German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4324/1, 1929-1930. Photo: Paramount. Emil Jannings in Betrayal (Lewis Milestone, 1929).

If Weimar cinema had one film star, then it was Emil Jannings (1884-1950) for sure. He was a great actor in the silent era and won the first Oscar for Best Actor. Priceless are his performances as Louis XV in Lubitsch' Madame Dubarry (1919), as the doorman in Murnau's Der Letzte Mann/ The Last Laugh (1924) and as Mephisto in Faust (1926), as the jealous acrobat in Dupont's Variété/Variety (1925) and as the professor in Von Sternberg's Der blaue Engel/ The Blue Angel (1930).

Emil Jannings was born Theodor Friedrich Emil Janenz in Rorschach, Switzerland, in 1884. He grew up in Leipzig and Görlitz. He left grammar school prematurely and worked as a ship's mate. In 1900, he started to work at the Görlitz Stadttheater, after which he played in several provincial theatres and with travelling companies. Occasionally he directed plays too. In 1914, he reached Berlin where he was engaged in 1915-1916 at Max Reinhardt's Deutsches Theater. In between, he played on stage elsewhere and had his first film role in the war propaganda film Im Schützengraben/ In the Trenches (Walter Schmidthässler, 1914). Until 1920, Jannings continued to play on stage, getting bigger and bigger roles.

From 1916 on, Emil Jannings played more and more in film, mostly in quickly staged melodramas and crime stories. In 1919 he had his big breakthrough as Louis XV in the lavish period piece Madame DuBarry/ Passion, directed by his former theatre colleague Ernst Lubitsch. The film was such an international hit that former war adversaries such as the United States embraced German cinema. Jannings and his co-star Pola Negri became instant celebrities. For a while, he continued to play debauched rulers such as Henry VIII in Anna Boleyn/ Deception (Ernst Lubitsch, 1920), Amenes in Das Weib des Pharao/ Pharoah's Wife (Ernst Lubitsch, 1922) and Czar Peter the Great in Peter der Grosse (Dimitri Buchowetzki, 1922). Other strong historical characters were the title roles in Danton/ All for a Woman (1921) and Othello (1922), directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki, while he was also memorable opposite Henny Porten as in the rural comedy Kohlhiesels Töchter (Ernst Lubitsch, 1920).

The Italo-German co-production Quo vadis? (1924) was shot in Rome with an international cast including Lillian Hall-Davis, Alphons Fryland, Elga Brink, Elena Sangro, Rina de Liguoro, Raimondo Van Riel and Jannings. The producer was grand old Arturo Ambrosio of the Unione Cinematografica Italiana, a Universal-like merger of many Italian prewar companies. The film had its Roman premiere in March 1925, the German and Austrian premiere already happened in 1924. Quo vadis? tried to equal the earlier version of 1913, adding enormous sets (including existing 'Roman' structures by architect Armando Brasini for the Mostra del Lazio, 1923), and streaks of sadism and nudity. Still, it didn't have the worldwide success of Enrico Guazzoni's earlier version. People were a bit bored with epic films and the censor ordered cuts. The producer almost went bankrupt over copyright claims. It didn't help that the lion tamer Alfred Schneider was convicted because one of his circus lions had killed an extra. But Quo vadis? is a fascinating film, especially for Jannings's performance of the evil emperor. Eye Filmmuseum in the Netherlands restored the film, based on various existing copies. This restored version had its 're-premiere' at the Bologna film festival Cinema Ritrovato in 2002, and was shown again during Cinema Ritrovato 2024.

Emil Jannings managed to get away from his historical characters with two major films. In Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau's Der letzte Mann/The Last Laugh (1924) he is a proud hotel doorman who loses his self-esteem and the esteem of others when he is reduced to a toilet man, working in the basement of the hotel. In Varieté/Variety (Ewald André Dupont, 1925), he is the strong acrobat, who kills his rival out of jealousy. Jannings magnificently expressed the fears and doubts of proud and big-hearted men, who are cheated by their surroundings. Murnau directed him in two more silent classics Tartüff/ Tartuffe (Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, 1925) with Lil Dagover, and Faust (Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, 1926) as Mephisto opposite Gösta Ekman as Faust.

The success of these films earned Emil Jannings a 3-year contract with Paramount. In Hollywood, he again played men with a social position and ended in misery, such as in The Way of All Flesh (Victor Fleming, 1927) and The Last Command (Josef von Sternberg, 1928). The two films earned him the first Oscar ever distributed to an actor. Together with Ernst Lubitsch, he tried to repeat their German successes in The Patriot (Ernst Lubitsch, 1928). When sound came, Jannings left Hollywood and returned to Berlin, where he was launched in his first sound film Der blaue Engel/ The Blue Angel (1930), directed by Josef von Sternberg and based on a novel by Heinrich Mann, 'Professor Unrat'. Jannings is the local university professor Immanuel Rath who falls in love with cabaret singer Lola Lola (Marlene Dietrich). Once married to him, she shamelessly exploits and humiliates him. When the film came out, Dietrich's popularity overshadowed Jannings. The film was her ticket to Hollywood. Jannings returned to play on stage, until 1936.

With his sound films of the early 1930s, Emil Jannings could not compete with his earlier successes. Only after the Nazis came to power, his star rose again. He played rulers like in the early 1920s, but this time, not the decadent versions anymore. He performed historical characters such as Friedrich Wilhelm I in Der Alte und der junge König/ The Making of a King (Hans Steinhoff, 1935), Geheimrat Clausen in Der Herrscher/ The Ruler (Veit Harlan, 1937), the title roles in Robert Koch (Hans Steinhoff, 1939) and Ohm Kruger/Uncle Kruger (Hans Steinhoff, 1941), and Bismarck in Die Entlassung/The Dismissal (Wolfgang Liebeneiner, 1942). All were predecessors to Adolf Hitler, to be understood. In 1936 Jannings became a board member of Ufa and in 1938 he was chairman there. He was allowed to direct his films and thus was the main responsible for Ohm Kruger, one of the most expensive films of the Nazi era. His historical films contributed to the legitimisation of modern politics. In January 1945, he broke up work to the film Wo ist Herr Belling?/ Where Is Mr. Belling? (Erich Engel, 1945), because of an illness. The film, never finished, was his last work. In 1946, Emil Jannings was denazified and in 1950, he died in Strobl am Wolfgangsee, Austria.

Sources: Filmportal.de and IMDb.

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Tags:   Emil Jannings Emil Jannings German Actor Acteur Darsteller Schauspieler European Film Star Stage Film Cine Cinema Kino Picture Screen Movie Movies Filmster Star Vintage Postcard Ross Ross-Verlag Paramount Betrayal 1929 Lewis Milestone Cigar Smoker

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Belgian postcard, no. 152. Photo: 20th Century Fox. Peter Lawford in Kangaroo (Lewis Milestone, 1952).

English-American actor Peter Lawford (1923-1984), is mainly known as a member of the Rat Pack from which he was later banned due to an argument with Frank Sinatra and as the husband of Patricia Kennedy. Although he was never considered a very important actor, he has played in many famous films. He also appeared frequently on television. He was the first one to kiss Elizabeth Taylor and, according to him, the last one to speak to Marilyn Monroe before she died.

Peter Lawford was born Peter Sydney Vaughn Aylen in London in 1923. He was the son of Lieutenant General Sir Sidney Lawford and his wife May His parents married when he was one year old, which is why his mother's surname appears on his birth certificate. He spent his childhood with his parents in France and therefore learnt French rather than English. Lawford later also became fluent in Spanish and Italian. He first appeared in front of the camera at the age of seven in the British film Poor Old Bill (Monty Banks, 1931). In 1938, he played a supporting role in the drama Lord Jeff (Sam Wood, 1938) alongside child stars Freddie Bartholomew and Mickey Rooney, his first film in America. At the beginning of the 1940s, Lawford signed his first studio contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, where he was only given small roles in the early years. A serious arm injury that Lawford suffered when he ran into a glass door at the age of 14 prevented him from serving in the Second World War. His breakthrough came with his roles in the Irene Dunne drama The White Cliffs of Dover (Clarence Brown, 1944) and the literary adaptation The Picture of Dorian Gray (Albert Lewin, 1945) as David Stone. Lawford had his first leading role in the Lassie film Son of Lassie (S. Sylvan Simon, 1945). In 1946, he appeared in Ernst Lubitsch's comedy Cluny Brown and Henry Koster's musical Two Sisters from Boston in major roles. He played alongside Fred Astaire in the films Easter Parade (Charles Walters, 1948) and Royal Wedding (Stanley Donen, 1951).

Peter Lawford usually played young lovers at MGM, often from good families, for example as Theodore Laurence in Little Women (Mervyn LeRoy, 1949), the film version of the novel by Louisa May Alcott. He was known in particular for his light-hearted and romantic roles. As a result, Lawford became a household name, but never one of Hollywood's biggest stars. After the end of his contract with MGM, he turned to other roles and played more on television, including the leading role in the television series The Thin Man between 1957 and 1959. At the end of the 1950s, he became a member of Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack, which led to more roles. At the end of the 1950s, he became a member of Frank Sinatra's Rat Pack. He played the playboy Jimmy Foster in Ocean's Eleven (Lewis Milestone, 1960). In his later career, he turned to character roles and appeared in several television productions, including a recurring supporting role in the television series The Doris Day Show (1971-1973) with Doris Day. His later films include The April Fools (Stuart Rosenberg, 1969) with Jack Lemmon and Catherine Deneuve, and Rosebud (Otto Preminger, 1975), although he also made a few third-rate films. His last role was in the British comedy Where Is Parsifal? (Henry Helman, 1984) alongside Tony Curtis. Peter Lawford was known for his colourful, sometimes turbulent private life. He married Patricia Kennedy, John F. Kennedy's sister, in 1954 and thus became a member of the Kennedy family. They had four children together, including the actor Christopher Lawford (1955-2018). The marriage ended in divorce in 1966. Lawford and the Rat Pack around Frank Sinatra also supported Kennedy in his election campaigns. Lawford is said to have significantly supported the close personal relationship between the two Kennedy brothers John F. and Robert Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe, whom he had known well since the early 1950s. Marilyn Monroe exchanged her last words with Lawford during a telephone call on the night of 4 August 1962, when she died. After divorcing the Kennedy daughter, Lawford married Mary Rowan, 27 years his junior and daughter of comedian Dan Rowan, in 1971. The marriage lasted until 1975, after which he went down the aisle twice more, once with Debora Gould (1977-1978, divorced) and a few months before his death with Patricia Seaton. The friendship between him and Sinatra suffered for years because he had an affair with Sinatra's wife Ava Gardner and Sinatra considered this to be the reason for his separation from Gardner. Lawford had various more or less serious affairs with stars such as June Allyson, Lana Turner and Kim Novak. Before his marriage to Patricia Kennedy, he had a relationship with the African-American actress Dorothy Dandridge. Peter Lawford was addicted to alcohol for many years, which affected both his health and his professional career from the 1970s onwards. In 1984, Peter Lawford died from kidney and liver failure in Los Angeles. He was 61. In 2018, his 63-year-old son Christopher also died of a heart attack.

Sources: Wikipedia (Dutch, German and English) and Wikipedia.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Tags:   Peter Lawford Peter Lawford English American Actor Acteur Hollywood Movie Star Movie Movies Film Cinema Cine Kino Picture Screen Star Filmster Film Star Vintage Postcard Kangaroo 1952 20th Century Fox Fox

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German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4323/1, 1929-1930. Photo: Paramount. Emil Jannings and Esther Ralston in Betrayal (Lewis Milestone, 1929).

If Weimar cinema had one film star, then it was Emil Jannings (1884-1950) for sure. He was a great actor in the silent era and won the first Oscar for Best Actor. Priceless are his performances as Louis XV in Lubitsch' Madame Dubarry (1919), as the doorman in Murnau's The Last Laugh (1924), the jealous acrobat in Dupont's Variety (1925) and the professor in Von Sternberg's The Blue Angel (1930).

Projected as wholesome but fun-loving, Maine-born leading lady Esther Ralston (1902-1994) enjoyed a prime silent age career. She appeared in close to 100 films over a nearly 30-year period. At her peak, she was packaged and publicised as 'The American Venus' by Florenz Ziegfeld Jr. after appearing as a dazzling beauty queen in the film The American Venus (1926). A decade later, the blonde beauty's career, however, had tapered off.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

Tags:   Emil Jannings Emil Jannings German Actor Acteur Darsteller Schauspieler European Film Star Esther Ralston Esther Ralston American Actress Hollywood Movie Star Film Cine Cinema Kino Picture Screen Movie Movies Filmster Star Vintage Postcard Postkarte Carte Postale Tarjet Postal Cartolina Carte Postale Postkaart Briefkarte Briefkaart Ansichtskarte Ansichtkaart Ross Ross-Verlag Paramount Silent Sepia Betrayal 1929

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Dutch postcard by Croeze-Bosman-Universal, no. 65. Postcard for the American WWI, anti-war-film All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), based on the novel Im Westen nichts neues by Erich Maria Remarque, and starring Lew Ayres and Louis Wolheim.

Tags:   All Quiet on the Western Front Im Westen nichts neues 1930 Lewis Milestone Universal Croeze-Bosman First World War WWI war drama Adaptation Novel Erich Maria Remarque Dutch Vintage Postcard Postkarte POstale Postal Postkaart Picture Period piece Cinema Carte Cartolina Cine Carte Postale Card Celebrity Costume Uniform Film Film Star Movies Movie Movie Star Muet Muto Star Screen Silent Schauspieler Stummfilm Tonfilm Sound Sonore Sonoro Ansichtkaart Ansichtskarte Actor Acteur Attore 1930s Hollywood USA AMerican Lew Ayres Louis Wolheim Owen Davis junior Owen Davis Lew Ayres Louis Woldheim

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Dutch postcard. Croeze-Bosman-Universal. Postcard for the American WWI, anti-war-film All Quiet on the Western Front (1930), based on the novel Im Westen nichts neues by Erich Maria Remarque, and starring Lew Ayres and Louis Wolheim. Owen Davis jr. played Peter in the film.

Croeze-Bosman was a Dutch film distribution company, founded in 1926 as a continuation of the Dutch American Film co., a subsidiary of Universal.

Tags:   All Quiet on the Western Front Im Westen nichts neues 1930 Lewis Milestone Universal Croeze-Bosman First World War WWI war drama Adaptation Novel Erich Maria Remarque Dutch Vintage Postcard Postkarte POstale Postal Postkaart Picture Period piece Cinema Carte Cartolina Cine Carte Postale Card Celebrity Costume Uniform Film Film Star Movies Movie Movie Star Muet Muto Star Screen Silent Schauspieler Stummfilm Tonfilm Sound Sonore Sonoro Ansichtkaart Ansichtskarte Actor Acteur Attore 1930s Hollywood USA AMerican Owen Davis junior Owen Davis

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