Einar Hanson, a Swedish silent film actor, was born on June 15, 1899, in Stockholm, Sweden. He was also known as Einar Hansen. Hanson's discovery by director Mauritz Stiller at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm led to his rise to stardom in Hollywood.
Handsome and sophisticated, Hanson was considered the ideal successor to the late Rudolph Valentino as Hollywood's "great screen lover" in 1927. He arrived in Hollywood in 1925, alongside Stiller and fellow protégée Greta Garbo. Hanson starred alongside leading ladies such as Pola Negri and Corinne Griffith in several films.
Paramount Pictures, who had acquired Hanson's original five-year contract from Universal Studios, had high hopes for his future. He showed great promise in films like Children of Divorce, The Woman on Trial, Barbed Wire, and Fashions for Women, all released in 1927. The films featured Hanson alongside notable actresses such as Clara Bow and Esther Ralston, as well as Pola Negri.
Tragically, Hanson's life was cut short in a car accident on June 3, 1927. He was on his way home from dinner with Stiller and Garbo when his car veered off the Pacific Coast Highway near Topanga Canyon and crashed. Hanson died en route to the hospital, at the age of 27.
