Valentino

VALENTINO-1951-Young Flamingo dancer Rudolph Valentino (Anthony Dexter in a good performance) leaves his dance troupe and winds up sleeping on a park bench in NYC. He becomes a dishwasher but when the cook calls him a grease ball they have a fight and he and his friend Luigi (Joseph Calleia) are fired. He becomes a dancing gigolo and falls for actress Joan Carlisle (Eleanor Parker) . Her director Bill King (Richard Carlson) suggests he dance in her new movie. Rudy (referred to many times by critics as “Vaselino”) goes to Hollywood but can't get a job until he crashes the party of a big producer (Otto Kruger). He puts the moves on Joan but she rejects him and marries Bill. Things get touchy when he and Joan are cast as the leads in “The Sheik”. Later they declare their love for each other but Rudy has stomach pains, gets into a fight and marries his girlfriend (Patricia Medina) to save Joan's reputation. He goes back to NYC and dies. The story ends 25 years after his death where a mysterious woman in black visits his grave every year. Phyllis Coates has a cameo. 

This isn't a bad bio but director Lewis Allen seemed to have a problem with the time period. Although it's suppose to be the early '20's, everyone is dressed more like the '50's when this was made.

Thanks for reading!