Peter Lorre was a Hungarian and American actor, active first in Europe and later in the United States. He began his stage career in Vienna, in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, before moving to Germany where he worked first on the stage, then in film in Berlin in the late 1920s and early 1930s. Lorre caused an international sensation in the Weimar Republic–era film M (1931), directed by Fritz Lang, in which he portrayed a serial killer who preys on little girls. Known for his timidly devious characters, his appearance, and his accented voice, Lorre was frequently caricaturized during and after his lifetime and the cultural legacy of his persona remains in media today.
M is a 1931 German mystery suspense thriller film directed by Fritz Lang and starring Peter Lorre as Hans Beckert, a serial killer who targets children. An early example of a procedural drama, the film centers on the manhunt for Lorre's character, conducted by both the police and the criminal underworld.
Heinrich Wilhelm "Heinz" Rühmann was a German film actor who appeared in over 100 films between 1926 and 1993. He is one of the most famous and popular German actors of the 20th century, and is considered a German film legend. Rühmann is best known for playing the part of a comic ordinary citizen in film comedies such as Three from the Filling Station and The Punch Bowl. During his later years, he was also a respected character actor in films such as The Captain from Köpenick and It Happened in Broad Daylight. His only English-speaking movie was Ship of Fools in 1964.
Gustav Friedrich Fröhlich was a German actor and film director. He landed secondary roles in a number of films and plays before landing his breakthrough role of Freder Fredersen in Fritz Lang's 1927 film Metropolis. He remained a popular film star in Germany until the 1950s.
Karl John was a German film actor who appeared in more than 50 films between 1933 and 1977.
The Confession of Ina Kahr is a 1954 West German crime film directed by G. W. Pabst and starring Curd Jürgens, Elisabeth Müller and Albert Lieven. It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich and on location in Grünwald and Feldafing The film's sets were designed by the art director Hertha Hareiter and Otto Pischinger.
Benno Vigny was a French-German screenwriter, novelist, songwriter, and librettist. Born into a Jewish family in France and raised in Vienna, Austria, Vigny's first significant work as a writer was the libretto for Robert Winterberg's operetta Fasching in Paris (1910). After serving in the French Army during World War I, he began a relationship with Marie-Louise Caussat, the mother of French songwriter Charles Trenet. She divorced her first husband in 1920, and married Vigny in 1922.
Paul Karl Heinrich Klinksik was a German stage and film actor who also worked in radio drama and soundtrack dubbing.
Via Mala is a 1945 German drama film directed by Josef von Báky and starring Karin Hardt, Carl Wery and Viktor Staal. It is an adaptation of the 1934 novel Via Mala by John Knittel. It was released in April 1945, a month before the unconditional surrender of Germany. The film is visually expressionist, something comparatively rare during the Nazi era.
A Shot at Dawn is a 1932 German crime film directed by Alfred Zeisler and starring Ery Bos, Genia Nikolaieva and Karl Ludwig Diehl. It was based on the play The Woman and the Emerald by Harry Jenkins and recounts a jewel theft. It was shot at the Babelsberg Studios in Potsdam with sets designed by the art directors Willi Herrmann and Herbert O. Phillips. A separate French-language version Coup de feu à l'aube was also produced.
Renate Mannhardt (1920–2013) was a German actress. She starred in Peter Lorre's 1951 film The Lost One.
Goodbye, Franziska is a 1941 German romance film directed by Helmut Käutner and starring Marianne Hoppe, Hans Söhnker and Fritz Odemar. It portrays the relationship between a globetrotting reporter and his devoted wife. The film was remade in 1957.
What Women Dream is a 1933 German comedy crime film directed by Géza von Bolváry and starring Nora Gregor, Gustav Fröhlich, and Otto Wallburg. In 1934, it was remade as an American film One Exciting Adventure. The film's sets were designed by the art directors Emil Hasler and Willy Schiller.
The Missing Wife is a 1929 Austrian silent film comedy crime film directed by Karl Leiter and starring Harry Halm, Iris Arlan and Mary Kid. The sets were designed by the art director Hans Ledersteger.
Josef the Chaste is a 1953 West German comedy film directed by Carl Boese and starring Ludwig Schmitz, Waltraut Haas and Renate Mannhardt.
The Golden Spider is a 1943 German thriller film directed by Erich Engels and starring Kirsten Heiberg, Jutta Freybe, and Harald Paulsen.
Heimat Bells is a 1952 West German drama film directed by Hermann Kugelstadt and starring Hansi Knoteck, Armin Dahlen and Ernst Waldow. It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich and on location in Mittenwald in the Bavarian Alps. The film's sets were designed by the art director Max Seefelder.
The Village Under the Sky is a 1953 West German drama film directed by Richard Häussler and starring Inge Egger, Robert Freitag and Renate Mannhardt. It was made at the Bavaria Studios in Munich and on location at Ötztal in the Alps. The film's sets were designed by the art director Robert Herlth. It was based on the short story Der Januck by Rolf Olsen.
Counterfeiters is a 1940 German crime film directed by Hermann Pfeiffer and starring Kirsten Heiberg, Rudolf Fernau and Karin Himboldt.
Operation Sleeping Bag is a 1955 West German comedy war film directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt and starring Eva Ingeborg Scholz, Paul Klinger and Karlheinz Böhm.
