INFAMOUS SCANDALS (True Crime) by Anne Williams, Vivian Head

father, Giovanni Antonio Giuseppe Fidele Gugliemi was a veterinary practitioner from Castellaneta. He had three siblings, an older brother, Alberto, an older sister Beatrice who died at in infancy and a younger sister, Maria. Despite being raised in a loving family, Valentino was spoiled and became a troublesome child. From an early age his dream was to leave the restraints of Castellaneta and see the rest of the world. His father died in 1906 and despite being sent to the nearest town, Taranto, to further his education, Valentinto could not settle. He became very disruptive at school, failed to concentrate in his lessons and constantly pleaded with his mother to allow him to leave Italy. By the time Valentino was 18, his mother had had enough and gave him the money his father had put by for his education. The excited young man set sail for the United States with stars in his eyes.
    It was 23 December 1913 when Valentino set foot in New York. At first he stayed with some friends of the family and made his living by taking menial jobs. He struggled hard with the language and persevered to try and improve his English. After obtaining a job as a gardener on an estate owned by a millionaire, Valentino started to see how the rich and famous lived and vowed that one day he himself would be among the elite. However, due to his daydreaming and delusions of grandeur, Valentino neglected his duties and was fired.
    After being sacked, Valentino was down on his luck for a while taking a stream of low-paid jobs, and with nowhere to live his dreams turned to that of suicide. However, his luck was about to change after he took a job as a helper in an Italian restaurant. Amid his chores of clearing dirty dishes, setting tables and helping the waiters, Valentino started to learn about the excitting world of cabaret and dance halls. One of the older waiters took the young man under his wing and taught him how to dance. He seemed to have a natural aptitude and was soon employed as a full-time dancer at the restaurant, thrilling the crowds with his spectacular tango.
    Desperate to earn more money, Valentino played on his good looks and became a gigolo. He soon learned what pleased women and he became adept at the art of seduction.
     
    INVOLVED IN A SCANDAL
     
    In 1915 Valentino became the main attraction at a high-class dance club in New York called Maxim’s. He was a big hit with people of high society and in particular one woman, Blanca de Saulles. Blanca, an heiress from Chile, was already married, albeit unhappily, to a prominent businessman by the name of John de Saulles. Although it is uncertain whether Valentino and Blanca actually had an affair, one thing that was in no doubt was Valentino’s feelings towards her. When Blanca told Valentino that she had decided to start divorce proceedings, he said he would be prepared to stand up in court and give evidence about her husband’s infidelities. In particular, the affair he was having with Valentino’s dancing partner, Joan Sawyer.
    John de Saulles was furious when Valentino turned evidence against him and, once the divorce was granted in December 1916, he used his political connections and had Valentino arrested along with a known ‘madam’ of a brothel, Mrs Thyme, on vice charges. Although the evidence against Valentino was very flimsy, the police demanded a $10,000 bail, which was later lowered to $1,500 when they realised they had too little evidence.
    The scandal hit Valentino hard and he felt thoroughly degraded. No one seemed prepared to hire him and most of his old friends simply turned their back on him. Even Blanca showed no gratitude for his testimony and had very little contact.
     
    THE MURDER
     
    After the divorce Blanca and John were given joint custody of their son, but Blanca was refusing to accept the court’s decision. On the evening of 3 August 1917, Blanca drove to her ex-husband’s house in Roslyn, New York. When she arrived she found him sitting on the