Vallejo Gantner(1911-1996)

Born January 14, 1911 in a San Francisco hospital, Frederick Vallejo Gantner was raised in Oakland, California by his wealthy Industrialist father and mother who built the family fortune in clothing merchandise. Their most successful enterprise was a very contemporary, successfully-fashionable, popular male and female swim-suit line. Born with a silver spoon and a gold fork and knife, Frederick Vallejo Gantner received opportunities which made him a spoiled rotten rich kid! An early interest in theater arts during his school years plus his independence in his family supported life style helped Frederick to become focused in performance art. Negligible performance training did not impede Frederick's impetus to join a small theatre company in the San Francisco tenderloin district. Frederick's parents allowed their son to pursue an acting career since they tolerated his pursuit of any flamboyant activity. A young handsome talent gained somewhat of a matinee idol success resulting in his being featured as a stage-star identity named "Vallejo Gantner," notoriously dropping his first name moniker "Frederick". Vallejo Gantner appeared in the lead role in San Francisco's long running theatrical production of the popular stage period play - "The Drunkard". His parents, on his birth, had given their baby boy the middle honorable name, "Vallejo" - named after General Marrano Guadalupe Vallejo, (b: 07/04/1807 - d: 01/18/1890 age 84); born in Monterey, California, a subject of Spain, who performed his military duties as an officer of the Republic of Mexico. General Vallejo's wife was Francisca Benicia, who helped the General shape the transition of Alta California from territory of Mexico to the United State of California. General Vallejo served in the first session of the California Senate. The city of Vallejo in the east-bay is named after him. The adjacent city south of Vallejo, the first California State Capital, is the small city of Benicia, which was so named after General Vallejo's wife. After starring and being featured in the lead male role in San Francisco's popular theatrical long-run of "The Drunkard," performing his role over several years, young Vallejo Gantner journeyed to Southern California to try his luck seeking acting roles in the tumultuous Hollywood film industry. Uncredited, the handsome young 22 year old matinee idol wannabe actor established himself in several early uncredited screen appearances. Personable and a striking handsome profile as an actor, his first minor screen role was in the Cecil B. DeMille Paramount feature, a medieval period film, "The Crusades" (1935) at age 24. Many performers in this Hollywood film were transplanted Brits, who became friends and mentors with Vallejo. Encouraged by his experienced professional fellow British thespians, Vallejo sailed to England to try his luck in improving his performance acting abilities, with additional training in the British film industry. Vallejo's second film credit (at age 25) was in the 1936 World War 1 based period film-feature "Till We Meet Again". Vallejo's third screen credit immediately developed in Vallejo's being cast in his second British feature screen performance, again in a minor role (at age 26), in 1937, appearing in "Fire Over England," another period-based movie. A fourth British film followed in 1938, appearing in a minor role, "The Divorce of Lady X." The Russian, Paris based costume couturier for Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, Barbara Karinska (at the age of 42) had been hired on to the "Fire Over England" film's wardrobe department where the two would meet. Barbara Karinska was the costume design assistant on both "Fire Over England" and "The Divorce of Lady X." Vallejo shared a "run-of-a-picture-romance" with Barbara Karinska during the two consecutive feature-film's production filming schedules. Upon completion of the film "The Divorce of Lady X," Vallejo and Barbara, afterwards, continued their romantic alliance. Vallejo, homesick, becoming anxious about his film-acting career and missing Hollywood's acting opportunities, returned to America's lure of Hollywood magic make believe. Eventually, after his Hollywood return in 1938, cast again in a minor role, at the age of 27, in MGM Studios' "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" released in 1939. In 1931, Colonel Wassily de Basil (a Russian entrepreneur from Paris) and Rene Blum (ballet director of the Monte Carlo Opera) founded the "Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo" giving its first performance in Monte Carlo, in 1932. Diaghlieve alumni Leonide Massine and George Balanchine worked as choreographers with the company, and Tamara Tormanova was principal dancer. Barbara Karinska's joined the company when the company had relocated to Monte Carlo for a season of performances, prior to appearing in the winter Paris season of dance programming. Karinska had been hired in 1932 to design costumes and to construct, cut, sew and build the Ballet Russe repertoire's costume wardrobe, with a lengthy association with the dance company history. Because of the Nazi world war crisis affecting both France and England in 1939, Rene Blum relocated his Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo dance company to London from Paris in September, 1939, for a London showcase fall repertoire performance season. In 1937, Karinska had followed George Balanchine's ballet dance troupe to London from Paris, beside fearing and anticipating Chancellor Adolf Hitler's racism during the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Upon completion of the company's London dance engagement, the entire Ballet Russe dance company immediately sailed for an American concert-tour of the United States and South America. Barbara Karinska, in late 1939-early 1940, as part of the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo dance company, was engaged by Rene Blum in London as the company's touring-wardrobe mistress, there-by Karinska hitched her escape from Britain, sailing with the Russian dance troupe to New York City. Upon Karinska's arrival in NYC, Karinska contacted George Balanchine, who gave her a small second floor room in his ballet school building to both live in and to work from. The Ballet Russe dance company was to open their NY season, premiering a new ballet titled "Bacchanal," designed by Salvador Dali, at the Metropolitan Opera House. The ballet's stage set's had been built during their London season, with all of the scenic stage drops painted in London, but the costumes designed by Salvador Dali had been constructed/built by Chanel's Paris atelier. Unable to get the wardrobe out of Paris, France, Barbara Karinska, arriving with the company in NYC, working from color-photographs of Salvador Dali's colorful costume sketches, constructed the ballet's costumes in two weeks, delivered to the Metropolitan Opera House stage for the ballet's premier performances by taxi-cabs. The company's national tour departed NYC after sixteen weeks, traveling by rail road, with one night stand-stops, across land, traveling over the American plain, eventually arriving for a lengthy San Francisco dance tour engagement. Karinska now knew that Vallejo had returned to the San Francisco Bay Area. Vallejo had returned to reprise his "The Drunkard" stage role. Karinska called Vallejo, and she rejoined Vallejo - their flame of romance rekindled! Vallejo squired Karinska to his Oakland Piedmont homestead to introduce his beautiful Russian girl friend to his parents! Vallejo's shocked parent's reaction to Karinska and their son's age difference became a major familial resistance issue. His father put his foot down on his son's marriage-proposed union. Vallejo's parents immediately arranged a family-marriage-transaction between their son with a wealthy Australian noble-family's debutante daughter whose age factor was appropriate. Vallejo was sent off to Australia, married, to remain with his new Australian family and forced to enter their family business-affairs. Vallejo and his Australian bride had several children. Vallejo attempted returning to the states but his father banished him to return to Australia - to rejoin his wife and her family! This marriage ended Vallejo's movie film acting career! Karinska, until she died at age 97, mourned forever her long-lost love and her romance with Vallejo Gantner.