Trivia of Dolores del Rio

Trivia of Dolores del Rio (3 August 1904 - 11 April 1983)

*Dolores del Rio’s family was full of celebrities.Her parents were members of the Mexican aristocracy that existed during the time of dictator Porfirio Diaz. Her maternal relatives were famed personalities. The filmmaker Julio Bracho, actors Ramón Novarro, and Andrea Palma were her cousins.On her paternal side, she was a cousin to Mexican sculptor Ignacio Asúnsolo and social activist and model Maria Asúnsolo. This is evidence that Dolores came from an artist’s family.

*She was discovered by film director Edwin Carewe. He happened to be in Mexico attending a wedding of actor Bert Lytell and Clare Windsor. The filmmaker was captivated by the performance of Dolores’s tango dance at the wedding.Dolores' interest was dancing but the film director managed to convince her to also try acting as it fit her personality. He even offered Dolores a role in his film titled Joanna which was scheduled to premiere in 1925.

*She contributed money to a statue likeness of her as the title character in Evangeline (1929). Upon completion in 1930, the statue was placed beside St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville, Louisiana. The statue rests on a spot marking the alleged burial place of Emmeline Labiche, who local lore claims was the inspiration behind Longfellow's tragic heroine. It has become a popular tourist attraction and is known as "The Evangeline Statue".

*Originally film Flying Down to Rio (1936) conceived by RKO as special movie for Dolores del Rio, this film is most notable for its star-making pairing of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. In supporting roles, the two relative unknowns smoked up the screen in a dance number called "The Carioca".

*During filming Bird of Paradise (1932) opposite Joel McCrea, Dolores del Rio appears nude in the underwater love scene. All that can be seen is her exposed butt and a brief glimpse of side breast; her front side is hidden in shadows.After seeing this sexy scene , Orson Welles publicly stated to reporters that Dolores del Rio was "the highest erotic ideal" for any red-blooded male. Eight years later, Welles and del Río met at Fox studio head Darryl F. Zanuck's ranch in Hollywood, whereupon they began a relationship. Their relationship was kept secret until 1941, when del Río filed for divorce from her second husband.

*Reportedly slept for 16 hours a day to maintain her beauty.

*In the early 1940s, when her Hollywood career began to decline, Del Río returned to Mexico and joined the Mexican film industry, which at that time was at its peak.When Del Río returned to her native country, she became one of the more important stars of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema.A series of Mexican films starring Del Rio are considered classic masterpieces and helped boost Mexican cinema worldwide. Of them stands out the critically acclaimed María Candelaria (1943).