Peter (1934 film)

Last updated
Peter
Peter (1934 film).jpg
Directed by Henry Koster
Written by
Produced by Joe Pasternak
Starring
Cinematography István Eiben
Edited by Viktor Gertler
Music by Nicholas Brodszky
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release date
  • 20 December 1934 (1934-12-20)
Running time
85 minutes
Countries
  • Austria
  • Hungary
Language German

Peter is a 1934 Austrian-Hungarian comedy film directed by Henry Koster and starring Franciska Gaal, Felix Bressart and Richard Eybner. [1] [2]

Contents

Plot

After a young woman and her grandfather run into financial trouble, she (forced by a thief to wear his clothes) tries to earn money selling newspapers, loudly yelling false news to advertise them.

A young doctor arguing that "truth is the mothermilk of the civilisation", destroys the newspapers and tries to leave in his car, but is blocked by her, causing him to destroy a telephone booth.

Arrested still wearing the thief's male clothes with his wig found in the trouser pocket, she and grandfather are dragged in front of an understanding but severe judge who make them to pay for the telephone booth.

The doctor, moved by the tears for having caused trouble for the 'boy' and her grandfather, asks his garage manager to hire 'him' and secretly pays the fine.

When she discovers the doctor has no clients, she starts helping him find some in daring ways. The doctor discovers she is not a boy, but continues the charade. There is a happy ending when she finds out he has secretly helped her and her grandfather.

Production

The film was made by German-based subsidiary of the American studios Universal Pictures, whom Gaal was under contract to. The rise of the Nazi Party mean that Gaal could no longer work in Germany, so production of her films were switched to Vienna and Budapest.

Its plot was drawn from a stage play by Sándor Nádas. It was made at the Hunnia Film Studios in Budapest. The film's sets were designed by art director Márton Vincze. Josef von Báky, later a leading director, worked as assistant director on the film.

Cast

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franciska Gaal</span> Hungarian cabaret artist and film actress (1903–1972)

Franciska Gaal was a Hungarian cabaret artist and film actress of Jewish heritage. Gaal starred in a popular series of European romantic comedies during the 1930s. After attracting interest in Hollywood she moved there and made three films.

<i>Paprika</i> (1932 film) 1932 film

Paprika is a 1932 German comedy film directed by Carl Boese and starring Franciska Gaal, Paul Hörbiger and Paul Heidemann. Made by the German branch of Universal Pictures, it was based on a hit play by Max Reimann and Otto Schwartz. A French-language version and an Italian-language version were released the following year. It is also known by the alternative title of Marriage in Haste. In the US, the film was released almost 2 years later in German on 18 May 1934 in the Yorkville theater under the title Wie man Maenner fesselt (How to charm men).

<i>Little Mother</i> (1935 film) 1935 film by Henry Koster

Little Mother is a 1935 Austrian-Hungarian comedy film directed by Henry Koster and starring Franciska Gaal, Friedrich Benfer and Otto Wallburg. The film was made by a local subsidiary of the American Universal Pictures. The rights were later acquired by RKO who remade it in English as the 1939 Bachelor Mother starring Ginger Rogers and David Niven.

<i>Five from the Jazz Band</i> 1932 film

Five from the Jazz Band is a 1932 German musical comedy film directed by Erich Engel and starring Jenny Jugo, Rolf von Goth, and Fritz Klippel. It is based on a 1927 play of the same name by Felix Jackson, and was produced by the German subsidiary of Universal Pictures. It was shot at the Johannisthal Studios in Berlin. The film's sets were designed by art director Erich Czerwonski.

<i>Catherine the Last</i> 1936 Austrian film

Catherine the Last is a 1936 Austrian romantic comedy film directed by Henry Koster and starring Franciska Gaal, Hans Holt and Hans Olden. It was made by the Austrian subsidiary of Universal Pictures. The film's sets were designed by the art director Erwin Scharf. After making the film, Koster moved to Hollywood] In 1938, the film was remade in America as The Girl Downstairs with Gaal reprising her role.

<i>Scandal in Budapest</i> 1933 film

Scandal in Budapest is a 1933 German-Hungarian comedy film, filmed in Hungary in the German language and directed by Géza von Bolváry and Istvan Szekely and starring Franciska Gaal, Werner Pledath, and Lotte Spira. It was made at Budapest's Hunnia Studios by the European subsidiary of Universal Pictures, headed by Joe Pasternak, which had recently left Germany in the face of Hitler's "de-Judification" of that country. A separate Hungarian-language version was also made, with a different cast, titled Pesti Szerelem. Both versions were released in the United States by Arthur Mayer's DuWorld Pictures Inc.

Renee XIV was an unfinished 1946 Hungarian film directed by Ákos Ráthonyi and starring Franciska Gaal, Johannes Heesters and Theo Lingen. It was intended to be a German-language film made with Soviet-backing at the Hunnia Film Studio in Budapest, starring Gaal, a popular pre-war star who had not made a movie in several years. After around 10 days of filming, the production was abandoned. Gaal emigrated to America the following year, and she never made another film.

<i>A Precocious Girl</i> 1934 Austrian comedy film

A Precocious Girl is a 1934 Austrian comedy film directed by Max Neufeld and Richard Eichberg and starring Franciska Gaal, Leopoldine Konstantin and Herbert Hübner. The film's sets were designed by art director Julius von Borsody.

<i>Fräulein Lilli</i> 1936 Austrian comedy film

Fräulein Lilli or Miss Lilli is a 1936 Austrian comedy film directed by Hans Behrendt, Robert Wohlmuth and Max Neufeld. It starred Franciska Gaal, Hans Jaray and S.Z. Sakall. It was Gaal's last European film, although she did briefly start work in 1946 on Renee XIV, before it was abandoned during filming.

<i>Spring Parade</i> (1934 film) 1934 film

Spring Parade is a 1934 comedy film directed by Géza von Bolváry and starring Paul Hörbiger, Franciska Gaal, and Wolf Albach-Retty.

<i>Greetings and Kisses, Veronika</i> 1933 film

Greetings and Kisses, Veronika is a 1933 German comedy film directed by Carl Boese and starring Franciska Gaal, Paul Hörbiger, and Otto Wallburg. It was shot at the Johannisthal Studios in Berlin. The film's art direction was by Kurt Dürnhöfer and Max Heilbronner. The film's popularity made Gaal an international star. However the rise of the Nazi Party to power meant that the Jewish Gaal had to make her next films in Hungary and Austria.

<i>The Merry Wives of Tyrol</i> 1964 film

The Merry Wives of Tyrol is a 1964 West German musical comedy film directed by Hans Billian and starring Hannelore Auer, Gus Backus and Rudolf Prack.

<i>The Old Song</i> 1930 film

The Old Song is a 1930 German drama film directed by Erich Waschneck and starring Lil Dagover, Lien Deyers, and Igo Sym. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Heinz Fenchel and Jacek Rotmil.

<i>Slap in the Face</i> (film) 1970 film

Slap in the Face is a 1970 West German comedy film directed by Rolf Thiele and starring Curd Jürgens, Gila von Weitershausen, and Alexandra Stewart.

<i>The Office Manager</i> 1931 film

The Office Manager is a 1931 German comedy film directed by Hans Behrendt and starring Felix Bressart, Hermann Thimig and Maria Meissner.

<i>Holzapfel Knows Everything</i> 1932 film

Holzapfel Knows Everything is a 1932 German comedy film directed by Victor Janson and starring Felix Bressart, Iván Petrovich and Gretl Theimer. It was shot at the Grunewald Studios in Berlin. The film's sets were designed by the art director Jacek Rotmil.

<i>Terror of the Garrison</i> 1931 film

Terror of the Garrison is a 1931 German comedy film directed by Carl Boese and starring Felix Bressart, Lucie Englisch and Adele Sandrock.

<i>Stips</i> 1951 film

Stips is a 1951 West German romantic comedy film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Gustav Fröhlich, Heli Finkenzeller and Eva Ingeborg Scholz. It was shot at the Tempelhof Studios in West Berlin. The film's sets were designed by the art director Hans Luigi.

<i>The True Jacob</i> (1931 film) 1931 film

The True Jacob is a 1931 German comedy film directed by Hans Steinhoff and starring Ralph Arthur Roberts, Anny Ahlers, and Felix Bressart. It is based on a play by Franz Arnold and Ernst Bach which has been adapted into numerous films.

<i>Today Is the Day</i> (film) 1933 film

Today Is the Day is a 1933 German comedy film directed by Kurt Gerron and starring Hans Albers, Luise Rainer and Oskar Karlweis. It features a number of jazz interludes. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Max Knaake and Julius von Borsody.

References

  1. Bock & Bergfelder p. 144
  2. Peter at the TCM Movie Database

Bibliography