Constantin J. David (18 February 1886 – 19 February 1964) was a German journalist, film director, film producer, and actor. He is also known for his marriage to the Hungarian actress, singer, and model

Käthe von Nagy Ekaterina Nagy von Cziser, better known by her stage name Käthe von Nagy (4 April 1904 – 20 December 1973), was a Hungarian actress, model, dancer, and singer who worked in the German and French cinema. Early life and education Käthe von Nag ...

Turner Classic Movies Turner Classic Movies (TCM) is an American movie channel, movie-oriented pay television, pay-TV television network, network owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in 1994, Turner Classic Movies is headquartered at Turner's Techwood broadcasti ...

. Retrieved 2014-24-04.

Biography

Early life and family

The son of a Spanish Jewish mother and a German Jewish father, he lived in Constantinople in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, until the age of 16. Once in Germany, David first showed talent as a journalist and writer. He earned his doctorate at the Sorbonne in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, and went on to study literature and art 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 constitue ...

and then

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. David then worked for a literary magazine until 1918. In 1921 he founded the International Institute of Modern Art, and from 1922 to 1925 he worked as a producer and co-owner of the German film company ''Greenbaum Filme''.

Film career

At the beginning of 1925, David took his first steps as a film director with the ''Greenbaum'' company's first film as a producer and co-director. After five years in this profession and a handful of moderately interesting productions (including two with his then-wife, actress

), he turned back to his studies in literature and art. From 1929 onwards he focused on the establishment of the first Italian sound film studios in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, and soon after he did the same thing in Spain.

War years and later life

1936, at the outbreak of the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...

, David left the country and went via Italy in 1937 to Turkey, where he designed a five-year plan for the state's film-making. During the Second World War David spend most of his time in France, after which he traveled to the United States to continue his film career. Constantin J. David died in 1964. He married in 1941. He and his wife had two daughters.

Filmography

Footnotes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:David, Constantin J 19th-century German Jews 1886 births 1964 deaths Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Germany German expatriates in France German emigrants to the United States German male actors German film directors Male actors from Hamburg German journalists University of Paris alumni