BIOGRAPHY
vILMaGRAPHY
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ROD LA ROCQUE
WHERE'S BANKY?
GLIMPSES OF VILMA
BANKY OBITUARIES
MYSTERY OF VILMA'S BIRTH
MEETING VILMA: SEARCH FOR A STAR
OFF SCREEN & AT HOME
PICTURE OF THE MONTH
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ROD LA ROCQUE
Birthname: Roderick La Rocque, son of Andrew Edward La Rocque & Ann Rice -- he also had
a sister named Monique, who was slightly younger than him
Birthdate & Place: November 29, 1898 in Chicago, Illinois
Date of Death & Place: October 15, 1969 in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California
Spouse: Vilma Banky, 1927 - 1969 (his death)
Famous Films: The Ten Commandments (1923), A Society Scandal (1924),
The Coming of Amos (1925), Braveheart (1925), The Cruise of the Jaspar B (1926),
Our Modern Maidens (1929), and The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939) among others
Rod la Rocque became interested in the theatre while in his teens.
He began appearing in small parts during this time. At one time, he
was employed with Essanay, but when "they ceased
production," he went to New York. In 1918, he appeared in Let's Get a Divorce with Billie Burke.
Even though he was fascinated with the movies, he still devoted time to the theatre. The film that
made him a star was his starring role in The Ten Commandments directed by Cecil B. DeMille.
In 1925, he met Vilma, and ultimately married her in a
lavish wedding ceremony in 1927. After this, the couple continued to work in the movies, and in 1930,
producer Archie Selwyn asked Rod and Vilma to star in the play, Cherries Are Ripe. Rod
was interviewed during the play and the following is what he had to say
about his life and his work.
"THE LIFE STORY OF ROD LA ROCQUE -- A Stage Star - since the age
of seven, luck forced him onto the screen and he made good...
Unlike the great majority of actors, Rod la Rocque did not have to run away
from home to take up his theatrical career; neither
did his parents want him to be a lawyer, a doctor, or an engineer.
This tall, handsome favorite of the screen just drifted onto the stage at
the age of seven before any
definite thought had been given to his life work. It happened overnight when
Willard Mack, then
playing in Detroit, needed a lusty-voiced youngster to replace a boy who
was leaving. The great actor was stopping at a hotel managed by La Rocque's
father and made known his needs with
the result that La Rocque, junior, not unwillingly, became an actor under
the tutelage of one of America's finest thespians.
That was the young man's start in life. His success with Mack earned
him further child parts in Salome
Jane, The Middleman, and Shore Acres before he was ten years of age.
His high falsetto voice and ability to yodel well took him from the Omaha
high school to the leading
role in The Blue Girl presented by traveling players. After a brief tour
of the Midwest, the stock
company disbanded in Chicago and La Rocque was, in professional parlance,
stranded high and dry
without a dime.
With Essanay's Chicago motion picture studios being within walking distance, he
applied for work there, his training on the stage earned him a sympathetic audience. He was given
featured roles to do in a
series of George Ade's Fables. After these had run their course he played
the villain in a group of
productions starring Bryant Washburn.
Upon the closing of the historic Essanay studios, the budding actor
borrowed train fare to New York.
Luck was with him and in a few days he managed to get the leading role in
Billie Burke's picture, Let's
Get Married. Following this he made five productions for Samuel Goldwyn, a
few others opposite
Mabel Normand and Mae Marsh and then returned to the stage opposite Alice
Brady in Alice Ascends.
A period of bad luck temporarily halted his progress, but this was
terminated when he was cast in
one of the two leading roles of The Ten Commandments with Richard Dix.
Since then he has
progressed upwards until today he is said to be one of the highest paid free
lance actors in motion
pictures.
When the introduction of talking pictures sent movie producers scurrying
for actors with stage
experience and trained speaking voices, Rod la Rocque had more offers than he
could take care of. His first acceptance of a talkie role was with Lillian
Gish in One Romantic Night. Dozens of others
followed. He recently appeared with Norma Shearer in one of the most
successful screen productions
called Let Us Be Gay, which further enhanced his fame. However, he longed
to return to his first
love, the stage and jumped at the opportunity of starring with Vilma
Banky, Mrs. Rod la Rocque, in
Cherries Are Ripe, a John Emerson-Anita Loos story produced by Mr.
Arch Selwyn.
He is six feet three inches tall, thirty-two years of age, and La Rocque is his real name. He was born in
Chicago of non-professional parents."
Click here to read more about the rest of Rod's life with Vilma.
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