Leo Koffler (1879—1931) (full name Leon Bernhard Koffler, also known as Oskar Koffler) was a screenwriter, actor and singer. Living and working in Berlin in the beginning of the 20th century, he was one of the pioneers of cinema.

Life

Koffler was born on June 7, 1879, in Zurawno, near Lemberg, now Lviv,

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

, when the city was in the

Austrian-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 1 ...

. His family moved to

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

in 1882, where he received his education. He made his ''

Abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

'' and became an opera singer. In 1911 he became the director of a theatre in

Colmar Colmar (, ; Alsatian: ' ; German during 1871–1918 and 1940–1945: ') is a city and commune in the Haut-Rhin department and Grand Est region of north-eastern France. The third-largest commune in Alsace (after Strasbourg and Mulhouse), it is ...

, Alsace which was then in the

German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

(now in France). In 1914 he moved 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 ...

. He sang in a number of musicals and operas including ''

Das Dreimäderlhaus ''Das Dreimäderlhaus'' (''House of the Three Girls''), adapted into English-language versions as ''Blossom Time'' and ''Lilac Time'', is a Viennese pastiche operetta with music by Franz Schubert, rearranged by Heinrich Berté (1857–1924), ...

'', and '' Hänsel and Gretel'' at the

Theater des Westens The Theater des Westens (Theatre of the West) is one of the most famous theatres for musicals and operettas in Berlin, Germany, located at 10–12 in Charlottenburg. It was founded in 1895 for plays. The present house was opened in 1896 and dedi ...

. Koffler also played small parts in many movies. In 1916 he was conscripted into the Austro-Hungarian K and K regiment. This was just at the point when he started to establish a reputation for himself. At the end

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Koffler moved back to Berlin in 1918, and started working in movies again, including work with a small Hungarian film company called Viktor Klein. It was in this period that when he wrote a number of film-scripts for

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), known as Fritz Lang, was an Austrian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety'', August 4, 1976, p. 6 ...

, including ''

Der Herr der Liebe ''Der Herr der Liebe'' (''The Master of Love'') is a 1919 silent film directed in Germany by Fritz Lang. It was his second film. Carl de Vogt and Gilda Langer starred, as they had in Lang's debut feature, '' Halbblut''. Lang himself is said to hav ...

'' and ''

Halbblut ''Halbblut'' ( en, Half-blood/Halfbreed) was a 1919 silent film directed by Fritz Lang: "A story of two men and one woman, in four acts." It is the first film Lang directed. It stars Carl de Vogt, Ressel Orla, Gilda Langer, Carl Gebhard-Schröde ...

''. In his later years, his health declined and finally he could not work any more. Nevertheless, almost until the day he died he sang at the

Fasanenstrasse Synagogue The Fasanenstrasse Synagogue was a liberal Jewish synagogue in Berlin, Germany opened on 26 August 1912. It was located in an affluent neighbourhood of Charlottenburg on Fasanenstrasse off Kurfürstendamm at numbers 79–80, close to the Berlin St ...

in Berlin. Leo Koffler died on February 16, 1931, in Berlin.

Works

*1919 '' Phantome des Lebens'', screenplay *1919 ''

'', screenplay *1919 '' Das Gift im Weibe'', screenplay *1919 ''

'', screenplay *1920 Die 3 weissen Teufel (Das Weltgewissen), screenplayBerliner Börsenzeitung, 8.02.1920, s. 4 *1920 '' New York - Paris (Spionagekonzern)'' part 1, screenplay *1920 '' New York - Paris (Spionagekonzern)'' part 2, screenplay *1920 '' Der Tiger von Sing Sing'', actor *1920 '' Die entfesselte Menschheit'', actor *1920 '' Der Shawl der Kaiserin Katharina II'', actor *1921 '' Fortunato 1. "Der tanzende Dämon"'', actor *1921 '' Fortunato 3. "Der letzte Atemzug"'', screenplay *1921 '' Die Tochter Ahasvers: "Das flackernde Licht"'', screenplay, actor *1921 '' Die Tochter Ahasvers: "Höllenreigen"'', screenplay *1921/1922 ''

The Romance of a Poor Sinner ''The Romance of a Poor Sinner'' (german: Der Roman einer armen Sünderin) is a 1922 German silent film directed by Richard Eichberg and starring Lee Parry, Aruth Wartan and Eduard Rothauser.Bock & Bergfelder p. 104 The film's sets were designed ...

'', screenplay

References

External links

*
Leo Koffler
at filmportal.de {{DEFAULTSORT:Koffler, Leo 1879 births 1931 deaths Austrian Jews Austrian expatriates in France Austrian emigrants to Germany Austrian people of Jewish descent Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Film people from Berlin Male actors from Vienna Male actors from Berlin Musicians from Vienna Singers from Berlin 20th-century German male actors