Berthold Viertel (28 June 1885 – 24 September 1953) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

screenwriter and film director, known for his work in

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 betwee ...

, the UK and the US.

Early career

Viertel was born in

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

, the capital of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, but later went to work in

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 constitu ...

. Viertel developed a reputation as a poet and theatre director, before moving into film work from 1922. As a screenwriter and director, he collaborated with some of the leading figures of the

silent era A silent film is a film with no synchronized recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) or key lines of dialogue may, when ...

of German cinema and worked on several influential films. '' Uneasy Money'' (1926) is a work of New Objectivity film movement. He was married to screenwriter and actress

Salka Viertel Salka Viertel (15 June 1889 – 20 October 1978) was an Austrian Jewish actress and Hollywood screenwriter. While under contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer from 1933 to 1937, Viertel co-wrote the scripts for many movies, particularly those starrin ...

from 30 April 1918 to 20 December 1947.

Arrival in America

Following the collapse of Viertel's theatre troupe, he faced severe financial difficulties and accepted an offer from the Fox Film Corporation. He came to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

in 1928 planning to stay for just three years. Viertel wanted to gain experience working for the booming

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

film industry and hoped to earn enough to return to Europe. For four years, he worked for Fox then

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

, and

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

. Viertel grew to intensely dislike the atmosphere in Hollywood, which he found paranoid and which he believed placed too many artistic restraints on him. Viertel wanted to produce socially relevant films and did not believe Hollywood had the capacity to do so. This came to a head when he was working on the Paramount film '' The Cheat'' (1928) and after clashing with studio bosses he was replaced by

George Abbott George Francis Abbott (June 25, 1887 – January 31, 1995) was an American theatre producer, director, playwright, screenwriter, film director and producer whose career spanned eight decades. Early years Abbott was born in Forestville, New Y ...

Europe

With the uncertain political situation in Germany in 1932, the Viertels decided to stay in the United States with their children rather than return to an uncertain future in Europe. The Viertels' house in

Santa Monica Canyon The western border of Santa Monica, California, is the 3-mile (4.8 km) stretch of Santa Monica Bay. On its other sides, the city is bordered by various districts of Los Angeles: the northwestern border is Pacific Palisades, the eastern border ...

was the site of

salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon, a venue for cosmetic treatments * French term for a drawing room, an architectural space in a home * Salon (gathering), a meeting for learning or enjoyment Arts and entertainment * Salon ( ...

s and meetings of the Hollywood "intelligentsia" and European intellectuals. It was also an important gathering place for the

émigré An ''émigré'' () is a person who has emigrated, often with a connotation of political or social self-exile. The word is the past participle of the French ''émigrer'', "to emigrate". French Huguenots Many French Huguenots fled France followin ...

community.

Personal life

Previously, Berthold Viertel had been married to Grete Viertel, but they divorced in 1918. After his divorce from Salka in 1947, he married for a third time, this time to Elisabeth Neumann to whom he remained married until his death in 1953. His marriage to Salka Viertel produced three sons: Hans, Peter and Thomas. Peter Viertel (1920–2007) was a book and screenplay writer.

Filmography

Screenwriter

* '' Nora'' (Germany, 1923) * '' The Wig'' (Germany, 1925) * '' 4 Devils'' (1928) * '' City Girl'' (1930) * '' The Sacred Flame'' (1931) * '' Little Friend'' (UK, 1934) * ' (Austria, 1951)

Director

* '' Nora'' (Germany, 1923) * '' The Wig'' (Germany, 1925) * '' Uneasy Money'' (Germany, 1926) * ''

The One Woman Idea ''The One Woman Idea'' is a 1929 American drama film directed by Berthold Viertel and written by Marion Orth. The film stars Rod La Rocque, Marceline Day, Shirley Dorman, Sharon Lynn, Sally Phipps and Ivan Lebedeff. The film was released on Ju ...

'' (1929) * '' Seven Faces'' (1929) * '' Man Trouble'' (1930) * '' The Sacred Flame'' (1931) * '' The Spy'' (1931) * '' The Magnificent Lie'' (1931) * '' The Wiser Sex'' (1932) * ''

The Man from Yesterday ''The Man from Yesterday'' is a 1932 American pre-Code romantic war drama film made by Paramount Pictures, directed by Berthold Viertel, and written by Oliver H. P. Garrett, based on a story by Neil Blackwell and Rowland G. Edwards. Plot I ...

'' (1932) * '' Little Friend'' (UK, 1934) * '' The Passing of the Third Floor Back'' (UK, 1935) * ''

Rhodes of Africa ''Rhodes of Africa'' is a 1936 British biographical film charting the life of Cecil Rhodes. It was directed by Berthold Viertel and starred Walter Huston, Oskar Homolka, Basil Sydney and Bernard Lee. Plot The movie begins with the captions: "Th ...

'' (UK, 1936)

References

Bibliography

* Bergfelder, Tim & Cargnelli, Christian (ed). ''Destination London: German-speaking Emigres and British Cinema, 1925-1950''. Berghahn Books, 2008. * Jansen, Irene . ''Berthold Viertel: Leben und künsterlerische Arbeit im Exil''. New York: Peter Lang, 1992. * Richards, Jeffrey (ed). ''The Unknown 1930s: An Alternative History of the British Cinema, 1929-1939''. I.B. Tauris, 200. * Viertel, Salka . ''The Kindness of Strangers''. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1969.

External links

* * *
Berthold Viertel - Feuchtwanger Memorial LibraryFilmography, New York Times - Berthold Viertel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Viertel, Berthold 1885 births 1953 deaths Austrian film directors Film people from Vienna Austro-Hungarian emigrants to Germany German emigrants to the United States