I guess
it is true, André Daven needed
the dental makeover. In the photograph below #1, we can see Daven's teeth had issues. This photo was taken in 1923. So by
1926, we see in a photograph with Daven and his greatest love, his wife
Daniela Parola how his teeth appear sparkling white and perfect.
This seems a small detail but in a grander picture it is not.
In 1923,
Daven was given a great advantage with the Valentino's sponsorship as they believed he
had a future in the movies. But within a year, Daven would be
returning to France and “on the run” after ringing up a tab for the Valentinos of
some 35,000 francs (by today's exchange rate $29,400 U.S. Dollars). Valentino would write their mutual friend Jacques Hebertot on July 4,
1924, just a few days after Daven's departure...expressing his
disappointment in Daven's “ingratitude and hypocrisy”.
George
Ullman reports Valentino had him send an invoice to Daven
demanding full payment. Daven replied by saying the Valentinos interrupted his
journalistic career and he would pay them nothing.
These
two photos represent a sort of “before and after” scenario. But I
have to wonder.. during the filming of Monsieur Beaucaire, had the
issue of Daven's teeth already been remedied or did they just tell
him to keep his mouth shut?
#1 Left to Right - Daven, Valentino and Rene Clair
Daven with his great love, his wife, Daniela Parola
