Zarah Leander was a Swedish singer and actress whose greatest success was in Germany between 1936 and 1943, when she was contracted to work for the state-owned Universum Film AG (UFA). Although no exact record sales numbers exist, she was probably among Europe's best-selling recording artists in the years prior to 1945. Her involvement with UFA caused her films and lyrics to be identified as Nazi propaganda. Though she had taken no public political position and was dubbed an "Enemy of Germany" by Joseph Goebbels, she remained a controversial figure for the rest of her life. As a singer, Leander was known for her confident style and her deep contralto voice, and was also known as a "female baritone".
Mady Rahl was a German stage and film actress. Born Edith Gertrud Meta Raschke in Neukölln, now part of Berlin, Rahl trained as an actress and dancer. In 1935 she made her stage debut in Leipzig under the direction of Douglas Sirk and started her film career in 1936 with the movie The Mysterious Mister X. With her role in the circus drama Truxa (1937), Rahl became known to a wider audience. After the war, she sang with her friend Elfreide Datzig for the USO. She ultimately appeared in approximately 90 movies, several of them for UFA. In later years, she appeared frequently on television, while also pursuing her career in the theatre. She was also the German voice of many cartoon characters and of Lucille Ball.
The Great Love is a 1942 German drama film directed by Rolf Hansen and starring Zarah Leander, Viktor Staal and Grethe Weiser. It premiered in Berlin in 1942 and went on to become the most commercially successful film in the history of the Third Reich.
Karl Hermann Martell was a German actor.
Heimat is a 1938 German historical drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Zarah Leander, Heinrich George and Ruth Hellberg. The film's melodramatic storyline portrays the return of a leading singer to her hometown, where her father wishes her to settle down and marry. It is based on the 1893 play Heimat by Hermann Sudermann.
Germaine Damar is a Luxembourgish actress and dancer. Sometimes she used the stage name Ria Poncelet. She started her career as an acrobat and played in nearly 30 German films, including three films in which she was the partner of Peter Alexander.
Gabriela is a 1950 West German musical drama film directed by Géza von Cziffra and starring Zarah Leander, Carl Raddatz, and Vera Molnar. It was Leander's comeback film after a seven-year absence from filmmaking. In 1943 when the Nazi leadership had demanded she take German citizenship, she had broken her contract with UFA and returned to her native Sweden. In the immediate post-war era she was banned from appearing in German films because of her previous association with the Nazi hierarchy. When the law was lifted in 1949, she was able to make films once more.
To New Shores is a 1937 German drama film directed by Detlef Sierck and starring Zarah Leander, Willy Birgel and Viktor Staal. It was Leander's first film for the German studio UFA, and its success brought her into the front rank of the company's stars. It was shot at the Babelsberg Studio in Berlin. The film's sets were designed by the art director Fritz Maurischat.
Premiere is a 1937 Austrian musical crime film directed by Géza von Bolváry and starring Zarah Leander, Attila Hörbiger, and Karl Martell. The wealthy backer of a Viennese musical revue is murdered on the first night of the show. It was Leander's first German language role after previously appearing in Swedish films. On the basis of her performance in the film, Leander was signed by the German Major studio UFA after their major rival, Tobis, had decided she had insufficient star appeal. Her next film To New Shores established Leander as the leading star in Germany.
Cuba Cabana is a 1952 West German drama film directed by Fritz Peter Buch and starring Zarah Leander, O.W. Fischer and Paul Hartmann. It was the second film of an early 1950s comeback for Leander, who had been a major star during the Nazi era. The film was based on a short story of the same title by Tibor Yost. It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich and on location in Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla and Malga. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Bruno Monden and Hermann Warm.
The Life and Loves of Tschaikovsky or It Was a Lovely Night at the Ball is a 1939 German historical drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Zarah Leander, Aribert Wäscher and Hans Stüwe. The film portrays the fictional relationship between the Russian composer Pjotr Iljitsch Tschaikowsky and an aristocratic woman who, unhappily married, falls in love with him and decides to secretly support his work financially. It premiered on 13 August 1939 at the Venice Film Festival.
The Blue Fox is a 1938 German comedy film directed by Viktor Tourjansky and starring Zarah Leander, Willy Birgel and Paul Hörbiger. It was based on a play by the Hungarian writer Ferenc Herczeg. It includes the song Kann denn Liebe Sünde sein. It was shot at the Babelsberg Studios in Potsdam and on location in Budapest. The film's sets were designed by the art director Werner Schlichting.
Love Premiere is a 1943 German comedy film directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt and starring Hans Söhnker, Kirsten Heiberg and Fritz Odemar. The film's sets were designed by Robert Herlth.
It Was Always So Nice With You is a 1954 West German musical comedy film directed by Hans Wolff and starring Heinz Drache, Georg Thomalla and Ingrid Stenn. The Swedish actress Zarah Leander who had been the leading German film star during the Nazi era, plays a self-referential role as a maturing film star. The film was intended as a tribute to the composer Theo Mackeben with many of his hit songs sung by Leander and Kirsten Heiberg, another star of the 1940s.
Back Then is a 1943 German drama film directed by Rolf Hansen and starring Zarah Leander, Hans Stüwe, and Rossano Brazzi. The film's sets were designed by Walter Haag. It was made at the Babelsberg Studio, by Universum Film AG, Germany's largest film company. It was Leander's final film of the Nazi era, as she returned to Sweden shortly afterwards. This was a blow for the German film industry, as she was the most popular and highest-paid star. Leander's next film was not for another seven years, when she made a comeback in Gabriela (1950).
Ave Maria is a 1953 West German drama film directed by Alfred Braun and starring Zarah Leander, Hans Stüwe and Marianne Hold. It was part of the post-war comeback of the Swedish-born Zeander who had been one of the biggest German stars of the Nazi era.
Dreaming is a 1944 German historical musical drama film directed by Harald Braun and starring Hilde Krahl, Mathias Wieman and Friedrich Kayssler. It portrays the lives of the pianist Clara Schumann and her composer husband Robert Schumann.
Dante's Mysteries is a 1931 Swedish drama film written and directed by Paul Merzbach and starring Dante, Elisabeth Frisk and Zarah Leander. It was shot at the Råsunda Studios in Stockholm. The film's sets were designed by the art director Arne Åkermark. It marked the film debut of Leander who went on to be a star of German cinema.
