''1-2-3 Corona'' is an

East German East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

film directed by Hans Müller. It was released in 1948.

Plot

In ruined

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, several bands of abandoned children roam the streets, engaging in petty crimes. When a circus arrives nearby, the boys are charmed by one

trapeze A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...

performer called Corona. They are upset when the circus' manager insults her, and plan a revenge by setting a trap on the ring. But their scheme fails and it is Corona that is injured. Being unable to work, she is dismissed. The boys tend to her, and as time passes, she teaches them her art, and they form a little circus of their own. A manager of another circus offers Corona a job. She is reluctant to leave the children. Eventually, the manager takes them all in into his circus.

Cast

Eva Ingeborg Scholz Eva Ingeborg Scholz (16 February 1928 – 21 March 2022) was a German film and television actress. Biography Eva Ingeborg Scholz made her debut in the title role of the 1948 film ''1-2-3 Corona'' and appeared regularly in films over the follow ...

as Corona *

Lutz Moik Lutz Moik (1930–2002) was a German film and television actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as ...

as Gerhard Wittmann *

Piet Clausen Piet may refer to: People *Piet (given name), a common name in the Netherlands and South Africa *Henri Piet (1888–1915), French lightweight boxer *Tony Piet (1906–1981), American Major League Baseball player Schools *Purushottam Institute of ...

as Dietrich * Ralph Siewert as Fritzchen *

Walter Werner Walter Gotthard Werner (11 April 1883 – 8 January 1956) was a German actor. He appeared in more than seventy films from 1921 to 1956. Selected filmography References External links * 1883 births 1956 deaths German male film actor ...

as Doctor Waldner *

Annemarie Hase Annemarie Hase (1900 – 1971) was a German actress and cabaret artist. She emerged as a star during the Weimar Republic, but because she was Jewish she faced increasing persecution following the Nazi takeover in 1933. In 1936 she went into exile ...

as Frau Schmittchen *

Herbert Hübner Herbert Hübner (6 February 1889 – 27 January 1972) was a German stage and film actor. He appeared in more than 150 films between 1921 and 1966. He was born in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) and died in Munich, Germany. Selected fil ...

as Professor Hanke * Hans-Edgar Stecher as Heinz *

Horst Gentzen Horst may refer to: Science * Horst (geology), a raised fault block bounded by normal faults or graben People * Horst (given name) * Horst (surname) * ter Horst, Dutch surname * van der Horst, Dutch surname Places Settlements Germany * Hor ...

as Emil * Werner Müller as Carl * Hans Neie as Rudi *

Eduard Wandrey Eduard Model Accessories is a Czech manufacturer of plastic models and finescale model accessories. Formed in 1989 in the city of Most, Eduard began in a rented cellar as a manufacturer of photoetched brass model components. Following the succ ...

as Hugo Grandini *

Hans Leibelt Hans Leibelt (11 March 1885 in Leipzig, German Empire – 3 December 1974 in Munich, West Germany) was a German film actor. Selected filmography * ''Heimliche Sünder'' (1926) * '' The False Prince'' (1927) * ''The Man in Search of His Murd ...

as Circus Manager Barlay

Production

The script writers were inspired by a real children's circus, ''Rose'', that was a popular attraction in the city of

Pößneck Pößneck (also spelled ''Poessneck'') is a town in the Saale-Orla-Kreis district, in Thuringia, Germany. It is situated 19 km east of Rudolstadt, and 26 km south of Jena. History Pößneck, which is of Slavonic origin, passed about 1 ...

during the first post-war years. ''1-2-3 Corona'' was the first DEFA picture to be filmed in UFA's old studio in Potsdam-Babelsberg, which was turned into the DEFA Feature Films Studio. Outdoor photography took place in

Charlottenburg Charlottenburg () is a Boroughs and localities of Berlin, locality of Berlin within the borough of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf. Established as a German town law, town in 1705 and named after Sophia Charlotte of Hanover, Queen consort of Kingdom ...

and

Prenzlauer Berg Prenzlauer Berg () is a locality of Berlin, forming the southerly and most urban district of the borough of Pankow. From its founding in 1920 until 2001, Prenzlauer Berg was a district of Berlin in its own right. However, that year it was incorp ...

Reception

''1-2-3 Corona'' had its premiere in

East Berlin East Berlin was the ''de facto'' capital city of East Germany from 1949 to 1990. Formally, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet sector of Berlin, established in 1945. The American, British, and French sectors were known as ...

's Babylon Cinema. It was viewed by some eight million people. The Catholic Film Service defined it as a "realistic picture, managing to create an entertaining film with modest resources." Author Peter Pleyer regarded it as a classical "

Rubble film Rubble is broken stone, of irregular size, shape and texture; undressed especially as a filling-in. Rubble naturally found in the soil is known also as 'brash' (compare cornbrash)."Rubble" def. 2., "Brash n. 2. def. 1. ''Oxford English Dictionary ...

", that "tried to provide some optimism".Peter Pleyer. ''Deutscher Nachkriegsfilm 1946-1948''. Fahle (1965). ASIN B0000BMEKK. p. 120.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title
''1-2-3 Corona'' original poster
on ostfilm.de. *
1-2-3 Corona
' on DEFA Sternstunden. 1948 films DEFA films 1940s German-language films German black-and-white films Circus films Films set in Berlin German crime drama films 1948 crime drama films