Paul van Yperen's Blog, page 431
January 17, 2014
Attilio Badodi
Italian star photographer Attilio Badodi (1880-1967) had a well known studio, where he photographed all the people from the Milanese beau monde plus the famous actors and actresses of the 1910s and 1920s.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 418. Photo Badodi.
Vera Vergani . Italian postcard. Sent by mail in 1927. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Alda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 303. Photo A. Badodi, Milano.
Beau Monde
Attilio Badodi was born in Reggio Emilia, Italy in 1880. He learned the techniques and tricks of the photographic trade from an uncle who was photographer.
In 1902, Badodi moved to Milan where, quite soon, he became a well-known studio photographer.
All the famous actors and actresses and the Milanese beau monde - aristocracy, artists, musicians, politicians - had themselves photographed in his studio in Via Brera 5.
Many of his actors' portraits circulated as postcards as well. In 1922 he participated in the Prima Esposizione Internazionale di Fotografia in Turin.
Badodi was also reporter for Illustrazione italiana, but he is best remembered for his studio portraits.
Attilio Badodi died in 1967.
Lyda Borelli. Italian postcard by Fotocelere, Torino, no. 207. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Alda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 304. Photo A. Badodi, Milano.
Armando Falconi . Italian postcard, no. 288. Photo: Badodi.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 256. Photo: Badodi.
Ermete Zacconi . Italian postcard, no. 57. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Armando Falconi . Italian postcard, no. 289. Photo: Badodi.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 477. Photo: Badodi.
This is the second post in a new series on star photographers. The first post was on the Reutlinger Studio in Paris.
Source: internet.culturale.it (Italian).
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 418. Photo Badodi.
Vera Vergani . Italian postcard. Sent by mail in 1927. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Alda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 303. Photo A. Badodi, Milano.
Beau Monde
Attilio Badodi was born in Reggio Emilia, Italy in 1880. He learned the techniques and tricks of the photographic trade from an uncle who was photographer.
In 1902, Badodi moved to Milan where, quite soon, he became a well-known studio photographer.
All the famous actors and actresses and the Milanese beau monde - aristocracy, artists, musicians, politicians - had themselves photographed in his studio in Via Brera 5.
Many of his actors' portraits circulated as postcards as well. In 1922 he participated in the Prima Esposizione Internazionale di Fotografia in Turin.
Badodi was also reporter for Illustrazione italiana, but he is best remembered for his studio portraits.
Attilio Badodi died in 1967.
Lyda Borelli. Italian postcard by Fotocelere, Torino, no. 207. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Alda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 304. Photo A. Badodi, Milano.
Armando Falconi . Italian postcard, no. 288. Photo: Badodi.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 256. Photo: Badodi.
Ermete Zacconi . Italian postcard, no. 57. Photo: Badodi, Milano.
Armando Falconi . Italian postcard, no. 289. Photo: Badodi.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard, no. 477. Photo: Badodi.
This is the second post in a new series on star photographers. The first post was on the Reutlinger Studio in Paris.
Source: internet.culturale.it (Italian).
January 16, 2014
Lotte Neumann
Lotte Neumann (1896-1977) was one of the most successful actresses in the early days of the German silent cinema. She also worked as a screenwriter and a producer.
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 94/2. Photo: NBFMB / Karl Schenker.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 340/5, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin-Wilm., no. 5694. Photo: Atelier Eberth, Berlin.
German postcard by Photorot, Berlin, in the Film-sterne Series, no. 150/1, 1925-1935. Photo: Becker & Maass.
Sherlock Holmes
Lotte Neumann was born as Charlotte Pötler in Berlin, Germany, in 1896.
She attended the Königliche Luisenschule (Royal Louise School) in Berlin, after which the Wagnersche-Klinkhardsche Höhere Mädchenschule (Wagnerian-Klinkhardsche Higher School for Girls).
She began her theatrical career as a 13-year-old choir singer at the Komische Oper (Comic Opera) and at the Komödienhaus (Comedy House) in Berlin.
In 1912, director Max Mack gave her her first film role in Die Launen des Schicksals/Whims of Fate (Max Mack, 1912) with Hanni Weisse .
In the following years she acted in productions of the German Mutoscope and Biograph GmbH like Ketten der Vergangenheit/Chains of the Past (1914), the Sherlock Holmes-film Ein seltsamer Fall/An Unusual Case (Max Mack, 1914), Der eiserne Ring/The Iron Ring (Paul von Woringen, 1915) and In letzter Sekunde/In the Last Second (Walter Schmidthässler, 1916).
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2091. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Still of Lotte Neumann in Der Mut zum Glück/The Courage to Happiness (Paul von Woringen, 1917). This was the first film Neumann produced herself with her company Lotte Neumann-Film.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 320/2, 1919-1924. Photo: Rembrandt / Maxim Film. Caption: "Lotte Neumann in ihrer garderobe" (Lotte Neumann in her wardrobe).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 320/6, 1919-1924. Photo: Rembrandt / Maxim Film. Caption: 'Lotte Neumann in ihrer garderobe" (Lotte Neumann in her wardrobe).
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, K. 2096. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Still of Lotte Neumann and Ernst Rückert in Hinter verschlossenen Türen/Behind Closed Doors (Paul von Woringen, 1917).
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 2168. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Publicity still for Die Ehe der Charlotte von Brakel/The Marriage of Charlotte von Brakel (Paul von Woringen, 1918).
Shadows of the Past
Lotte Neumann also appeared as a singer and actress on Berlin stages. Soon she was so well-known that the studio shot a whole series of Lotte Neumann-films.
In 1916 she founded the Lotte Neumann Film GmbH, which existed until 1919.
To these productions belong Hinter verschlossenen Türen/Behind Closed Doors (Paul von Woringen, 1917), Die Richterin/The Judge (Paul von Woringen, 1917), Das Schweigen im Walde/The Silence in the Forest (Paul von Woringen, 1918), Das Spiel mit dem Feuer/The Play With Fire (Paul von Woringen, 1918) and Schatten der Vergangenheit/Shadows of the Past (Paul von Woringen, 1919) - for which she was also the producer.
In 1918 she wrote her first screenplay, for Die Töchter des Herrn Dornberg/The daughters of Mr. Dornberg (Paul of Woringen, 1918).
From 1919 on she was committed to the Ufa.
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1812.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 339/1, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 339/2, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
Protracted Divorce Case
During the 1920s, Lotte Neumann remained a popular film actress who embodied aristocratic young women.
In 1920 she acted under the direction of Ernst Lubitsch in the comedy Romeo und Julia im Schnee/Romeo and Juliet in the Snow (1920), set in a 19th century Alpine village.
Her biggest successes include the film operetta Die brigantin von New York/The Brigantine, New York (Hans Werckmeister, 1924), Die frau für 24 stunden/The Woman for 24 hours (Reinhold Schünzel, 1925) with Harry Liedtke , and Der gute Ruf/The Good Reputation (Pierre Marodon, 1926).
She had film contracts in Austria, Italy and the Balkan States, for example, with Gaumont-Aubert in Paris and with Maldaria in Prague.
Because of her protracted divorce case, which ran from 1929 to 1932, she had to end her career as an actress. Her last film was Die Liebesfiliale (Carl Heinz Wolff, 1931) before she retired from the screen.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin.
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1789. Photo: Berliner Illustrierte Ges. [Gesellschaft], Berlin.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 276/6, 1919-1924. Photo: Alex Binder.
Screenplays
From 1933, Lotte Neumann worked as a film writer under the pseudonym C.H. Diller. Diller was the maiden name of her mother.
In 1935 she married screenwriter Walter Wassermann and also started a professional partnership with him, which lasted until 1944.
She wrote a total of 25 screenplays including Kora Terry (Georg Jacobi, 1940) for Ufa; Friedrich Schiller (Herbert Maisch, 1939) for Tobis; together with Walter Wassermann Die nacht in Venedig/The Night in Venice (Paul Verhoeven, 1941), and Altes herz wird wieder jung/Old Heart Young Again (Erich Engel, 1942), both for Tobis.
After the war, she continued her work with two more screenplays for small productions until 1958.
She went to live at the residence of her mother in Gmund am Tegernsee, and later lived in Gaißach.
Lotte Neumann died in 1977 in Gaißach, Germany.
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 194/1. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 150/2. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin.
Sources: Gabriele Hansch/Gerlinde Waz (Filmpionierinnen in Deutschland), Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Philippe Pelletier (Cineartistes.com) (French), Wikipedia (German) and .
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 94/2. Photo: NBFMB / Karl Schenker.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 340/5, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin-Wilm., no. 5694. Photo: Atelier Eberth, Berlin.
German postcard by Photorot, Berlin, in the Film-sterne Series, no. 150/1, 1925-1935. Photo: Becker & Maass.
Sherlock Holmes
Lotte Neumann was born as Charlotte Pötler in Berlin, Germany, in 1896.
She attended the Königliche Luisenschule (Royal Louise School) in Berlin, after which the Wagnersche-Klinkhardsche Höhere Mädchenschule (Wagnerian-Klinkhardsche Higher School for Girls).
She began her theatrical career as a 13-year-old choir singer at the Komische Oper (Comic Opera) and at the Komödienhaus (Comedy House) in Berlin.
In 1912, director Max Mack gave her her first film role in Die Launen des Schicksals/Whims of Fate (Max Mack, 1912) with Hanni Weisse .
In the following years she acted in productions of the German Mutoscope and Biograph GmbH like Ketten der Vergangenheit/Chains of the Past (1914), the Sherlock Holmes-film Ein seltsamer Fall/An Unusual Case (Max Mack, 1914), Der eiserne Ring/The Iron Ring (Paul von Woringen, 1915) and In letzter Sekunde/In the Last Second (Walter Schmidthässler, 1916).
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 2091. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Still of Lotte Neumann in Der Mut zum Glück/The Courage to Happiness (Paul von Woringen, 1917). This was the first film Neumann produced herself with her company Lotte Neumann-Film.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 320/2, 1919-1924. Photo: Rembrandt / Maxim Film. Caption: "Lotte Neumann in ihrer garderobe" (Lotte Neumann in her wardrobe).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 320/6, 1919-1924. Photo: Rembrandt / Maxim Film. Caption: 'Lotte Neumann in ihrer garderobe" (Lotte Neumann in her wardrobe).
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, K. 2096. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Still of Lotte Neumann and Ernst Rückert in Hinter verschlossenen Türen/Behind Closed Doors (Paul von Woringen, 1917).
German postcard by Photochemie, no. K. 2168. Photo: Lotte Neumann-Film, Berlin. Publicity still for Die Ehe der Charlotte von Brakel/The Marriage of Charlotte von Brakel (Paul von Woringen, 1918).
Shadows of the Past
Lotte Neumann also appeared as a singer and actress on Berlin stages. Soon she was so well-known that the studio shot a whole series of Lotte Neumann-films.
In 1916 she founded the Lotte Neumann Film GmbH, which existed until 1919.
To these productions belong Hinter verschlossenen Türen/Behind Closed Doors (Paul von Woringen, 1917), Die Richterin/The Judge (Paul von Woringen, 1917), Das Schweigen im Walde/The Silence in the Forest (Paul von Woringen, 1918), Das Spiel mit dem Feuer/The Play With Fire (Paul von Woringen, 1918) and Schatten der Vergangenheit/Shadows of the Past (Paul von Woringen, 1919) - for which she was also the producer.
In 1918 she wrote her first screenplay, for Die Töchter des Herrn Dornberg/The daughters of Mr. Dornberg (Paul of Woringen, 1918).
From 1919 on she was committed to the Ufa.
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1812.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 339/1, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin, no. 339/2, 1919-1924. Photo: Becker & Maass / Maxim Film.
Protracted Divorce Case
During the 1920s, Lotte Neumann remained a popular film actress who embodied aristocratic young women.
In 1920 she acted under the direction of Ernst Lubitsch in the comedy Romeo und Julia im Schnee/Romeo and Juliet in the Snow (1920), set in a 19th century Alpine village.
Her biggest successes include the film operetta Die brigantin von New York/The Brigantine, New York (Hans Werckmeister, 1924), Die frau für 24 stunden/The Woman for 24 hours (Reinhold Schünzel, 1925) with Harry Liedtke , and Der gute Ruf/The Good Reputation (Pierre Marodon, 1926).
She had film contracts in Austria, Italy and the Balkan States, for example, with Gaumont-Aubert in Paris and with Maldaria in Prague.
Because of her protracted divorce case, which ran from 1929 to 1932, she had to end her career as an actress. Her last film was Die Liebesfiliale (Carl Heinz Wolff, 1931) before she retired from the screen.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin.
German postcard by Photochemie, Berlin, no. K. 1789. Photo: Berliner Illustrierte Ges. [Gesellschaft], Berlin.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 276/6, 1919-1924. Photo: Alex Binder.
Screenplays
From 1933, Lotte Neumann worked as a film writer under the pseudonym C.H. Diller. Diller was the maiden name of her mother.
In 1935 she married screenwriter Walter Wassermann and also started a professional partnership with him, which lasted until 1944.
She wrote a total of 25 screenplays including Kora Terry (Georg Jacobi, 1940) for Ufa; Friedrich Schiller (Herbert Maisch, 1939) for Tobis; together with Walter Wassermann Die nacht in Venedig/The Night in Venice (Paul Verhoeven, 1941), and Altes herz wird wieder jung/Old Heart Young Again (Erich Engel, 1942), both for Tobis.
After the war, she continued her work with two more screenplays for small productions until 1958.
She went to live at the residence of her mother in Gmund am Tegernsee, and later lived in Gaißach.
Lotte Neumann died in 1977 in Gaißach, Germany.
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 194/1. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
German postcard by Rotophot in the Film-sterne series, no. 150/2. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, Berlin.
Sources: Gabriele Hansch/Gerlinde Waz (Filmpionierinnen in Deutschland), Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Philippe Pelletier (Cineartistes.com) (French), Wikipedia (German) and .
January 15, 2014
Shirley Anne Field
British actress Shirley Anne Field (1938) has performed on stage, film and television since 1955. The former Miss London has survived and becomes more interesting with the years.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1623, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 MDN. Photo: Progress.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin.
Masterpiece
Shirley Anne Field was born Shirley Broomfield in Bolton, Great Britain, in 1938. She and her brother were brought up in the Edgworth Children's Home and Orphanage because their mother was unable to care for them. Many years later, her brother, publisher Guy Broomfield, would become a murder victim in the United States.
Field started as a Beauty Queen and was chosen Miss London. She modelled in glamour photographs for magazines, including Reveille and Titbits.
Her first appearance in a film was as an extra in the soap opera satire Simon and Laura (Muriel Box, 1955). According to Brian McFarlane of the Encyclopedia of British Film she appeared “without making much impression beyond that of exceptionally pretty ingénue.”
In the following years followed bigger parts in The Flesh Is Weak (Don Chaffey, 1957) starring John Derek, and the comedy Upstairs and Downstairs (Ralph Thomas, 1959).
She appeared as a murder victim in the violent Horrors of the Black Museum (1959, Arthur Crabtree) with Michael Gough, and she played a temperamental film star in the equally violent Peeping Tom (Michael Powell, 1960) with Karlheinz Böhm (as Carl Boehm).
The British critics hated the film at the time, but Peeping Tom is now seen as a classic. The Sunday Times' Dilys Powell, who in 1960 thought it "essentially vicious", admitted in 1994: "Today, I find I am convinced it is a masterpiece".
Then Field was chosen by Laurence Olivier to play the prime female role in The Entertainer (Tony Richardson, 1960), which really made her name.
Next she appeared as Albert Finney ’s pregnant girl friend in another British New Wave entry, Saturday Night - Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960). Phil Wickham at BFI Screenonline comments: “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) is the 'new wave' film which has most preserved its reputation with modern critics. Added to critical support at the time and its massive - and unexpected - box office success, it has some claim to be the most significant of the films of this period.”
1960 must have been a top year for Field. She also appeared in the films Man in the Moon (1960), Beat Girl (Edmond T. Gréville, 1960) and Once More, with Feeling! (Stanley Donen, 1960) starring Yul Brynner.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1615, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still from Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960).
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1614, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still from Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960).
Surprise Box-office Hit
Shirley Anne Field kept busy filming in the first half of the sixties. She played in The War Lover (Philip Leacock, 1962) starring Steve McQueen, and she was the sister of Oliver Reed in the SciFi film The Damned (Joseph Losey, 1963).
A trip to Hollywood for Kings of the Sun (J. Lee Thompson, 1963) with Yul Brynner, proved disappointing. In Italy, she appeared opposite Vittorio Gasmann in Marcia nuziale/Wedding March (Marco Ferreri, 1965).
She continued appearing in British films including the Doctor comedy Doctor in Clover (Ralph Thomas, 1966) and the hit Alfie (Lewis Gilbert, 1966) as one of the girlfriends of Michael Caine.
In 1967 she married former racing-driver and executive jet pilot Charlie Crichton-Stuart. From then on, she would appear incidentally in films such as the South-African production House of the Living Dead/Curse of the Dead (Ray Austin, 1970) with Mark Burns.
During the 1970s she spent some time on the stage, including an acclaimed performance in the South African production of Wait Until Dark. She was out of films for a decade.
In 1985 she returned to the cinema in the surprise box-office hit My Beautiful Laundrette (Stephen Frears, 1985) about a gay Pakistani/National Front romance. She played Rachel, Saeed Jaffrey's warm-hearted mistress.
She then also appeared in such films as the Hollywood production Shag (Zelda Barron, 1989), the British comedy Getting It Right (Randal Kleiser, 1989) and the romantic comedy Hear My Song (Peter Chelsom, 1991) starring Adrian Dunbar.
On television she was featured in Ken Russell’s Lady Chatterley (1993). Among her many TV appearances are also parts in such American and British series as Shoestring (1979), Santa Barbara (1987), Murder She Wrote (1992), Dalziel and Pascoe (1999), The Bill (2000), Waking the Dead (2003), Monarch of the Glen (2005), and Last of the Summer Wine (2008).
She continued to perform on stage, such as shady lady Lottie Grady in When We Are Married (1996).
Recently she appear in such films as the drama The Kid (Nick Moran, 2010) and the comedy The Power of Three (Yvonne Deutschman, 2011) with Toyah Wilcox.
Shirley Anne Field wrote an autobiography A Time for Love (1991). She has one daughter: Nicola Jane Crichton-Stuart (1967).
Trailer of Horrors Of The Black Museum (1959). Source: OurManinHavanna (YouTube).
Trailer of My Beautiful Laundrette (1985). Source: ryy79 (YouTube).
Sources: Brian McFarlane (Encyclopedia of British Film), Phil Wickham (BFI Screenonline), (IMDb), Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Wikipedia, and .
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1623, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 MDN. Photo: Progress.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin.
Masterpiece
Shirley Anne Field was born Shirley Broomfield in Bolton, Great Britain, in 1938. She and her brother were brought up in the Edgworth Children's Home and Orphanage because their mother was unable to care for them. Many years later, her brother, publisher Guy Broomfield, would become a murder victim in the United States.
Field started as a Beauty Queen and was chosen Miss London. She modelled in glamour photographs for magazines, including Reveille and Titbits.
Her first appearance in a film was as an extra in the soap opera satire Simon and Laura (Muriel Box, 1955). According to Brian McFarlane of the Encyclopedia of British Film she appeared “without making much impression beyond that of exceptionally pretty ingénue.”
In the following years followed bigger parts in The Flesh Is Weak (Don Chaffey, 1957) starring John Derek, and the comedy Upstairs and Downstairs (Ralph Thomas, 1959).
She appeared as a murder victim in the violent Horrors of the Black Museum (1959, Arthur Crabtree) with Michael Gough, and she played a temperamental film star in the equally violent Peeping Tom (Michael Powell, 1960) with Karlheinz Böhm (as Carl Boehm).
The British critics hated the film at the time, but Peeping Tom is now seen as a classic. The Sunday Times' Dilys Powell, who in 1960 thought it "essentially vicious", admitted in 1994: "Today, I find I am convinced it is a masterpiece".
Then Field was chosen by Laurence Olivier to play the prime female role in The Entertainer (Tony Richardson, 1960), which really made her name.
Next she appeared as Albert Finney ’s pregnant girl friend in another British New Wave entry, Saturday Night - Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960). Phil Wickham at BFI Screenonline comments: “Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) is the 'new wave' film which has most preserved its reputation with modern critics. Added to critical support at the time and its massive - and unexpected - box office success, it has some claim to be the most significant of the films of this period.”
1960 must have been a top year for Field. She also appeared in the films Man in the Moon (1960), Beat Girl (Edmond T. Gréville, 1960) and Once More, with Feeling! (Stanley Donen, 1960) starring Yul Brynner.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1615, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still from Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960).
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1614, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still from Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (Karel Reisz, 1960).
Surprise Box-office Hit
Shirley Anne Field kept busy filming in the first half of the sixties. She played in The War Lover (Philip Leacock, 1962) starring Steve McQueen, and she was the sister of Oliver Reed in the SciFi film The Damned (Joseph Losey, 1963).
A trip to Hollywood for Kings of the Sun (J. Lee Thompson, 1963) with Yul Brynner, proved disappointing. In Italy, she appeared opposite Vittorio Gasmann in Marcia nuziale/Wedding March (Marco Ferreri, 1965).
She continued appearing in British films including the Doctor comedy Doctor in Clover (Ralph Thomas, 1966) and the hit Alfie (Lewis Gilbert, 1966) as one of the girlfriends of Michael Caine.
In 1967 she married former racing-driver and executive jet pilot Charlie Crichton-Stuart. From then on, she would appear incidentally in films such as the South-African production House of the Living Dead/Curse of the Dead (Ray Austin, 1970) with Mark Burns.
During the 1970s she spent some time on the stage, including an acclaimed performance in the South African production of Wait Until Dark. She was out of films for a decade.
In 1985 she returned to the cinema in the surprise box-office hit My Beautiful Laundrette (Stephen Frears, 1985) about a gay Pakistani/National Front romance. She played Rachel, Saeed Jaffrey's warm-hearted mistress.
She then also appeared in such films as the Hollywood production Shag (Zelda Barron, 1989), the British comedy Getting It Right (Randal Kleiser, 1989) and the romantic comedy Hear My Song (Peter Chelsom, 1991) starring Adrian Dunbar.
On television she was featured in Ken Russell’s Lady Chatterley (1993). Among her many TV appearances are also parts in such American and British series as Shoestring (1979), Santa Barbara (1987), Murder She Wrote (1992), Dalziel and Pascoe (1999), The Bill (2000), Waking the Dead (2003), Monarch of the Glen (2005), and Last of the Summer Wine (2008).
She continued to perform on stage, such as shady lady Lottie Grady in When We Are Married (1996).
Recently she appear in such films as the drama The Kid (Nick Moran, 2010) and the comedy The Power of Three (Yvonne Deutschman, 2011) with Toyah Wilcox.
Shirley Anne Field wrote an autobiography A Time for Love (1991). She has one daughter: Nicola Jane Crichton-Stuart (1967).
Trailer of Horrors Of The Black Museum (1959). Source: OurManinHavanna (YouTube).
Trailer of My Beautiful Laundrette (1985). Source: ryy79 (YouTube).
Sources: Brian McFarlane (Encyclopedia of British Film), Phil Wickham (BFI Screenonline), (IMDb), Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Wikipedia, and .
January 14, 2014
Carmela Corren
Israeli-born singer and actress Carmela Corren (1938) represented Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest 1963 with her song Vielleicht Geschieht Ein Wunder. In the early 1960s she starred in several Schlager- and Heimatfilms in Austria end Germany.
German postcard by Krüger, no. 902/184. Photo: A. Grimm / Ariola.
A Desert Rose
Carmela Corren was born Carmela Bizman in Tel Aviv, Israel, in 1938. She dreamed of being a dancer but switched to singing in the wake of an injury.
The American television producer Ed Sullivan discovered her in 1956 during a work venture in Jerusalem. Carmela, just out of military service in the Israeli army, was persuaded to come to New York to appear on his show. Carmela toured South Africa with Cliff Richard and sang in English clubs.
In the early 1960s, she became well known in Germany, as well as Switzerland and in Austria with her song Sei nicht traurig, geliebte Mama (You're Not Losing A Daughter, Mama). In 1961, this song stayed for 12 weeks in the German charts. First she had signed to the Ariola label, in 1966 she moved to Vogue and in 1968 she changed again to Decca.
In 1962 she became 8th at the Deutsche Schlagerfestspiele (German Schlager festival) with the song Eine Rose aus Santa Monica (A Rose from Santa Monica). Although the jury gave it only one point, the public loved her song. It climbed several European charts and stayed there for many weeks.
The festival was won by Conny Froboess with Zwei Kleiner Italiener (Two Little Italians), who represented Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest that year. In 1963 Carmela represented Austria at the Eurovision Song Contest in London with her song Vielleicht Geschieht Ein Wunder (Maybe A Miracle Will Happen) and finished seventh. The song was composed by Erwin Halletz and Peter Wahle.
In 1965 she tried again to join the Eurovision Song Contest, now for Switzerland. She lost the national finals though, and that year Switzerland was represented by Yovanna.
German postcard by Kolibri-Verlag, Minden/Westf., no. 1792. Photo: Ariola / Haenchen.
Schlager Films and Heimat Comedies
In Germany and Austria, Carmela Corren starred in several films and television productions. Her film debut was in the Schlagerfilm Tanze mit mir in den Morgen/Dance with Me Into the Morning (Peter Dörre, 1962) with singers Rex Gildo and Evi Kent .
Carmella then appeared in the Heimat comedy Drei Liebesbriefe aus Tirol/Three Love Letters from Tyrol (Werner Jacobs, 1962) starring Danish actress Ann Smyrner , and she appeared as a singer in a bar in the crime film Zwischen Schanghai und St. Pauli/Between Shanghai and St. Pauli (Roberto Bianchi Montero, Wolfgang Schleif, 1962) starring Karin Baal and Joachim Hansen .
She played supporting parts in the mountain drama Sein bester Freund/His best Friend ( Luis Trenker , 1962) starring former ski champion Toni Sailer , and in Sing, aber spiel nicht mit mir/Sing But Don’t Play With Me (Kurt Nachmann, 1963) starring Hannelore Auer .
Her last film appearance was in the romantic comedy Hochzeit am Neusiedler See/Wedding at Lake Neusiedler (Rolf Olsen, 1963) with Udo Jürgens .
From 1966 to 1970 Carmela was married to the music producer Horst Geiger, with whom she had a daughter and a son.
She kept singing in TV shows but she also worked as an actress. She was seen in the TV musical Das Leben ist die größte Schau/Life is the Biggest Show (Hans Eberhard, 1964) and in the TV series Das Kriminalmuseum/The Crime Museum (1967).
In 1972 she recorded an LP with folk songs, Folklore Festival, but it was not a success. She went to America to start a new career, but failed. She retired after a come-back attempt with the LP Hava Naghila (1978).
Carmela Corren remarried and lives now with her husband in Florida. In rare cases, she sings at Jewish festivals.
Dutch card by Heinz Franssen, Simpelveld.
Clip of Carmela Corren singing Vielleicht Geschieht Ein Wunder at the European Song Contest 1963. Source: Joao Velada (YouTube).
Sources: René Kern (Carmela Corren Website) (German), De Duitse Schlager in Nederland en België (Dutch), Wikipedia and .
January 13, 2014
Thea
Italian silent film actress Thea (1898-?) looks so innocent on this postcard, but in her film Il Giogo (1919), she is Zoe, a double natured woman. Zoe's foster father, dr. Caselli, has raised this daughter of an assassin together with his own daughter Rita, trying to confirm his theories that a character's individual is based on the expression of its surroundings. Zoe first seems a perfectly educated girl, but then she shows her true nature. She steals Rita's fiancé Riccardo, but also has an affair with an adventurer, with whom she secretly visits orgiastic parties. Riccardo discovers Zoe's true nature, tells Rita and her father, and the poor doctor has to admit his theories are worthless. Zoe ends as a dancer in an ill-reputed tavern.
Italian postcard, no. 489. Photo: still from Il Giogo (1919).
A Monkey Called Jack
Thea was born as Teresa Termini in Rome, Italy in 1898. Sometimes she was called Thea Zerni and her name is also written as Théa.
She debuted in the Italian silent cinema with the film I Martiri di Belfiore/The Martyrs of Belfiore (Alberto Carlo Lolli, 1915), a patriotic and anti-Austrian period piece, set in Mantova 1851. The leads were played by Enna Saredo and Achille Vitti, Teresa had only a minor part.
In 1916 Teresa had only one role, in L'albergo nero/The Black Inn ( Gustavo Serena , released in 1920). So after I Martiri di Belfiore, it took two years before she could be seen on the screen again, in the Cines production Il segreto di Jack/Jack's Secret (Enrique Santos, 1917). Here, Termini used her nom de plume Thea for the first time and she had her first lead, opposite a monkey called Jack.
The reviewer of La Cine-fono demanded Thea to stop 'borelleggiare', to act like Lyda Borelli , and to be more natural, precise and characteristic. This critique of being a Borelli epigone remained in subsequent films. Il segreto di Jack though, proved to be such a successful film, that Thea's career really took off.
Next followed two films with French star Aurele Sydney : Una strana avventura/A strange adventure ( Aurele Sydney , 1918) and L'Incubo/The nightmare (Amleto Palermi, 1918) with Bruto Castellani , and in between La reginetta Isotta/Queen Isolde (1918), based on a story by Honoré de Balzac.
Italian postcard by Fotocelere.
Italian postcard by Ed. A. Traldi, Milano, no. 524.
Huge Crowds
In 1919 Thea performed in six different films. Primerose/Primrose (Mario Caserini, 1919) was inspired by Lyda Borelli 's debut Ma l'amor mio non muore/Love Everlasting, which had also been directed by Caserini.
The other films were La notte del 24 aprile/The Night of 24 April (1919), Incantesimo/Spell (Ugo Gracci, 1919), Il giogo/The Yoke (Gaston Ravel, 1919), L'agguato della morte/The ambush of death (Amleto Palermi, 1919), and Capitan Fracassa/Captain Fracasse (Mario Caserini, 1919).
Except for Incantesimo, Thea had the female lead in all the other films. If the reviewers didn't like her very much, she did attract huge crowds, in particular as the real Lyda Borelli had retired from acting in the previous year 1918, because of her marriage to count Vittorio Cini.
Thea's last film was L'Albergo nero/The black Inn (Gustavo Serena, 1920), produced already in 1916 but only released in 1920. Director Gustavo Serena also played the male lead. Critics complained about the incomprehensibility of the film, which might have had to do with cuts by the censor.
In 1920 Thea married and withdrew from the screen, just like her big example Borelli had done. Today almost all films of Thea are lost. In 1991, a fragment of La notte del 24 aprile was found at the Netherlands Filmmuseum (now EYE Film Institute Netherlands) and presented at the Cinema Ritrovato film festival in Bologna.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard. Photo: Emilio Sommariva, Milano, no. 504. Collection: Didier Hanson.
Gustavo Serena . Italian postcard by Vettori, Bologna, no. 451bis.
Sources: .
Italian postcard, no. 489. Photo: still from Il Giogo (1919).
A Monkey Called Jack
Thea was born as Teresa Termini in Rome, Italy in 1898. Sometimes she was called Thea Zerni and her name is also written as Théa.
She debuted in the Italian silent cinema with the film I Martiri di Belfiore/The Martyrs of Belfiore (Alberto Carlo Lolli, 1915), a patriotic and anti-Austrian period piece, set in Mantova 1851. The leads were played by Enna Saredo and Achille Vitti, Teresa had only a minor part.
In 1916 Teresa had only one role, in L'albergo nero/The Black Inn ( Gustavo Serena , released in 1920). So after I Martiri di Belfiore, it took two years before she could be seen on the screen again, in the Cines production Il segreto di Jack/Jack's Secret (Enrique Santos, 1917). Here, Termini used her nom de plume Thea for the first time and she had her first lead, opposite a monkey called Jack.
The reviewer of La Cine-fono demanded Thea to stop 'borelleggiare', to act like Lyda Borelli , and to be more natural, precise and characteristic. This critique of being a Borelli epigone remained in subsequent films. Il segreto di Jack though, proved to be such a successful film, that Thea's career really took off.
Next followed two films with French star Aurele Sydney : Una strana avventura/A strange adventure ( Aurele Sydney , 1918) and L'Incubo/The nightmare (Amleto Palermi, 1918) with Bruto Castellani , and in between La reginetta Isotta/Queen Isolde (1918), based on a story by Honoré de Balzac.
Italian postcard by Fotocelere.
Italian postcard by Ed. A. Traldi, Milano, no. 524.
Huge Crowds
In 1919 Thea performed in six different films. Primerose/Primrose (Mario Caserini, 1919) was inspired by Lyda Borelli 's debut Ma l'amor mio non muore/Love Everlasting, which had also been directed by Caserini.
The other films were La notte del 24 aprile/The Night of 24 April (1919), Incantesimo/Spell (Ugo Gracci, 1919), Il giogo/The Yoke (Gaston Ravel, 1919), L'agguato della morte/The ambush of death (Amleto Palermi, 1919), and Capitan Fracassa/Captain Fracasse (Mario Caserini, 1919).
Except for Incantesimo, Thea had the female lead in all the other films. If the reviewers didn't like her very much, she did attract huge crowds, in particular as the real Lyda Borelli had retired from acting in the previous year 1918, because of her marriage to count Vittorio Cini.
Thea's last film was L'Albergo nero/The black Inn (Gustavo Serena, 1920), produced already in 1916 but only released in 1920. Director Gustavo Serena also played the male lead. Critics complained about the incomprehensibility of the film, which might have had to do with cuts by the censor.
In 1920 Thea married and withdrew from the screen, just like her big example Borelli had done. Today almost all films of Thea are lost. In 1991, a fragment of La notte del 24 aprile was found at the Netherlands Filmmuseum (now EYE Film Institute Netherlands) and presented at the Cinema Ritrovato film festival in Bologna.
Lyda Borelli . Italian postcard. Photo: Emilio Sommariva, Milano, no. 504. Collection: Didier Hanson.
Gustavo Serena . Italian postcard by Vettori, Bologna, no. 451bis.
Sources: .
January 12, 2014
Vic Oliver
Austrian born comic actor Vic Oliver (1898-1964) was a popular radio comedian, music hall favourite and film star in Great Britain before and during the war. He was an accomplished violinist and used this musical talent in his comedy act.
British postcard in the Picturegoer series, London, no. 1397. Photo: British Lion.
Married in a Blaze of Newspaper Publicity
Vic Oliver was born Victor Oliver Von Samek in Vienna, Austria, in 1898. He was the son of Baron Victor von Samek but he relinquished his father's title in 1922.
Oliver studied classical violin before deciding upon a career in show business. Being a Jew, Vic fled to England via America to escape persecution at the hands of the Nazis. His mother and sister were murdered in Bergen-Belsen extermination camp.
Vic was a skilled musician and played the violin (badly in his comedy shows). His distinctive trick was to play the violin while telling jokes. He had aspirations as a conductor and founded the Vic Oliver Concert Orchestra which gave light classical concerts along the South coast. His theme tune was Prelude to the Stars.
In 1935 he was the star of the revue Follow the Sun, where he met Sarah Churchill , daughter of soon-to-be prime minister Winston Churchill. Although he was 18 years her elder and had already been married twice, they fell in love.
Winston Churchill warned his daughter that if Vic was not a US citizen “she married to the enemy” and would lose her British passport. Sarah traveled by sea to the USA, where they married in a blaze of newspaper publicity.
In addition to appearing on stage, Vic soon appeared in film musicals like Rhythm in the Air (Arthur B. Woods, 1936) and Who's Your Lady Friend? (Carol Reed, 1937). The latter was based upon the hit German musical Der Herr Ohne Wohnung (The Gentleman Without a Home), that had already been filmed in 1934. Vic Oliver played a famous Viennese 'beauty specialist' (plastic surgeon) in the farce, and Sarah Churchill played the maid of the house.
Dutch postcard by HEMO. Photo Eagle Lion.
Vintage photo.
Hi Gang!
Vic Oliver was one of the first musical comedians, and was a regular on such Radio programs as Henry Hall's Guest Night and Workers Playtime. His style was later taken up by the likes of Victor Borge.
Female impersonation was a valuable part of his repertoire. In the comedy Room for Two (Maurice Elvey, 1940), based on a stage farce by Gilbert Wakefield, Oliver plays a womanizing Englishman in Venice, who takes a fancy to married tourist Frances Day. In a plot device right out of Charley's Aunt, Oliver disguises himself in drag and hires on as Day' maid. When Day's philandering hubby Basil Radford comes home, the laughs start rolling in.
In the early 1940s Vic Oliver teamed up with Bebe Daniels and Ben Lyon on their immensely popular wartime BBC radio series, Hi Gang! In 1941 there was also a film version, Hi, Gang! (Marcel Varnel, 1941). In this musical, the on-air rivalry between a married pair of American radio stars, each hosting a different show heats to boiling when they each have British evacuees on their shows.
Another music comedy, He Found a Star (John Paddy Carstairs, 1941) was based on Monica Ewer's novel Ring O'Roses. Vic is cast as Lucky Lyndon, a seedy but enthusiastic talent agent specializing in small-time variety acts. Lyndon spends the entire picture searching for the next 'big star', never realizing that his secretary Ruth Cavour ( Sarah Churchill ) is madly in love with him.
In the mid-1940s he was in some Gainsborough films, Give Us The Moon (1944) and I'll Be Your Sweetheart (1945), both with Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. In Give Us the Moon (Val Guest, 1944) Oliver delivers a broad performance as a dour suicide-prone chap who belongs to an 'I won't work' club.
Oliver was usually at his best on-screen when teamed with an unusually talented leading lady. Oliver's vis-à-vis in I'll be Your Sweetheart (Val Guest, 1945) was again film favourite Margaret Lockwood. Set in the early 1900's, the film concerns the trials and tribulations of musical-hall diva Edie Story (Lockwood), whose happy-go-lucky partner is one Sam Kahn (Oliver).
Sarah Churchill . Dutch postcard. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Margaret Lockwood . Dutch postcard, no. AX 171. Photo: J. Arthur Rank Org.
Mr. Showbusiness
In 1945 Vic Oliver and Sarah Churchill divorced, which drew again the attention of the press. In his autobiography Mr. Showbusiness, published in 1954, he told many stories about his former father-in-law, Sir Winston Churchill, with whom he was not on good terms.
In the post-war years Oliver continued his variety act and starred in revues like Starlight Roof (1947), which introduced Julie Andrews to London audiences.
He didn’t appear in more films, except for the short film For Old Time’s Sake (Paul Barralet, 1948).
In the 1950s and early 1960s he worked for Television. He was a regular on the TV series Hotel Imperial (1958) as the leader of the orchestra at a posh London hotel. The show proved to be popular, with Oliver clearly revelling in a starring role, and a further 12 episodes were screened in January-March 1960.
Oliver continued performing in England and overseas during the early 1960s.
In 1964, Vic Oliver died in Johannesburg, South Africa. His fourth wife was Natalie Conder. They had one child.
Vic Oliver was one of the artists who performed at the Theatrical Garden Party. It was transmitted on BBC Television on 6th June 1939.
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Chris Wrigley (Winston Churchill - A Biographical Companion), Wikipedia and .
British postcard in the Picturegoer series, London, no. 1397. Photo: British Lion.
Married in a Blaze of Newspaper Publicity
Vic Oliver was born Victor Oliver Von Samek in Vienna, Austria, in 1898. He was the son of Baron Victor von Samek but he relinquished his father's title in 1922.
Oliver studied classical violin before deciding upon a career in show business. Being a Jew, Vic fled to England via America to escape persecution at the hands of the Nazis. His mother and sister were murdered in Bergen-Belsen extermination camp.
Vic was a skilled musician and played the violin (badly in his comedy shows). His distinctive trick was to play the violin while telling jokes. He had aspirations as a conductor and founded the Vic Oliver Concert Orchestra which gave light classical concerts along the South coast. His theme tune was Prelude to the Stars.
In 1935 he was the star of the revue Follow the Sun, where he met Sarah Churchill , daughter of soon-to-be prime minister Winston Churchill. Although he was 18 years her elder and had already been married twice, they fell in love.
Winston Churchill warned his daughter that if Vic was not a US citizen “she married to the enemy” and would lose her British passport. Sarah traveled by sea to the USA, where they married in a blaze of newspaper publicity.
In addition to appearing on stage, Vic soon appeared in film musicals like Rhythm in the Air (Arthur B. Woods, 1936) and Who's Your Lady Friend? (Carol Reed, 1937). The latter was based upon the hit German musical Der Herr Ohne Wohnung (The Gentleman Without a Home), that had already been filmed in 1934. Vic Oliver played a famous Viennese 'beauty specialist' (plastic surgeon) in the farce, and Sarah Churchill played the maid of the house.
Dutch postcard by HEMO. Photo Eagle Lion.
Vintage photo.
Hi Gang!
Vic Oliver was one of the first musical comedians, and was a regular on such Radio programs as Henry Hall's Guest Night and Workers Playtime. His style was later taken up by the likes of Victor Borge.
Female impersonation was a valuable part of his repertoire. In the comedy Room for Two (Maurice Elvey, 1940), based on a stage farce by Gilbert Wakefield, Oliver plays a womanizing Englishman in Venice, who takes a fancy to married tourist Frances Day. In a plot device right out of Charley's Aunt, Oliver disguises himself in drag and hires on as Day' maid. When Day's philandering hubby Basil Radford comes home, the laughs start rolling in.
In the early 1940s Vic Oliver teamed up with Bebe Daniels and Ben Lyon on their immensely popular wartime BBC radio series, Hi Gang! In 1941 there was also a film version, Hi, Gang! (Marcel Varnel, 1941). In this musical, the on-air rivalry between a married pair of American radio stars, each hosting a different show heats to boiling when they each have British evacuees on their shows.
Another music comedy, He Found a Star (John Paddy Carstairs, 1941) was based on Monica Ewer's novel Ring O'Roses. Vic is cast as Lucky Lyndon, a seedy but enthusiastic talent agent specializing in small-time variety acts. Lyndon spends the entire picture searching for the next 'big star', never realizing that his secretary Ruth Cavour ( Sarah Churchill ) is madly in love with him.
In the mid-1940s he was in some Gainsborough films, Give Us The Moon (1944) and I'll Be Your Sweetheart (1945), both with Margaret Lockwood and Peter Graves. In Give Us the Moon (Val Guest, 1944) Oliver delivers a broad performance as a dour suicide-prone chap who belongs to an 'I won't work' club.
Oliver was usually at his best on-screen when teamed with an unusually talented leading lady. Oliver's vis-à-vis in I'll be Your Sweetheart (Val Guest, 1945) was again film favourite Margaret Lockwood. Set in the early 1900's, the film concerns the trials and tribulations of musical-hall diva Edie Story (Lockwood), whose happy-go-lucky partner is one Sam Kahn (Oliver).
Sarah Churchill . Dutch postcard. Photo: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.
Margaret Lockwood . Dutch postcard, no. AX 171. Photo: J. Arthur Rank Org.
Mr. Showbusiness
In 1945 Vic Oliver and Sarah Churchill divorced, which drew again the attention of the press. In his autobiography Mr. Showbusiness, published in 1954, he told many stories about his former father-in-law, Sir Winston Churchill, with whom he was not on good terms.
In the post-war years Oliver continued his variety act and starred in revues like Starlight Roof (1947), which introduced Julie Andrews to London audiences.
He didn’t appear in more films, except for the short film For Old Time’s Sake (Paul Barralet, 1948).
In the 1950s and early 1960s he worked for Television. He was a regular on the TV series Hotel Imperial (1958) as the leader of the orchestra at a posh London hotel. The show proved to be popular, with Oliver clearly revelling in a starring role, and a further 12 episodes were screened in January-March 1960.
Oliver continued performing in England and overseas during the early 1960s.
In 1964, Vic Oliver died in Johannesburg, South Africa. His fourth wife was Natalie Conder. They had one child.
Vic Oliver was one of the artists who performed at the Theatrical Garden Party. It was transmitted on BBC Television on 6th June 1939.
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Chris Wrigley (Winston Churchill - A Biographical Companion), Wikipedia and .
January 11, 2014
The Reutlinger Studio
The Reutlinger Studio in Paris was opened in Paris in 1850 and took photos of the rich and famous until 1937. Reutlinger was known for their unusual Art Nouveau styles of postcard designs, especially for portraits of actresses. This is the first post in a new series on star photographers.
Sarah Bernhardt . British postcard by Rotary Photo Co., London, no. 228A. Sent by mail in 1905. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by A.N., Paris, in the series Les Vedettes du Cinéma, no. 13. Photo: Reutlinger
Huguette Duflos . French postcard by A.N., Paris, in the series Les Vedettes du Cinéma, no. 16. Photo: Reutlinger.
A Successful Postcard Business
The Reutlinger studio was founded by Charles Reutlinger, of German descent. The studio passed on to Charles’ brother Emile in 1880, who ran the studio until 1890.
In 1883, Emile’s son Léopold Reutlinger (1863) came to Paris from Callao, Peru, where he grew up. Léopold took over in 1890, and he developed a very successful postcard business. He photographed the stars of the Moulin Rouge and the Folies Bergère.
He became one of the most requested portrait photographers of the Belle Epoque and he photographed among others Mata Hari, Cleo de Merode, Geraldine Farrar, Polar, Colette, Sarah Bernhardt Leonie Yahne, Liane the Pougy, Anna Held, La Belle Otero and Lina Cavalieri . Many of his pictures were sold to leading newspapers and magazines.
Léopold continued to run the studio until he lost an eye in an accident with a champagne cork in 1930. He died in 1937 at the age of 74.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 180/1. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 188/9. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Germaine Gallois.French postcard by Olympia / S.I.P., no. 194/18. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard, no. 181/10. Sent by mail in 1903. Photo: Reutlinger.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 865/17. Sent by mail in 1904. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Art Nouveau Fantasy Overlays
The earliest Reutlinger postcards in our collection date roughly from 1900-1902. They feature images of identified famous actresses, singers, and dancers from the day, surrounded by highly stylized Art Nouveau frames. Often, the same frames were used with different actress images in the centre.
In the several years that followed, the Reutlinger studio began to experiment with colour tinting, different stylization, and more outlandish or novel photomontage techniques.
P.K. Hobbs at Everything Vintage : "Léopold introduced a very distinctive style of merging photographic images with art nouveau fantasy overlays. He added to that process exceptionally well-done hand tinting.
The Reutlinger Studio became known for their unusual art nouveau styles of postcard designs, especially for portraits of actresses. These postcards were not cheaply produced, nor were they cheaply sold. This part of his business was very successful and sought-after, as thousands of his art nouveau postcards were produced."
In 1904, divided backs were permitted in France. Till then the back was reserved for the recipient’s address and all messages had to appear on the front. It explains the handwriting on the front of some cards in this post.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 1342. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Sylvie . French postcard by S.I.P. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 1188. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard, no. 1188. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard. Photo Reutlinger, Paris. 04-69.
Sources: P.K. Hobbs (Everything Vintage), Victor (Wonderings), and Wikipedia.
Sarah Bernhardt . British postcard by Rotary Photo Co., London, no. 228A. Sent by mail in 1905. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by A.N., Paris, in the series Les Vedettes du Cinéma, no. 13. Photo: Reutlinger
Huguette Duflos . French postcard by A.N., Paris, in the series Les Vedettes du Cinéma, no. 16. Photo: Reutlinger.
A Successful Postcard Business
The Reutlinger studio was founded by Charles Reutlinger, of German descent. The studio passed on to Charles’ brother Emile in 1880, who ran the studio until 1890.
In 1883, Emile’s son Léopold Reutlinger (1863) came to Paris from Callao, Peru, where he grew up. Léopold took over in 1890, and he developed a very successful postcard business. He photographed the stars of the Moulin Rouge and the Folies Bergère.
He became one of the most requested portrait photographers of the Belle Epoque and he photographed among others Mata Hari, Cleo de Merode, Geraldine Farrar, Polar, Colette, Sarah Bernhardt Leonie Yahne, Liane the Pougy, Anna Held, La Belle Otero and Lina Cavalieri . Many of his pictures were sold to leading newspapers and magazines.
Léopold continued to run the studio until he lost an eye in an accident with a champagne cork in 1930. He died in 1937 at the age of 74.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 180/1. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 188/9. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Germaine Gallois.French postcard by Olympia / S.I.P., no. 194/18. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard, no. 181/10. Sent by mail in 1903. Photo: Reutlinger.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 865/17. Sent by mail in 1904. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Art Nouveau Fantasy Overlays
The earliest Reutlinger postcards in our collection date roughly from 1900-1902. They feature images of identified famous actresses, singers, and dancers from the day, surrounded by highly stylized Art Nouveau frames. Often, the same frames were used with different actress images in the centre.
In the several years that followed, the Reutlinger studio began to experiment with colour tinting, different stylization, and more outlandish or novel photomontage techniques.
P.K. Hobbs at Everything Vintage : "Léopold introduced a very distinctive style of merging photographic images with art nouveau fantasy overlays. He added to that process exceptionally well-done hand tinting.
The Reutlinger Studio became known for their unusual art nouveau styles of postcard designs, especially for portraits of actresses. These postcards were not cheaply produced, nor were they cheaply sold. This part of his business was very successful and sought-after, as thousands of his art nouveau postcards were produced."
In 1904, divided backs were permitted in France. Till then the back was reserved for the recipient’s address and all messages had to appear on the front. It explains the handwriting on the front of some cards in this post.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 1342. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Sylvie . French postcard by S.I.P. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard by S.I.P., no. 1188. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Lina Cavalieri . French postcard, no. 1188. Sent by mail in 1906. Photo: Reutlinger, Paris.
Gabrielle Robinne . French postcard. Photo Reutlinger, Paris. 04-69.
Sources: P.K. Hobbs (Everything Vintage), Victor (Wonderings), and Wikipedia.
January 10, 2014
Lorella De Luca (1940-2014)
Last thursday, 9 January 2014, Italian actress Lorella De Luca (1940-2014) passed away. After her 'discovery' at the age of 14, she became the Sandra Dee of the Italian cinema of the 1950s. Her fresh and graceful appearance in hit comedies like Poveri ma belli/Poor But Beautiful (1956) endeared her to the public. De Luca was the widow of film director Duccio Tessari, in whose films she often starred. She was 73.
Italian postcard by B.F.F. Edit. (Casa Editr. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze), no. 3580. Photo: G.B. Poletto / Titanus.
Poor But Beautiful
Lorella De Luca was born in Florence, Italy in 1940. At the age of fourteen, she was discovered by a director who followed De Luca home, and convinced her father that she should be in films.
Lorella made her acting debut in Fellini’s Il bidone/The Swindlers (Federico Fellini, 1955) as Patrizia, the young daughter of middle-aged con man Augusto (Broderick Crawford). She subsequently attended the prestigious film school Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome.
The following year, De Luca's had her breakout role in Dino Risi's comedy Poveri ma belli/Poor But Beautiful (1956) alongside the other young actors Marisa Allasio , Renato Salvatori and Maurizio Arena. The success of the film made De Luca one of the most popular ingénues of Italian cinema; her freshness and grace endeared her to the public.
She continued playing naïve young girls in hit comedies like Padri e figli/A Tailor's Maid (Mario Monicelli, 1957) as Vittorio De Sica’s daughter, Il medico e lo stregone/Doctor and the Healer (Mario Monicelli, 1957) starring De Sica and Marcello Mastroianni , Domenica è sempre domenica/Sunday Is Always Sunday (Camillo Mastrocinque, 1958), Primo Amore/First Love (Mario Camerini,1958) and Racconti d'estate/Love on the Riviera (Gianni Franciolini, 1958) with Alberto Sordi.
In 1958, De Luca joined Alessandra Panaro and Mario Riva as a show girl in the popular TV quiz show Il Musichiere (The Musician).
She also acted in Belle ma povere/Pretty But Poor (Dino Risi, 1957), the sequel of Poveri ma belli, again starring Maurizio Arena and Renato Salvatori , which was again followed by Poveri milionari/Poor Millionaires (Dino Risi, 1958).
De Luca was one of the several women who were romantically involved with Maurizio Arena. She co-starred with him in Il principe fusto (Maurizio Arena, 1960), a film which he co-wrote, produced and directed. Their relationship created a minor scandal when it was revealed by the Italian media that Arena, after publicly announcing his intention to wed Anna Maria Pierangeli , was also engaged to De Luca.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Filmvertrieb, Berlin, no. 1375, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DMN.
Marisa Allasio , Maurizio Arena and Renato Salvatori . East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1356, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still for Poveri ma belli/Poor But Beautiful (Dino Risi, 1957).
Peplums and Spaghetti Westerns
During the 1960s, Lorella De Luca played princesses or slave girls in Peplums, the Italian ‘sword-and-sandal’ or ‘muscleman’ films, such as Nel Segno di Roma/Sheba and the Gladiator (Guido Brignone, 1959) starring Anita Ekberg .
De Luca also appeared under the pseudonym Hally Hammond in the Spaghetti Westerns Una Pistola per Ringo/A Pistol for Ringo (Ducio Tessari, 1965), and its sequel Il ritorno di Ringo/The Return of Ringo (Ducio Tessari, 1965), both featuring Giuliano Gemma billed as Montgomery Wood.
Earlier, director Tessari had helped write Sergio Leone's Fistful of Dollars, and encouraged by its success he had decided to produce his own Spaghetti Western. A Pistol for Ringo was a huge success in Italy and Spain, and also did well in the United States.
Between 1965 and 1978, De Luca starred in a total of nine films directed by Ducio Tessari, including the drama Una voglia da morire/ A desire to die (Ducio Tessari, 1965) with Raf Vallone, and the spy film Kiss Kiss...Bang Bang (Ducio Tessari, 1966).
In 1972, Tessari and De Luca married. She also worked behind the scenes as an assistant director. After 1967, with the birth of their two daughters Federica and Fiorenza Tessari, she accepted only occasional parts during the next decade.
Her last acting roles were in The Fifth Commandment (1978) and the television miniseries Nata d'amore/Born of love (Duccio Tessari, 1984).
She was actively involved in her husband's later career and was first assistant director in his final film, the comedy C'era un castello con 40 cani/There Was a Castle with Forty Dogs (Ducio Tessari, 1990) starring Peter Ustinov. De Luca made one last appearance in Bonus malus (Vito Zagarrio, 1993) and retired from the film industry after Tessari's death the following year.
Their two daughters, Federica and Fiorenza Tessari, both are actresses.
Scene from Poveri milionari/Poor Millionaires (1958). Source: EmeliusBisestile (TouTube). No subtitles.
Trailer Una Pistola per Ringo/A Pistol for Ringo (1965). Source: The Spaghetti Western Darabase (YouTube).
Trailer Kiss Kiss...Bang Bang (1966). Source: The Night of the Trailers (YouTube).
Sources: Wikipedia and .
Italian postcard by B.F.F. Edit. (Casa Editr. Ballerini & Fratini, Firenze), no. 3580. Photo: G.B. Poletto / Titanus.
Poor But Beautiful
Lorella De Luca was born in Florence, Italy in 1940. At the age of fourteen, she was discovered by a director who followed De Luca home, and convinced her father that she should be in films.
Lorella made her acting debut in Fellini’s Il bidone/The Swindlers (Federico Fellini, 1955) as Patrizia, the young daughter of middle-aged con man Augusto (Broderick Crawford). She subsequently attended the prestigious film school Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in Rome.
The following year, De Luca's had her breakout role in Dino Risi's comedy Poveri ma belli/Poor But Beautiful (1956) alongside the other young actors Marisa Allasio , Renato Salvatori and Maurizio Arena. The success of the film made De Luca one of the most popular ingénues of Italian cinema; her freshness and grace endeared her to the public.
She continued playing naïve young girls in hit comedies like Padri e figli/A Tailor's Maid (Mario Monicelli, 1957) as Vittorio De Sica’s daughter, Il medico e lo stregone/Doctor and the Healer (Mario Monicelli, 1957) starring De Sica and Marcello Mastroianni , Domenica è sempre domenica/Sunday Is Always Sunday (Camillo Mastrocinque, 1958), Primo Amore/First Love (Mario Camerini,1958) and Racconti d'estate/Love on the Riviera (Gianni Franciolini, 1958) with Alberto Sordi.
In 1958, De Luca joined Alessandra Panaro and Mario Riva as a show girl in the popular TV quiz show Il Musichiere (The Musician).
She also acted in Belle ma povere/Pretty But Poor (Dino Risi, 1957), the sequel of Poveri ma belli, again starring Maurizio Arena and Renato Salvatori , which was again followed by Poveri milionari/Poor Millionaires (Dino Risi, 1958).
De Luca was one of the several women who were romantically involved with Maurizio Arena. She co-starred with him in Il principe fusto (Maurizio Arena, 1960), a film which he co-wrote, produced and directed. Their relationship created a minor scandal when it was revealed by the Italian media that Arena, after publicly announcing his intention to wed Anna Maria Pierangeli , was also engaged to De Luca.
East-German postcard by VEB Progress Filmvertrieb, Berlin, no. 1375, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DMN.
Marisa Allasio , Maurizio Arena and Renato Salvatori . East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 1356, 1961. Retail price: 0,20 DM. Photo: Progress. Publicity still for Poveri ma belli/Poor But Beautiful (Dino Risi, 1957).
Peplums and Spaghetti Westerns
During the 1960s, Lorella De Luca played princesses or slave girls in Peplums, the Italian ‘sword-and-sandal’ or ‘muscleman’ films, such as Nel Segno di Roma/Sheba and the Gladiator (Guido Brignone, 1959) starring Anita Ekberg .
De Luca also appeared under the pseudonym Hally Hammond in the Spaghetti Westerns Una Pistola per Ringo/A Pistol for Ringo (Ducio Tessari, 1965), and its sequel Il ritorno di Ringo/The Return of Ringo (Ducio Tessari, 1965), both featuring Giuliano Gemma billed as Montgomery Wood.
Earlier, director Tessari had helped write Sergio Leone's Fistful of Dollars, and encouraged by its success he had decided to produce his own Spaghetti Western. A Pistol for Ringo was a huge success in Italy and Spain, and also did well in the United States.
Between 1965 and 1978, De Luca starred in a total of nine films directed by Ducio Tessari, including the drama Una voglia da morire/ A desire to die (Ducio Tessari, 1965) with Raf Vallone, and the spy film Kiss Kiss...Bang Bang (Ducio Tessari, 1966).
In 1972, Tessari and De Luca married. She also worked behind the scenes as an assistant director. After 1967, with the birth of their two daughters Federica and Fiorenza Tessari, she accepted only occasional parts during the next decade.
Her last acting roles were in The Fifth Commandment (1978) and the television miniseries Nata d'amore/Born of love (Duccio Tessari, 1984).
She was actively involved in her husband's later career and was first assistant director in his final film, the comedy C'era un castello con 40 cani/There Was a Castle with Forty Dogs (Ducio Tessari, 1990) starring Peter Ustinov. De Luca made one last appearance in Bonus malus (Vito Zagarrio, 1993) and retired from the film industry after Tessari's death the following year.
Their two daughters, Federica and Fiorenza Tessari, both are actresses.
Scene from Poveri milionari/Poor Millionaires (1958). Source: EmeliusBisestile (TouTube). No subtitles.
Trailer Una Pistola per Ringo/A Pistol for Ringo (1965). Source: The Spaghetti Western Darabase (YouTube).
Trailer Kiss Kiss...Bang Bang (1966). Source: The Night of the Trailers (YouTube).
Sources: Wikipedia and .
January 9, 2014
Peggy Cummins
Blonde and beautiful Irish actress Peggy Cummins (1925) is unforgettable as the trigger-happy femme fatale who robs banks with her lover in the film noir classic Gun Crazy (1949).
British Collector's Card.
Good Reviews
Peggy Cummins was born Augusta Margaret Diane Fuller in Prestatyn, Wales in 1925. Her Irish parents happened to be in Wales at the time of her birth and a storm kept them from returning to their home in Dublin.
Peggy lived most of her early life in Dublin where she was educated and later in London. Her mother was the actress Margaret Cummins who played the small but effective role of Anna the maid in Smart Woman (1948) and played Emily in the Margaret Ferguson film The Sign of the Ram.
In 1938 actor Peter Brock noticed Peggy Cummins at a Dublin tram stop and introduced her to Dublin's Gate Theatre Company.
She then appeared on the London stage in the title role of Alice in Wonderland and in the title role of Junior Miss at age 12 at the Saville Theatre.
Cummins made her film debut at 13 in the British drama Dr. O'Dowd (Herbert Mason, 1940). The film was received positively by critics, and especially Peggy got good reviews.
Her first major film was English Without Tears/Her Man Gilbey (Harold French, 1944) with Michael Wilding and Lilli Palmer . Hal Erickson at AllMovie : “a gentle satire of the temporary relaxation of class barriers in wartime England.’
According to Erickson, playing a precocious teenager, Peggy ‘stole’ Welcome, Mr. Washington (Leslie Hiscott, 1944), a sometimes amusing, sometimes poignant dramatization of what happened when American troops ‘invaded’ England during WW II.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 563. Photo: publicity still for <i>Gun Crazy</i> (1949).
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 673. Photo: Rank Film.
A Psychopathic Bonnie Parker-Type
Amidst a shower of publicity, Peggy Cummins was brought to Hollywood in 1945. Darryl F. Zanuck, head of 20th Century-Fox, wanted her to play Amber in Kathleen Winsor's Forever Amber (Otto Preminger, 1947).
However, she was soon replaced by Linda Darnell because she was "too young." As a compensation she went on to make six films in Hollywood.
In Hollywood, Cummins had several suitors. She briefly dated both Howard Hughes, and the future American president John F. Kennedy.
Meanwhile, she starred with Victor Mature in the Film Noir Moss Rose (Gregory Ratoff, 1947), and with Rex Harrison in the thriller Escape (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1948).
The highlight was her part as a psychopathic Bonnie Parker-type criminal in Gun Crazy/Deadly Is the Female (1949) directed by B-movie specialist Joseph H. Lewis. The script about a couple of star-crossed lovers (Cummins and John Dall) shooting their way across the modern west was co-written by MacKinlay Kantor and the blacklisted Dalton Trumbo, who was ‘fronted’ by his friend Millard Kaufman. The stylish and gritty Gun Crazy was made for a measly $400,000 in 30 days.
Hal Erickson at AllMovie : “The definitive Joseph H. Lewis-directed melodrama, Gun Crazy is the "Bonnie and Clyde" story retooled for the disillusioned post-war generation. John Dall plays a timorous, emotionally disturbed World War II veteran who has had a lifelong fixation with guns. He meets a kindred spirit in carnival sharpshooter Peggy Cummins, who is equally disturbed - but a lot smarter, and hence a lot more dangerous.
Beyond their physical attraction to one another, both Dall and Cummins are obsessed with firearms. They embark on a crime spree, with Cummins as the brains and Dall as the trigger man. As sociopathic a duo as are likely to be found in a 1940s film, Dall and Cummins are also perversely fascinating. As they dance their last dance before dying in a hail of police bullets, the audience is half hoping that somehow they'll escape the Inevitable.”
Dutch postcard. Photo: London Films. Publicity still for That Dangerous Age (Gregory Ratoff, 1949) with Richard Greene .
German postcard by Kunst und Bild, Charlottenburg, no. V 167. Photo: Rank Film. Publicity still for Hell Drivers (Cy Endfield, 1957).
A Frightening, Fast-paced, And Unrelenting Chiller
During a brief stay in Italy in 1948, Peggy Cummins filmed That Dangerous Age/If This Be Sin (Gregory Ratoff, 1949) with Myrna Loy and Roger Livesey.
She returned to London in 1950 to marry and work in British films. In 1952 she starred in the comedy Who Goes There! (Anthony Kimmins, 1952) with Nigel Patrick, and a year later she appeared in the Ealing comedy Meet Mr. Lucifer (Anthony Pelissier, 1953) with Stanley Holloway.
She later starred in the horror film Night of the Demon/Curse of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957) with Dana Andrews as an American psychologist investigating a satanic cult.
Patrick Legare at AllMovie: “a frightening, fast-paced, and unrelenting chiller that only gets better with passing years and repeated viewings. Directed by Jacques Tourneur from the M.R. James story Casting the Runes, Curse stars Dana Andrews as a psychologist out to disprove the black magic of co-star Niall MacGinnis. Peggy Cummings also stars as the daughter of a scientist killed by the title creature during the shocking opening. Tourneur was a master at scaring an audience by the power of suggestion, and Curse accomplished this with one exception: the director didn't care for the studio's decision to show the demon in the beginning.”
In the thriller Hell Drivers (Cy Endfield, 1957), her co-stars were Stanley Baker , Patrick McGoohan and Herbert Lom .
Cummins's last film was In the Doghouse (Darcy Conyers, 1961) alongside Leslie Phillips. After her film career had ended, she lived in retirement in Hampshire, England.
During the 1970s Cummins was very active in a national charity, Stars Organisation for Spastics, raising money and chairing the management committee of a holiday centre for children with disabilities in Sussex.
Peggy Cummins was married to London businessman Derek Dunnett from 1950 until his death in 2000. She now lives in London.
Scene from Gun Crazy/Deadly Is the Female (1949). Source: GnGInfiniteVideoList (YouTube).
Trailer Night of the Demon/Curse of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957). Source: captainbijou.com (YouTube).
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Patrick Legare (AllMovie), Michael Adams (Movieline), Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen, Wikipedia and .
British Collector's Card.
Good Reviews
Peggy Cummins was born Augusta Margaret Diane Fuller in Prestatyn, Wales in 1925. Her Irish parents happened to be in Wales at the time of her birth and a storm kept them from returning to their home in Dublin.
Peggy lived most of her early life in Dublin where she was educated and later in London. Her mother was the actress Margaret Cummins who played the small but effective role of Anna the maid in Smart Woman (1948) and played Emily in the Margaret Ferguson film The Sign of the Ram.
In 1938 actor Peter Brock noticed Peggy Cummins at a Dublin tram stop and introduced her to Dublin's Gate Theatre Company.
She then appeared on the London stage in the title role of Alice in Wonderland and in the title role of Junior Miss at age 12 at the Saville Theatre.
Cummins made her film debut at 13 in the British drama Dr. O'Dowd (Herbert Mason, 1940). The film was received positively by critics, and especially Peggy got good reviews.
Her first major film was English Without Tears/Her Man Gilbey (Harold French, 1944) with Michael Wilding and Lilli Palmer . Hal Erickson at AllMovie : “a gentle satire of the temporary relaxation of class barriers in wartime England.’
According to Erickson, playing a precocious teenager, Peggy ‘stole’ Welcome, Mr. Washington (Leslie Hiscott, 1944), a sometimes amusing, sometimes poignant dramatization of what happened when American troops ‘invaded’ England during WW II.
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 563. Photo: publicity still for <i>Gun Crazy</i> (1949).
Italian postcard by Bromofoto, Milano, no. 673. Photo: Rank Film.
A Psychopathic Bonnie Parker-Type
Amidst a shower of publicity, Peggy Cummins was brought to Hollywood in 1945. Darryl F. Zanuck, head of 20th Century-Fox, wanted her to play Amber in Kathleen Winsor's Forever Amber (Otto Preminger, 1947).
However, she was soon replaced by Linda Darnell because she was "too young." As a compensation she went on to make six films in Hollywood.
In Hollywood, Cummins had several suitors. She briefly dated both Howard Hughes, and the future American president John F. Kennedy.
Meanwhile, she starred with Victor Mature in the Film Noir Moss Rose (Gregory Ratoff, 1947), and with Rex Harrison in the thriller Escape (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1948).
The highlight was her part as a psychopathic Bonnie Parker-type criminal in Gun Crazy/Deadly Is the Female (1949) directed by B-movie specialist Joseph H. Lewis. The script about a couple of star-crossed lovers (Cummins and John Dall) shooting their way across the modern west was co-written by MacKinlay Kantor and the blacklisted Dalton Trumbo, who was ‘fronted’ by his friend Millard Kaufman. The stylish and gritty Gun Crazy was made for a measly $400,000 in 30 days.
Hal Erickson at AllMovie : “The definitive Joseph H. Lewis-directed melodrama, Gun Crazy is the "Bonnie and Clyde" story retooled for the disillusioned post-war generation. John Dall plays a timorous, emotionally disturbed World War II veteran who has had a lifelong fixation with guns. He meets a kindred spirit in carnival sharpshooter Peggy Cummins, who is equally disturbed - but a lot smarter, and hence a lot more dangerous.
Beyond their physical attraction to one another, both Dall and Cummins are obsessed with firearms. They embark on a crime spree, with Cummins as the brains and Dall as the trigger man. As sociopathic a duo as are likely to be found in a 1940s film, Dall and Cummins are also perversely fascinating. As they dance their last dance before dying in a hail of police bullets, the audience is half hoping that somehow they'll escape the Inevitable.”
Dutch postcard. Photo: London Films. Publicity still for That Dangerous Age (Gregory Ratoff, 1949) with Richard Greene .
German postcard by Kunst und Bild, Charlottenburg, no. V 167. Photo: Rank Film. Publicity still for Hell Drivers (Cy Endfield, 1957).
A Frightening, Fast-paced, And Unrelenting Chiller
During a brief stay in Italy in 1948, Peggy Cummins filmed That Dangerous Age/If This Be Sin (Gregory Ratoff, 1949) with Myrna Loy and Roger Livesey.
She returned to London in 1950 to marry and work in British films. In 1952 she starred in the comedy Who Goes There! (Anthony Kimmins, 1952) with Nigel Patrick, and a year later she appeared in the Ealing comedy Meet Mr. Lucifer (Anthony Pelissier, 1953) with Stanley Holloway.
She later starred in the horror film Night of the Demon/Curse of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957) with Dana Andrews as an American psychologist investigating a satanic cult.
Patrick Legare at AllMovie: “a frightening, fast-paced, and unrelenting chiller that only gets better with passing years and repeated viewings. Directed by Jacques Tourneur from the M.R. James story Casting the Runes, Curse stars Dana Andrews as a psychologist out to disprove the black magic of co-star Niall MacGinnis. Peggy Cummings also stars as the daughter of a scientist killed by the title creature during the shocking opening. Tourneur was a master at scaring an audience by the power of suggestion, and Curse accomplished this with one exception: the director didn't care for the studio's decision to show the demon in the beginning.”
In the thriller Hell Drivers (Cy Endfield, 1957), her co-stars were Stanley Baker , Patrick McGoohan and Herbert Lom .
Cummins's last film was In the Doghouse (Darcy Conyers, 1961) alongside Leslie Phillips. After her film career had ended, she lived in retirement in Hampshire, England.
During the 1970s Cummins was very active in a national charity, Stars Organisation for Spastics, raising money and chairing the management committee of a holiday centre for children with disabilities in Sussex.
Peggy Cummins was married to London businessman Derek Dunnett from 1950 until his death in 2000. She now lives in London.
Scene from Gun Crazy/Deadly Is the Female (1949). Source: GnGInfiniteVideoList (YouTube).
Trailer Night of the Demon/Curse of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957). Source: captainbijou.com (YouTube).
Sources: Hal Erickson (AllMovie), Patrick Legare (AllMovie), Michael Adams (Movieline), Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen, Wikipedia and .
January 8, 2014
Hermann Thimig
Austrian film and stage actor and director Hermann Thimig (1890-1982) made 99 films during six decades. He was often cast as a reserved character. He was either shy, loveable or dreamy - like a child who looks with big eyes at the world around him.
German postcard by Verlag Herm. Leiser, Berlin-Wilm, no. 9544. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
Austrian postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 6414. Photo: Kiba Verleih / Felton-Film.
Shy, Loveable or Dreamy
Hermann Friedrich August Thimig (sometimes written as Thiemig) was born in a dynasty of famous actors in Wien (Vienna), Austria-Hungary (now Austria), in 1890.
His father was the actor and director Hugo Thimig, who later became the manager of the Burgtheater in Vienna. His mother Fanny Thimig as well as both his sister Helen Thimig and his brother Hans Thimig were also actors. They often worked together on stage and in films.
Hermann started his professional career in 1910 at the Hoftheater (Court Theater) in Meiningen till the First World War interfered. In 1915 he could leave the army for medical reasons and went to Berlin to play at the Schauspielhaus and the Volksbühne (People's Stage).
A change in the Max Reinhardt Ensemble at the Deutschen Theater in 1916 gave Thimig his breakthrough.
In the same year he also made his film debut in the drama Die Gräfin Heyers/Countess Heyers (William Wauer, 1916). Then he was the partner of Ossi Oswalda in the comedy Ossis Tagebuch/Ossi's Diary (Ernst Lubitsch, 1917), and of Henny Porten in Auf Probe gestellt/Being Tested (Rudolf Briebach, 1918).
He was often cast as reserved characters. He was either shy, loveable or dreamy - like a child who looks with big eyes at the world around him.
Dutch postcard by Remaco-Film, no. 229. Hermann Thimig and Felix Bressart in Die Privatsekretärin/The Private Secretary (Wilhelm Thiele, 1931).
Dutch postcard by JosPe, no. 336. Photo: City Film. Publicity still from Die Privatsekretärin/The Private Secretary (Wilhelm Thiele, 1931) with Renate Müller .
Dutch postcard, no. 335. Photo: City Film.
Ernst Lubitsch
In the following years Hermann Thimig acted successfully in films as Moral und Sinnlichkeit/Morals and Sensuality (Georg Jacoby, 1919) with Erika Glässner , Die Brüder Karamasoff/The Brothers Karamasov (Carl Froelich, 1920) starring Fritz Kortner and Emil Jannings , and the comedy Kleider machen Leute/Fine Feathers Make Fine Birds (Hans Steinhoff, 1921) opposite his brother Hans Thimig.
Hermann appeared in three more comedies by Ernst Lubitsch : the comic fantasy Die Puppe/The Doll (1919) starring Ossi Oswalda , Die Bergkatze/The Mountain Cat (1921) with Pola Negri and Thimig as a timid bandit, and Die Flamme/The Flame (1923) with Negri and Alfred Abel .
Lubitsch knew how to integrate Thimig's original talent for the comic lover persona into his own satiric comedy style.
Thimig was also performing in the theatre. In 1924 he returned to Vienna to perform till 1932 at the Theater in der Josefstadt under the direction of Max Reinhardt. His greatest stage success was his role in 1924 as Truffaldino in Carlo Goldoni’s play Der Diener zweier Herren/The Servant of Two Gentlemen, directed by Max Reinhardt.
In 1918 he had his first engagement as a director at the Theater des Westens.
Successful silent films in which Thimig performed were Das Mädel mit der Maske/The Girl With the Mask (Victor Janson, 1922) again opposite Oswalda, the Cinderella variation Der verlorene Schuh/The Lost Shoe (Ludwig Berger, 1923) with Helga Thomas, and the Kammerspiel film Napoleon auf St. Helena/Napoleon at St. Helena (Lupu Pick, 1923) starring Werner Krauss .
Dutch postcard. Photo: City Film. Publicity still with Hermann Thimig and Anny Ondra in Kiki (Carl Lamac, 1932).
Dutch postcard by distributor City-Film. Photo: Hermann Thimig and Magda Schneider in Glück über Nacht/Happiness Over Night (Max Neufeld, 1932). Mark the modern furniture and set design.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 195/1. Photo: Ufa. Publicity still for Viktor und Viktoria/Viktor and Viktoria ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1933) with Hermann Thimig and Renate Müller .
Operettas and Comedies
When the sound film was introduced Hermann Thimig decided to focus on film operettas and comedies.
To his well-known films of the this period belong Die Drei-Groschen-Oper/The 3 Penny Opera (Georg Wilhelm Pabst, 1931) based on the text by Bertholt Brecht, and Mein Leopold/My Leopold ( Hans Steinhoff, 1931) starring Harald Paulsen .
He appeared again opposite Anny Ondra in the comedies Eine Nacht im Paradies/A Night in Paradise (Carl Lamac, 1932) and Kiki (Carl Lamac, 1932).
Other popular films were Kleiner Mann - was nun?/Little Man What Now (Fritz Wendhausen, 1933) with Hertha Thiele , Der Himmel auf Erden/Heaven on Earth (E. W. Emo, 1935) with Ilona Massey and Heinz Rühmann , and Der geheimnisvolle Mr. X/The Mysterious Mister X (J.A. Hübler-Kahla, 1936) with Ralph Arthur Roberts .
Critic H.T.S. wrote in 1936 in The New York Times about his the Viennese comedy Die Fahrt in die Jugend/The Trip to Youth (Carl Boese, 1935): "Hermann Thimig is excellent, as always, in the double rôle of an old Baron who goes to Vienna to be made young enough to win the hand of Cilly, star of a dancing troupe, and of his nephew, who joins the party at the estate just in time to keep them all guessing for a while. The charming Liane Haid , despite her long stage and screen experience, looks youthful enough to justify her refusal to be an 'old man's darling' and to warrant Leopold's enthusiasm for his uncle's choice."
Thimig often played with the in 1937 deceased actress Renate Müller , like in Der kleine Seitensprung/The Little Infidelity ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1931), Mädchen zum Heiraten/Girls To Marry (Wilhelm Thiele, 1932) and the hugely successful Viktor und Viktoria/Victor and Victoria ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1933).
Hal Erickson writes on AllMovie about the latter: "The most popular of Reinhold Schünzel 's German directorial efforts, Viktor und Viktoria is a spoof of such music-hall 'male impersonators' as Vesta Tilley . Unable to get a show-business job, would-be singer Renate Müller is urged by her somewhat epicene friend Hermann Thimig to adopt a brand-new stage persona. Our heroine re-invents herself as a cross-dressing entertainer, posing as a man (Viktor) who poses as a woman (Viktoria)! The fun begins when Muller falls in love with Adolf Wohlbrück , who can't quite understand why he's so attractive to the aggressively male Viktoria. Viktor und Viktoria was remade in England by Jessie Matthews as First a Girl (1936), then of course by Blake Edwards as the 1981 Julie Andrews vehicle Victor/Victoria.'"
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 6508/1, 1931-1932.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 8741/1, 1933-1934. Photo: NDLS. Publicity still for Karneval und Liebe/Carnival of Love (Carl Lamac, 1934).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 7383/1, 1932-1933. Photo: Aafa Film.
Older Gentleman
From 1934 on Hermann Thimig was working for the equally famous Burgtheater in Vienna, where he mainly appeared in roles as an older, distinguished gentleman or a quirky count. He played these characters also in films until the end of the war. Among those films were Johann (Robert A. Stemmle, 1943) starring Theo Lingen , and Die kluge Marianne/Smart Marianne (Hans Thimig, 1943) with Paula Wessely .
After Austria's Anschluss to Nazi-Germany, he was chosen to be a Staatsschauspieler (actor of the state) in 1938. In the final phase of World War II Adolf Hitler placed him on the Gottbegnadeten list of the most important artists, in August 1944. For this reason he didn't have to join the army and fight at the front.
After the war he continued his film career in such films as Der Prozess/The Proces (Georg Wilhelm Pabst, 1948) a drama about anti-Semitism with Ewald Balser, Geheimnisvolle Tiefe/Mysterious Shadows (G.W. Pabst, 1949) staring Paul Hubschmid , and the musical comedy Abenteuer im Schloss/Adventures in the Castle (Rudolf Steinboeck, 1952).
His final appearance for the cameras was in the TV comedy Der Arzt wider Willen/Doctor Against His Will (Hans Hollmann, 1967) with Paul Dahlke. In 1965 Thimig became a honorary member of the Burgtheater and in 1969 he was awarded with the Filmband in Gold for long and outstanding achievements in the German cinema.
Hermann Thimig died in 1982 in Vienna.
He was married twice. First with actress Hanna Wisser and in second marriage with actress Vilma Degischer. He had three daughters: from his first marriage Christine (1923), and from his second marriage Hedwig (1939) and Johanna (1943), who also became actors.
Scene from Viktor und Viktoria/Victor and Victoria (1933). Source: atqui (YouTube).
Hermann Thimig and Lizzi Holzschuh sing So verliebt (So much in love) in Der Himmel auf Erden/Heaven on Earth (1935). Source: BD 130 (YouTube).
Sources: Stephanie D'Heil (Steffi-line) (German), Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Hal Erickson (AllMovie), H.T.S. (New York Times), Filmportal.de, and Wikipedia.
German postcard by Verlag Herm. Leiser, Berlin-Wilm, no. 9544. Photo: Becker & Maass, Berlin.
Austrian postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 6414. Photo: Kiba Verleih / Felton-Film.
Shy, Loveable or Dreamy
Hermann Friedrich August Thimig (sometimes written as Thiemig) was born in a dynasty of famous actors in Wien (Vienna), Austria-Hungary (now Austria), in 1890.
His father was the actor and director Hugo Thimig, who later became the manager of the Burgtheater in Vienna. His mother Fanny Thimig as well as both his sister Helen Thimig and his brother Hans Thimig were also actors. They often worked together on stage and in films.
Hermann started his professional career in 1910 at the Hoftheater (Court Theater) in Meiningen till the First World War interfered. In 1915 he could leave the army for medical reasons and went to Berlin to play at the Schauspielhaus and the Volksbühne (People's Stage).
A change in the Max Reinhardt Ensemble at the Deutschen Theater in 1916 gave Thimig his breakthrough.
In the same year he also made his film debut in the drama Die Gräfin Heyers/Countess Heyers (William Wauer, 1916). Then he was the partner of Ossi Oswalda in the comedy Ossis Tagebuch/Ossi's Diary (Ernst Lubitsch, 1917), and of Henny Porten in Auf Probe gestellt/Being Tested (Rudolf Briebach, 1918).
He was often cast as reserved characters. He was either shy, loveable or dreamy - like a child who looks with big eyes at the world around him.
Dutch postcard by Remaco-Film, no. 229. Hermann Thimig and Felix Bressart in Die Privatsekretärin/The Private Secretary (Wilhelm Thiele, 1931).
Dutch postcard by JosPe, no. 336. Photo: City Film. Publicity still from Die Privatsekretärin/The Private Secretary (Wilhelm Thiele, 1931) with Renate Müller .
Dutch postcard, no. 335. Photo: City Film.
Ernst Lubitsch
In the following years Hermann Thimig acted successfully in films as Moral und Sinnlichkeit/Morals and Sensuality (Georg Jacoby, 1919) with Erika Glässner , Die Brüder Karamasoff/The Brothers Karamasov (Carl Froelich, 1920) starring Fritz Kortner and Emil Jannings , and the comedy Kleider machen Leute/Fine Feathers Make Fine Birds (Hans Steinhoff, 1921) opposite his brother Hans Thimig.
Hermann appeared in three more comedies by Ernst Lubitsch : the comic fantasy Die Puppe/The Doll (1919) starring Ossi Oswalda , Die Bergkatze/The Mountain Cat (1921) with Pola Negri and Thimig as a timid bandit, and Die Flamme/The Flame (1923) with Negri and Alfred Abel .
Lubitsch knew how to integrate Thimig's original talent for the comic lover persona into his own satiric comedy style.
Thimig was also performing in the theatre. In 1924 he returned to Vienna to perform till 1932 at the Theater in der Josefstadt under the direction of Max Reinhardt. His greatest stage success was his role in 1924 as Truffaldino in Carlo Goldoni’s play Der Diener zweier Herren/The Servant of Two Gentlemen, directed by Max Reinhardt.
In 1918 he had his first engagement as a director at the Theater des Westens.
Successful silent films in which Thimig performed were Das Mädel mit der Maske/The Girl With the Mask (Victor Janson, 1922) again opposite Oswalda, the Cinderella variation Der verlorene Schuh/The Lost Shoe (Ludwig Berger, 1923) with Helga Thomas, and the Kammerspiel film Napoleon auf St. Helena/Napoleon at St. Helena (Lupu Pick, 1923) starring Werner Krauss .
Dutch postcard. Photo: City Film. Publicity still with Hermann Thimig and Anny Ondra in Kiki (Carl Lamac, 1932).
Dutch postcard by distributor City-Film. Photo: Hermann Thimig and Magda Schneider in Glück über Nacht/Happiness Over Night (Max Neufeld, 1932). Mark the modern furniture and set design.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 195/1. Photo: Ufa. Publicity still for Viktor und Viktoria/Viktor and Viktoria ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1933) with Hermann Thimig and Renate Müller .
Operettas and Comedies
When the sound film was introduced Hermann Thimig decided to focus on film operettas and comedies.
To his well-known films of the this period belong Die Drei-Groschen-Oper/The 3 Penny Opera (Georg Wilhelm Pabst, 1931) based on the text by Bertholt Brecht, and Mein Leopold/My Leopold ( Hans Steinhoff, 1931) starring Harald Paulsen .
He appeared again opposite Anny Ondra in the comedies Eine Nacht im Paradies/A Night in Paradise (Carl Lamac, 1932) and Kiki (Carl Lamac, 1932).
Other popular films were Kleiner Mann - was nun?/Little Man What Now (Fritz Wendhausen, 1933) with Hertha Thiele , Der Himmel auf Erden/Heaven on Earth (E. W. Emo, 1935) with Ilona Massey and Heinz Rühmann , and Der geheimnisvolle Mr. X/The Mysterious Mister X (J.A. Hübler-Kahla, 1936) with Ralph Arthur Roberts .
Critic H.T.S. wrote in 1936 in The New York Times about his the Viennese comedy Die Fahrt in die Jugend/The Trip to Youth (Carl Boese, 1935): "Hermann Thimig is excellent, as always, in the double rôle of an old Baron who goes to Vienna to be made young enough to win the hand of Cilly, star of a dancing troupe, and of his nephew, who joins the party at the estate just in time to keep them all guessing for a while. The charming Liane Haid , despite her long stage and screen experience, looks youthful enough to justify her refusal to be an 'old man's darling' and to warrant Leopold's enthusiasm for his uncle's choice."
Thimig often played with the in 1937 deceased actress Renate Müller , like in Der kleine Seitensprung/The Little Infidelity ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1931), Mädchen zum Heiraten/Girls To Marry (Wilhelm Thiele, 1932) and the hugely successful Viktor und Viktoria/Victor and Victoria ( Reinhold Schünzel , 1933).
Hal Erickson writes on AllMovie about the latter: "The most popular of Reinhold Schünzel 's German directorial efforts, Viktor und Viktoria is a spoof of such music-hall 'male impersonators' as Vesta Tilley . Unable to get a show-business job, would-be singer Renate Müller is urged by her somewhat epicene friend Hermann Thimig to adopt a brand-new stage persona. Our heroine re-invents herself as a cross-dressing entertainer, posing as a man (Viktor) who poses as a woman (Viktoria)! The fun begins when Muller falls in love with Adolf Wohlbrück , who can't quite understand why he's so attractive to the aggressively male Viktoria. Viktor und Viktoria was remade in England by Jessie Matthews as First a Girl (1936), then of course by Blake Edwards as the 1981 Julie Andrews vehicle Victor/Victoria.'"
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 6508/1, 1931-1932.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 8741/1, 1933-1934. Photo: NDLS. Publicity still for Karneval und Liebe/Carnival of Love (Carl Lamac, 1934).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 7383/1, 1932-1933. Photo: Aafa Film.
Older Gentleman
From 1934 on Hermann Thimig was working for the equally famous Burgtheater in Vienna, where he mainly appeared in roles as an older, distinguished gentleman or a quirky count. He played these characters also in films until the end of the war. Among those films were Johann (Robert A. Stemmle, 1943) starring Theo Lingen , and Die kluge Marianne/Smart Marianne (Hans Thimig, 1943) with Paula Wessely .
After Austria's Anschluss to Nazi-Germany, he was chosen to be a Staatsschauspieler (actor of the state) in 1938. In the final phase of World War II Adolf Hitler placed him on the Gottbegnadeten list of the most important artists, in August 1944. For this reason he didn't have to join the army and fight at the front.
After the war he continued his film career in such films as Der Prozess/The Proces (Georg Wilhelm Pabst, 1948) a drama about anti-Semitism with Ewald Balser, Geheimnisvolle Tiefe/Mysterious Shadows (G.W. Pabst, 1949) staring Paul Hubschmid , and the musical comedy Abenteuer im Schloss/Adventures in the Castle (Rudolf Steinboeck, 1952).
His final appearance for the cameras was in the TV comedy Der Arzt wider Willen/Doctor Against His Will (Hans Hollmann, 1967) with Paul Dahlke. In 1965 Thimig became a honorary member of the Burgtheater and in 1969 he was awarded with the Filmband in Gold for long and outstanding achievements in the German cinema.
Hermann Thimig died in 1982 in Vienna.
He was married twice. First with actress Hanna Wisser and in second marriage with actress Vilma Degischer. He had three daughters: from his first marriage Christine (1923), and from his second marriage Hedwig (1939) and Johanna (1943), who also became actors.
Scene from Viktor und Viktoria/Victor and Victoria (1933). Source: atqui (YouTube).
Hermann Thimig and Lizzi Holzschuh sing So verliebt (So much in love) in Der Himmel auf Erden/Heaven on Earth (1935). Source: BD 130 (YouTube).
Sources: Stephanie D'Heil (Steffi-line) (German), Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Hal Erickson (AllMovie), H.T.S. (New York Times), Filmportal.de, and Wikipedia.
Paul van Yperen's Blog
- Paul van Yperen's profile
- 13 followers
Paul van Yperen isn't a Goodreads Author
(yet),
but they
do have a blog,
so here are some recent posts imported from
their feed.
