Bela Jenbach, real name Béla Jacobowicz (1 April 1871 in

Miskolc Miskolc ( , , ; Czech language, Czech and sk, Miškovec; german: Mischkolz; yi, script=Latn, Mishkoltz; ro, Mișcolț) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 161,265 (1 Jan 2014) Miskolc is the ...

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

– 21 January 1943 in Vienna) was an Austrian actor and operetta librettist of Hungarian origin. Jenbach was of Jewish origin and the brother of the screenwriter Ida Jenbach. He was co-author of several well-known operetta libretti. Jenbach died in the Auersperg Sanatorium in Vienna and was buried in the

Matzleinsdorf Protestant Cemetery (german: Evangelischer Friedhof Matzleinsdorf), Matzleinsdorf Evangelical Cemetery is a historic Protestant cemetery located in the Favoriten district of Vienna, the capital city of Austria. History and details Throughout the centuries, the V ...

Life

Jenbach came to Vienna at the age of 18. At first he kept himself busy with casual work. He invested his earnings in speech lessons and proved to be an extremely talented student, as he managed to lose his accent in a very short time. The foundation for his career was laid and he was engaged by the Vienna Burgtheater. He took this opportunity to change his name from Jacobowicz to Jenbach. He hoped for greater recognition and did not want to be immediately associated with his Jewish roots. Depressed about the low earnings as a Burgtheater actor he came via the "Operettenbörse" in Café Sperl to write libretti. He would rather have become a recognized author of spoken dramas, but the work for operetta composers was simply more lucrative. During the Nazi period his working conditions became worse and worse. Jenbach had a Catholic wife and a daughter. He did not think of emigrating. From 1940 he hid in a cellar near Vienna's Kaunitzgasse. After three years in this involuntary dungeon, Jenbach felt severe physical pain. He was admitted to hospital with stomach cancer in its final stage and died there on 21 January 1943. His wife survived him by only eight days. She died of breast cancer on 29 January 1943. Jenbach was married to the actress Anna Brandstätter. They had a daughter, Lydia Jenbach.

Works

Operettas

*'' The Lilac Domino'', 1912 (with Emerich von Gatti); music by

Charles Cuvillier Charles Cuvillier (24 April 1877 – 14 February 1955) was a French composer of operetta. He won his greatest successes with the operettas ''La reine s'amuse'' (1912, played as ''The Naughty Princess'' in London) and with '' The Lilac Domino'', ...

*''Ein Tag im Paradies'', 1913 (with

Leo Stein Leo Stein (May 11, 1872 – July 29, 1947) was an American art collector and critic. He was born in Allegheny City (now in Pittsburgh), the older brother of Gertrude Stein. He became an influential promoter of 20th-century paintings. Education ...

); music by

Edmund Eysler Edmund Samuel Eysler (12 March 1874 – 4 October 1949), was an Austrian composer. Biography Edmund Eysler was born in Vienna to a merchant family. He was supposed to enter the engineering profession, but his acquaintance with Leo Fall led ...

(adapted on Broadway as ''

The Blue Paradise ''The Blue Paradise'' is a musical in a prologue and two acts, with music by Edmund Eysler, Sigmund Romberg and Leo Edwards, lyrics primarily by Herbert Reynolds, and a book by Edgar Smith, based on the operetta ''Ein Tag im Paradies'' (''A D ...

'') *'' Die Csárdásfürstin'', 1915 (with Leo Stein); music by

Emmerich Kálmán Emmerich Kálmán ( hu, Kálmán Imre; 24 October 1882 – 30 October 1953) was a Hungarian composer of operettas and a prominent figure in the development of Viennese operetta in the 20th century. Among his most popular works are ''Die Csárd� ...

*''Das Hollandweibchen'', 1920 (with Leo Stein); music by Emmerich Kálmán *'' Die blaue Mazur'', 1920, 1925 (with ); music by

Franz Lehár Franz Lehár ( ; hu, Lehár Ferenc ; 30 April 1870 – 24 October 1948) was an Austro-Hungarian composer. He is mainly known for his operettas, of which the most successful and best known is ''The Merry Widow'' (''Die lustige Witwe''). Life a ...

*', 1924; music by Franz Lehár *'' Paganini'', 1925 (with Paul Knepler); music by Franz Lehár *'' Der Zarewitsch'', 1927 (with , based on a play by

Gabriela Zapolska Maria Gabriela Stefania Korwin-Piotrowska (1857–1921), known as Gabriela Zapolska, was a Polish novelist, playwright, naturalist writer, feuilletonist, theatre critic and stage actress. Zapolska wrote 41 plays, 23 novels, 177 short stories, 25 ...

); music by Franz Lehár *''Die Fahrt in die Jugend'', 1933 (with ); music by Eduard Künneke

Comedy

* ''Der Herr ohne Wohnung'', 1913 (with Rudolf Österreicher)

Filmography

*'' The Gentleman Without a Residence'', directed by Fritz Freund (Austria, 1915, based on the play ''Der Herr ohne Wohnung'') *', directed by Emil Leyde (Germany, 1919, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *'' The Gentleman Without a Residence'', directed by

Heinrich Bolten-Baeckers Heinrich Bolten-Baeckers (1871–1938) was a German playwright, screenwriter, film director and film producer, producer. He worked on a number of films during the silent era. Towards the end of his film career he directed comedies for Universum Fil ...

(Germany, 1925, based on the play ''Der Herr ohne Wohnung'') *'' The Csardas Princess'', directed by

Hanns Schwarz Hanns Schwarz (11 February 1888 – 27 October 1945) was an Austrian film director. He was born in Vienna on 11 February 1888. Biography He directed twenty four films between 1924 and 1937 in both English and German. During the late silent and ...

(Germany/Hungary, 1927, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *'' The Tsarevich'', directed by

Luise Fleck Luise Fleck, also known as Luise Kolm or Luise Kolm-Fleck, née Louise or Luise Veltée (1 August 1873–15 March 1950), was an Austrian film director, and has been considered the second ever female feature film director in the world, after A ...

and

Jacob Fleck Jacob Fleck (8 November 1881 in Vienna as Jacob Julius Fleck – 19 September 1953, also in Vienna) was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, film producer and cameraman. He is noted for his long-standing professional partnership with his wife ...

(Germany, 1929, based on the operetta '' Der Zarewitsch'') *'' The Tsarevich'', directed by

Victor Janson Victor Arthur Eduard Janson ( lv, Viktors Artūrs Eduards Jansons; 25 September 1884 – 29 June 1960) was a German stage and film actor and film director of Latvian ethnicity. Selected filmography Actor * ''Your Dearest Enemy'' (1916) * '' When ...

(German, 1933, based on the operetta '' Der Zarewitsch'') **', directed by

and Jean Bernard-Derosne (French, 1933, based on the operetta '' Der Zarewitsch'') *'' The Csardas Princess'', directed by

Georg Jacoby Georg Jacoby (23 July 1882 – 21 February 1964) was a German film director and screenwriter.Profile
, bfi.org.uk; accessed 1 ...

(German, 1934, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') **''Princesse Czardas'', directed by

Georg Jacoby Georg Jacoby (23 July 1882 – 21 February 1964) was a German film director and screenwriter.Profile
, bfi.org.uk; accessed 1 ...

and (French, 1934, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *'' Paganini'' (''Gern hab' ich die Frau'n geküßt''), directed by E. W. Emo (Germany, 1934, based on the operetta '' Paganini'') *'' The Gentleman Without a Residence'', directed by E. W. Emo (Austria, 1934, based on the play ''Der Herr ohne Wohnung'') *''Die Fahrt in die Jugend'', directed by

Carl Boese Carl Eduard Hermann Boese (; 26 August 1887 – 6 July 1958) was a German film director, screenwriter, and film producer, producer. He directed 158 films between 1917 and 1957. Selected filmography * ''Farmer Borchardt'' (1917) * ''Donna Lucia ...

(Austria, 1935, based on the operetta ''Die Fahrt in die Jugend'') *'' The World's in Love'', directed by

Victor Tourjansky The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * Victor (1951 film), ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * Victor (1993 film), ...

(Austria, 1935, based on the operetta ')''Die ganze Welt dreht sich um Liebe''
/ref> *'' Dreams Come True'', directed by

Reginald Denham Reginald Denham (10 January 1894 – 4 February 1983) was an English writer, theatre and film director, actor and film producer. Biography Reginald H. F. Denham was born in London, England, in 1894. He spent a good part of his career dire ...

(UK, 1936, based on the operetta ') *'' The Lilac Domino'', directed by

Frederic Zelnik Frederic Zelnik (born Friedrich Zelnik, 17 May 1885 – 29 November 1950) was an Austrian producer, director, and actor. He was one of the most important producers-directors of the German silent cinema. Zelnik achieved success through period oper ...

(UK, 1937, based on the operetta '' The Lilac Domino'') *'' Who's Your Lady Friend?'', directed by

Carol Reed Sir Carol Reed (30 December 1906 – 25 April 1976) was an English film director and producer, best known for '' Odd Man Out'' (1947), '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), ''The Third Man'' (1949), and ''Oliver!'' (1968), for which he was awarded the ...

(UK, 1937, based on the play ''Der Herr ohne Wohnung'') *''

Silva Silva is a surname in Portuguese language, Portuguese-speaking countries, such as Portugal and Brazil. It is derived from the Latin word , meaning "forest" or "woodland". It is the family name of the House of Silva. The name is also widespread i ...

'', directed by

Aleksandr Ivanovsky Aleksandr Viktorovich Ivanovsky (; November 29, 1881 – January 12, 1968) was a screenwriter and film director in Soviet Union. He was awarded the USSR State Prize, Stalin Prize in 1941, for his work on the 1940 film ''Musical Story''. His 1944 o ...

(Soviet Union, 1944, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *'' The Csardas Princess'', directed by

Georg Jacoby Georg Jacoby (23 July 1882 – 21 February 1964) was a German film director and screenwriter.Profile
, bfi.org.uk; accessed 1 ...

(West Germany, 1951, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *''

The Little Czar ''The Little Czar'' (german: Der Zarewitsch) is a 1954 French-German historical drama film directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt and starring Luis Mariano, Sonja Ziemann and Iván Petrovich. It is based on the operetta ''Der Zarewitsch'' by Franz L ...

'', directed by

Arthur Maria Rabenalt Arthur Maria Rabenalt (25 June 1905 – 26 February 1993) was an Austrian film director, writer, and author. He directed more than 90 films between 1934 and 1978. His 1958 film '' That Won't Keep a Sailor Down'' was entered into the 1st Moscow ...

(West Germany/France, 1954, based on the operetta '' Der Zarewitsch'') *''Paganini'', directed by (West Germany, 1961, TV film, based on the operetta '' Paganini'') *', directed by Miklós Szinetár (West Germany/Hungary, 1971, TV film, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'') *', directed by

Eugen York Eugen York (26 November 1912 – 18 November 1991) was a German film director. He directed 35 films between 1938 and 1984. He was born in Rybinsk, Russian Empire and died in Berlin, Germany. Selected filmography Film * '' Morituri'' (1948) ...

(West Germany, 1973, TV film, based on the operetta '' Paganini'') *''Der Zarewitsch'', directed by

(West Germany, 1973, TV film, based on the operetta '' Der Zarewitsch'') *', directed by

Yan Frid Yan Borisovich Frid (russian: Ян Борисович Фрид; 1908–2003) was a Soviet screenwriter and film director. Life and career Yan Borisovich Frid was born on May 31 in 1908 in Krasnoyarsk. In 1932 he graduated from the directing dep ...

(Soviet Union, 1981, based on the operetta '' Die Csárdásfürstin'')

Trivia

Jenbach immortalized himself in the third act of the ''Csardas princess'' through his birthplace. The prince speaks of the married ''Bretteldiva'' from Miskolc.

Bibliography

* H. Giebisch, L. Pichler, K. Vancsa (editor): ''Kleines österreichisches Literaturlexikon.'' Brüder Hollinek, Vienna 1948. *

Felix Czeike Felix Czeike (21 August 1926 – 23 April 2006) was an Austrian historian and popular educator. He was an author and partly also editor of numerous publications on the history of Vienna and was the director of the . His main work is the six-volume ...

: ''Historisches Lexikon Wien.'' volume 3. Kremayr & Scheriau, Vienna 1994.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jenbach, Bela 1871 births 1943 deaths People from Miskolc 20th-century Austrian writers Austrian operetta librettists Hungarian librettists