Ágnes Esterházy (born Ágnes Jósika de Branyitska, 15 January 1891 – 4 April 1956) was a Hungarian film actress who worked mainly in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. She appeared in 32 films between 1918 and 1943.

Biography

Ágnes Esterházy was born on 15 January 1891, the daughter of Count Jósika von Branyitska and Countess Ágnes Esterházy. Ágnes Esterházy married actor Fritz Schulz in 1910; he was 14 and she was 19. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the two moved to

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

, where Esterházy took acting lessons from

Ilka Pálmay Ilka Pálmay (often erroneously written Ilka von Pálmay; 21 September 1859 – 17 February 1945), born Ilona Petráss, was a Hungarian-born singer and actress. Pálmay began her stage career in Hungary by 1880, and by the early 1890s, she wa ...

and worked for Városi Színház, the local theater. Esterházy made her film debut in ''Palika'' (1918), followed by ''Lila test, sárga sapka'' (1918), and ''A szerelem mindent legyöz'' (1921). In 1923, after receiving an offer from

Sascha-Film Sascha-Film, in full Sascha-Filmindustrie AG and from 1933 Tobis-Sascha-Filmindustrie AG, was the largest Austrian film production company of the silent film and early sound film period. History The business was established in 1910 by Alexande ...

, she left to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, where she starred in Young Medardus. In

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

, she acted in '' Nanon ''(1924) with

Harry Liedtke Harry Liedtke (12 October 1882 – 28 April 1945) was a German film actor. Early life Liedtke was born in Königsberg, East Prussia to a merchant as the seventh out of 12 children. After the death of his father in 1896, he grew up in an orphanage ...

and

Hanni Weisse Hanni Weisse (16 October 1892 – 13 December 1967) was a German stage and film actress.Sutton, Katie. The Masculine Woman in Weimar Germany', pp. 68-69. New York, New York: Bergahn, 2011. She appeared in 146 films between 1912 and 1942. Biogra ...

, and '' Two People'' (1924) opposite Olaf Fjord. Esterházy appeared in silent classics such as '' Joyless Street'' (1925), starring Asta Nielsen and a pre-Hollywood fame

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragic ch ...

, and '' The Student of Prague'' (1926), starring

Conrad Veidt Hans Walter Conrad Veidt (; 22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German film actor who attracted early attention for his roles in the films ''Different from the Others'' (1919), '' The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), and '' The Man Who Laug ...

. Although Esterházy was known for playing supporting roles throughout her career, she did play as the lead in films such as ''

The Beggar Student ''Der Bettelstudent'' (''The Beggar Student'') is an operetta in three acts by Carl Millöcker with a German libretto by Camillo Walzel (under the pseudonym of F. Zell) and Richard Genée, based on ''Les noces de Fernande'' by Victorien Sar ...

'' (1927) and '' Chance the Idol'' (1927), both with Harry Liedtke. Under the direction of

Karl Grune Karl Grune (22 January 1890 – 2 October 1962) was an Austrian film director and writer who made many silent films in the 1920s. Grune was born into a Jewish familySiegbert Salomon Prawer, ''Between Two Worlds: The Jewish Presence in German ...

, she acted in the historical drama '' Spy of Madame Pompadour'' (1928) with

Liane Haid Juliane "Liane" Haid (16 August 1895 – 28 November 2000) was an Austrian actress and singer. She has often been referred to as Austria's first movie star. Biography Juliane Haid was born in Vienna on 16 August 1895, the first child to Georg ...

. The arrival of

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

ended Esterházy's career. Her final film appearance was in '' Gabriele Dambrone'' (1943), which credited her as Agnes von Esterhazy. Shortly after the

Anschluss The (, or , ), also known as the (, en, Annexation of Austria), was the annexation of the Federal State of Austria into the German Reich on 13 March 1938. The idea of an (a united Austria and Germany that would form a " Greater Germany ...

, Esterházy's husband Fritz Schulz was arrested for "racial reasons" and presumably detained in the Rossauer Lände police prison in Vienna. It was only through the efforts of Esterházy that Schulz was released in late May or early June 1938. Ágnes Esterházy died on 4 April 1956 at 65 years old.

Selected filmography

*'' Young Medardus'' (1923) * '' Nanon'' (1924) * '' Two People'' (1924) * '' The Voice of the Heart'' (1924) * ''

The Flight in the Night ''The Flight in the Night'' (German: ''Die Flucht in die Nacht'') is a 1926 German silent film directed by Amleto Palermi and starring Conrad Veidt, Robert Scholz and Angelo Ferrari.Soister & Battle p.193-196 It was based on the play '' Henry IV' ...

'' (1926) * '' The Student of Prague'' (1926) * ''

The Wooing of Eve ''The Wooing of Eve'' or ''Journey into Adventure'' (german: Die Fahrt ins Abenteuer) is a 1926 German silent film directed by Max Mack and starring Ossi Oswalda, Willy Fritsch and Agnes Esterhazy. The film's sets were designed by the art direc ...

'' (1926) * ''

Wrath of the Seas ''Wrath of the Seas'' or ''When Fleet Meets Fleet'' (German: ''Die versunkene Flotte'') is a silent war film released in 1926. Directed by Graham Hewett and Manfred Noa and starring Bernhard Goetzke, Agnes Esterhazy and Nils Asther.Bock & Bergf ...

'' (1926) * ''

Two and a Lady ''Die Zwei und die Dame'' (German: ''Two and a Lady'') is a 1926 German silent comedy crime film directed by Alwin Neuß and starring Agnes Esterhazy, Bernhard Goetzke and Henry Stuart. It was based on a novel by Sven Elvestad. It premiered ...

'' (1926) * ''

'' (1927) * '' Chance the Idol'' (1927) * ''

The Transformation of Dr. Bessel ''The Transformation of Dr. Bessel'' (German: ''Dr. Bessels Verwandlung '') is a 1927 German silent film directed by Richard Oswald and starring Jakob Tiedtke, Sophie Pagay and Hans Stüwe. The film was based on a novel by . It premiered at the U ...

'' (1927) * '' Spy of Madame Pompadour'' (1928) * '' His Majesty's Lieutenant'' (1929) * ''

Father Radetzky ''Father Radetzky'' (German: ''Vater Radetzky'') is a 1929 Austrian war film directed by Karl Leiter and starring Karl Forest, Otto Hartmann and Theodor Pištěk. It is a biopic of the nineteenth century Austrian soldier Joseph Radetzky von Ra ...

'' (1929) * '' The Man Without Love'' (1929) * '' Love and Champagne'' (1930) * '' Gabriele Dambrone'' (1943)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Esterhazy, Agnes 1898 births 1956 deaths Actors from Cluj-Napoca 20th-century Hungarian actresses Hungarian film actresses Hungarian silent film actresses Romanian people of Hungarian descent Agnes Hungarian nobility