Ramon Novarro as a rival to Rudolph Valentino, and Ingram suggested he change his name to "Novarro." From 1923, he began to play more prominent roles. His role in "Scaramouche" (1923) brought him his first major success. In 1925, Novarro achieved his greatest success in "Ben-Hur." His revealing costumes caused a sensation. He was elevated into the Hollywood elite. As did many stars, Novarro engaged Sylvia of Hollywood as a therapist (although in her tell-all book, Sylvia erroneously claimed that Novarro slept in a coffin). With Valentino's death in 1926, Novarro became the screen's leading Latin actor, though ranked behind his MGM
Ramon Novarro murder of Novarro. In a 1998 interview, Paul Ferguson finally assumed the blame for Novarro’s death. Ramón Novarro is buried in Calvary Cemetery, East Los Angeles, California. Ramón Novarro's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is at 6350 Hollywood Boulevard. Novarro's murder served as the basis for the short story by Charles Bukowski called "The Murder of Ramon Vasquez", as well as for the song "Tango," by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, recorded by Peggy Lee on her "Mirrors" album. Novarro's murder is among the many epochal events recalled in Joan Didion's meditative 'California zeitgeist' essay "The White Album".