yvonne phoned Daven's office in Paris and his secretary agreed to write a note to the furniture designers assuring them André would soon be awake and pay the 44,860 franc invoice.

When André did wake up, he was livid with the news and said he had no intention of paying for the huge order. (Sounding reminiscent of his telling Valentino he owed him money for time lost) He and Yvonne fought, things turned ugly and both retained lawyers to set in for the long haul which it turned out to be. André's lawyer arguing he had only given Yvonne advice in her selections of the furnishings and Yvonne saying he bought it all for her.

Daven argued he gave Yvonne a ring worth 120,000 francs and she argued she never saw such a ring. So it went until 1932 with Daven determined not to pay for Yvonne's furniture. The case ground its way through all eight levels of jurisdiction in Paris with the court eventually ordering both Yvonne and André to pay Paul Poiret's house of design, 44, 860 francs.

Meanwhile, André had fallen in love with Danièle Parola; a beautiful performer at the Champs Élysées Theater. By the time he was embroiled in court with Yvonne and waking up from his tse tse fly slumber, he was already in bed with Danièle Parola and obviously very much in love with the young beauty because they would marry on June 21, 1927. Rolf de Maré acted as their best man and André and Danièle would live together the rest of their very long lives. Interestingly, Danièle Parola, as reported in Le Gaulois on May 14, 1926, appeared as a supportive performer in a show titled, "The Paris Review" starring Yvonne Legeay.

So while the Valentino porn fiction writer and the author of the Daven Affair blog claim André was in New York acting as Rudolph Valentino's pallbearer, he was actually in Paris, sleeping through the tse tse fly bite while embroiled in a messy lawsuit with his ex-girlfriend Yvonne Legeay and while beginning his love affair with Danièle Parola.

Who was the actual greatest love of Valentino? Natacha Rambova of course. And for André Daven this was obviously his wife Danièle Parola.

French Valentino biographer Jeanne de Recqueville did not address the claim/the hoax that Daven was Valentino's lover in her book in 1978, because the Valentino porn fiction writer had not written a single book by then and had just not thought it up yet.

Previous to the creation of this hoax, Daven had little mention in the histories of Jacques Hébertot, the theater Champs Élysées or in Josephine Baker's life and her discovery.

In Hébertot's official history, Hébertot is granted the title of Director during his tenure. During Daven's tenure, the director is cited as Rolf de Maré and Daven has no mention in this history. Daven gets few mentions in the biography of Baker by her adopted son and he is not credited as having discovered her on any of Baker's fan websites.

We learn more about Daven's future activities in an article written by Michel Duran, which appeared in the August 1933 issue of Marianne: The French Great Illustrated Literary Weekly.

Translated into English:

"The French cinema has its faithful yet obscure servants. It is good from time to time to mention them to the admiration and gratitude of the crowd. Today I want to ensure the French audience knows one of the most ignored yet obstinate personalities, but whose work tends to give the French cinema the place which is due to it, that is to say the foremost position. (the bell tolls!) This is Mr. Andre L. Daven. You do not know him? Naturally you do not. We know of our glories only when they have past, we reward them only when they are ancient. I do not want him to suffer the same injustice.

A. L. Daven is a pretty dark-skinned boy, small in stature, with black eyes. He is perfectly elegant with a reserved politeness. His hands are strong and broad, which is surprising for one with such refinement. I knew him more than 10 years ago. He already demonstrated an elegance which filled us with the most legitimate admiration, us being writers at Bonsoir, that fascinating and ephemeral journal. Daven worked at Bonsoir, in charge of writing about cinema and in this he contributed an echo or a small article now and then written with care.

And he borrowed money. First from one, then another 10 francs from another. (Never from me, for I was his most formidable competitor.) When he procured this money, he used to go the Clown Footit bar and order expensive cocktails. That's how we, as journalists... establish contacts. In this way Daven came to know many people and I had the pleasure of shooting a film by Louis Delluc with him. He was charming. Since that time, I have not seen him again, but I have often heard of him. His career is varied, but exceptional.

He was the representative of Gloria Swanson in Europe, the unofficial manager of the Talmadge sisters at the height of their movie glory. It was also on this summit that he met Rudolph Valentino, whom he also met in the fashionable bar. Valentino took him to America and had him act at his side in "Monsieur Beaucaire". Daven then returned to France and quite abruptly.

After being a manager of a male variety music group, Daven entered the vast organization of Jacques Hébertot where he became his devoted collaborator. Daven's defeat was soon to come.

Rolf de Maré, sponsor of Hébertot, decided to spend his money himself(with no ones help). He hired Daven and appointed him director of the Champs Élysées Music Hall. The destiny of this establishment was resounding, but very brief. Mr. Rolf de Maré soon preferred to spend the money he had left by himself, alone and withdrew the funding for the theater. We spectators, amused by this miraculous career, did not hear any more about Daven for a while. He took to the stock exchange they said. That's when the talking cinema arrived.

Paramount established a subsidiary in Europe, in Paris, to produce films there. Daven reappeared to our very surprised eyes, impeccably groomed and full of haughty airs. He was then given the title of Director of Production and a new career opened before him. He found his way. He began to serve his country with an implacable will. The French cinema had found its most valiant defender.

Paramount's studios were magnificent, their safes full of dollars, skillful technicians arrived from Hollywood. Everything was done to produce films and colonize the French film market. Fortunately, (for the French film industry) Andre Daven was an active participant. During the two years Daven was employed by Paramount studios, he produced nothing but flops; absurd comedies, hilarious dramas, tear jerking comics.

Under his direction, we never saw money more effectively squandered, better efforts completely annihilated. When he gave up, he left quietly, with his momentum spent: 18 months after his quiet departure, Paramount France was declared a complete failure.

When he left the Paramount's Joinville studios, the German film production was threatening. U.F.A. produced films which were, in France a resounding success. It was on this German side that Daven decided to carry his patriotic efforts. He was soon appointed director of French production in Berlin. The danger from Daven's presence was momentarily delayed, but his German failure did not take too long to explode in Neubalsberg where the films were being produced. After a few months, of hard work, A. L. Daven resigned.

(Let us add again to his praise that one of his best and most generous innovations during his all too brief stay in Berlin... was to drastically reduce the salaries of all the French actors working there.)

Now, our brave knight was off to continue his effort for French film in America, whose film quality became dominating. There, Daven is appointed director of the French production for Fox film. Then again, the hour of Daven's achievements arrives. We were promised wonderful movies. We gasp in anticipation and excitement. Here is another competitor of French film who will soon be defeated and thrown to the ground.

When Mr. A. L. Daven becomes the director of the French production for Metro Goldwyn Pictures our last enemy will be destroyed. The competition will be definitively eradicated. With André L. Daven having been instrumental in destroying all the competition, the true French film will shine throughout the world unchallenged, as an unparalleled product. That's when I'll stand up again, having just reported on his efforts. I will ask for him to be rewarded. The Legion of Honor could not have a more suitable breast, or jacket lapel upon which to flourish. A. L. Daven, tireless servant of our national film production, oh this will be well deserved." - Published in, "Marianne: Grand Hebdomardarie Littéraire Illustré", August 3. 1933 By Michel Duran

I point out the homophobic basis of this hoax by stating that this is found in the repeated mention that Valentino and Daven had homosexual associates. This is given as proof they were gay.

In my opinion it is homophobic to presume someone is gay because they have homosexual associates, family and or friends. How does this in any manner influence anyone's sexual orientation?

In making this claim, those perpetuating the hoax imply, if not state that one's sexual identity is contagious.Yet this is the basis for the claim Valentino and Daven were lovers. This lust to claim the insinuation as fact is also homophobic in that it perpetuates antiquated and negative homosexual stereotypes. Why is this? Why did this happen?

For a bit of insight to this I cite an excerpt from Jeanne de Recqueville where she comments in 1978. 

"Homosexual claims about Valentino are a relatively recent insinuation. It came about because it has been discovered that the subject of someone's homosexuality in general is selling very well and when this is claimed about Valentino it sells better than any other."

The hoax was just about successful marketing and still is.

I think Valentino's death gave Daven and many others an opportunity to invent and reinvent their relationship with him. Obviously he was not about to come out and dispute any of it.

But I do not think we find through this documentation, which is primarily taken from French archives, that Rudolph Valentino treated Daven like a great love and Daven did not treat Valentino like a great love either. They were not lovers and with the existing documentation I allege neither man was gay. Previous to this latest research I did think Daven was gay but now I doubt this. His years of messy heterosexuality has been very publicly documented.

And for Valentino, despite having the adoration and the applause of the world, he was vulnerable on a private level because he was an honest person himself and trusting. Ullman reveals the Daven truth in 1975 to demonstrate how extravagant both Rudy and Natacha were.