Rudolph Valentino Sings Two Songs (1923)

[mikemcgee]

It makes you wonder if silent actors who did records may have taken a risk of their voice not matching there images even before the talkies ,hurting their career in movies.Valentino has a good speaking voice and fair singing talent like Pola Negrie.He would of made a cross over if he survived but only after smoothing his English

[JackRance1910]

These are fascinating recordings, given the 'legend' - and thanks for posting them in "natural state." But it must be admitted that he is a pretty awful singer. In the second one he is especially flat (musically); at least in the first he tries some style. The whole effect is someone who is blind drunk; his intonation is so very bad. The orchestra do not know what to do at times as he is so inaccurate. And yet as I say there is an attempt at intimacy. Again, thanks so much for posting.

[Kakarot21591]

Lyrics for the first song: Pale hands I loved beside the Shalimar,* Where are you now? Who lies beneath your spell? Whom do you lead on Rapture's roadway, far, Before you agonise them in farewell? Pale hands I loved beside the Shalimar, Where are you now? Where are you now? Pale hands, pink tipped, like Lotus buds that float On those cool waters where we used to dwell, I would have rather felt you round my throat, Crushing out life, than waving me farewell! *Repeat first two lines*

[Mandzee]

It seems strange to put the voice to the face, wish we could hear him talking though. He is soooooo handsome.

[AndreCaronCaron]

Décidemment toutes les fées sont passées à son berceau,  Il avait tous les talents et la beauté en plus.

[lavampire100]

Valentino is and always will be a classic Hollywood star. He was not only handsome and well-groomed (and even well-spoken), but he was also graceful, charming, and gracious. He will always be the greatest of the great.

[lcoyotes]

Okay, who disliked this video?! Yes, the recording is crackly and Rudy's accent is sometimes difficult to understand in the first song, but his voice is rich and magnificent. I was surprised to hear how deep it was. What a combination of looks and voice!

[willieneal57]

Judging by what is heard here, Valentino would have crossed from silent pictures to the "talkies" with no problems. Too bad he died before he got the chance. Thanks for posting the recordings.

[dovecast1]

As beautiful in voice as in face. I adore and love him forever.

Ohhhhhhh..............

Rudy, I can't describe what you do to me and my heart.  Noone like you - EVER.

[TheCharacterActor]

He's one of the few Italians not to give me the creeps.

[DHS11999]

@TheCharacterActor What an utterly arrogant statement to make. I sure hope Italians like DaVinci, Botticelli and that Caravaggio creep don't ever "grease" up your pure, Aryan whiteness. You, Sir, are common!

[TheCharacterActor]

@DHS11999 That was not meant to be an insult. Leonardo Divinci, Andrea Boccelli, Franco Nero are all cool. I was refering to Mussolini and his Fascist lot, The Gambino family and all their unresolved crimes, The Romans and especially Caligula and his gruesome habits.

[TheCharacterActor]

@TheCharacterActor There I should have been more direct.

[LoquaciousByNature]

It's easy to see why women loved him:)

[sacred23ify]

his voice was so captivating.. omg!!

[Miauriceful]

I'm courios to know if he had an accent.

Could have he a career in the sound film?

[DeutscheRossiya]

a Wonderful 116th Birthday to him today :-)

[dsszerothlaw]

Rare recording of Rudolph Valentino singing with beautiful images.

[raunothomas]

he was really the star.... :) ... quite warm voice... from semiotical point of fiew am amazed what the star he really was, and we don't have really nothing to put on his place. Time changes, but the talents don't. We may forget them from our own ignorance.

[SoothingChime15]

Those who knew Rudy described his voice as very pleasant. Actress Gloria Swanson, one of his leading ladies, loved his voice stating he had a "delicious accent"....

[guitarina1]

he was an incredibly charming man

[MagicFreddie]

definitely an annoying singing voice haha. but what a legend! Im so happy i found this i wish there were recording of him just talking.

[vpo2g2]

Good thing he had looks

[tyrrath]

He probably would have had to have a diction coach, but from everything I have read about Valentino, he was a serious, hard-working artist who I'm sure would have welcomed the challenge. His actual voice is baritonal and as lovely and virile as he was.

[DeutscheRossiya]

:-') happy yet sad,Happy to hear his voice Sad that he's dead and of pneumonia :-(

[otistravismax]

@DeutscheRossiya , i read he had appendicitis & sever ulcers

[xxPatheticEmoxx]

I thought his voice was High-pitched, that's why sound pictures ruined his career.

[Cnat123]

Wow! Not what I expected his voice to be.. But still, beautiful face, beautiful voice.. And gorgeous pictures!!!

[jcjoli]

rudolph i miss you i remember yesterday -wherever i go your in my hert,love and understanding and forever more.

[johnvictor123]

His voice was close to being Dean Martin's.

[sara91145]

at 4:50, i squealed with delight =)

[ccipollini1984]

Two songs make me think of Valentino. They are fairly modern and well past his time but still relevant. Die young stay pretty by Blondie and Magic Man by Heart.

[msrudyfan]

@ccipollini1984 How about Roberta Flack's "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face"?

[ccipollini1984]

@msrudyfan

I'm more of a rock person.

[CarlDuke]

Thanks very much.  I don't think I ever heard his voice before.

[funfabmegan]

What a smexxxy low voice. Yes, he sounded quite manly, Most defo not the powder puff as you say@ youngfreak32. I really liked the second song in spanish even better.

[valentinolover70]

Grear video. Thanx for posting. :-))

[ohthemoonandstars]

Are we absolutely sure this is his voice? Can it be verified? I think this is wonderful. I have been a fan for years and I hope so.

[youngfreak32]

Definitely not a pink powder puff!

[10000109105710000]

grande!!

[msmithstud]

i never knew a recording of his voice even existed. Thanks for the upload.

[RockyWhyNot]

Gawd, I love his NOSE!

[romano78]

Que tipaso!!!. Maravilloso video, gracias a transformingArt por compartir éste video con el resto del público.

[84ccipollini]

He still makes people go ga ga. That says alot since he's been gone for over 90 years.

[evvv1010]

Gorgeous Rudolph Valentino had a lot of gifts, but not the song's gift .He had to have at least one defect to be a human being. Anyway, his voice is so masculine..., it thrills me.

[talfacprez]

Thanks so much for making it available for the rest of us to enjoy.

[janicesoprano]

I read his bio last year "Dark Lover" what a great bio of a much loved idol. Thanks for posting!

[cathykatkus]

Wow I never thought I would hear Valentinos voice! His voice is not how I imaged it would sound,much older sounding. But he may have been one of thoses people whoses singing voice is much deeper than his speaking voice. Any way that you for posting this. Do you think Valentino would have made a great DRACULA? I can hear him say "GOOD EVENING". He would be more like Frank Langellas DRACULA done in 1979.

[lunaticorthelover]

5:07

:)

[Rico8458]

did he ever win an oscar?

[thishandisfine]

@Rico8458 - Valentino never won an Oscar - he died in 1926 and the first Oscars ceremony was not held until '29, that one honouring films made in '27 and 28 ,so he just missed the boat as it were

[Shabannie]

Thank you so much for posting this. I am always interested in hearing the voices of silent movie stars.

---------Ellen

[mintghost]

sounds better in spanish than english ...imo. so weird to hear his voice.

[babeofelvis]

I wonder what the 1926 equivalent to "God, he is so HOT" would be?

He was gorgeous.

[claranormaldotcom]

It'd be "he's the Cat's Pajamas" or 23 skidoo or some such...

[navajo777]

I love VALENTINO A BEAUTIFUL MAN I COLLECT HIS MOVIES AND BOOKS ABOUT HIM READ 2 BIOGRAPYHS AWESOME WHAT A TREASURE ALL HIS MOVIES ARE I LOVE THE MOVIE COBRA VALENTINO IS IN ALL THE MOVIE WHAT GRAND  ACTING

[thecherylmay]

i never knew that the was ever a recording of rudolfo valentinos voice.thankyou for uploading this.

[RoyalBeautyShop]

Thank you for sharing this. I had no idea a recording of his voice existed. This is a treasure.

[Shabannie]

Thank you so much for sharing this. This is so interesting!

[susannebass]

Valentino was the GREATEST.  Thank you for sharing this video of his voice. I loved it, even though he is indeed a lot better looking than his voice.

[TheWorldFarOff]

Rudolfo Valentino: It's troubling to learn that he was a participant in black art ceremonies: seances & the like.

[mayatatyana1]

He was incredibly beautiful! Still remembered after all these years. He wa fortunate the films were silent! Terrible singing voice!! How bad did he sound when he spoke, I wonder. The video was beautiful-thank you.

[grainofsandfan]

Thank you for posting this.

[LittleMongoosie]

I have been looking for this for ages! Thank you so much for posting it!

[PlayIt4MeAgainSam]

I was born in the wrong time....all my fav. films & the stars were in the 19teens-40s!

'Valentino'- (sighing)

[7coco3]

@PlayIt4MeAgainSam yeah.. I know exactly what you mean. I was born in 1973 and love those classics too...

[MrLuiscastellanos]

.........................

[abendstunde49]

How nice that he chose this particular song to record!

[enlitenpinne]

This is kind of weird... his carrier ended because of his voice but he´s a great singer o.O

[ciggy1986]

it was not his voice that killed his carrier ... but the sheer fact that he died in 1926 and the wide use of talking films were not popularized till 1928

so please do some damn fact finding before you say something stupid... K :)

[enlitenpinne]

Excuse me then for having a drama teacher telling me lies!

[rtghffdfdg]

Either that or your drama teacher confused him with John Gilbert, whose voice really did do his career in.

[Anyacat3]

John Gilbert's voice was not the problem. The fact that Louis Mayer hated Gilbert and vowed to kill Gilbert's career was had more to do with it. Early voice recordings were tinny and often distorted. This was eventually resolved by the mid-1930s.

[rtghffdfdg]

Technology and Louis Mayer's effect on Gilbert films--though negative--can't account for all the problems, especially since Gilbert was still performing as if he was in silent pictures thus tending to overact in sound films. And while the poor sound quality may have made his voice sound worse in films like "The Phantom in Paris," the other actors sound comparatively much better.

[Anyacat3]

Certainly, Gilbert's thin voice did not fair well in those early movies (his first talkie, His Glorious Night is said to have caused the audience to chuckle). But he still had an audience in those early days and I think with studio backing--and maybe some voice lessons--he might have had a longer career. He's was pretty good in Downstairs, although by then it was too late to revive his career. Of course, his galloping alcoholism didn't do him any good either!

[rtghffdfdg]

Right, and the film industry never gave up on him, as he was reportedly set for more films at the time of his death. He actually was surpsingly talented--he just needed to adjust the image he had in the silent era and start afresh.

[Anyacat3]

Well, he could also have cut down on the booze--that's what really did him in at age 36.

[rtghffdfdg]

Of course. He drank during his REAL failure...to count his blessings.

[Anyacat3]

ORRRR, maybe he drank himself to death because Garbo not only turned him down but left him standing at the altar--well, maybe not, but what a tragic romantic story that makes.

[rtghffdfdg]

That couldn't have help him, but I think they did remain friends after that--even made a couple of flicks together.

[Anyacat3]

Yes, and he drank before they met, but what a romantic notion that he drank himself to death from a broken heart. I also think they were friends with benefits after the break, if there even was a break. She certainly never said.

[Prishtinaification]

@Anyacat3 Where did u get these nformation? I'm sorry , but he and Garbo never had anything with each othe r . He was married to Jean Ackre and Natacha Rambova. I red his biography. I would prefer u read ''Dark Lover'' . Very acurrate book about his life!

[Anyacat3]

@Prishtinaification:

I was responding to another and the subject was NOT Valentino but John Gilbert.

[Prishtinaification]

@Anyacat3

HE DIED 31

[Anyacat3]

Your drama teacher is sadly mistaken and has confused Valentino with Gilbert. A check on Wikipedia provides you with the death date of both actors, as well as descriptions of their careers.

[wigglynose]

i really wish i could travel time. i would love to hear his voice in person

[MadameLil]

What a deep, rich voice. Thank you for giving me the chance to hear it!

[classicalgirl01]

Few! I was so upset because I thought he died without recording his voice or anything. I thought I'd never hear him. What a charming gentleman. His voice isn't bad either.

[LaVerne37]

thank you so much...I knew recordings existed by this is the very first time I have heard them...many thanks for posting!!!

[pinkfairygirl86]

WOW thanks for posing this, it's great to finally hear his voice.

[hassony3]

Thank you so much for giving us these two lovely songs! I can't hear a false note. Very good and pleasant baritone. Few famous professional singers sounded good in recordings from the early '20s, so Valentino is in good company. He would have been great in talkies, such a melodious and manly voice! Please, lovely Korean girl, keep sharing your exquisite taste with us youtubers!

[nisha237vdbsggp3]

wow i have just found out about rudolph valentino through this book i have been reading and i have fallen in love with him.i actually really like his voice i find it very different with the accent and i am sure with more examples it would be even better but its so unfortunate what happened.if only we could see him sing this.he is amazing and i can see why he is loved by so many.thank you so much i thought there would not be anyway i could hear his voice but thanks to you i have had that chance.

[PipamirSolo]

Hey, he doesn't have a bad voice. I've always wondered what he sounded like, now I know!

[TimothyBreeding]

You also know that recording studios were a little primative back then as well as the first talkies, I think he would have made the transition to sound films with no problem, look at Garbo, I think he had a great voice.

[funwithFred]

That is wonderful of you to post this and the photographs are great. I actually think his voice isn't that bad.

[80stimeagain]

I did upload the entire Kashmiri song awhile back, but not the other one.

[lavampire]

Wow! 86 years ago. I wonder how Valentino would be received today in the age of Clooney, Pitt, and Antonio Banderas.

His voice really does not match the look. But no one is perfect.

This song is quite sentimental -- the first song -- it's sort of sad.

[juljaha]

Its VERY interesting !!!!!Thank you!

[nighttimebirds]

nice to have both of these songs in one place. it's unfortunate that pola's copies didn't make it past the war. i think his voice has a warm tone to it. and i think he would have survived sound, we all concentrate on his think accent ( which was more french than italian)-- but admit it-- accents are sexy and i think it would enhanced his foriegn appeal.

[angelasga]

Thnx for posting. :-))

[ch0okz1]

Well done, Mark and thanks for your trouble as I was unaware that even this scrap of his voice remained to posterity, to accompany those smouldering bed-room eyes which ignited the passions of young gals in the 1920's (including my Mum, by her own admission!).

[funkysweetheart]

that's fantastic!

[merrihew]

Some of the best pictures of him I've seen. Were most by a well known photographer whose name I forget? He made many stars of the

'20's look much better than they really looked. Hard to tell if Valentino's speaking voice would have survived sound.

[transformingArt]

Some of the photos were photographed by James Abbe Sr., and one photo - a publicity photo for "Son of the Sheik" - was done by John Engstead the Great.

I actually tried to use another photograph, a photo-montage made after Valentino's death, entitled, "Valentino Welcomed by Enrico Caruso". But I didn't used it.