Raul Roulien

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Raul Roulien (real name Raúl Pepe Acolti Gil ; born October 8, 1905 in Rio de Janeiro , RJ ; † September 8, 2000 in São Paulo , SP ) was a Brazilian actor , screenwriter , film director , film producer , musician , television presenter and newspaper journalist . In the 1930s he made the jump from Brazil to Hollywood , where he worked in several film productions. He achieved a greater degree of awareness primarily through his appearance in Flying Down to Rio on the side of Fred Astaire , Ginger Rogers , Dolores del Río and Gene Raymond . At the same time, Roulien is considered to be the first Brazilian to work in Hollywood.

life and career

Born in 1905 in Rio de Janeiro under the name Raúl Pepe Acolti Gil and later (1931) emigrated to the USA , Raul Roulien was trained as an architect in his home country before he switched to film and television . After emigrating to the United States, he gained Latin lover status and changed his name to Raul Roulien , by which he is still known in the United States today. Before he began his acting career, he was active as a songwriter and singer, among other things. He wrote 22 pieces between 1928 and 1933, which were composed mainly for the dances tango , samba , foxtrot and waltz . At this time he also worked with well-known composers such as William Kernell , Mark Hermanns , Hekel Tavares , Joraci Camargo and Irving Berlin .

In 1928 he founded the “ Companhia de Teatro Abgail Maia-Raul Roulien ”, a theater group that he led with his first wife Abgail Maia. He was also one of the co-founders of a new genre, the " Teatro de Frivolidade " ( Eng . " Theater of Frivolity ").

His actual film career began in 1931 when he was awarded a contract with 20th Century Fox in New York and starred in Eran Trece , a Spanish film adaptation of The Chinese Detective Charlie Chan . In the same year there was a major appearance in the film Two Hearts Over Board , which is mainly known in the USA under the name Delicious . In 1932 he got a supporting role each in Careless Lady and The Painted Woman , as well as a smaller role in the film State's Attorney . In 1933 he received a leading role in several films, such as El último varon sobre la Tierra , It's Great to Be Alive and No dejes la puerta abierta ; In the films Primavera en otoño and Flying Down to Rio he acted in essential supporting roles. After he was still in the film The World Moves On in 1934 , z. B. is also known in Austria under the name Die Welt geht weiter , he was drawn back to his home country in the same year, where he was then featured in a number of films. In 1934 and 1935 he was seen in the films Granaderos del amor , Asegure a su mujer , Piernas de seda and Te quiero con locura .

In 1937, O Grito da Mocidade, a film followed, in which Roulien was also used as a screenwriter, director, film editor and producer in addition to his acting work. At that time he was already thinking about retiring as an actor and devoting himself to his other work in the film and television sector. So it came about that he was in front of the camera for the last time in 1939 with El grito de la juventud , which he also directed. In the same year he also worked for the film Aves Sem Ninho , which was produced by his own production company, Raul Roulien Produções Cinematográficas , and for which, in addition to his work as a producer, he was also engaged as a screenwriter and director. After a long period of abstinence as an actor, he returned to the screen in 1947 and was seen in the film The Way to Rio in an insignificant supporting role. After that he was used sporadically as a film and television director between 1950 and 1970. In 1950 he directed the film Maconha, Erva Maldita , for which he also wrote the screenplay. In addition, from the 1950s onwards he was also active as a television presenter and newspaper journalist in Brazil and abroad and was, among other things, a short-term promoter for the Miss São Paulo election .

In the 1960s, Roulien was mainly active as a director of television series, working on the series A Muralha , Quando Menos Se Espera and Conflito , among others . He had his last notable and well-known appearance in 1970, when he was paid homage with Brasileiros em Hollywood . The same film also contains testimonies from the famous Brazilian director Fernanda Montenegro . In 1984 he made another appearance as a director when he wanted to make a documentary about the famous Brazilian doctor , microbiologist , epidemiologist and health scientist Oswaldo Cruz . However, the film was never completed.

After retiring in his home country, he suffered a stroke in 1995 after falling . On September 8, 2000, exactly one month before his 95th birthday, Raúl Pepe Acolti Gil died of natural causes in São Paulo in the Brazilian state of the same name . His exact cause of death differs if one takes a closer look at the various sources. While some sources such as the IMDb assume pneumonia, a Brazilian source gives a heart attack as the cause of death on the occasion of his death.

Family and private

On September 19, 1935 he married the Spanish actress Conchita Montenegro with whom he lived for a few years, but then divorced her. He was previously married to Abigail Maia, with whom he ran the “ Companhia de Teatro Abgail Maia-Raul Roulien ”, and then to the actress and dancer Tosca Roulien , who died in a car accident on Sunset Boulevard at the end of September 1933 was run over by later Oscar winner John Huston . His father, Walter Huston , then turned to Louis B. Mayer , one of the chairmen and founders of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , so that he could significantly influence the investigations of the LAPD due to his influence . Later investigations then proved Huston's innocence. After his marriage to Montenegro, which lasted only two years, he married the actress Nelly Rodrigues in Mexico in 1937 .

Filmography (selection)

Movies
TV series (as a director)

Music recordings

  • Adiós mis farras ( Tango ; 1928)
  • Ave noturna (Tango; 1929)
  • Beguin (with William Kernell (musical fun; 1933)
  • Bibleô (Tango; 1929)
  • Chiquita (Tango; 1929)
  • Crispim (with Mark Hermanns ) ( Samba ; 1929)
  • Favela (with Hekel Tavares and Joraci Camargo ) (Samba; 1933)
  • Felicidade (Samba; 1929)
  • Guacira (with Hekel Tavares and Joraci Camargo) (Canção brasileira; Brazilian song; 1933)
  • Joãozinho ( Berceuse ; 1929)
  • Juventud (Fox Romance; 1929)
  • Mala yerba (Tango; 1929)
  • Mamãe viu ( Foxtrot ; 1929)
  • Mente por favor (with Irving Berlin ) (Foxtrot; 1933)
  • Miss St. Paul (with Mark Hermanns) (Foxtrot; 1929)
  • Nunca (accompanied by Mark Hermanns) waltz ; 1929)
  • Quimera (with Mark Hermanns) (waltz; 1929)
  • Saudade má (accompanied by Mark Hermanns) (Foxtrot; 1930)
  • Te fuiste (Mark Hermanns as a single singer ) (Waltz; 1929)
  • Tu amor e un ranchito 1928 Tango
  • Tua (waltz; 1930)
  • Vivir sin ti (Foxtrot; 1929)

Web links

Footnotes and individual references

  1. ↑ Raul Roulien - Gala brasileiro dos anos que 30 atuou em Hollywood morre de infarto aos 94 anos (Portuguese), accessed 25 December 2010
  2. ↑ In O Grito da Mocidade , Roulien acted as a screenwriter, director, editor and producer in addition to his acting activities.
  3. ↑ In El grito de la juventud , Roulien worked as a director in addition to his acting activities.
  4. ↑ In Aves Sem Ninho , Roulien was active as a screenwriter, director and producer.
  5. ↑ For the film Asas do Brasil , Roulien provided the story and the related plot.
  6. ↑ In Maconha, Erva Maldita , Roulien acted as a screenwriter and director.
  7. ↑ The film Brasileiros em Hollywood pays homage to Raul Roulien, the first Brazilian in Hollywood.
personal data
SURNAME Roulien, Raul
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gil, Raúl Pepe Acolti (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Brazilian actor, screenwriter, film director, film producer, musician, television presenter and newspaper journalist
DATE OF BIRTH October 8, 1905
PLACE OF BIRTH Rio de Janeiro
DATE OF DEATH September 8, 2000
Place of death São Paulo