Dorothy Emma Arzner was an American film director whose career in Hollywood spanned from the silent era of the 1920s into the early 1940s. With the exception of longtime silent film director Lois Weber, from 1927 until her retirement from feature directing in 1943, Arzner was the only female director working in Hollywood. She was one of a very few women able to establish a successful and long career in Hollywood as a film director until the 1970s. Arzner made a total of twenty films between 1927 and 1943 and launched the careers of a number of Hollywood actresses, including Katharine Hepburn, Rosalind Russell, and Lucille Ball. Arzner was the first woman to join the Directors Guild of America and the first woman to direct a sound film.
Arzner in 1934
Arzner with Marion Morgan, 1927, photo by Arnold Genthe
Blood and Sand (1922 film)
Blood and Sand is a 1922 American silent drama film produced by Paramount Pictures, directed by Fred Niblo and starring Rudolph Valentino, Lila Lee, and Nita Naldi. It was based on the 1908 Spanish novel Sangre y arena by Vicente Blasco Ibáñez and the play Blood and Sand by Thomas Cushing which was adapted from Ibáñez's novel.
Theatrical release poster
In August 1922, Cal York (pseudonym, for California and New York) of Photoplay commented on the actor's appearance in the above film still: "...is Rodolph Valentino wearing a wig in 'Blood and Sand,' or did he permit his slick hair to be coiffed into the curly mop you see under this Spanish cap? Cheer up—it's only temporary. Later on in the picture he looks more like Julio." By "Julio", York is referring to Valentino's character in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, who has slicked-back hair.
