Before Greta Garbo or Marlena Dietrich, there was... Pola Negri. She was the first exotic European actress imported to Hollywood during the Silent Film Era, with much fanfare and hoopla. A mesmerizing combination of the animale and sophisticate, Pola became the highest paid actor in the movie business and her glamorous lifestyle, was discussed almost daily in gossip columns worldwide. She was affianced to Charlie Chaplin, all but engaged to Rudolph Valentino until his untimely death, and was the wife of a count then Prince Mdivani. Yet today, oddly, she is still little known. Born in Poland to impoverished minor aristocracy, she was classically trained in song, dance, theater and cinema. Pola originated the cinematic femme fatale. She was discovered by Max Reinhart, became a protégée of Ernst Lubitsch and a favorite of Adolf Zucker. Pola made more than 60 films in Europe and America, both in drama and comedy. Her fortunes reversed many times throughout her prolific career, and she ended her days as a supporter of the arts and companion to an eccentric millionairess in San Antonio, Texas. read about her fascinating career in the latest biography from Mariusz Kotowski (2011 - Polish language only)
