Women fainted in the aisles when The Sheik was released in 1921. The titled Lady Diana Mayo (Agnes Ayres) is carried into the desert by an Arab chieftan, Ahmed Ben Hassan (Rudolph Valentino), who takes one look at her and wants her, right then and there. The Son of The Sheik, a sequel to The Sheik, was designed to revive Valentino’s career. As both parent and son, Rudy has two virile leading parts, showing how a son of the desert inherited the passions of the father. Although the production is on a modest scale compared to the original Sheik, Valentino’s performance is far more accomplished, and there’s a tongue-in-cheek quality which gives The Son a certain magic even today. Enjoy images from both films in the slideshow below. Images from The Sheik are sepia-toned, while the images from The Son of the Sheik are black and white.
