This email from Bill Self, dated
September 1, 2003, was sent to me during my early investigations into
the disappearance of Rudolph Valentino’s probate case file. Self, a
Hollywood producer and longtime Valentino collector, confirms that
the records—once presumed lost—were quietly returned to the
Valentino family by a third-party collector.
Self made the identity of the “Valentino collector” he mentions
known to me but he never formally acknowledged the transfer of stolen
records to the family until he sent this email to me.
Another source, now deceased, later
confirmed to me that the exchange involved a barter: the records were
returned in exchange for one of Valentino’s dress shirts. This
individual was for a time ostracized from the inner circle of
collectors for revealing this to me.
I share this email, marked with a coffee
stain from that time, as a piece of documentary evidence. It remains
one of the most striking insights into the Valentino family’s
role in the concealment of stolen historical records. The message
contained in Self's e-mail has never been refuted.
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