Ludwig Berger (born Ludwig Bamberger; 6 January 1892 – 18 May 1969) was a German-Jewish

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, ...

, screenwriter and

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

. He directed more than 30 films between 1920 and 1969. Berger began working in the German film industry during the

Weimar Republic The German Reich, commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic,, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also r ...

. At Decla-Bioscop and later UFA he established a reputation as a leading director of

silent films A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, 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) ...

. He emigrated to Hollywood, but was unable to establish himself and returned to Europe. He subsequently worked both in France and Germany. He was a member of the jury at the 6th Berlin International Film Festival. Berger also translated a few plays of Shakespeare, including '' Cymbeline'', ''

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 depi ...

'', and ''

Timon of Athens ''Timon of Athens'' (''The Life of Tymon of Athens'') is a play written by William Shakespeare and probably also Thomas Middleton in about 1606. It was published in the '' First Folio'' in 1623. Timon lavishes his wealth on parasitic compani ...

''. His elder brother was the set designer Rudolf Bamberger who was killed in 1945.

Selected filmography

Film

* '' The Mayor of Zalamea'' (1920) * '' The Story of Christine von Herre'' (1921) * '' A Glass of Water'' (1923) * '' The Lost Shoe'' (1923) * '' A Waltz Dream'' (1925) * ''

The Master of Nuremberg ''The Master of Nuremberg'' (german: Der Meister von Nürnberg) is a 1927 German silent historical comedy film directed by Ludwig Berger and starring Rudolf Rittner, Max Gülstorff and Gustav Fröhlich. It is based on the 1868 opera ''Die Meist ...

'' (1927) * '' Queen Louise'' (dir. Karl Grune, 1927) * '' Sins of the Fathers'' (1928) * '' The Woman from Moscow'' (1928) * '' The Burning Heart'' (1929) * '' The Vagabond King'' (1930) * '' Playboy of Paris'' (1930) * '' The Little Cafe'' (1931) * '' I by Day, You by Night'' (1932) * '' Early to Bed'' (1933) * '' Waltz War'' (1933) * '' Court Waltzes'' (1933) * '' Pygmalion'' (1937) * '' Three Waltzes'' (1938) * ''

Ergens in Nederland '' Ergens in Nederland '' (internationally known as ''Somewhere in the Netherlands'') is a 1940 Dutch film directed by Ludwig Berger with the support of the Royal Dutch Navy. Cast * Lily Bouwmeester as Nellie van Loon * Jan de Hartog as lawyer ...

'' (1940) * '' The Thief of Bagdad'' (1940) * '' The Immortal Face'' (1947) * '' Ballerina'' (1950) * ''

Stresemann Stresemann is a German family name which may refer to: * Christina Stresemann (born 1957), German judge; daughter of Wolfgang Stresemann * Erwin Stresemann (1889 – 1972), German ornithologist * Gustav Stresemann (1878 – 1929), German politicia ...

'' (dir. Alfred Braun, 1957)

Television

*1954: ''Die Spieler'' — based on '' The Gamblers'' by

Nikolai Gogol Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol; uk, link=no, Мико́ла Васи́льович Го́голь, translit=Mykola Vasyliovych Hohol; (russian: Яновский; uk, Яновський, translit=Yanovskyi) ( – ) was a Russian novelist, ...

*1954: ''Der Schauspieldirektor'' — based on '' Der Schauspieldirektor'' by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart *1955: ''Frau Mozart'' *1955: ''Undine'' — based on '' Ondine'' by Jean Giraudoux *1957: ''Der Tod des Sokrates'' — based on '' Phaedo'' by

Plato Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institutio ...

*1958: ''Der Widerspenstigen Zähmung'' — based on ''

The Taming of the Shrew ''The Taming of the Shrew'' is a comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1590 and 1592. The play begins with a framing device, often referred to as the induction, in which a mischievous nobleman tricks a drunken ...

'' *1958: ''Was ihr wollt'' — based on ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night'', or ''What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins V ...

'' *1958: ''Viel Lärm um nichts'' — based on '' Much Ado About Nothing'' *1958: ''Wie es euch gefällt'' — based on '' As You Like It'' *1958: ''Maß für Maß'' — based on ''

Measure for Measure ''Measure for Measure'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written in 1603 or 1604 and first performed in 1604, according to available records. It was published in the ''First Folio'' of 1623. The play's plot features its ...

'' *1958: ''Ein Sommernachtstraum'' — based on ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict ...

'' *1959: ''Das Paradies und die Peri'' — based on ''

Paradise and the Peri ''Paradise and the Peri'', in German ''Das Paradies und die Peri'', is a secular oratorio for soloists, choir, and orchestra by Robert Schumann. Completed in 1843, the work was published as Schumann's Op. 50. The work is based on a German tran ...

'' and '' Lalla-Rookh'' *1960: ''Die Nacht in Zaandam'' *1961: ''Hermann und Dorothea'' — based on ''

Hermann and Dorothea ''Hermann and Dorothea'' is an epic poem, an idyll, written by German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe between 1796 and 1797, and was to some extent suggested by Johann Heinrich Voss's ''Luise'', an idyll in hexameters, which was first publishe ...

'' by

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

*1962: ''Alpenkönig und Menschenfeind'' — based on a play by Ferdinand Raimund *1964: ''Ottiliens Tollheiten'' *1967: ''Samen von Kraut und Unkraut – Drei Szenen aus der Geschichte Hessens'' *1968: ''Odysseus auf Ogygia'' — based on a play by Fritz von Unruh *1969: ''Demetrius'' (co-director: Heribert Wenk) — based on '' Demetrius'' by Friedrich Schiller

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Berger, Ludwig 1892 births 1969 deaths 20th-century German male actors German theatre directors German male film actors Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Mass media people from Mainz People from Rhenish Hesse Translators of William Shakespeare German male dramatists and playwrights 20th-century German dramatists and playwrights German male poets Jewish emigrants from Nazi Germany to the United States 20th-century German screenwriters German male screenwriters Actors from Mainz German people of Belgian descent