Allan Ellenberger Articles

Anita Page, Ramon Novarro in The Flying Fleet Ramon Novarro: Allan Ellenberger Interview II Ramon Novarro and Anita Page. Do you believe he actually asked her hand in marriage as she claimed later in life? I do, and the main reason is that I knew Anita Page and interviewed her extensively for over a year before her health really began to decline. At that point, [...]

Jeanette MacDonald, Ramon Novarro in The Cat and the Fiddle. Photo: Courtesy Matias Bombal Collection. Ramon Novarro: Allan Ellenberger Interview I How would you describe Ramon Novarro the actor? Novarro was a first-rate actor – maybe not an Olivier, but a good solid actor. Even in bad films such as Laughing Boy (1934), he had his moments. He was excellent in dramatic roles such as [...]

I first contacted author Allan Ellenberger shortly before the publication of his book on Old Hollywood star Ramon Novarro, as at the time I was working on my own Novarro bio. Instead of treating me like a pesky rival, Allan generously shared the information he'd amassed throughout about a decade of research — and for that I was very thankful. We've since become good friends [...]

Allan Ellenberger interviews biographer Laura Petersen Balogh, whose book on silent-film comedian Karl Dane has just been published by McFarland. Here's a brief snippet: Why Karl Dane? What is it about him and his story that moved you to write a biography? I had always known who Karl Dane was, being a silent film buff my whole life, but he never really made that much [...]