Helena Makowska ('' née'' Woynowiczówna, 2 March 1893 – 22 August 1964) was a Polish actress. She appeared in more than 60 films between 1911 and 1958.

Early life

Helena Makowska was born Helena Woynowiczówna on 2 March 1893 to Ludwik Woyniewicz, a Polish engineer who worked for a Russian-Belgian company, and his wife, Stanisława (née Sauret). The family moved to

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

in 1903. There, Makowska attended high school and received her first theater roles. At the age of 16, Makowska married lawyer Julian Makowski, but they divorced shortly after. In 1912, Makowska traveled to

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, where she took singing lessons. In 1913, she debuted at the Opera as Amelia in ''Il ballo in maschera'' and acted as Elena in ''Mefistofele''. Her film debut was in the 1911 short ''An Autumn Sunset Dream''. She next appeared in the film ''Romanticismo'' (1915), which was based on a famous play by Gerolamo Rovetta. Makowska played as Ophelia in Ruggero Ruggeri's

Hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...

(1917), and as the seductress Elena in the comedy Goodbye Youth (1918) with

Maria Jacobini Maria Jacobini (17 February 1892 – 20 November 1944) was an Italian film actress. She was married to the film director Gennaro Righelli and appeared in many of his silent films for the Vesuvio Film Company.Moliterno p.266 She worked in the Ge ...

. Makowska would go on to perform in some 40 Italian films before marrying actor

Karl Falkenberg Karl Falkenberg (born Karl Franz Josef Falkenberg, 6 April 1887 – died after 1936) was a German-Jewish film actor. Selected filmography * '' Clown Charly'' (1918) * '' Cain'' (1918) * '' Blackmailed'' (1920) * ''The Song of the Puszta'' (1 ...

and moving to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

in the early 1920s. In the 1920s, she appeared in Dutch and German productions such as Judith (1923), Frauenmoral (1923), both directed by

Theo Frenkel Theodorus Maurita Frenkel (14 July 1871 – 20 September 1956) was a Dutch film director, actor and screenwriter of the silent era. He worked in Britain under the name Theo Bouwmeester, using the surname of his renowned mother and uncle (b ...

Taras Bulba ''Taras Bulba'' (russian: «Тарас Бульба»; ) is a romanticized historical novella set in the first half of the 17th century, written by Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852). It features elderly Zaporozhian Cossack Taras Bulba and his sons And ...

(1924), and The Shot in the Pavilion (1925) with

Margarete Schlegel Margarethe Sylva Elisabeth Wisniewski (né Schlegel, 31 December 1899 – 15 July 1987), known professionally as Margarete Schlegel, was a German theatre and film actress and soprano operetta singer. Early life The sixth of seven children and the ...

and

Ernst Reicher Ernst Reicher (19 September 1885 – 1 May 1936) was a German-Jewish actor, screenwriter, film producer and film director of the silent era. Biography His father was the actor Emanuel Reicher, born in Galicia, then part of the Kingd ...

, as well as ''Kochanka Szamoty'' (1927), which was her final Polish film. In the early 1930s, Makowska married for a third time to Botteril, an Englishman, and returned to Poland, where she worked as an opera singer. In 1939, when the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...

invaded Poland, Makowska was arrested as a British citizen and was deported to Berlin in 1940. As part of an exchange of prisoners, she was released in April 1943, whereupon she settled in England. There, she played in the theater ensemble of the Polish army, with whom she later made guest appearances in France, Belgium, and northern Germany. In 1947, she returned to Rome, where she taught foreign languages and took on small film roles. Makowska's final screen appearance was in ''Arrivederci Firenze'' (1958). Helena Makowska died in Rome on 22 August 1964. She is buried at

Campo Verano The Campo Verano (Italian: ''Cimitero del Verano'') is a cemetery in Rome, Italy, founded in the early 19th century. The monumental cemetery is currently divided into sections: the Jewish cemetery, the Catholic cemetery, and the monument to the ...

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1917) * '' Goodbye Youth'' (1918) * '' The Prince of the Impossible'' (1918) * '' Circus People'' (1922) * '' A Dying Nation'' (1922) * '' Maciste and the Silver King's Daughter'' (1922) * '' Judith'' (1923) * '' Frauenmoral'' (1923) * ''

Love of Life ''Love of Life'' is an American soap opera televised on CBS from September 24, 1951, to February 1, 1980. It was created by Roy Winsor, whose previous creation ''Search for Tomorrow'' premiered three weeks before ''Love of Life''; he created ''Th ...

'' (1924) * ''

Modern Marriages ''Modern Marriages'' (German: ''Moderne Ehen'') is a 1924 Czech-German silent comedy film directed by Hans Otto and starring Fritz Kortner and Helena Makowska.Grange p.184 Cast * S. Polonsky as Prof. Holstein * Helena Makowska as Thea Hol ...

'' (1924) * ''

The Four Last Seconds of Quidam Uhl ''The Four Last Seconds of Quidam Uhl'' (german: Die vier letzten Sekunden des Quidam Uhl) is a 1924 German silent drama film directed by Robert Reinert and starring Carl de Vogt, Helena Makowska and John Mylong. The film was not a success on i ...

'' (1924) * ''

The Terror of the Sea ''The Terror of the Sea'' (german: Der Schrecken des Meeres) is a 1924 German silent film directed by Franz Osten and starring Carl de Vogt, Helena Makowska, and Cläre Lotto.Bock & Bergfelder p. 351 The film's sets were designed by the art dire ...

'' (1924) * '' The Shot in the Pavilion'' (1925) * '' The Secret of One Hour'' (1925)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Makowska, Helena 1893 births 1964 deaths Burials at Campo Verano Polish film actresses Polish silent film actresses Italian silent film actresses 20th-century Italian actresses People from Kryvyi Rih White Russian emigrants to the United States 20th-century Polish actresses White Russian emigrants to France Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France