Not so many people like black and white films or perhaps the Eastman colour films with popular stars like Audrey Hepburn, Lorry Johnson etc in them. But they have been an enduring mystery for me. The movies were made to match traditional sensibilities of the time and they're fast peek into the ethics, culture, and manners which were common at the time. Men were so simple, beautiful, polite and straight while ladies were always classily dressed, beautiful and with short pretty hair. For me, every black and white Hollywood silent or speaking star is an individual favourite but of the lot, Adolphe Menjou remains the pinnacle of the lot.
Adolphe Menjou: Personal Life
Adolphe Jean Menjou was born on Feb 18th, 1890. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to a French pa. His pop, Jean Adolphe Menjou, married a local Irish woman from Galway called Nora Joyce. Nora was related to author/poet James Joyce who wrote Ulysses. Jean was a spirited man and worked are a restaurateur in his birth city of Commune D'Arbus, France before he immigrated to the US. In the US as well , he was able to be get hired quite quickly as a hotel boss. It was in America that he chanced to see the Joyce sistes who worked at the Hotel Duquene, Pittsburgh.
He fell head over heels in love with Nora who've one of the sisters and after a whirlwind wooing, he married her and settled down. After wedding, his mother was a housewife. The wedding was a very contented one and Adolphe Menjou was born quite quickly. After Adolphe was born, this dad moved to Cleveland for better opportunities. Jean was more interested in having his child study and work at a renowned job. He pushed his boy into Culver Army Academy in Indiana followed by the Stiles Varsity prep college and then Cornell School. Even though, Adolphe got the best of education, he was still essentially interested in show business which his father grimly opposed. Opposing his father's demands, he changed his major and went in to liberal arts. He was able to get several small jobs but in the early 1910s, he had to return back to the help his father in the restaurant, Maison Menjou due to monetary crisis.
Film History
Although, Adolphe Menjou stayed in N. Y City for some strange reason, he never ventured into Broadway. He was able to get one or two bit parts in films right up to the year 1915. As he was fighting to get in to films, he worked as a laborer, waiter and even a clothes maker. When World War I rolled around, he enrolled and worked as a captain in the French Ambulance Corps. After the War, He was ready to work in the film industry as a production chief and a unit boss. But his real break came in 1921. In the year 1921, he was able to break into the top tier of Hollywood with The Faith Healer, which was swiftly followed by Thru The Back Door.
He became so popular that he was in a position to earn firm connections in Hollywood and he made a Supreme contract for the following ten years. He quickly earned himself the reputation of being a ladies man and finally went on to make several hit films in the following ten years. Nevertheless the market crash put an end to all that. His fluency in different languages meant that he was able to pull in second leads just for the following few years. He still managed to get a Best Actor Award for The Front Page. After WWII nonetheless he began to droop in appreciation. Switching over to a chatting role also became a little difficult.
Private Life
The twice divorced actor finally found happiness with actress Verree Teasdale. After a long fight with hepatitis, he ultimately expired on October 29, 1963, at the age of 73.
Adolphe Menjou: Personal Life
Adolphe Jean Menjou was born on Feb 18th, 1890. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to a French pa. His pop, Jean Adolphe Menjou, married a local Irish woman from Galway called Nora Joyce. Nora was related to author/poet James Joyce who wrote Ulysses. Jean was a spirited man and worked are a restaurateur in his birth city of Commune D'Arbus, France before he immigrated to the US. In the US as well , he was able to be get hired quite quickly as a hotel boss. It was in America that he chanced to see the Joyce sistes who worked at the Hotel Duquene, Pittsburgh.
He fell head over heels in love with Nora who've one of the sisters and after a whirlwind wooing, he married her and settled down. After wedding, his mother was a housewife. The wedding was a very contented one and Adolphe Menjou was born quite quickly. After Adolphe was born, this dad moved to Cleveland for better opportunities. Jean was more interested in having his child study and work at a renowned job. He pushed his boy into Culver Army Academy in Indiana followed by the Stiles Varsity prep college and then Cornell School. Even though, Adolphe got the best of education, he was still essentially interested in show business which his father grimly opposed. Opposing his father's demands, he changed his major and went in to liberal arts. He was able to get several small jobs but in the early 1910s, he had to return back to the help his father in the restaurant, Maison Menjou due to monetary crisis.
Film History
Although, Adolphe Menjou stayed in N. Y City for some strange reason, he never ventured into Broadway. He was able to get one or two bit parts in films right up to the year 1915. As he was fighting to get in to films, he worked as a laborer, waiter and even a clothes maker. When World War I rolled around, he enrolled and worked as a captain in the French Ambulance Corps. After the War, He was ready to work in the film industry as a production chief and a unit boss. But his real break came in 1921. In the year 1921, he was able to break into the top tier of Hollywood with The Faith Healer, which was swiftly followed by Thru The Back Door.
He became so popular that he was in a position to earn firm connections in Hollywood and he made a Supreme contract for the following ten years. He quickly earned himself the reputation of being a ladies man and finally went on to make several hit films in the following ten years. Nevertheless the market crash put an end to all that. His fluency in different languages meant that he was able to pull in second leads just for the following few years. He still managed to get a Best Actor Award for The Front Page. After WWII nonetheless he began to droop in appreciation. Switching over to a chatting role also became a little difficult.
Private Life
The twice divorced actor finally found happiness with actress Verree Teasdale. After a long fight with hepatitis, he ultimately expired on October 29, 1963, at the age of 73.
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If you want to discover more about Adolphe Menjou then stop by and check out Ralp Deluca's blog on vintage picture and concert posters.
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