Russian-American ballet dancer, choreographer, and actor
Theodore Kosloff
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Kosloff, 1920s
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Born
| Fyodor Mikhailovich Kozlov
January 22, 1882
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Died
| November 22, 1956
(1956-11-22)
(aged 74)
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Burial place
| Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
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Other names
| Theodor Kosloff
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Occupation(s)
| Ballet dancer, choreographer, actor
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Theodore Kosloff
(born
Fyodor Mikhailovich Kozlov
,
Russian
:
Фёдор Михайлович Козлов
; January 22, 1882 – November 22, 1956) was a Russian-born
ballet
dancer,
choreographer
, and film and stage
actor
. He was occasionally credited as
Theodor Kosloff
.
Career
[
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]
Born in
Moscow
in 1882,
[1]
Kosloff began his professional ballet career after training at Moscow's
Imperial Theater
.
[2]
After graduating in 1901, he began touring internationally with the
Diaghilev Ballet Company
which he had joined in 1909. He was a preferred partner of Tamara Karsavina.
After arriving in the United States in 1909, Kosloff was introduced to influential film director
Cecil B. DeMille
by the actress and writer
Jeanie MacPherson
. DeMille was also encouraged to sign Kosloff due to the persistence of his young niece
Agnes de Mille
, who was an ardent fan of the ballet dancer. DeMille was immediately impressed by the dark-haired young dancer and quickly put Kosloff to work as an actor. Kosloff's first role was in the 1917 DeMille directed
The Woman God Forgot
opposite the popular American singer and actress,
Geraldine Farrar
. In Hollywood, Kosloff began a romantic relationship with the American future set-and costume designer and Mrs.
Rudolph Valentino
,
Natacha Rambova
. The two danced on the vaudeville stage together. The affair however, was brief and tumultuous.
By December 1912, Kosloff was reported to be the choreographic director of
La Saison Russe
, preparing a short run of American premiers of operas and ballets for Spring 1913 in New York, in coordination with
Morris Gest
. The pre-season announcement promised
Mussorgsky
's
Khovanshchina
and
Boris Godunov
,
Rimsky-Korsakov
's
Sadko
and
The Tsar's Bride
,
Anton Rubinstein
's
Demon
,
Alexander Borodin
's
Prince Igor
and
Mikhail Glinka
's
Ruslan and Lyudmila
.
[3]
Kosloff also worked steadily during his acting career as a choreographer and between 1912 and 1916 choreographed several
Broadway
musicals:
The Passing Show of 1915
(1915?1916),
A World of Pleasure
(1915?1916) and
See America First
(1916). From 1918 through 1919 Kosloff also appeared on the stage as an actor in the revival of
The Awakening
.
In early 1923, the
Los Angeles Times
reported that Kosloff had been offered the throne of the
Tatars
.
[4]
He traveled to New York City in February of that year,
[5]
where he saw his brother and fellow dancer
Alexis Kosloff
and met with representatives of the Liberal party of
Kazan
. Fearing the resistance of the Conservative party, Kosloff turned down the offer, saying: "I could be Khan, but it is doubtful for how long. And I decided I would rather be a live motion-picture actor than a dead king!"
[6]
Kosloff's career as a film actor spanned the 1920s and Kosloff often appeared as the leading man opposite such well renowned actresses as
Nita Naldi
,
Gloria Swanson
,
Bebe Daniels
and
Anna Q. Nilsson
. With his dark hair and complexion, the ballet dancer was often cast in more exotic roles, often as a "
Latin lover
" type, Eastern European prince or noble, or Arabic sheik. Kosloff's acting career often relied heavily on DeMille procuring roles for him in his films. Indeed, the majority of Kosloff's film roles are in DeMille directed films.
Kosloff's acting career came to an end with the advent of
sound film
. Studio executives were reluctant to cast him in roles because of his pronounced Russian accent. His last substantial on-screen role was a dance role playing "Electricity" clad in a Futurist costume in the Zeppelin dance scene of De Mille's MGM movie-musical flop
Madam Satan
.
[7]
Kosloff's last film role was an uncredited role as a dance instructor in the 1937
Gregory La Cava
directed
Stage Door
, opposite
Ginger Rogers
,
Katharine Hepburn
and
Adolphe Menjou
.
He was the partner with madame
Matilda Kshesinskaya
who still lived in
Paris, France
. Since 1917, he consulted motion picture producers like
Cecil B. De Mille
and one of the last movies he was involved with was, up until his death
The Ten Commandments
.
Later years and death
[
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]
After retiring from acting, Kosloff continued to work as a choreographer and opened a successful ballet school in
Los Angeles
, where choreographer
Flower Hujer
was one of his students.
On Thanksgiving morning 1956, Theodore Kosloff was taken to
Hollywood Hospital
where he died at the age of 74 and was interred at
Valhalla Memorial Park Cemetery
in
North Hollywood
.
Legacy
[
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]
He was survived by his estranged wife Madame Maria Baldwin (also spelled Baldina), and a brother
Alexis Kosloff
from
Woodstock, New York
.
For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Theodore Kosloff was given a star on the
Hollywood Walk of Fame
located at 1617 Vine Street, in
Hollywood
, California.
Partial filmography
[
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]
See also
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References
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External links
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]
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International
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National
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Other
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