Monday, May 25, 2020

The Registry of Actions

I have told the detailed story of how I came to discover the lost probate court documents of Rudolph Valentino both in Affairs Valentino and in several podcast episodes. When it was ascertained that the original case file was stolen from its rightful housing location in the Los Angeles County Hall of Records, I embarked on a search for any copies that might be about.

I was more than rewarded when a librarian in a law library asked if George Ullman ever filed an appeal of the 1930 decision. I said yes. She sent me off to the California Court of Appeals Library and there they were... some 1000 pages of officially copied records.

There were a few documents still on file in Los Angeles and the Registry of Actions (below) is one. This is the record of all actions, payments in and out...made on behalf of the estate of Rudolph Valentino.

I found it fascinating and although difficult to decipher I think it worth it. You might have to download the pages in order to enlarge them. I have also included this document in our book, “Affairs Valentino Companion Guide – The Lost Court Documents of Rudolph Valentino”, from page 63.

And again I mention what a tragedy is has been to realize how fiercely the Valentino family and the "team", spearheaded by Tracy Terhune and David Bret have worked to prevent the public from ever having access to Affairs Valentino and this incredibly insightful information. And it is even more disturbing to realize that according to Bill Self (who told me himself), Tracy Terhune and Donna Hill, the entire case file of these Valentino records is in the hands of these very people. Those documents should be, by law, available for public review.