Hollywood Superstar Was a Male Prostitute
Rudolph Valentino (1895 – 1926), also known as “The Latin Lover”, was a Hollywood superstar and heartthrob of the silent film era, and a 1920s symbol of masculine sexuality. He shot to fame with captivating performances in silent film blockbusters such as The Sheik, and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. His sudden death at age 31 resulted in mass hysteria among his female fans, and solidified his iconic status.
However, before becoming a star, Rudolph Valentino had probably been a male prostitute. Before rising to fame, Valentino had worked as a dancer in what were known as “taxi dance clubs”. Such clubs were basically escorted services, where clients would come in, examine the club’s stable of dancers, and pay to dance with whichever one caught their eye.
Clients who got good vibes and liked their dance partner would negotiate a price with him or her, then pay the club an “exit fee” to leave with the dancer. Some taxi dance clubs were legitimate and innocent, but most were just straight-up escort services. In Valentino’s case, he was once arrested in a brothel before becoming famous, so it is unlikely that his taxi dance club was the innocent kind.
To put it in perspective, imagine if it was discovered that Brad Pitt had been a gigolo or male prostitute who’d worked for an escort service. The paparazzi stampede would probably have caused an earthquake. The ensuing media and social media firestorm would probably have broken the internet, as the insatiable demand for salacious details produced a never-ending stream of stories.