Silent Screen Star Theda Bara’s Home is History!

Silent Screen Star Theda Bara’s Home is History!

Silent Screen Star Theda Bara's Home is History!
And so another piece of famous celebrity history, the legacy of silent screen star, Theda Bara, vanished from the face of the earth. And for no discernable reason . . at present. You would think a university would maintain such a structure at the very least for their drama department. But no. Few today, even modern educators, seem to understand that the past was the foundation for the present and preserving unique history is no exception. Instead, they irreverently knock it down, trying to figure out how to capitalize on the ground under it. Fortunately someone had the foresight to remove the architectural treasures and secure them in storage.

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This charming Spanish-style villa built in the 1920's by Ms. Bara, had 12 rooms , Rookwood tile bathrooms, 3 sets of French doors leading to the columned patio and a domed dining room. It even had a walk-in cedar closet. It was said that the home was a replica of her home in Hollywood. A semicircular portico graced the front of the home, with its archways supported by said spiraling columns topped with Corinthian acanthus leaf capitals. Sad to say we saw them laying in the back of a truck during the demolition! Imagine the Gothic fireplace decorated with Baroque voltues and Mesopotamian rosettes (symbols of fertility), and the glass in each French door was adorned by decorative Moorish tracery. The exposed ceiling timbers still showed faint traces of the painted designs and many hand carved tiles were evident in the floor. It was thought that the room off the entryway with the domed ceiling was the formal dining room. A gilded cornice encircled the dome with carvings of ram heads.

Known as the Vamp, due to her sultry appearance and roles played, she made 40 silent films between 1915 and 1920. Ms. Bara died in 1955 of stomach cancer. Now this unique structure mirroring so much of her past has now died too from the wrecking ball. Like Larry the Cable Guy says, . . "Only in America!"

Historic home demolished for Xavier University expansion.

Source: news.cincinnati.com