DOLORES DEL RIO
Name: Dolores del Rio
Birth name: Dolores Martínez Asúnsolo y López Negrete
Born: 3 August 1904 Durango, Mexico
Died: 11 April 1983 Laguna Beach, California, U.S.
Dolores del Río (August 3, 1904 – April 11, 1983) was a Mexican film actress.
She was a star of Hollywood films during the silent era and became an important
actress in Mexican films later in her life.
Born Dolores Martínez Asúnsolo y López Negrete in Durango, Mexico, del Río was
the second cousin of actor Ramón Novarro. Her wealthy family lost all their
assets during the Mexican Revolution, and a desire to restore her comfortable
lifestyle inspired her to follow a career as an actress.
In 1921 at the age of 16, she married Jaime Martinez del Rio, and through a
Hollywood friend the couple emigrated to the USA with the plan of establishing
show business careers for themselves: as screenwriter and actress, respectively.
The marriage ended in divorce, but del Río retained her married name, continued
to pursue a career as an actress, and made her first film appearance in Joanna (1925)
in which Hollywood first noticed her appeal as a sex siren, but struggled
against the "Mexicali Rose" image initially pitched to her by Hollywood
executives.
She was selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1926 (along with fellow
newcomers Joan Crawford, Fay Wray, Janet Gaynor, and Mary Astor), but initially
overcame prejudice that same year in one of that year's biggest screen successes,
What Price Glory. She came to be admired as one of the most beautiful women on
screen, and her career flourished until the end of the silent era with
successful films such as Resurrection, Ramona, and Evangeline (1929).
In 1930, she married Cedric Gibbons, one of MGM's leading art directors and
production designers. With the advent of talkies she was usually relegated to
exotic and unimportant roles, but scored successes with Bird of Paradise (1932)
Flying Down to Rio (the film that launched the careers of Fred Astaire and
Ginger Rogers) (1933) and Madame DuBarry (1934), Wonder Bar (1934) and In
Caliente (1935).
Divorced from Gibbons in 1941, Orson Welles fell madly in love with her although
he was 10 years younger. The affair with Orson Welles was reported to have been
the cause of her divorce from Gibbons in 1941. She collaborated with Welles in
the film, Journey Into Fear (1942).
She returned to Mexico in 1942. She was soon approached by director Emilio
Fernández, and she began making Spanish-language films that brought her great
success in Mexico and Hispanic America over the next twenty years. Among her
most successful films were Flor Silvestre (1943) Maria Candelaria (1943),
Bugambilia, Las Abandonadas (1944), The Fugitive (1947, directed by John Ford),
La Otra, La Malquerida (1949), El Niño y la Niebla (1953), La Cucaracha (1958).
She was nominated for Mexico's Silver Ariel Award many times, winning four
awards for her performances.
In 1960 she starred with Elvis Presley in Flaming Star directed by Don Siegel.
In 1964 she appeared in Cheyenne Autumn directed by John Ford.
She died from liver disease at the age of 78 in Newport Beach, California,She
was cremated and her ashes were buried in the Panteón de Dolores cemetery in
Mexico City, Mexico.
Dolores del Río has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1620 Vine Street,
in recognition of her contributions to the motion picture industry.
Name: Dolores del Rio
Birth name: Dolores Martínez Asúnsolo y López Negrete
Born: 3 August 1904 Durango, Mexico
Died: 11 April 1983 Laguna Beach, California, U.S.
Dolores del Río (August 3, 1904 – April 11, 1983) was a Mexican film actress.
She was a star of Hollywood films during the silent era and became an important
actress in Mexican films later in her life.
Born Dolores Martínez Asúnsolo y López Negrete in Durango, Mexico, del Río was
the second cousin of actor Ramón Novarro. Her wealthy family lost all their
assets during the Mexican Revolution, and a desire to restore her comfortable
lifestyle inspired her to follow a career as an actress.
In 1921 at the age of 16, she married Jaime Martinez del Rio, and through a
Hollywood friend the couple emigrated to the USA with the plan of establishing
show business careers for themselves: as screenwriter and actress, respectively.
The marriage ended in divorce, but del Río retained her married name, continued
to pursue a career as an actress, and made her first film appearance in Joanna (1925)
in which Hollywood first noticed her appeal as a sex siren, but struggled
against the "Mexicali Rose" image initially pitched to her by Hollywood
executives.
She was selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1926 (along with fellow
newcomers Joan Crawford, Fay Wray, Janet Gaynor, and Mary Astor), but initially
overcame prejudice that same year in one of that year's biggest screen successes,
What Price Glory. She came to be admired as one of the most beautiful women on
screen, and her career flourished until the end of the silent era with
successful films such as Resurrection, Ramona, and Evangeline (1929).
In 1930, she married Cedric Gibbons, one of MGM's leading art directors and
production designers. With the advent of talkies she was usually relegated to
exotic and unimportant roles, but scored successes with Bird of Paradise (1932)
Flying Down to Rio (the film that launched the careers of Fred Astaire and
Ginger Rogers) (1933) and Madame DuBarry (1934), Wonder Bar (1934) and In
Caliente (1935).
Divorced from Gibbons in 1941, Orson Welles fell madly in love with her although
he was 10 years younger. The affair with Orson Welles was reported to have been
the cause of her divorce from Gibbons in 1941. She collaborated with Welles in
the film, Journey Into Fear (1942).
She returned to Mexico in 1942. She was soon approached by director Emilio
Fernández, and she began making Spanish-language films that brought her great
success in Mexico and Hispanic America over the next twenty years. Among her
most successful films were Flor Silvestre (1943) Maria Candelaria (1943),
Bugambilia, Las Abandonadas (1944), The Fugitive (1947, directed by John Ford),
La Otra, La Malquerida (1949), El Niño y la Niebla (1953), La Cucaracha (1958).
She was nominated for Mexico's Silver Ariel Award many times, winning four
awards for her performances.
In 1960 she starred with Elvis Presley in Flaming Star directed by Don Siegel.
In 1964 she appeared in Cheyenne Autumn directed by John Ford.
She died from liver disease at the age of 78 in Newport Beach, California,She
was cremated and her ashes were buried in the Panteón de Dolores cemetery in
Mexico City, Mexico.
Dolores del Río has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, at 1620 Vine Street,
in recognition of her contributions to the motion picture industry.