''Napoleon Is to Blame for Everything'' (german: Napoleon ist an allem schuld) is a 1938 German

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...

directed by

Curt Goetz Curt Goetz (; 17 November 1888 – 12 September 1960), born Kurt Walter Götz, was a Swiss German 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 Marten ...

and starring Goetz, Valerie von Martens and

Paul Henckels Paul Henckels (9 September 1885 – 27 May 1967) was a German film and stage actor. He appeared in more than 230 films between 1921 and 1965. Paul Henckels had started his acting career on the stage in the 1900s. He was well known for his e ...

.Kreimeier p. 287 It marked the German debut of the Norwegian-born star

Kirsten Heiberg Kirsten Heiberg (25 April 1907 – 2 March 1976) was a Norwegian/German actress and singer who had a major film career in Germany between 1938 and 1954. She reached the peak of her career in 1942–43, performing in Joseph Goebbels version ...

. The film's sets were designed by the art director Emil Hasler. When Goetz and his wife subsequently emigrated from

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

, the film was banned by Joseph Goebbels.

Synopsis

Lord Cavershott is a fanatical admirer of

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

to the extent that he neglects his own wife Josephine. While attending a conference in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 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), ma ...

to commemorate the French Emperor he becomes mixed up with an attractive young singer, leading to complications and much confusion.

Cast

as Lord Arthur Cavershott * Valerie von Martens as Lady Josephine Cavershott *

as Lord Cunningham *

Else von Möllendorff Else von Möllendorff (29 December 1913 – 28 July 1982) was a German film actress who appeared in a mixture of lead and supporting roles during the Nazi and post-war eras. Partial filmography * ''Ein falscher Fuffziger'' (1935) - Hilde Werne ...

as Pünktchen (Madeleine) *

as Fifi *

Max Gülstorff Max Walter Gülstorff (23 March 1882 – 6 February 1947) was a German actor and stage director. Biography Gülstorff was born in Tilsit, East Prussia. He first appeared in 1900 at the Rudolstadt municipal Theater and moved to Cottbus in 1908. ...

as Professor Meunier *

Willi Schur Willi Schur (22 August 1888 – 1 November 1940) was a German actor and singer. He appeared in roughly ninety feature films in a variety of supporting roles. Selected filmography * '' Berlin-Alexanderplatz'' (1931) * ''Who Takes Love Seriously? ...

as Rustan *

Maria Krahn Maria Krahn (1896–1977) was a German actress. Selected filmography * '' Wibbel the Tailor'' (1931) * '' Pappi'' (1934) * '' A Woman With Power of Attorney'' (1934) * '' Hermine and the Seven Upright Men'' (1935) * ''The Private Life of Louis ...

as Madge, Kammerzofe *

Leopold von Ledebur Leopold von Ledebur (18 May 1876 – 22 August 1955) was a German stage and film actor. Selected filmography * ''Carmen'' (1918) * ''The Serenyi'' (1918) * ''Midnight'' (1918) * ''The Foolish Heart'' (1919) * '' The Golden Lie'' (1919) * '' T ...

as Butler William *

Hans Mierendorff Hans Mierendorff (born Johannes Reingold Mierendorff; 30 June 1882 – 26 December 1955) was a German stage and film actor. Selected filmography * '' A Night of Horror'' (1916) * '' Vengeance Is Mine'' (1916) * '' Hilde Warren und der Tod' ...

as Revue-Dichter *

Rudolf Schündler Rudolf Ernst Paul Schündler (17 April 1906, in Leipzig – 12 December 1988, in Munich) was a German actor and director. He played "Karl" in ''The Exorcist'' (1973). After finishing the film '' The Nasty Girl'', Schündler died of a heart attac ...

as Rundfunkreporter *

Eduard von Winterstein Eduard Clemens Franz Anna Freiherr von Wangenheim (1 August 1871 – 22 July 1961), known as Eduard von Winterstein, was an Austrian-German film actor who appeared in over one hundred fifty German films during the silent and sound eras. He was ...

as Mister Harrison *

Jack Trevor Anthony Cedric Sebastian Steane (14 December 1893 – 19 December 1976), known by the stage name Jack Trevor, was a British film actor of the silent and early sound era. Based in Weimar (and later Nazi) Germany, he acted in 67 films between ...

as Minister *

Olga Limburg Olga Limburg (5 April 1881 – 7 March 1970) was a German theater and film actress. She began her artistic career in 1901 with a commitment at the Municipal Theatre of Poznan. Since 1902, she played at several of Berlin's leading theaters includi ...

as Madame Prunelle * Hermann Pfeiffer as Revue-Napoleon * Horst Birr as Junger reporter in paris *

Eberhard Leithoff Eberhard is an old Germanic name meaning the strength or courage of a wild boar. People First name *Eberhard of Friuli (815–866), Duke and key figure in the Carolingian Empire * Eberhard of Béthune (died 1212), Flemish grammarian *Eberhard I, D ...

as Regisseur Cukier * Edmond Leslie as Tänzer * Christel Schmitz as Tänzerin * Walter Gross as Reiseführer im Autobus * Charly Berger as Assistant Kriminalbeamter * Egon Brosig as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress *

Peter Busse Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

as Mitglied des Empfangskomitee *

Angelo Ferrari Angelo Ferrari (14 August 1897 – 15 June 1945) was an Italian actor known for his work in German cinema. Selected filmography * '' The Nude Woman'' (1922) * '' The Green Manuela'' (1923) * ''Samson'' (1923) * '' The Faces of Love'' (1924) * ' ...

as Mitglied des Empfangskomitee *

Lothar Glathe Lothar is a Danish, Finnish, German, Norwegian, and Swedish masculine given name, while Lotár is a Hungarian masculine given name. Both names are modern forms of the Germanic Chlothar (which is a blended form of ''Hlūdaz'', meaning "fame", an ...

as Diener * Fred Goebel as Kriminalbeamter *

Willy Kaiser-Heyl Willy Kaiser-Heyl (4 August 1876 – 2 December 1953) was a German film actor. He appeared in 92 films between 1919 and 1952. He was born in Frankfurt, Germany and died in Berlin. Selected filmography * ''The Tragedy of a Great'' (1920) * ...

as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress *

Alfred Karen Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *'' Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interl ...

as Mitglied des Empfangskomitee * Seraj Munir as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress *

Karl Platen Karl Platen (6 March 1877 – 4 July 1952) was a German actor and cinematographer known for '' Girl in the Moon'' (1929) and '' M'' (1931). Biography Karl Platen was born as Carl Platen on March 6, 1877 in Halle an der Saale, Germany. He died ...

as Angestellter im Pariser Theater *

Werner Schott Werner Schott (20 November 1891, in Berlin – 6 September 1965) was a German actor. Selected filmography * ''Gefesselt'' (1920) - Allan * ''Das vierte Gebot'' (1920) - Weltpriester Eduard * ''Wie Satan starb'' (1920) * ''Golgatha'' (1920) - Jos ...

as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress * Leo Sloma as Wirt * Otto Stoeckel as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress *

Eugen von Bongardt Eugen is a masculine given name which may refer to: * Archduke Eugen of Austria (1863–1954), last Habsburg Grandmaster of the Teutonic Order from 1894 to 1923 * Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke (1865–1947), Swedish painter, art collector, and pat ...

as Teilnehmer am Napoleon Kongress

References

Bibliography

External links

* 1938 films 1938 comedy films German comedy films Films of Nazi Germany 1930s German-language films Films directed by Curt Goetz Tobis Film films Films set in Paris German black-and-white films 1930s German films {{1930s-Germany-film-stub