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In Memoriam, Natacha Rambova (January 19, 1897 – June 5, 1966) - Music, 'The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face') - performed by George Michael
We remember her today. Natacha died on June 5, 1966. To begin, I'd like to put into this blog post a beautiful tribute to my cousin that comes to us from journalist Ruth Waterbury. This appeared in Photoplay Magazine in the December 1922 issue:
*****
'She is very subtle, is Natacha Rambova
She is white satin, embroidered in gold
She is absinthe in a crystal glass
She is a copy of Swinburne bound in scarlet
She is beauty drugged with sophistication
She is a yellow orchid shining forth from a vase of black onyx.
She is the outward visible sign of Rudolph Valentino's spiritual evolution.
She is the symbol of his culture, she is the crystallization of his success
She is, she says, absolutely natural
She is very subtle, is Natacha Rambova.'
*****
When Rudy and Natacha were going through the initial stages of Rudy's bigamy trial, there was a point when Natacha was living in the Adirondacks and Rudy was back on the West Coast trying to do damage control. Although this was as much for Natacha's safety as anything else, they missed each other terribly and both had a tough time. Rudy had immediately put Natacha on the train for New York upon learning of the bigamy charges and turned himself in to the authorities. Natacha was met in New York by her mother and Mr. Hudnut and she traveled with them to Foxlair (the Hudnut retreat in the United States) in the Adirondacks.
The couple talked quite frequently on the phone and Natacha was overheard by the people in the small town closest to Foxlair (where she would use the only available payphone) to baby-talk to Rudy. When she realized her privacy was compromised and gossip began to fly, she began to stick to letters. Rudy also wrote letters, but he preferred to send telegrams and they were not kept secret either. Rudy also indulged in baby talk to Natacha. He eventually made it to Juan-les-Pins to see her, dressed in his version of 'incognito' complete with a fake mustache and dressed in golfing attire. He was recognized almost instantly.
In this excerpt from one of the letters to Rudy, Natacha is musing on their upcoming book of poetry, 'Day Dreams.' Their initial plan for the book included illustrations. I'm going to let Natacha take it from here as she relates the story of 'The Orchid Women' to Rudy. I have not changed the grammar, punctuation, or sentence structure used by Natacha. We shall be jumping in mid-letter:
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"Do not forget the idea which the public has formed of you and which should guide us; this being the unusual and something useful for a few out-of-the-ordinary illustrations. This volume must be very rare and exceptional as well as appealing to the general public. Do you remember the story which I once told you; the one about women-orchids? I think it would serve to make a fascinating poem with a wonderful opportunity for an unconventional illustration.
The story, in a few words, refers to a gardener whose hobby and passion consisted of collecting orchids. He learns that a mysterious orchid is found in the undergrowth of an African region. He moves to Africa and at last, runs into a tribe telling him of a gigantic flower which grows in the bush, not far from there. They tell him it is a cursed plant and that in the night it emits a strong odor and whoever smells it loses his mind. The gardener laughs at this, considering it only as a superstition of an uncivilized tribe.
Then he tried to induce them to guide him to that place, but they are afraid and refuse, limiting themselves to orienting him so he can go there alone. After wandering through the undergrowth for a day or two, one night he is attracted by a wonderful and subjugating perfume as well as by an iridescent light shining through the dense vegetation.
Guided by the light, the gardener comes to find the magnificent orchid which appears as a flickering flame. It is about three feet in diameter and consists of all the colors of fire; scarlet, orange, yellow, etc. In addition to this, from the center of the flower radiate tentacles, like fingers of various lengths which are endowed with life and extend outward. It also has luminous virtues, which emits the faint, light that had first attracted the gardener's attention.
He is full of joy at this wonderful and beautiful find and takes the plant with him. He then places his trophy in a special corner of his garden. As the days pass, the flower fascinates him more and more and he believes he sees in it the soul of a woman. At last, he only lives to wait for the sunset and go to spend the night under the spell of the fragrance, light, and beauty of his flower.
It seems to him that a woman breathes and lives in the flower. In the heart of that flower, you could see the soul and the face of the woman-orchid. The long, flame-colored tentacles, always in motion, seem to caress him and hold him in a passionate embrace. One morning. he is found dead in his garden with the tentacles of the flower tightly wound around him. I think the story is fascinating.
And I could suggest or bring to mind the vision of a beautiful woman carrying an orchid of the view of the Florida undergrowth. You can do something wonderful with this and I'm sure Adela St. Johns will agree with me. This could become the top poem and I have an idea for a truly amazing illustration. It depends on how it interests you.
You must put extraordinary things in the poems and the topics must be fascinating as well. Last night I received your letter written after receiving that terrible telegram from me. My beloved child, I know you are having a lot of patience and that you do what you can to understand me when my exasperation overwhelms me. I also do everything I can to control myself and not to worry you, little boy.
You do not know how the strain exhausts me; it's so hard! And it seems that I'm going from bad to worse, instead of correcting myself, despite what I do. Nor does it ever leave me, the fear that this will separate us in the end. If you could hurry up and come before it's too late!
Try to have a little patience and I will also try to master myself as best I can. My imagination seems to be always active and exaggerating and I cannot stop it. I anxiously await your letter telling me of your plans. I hope that this time we can make them. Things are getting so discouraging! That's all for now, my life. I must close, because A... is waiting to take the correspondence.
All my love is for you, little boy. If I did not love you, I would not be so excited, nor would it excite you either; but I cannot manage life without you. A million kisses of love and tenderness.
Your naughty - LITTLE DOLL"
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This letter from Natacha to Rudy tells us that they were obviously seeking help from Adela Rogers St. Johns to create the book, "Day Dreams." Of course, Rudy's more 'seasoned' fans understand that Rudy did not write this book of poetry by himself ... Rudy was neither a writer nor a poet.
Everything you have read that has his name attached to it commercially has been written for him (and he approved it) or his publicity team hired the job out ... I always suspected that Natacha wrote a great many of the poems in "Day Dreams," yet her name appears nowhere on or in the volume.
For those who are convinced that Natacha was only out to further her own career, I want you to think about this. This and the fact that Natacha rarely, if ever, took screen credit for her set and costume design for Rudy's work must certainly prove that she was with Rudy to enhance his career, and in doing so she would benefit by helping her husband and soul-mate ... as all devoted wives will. Marriage, however, can get very crowded when others intervene in the relationship and either of the parties allows the intrusion. This is only common sense, and although it is speculation on my part, I think it is a conclusion that holds water.
This story about the orchid women did not seem to pass muster with someone, though, because it did not make it into "Day Dreams," I do not believe it was because of the ethereal quality of the story ... I believe it was because the tenor of the book went such a different way in the end, that this story just did not fit. It was not a poem and there was just no place for it in the ultimate product. I get the distinct feeling that anything Natacha liked, at this time, Rudy would enthusiastically approve.
This is why I disregard St. Johns' interviews on YouTube and even her journalistic articles in the fan magazines of the era. Anything she had to say about Rudy and Natacha was for shock value, and her method apparently worked. I believe that St. Johns had a deep regard and respect and perhaps even a motherly type of love for the Valentinos. It was St. Johns who broke the news of their relationship and as a journalist, this was her job, and I also believe it was a personal delight on her part. She genuinely liked the couple.
When I heard about the incident that had Adela Rogers St. Johns sewing a button on for Rudy (which I have a feeling he could have nicely done himself) and spending that time just talking with him I felt that she was a true friend. Much the same type that June Mathis was.
As I sit here typing this, it occurs to me that Natacha was still living when I was up to seven years of age. If I had known of our relationship, it would have been a kick to have been able to talk with her. I was very young when she was still living and she was ill, but I still wish I could have known her. But it was not to be ... perhaps in the next life!
Natacha in Mallorca in the 1930s during her second marriage
Darkmum
THANK-YOU FOR READING DARKMUM'S MUSINGS!