Curt Goetz (; 17 November 1888 – 12 September 1960), born Kurt Walter Götz, was a
Swiss German
Swiss German (Standard German: , gsw, Schwiizerdütsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch Mundart,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no defined orthography for any of them, many different spelling ...
writer, actor and film director. He was regarded as one of the most brilliant German comedy writers of his time. With his wife
Valérie von Martens, he acted in his own plays and also filmed them. He was a distant relative of Irish writer
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...
, to whom he was often compared.
Life and work
![Bundesarchiv Bild 183-2008-0128-502, Leopoldine Konstantin und Kurt Götz](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/23/Bundesarchiv_Bild_183-2008-0128-502%2C_Leopoldine_Konstantin_und_Kurt_G%C3%B6tz.jpg)
Goetz was born in
Mainz
Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...
,
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 ...
the son of Swiss wine examiner Bernhard Götz and his German wife of Italian-French descent, Selma (born Rocco). His father died in 1890. Two-year-old Curt and his mother then moved to
Halle, Saxony-Anhalt
Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (; from the 15th to the 17th century: ''Hall in Sachsen''; until the beginning of the 20th century: ''Halle an der Saale'' ; from 1965 to 1995: ''Halle/Saale'') is the largest city of the German state of Saxony-Anh ...
, where she managed a private clinic.
In 1906 Goetz graduated from City High School in Halle,
where he played Franz Moor in ''
The Robbers
''The Robbers'' (', ) is the first drama by German playwright Friedrich Schiller. The play was published in 1781 and premiered on 13 January 1782 in Mannheim, Germany, and was inspired by Leisewitz' earlier play ''Julius of Taranto''. It wa ...
'' by
Schiller.
His mother remarried, and his stepfather encouraged and financed Goetz's first steps in the theatre.
He studied acting under Berlin's
Emanuel Reicher
Emanuel Reicher (18 June 1849 – 15 May 1924) was a German actor. He was father to actors Ernst Reicher and Frank Reicher and actress Hedwiga Reicher.
After his successful acting debut in Munich in 1873 he obtained a contract with the Resi ...
. In 1907 he made his stage debut at the Stadttheater in
Rostock
Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state, c ...
, and wrote his first sketches for the stage. He played at theatres in
Nuremberg
Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...
, then went to
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 ...
.
In 1912 he played the lead in the silent movie ''Black Blood'', directed by
Harry Piel
Heinrich Piel (12 July 1892 – 27 March 1963), known professionally as Harry Piel, was a prolific German actor, film director, screenwriter, and film producer who was involved in over 150 films.
Piel became a director in 1912, turning out such ...
.
In 1914 he married Erna Nitter; they divorced in 1917. He continued acting in silent movies, mainly comedies such as ''
Ich möchte kein Mann sein'' (''I Don't Want To Be A Man,'' 1918), directed by
Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch (; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; as ...
. One of his colleagues from that time was actor
Max Landa
Max Landa ( be, Макс Ландаў; 24 April 1873 – 8 November 1933; born Max Landau) was a Russian-born Austrian silent film and stage actor.
Career
Landa attended the Handelsakademie (commercial academy) in Vienna and took classes with a ...
.
In 1923 he married
Valérie von Martens in Berlin, whom he met while acting 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 ...
, and they toured together, acting in his own productions.
![Curt-Goetz-Denkmal](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Curt-Goetz-Denkmal.jpg)
In 1939 he went to Hollywood to study filmmaking, and decided to remain there, with Valérie, when war broke out. He worked with director Reinhold Schunzel and others, and several of his comedies become films. He was signed by MGM
and worked on a number of film scripts. He and Valérie bought a farm in
Van Nuys
Van Nuys () is a neighborhood in the central San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. Home to Van Nuys Airport and the Valley Municipal Building, it is the most populous neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley.
History
In 1909, t ...
, California, where they successfully bred chickens.
In California, Goetz drafted his tale ''Tatjana'' and a new version of his ''Hokuspokus''. He also reworked an older play into ''
The House in Montevideo'', which he successfully produced in Broadway's Playhouse Theatre in 1945.
The Goetzes returned to Europe in 1945, living in Switzerland by
Lake Thun
Lake Thun (german: Thunersee) is an Alpine lake in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland named after the city of Thun, on its northern shore. At in surface area, it is the largest Swiss lake entirely within a single canton.
The lake was created af ...
(Goetz had Swiss nationality from birth), where he wrote some successful novels. They later moved to
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...
.
Goetz died in
Grabs,
St. Gallen
, neighboring_municipalities = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, Herisau (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Stein (AR), Teufen (AR), Untereggen, Wittenbach
, twintowns = Liberec (Czech Republic)
, website ...
, on 12 September 1960.
Works (originally published in German)
Plays
* ''
Der Lampenschirm'' (1911)
* ''
Nachtbeleuchtung'' (1918, v. 1919)
5 Einakter: ''Nachtbeleuchtung, Lohengrin, Tobby, Minna Magdalena, Der fliegende Geheimrat''
*''
Menagerie
A menagerie is a collection of captive animals, frequently exotic, kept for display; or the place where such a collection is kept, a precursor to the modern Zoo, zoological garden.
The term was first used in 17th-century France, in reference to ...
'' (1919)
4 Einakter: ''Der Spatz vom Dache, Die Taube in der Hand, Der Hund im Hirn, Der Hahn im Korb''
*''
Ingeborg
Ingeborg is a Germanic feminine given name, mostly used in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, derived from Old Norse ''Ingiborg, Ingibjǫrg'', combining the theonym ''Ing'' with the element ''borg'' "stronghold, protection". Ingebjørg is the No ...
'' (1922)
*''
Die tote Tante und andere Begebenheiten'' (1924)
3 Einakter: ''Der Mörder, Das Märchen, Die tote Tante''
*''
Hokuspokus'' (Original) (1926)
*''
Der Lügner und die Nonne'' (1928)
*''
Frauenarzt Dr. med. Hiob Prätorius'' (Original) (1934)
*''
Das Haus in Montevideo'' (1945)
*''
Hokuspokus'' (Neufassung) (1953)
*''
Dr. med. Hiob Prätorius'' (Neufassung) (1953)
*''
Nichts Neues in Hollywood'' (1956)
*''
Miniaturen'' (1958)
3 Einakter: ''Die Rache, Herbst, Die Kommode''
*''
Seifenblasen'' (1962)
3 Einakter: ''Ausbruch des Weltfriedens, Die Bacarole, Die Bärengeschichte''
Novels
*''
Tatjana'' (1944)
*''Die Tote von Beverly Hills'' (1951)
Autobiography
* ''Die Memoiren des Peterhans von Binningen'' (Memoirs Vol. 1, 1960)
* ''Die Verwandlung des Peterhans von Binningen'' (Memoirs Vol. 2)
* ''Wir wandern, wir wandern ...'' (Memoirs Vol. 3, Reminiscences of Valérie von Martens, 1963)
Other works
*''
Gesammelte Werke'' (1958)
*''
Viel Spaß mit Curt Goetz'' (1964) – Fritz Fröhling
*''
Das große Curt-Goetz-Album'', Bilder eines Lebens (1968)
*''
Curt's Geschichten''
*''
Ergoetzliches'' (1974)
*''
Curt Goetz - In deinem Sinne'' (1982)
*''
Sämtliche Bühnenwerke'' (1987)
Filmography
*''
Hokuspokus'', directed by
Gustav Ucicky
Gustav Ucicky (6 July 1899 – 27 April 1961) was an Austrians, Austrian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He was one of the more successful directors in Austria and Germany from the 1930s through to the early 1960s. His work cov ...
(Germany, 1930, based on the play ''Hokuspokus'')
**''
The Temporary Widow
''The Temporary Widow'' is a 1930 British-German comedy film, an English-language ''parallel version'' directed by Gustav Ucicky and starring Anglo-German actress and singer Lilian Harvey, Laurence Olivier in his first film role, and Athole St ...
'', directed by
Gustav Ucicky
Gustav Ucicky (6 July 1899 – 27 April 1961) was an Austrians, Austrian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He was one of the more successful directors in Austria and Germany from the 1930s through to the early 1960s. His work cov ...
(UK, 1930, based on the play ''Hokuspokus'')
*''
Doctor Praetorius'', directed by Curt Goetz and
Karl Peter Gillmann (West Germany, 1950, based on the play ''Dr. med. Hiob Prätorius'')
*''
People Will Talk
''People Will Talk'' is a 1951 American romantic comedy/drama film directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz and produced by Darryl F. Zanuck from a screenplay by Mankiewicz, based on the German play by Curt Goetz, which was made into a movie in Germa ...
'', directed by
Joseph L. Mankiewicz
Joseph Leo Mankiewicz (; February 11, 1909 – February 5, 1993) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. Mankiewicz had a long Hollywood career, and won both the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best A ...
(1951, based on the play ''Dr. med. Hiob Prätorius'')
*''
The House in Montevideo'', directed by Curt Goetz and
Valerie von Martens
Valérie von Martens (; 4 November 1894 – 7 April 1986), born Valérie Pajér Edle von Mayersperg, was a German-Austrian actress.
Valérie von Martens was born in Lienz, Tirol, daughter of the Austrian admiral Rudolf Pajér Edler von Mayersperg ...
(West Germany, 1951, based on the play ''Das Haus in Montevideo'')
*''
Hocuspocus'', directed by
Kurt Hoffmann
Kurt Hoffmann (12 November 1910 – 25 June 2001) was a German film director, the son of Carl Hoffmann. He directed 48 films between 1938 and 1971. He ran a production company Independent Film along with Heinz Angermeyer.
His 1958 film ' ...
(West Germany, 1953, based on the play ''Hokuspokus'')
*''
Ingeborg
Ingeborg is a Germanic feminine given name, mostly used in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway, derived from Old Norse ''Ingiborg, Ingibjǫrg'', combining the theonym ''Ing'' with the element ''borg'' "stronghold, protection". Ingebjørg is the No ...
'', directed by
Wolfgang Liebeneiner
Wolfgang Georg Louis Liebeneiner (6 October 1905 – 28 November 1987) was a German actor, film director and theatre director.
Beginnings
He was born in Lubawka, Liebau in Prussian Silesia. In 1928, he was taught by Otto Falckenberg, the directo ...
(West Germany, 1960, based on the play ''Ingeborg'')
*''
The House in Montevideo'', directed by
Helmut Käutner
Helmut Käutner (25 March 1908 – 20 April 1980) was a German film director active mainly in the 1940s and 1950s. He entered the film industry at the end of the Weimar Republic and released his first films as a director in Nazi Germany. Käu ...
(West Germany, 1963, based on the play ''Das Haus in Montevideo'')
*''
Dead Woman from Beverly Hills
''Dead Woman from Beverly Hills'' (german: Die Tote von Beverly Hills) is a 1964 West German drama film directed by Michael Pfleghar and starring Heidelinde Weis, Klausjürgen Wussow and Horst Frank. It was entered into the 1964 Cannes Film Fest ...
'', directed by
Michael Pfleghar
Michael Pfleghar (20 March 1933 – 23 June 1991) was a German film director and screenwriter. He directed 17 films between 1958 and 1987. He died of suicide.
Selected filmography
* ''Dead Woman from Beverly Hills'' (1964)
* '' Serenade for ...
(West Germany, 1964, based on the novel ''Die Tote von Beverly Hills'')
*''
Praetorius Praetorius, Prätorius, Prætorius was the name of several musicians and scholars in Germany.
In 16th and 17th century Germany it became a fashion for educated people named " Schulze," " Schultheiß," or " Richter" (which means "judge"), to Latini ...
'', directed by
Kurt Hoffmann
Kurt Hoffmann (12 November 1910 – 25 June 2001) was a German film director, the son of Carl Hoffmann. He directed 48 films between 1938 and 1971. He ran a production company Independent Film along with Heinz Angermeyer.
His 1958 film ' ...
(West Germany, 1965, based on the play ''Dr. med. Hiob Prätorius'')
*''
Hocuspocus'', directed by
Kurt Hoffmann
Kurt Hoffmann (12 November 1910 – 25 June 2001) was a German film director, the son of Carl Hoffmann. He directed 48 films between 1938 and 1971. He ran a production company Independent Film along with Heinz Angermeyer.
His 1958 film ' ...
(West Germany, 1966, based on the play ''Hokuspokus'')
*', directed by
Rolf Thiele
Rolf Thiele (7 March 1918 – 9 October 1994) was a German film director, film producer, producer and screenwriter. He directed 42 films between 1951 and 1977. He was born in Ústí nad Labem, Prödlitz, then in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. ...
(West Germany, 1967, based on the play ''Der Lügner und die Nonne'')
Screenplays
* ''
Friedrich Schiller
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...
'' (dir. Curt Goetz, 1923)
* ''
Lucky Kids
''Lucky Kids'' (german: Glückskinder) is a 1936 German romantic comedy film directed by Paul Martin and starring Lilian Harvey, Willy Fritsch, and Paul Kemp. It was shot at the Babelsberg Studios in Berlin. The film's sets were designed by the ...
'' (dir.
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006.
The son o ...
, 1936)
** ''Les gais lurons'' (dir.
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006.
The son o ...
and
Jacques Natanson, 1936)
* ''
Land of Love
''Land of Love'' (german: Land der Liebe) is a 1937 German romance film directed by Reinhold Schünzel and starring Albert Matterstock, Gusti Huber and Valerie von Martens. Although Schünzel was Jewish he had been allowed to continue directing ...
'' (dir.
Reinhold Schünzel
Reinhold Schünzel (7 November 1888 – 11 November 1954) was a German actor and director, active in both Germany and the United States. The son of a German father and a Jewish mother, he was born in St. Pauli, the poorest part of Hamburg. Despite ...
, 1937)
* ''
Seven Slaps
7 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
7 or seven may also refer to:
* AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era
* 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era
* The month of
July
Music Artists
* Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artis ...
'' (dir.
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin (born August 28, 1938), also known as Paul Martin Jr., is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 21st prime minister of Canada and the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2003 to 2006.
The son o ...
, 1937)
* ''
Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything
''Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything'' (german: Napoleon ist an allem schuld) is a 1938 German comedy film directed by Curt Goetz and starring Goetz, Valerie von Martens and Paul Henckels.Kreimeier p. 287 It marked the German debut of the Norweg ...
'' (dir. Curt Goetz, 1938)
Directing
* ''
Friedrich Schiller
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (, short: ; 10 November 17599 May 1805) was a German playwright, poet, and philosopher. During the last seventeen years of his life (1788–1805), Schiller developed a productive, if complicated, friends ...
'' (1923)
* ''
Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything
''Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything'' (german: Napoleon ist an allem schuld) is a 1938 German comedy film directed by Curt Goetz and starring Goetz, Valerie von Martens and Paul Henckels.Kreimeier p. 287 It marked the German debut of the Norweg ...
'' (1938)
* ''
Doctor Praetorius'' (1950)
* ''
The House in Montevideo'' (1951)
Acting
* ''Schwarzes Blut'' (1912)
* ''Nur nicht heiraten'' (1915)
* ''Der Hund mit dem Monokel'' (1916)
* ''Fliegende Schatten'' (1916)
* ''
Rose of the Wilderness'' (1918)
* ''
Imprisoned Soul'' (1918) as Stefan Rainer
* ''Fantasie des Aristide Caré'' (1918) as Gentleman / Einbrecher Aristide Caré
* ''
I Don't Want to Be a Man'' (1918) as Dr. Kersten
* ''Katinka'' (1918)
* ''
Ruth's Two Husbands
''Ruth's Two Husbands'' (German: ''Die beiden Gatten der Frau Ruth'') is a 1919 German silent film directed by Rudolf Biebrach and starring Henny Porten, Curt Goetz and Meinhart Maur.Krautz p.105
The film's sets were designed by Kurt Dürnhöfe ...
'' (1919) as Robert Holversen
* ''
The Revenge of Count Silvain'' (1920) as Count Silvain
* ''Das Skelett des Herrn Markutius'' (1920) as Detektiv Joe Deebs
* ''
The Lady in Black'' (1920) as
Joe Deebs Joe Deebs was a fictional detective who appeared in a series of German films and serials during the silent era. Along with Stuart Webbs and a number of other fictional cinema detective characters with Anglo-Saxon names, he was modeled on Arth ...
* ''
Tragedy of Love
''Tragedy of Love'' (German: ''Tragödie der Liebe'') is a 1923 German silent film directed by Joe May and starring Mia May, Emil Jannings and Marlene Dietrich.
The film's sets were designed by the art directors Erich Kettelhut, Paul Leni and ...
'' (1923) as Prosecutor
* ''Die Gräfin von Paris'' (1923) as Staatsanwalt
* ''
All for Money
''All for Money'' (german: Alles für Geld) is a 1923 German silent film directed by Reinhold Schünzel and starring Emil Jannings, Hermann Thimig and Dagny Servaes.Grange p. 156
The film's sets were designed by the art director Kurt Richte ...
'' (1923) as Graf Ehrhardt
* ''
Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything
''Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything'' (german: Napoleon ist an allem schuld) is a 1938 German comedy film directed by Curt Goetz and starring Goetz, Valerie von Martens and Paul Henckels.Kreimeier p. 287 It marked the German debut of the Norweg ...
'' (1938) as Lord Arthur Cavershoot
* ''
Doctor Praetorius'' (1950) as Dr. Hiob Prätorius
* ''
The House in Montevideo'' (1951) as Professor Traugott Nägler
* ''
Hocuspocus'' (1953) as Peer Bille
References
External links
*
Curt Goetz and Valérie von Martens
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goetz, Curt
1888 births
1960 deaths
Mass media people from Mainz
German male film actors
Film people from Rhineland-Palatinate
German male stage actors
Swiss writers in German
Swiss male stage actors
20th-century Swiss male actors
German emigrants to Liechtenstein
Swiss male film actors
Swiss male silent film actors
20th-century German male actors
Swiss dramatists and playwrights
German male dramatists and playwrights
20th-century German dramatists and playwrights
Actors from Mainz