Renée Adorée
Encyclopedia
Silent Movie
Silent Movie is a 1976 satirical comedy film co-written, directed by, and starring Mel Brooks, and released by 20th Century Fox on June 17, 1976...
s during the 1920s.
Early life
Born Jeanne de la Fonte in LilleLille
Lille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
, she was the daughter of circus artists and by age five was performing with her parents. In her teens, she began acting in minor stage productions and toured Europe with her troupe. She was performing in Russia when World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
broke out and fled to London.
Career rise
From London she went to New York City, where she continued to work in the theatre until the opportunity arose to work in the motion picture business.In 1920, given the exotic name Renée Adorée (French for "reborn" and "adored," both in the feminine form) by the studio, she appeared in her first motion picture. While in New York City on New Year's Eve 1921 she met Tom Moore
Thomas J. Moore
Thomas J. "Tom" Moore was an Irish-born American actor and director. He appeared in at least 186 motion pictures from 1908 to 1954...
(1883–1955). Fifteen years her senior, Tom Moore and his brothers were very successful Hollywood actors. Six weeks after their meeting, on February 12, 1921, Adorée married Moore at his home in Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills, California
Beverly Hills is an affluent city located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. With a population of 34,109 at the 2010 census, up from 33,784 as of the 2000 census, it is home to numerous Hollywood celebrities. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together...
. The marriage did not last, and in 1925, Adorée married again, this time to Sherman Gill.
Despite her petite stature, Adorée's sensuous beauty and penetrating eyes made her a compelling presence on the black and white screen. She is most famous for her role as "Melisande" in the melodramatic romance and war epic The Big Parade
The Big Parade
The Big Parade is a 1925 silent film. It tells the story of an idle rich boy who joins the US Army's Rainbow Division and is sent to France to fight in World War I, becomes friends with two working class men, experiences the horrors of trench warfare, and finds love with a French girl.The film was...
(1925), which became one of MGM's all-time biggest hits and a film that historians rank as one of the best of the silent film
Silent film
A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound, especially with no spoken dialogue. In silent films for entertainment the dialogue is transmitted through muted gestures, pantomime and title cards...
era. Co-starring John Gilbert
John Gilbert (actor)
John Gilbert was an American actor and a major star of the silent film era.Known as "the great lover," he rivaled even Rudolph Valentino as a box office draw...
, The Big Parade is still shown on television and is available on video. In The Mating Call
The Mating Call (film)
The Mating Call is a 1928 silent drama film about a WWI vet who takes on the Ku Klux Klan when he loses his wife to a womanizing Klansman. The film was produced by Howard Hughes for his Caddo Corporation, and was originally released by Paramount Pictures...
a 1928 film produced by Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes
Howard Robard Hughes, Jr. was an American business magnate, investor, aviator, engineer, film producer, director, and philanthropist. He was one of the wealthiest people in the world...
, Adorée had a very brief nude skinny-dipping scene that caused a significant commotion at the time.
Successful 'talkies' transition
With the advent of sound in film, Adorée was one of the fortunate actors whose voices met the film industry's new needs. She would star opposite Lon ChaneyLon Chaney, Sr.
Lon Chaney , nicknamed "The Man of a Thousand Faces," was an American actor during the age of silent films. He was one of the most versatile and powerful actors of early cinema...
and her former brother-in-law Owen Moore
Owen Moore
Owen Moore was an Irish-born actor in American films, appearing in more than 279 movies spanning from 1908 to 1937.-Life and career:...
, make three more films with John Gilbert, and appear in four films with another leading Hollywood actor Ramon Novarro
Ramón Novarro
Ramón Novarro was a Mexican leading man actor in Hollywood in the early 20th century. He was the next male "Sex Symbol" after the death of Rudolph Valentino...
.
Tuberculosis and untimely death
By the end of 1930, she had appeared in forty-five films, the last four of them talkies. That year she was diagnosed with tuberculosisTuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
, Adorée lived only a few years longer. Adorée went against her physician's advice by finishing her final film, Call of the Flesh
Call of the Flesh
Call of the Flesh is an American musical film directed by Charles Brabin. The film stars Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Jordan, and Renée Adorée...
, with Ramon Novarro
Ramón Novarro
Ramón Novarro was a Mexican leading man actor in Hollywood in the early 20th century. He was the next male "Sex Symbol" after the death of Rudolph Valentino...
. At its completion, she was rushed to a sanitarium
Sanatorium
A sanatorium is a medical facility for long-term illness, most typically associated with treatment of tuberculosis before antibiotics...
in Prescott, Arizona
Prescott, Arizona
Prescott is a city in Yavapai County, Arizona, USA. It was designated "Arizona's Christmas City" by Arizona Governor Rose Mofford in the late 1980s....
, where she lay flat on her back for two years in an effort to regain her physical health. In April of 1933, she left the sanitarium. At this point it was thought she had recovered sufficiently to resume her screen career, but she swiftly weakened and her health declined day by day. She was moved from her modest home in the Tujunga Hills to the Sunland health resort in September 1933.
Death
She died there, a few days after her 35th birthday, on October 5, 1933 in Tujunga, California. She is interred in the Hollywood Forever CemeteryHollywood Forever Cemetery
Hollywood Forever Cemetery, originally called Hollywood Memorial Park Cemetery, is one of the oldest cemeteries in Los Angeles, California. It is located at 6000 Santa Monica Boulevard in the Hollywood...
, Hollywood, California.
Adorée left an estate valued at $2,429. The only heir was her mother, who lived in England. No will was found.
For contributions to the motion picture industry, Adorée was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
at 1611 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
.
Filmography
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The Flaming Forest __notoc__The Flaming Forest is a film directed by Reginald Barker, released by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and starring Antonio Moreno and Renée Adorée.... (1926) La Bohème (1926 film) La Bohème is a 1926 silent drama film directed by King Vidor, based on the opera La bohème by Giacomo Puccini.-Plot:The film takes place in Paris in 1830. Several bohemians try to survive on the streets, living under poor conditions and desiring to one day become famous. One of them is Marcel , a... (1926) The Blackbird The Blackbird is a 1926 drama film directed by Tod Browning.-Plot:The Blackbird is a thief who uses a second identity when necessary: a rescue mission keeper with contorted legs, known as his bishop brother The Bishop. He lives above a cheap bar in the Limehouse district, where his alter ego The... (1926) Exquisite Sinner Exquisite Sinner is a silent film directed by Josef von Sternberg and Phil Rosen. Prior to working The Masked Bride, von Sternberg had filmed this picture. The studio disliked the picture and brought in Phil Rosen for extensive retakes in 1926.-Preservation status:The film is indicated as a lost... (1926) Mr. Wu Mr. Wu is a 1927 silent movie about a Chinese patriarch who tries to exact revenge on the Englishman who seduced his daughter.-Cast:*Lon Chaney - Mr. Wu/Grandfather Wu*Louise Dresser - Mrs. Gregory*Renee Adoree - Wu Nang Ping... (1927) The Show (1927 film) The Show is a 1927 silent American drama film directed by Tod Browning, based upon C.T. Jackson's 1910 novel, The Day of Souls.-Plot:A Hungarian carnival troupe follows a young girl who reforms a tearaway after her old suitor tried to kill him with a poisonous lizard.-Cast:* John Gilbert - Cock... (1927) A Certain Young Man A Certain Young Man is a 1928 comedy film directed by Hobart Henley. The film stars Ramon Novarro, Marceline Day, Renée Adorée, Carmel Myers and Bert Roach. The film is considered lost.-Production:... (1928) The Cossacks (1928 film) The Cossacks is a 1928 silent film produced and distributed by MGM and directed by George Hill and Clarence Brown, with much reshot footage by Brown. The picture starred John Gilbert and Renee Adoree. It is an extant film... (1928) The Mating Call (film) The Mating Call is a 1928 silent drama film about a WWI vet who takes on the Ku Klux Klan when he loses his wife to a womanizing Klansman. The film was produced by Howard Hughes for his Caddo Corporation, and was originally released by Paramount Pictures... (1928) Show People Show People is a 1928 comedy silent film directed by King Vidor. The movie was a starring vehicle for actress Marion Davies and actor William Haines and included notable cameo appearances by many of the film personalities of the day, including stars Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, William S.... (1928) His Glorious Night His Glorious Night is a 1929 American romance film directed by Lionel Barrymore and starring John Gilbert in his first released talkie. It has gained notoriety as the film that reputedly ended the career of John Gilbert by revealing that he had a voice unsuitable for sound... (1928) Tide of Empire Tide of Empire is an American western film directed by Allan Dwan. The film stars Renee Adoree and Tom Keene. The film was originally slated to star Joan Crawford in the female lead, but the final filming had Renee Adoree instead of Crawford... (1929) http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0020502/ Call of the Flesh Call of the Flesh is an American musical film directed by Charles Brabin. The film stars Ramon Novarro, Dorothy Jordan, and Renée Adorée... (1930) |
External links
- Renée Adorée at Golden Silents
- Renée Adorée at the TCM Movie Database
- Photographs and literature