Beyond Paradise

The first Latin American actor to become a superstar, Ramon Novarro was for years one of Hollywood's top actors. Born Ramon Samaniego to a prominent Mexican family, he arrived in America in 1916, a refugee from civil wars. By the mid-1920s, he had become one of MGM's biggest box office attractions, starring in now-classic films, including The Student Prince , Mata Hari , and the original version of Ben-Hur . He shared the screen with the era's top leading ladies, such as Greta Garbo, Myrna Loy,