Daniel Rengering, who rose to fame for his philanthropic work with Hurricane Irma victims, will be a special-guest speaker at the 91st Annual Rudolph Valentino Memorial, in Hollywood, California, PopWrapped can exclusively reveal. The Valentino Memorial, held each year on August 23rd, is the longest running annual event in Hollywood, even pre-dating the Academy Awards. Rengering will be sharing speaking duties with prestigious Hollywood film elite, including Brandee Cox, from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, (The Oscars) and Marc Wannamaker, a highly respected author and Hollywood historian. This years Memorial will spotlight the 100th Anniversary of Valentino’s breakout film, “A Society Sensation,” which starred Carmel Myers. A rare, never-before-seen video segment of Myers discussing her working with Valentino will be shown. As an extra treat, a 6-Sheet poster from the film (the only copy in existence) will be on public display, for the first time ever.  Also on public display, will be many of Valentino’s personal effects, autographs and more. Each year, specially produced tribute videos are shown, exclusively for the event. In 2017, the annual Memorial was live-streamed, for the first time ever, to thousands of people from around the globe. It will be live-streamed in 2018 as well, for all of those unable to attend. 

“I am so pleased to have Daniel (Rengering) join us as a special guest speaker at this year’s memorial. He has a real love for old Hollywood, and is well-respected as a leader across the world. We are very excited to hear him speak, and help to carry on the legacy of Rudolph Valentino,” says Tracy Terhune, who heads the committee that puts on the Memorial each year.

“I’ve always found Hollywood fascinating, and understand the importance of film preservation. Not enough has been done to preserve the legacy of film. “A Society Sensation,” the film being spotlighted this year was originally a feature-length picture, and now, only 24-minutes exist. To lose that kind of history is a devastating blow to the iconic legacy of the players and filmmakers who created them.  I am honored to be asked to speak at such a prestigious event, and am looking forward to meeting everyone,” says Rengering.

Rudolph Valentino is widely considered Hollywood’s first mega-star. His death on August 23rd, 1926 caused a mass hysteria from coast-to-coast, with over 100,000 people lining the streets of Manhattan alone. His memorial attracts a throng of fans, A-List celebrities, and others curious about the legacy of Valentino. Members of Valentino’s own family are also in attendance each year. It has been a standing-room only event, every year for over 9-decades. The annual Valentino Memorial is a free event, open to the general public, and begins promptly at noon.  The Valentino Memorial is held anually at the Cathedral Mausoleum at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, located at 6000 Santa Monica Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90038.