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ALBANIA
Albanian Trilogy: A Series of Devious Stratagems
Armando Lulaj
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Marco Scotini. Deputy Curator: Andris Brinkmanis. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
ANDORRA
Inner Landscapes
Roqué, Joan Xandri
Commissioner: Henry Périer. Deputy Commissioner: Joana Baygual, Sebastià Petit, Francesc Rodríguez
Curator: Paolo de Grandis, Josep M. Ubach. Venue: Spiazzi, Castello 3865
ANGOLA
On Ways of Travelling
António Ole, Binelde Hyrcan, Délio Jasse, Francisco Vidal, Nelo Teixeira
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture, Rita Guedes Tavares. Curator: António Ole. Deputy Curator: Antonia Gaeta. Venue: Conservatorio Benedetto Marcello - Palazzo Pisani, San Marco 2810
ARGENTINA
The Uprising of Form
Juan Carlos Diste´fano
Commissioner: Magdalena Faillace. Curator: Mari´a Teresa Constantin. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
ARMENIA, Republic of
Armenity / Haiyutioun
Haig Aivazian, Lebanon; Nigol Bezjian, Syria/USA; Anna Boghiguian Egypt/Canada; Hera Büyüktasçiyan, Turkey; Silvina Der-Meguerditchian, Argentina/Germany; Rene Gabri & Ayreen Anastas, Iran/Palestine/USA; Mekhitar Garabedian, Belgium; Aikaterini Gegisian, Greece; Yervant Gianikian & Angela Ricci Lucchi, Italy; Aram Jibilian, USA; Nina Katchadourian, USA/Finland; Melik Ohanian, France; Mikayel Ohanjanyan, Armenia/Italy; Rosana Palazyan, Brazil; Sarkis, Turkey/France; Hrair Sarkissian, Syria/UK
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia. Deputy Commissioner: Art for the World, Mekhitarist Congregation of San Lazzaro Island, Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Italy, Vartan Karapetian. Curator: Adelina Cüberyan von Fürstenberg. Venue: Monastery and Island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni
AUSTRALIA
Fiona Hall: Wrong Way Time
Fiona Hall
Commissioner: Simon Mordant AM. Deputy Commissioner: Charles Green. Curator: Linda Michael. Scientific Committee: Simon Mordant AM, Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev, Max Delany, Rachel Kent, Danie Mellor, Suhanya Raffel, Leigh Robb. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
AUSTRIA
Heimo Zobernig
Commissioner: Yilmaz Dziewior. Curator: Yilmaz Dziewior. Scientific Committee: Friends of the Venice Biennale. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
AZERBAIJAN, Republic of
Beyond the Line
Ashraf Murad, Javad Mirjavadov, Tofik Javadov, Rasim Babayev, Fazil Najafov, Huseyn Hagverdi, Shamil Najafzada
Commissioner: Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Curators: de Pury de Pury, Emin Mammadov. Venue: Palazzo Lezze, Campo S.Stefano, San Marco 2949
Vita Vitale
Edward Burtynsky, Mircea Cantor, Loris Cecchini, Gordon Cheung, Khalil Chishtee, Tony Cragg, Laura Ford, Noemie Goudal, Siobhán Hapaska, Paul Huxley, IDEA laboratory and Leyla Aliyeva, Chris Jordan with Rebecca Clark and Helena S.Eitel, Tania Kovats, Aida Mahmudova, Sayyora Muin, Jacco Olivier, Julian Opie, Julian Perry, Mike Perry, Bas Princen, Stephanie Quayle, Ugo Rondinone, Graham Stevens, Diana Thater, Andy Warhol, Bill Woodrow, Erwin Wurm, Rose Wylie
Commissioner: Heydar Aliyev Foundation. Curators: Artwise: Susie Allen, Laura Culpan, Dea Vanagan. Venue: Ca’ Garzoni, San Marco 3416
BELARUS, Republic of
War Witness Archive
Konstantin Selikhanov
Commissioner: Natallia Sharanhovich. Deputy Commissioners: Alena Vasileuskaya, Kamilia Yanushkevich. Curators: Aleksei Shinkarenko, Olga Rybchinskaya. Scientific Committee: Dmitry Korol, Daria Amelkovich, Julia Kondratyuk, Sergei Jeihala, Sheena Macfarlane, Yuliya Heisik, Hanna Samarskaya, Taras Kaliahin, Aliaksandr Stasevich. Venue: Riva San Biagio, Castello 2145
BELGIUM
Personnes et les autres
Vincent Meessen and Guests, Mathieu K. Abonnenc, Sammy Baloji, James Beckett, Elisabetta Benassi, Patrick Bernier & Olive Martin, Tamar Guimara~es & Kasper Akhøj, Maryam Jafri, Adam Pendleton
Commissioner: Wallonia-Brussels Federation and Wallonia-Brussels International. Curator: Katerina Gregos. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
COSTA RICA
"Costa Rica, Paese di pace, invita a un linguaggio universale d'intesa tra i popoli".
Andrea Prandi, Beatrice Gallori, Beth Parin, Biagio Schembari, Carla Castaldo, Celestina Avanzini, Cesare Berlingeri, Erminio Tansini, Fabio Capitanio, Fausto Beretti, Giovan Battista Pedrazzini, Giovanni Lamberti, Giovanni Tenga, Iana Zanoskar, Jim Prescott, Leonardo Beccegato, Liliana Scocco, Lucia Bolzano, Marcela Vicuna, Marco Bellagamba, Marco Lodola, Maria Gioia dell’Aglio, Mario Bernardinello, Massimo Meucci, Nacha Piattini, Omar Ronda, Renzo Eusebi, Tita Patti, Romina Power, Rubens Fogacci, Silvio di Pietro, Stefano Sichel, Tino Stefanoni, Ufemia Ritz, Ugo Borlenghi, Umberto Mariani, Venere Chillemi, Jacqueline Gallicot Madar, Massimo Onnis, Fedora Spinelli
Commissioner: Ileana Ordonez Chacon. Curator: Gregorio Rossi. Venue: Palazzo Bollani
CROATIA
Studies on Shivering: The Third Degree
Damir Ocko
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Marc Bembekoff. Venue: Palazzo Pisani, S. Marina
CUBA
El artista entre la individualidad y el contexto
Lida Abdul, Celia-Yunior, Grethell Rasúa, Giuseppe Stampone, LinYilin, Luis Edgardo Gómez Armenteros, Olga Chernysheva, Susana Pilar Delahante Matienzo
Commissioner: Miria Vicini. Curators: Jorge Fernández Torres, Giacomo Zaza. Venue: San Servolo Island
CYPRUS, Republic of
Two Days After Forever
Christodoulos Panayiotou
Commissioner: Louli Michaelidou. Deputy Commissioner: Angela Skordi. Curator: Omar Kholeif. Deputy Curator: Daniella Rose King. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero, Sestiere San Marco 3079
CZECH Republic and SLOVAK Republic
Apotheosis
Jirí David
Commissioner: Adam Budak. Deputy Commissioner: Barbara Holomkova. Curator: Katarina Rusnakova. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
ECUADOR
Gold Water: Apocalyptic Black Mirrors
Maria Veronica Leon Veintemilla in collaboration with Lucia Vallarino Peet
Commissioner: Andrea Gonzàlez Sanchez. Deputy Commissioner: PDG Arte Communications. Curator: Ileana Cornea. Deputy Curator: Maria Veronica Leon Veintemilla. Venue: Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà, Castello 3701
ESTONIA
NSFW. From the Abyss of History
Jaanus Samma
Commissioner: Maria Arusoo. Curator: Eugenio Viola. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero, campo San Samuele, San Marco 3199
EGYPT
CAN YOU SEE
Ahmed Abdel Fatah, Gamal Elkheshen, Maher Dawoud
Commissioner: Hany Al Ashkar. Curator: Ministry of Culture. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
FINLAND (Pavilion Alvar Aalto)
Hours, Years, Aeons
IC-98
Commissioner: Frame Visual Art Finland, Raija Koli. Curator: Taru Elfving. Deputy Curator: Anna Virtanen. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
FRANCE
revolutions
Céleste Boursier-Mougenot
Commissioner: Institut français, with Ministère de la Culture et de la Communication. Curator: Emma Lavigne. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
GEORGIA
Crawling Border
Rusudan Gobejishvili Khizanishvili, Irakli Bluishvili, Dimitri Chikvaidze, Joseph Sabia
Commissioner: Ana Riaboshenko. Curator: Nia Mgaloblishvili. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
GERMANY
Fabrik
Jasmina Metwaly / Philip Rizk, Olaf Nicolai, Hito Steyerl, Tobias Zielony
Commissioner: ifa (Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen) on behalf of the Federal Foreign Office. Deputy Commissioner: Elke aus dem Moore, Nina Hülsmeier. Curator: Florian Ebner. Deputy Curator: Tanja Milewsky, Ilina Koralova. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
GREAT BRITAIN
Sarah Lucas
Commissioner: Emma Dexter. Curator: Richard Riley. Deputy Curator: Katrina Schwarz. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
GRENADA *
Present Nearness
Oliver Benoit, Maria McClafferty, Asher Mains, Francesco Bosso and Carmine Ciccarini, Guiseppe Linardi
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Deputy Commissioner: Susan Mains. Curator: Susan Mains. Deputy Curator: Francesco Elisei. Venue: Opera don Orione Artigianelli, Sala Tiziano, Fondamenta delle Zattere ai Gesuati, Dorsoduro 919
GREECE
Why Look at Animals? AGRIMIKÁ.
Maria Papadimitriou
Commissioner: Hellenic Ministry of Culture, Education and Religious Affairs. Curator: Gabi Scardi. Deputy Curator: Alexios Papazacharias. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
BRAZIL
So much that it doesn't fit here
Antonio Manuel, André Komatsu, Berna Reale
Commissioner: Luis Terepins. Curator: Luiz Camillo Osorio. Deputy Curator: Cauê Alves. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
CANADA
Canadassimo
BGL
Commissioner: National Gallery of Canada, Marc Mayer. Deputy Commissioner: National Gallery of Canada, Yves Théoret. Curator: Marie Fraser. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
CHILE
Poéticas de la disidencia | Poetics of dissent: Paz Errázuriz - Lotty Rosenfeld
Paz Errázuriz, Lotty Rosenfeld
Commissioner: Antonio Arèvalo. Deputy Commissioner: Juan Pablo Vergara Undurraga. Curator: Nelly Richard. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie
CHINA, People’s Republic of
Other Future
LIU Jiakun, LU Yang, TAN Dun, WEN Hui/Living Dance Studio, WU Wenguang/Caochangdi Work Station
Commissioner: China Arts and Entertainment Group, CAEG. Deputy Commissioners: Zhang Yu, Yan Dong. Curator: Beijing Contemporary Art Foundation. Scientific Committee: Fan Di’an, Zhang Zikang, Zhu Di, Gao Shiming, Zhu Qingsheng, Pu Tong, Shang Hui. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Giardino delle Vergini
GUATEMALA
Sweet Death
Emma Anticoli Borza, Sabrina Bertolelli, Mariadolores Castellanos, Max Leiva, Pier Domenico Magri, Adriana Montalto, Elmar Rojas (Elmar René Rojas Azurdia), Paolo Schmidlin, Mónica Serra, Elsie Wunderlich, Collettivo La Grande Bouffe
Commissioner: Daniele Radini Tedeschi. Curators: Stefania Pieralice, Carlo Marraffa, Elsie Wunderlich. Deputy Curators: Luciano Carini, Simone Pieralice. Venue: Officina delle Zattere, Dorsoduro 947, Fondamenta Nani
HOLY SEE
Commissioner: Em.mo Card. Gianfranco Ravasi, Presidente del Pontificio Consiglio della Cultura. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
HUNGARY
Sustainable Identities
Szilárd Cseke
Commissioner: Monika Balatoni. Deputy Commissioner: István Puskás, Sándor Fodor, Anna Karády. Curator: Kinga German. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
ICELAND
Christoph Büchel
Commissioner: Björg Stefánsdóttir. Curator: Nína Magnúsdóttir. Venue: to be confirmed
INDONESIA, Republic of
Komodo Voyage
Heri Dono
Commissioner: Sapta Nirwandar. Deputy Commissioner: Soedarmadji JH Damais. Curator: Carla Bianpoen, Restu Imansari Kusumaningrum. Scientific Committee: Franco Laera, Asmudjo Jono Irianto, Watie Moerany, Elisabetta di Mambro. Venue: Venue: Arsenale
IRAN
Iranian Highlights
Samira Alikhanzaradeh, Mahmoud Bakhshi Moakhar, Jamshid Bayrami, Mohammed Ehsai
The Great Game
Lida Abdul, Bani Abidi, Adel Abidin, Amin Agheai, Ghodratollah Agheli, Shahriar Ahmadi, Parastou Ahovan, Farhad Ahrarnia, Rashad Alakbarov, Nazgol Ansarinia, Reza Aramesh, Alireza Astaneh, Sonia Balassanian, Mahmoud Bakhshi, Moakhar Wafaa Bilal, Mehdi Farhadian, Monir Farmanfarmaian, Shadi Ghadirian, Babak Golkar, Shilpa Gupta, Ghasem Hajizadeh, Shamsia Hassani, Sahand Hesamiyan, Sitara Ibrahimova, Pouran Jinchi, Amar Kanwar, Babak Kazemi, Ryas Komu, Ahmad Morshedloo, Farhad Moshiri, Mehrdad Mohebali, Huma Mulji, Azad Nanakeli, Jamal Penjweny, Imran Qureshi, Sara Rahbar, Rashid Rana, T.V. Santhosh, Walid Siti, Mohsen Taasha Wahidi, Mitra Tabrizian, Parviz Tanavoli, Newsha Tavakolian, Sadegh Tirafkan, Hema Upadhyay, Saira Wasim
Commissioner: Majid Mollanooruzi. Deputy Commissioners: Marco Meneguzzo, Mazdak Faiznia. Curators: Marco Meneguzzo, Mazdak Faiznia. Venue: Calle San Giovanni 1074/B, Cannaregio
IRAQ
Commissioner: Ruya Foundation for Contemporary Culture in Iraq (RUYA). Deputy Commissioner: Nuova Icona - Associazione Culturale per le Arti. Curator: Philippe Van Cauteren. Venue: Ca' Dandolo, San Polo 2879
IRELAND
Adventure: Capital
Sean Lynch
Commissioner: Mike Fitzpatrick. Curator: Woodrow Kernohan. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie
ISRAEL
Tsibi Geva | Archeology of the Present
Tsibi Geva
Commissioner: Arad Turgem, Michael Gov. Curator: Hadas Maor. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
ITALY
Ministero dei Beni e delle attività culturali e del turismo - Direzione Generale Arte e Architettura Contemporanee e Periferie Urbane. Commissioner: Federica Galloni. Curator: Vincenzo Trione. Venue: Padiglione Italia, Tese delle Vergini at Arsenale
JAPAN
The Key in the Hand
Chiharu Shiota
Commissioner: The Japan Foundation. Deputy Commissioner: Yukihiro Ohira, Manako Kawata and Haruka Nakajima. Curator: Hitoshi Nakano. Venue : Pavilion at Giardini
KENYA
Creating Identities
Yvonne Apiyo Braendle-Amolo, Qin Feng, Shi Jinsong, Armando Tanzini, Li Zhanyang, Lan Zheng Hui, Li Gang, Double Fly Art Center
Commissioner: Paola Poponi. Curator: Sandro Orlandi Stagl. Deputy Curator: Ding Xuefeng. Venue: San Servolo Island
KOREA, Republic of
The Ways of Folding Space & Flying
MOON Kyungwon & JEON Joonho
Commissioner: Sook-Kyung Lee. Curator: Sook-Kyung Lee. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
KOSOVO, Republic of
Speculating on the blue
Flaka Haliti
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. Curator: Nicolaus Schafhausen. Deputy Curator: Katharina Schendl. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie
LATVIA
Armpit
Katrina Neiburga, Andris Eglitis
Commissioner: Solvita Krese (Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art). Deputy Commissioner: Kitija Vasiljeva. Curator: Kaspars Vanags. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
LITHUANIA
Museum
Dainius Liškevicius
Commissioner: Vytautas Michelkevicius. Deputy Commissioner: Rasa Antanaviciute. Curator: Vytautas Michelkevicius. Venue: Palazzo Zenobio, Fondamenta del Soccorso 2569, Dorsoduro
LUXEMBOURG, Grand Duchy of
Paradiso Lussemburgo
Filip Markiewicz
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Deputy Commissioner: MUDAM Luxembourg. Curator: Paul Ardenne. Venue: Cà Del Duca, Corte del Duca Sforza, San Marco 3052
MACEDONIA, Former Yugoslavian Republic of
We are all in this alone
Hristina Ivanoska and Yane Calovski
Commissioner: Maja Nedelkoska Brzanova, National Gallery of Macedonia. Deputy Commissioner: Olivija Stoilkova. Curator: Basak Senova. Deputy Curator: Maja Cankulovska Mihajlovska. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Sale d’Armi
MAURITIUS *
From One Citizen You Gather an Idea
Sultana Haukim, Nirmal Hurry, Alix Le Juge, Olga Jürgenson, Helge Leiberg, Krishna Luchoomun, Neermala Luckeenarain, Kavinash Thomoo, Bik Van Der Pol, Laure Prouvost, Vitaly Pushnitsky, Römer + Römer
Commissioner: pARTage. Curators: Alfredo Cramerotti, Olga Jürgenson. Venue: Palazzo Flangini - Canareggio 252
MEXICO
Possesing Nature
Tania Candiani, Luis Felipe Ortega
Commissioner: Tomaso Radaelli. Deputy Commissioner: Magdalena Zavala Bonachea. Curator: Karla Jasso. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
MONGOLIA *
Other Home
Enkhbold Togmidshiirev, Unen Enkh
Commissioner: Gantuya Badamgarav, MCASA. Curator: Uranchimeg Tsultemin. Scientific Committee: David A Ross, Boldbaatar Chultemin. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora
MONTENEGRO
,,Ti ricordi Sjecaš li se You Remember "
Aleksandar Duravcevic
Commissioner/Curator: Anastazija Miranovic. Deputy Commissioner: Danica Bogojevic. Venue: Palazzo Malipiero (piano terra), San Marco 3078-3079/A, Ramo Malipiero
MOZAMBIQUE, Republic of *
Theme: Coexistence of Tradition and Modernity in Contemporary Mozambique
Mozambique Artists
Commissioner: Joel Matias Libombo. Deputy Commissioner: Gilberto Paulino Cossa. Curator: Comissariado-Geral para a Expo Milano 2015. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
NETHERLANDS, The
herman de vries - to be all ways to be
herman de vries
Commissioner: Mondriaan Fund. Curators: Colin Huizing, Cees de Boer. Venue: Pavilion ar Giardini
NEW ZEALAND
Secret Power
Simon Denny
Commissioner: Heather Galbraith. Curator: Robert Leonard. Venue: Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, Marco Polo Airport
NORDIC PAVILION (NORWAY)
Camille Norment
Commissioner: OCA, Office for Contemporary Art Norway. Curator: Katya García-Antón. Deputy Curator: Antonio Cataldo. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
PERU
Misplaced Ruins
Gilda Mantilla and Raimond Chaves
Commissioner: Armando Andrade de Lucio. Curator: Max Hernández-Calvo. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
PHILIPPINES
Tie a String Around the World
Manuel Conde, Carlos Francisco, Manny Montelibano, Jose Tence Ruiz
Commissioner: National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), Felipe M. de Leon Jr. Curator: Patrick D. Flores. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora
POLAND
Halka/Haiti. 18°48’05”N 72°23’01”W
C.T. Jasper, Joanna Malinowska
Commissioner: Hanna Wróblewska. Deputy Commissioner: Joanna Wasko. Curator: Magdalena Moskalewicz. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
PORTUGAL
I Will Be Your Mirror / poems and problems
João Louro
Commissioner/Curator: María de Corral. Venue: Palazzo Loredan, campo S. Stefano
ROMANIA
Adrian Ghenie: Darwin’s Room
Adrian Ghenie
Commissioner: Monica Morariu. Deputy Commissioner: Alexandru Damian. Curator: Mihai Pop. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
Inventing the Truth. On Fiction and Reality
Michele Bressan, Carmen Dobre-Hametner, Alex Mirutziu, Lea Rasovszky, Stefan Sava, Larisa Sitar
Commissioner: Monica Morariu. Deputy Commissioner: Alexandru Damian. Curator: Diana Marincu. Deputy Curators: Ephemair Association (Suzana Dan and Silvia Rogozea). Venue: New Gallery of the Romanian Institute for Culture and Humanistic Research in Venice
RUSSIA
The Green Pavilion
Irina Nakhova
Commissioner: Stella Kesaeva. Curator: Margarita Tupitsyn. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
SERBIA
United Dead Nations
Ivan Grubanov
Commissioner: Lidija Merenik. Deputy Commissioner: Ana Bogdanovic. Curator: Lidija Merenik. Deputy Curator: Ana Bogdanovic. Scientific Committee: Jovan Despotovic. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
SAN MARINO
Repubblica di San Marino “ Friendship Project “ China
Xu De Qi, Liu Dawei, Liu Ruo Wang, Ma Yuan, Li Lei, Zhang Hong Mei, Eleonora Mazza, Giuliano Giulianelli, Giancarlo Frisoni, Tony Margiotta, Elisa Monaldi, Valentina Pazzini
Commissioner: Istituti Culturali della Repubblica di San Marino. Curator: Vincenzo Sanfo. Venue: TBC
SEYCHELLES, Republic of *
A Clockwork Sunset
George Camille, Léon Wilma Loïs Radegonde
Commissioner: Seychelles Art Projects Foundation. Curators: Sarah J. McDonald, Victor Schaub Wong. Venue: European Cultural Centre - Palazzo Mora
SINGAPORE
Sea State
Charles Lim Yi Yong
Commissioner: Paul Tan, National Arts Council, Singapore. Curator: Shabbir Hussain Mustafa. Scientific Committee: Eugene Tan, Kathy Lai, Ahmad Bin Mashadi, June Yap, Emi Eu, Susie Lingham, Charles Merewether, Randy Chan. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
SLOVENIA, Republic of
UTTER / The violent necessity for the embodied presence of hope
JAŠA
Commissioner: Simona Vidmar. Deputy Commissioner: Jure Kirbiš. Curators: Michele Drascek and Aurora Fonda. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale - Artiglierie
SPAIN
Los Sujetos (The Subjects)
Pepo Salazar, Cabello/Carceller, Francesc Ruiz, + Salvador Dalí
Commissioner: Ministerio Asuntos Exteriores. Gobierno de España. Curator: Marti Manen. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC
Origini della civiltà
Narine Ali, Ehsan Alar, Felipe Cardeña, Fouad Dahdouh, Aldo Damioli, Svitlana Grebenyuk, Mauro Reggio, Liu Shuishi, Nass ouh Zaghlouleh, Andrea Zucchi, Helidon Xhixha
Commissioner: Christian Maretti. Curator: Duccio Trombadori. Venue: Redentore – Giudecca, San Servolo Island
SWEDEN
Excavation of the Image: Imprint, Shadow, Spectre, Thought
Lina Selander
Commissioner: Ann-Sofi Noring. Curator: Lena Essling. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
SWITZERLAND
Our Product
Pamela Rosenkranz
Commissioner: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Sandi Paucic and Marianne Burki. Deputy-Commissioner: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia, Rachele Giudici Legittimo. Curator: Susanne Pfeffer. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
THAILAND
Earth, Air, Fire & Water
Kamol Tassananchalee
Commissioner: Chai Nakhonchai, Office of Contemporary Art and Culture (OCAC), Ministry of Culture. Curator: Richard David Garst. Deputy Curator: Pongdej Chaiyakut. Venue: Paradiso Gallerie, Giardini della Biennale, Castello 1260
TURKEY
Respiro
Sarkis
Commissioner: Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts. Curator: Defne Ayas. Deputy Curator: Ozge Ersoy. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d’Armi
TUVALU
Crossing the Tide
Vincent J.F. Huang
Commissioner: Taukelina Finikaso. Deputy Commissioner: Temate Melitiana. Curator: Thomas J. Berghuis. Scientific Committee: Andrea Bonifacio. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
UKRAINE
Hope!
Yevgenia Belorusets, Nikita Kadan, Zhanna Kadyrova, Mykola Ridnyi & SerhiyZhadan, Anna Zvyagintseva, Open Group, Artem Volokitin
Commissioner: Ministry of Culture. Curator: Björn Geldhof. Venue: Riva dei Sette Martiri
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
1980 – Today: Exhibitions in the United Arab Emirates
Abdullah Al Saadi, Abdul Qader Al Rais, Abdulraheem Salim, Abdulrahman Zainal, Ahmed Al Ansari, Ahmed Sharif, Hassan Sharif, Mohamed Yousif, Mohammed Abdullah Bulhiah, Mohammed Al Qassab, Mohammed Kazem, Moosa Al Halyan, Najat Meky, Obaid Suroor, Salem Jawhar
Commissioner: Salama bint Hamdan Al Nahyan Foundation. Curator: Hoor Al Qasimi. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale – Sale d'Armi
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Joan Jonas: They Come to Us Without a Word
Joan Jonas
Commissioner: Paul C. Ha. Deputy Commissioner: MIT List Visual Arts Center. Curators: Ute Meta Bauer, Paul C. Ha. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
URUGUAY
Global Myopia II (Pencil & Paper)
Marco Maggi
Commissioner: Ricardo Pascale. Curator: Patricia Bentancour. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
VENEZUELA, Bolivarian Republic of
Te doy mi palabra (I give you my word)
Argelia Bravo, Félix Molina (Flix)
Commissioner: Oscar Sotillo Meneses. Deputy Commissioner: Reinaldo Landaeta Díaz. Curator: Oscar Sotillo Meneses. Deputy Curator: Morella Jurado. Scientific Committee: Carlos Pou Ruan. Venue: Pavilion at Giardini
ZIMBABWE, Republic of
Pixels of Ubuntu/Unhu: - Exploring the social and cultural identities of the 21st century.
Chikonzero Chazunguza, Masimba Hwati, Gareth Nyandoro
Commissioner: Doreen Sibanda. Curator: Raphael Chikukwa. Deputy Curator: Tafadzwa Gwetai. Scientific Committee: Saki Mafundikwa, Biggie Samwanda, Fabian Kangai, Reverend Paul Damasane, Nontsikelelo Mutiti, Stephen Garan'anga, Dominic Benhura. Venue: Santa Maria della Pieta
ITALO-LATIN AMERICAN INSTITUTE
Voces Indígenas
Commissioner: Sylvia Irrazábal. Curator: Alfons Hug. Deputy Curator: Alberto Saraiva. Venue: Pavilion at Arsenale
ARGENTINA
Sofia Medici and Laura Kalauz
PLURINATIONAL STATE OF BOLIVIA
Sonia Falcone and José Laura Yapita
BRAZIL
Adriana Barreto
Paulo Nazareth
CHILE
Rainer Krause
COLOMBIA
León David Cobo,
María Cristina Rincón and Claudia Rodríguez
COSTA RICA
Priscilla Monge
ECUADOR
Fabiano Kueva
EL SALVADOR
Mauricio Kabistan
GUATEMALA
Sandra Monterroso
HAITI
Barbara Prézeau Stephenson
HONDURAS
Leonardo González
PANAMA
Humberto Vélez
NICARAGUA
Raúl Quintanilla
PARAGUAY
Erika Meza
Javier López
PERU
José Huamán Turpo
URUGUAY
Gustavo Tabares
Ellen Slegers
001 Inverso Mundus. AES+F
Magazzino del Sale n. 5, Dorsoduro, 265 (Fondamenta delle Zattere ai Saloni); Palazzo Nani Mocenigo, Dorsoduro, 960
May 9th – October 31st
Organization: VITRARIA Glass + A Museum
Catalonia in Venice: Singularity
Cantieri Navali, Castello, 40 (Calle Quintavalle)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Institut Ramon Llull
venezia2015.llull.cat
Conversion. Recycle Group
Chiesa di Sant’Antonin, Castello (Campo Sant’Antonin)
May 6th - October 31st
Organization: Moscow Museum of Modern Art
Dansaekhwa
Palazzo Contarini-Polignac, Dorsoduro, 874 (Accademia)
May 7th – August 15th
Organization: The Boghossian Foundation
Dispossession
Palazzo Donà Brusa, Campo San Polo, 2177
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: European Capital of Culture Wroclaw 2016
wroclaw2016.pl/biennale/
EM15 presents Doug Fishbone’s Leisure Land Golf
Arsenale Docks, Castello, 40A, 40B, 41C
May 6th - July 26th
Organization: EM15
Eredità e Sperimentazione
Grand Hotel Hungaria & Ausonia, Viale Santa Maria Elisabetta, 28, Lido di Venezia
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Istituto Nazionale di BioArchitettura - Sezione di Padova
Frontiers Reimagined
Palazzo Grimani, Castello, 4858 (Ramo Grimani)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Tagore Foundation International; Polo museale del Veneto
Glasstress 2015 Gotika
Istituto Veneto di Scienze Lettere ed Arti, Palazzo Cavalli Franchetti, San Marco, 2847 (Campo Santo Stefano); Chiesa di Santa Maria della Visitazione, Centro Culturale Don Orione Artigianelli, Dorsoduro, 919 (Zattere); Fondazione Berengo, Campiello della Pescheria, 15, Murano;
May 9th — November 22nd
Organization: The State Hermitage Museum
Graham Fagen: Scotland + Venice 2015
Palazzo Fontana, Cannaregio, 3829 (Strada Nova)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Scotland + Venice
Grisha Bruskin. An Archaeologist’s Collection
Former Chiesa di Santa Caterina, Cannaregio, 4941-4942
May 6th – November 22nd
Organization: Centro Studi sulle Arti della Russia (CSAR), Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia
Helen Sear, ... The Rest Is Smoke
Santa Maria Ausiliatrice, Castello, 450 (Fondamenta San Gioacchin)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Cymru yn Fenis/Wales in Venice
Highway to Hell
Palazzo Michiel, Cannaregio, 4391/A (Strada Nova)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Hubei Museum of Art
Humanistic Nature and Society (Shan-Shui) – An Insight into the Future
Palazzo Faccanon, San Marco, 5016 (Mercerie)
May 7th – August 4th
Organization: Shanghai Himalayas Museum
In the Eye of the Thunderstorm: Effervescent Practices from the Arab World & South Asia
Dorsoduro, 417 (Zattere)
May 6th - November 15th
Organization: ArsCulture
Italia Docet | Laboratorium- Artists, Participants, Testimonials and Activated Spectators
Palazzo Barbarigo Minotto, San Marco, 2504 (Fondamenta Duodo o Barbarigo)
May 9th – June 30th; September 11st – October 31st
Organization: Italian Art Motherboard Foundation (i-AM Foundation)
www.venicebiennale-italiadocet.org
Jaume Plensa: Together
Basilica di San Giorgio Maggiore, Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore
May 6th – November 22nd
Organization: Abbazia di San Giorgio Maggiore Benedicti Claustra Onlus
Jenny Holzer "War Paintings"
Museo Correr, San Marco, 52 (Piazza San Marco)
May 6th – November 22nd
Organization: The Written Art Foundation; Museo Correr, Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia
correr.visitmuve.it
Jump into the Unknown
Palazzo Loredan dell’Ambasciatore, Dorsoduro, 1261-1262
May 9th – June 18th
Organization: Nine Dragon Heads
9dh-venice.com
Learn from Masters
Palazzo Bembo, San Marco, 4793 (Riva del Carbon)
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: Pan Tianshou Foundation
pantianshou.caa.edu.cn/foundation_en
My East is Your West
Palazzo Benzon, San Marco, 3927
May 6th – October 31st
Organization: The Gujral Foundation
Ornamentalism. The Purvitis Prize
Arsenale Nord, Tesa 99
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: The Secretariat of the Latvian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2015
www.purvisabalva.lv/en/ornamentalism
Path and Adventure
Arsenale, Castello, 2126/A (Campo della Tana)
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: The Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau; The Macao Museum of Art; The Cultural Affairs Bureau
Patricia Cronin: Shrine for Girls, Venice
Chiesa di San Gallo, San Marco, 1103 (Campo San Gallo)
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: Brooklyn Rail Curatorial Projects
curatorialprojects.brooklynrail.org
Roberto Sebastian Matta. Sculture
Giardino di Palazzo Soranzo Cappello, Soprintendenza BAP per le Province di Venezia, Belluno, Padova e Treviso, Santa Croce, 770 (Fondamenta Rio Marin)
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: Fondazione Echaurren Salaris
www.fondazioneechaurrensalaris.it
www.maggioregam.com/56Biennale_Matta
Salon Suisse: S.O.S. Dada - The World Is A Mess
Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi, Dorsoduro, 810 (Campo Sant'Agnese)
May 9th; June 4th - 6th; September 10th - 12th; October 15th - 17th; November 19th – 21st
Organization: Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia
Sean Scully: Land Sea
Palazzo Falier, San Marco, 2906
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: Fondazione Volume!
Sepphoris. Alessandro Valeri
Molino Stucky, interior atrium, Giudecca, 812
May 9th – November 22nd
Organization: Assessorato alla Cultura del Comune di Narni(TR); a Sidereal Space of Art; Satellite Berlin
Tesla Revisited
Palazzo Nani Mocenigo, Dorsoduro, 960
May 9th – October 18th
Organization: VITRARIA Glass + A Museum
The Bridges of Graffiti
Arterminal c/o Terminal San Basilio, Dorsoduro (Fondamenta Zattere al Ponte Lungo)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Associazione Culturale Inossidabile
The Dialogue of Fire. Ceramic and Glass Masters from Barcelona to Venice
Palazzo Tiepolo Passi, San Polo, 2774
May 6th - November 22nd
Organization: Fundaciò Artigas; ArsCulture
The Question of Beings
Istituto Santa Maria della Pietà, Castello, 3701
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Museum of Contemporary Art, Taipei (MoCA, Taipei)
The Revenge of the Common Place
Università Ca' Foscari, Ca' Bernardo, Dorsoduro, 3199 (Calle Bernardo)
May 9th – September 30th
Organization: Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Free University Brussels-VUB)
The Silver Lining. Contemporary Art from Liechtenstein and other Microstates
Palazzo Trevisan degli Ulivi, Dorsoduro, 810 (Campo Sant'Agnese)
October 24th – November 1st
Organization: Kunstmuseum Liechtenstein
The Sound of Creation. Paintings + Music by Beezy Bailey and Brian Eno
Conservatorio Benedetto Marcello, Palazzo Pisani, San Marco, 2810 (Campo Santo Stefano)
May 7th - November 22nd
Organization: ArsCulture
The Union of Fire and Water
Palazzo Barbaro, San Marco, 2840
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: YARAT Contemporary Art Organisation
Thirty Light Years - Theatre of Chinese Art
Palazzo Rossini, San Marco, 4013 (Campo Manin)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: GAC Global Art Center Foundation; The Guangdong Museum of Art
Tsang Kin-Wah: The Infinite Nothing, Hong Kong in Venice
Arsenale, Castello, 2126 (Campo della Tana)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: M+, West Kowloon Cultural District; Hong Kong Arts Development Council
Under the Surface, Newfoundland and Labrador at Venice
Galleria Ca' Rezzonico, Dorsoduro, 2793
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Terra Nova Art Foundation
tnaf.ca
Ursula von Rydingsvard
Giardino della Marinaressa, Castello (Riva dei Sette Martiri)
May 6th - November 22nd
Organization:Yorkshire Sculpture Park
We Must Risk Delight: Twenty Artists from Los Angeles
Magazzino del Sale n. 3, Dorsoduro, 264 (Zattere)
May 7th - November 22nd
Organization: bardoLA
Wu Tien-Chang: Never Say Goodbye
Palazzo delle Prigioni, Castello, 4209 (San Marco)
May 9th - November 22nd
Organization: Taipei Fine Arts Museum of Taiwan
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 8658/1, 1933-1934. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Lupe Velez, as Native American character Naturich, in The Squaw Man (Cecil B. DeMille, 1931). Collection: Marlene Pilaete.
On 12 April 2023, there will be a very special La Collectionneuse post about Actresses as Native Americans on our blog European Film Star Postcards!
Los inicios de la historia de la ciudad de Vélez-Málaga están estrechamente ligados al de su castillo, pues su núcleo original, el Barrio de la Villa, la antigua medina medieval, nacía a los pies de la Alcazaba, conocida popularmente como “La Fortaleza”
Art Direction & Photography: Jorge Londoño
Model: Maria Isabel Velez
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 2.5 Colombia License.
Dutch postcard by Smeets & Schippers, Amsterdam. Photo: George Hurrell / MGM (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer).
Lupe Velez (1908-1944), was one of the first Mexican actresses to succeed in Hollywood. Her nicknames were 'The Mexican Spitfire' and 'Hot Pepper'. She was the leading lady in such silent films as The Gaucho (1927), Lady of the Pavements (1928), and Wolf Song (1929). During the 1930s, her well-known explosive screen persona was exploited in a series of successful films like Hot Pepper (1933), Strictly Dynamite (1934), and Hollywood Party (1934). In the 1940s, Vélez's popularity peaked after appearing in the Mexican Spitfire films, a series created to capitalise on Vélez's well-documented fiery personality. She had several highly publicised romances and a stormy marriage. In 1944, Vélez died of an intentional overdose of the barbiturate drug Seconal. Her death and the circumstances surrounding it have been the subject of speculation and controversy.
Lupe Vélez was born María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez in 1908 in the city of San Luis Potosí in Mexico. She was the daughter of Jacobo Villalobos Reyes, a colonel in the army of the dictator Porfirio Diaz, and his wife Josefina Vélez, an opera singer according to some sources, or vaudeville singer according to others. She had three sisters: Mercedes, Reina and Josefina, and a brother, Emigdio. The family was financially comfortable and lived in a large home. At the age of 13, her parents sent her to study at Our Lady of the Lake (now Our Lady of the Lake University) in San Antonio, Texas. It was at Our Lady of the Lake that Vélez learned to speak English and began to dance. She later admitted that she liked dance class, but was otherwise a poor student. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "Life was hard for her family, and Lupe returned to Mexico to help them out financially. She worked as a salesgirl for a department store for the princely sum of $4 a week. Every week she would turn most of her salary over to her mother, but kept a little for herself so she could take dancing lessons. By now, she figured, with her mature shape and grand personality, she thought she could make a try at show business." She began her career as a performer in Mexican vaudeville in 1924. She initially performed under her paternal surname, but after her father returned home from the war, he was outraged that his daughter had decided to become a stage performer. She chose her maternal surname, "Vélez", as her stage name and her mother introduced Vélez and her sister Josefina to the popular Spanish Mexican vedette María Conesa, "La Gatita Blanca". Vélez debuted in a show led by Conesa, where she sang 'Oh Charley, My Boy' and danced the shimmy. Aurelio Campos, a young pianist, and friend of the Vélez sisters recommended Lupe to stage producers, Carlos Ortega and Manuel Castro. Ortega and Castro were preparing a season revue at the Regis Theatre and hired Vélez to join the company in March 1925. Later that year, Vélez starred in the revues 'Mexican Rataplan' and '¡No lo tapes!', both parodies of the Bataclan's shows in Paris. Her suggestive singing and provocative dancing was a hit with audiences, and she soon established herself as one of the main stars of vaudeville in Mexico. After a year and a half, Vélez left the revue after the manager refused to give her a raise. She then joined the Teatro Principal but was fired after three months due to her "feisty attitude". Vélez was quickly hired by the Teatro Lirico, where her salary rose to 100 pesos a day. In 1926, Frank A. Woodyard, an American who had seen Vélez perform, recommended her to stage director Richard Bennett, the father of actresses Joan and Constance Bennett. Bennett was looking for an actress to portray a Mexican cantina singer in his upcoming play 'The Dove'. He sent Vélez a telegram inviting her to Los Angeles to appear in the play. Vélez had been planning to go to Cuba to perform, but quickly changed her plans and traveled to Los Angeles. However, upon arrival, she discovered that she had been replaced by another actress.
While in Los Angeles, Lupe Vélez met the comedian Fanny Brice. Brice recommended her to Flo Ziegfeld, who hired her to perform in New York City. While Vélez was preparing to leave Los Angeles, she received a call from MGM producer Harry Rapf, who offered her a screen test. Producer and director Hal Roach saw Vélez's screen test and hired her for a small role in the comic Laurel and Hardy short Sailors, Beware! (Fred Guiol, Hal Yates, 1927). After her debut, Vélez appeared in another Hal Roach short, What Women Did for Me (James Parrott, 1927), opposite Charley Chase. Later that year, she did a screen test for the upcoming Douglas Fairbanks feature The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927). Fairbanks was impressed by Vélez and hired her to appear in the film with him. The Gaucho was a hit and critics were duly impressed with Vélez's ability to hold her own alongside Fairbanks, who was well known for his spirited acting and impressive stunts. Her second major film was Stand and Deliver (Donald Crisp, 1928), produced by Cecil B. DeMille. That same year, she was named one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars. Then she appeared in Lady of the Pavements (1929), directed by D. W. Griffith, and Where East Is East (Tod Browning, 1929), starring Lon Chaney as an animal trapper in Laos. In the Western The Wolf Song (Victor Fleming, 1929), she appeared alongside Gary Cooper. As she was regularly cast as 'exotic' or 'ethnic' women that were volatile and hot-tempered, gossip columnists took to referring to Vélez as "Mexican Hurricane", "The Mexican Wildcat", "The Mexican Madcap", "Whoopee Lupe" and "The Hot Tamale". Lupe Vélez made the transition to sound films without difficulty. Studio executives had predicted that her accent would likely hamper her ability to make the transition. That idea was dispelled after she appeared in the all-talking Rin Tin Tin vehicle, Tiger Rose (George Fitzmaurice, 1929). The film was a hit and Vélez's sound career was established. Vélez appeared in a series of Pre-Code films like Hell Harbor (Henry King, 1930), The Storm (William Wyler, 1930), and the crime drama East Is West (Monta Bell, 1930) opposite Edward G. Robinson. The next year, she appeared in her second film for Cecil B. DeMille, Squaw Man (Cecil B. DeMille, 1931), opposite Warner Baxter, in Resurrection (Edwin Carewe, 1931), and The Cuban Love Song (W.S. Van Dyke, 1931), with the popular singer Lawrence Tibbett. She had a supporting role in Kongo (William J. Cowen, 1932) with Walter Huston, a sound remake of West of Zanzibar (Tod Browning, 1928) which tries to outdo the Lon Chaney original in morbidity. She also starred in Spanish-language versions of Universal films like Resurrección (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1931), the Spanish version of Resurrection (1931), and Hombres en mi vida (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1932), the Spanish version of Men in Her Life (William Beaudine, 1931) in which Lois Moran had starred.
In 1932, Lupe Vélez took a break from her film career and traveled to New York City where she was signed by Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. to take over the role of "Conchita" in the musical revue 'Hot-Cha!'. The show also starred Bert Lahr, Eleanor Powell, and Buddy Rogers. Back in Hollywood, Lupe switched to comedy after playing dramatic roles for five years. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "In 1933 she played the lead role of Pepper in Hot Pepper (1933). This film showcased her comedic talents and helped her to show the world her vital personality. She was delightful." After Hot Pepper (John G. Blystone, 1933) with Edmund Lowe and Victor McLaglen, Lupe played beautiful but volatile, characters in a series of successful films like Strictly Dynamite (Elliott Nugent, 1934), Palooka (Benjamin Stoloff, 1934) both opposite Jimmy Durante, and Hollywood Party (Allan Dwan, a.o., 1934) with Laurel and Hardy. Although Vélez was a popular actress, RKO Pictures did not renew her contract in 1934. Over the next few years, Vélez worked for various studios as a freelance actress; she also spent two years in England where she filmed The Morals of Marcus (Miles Mander, 1935) and Gypsy Melody (Edmond T. Gréville, 1936). She returned to Los Angeles the following year where she appeared in the final part of the Wheeler & Woolsey comedy High Flyers (Edward F. Cline, 1937). In 1938, Vélez made her final appearance on Broadway in the musical You Never Know, by Cole Porter. The show received poor reviews from critics but received a large amount of publicity due to the feud between Vélez and fellow cast member Libby Holman. Holman was irritated by the attention Vélez garnered from the show with her impersonations of several actresses including Gloria Swanson, Katharine Hepburn, and Shirley Temple. The feud came to a head during a performance in New Haven, Connecticut after Vélez punched Holman in between curtain calls and gave her a black eye. The feud effectively ended the show. Upon her return to Mexico City in 1938 to star in her first Mexican film, Vélez was greeted by ten thousand fans. The film La Zandunga (Fernando de Fuentes, 1938) co-starring Arturo de Córdova, was a critical and financial success. Vélez was slated to appear in four more Mexican films, but instead, she returned to Los Angeles and went back to work for RKO Pictures. In 1939, Lupe Vélez was cast opposite Leon Errol and Donald Woods in the B-comedy, The Girl from Mexico (Leslie Goodwins, 1939). Despite being a B film, it was a hit with audiences and RKO re-teamed her with Errol and Wood for a sequel, Mexican Spitfire (Leslie Goodwins, 1940). That film was also a success and led to a series of eight Spitfire films. Wikipedia: "In the series, Vélez portrays Carmelita Lindsay, a temperamental yet friendly Mexican singer married to Dennis 'Denny' Lindsay (Woods), an elegant American gentleman. The Spitfire films rejuvenated Vélez's career. Moreover, they were films in which a Latina headlined for eight films straight –a true rarity." In addition to the Spitfire series, she was cast in such films as Six Lessons from Madame La Zonga (John Rawlins, 1941), Playmates (David Butler, 1941) opposite John Barrymore, and Redhead from Manhattan (Lew Landers, 1943). In 1943, the final film in the Spitfire series, Mexican Spitfire's Blessed Event (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), was released. By that time, the novelty of the series had begun to wane. Velez co-starred with Eddie Albert in the romantic comedy, Ladies' Day (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), about an actress and a baseball player. In 1944, Vélez returned to Mexico to star in an adaptation of Émile Zola's novel Nana (Roberto Gavaldón, Celestino Gorostiza, 1944), which was well-received. It would be her final film. After filming wrapped, Vélez returned to Los Angeles and began preparing for another stage role in New York.
Lupe Vélez's temper and jealousy in her often tempestuous romantic relationships were well documented and became tabloid fodder, often overshadowing her career. Vélez was straightforward with the press and was regularly contacted by gossip columnists for stories about her romantic exploits. Her first long-term relationship was with actor Gary Cooper. Vélez met Cooper while filming The Wolf Song in 1929 and began a two-year affair with him. The relationship was passionate but often stormy. Reportedly Vélez chased Cooper around with a knife during an argument and cut him severely enough to require stitches. By that time, the rocky relationship had taken its toll on Cooper who had lost 45 pounds and was suffering from nervous exhaustion. Paramount Pictures ordered him to take a vacation to recuperate. While he was boarding the train, Vélez showed up at the train station and fired a pistol at him. During her marriage to actor Johnny Weissmuller, stories of their frequent physical fights were regularly reported in the press. Vélez reportedly inflicted scratches, bruises, and love-bites on Weissmuller during their fights and "passionate love-making". In July 1934, after ten months of marriage, Vélez filed for divorce citing cruelty. She withdrew the petition a week later after reconciling with Weissmuller. In January 1935, she filed for divorce a second time and was granted an interlocutory decree that was dismissed when the couple reconciled a month later. In August 1938, Vélez filed for divorce for a third time, again charging Weissmuller with cruelty. Their divorce was finalised in August 1939. After the divorce became final, Vélez began dating actor Guinn "Big Boy" Williams in late 1940. They were reportedly engaged but never married. Vélez was also linked to author Erich Maria Remarque and the boxers Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsey. In 1943, Vélez began an affair with her La Zandunga co-star Arturo de Córdova. De Córdova had recently moved to Hollywood after signing with Paramount Pictures. Despite the fact that de Córdova was married to Mexican actress Enna Arana with whom he had four children, Vélez granted an interview to gossip columnist Louella Parsons in September 1943 and announced that the two were engaged. Vélez ended the engagement in early 1944, reportedly after de Córdova's wife refused to give him a divorce. Vélez then met and began dating a struggling young Austrian actor named Harald Maresch (who went by the stage name Harald Ramond). In September 1944, she discovered she was pregnant with Ramond's child. She announced their engagement in late November 1944. On 10 December, four days before her death, Vélez announced she had ended the engagement and kicked Ramond out of her home. On the evening of 13 December 1944, Vélez dined with her two friends, the silent film star Estelle Taylor and Venita Oakie. In the early morning hours of 14 December, Vélez retired to her bedroom, where she consumed 75 Seconal pills and a glass of brandy. Her secretary, Beulah Kinder, found the actress's body on her bed later that morning. A suicide note addressed to Harald Ramond was found nearby. Lupe Vélez was only 36 years old. More than four-thousand people filed past her casket during her funeral. Her body was interred in Mexico City, at Panteón Civil de Dolores Cemetery. Velez' estate, valued at $125,000 and consisting mostly of her Rodeo House home, two cars, jewelry, and personal effects were left to her secretary Beulah Kinder with the remainder in trust for her mother, Mrs. Josephine Velez. Together with Dolores del Rio, Ramon Novarro, and José Mojica, she was one of the few Mexican people who had made history in the early years of Hollywood.
Sources: Denny Jackson (IMDb), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 44301/1, 1929-1930. Photo: United Artists.
Lupe Velez (1908-1944), was one of the first Mexican actresses to succeed in Hollywood. Her nicknames were 'The Mexican Spitfire' and 'Hot Pepper'. She was the leading lady in such silent films as The Gaucho (1927), Lady of the Pavements (1928), and Wolf Song (1929). During the 1930s, her well-known explosive screen persona was exploited in a series of successful films like Hot Pepper (1933), Strictly Dynamite (1934), and Hollywood Party (1934). In the 1940s, Vélez's popularity peaked after appearing in the Mexican Spitfire films, a series created to capitalise on Vélez's well-documented fiery personality. She had several highly publicised romances and a stormy marriage. In 1944, Vélez died of an intentional overdose of the barbiturate drug Seconal. Her death and the circumstances surrounding it have been the subject of speculation and controversy.
Lupe Vélez was born María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez in 1908 in the city of San Luis Potosí in Mexico. She was the daughter of Jacobo Villalobos Reyes, a colonel in the army of the dictator Porfirio Diaz, and his wife Josefina Vélez, an opera singer according to some sources, or vaudeville singer according to others. She had three sisters: Mercedes, Reina and Josefina, and a brother, Emigdio. The family was financially comfortable and lived in a large home. At the age of 13, her parents sent her to study at Our Lady of the Lake (now Our Lady of the Lake University) in San Antonio, Texas. It was at Our Lady of the Lake that Vélez learned to speak English and began to dance. She later admitted that she liked dance class, but was otherwise a poor student. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "Life was hard for her family, and Lupe returned to Mexico to help them out financially. She worked as a salesgirl for a department store for the princely sum of $4 a week. Every week she would turn most of her salary over to her mother, but kept a little for herself so she could take dancing lessons. By now, she figured, with her mature shape and grand personality, she thought she could make a try at show business." She began her career as a performer in Mexican vaudeville in 1924. She initially performed under her paternal surname, but after her father returned home from the war, he was outraged that his daughter had decided to become a stage performer. She chose her maternal surname, "Vélez", as her stage name and her mother introduced Vélez and her sister Josefina to the popular Spanish Mexican vedette María Conesa, "La Gatita Blanca". Vélez debuted in a show led by Conesa, where she sang 'Oh Charley, My Boy' and danced the shimmy. Aurelio Campos, a young pianist, and friend of the Vélez sisters recommended Lupe to stage producers, Carlos Ortega and Manuel Castro. Ortega and Castro were preparing a season revue at the Regis Theatre and hired Vélez to join the company in March 1925. Later that year, Vélez starred in the revues 'Mexican Rataplan' and '¡No lo tapes!', both parodies of the Bataclan's shows in Paris. Her suggestive singing and provocative dancing was a hit with audiences, and she soon established herself as one of the main stars of vaudeville in Mexico. After a year and a half, Vélez left the revue after the manager refused to give her a raise. She then joined the Teatro Principal but was fired after three months due to her "feisty attitude". Vélez was quickly hired by the Teatro Lirico, where her salary rose to 100 pesos a day. In 1926, Frank A. Woodyard, an American who had seen Vélez perform, recommended her to stage director Richard Bennett, the father of actresses Joan and Constance Bennett. Bennett was looking for an actress to portray a Mexican cantina singer in his upcoming play 'The Dove'. He sent Vélez a telegram inviting her to Los Angeles to appear in the play. Vélez had been planning to go to Cuba to perform, but quickly changed her plans and traveled to Los Angeles. However, upon arrival, she discovered that she had been replaced by another actress.
While in Los Angeles, Lupe Vélez met the comedian Fanny Brice. Brice recommended her to Flo Ziegfeld, who hired her to perform in New York City. While Vélez was preparing to leave Los Angeles, she received a call from MGM producer Harry Rapf, who offered her a screen test. Producer and director Hal Roach saw Vélez's screen test and hired her for a small role in the comic Laurel and Hardy short Sailors, Beware! (Fred Guiol, Hal Yates, 1927). After her debut, Vélez appeared in another Hal Roach short, What Women Did for Me (James Parrott, 1927), opposite Charley Chase. Later that year, she did a screen test for the upcoming Douglas Fairbanks feature The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927). Fairbanks was impressed by Vélez and hired her to appear in the film with him. The Gaucho was a hit and critics were duly impressed with Vélez's ability to hold her own alongside Fairbanks, who was well known for his spirited acting and impressive stunts. Her second major film was Stand and Deliver (Donald Crisp, 1928), produced by Cecil B. DeMille. That same year, she was named one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars. Then she appeared in Lady of the Pavements (1929), directed by D. W. Griffith, and Where East Is East (Tod Browning, 1929), starring Lon Chaney as an animal trapper in Laos. In the Western The Wolf Song (Victor Fleming, 1929), she appeared alongside Gary Cooper. As she was regularly cast as 'exotic' or 'ethnic' women that were volatile and hot-tempered, gossip columnists took to referring to Vélez as "Mexican Hurricane", "The Mexican Wildcat", "The Mexican Madcap", "Whoopee Lupe" and "The Hot Tamale". Lupe Vélez made the transition to sound films without difficulty. Studio executives had predicted that her accent would likely hamper her ability to make the transition. That idea was dispelled after she appeared in the all-talking Rin Tin Tin vehicle, Tiger Rose (George Fitzmaurice, 1929). The film was a hit and Vélez's sound career was established. Vélez appeared in a series of Pre-Code films like Hell Harbor (Henry King, 1930), The Storm (William Wyler, 1930), and the crime drama East Is West (Monta Bell, 1930) opposite Edward G. Robinson. The next year, she appeared in her second film for Cecil B. DeMille, Squaw Man (Cecil B. DeMille, 1931), opposite Warner Baxter, in Resurrection (Edwin Carewe, 1931), and The Cuban Love Song (W.S. Van Dyke, 1931), with the popular singer Lawrence Tibbett. She had a supporting role in Kongo (William J. Cowen, 1932) with Walter Huston, a sound remake of West of Zanzibar (Tod Browning, 1928) which tries to outdo the Lon Chaney original in morbidity. She also starred in Spanish-language versions of Universal films like Resurrección (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1931), the Spanish version of Resurrection (1931), and Hombres en mi vida (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1932), the Spanish version of Men in Her Life (William Beaudine, 1931) in which Lois Moran had starred.
In 1932, Lupe Vélez took a break from her film career and traveled to New York City where she was signed by Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. to take over the role of "Conchita" in the musical revue 'Hot-Cha!'. The show also starred Bert Lahr, Eleanor Powell, and Buddy Rogers. Back in Hollywood, Lupe switched to comedy after playing dramatic roles for five years. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "In 1933 she played the lead role of Pepper in Hot Pepper (1933). This film showcased her comedic talents and helped her to show the world her vital personality. She was delightful." After Hot Pepper (John G. Blystone, 1933) with Edmund Lowe and Victor McLaglen, Lupe played beautiful but volatile, characters in a series of successful films like Strictly Dynamite (Elliott Nugent, 1934), Palooka (Benjamin Stoloff, 1934) both opposite Jimmy Durante, and Hollywood Party (Allan Dwan, a.o., 1934) with Laurel and Hardy. Although Vélez was a popular actress, RKO Pictures did not renew her contract in 1934. Over the next few years, Vélez worked for various studios as a freelance actress; she also spent two years in England where she filmed The Morals of Marcus (Miles Mander, 1935) and Gypsy Melody (Edmond T. Gréville, 1936). She returned to Los Angeles the following year where she appeared in the final part of the Wheeler & Woolsey comedy High Flyers (Edward F. Cline, 1937). In 1938, Vélez made her final appearance on Broadway in the musical You Never Know, by Cole Porter. The show received poor reviews from critics but received a large amount of publicity due to the feud between Vélez and fellow cast member Libby Holman. Holman was irritated by the attention Vélez garnered from the show with her impersonations of several actresses including Gloria Swanson, Katharine Hepburn, and Shirley Temple. The feud came to a head during a performance in New Haven, Connecticut after Vélez punched Holman in between curtain calls and gave her a black eye. The feud effectively ended the show. Upon her return to Mexico City in 1938 to star in her first Mexican film, Vélez was greeted by ten thousand fans. The film La Zandunga (Fernando de Fuentes, 1938) co-starring Arturo de Córdova, was a critical and financial success. Vélez was slated to appear in four more Mexican films, but instead, she returned to Los Angeles and went back to work for RKO Pictures. In 1939, Lupe Vélez was cast opposite Leon Errol and Donald Woods in the B-comedy, The Girl from Mexico (Leslie Goodwins, 1939). Despite being a B film, it was a hit with audiences and RKO re-teamed her with Errol and Wood for a sequel, Mexican Spitfire (Leslie Goodwins, 1940). That film was also a success and led to a series of eight Spitfire films. Wikipedia: "In the series, Vélez portrays Carmelita Lindsay, a temperamental yet friendly Mexican singer married to Dennis 'Denny' Lindsay (Woods), an elegant American gentleman. The Spitfire films rejuvenated Vélez's career. Moreover, they were films in which a Latina headlined for eight films straight –a true rarity." In addition to the Spitfire series, she was cast in such films as Six Lessons from Madame La Zonga (John Rawlins, 1941), Playmates (David Butler, 1941) opposite John Barrymore, and Redhead from Manhattan (Lew Landers, 1943). In 1943, the final film in the Spitfire series, Mexican Spitfire's Blessed Event (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), was released. By that time, the novelty of the series had begun to wane. Velez co-starred with Eddie Albert in the romantic comedy, Ladies' Day (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), about an actress and a baseball player. In 1944, Vélez returned to Mexico to star in an adaptation of Émile Zola's novel Nana (Roberto Gavaldón, Celestino Gorostiza, 1944), which was well-received. It would be her final film. After filming wrapped, Vélez returned to Los Angeles and began preparing for another stage role in New York.
Lupe Vélez's temper and jealousy in her often tempestuous romantic relationships were well documented and became tabloid fodder, often overshadowing her career. Vélez was straightforward with the press and was regularly contacted by gossip columnists for stories about her romantic exploits. Her first long-term relationship was with actor Gary Cooper. Vélez met Cooper while filming The Wolf Song in 1929 and began a two-year affair with him. The relationship was passionate but often stormy. Reportedly Vélez chased Cooper around with a knife during an argument and cut him severely enough to require stitches. By that time, the rocky relationship had taken its toll on Cooper who had lost 45 pounds and was suffering from nervous exhaustion. Paramount Pictures ordered him to take a vacation to recuperate. While he was boarding the train, Vélez showed up at the train station and fired a pistol at him. During her marriage to actor Johnny Weissmuller, stories of their frequent physical fights were regularly reported in the press. Vélez reportedly inflicted scratches, bruises, and love-bites on Weissmuller during their fights and "passionate love-making". In July 1934, after ten months of marriage, Vélez filed for divorce citing cruelty. She withdrew the petition a week later after reconciling with Weissmuller. In January 1935, she filed for divorce a second time and was granted an interlocutory decree that was dismissed when the couple reconciled a month later. In August 1938, Vélez filed for divorce for a third time, again charging Weissmuller with cruelty. Their divorce was finalised in August 1939. After the divorce became final, Vélez began dating actor Guinn "Big Boy" Williams in late 1940. They were reportedly engaged but never married. Vélez was also linked to author Erich Maria Remarque and the boxers Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsey. In 1943, Vélez began an affair with her La Zandunga co-star Arturo de Córdova. De Córdova had recently moved to Hollywood after signing with Paramount Pictures. Despite the fact that de Córdova was married to Mexican actress Enna Arana with whom he had four children, Vélez granted an interview to gossip columnist Louella Parsons in September 1943 and announced that the two were engaged. Vélez ended the engagement in early 1944, reportedly after de Córdova's wife refused to give him a divorce. Vélez then met and began dating a struggling young Austrian actor named Harald Maresch (who went by the stage name Harald Ramond). In September 1944, she discovered she was pregnant with Ramond's child. She announced their engagement in late November 1944. On 10 December, four days before her death, Vélez announced she had ended the engagement and kicked Ramond out of her home. On the evening of 13 December 1944, Vélez dined with her two friends, the silent film star Estelle Taylor and Venita Oakie. In the early morning hours of 14 December, Vélez retired to her bedroom, where she consumed 75 Seconal pills and a glass of brandy. Her secretary, Beulah Kinder, found the actress's body on her bed later that morning. A suicide note addressed to Harald Ramond was found nearby. Lupe Vélez was only 36 years old. More than four-thousand people filed past her casket during her funeral. Her body was interred in Mexico City, at Panteón Civil de Dolores Cemetery. Velez' estate, valued at $125,000 and consisting mostly of her Rodeo House home, two cars, jewelry, and personal effects were left to her secretary Beulah Kinder with the remainder in trust for her mother, Mrs. Josephine Velez. Together with Dolores del Rio, Ramon Novarro, and José Mojica, she was one of the few Mexican people who had made history in the early years of Hollywood.
Sources: Denny Jackson (IMDb), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. A 2013/1, 1939-1940. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Lupe Velez (1908-1944), was one of the first Mexican actresses to succeed in Hollywood. Her nicknames were 'The Mexican Spitfire' and 'Hot Pepper'. She was the leading lady in such silent films as The Gaucho (1927), Lady of the Pavements (1928), and Wolf Song (1929). During the 1930s, her well-known explosive screen persona was exploited in a series of successful films like Hot Pepper (1933), Strictly Dynamite (1934), and Hollywood Party (1934). In the 1940s, Vélez's popularity peaked after appearing in the Mexican Spitfire films, a series created to capitalise on Vélez's well-documented fiery personality. She had several highly publicised romances and a stormy marriage. In 1944, Vélez died of an intentional overdose of the barbiturate drug Seconal. Her death and the circumstances surrounding it have been the subject of speculation and controversy.
Lupe Vélez was born María Guadalupe Villalobos Vélez in 1908 in the city of San Luis Potosí in Mexico. She was the daughter of Jacobo Villalobos Reyes, a colonel in the army of the dictator Porfirio Diaz, and his wife Josefina Vélez, an opera singer according to some sources, or vaudeville singer according to others. She had three sisters: Mercedes, Reina and Josefina, and a brother, Emigdio. The family was financially comfortable and lived in a large home. At the age of 13, her parents sent her to study at Our Lady of the Lake (now Our Lady of the Lake University) in San Antonio, Texas. It was at Our Lady of the Lake that Vélez learned to speak English and began to dance. She later admitted that she liked dance class, but was otherwise a poor student. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "Life was hard for her family, and Lupe returned to Mexico to help them out financially. She worked as a salesgirl for a department store for the princely sum of $4 a week. Every week she would turn most of her salary over to her mother, but kept a little for herself so she could take dancing lessons. By now, she figured, with her mature shape and grand personality, she thought she could make a try at show business." She began her career as a performer in Mexican vaudeville in 1924. She initially performed under her paternal surname, but after her father returned home from the war, he was outraged that his daughter had decided to become a stage performer. She chose her maternal surname, "Vélez", as her stage name and her mother introduced Vélez and her sister Josefina to the popular Spanish Mexican vedette María Conesa, "La Gatita Blanca". Vélez debuted in a show led by Conesa, where she sang 'Oh Charley, My Boy' and danced the shimmy. Aurelio Campos, a young pianist, and friend of the Vélez sisters recommended Lupe to stage producers, Carlos Ortega and Manuel Castro. Ortega and Castro were preparing a season revue at the Regis Theatre and hired Vélez to join the company in March 1925. Later that year, Vélez starred in the revues 'Mexican Rataplan' and '¡No lo tapes!', both parodies of the Bataclan's shows in Paris. Her suggestive singing and provocative dancing was a hit with audiences, and she soon established herself as one of the main stars of vaudeville in Mexico. After a year and a half, Vélez left the revue after the manager refused to give her a raise. She then joined the Teatro Principal but was fired after three months due to her "feisty attitude". Vélez was quickly hired by the Teatro Lirico, where her salary rose to 100 pesos a day. In 1926, Frank A. Woodyard, an American who had seen Vélez perform, recommended her to stage director Richard Bennett, the father of actresses Joan and Constance Bennett. Bennett was looking for an actress to portray a Mexican cantina singer in his upcoming play 'The Dove'. He sent Vélez a telegram inviting her to Los Angeles to appear in the play. Vélez had been planning to go to Cuba to perform, but quickly changed her plans and traveled to Los Angeles. However, upon arrival, she discovered that she had been replaced by another actress.
While in Los Angeles, Lupe Vélez met the comedian Fanny Brice. Brice recommended her to Flo Ziegfeld, who hired her to perform in New York City. While Vélez was preparing to leave Los Angeles, she received a call from MGM producer Harry Rapf, who offered her a screen test. Producer and director Hal Roach saw Vélez's screen test and hired her for a small role in the comic Laurel and Hardy short Sailors, Beware! (Fred Guiol, Hal Yates, 1927). After her debut, Vélez appeared in another Hal Roach short, What Women Did for Me (James Parrott, 1927), opposite Charley Chase. Later that year, she did a screen test for the upcoming Douglas Fairbanks feature The Gaucho (F. Richard Jones, 1927). Fairbanks was impressed by Vélez and hired her to appear in the film with him. The Gaucho was a hit and critics were duly impressed with Vélez's ability to hold her own alongside Fairbanks, who was well known for his spirited acting and impressive stunts. Her second major film was Stand and Deliver (Donald Crisp, 1928), produced by Cecil B. DeMille. That same year, she was named one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars. Then she appeared in Lady of the Pavements (1929), directed by D. W. Griffith, and Where East Is East (Tod Browning, 1929), starring Lon Chaney as an animal trapper in Laos. In the Western The Wolf Song (Victor Fleming, 1929), she appeared alongside Gary Cooper. As she was regularly cast as 'exotic' or 'ethnic' women that were volatile and hot-tempered, gossip columnists took to referring to Vélez as "Mexican Hurricane", "The Mexican Wildcat", "The Mexican Madcap", "Whoopee Lupe" and "The Hot Tamale". Lupe Vélez made the transition to sound films without difficulty. Studio executives had predicted that her accent would likely hamper her ability to make the transition. That idea was dispelled after she appeared in the all-talking Rin Tin Tin vehicle, Tiger Rose (George Fitzmaurice, 1929). The film was a hit and Vélez's sound career was established. Vélez appeared in a series of Pre-Code films like Hell Harbor (Henry King, 1930), The Storm (William Wyler, 1930), and the crime drama East Is West (Monta Bell, 1930) opposite Edward G. Robinson. The next year, she appeared in her second film for Cecil B. DeMille, Squaw Man (Cecil B. DeMille, 1931), opposite Warner Baxter, in Resurrection (Edwin Carewe, 1931), and The Cuban Love Song (W.S. Van Dyke, 1931), with the popular singer Lawrence Tibbett. She had a supporting role in Kongo (William J. Cowen, 1932) with Walter Huston, a sound remake of West of Zanzibar (Tod Browning, 1928) which tries to outdo the Lon Chaney original in morbidity. She also starred in Spanish-language versions of Universal films like Resurrección (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1931), the Spanish version of Resurrection (1931), and Hombres en mi vida (Eduardo Arozamena, David Selman, 1932), the Spanish version of Men in Her Life (William Beaudine, 1931) in which Lois Moran had starred.
In 1932, Lupe Vélez took a break from her film career and traveled to New York City where she was signed by Broadway impresario Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. to take over the role of "Conchita" in the musical revue 'Hot-Cha!'. The show also starred Bert Lahr, Eleanor Powell, and Buddy Rogers. Back in Hollywood, Lupe switched to comedy after playing dramatic roles for five years. Denny Jackson at IMDb: "In 1933 she played the lead role of Pepper in Hot Pepper (1933). This film showcased her comedic talents and helped her to show the world her vital personality. She was delightful." After Hot Pepper (John G. Blystone, 1933) with Edmund Lowe and Victor McLaglen, Lupe played beautiful but volatile, characters in a series of successful films like Strictly Dynamite (Elliott Nugent, 1934), Palooka (Benjamin Stoloff, 1934) both opposite Jimmy Durante, and Hollywood Party (Allan Dwan, a.o., 1934) with Laurel and Hardy. Although Vélez was a popular actress, RKO Pictures did not renew her contract in 1934. Over the next few years, Vélez worked for various studios as a freelance actress; she also spent two years in England where she filmed The Morals of Marcus (Miles Mander, 1935) and Gypsy Melody (Edmond T. Gréville, 1936). She returned to Los Angeles the following year where she appeared in the final part of the Wheeler & Woolsey comedy High Flyers (Edward F. Cline, 1937). In 1938, Vélez made her final appearance on Broadway in the musical You Never Know, by Cole Porter. The show received poor reviews from critics but received a large amount of publicity due to the feud between Vélez and fellow cast member Libby Holman. Holman was irritated by the attention Vélez garnered from the show with her impersonations of several actresses including Gloria Swanson, Katharine Hepburn, and Shirley Temple. The feud came to a head during a performance in New Haven, Connecticut after Vélez punched Holman in between curtain calls and gave her a black eye. The feud effectively ended the show. Upon her return to Mexico City in 1938 to star in her first Mexican film, Vélez was greeted by ten thousand fans. The film La Zandunga (Fernando de Fuentes, 1938) co-starring Arturo de Córdova, was a critical and financial success. Vélez was slated to appear in four more Mexican films, but instead, she returned to Los Angeles and went back to work for RKO Pictures. In 1939, Lupe Vélez was cast opposite Leon Errol and Donald Woods in the B-comedy, The Girl from Mexico (Leslie Goodwins, 1939). Despite being a B film, it was a hit with audiences and RKO re-teamed her with Errol and Wood for a sequel, Mexican Spitfire (Leslie Goodwins, 1940). That film was also a success and led to a series of eight Spitfire films. Wikipedia: "In the series, Vélez portrays Carmelita Lindsay, a temperamental yet friendly Mexican singer married to Dennis 'Denny' Lindsay (Woods), an elegant American gentleman. The Spitfire films rejuvenated Vélez's career. Moreover, they were films in which a Latina headlined for eight films straight –a true rarity." In addition to the Spitfire series, she was cast in such films as Six Lessons from Madame La Zonga (John Rawlins, 1941), Playmates (David Butler, 1941) opposite John Barrymore, and Redhead from Manhattan (Lew Landers, 1943). In 1943, the final film in the Spitfire series, Mexican Spitfire's Blessed Event (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), was released. By that time, the novelty of the series had begun to wane. Velez co-starred with Eddie Albert in the romantic comedy, Ladies' Day (Leslie Goodwins, 1943), about an actress and a baseball player. In 1944, Vélez returned to Mexico to star in an adaptation of Émile Zola's novel Nana (Roberto Gavaldón, Celestino Gorostiza, 1944), which was well-received. It would be her final film. After filming wrapped, Vélez returned to Los Angeles and began preparing for another stage role in New York.
Lupe Vélez's temper and jealousy in her often tempestuous romantic relationships were well documented and became tabloid fodder, often overshadowing her career. Vélez was straightforward with the press and was regularly contacted by gossip columnists for stories about her romantic exploits. Her first long-term relationship was with actor Gary Cooper. Vélez met Cooper while filming The Wolf Song in 1929 and began a two-year affair with him. The relationship was passionate but often stormy. Reportedly Vélez chased Cooper around with a knife during an argument and cut him severely enough to require stitches. By that time, the rocky relationship had taken its toll on Cooper who had lost 45 pounds and was suffering from nervous exhaustion. Paramount Pictures ordered him to take a vacation to recuperate. While he was boarding the train, Vélez showed up at the train station and fired a pistol at him. During her marriage to actor Johnny Weissmuller, stories of their frequent physical fights were regularly reported in the press. Vélez reportedly inflicted scratches, bruises, and love-bites on Weissmuller during their fights and "passionate love-making". In July 1934, after ten months of marriage, Vélez filed for divorce citing cruelty. She withdrew the petition a week later after reconciling with Weissmuller. In January 1935, she filed for divorce a second time and was granted an interlocutory decree that was dismissed when the couple reconciled a month later. In August 1938, Vélez filed for divorce for a third time, again charging Weissmuller with cruelty. Their divorce was finalised in August 1939. After the divorce became final, Vélez began dating actor Guinn "Big Boy" Williams in late 1940. They were reportedly engaged but never married. Vélez was also linked to author Erich Maria Remarque and the boxers Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsey. In 1943, Vélez began an affair with her La Zandunga co-star Arturo de Córdova. De Córdova had recently moved to Hollywood after signing with Paramount Pictures. Despite the fact that de Córdova was married to Mexican actress Enna Arana with whom he had four children, Vélez granted an interview to gossip columnist Louella Parsons in September 1943 and announced that the two were engaged. Vélez ended the engagement in early 1944, reportedly after de Córdova's wife refused to give him a divorce. Vélez then met and began dating a struggling young Austrian actor named Harald Maresch (who went by the stage name Harald Ramond). In September 1944, she discovered she was pregnant with Ramond's child. She announced their engagement in late November 1944. On 10 December, four days before her death, Vélez announced she had ended the engagement and kicked Ramond out of her home. On the evening of 13 December 1944, Vélez dined with her two friends, the silent film star Estelle Taylor and Venita Oakie. In the early morning hours of 14 December, Vélez retired to her bedroom, where she consumed 75 Seconal pills and a glass of brandy. Her secretary, Beulah Kinder, found the actress's body on her bed later that morning. A suicide note addressed to Harald Ramond was found nearby. Lupe Vélez was only 36 years old. More than four-thousand people filed past her casket during her funeral. Her body was interred in Mexico City, at Panteón Civil de Dolores Cemetery. Velez' estate, valued at $125,000 and consisting mostly of her Rodeo House home, two cars, jewelry, and personal effects were left to her secretary Beulah Kinder with the remainder in trust for her mother, Mrs. Josephine Velez. Together with Dolores del Rio, Ramon Novarro, and José Mojica, she was one of the few Mexican people who had made history in the early years of Hollywood.
Sources: Denny Jackson (IMDb), Wikipedia, and IMDb.
And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.