Otto Eis (1903–1952) was an Austrian-born writer who worked on a number of screenplays. He was born Otto Eisler to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in

Budapest Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...

which was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He later moved to Germany, where he was employed in the German film industry. Following the

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

seizure of power in 1933, he moved to Austria, but had to flee again to France following the Anchluss. Eis later moved to the United States, but struggled to secure work in Hollywood although he wrote scripts for a handful of

B pictures A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...

. Eis was the brother of

Egon Eis Egon Eis, born Egon Eisler (6 October 1910 – 6 September 1994) was an Austrian screenwriter. He wrote for nearly 50 films between 1930 and 1983. Eis was forced into exile during the Nazi era, but returned to work in the German film indust ...

with whom he co-wrote the screenplay for '' The Squeaker'' (1931).Bergfelder p.145

Selected filmography

Screenwriter

* '' The Squeaker'' (dir.

Karel Lamač Karel Lamač (27 January 1897 – 2 August 1952) was a Czech film director, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He directed more than 100 films in Czechoslovakia, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Life Lam ...

Martin Frič Martin Frič (29 March 1902 – 26 August 1968) was a Czech film director, screenwriter and actor. He had more than 100 directing credits between 1929 and 1968, including feature films, shorts and documentary films. Throughout his life, F ...

, 1931) — based on '' The Squeaker'' by

Edgar Wallace Richard Horatio Edgar Wallace (1 April 1875 – 10 February 1932) was a British writer. Born into poverty as an illegitimate London child, Wallace left school at the age of 12. He joined the army at age 21 and was a war correspondent during th ...

* '' The Paw'' (dir.

Hans Steinhoff Hans Steinhoff (10 March 1882 – 20 April 1945) was a German film director, best known for the propaganda films he made in the Nazi era. Life and career Steinhoff started his career as a stage actor in the 1900s and later worked as a stag ...

, 1931) ** ''

The Man with the Claw ''The Man with the Claw'' (Italian: ''L'uomo dall'artiglio'') is a 1931 Italian mystery film directed by Nunzio Malasomma and starring Dria Paola, Carlo Fontana (actor), Carlo Fontana, and Elio Steiner. It was made at the Cines Studios in Rome wi ...

'' (dir.

Nunzio Malasomma Nunzio Malasomma (4 February 1894 – 12 January 1974) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He directed 41 films between 1923 and 1968. Selected filmography * '' Mister Radio'' (1924) * '' Orient'' (1924) * '' The Doll Queen'' ...

, 1931) * '' A Shot at Dawn'' (dir.

Alfred Zeisler Alfred Zeisler (September 26, 1892 – March 1, 1985) was an American-born German film producer, director, actor and screenwriter. He produced 29 films between 1927 and 1936. He also directed 16 films between 1924 and 1949. Selected filmogr ...

, 1932) — based on a play by Harry Jenkins ** ' (dir.

Serge de Poligny Serge de Poligny (1903–1983) was a French screenwriter and film director. Career Serge de Poligny was born in Paris in 1903. He studied art at the École des Beaux-Arts in the class of the painter Maurice Denis. In 1925 he joined the French ...

, 1932) — based on a play by Harry Jenkins * '' Teilnehmer antwortet nicht'' (dir.

Rudolph Cartier Rudolph Cartier (born Rudolph Kacser, renamed himself in Germany to Rudolph Katscher; 17 April 1904 – 7 June 1994) was an Austrian television director, filmmaker, screenwriter and producer who worked predominantly in British television, exc ...

, Marc Sorkin, 1932) * '' The Star of Valencia'' (dir.

, 1933) ** '' The Star of Valencia'' (dir.

, 1933) * '' Big Jack'' (dir. Richard Thorpe, 1949)

Film adaptations

*'' Prison sans barreaux'', directed by Léonide Moguy (1938, based on the play ''Gefängnis ohne Gitter'') *'' Prison Without Bars'', directed by

Brian Desmond Hurst Brian Desmond Hurst (12 February 1895 – 26 September 1986) was a Belfast-born film director. With over thirty films in his filmography, Hurst has been hailed as Northern Ireland's best film director.Screening will honour 'NI's best film ...

(1938, based on the play ''Gefängnis ohne Gitter'') *''

Water for Canitoga ''Water for Canitoga'' (German: ''Wasser für Canitoga'') is a 1939 German western film directed by Herbert Selpin and starring Hans Albers, Charlotte Susa and Josef Sieber. The film is a " Northern", set in Canada in 1905 where an engineer is ...

'', directed by

Herbert Selpin Herbert Selpin (29 May 1904 – 1 August 1942) was a German film director and screenwriter of light entertainment during the 1930s and 1940s. He is best known for his final film, the partly suppressed ''Titanic'', during the production of which h ...

(1939, based on the play ''Wasser für Canitoga'') *''Prison Without Bars'' (1939, TV play, based on the play ''Gefängnis ohne Gitter'') *''

I Was a Prisoner on Devil's Island ''I Was a Prisoner on Devil's Island'' is a 1941 American crime film directed by Lew Landers and written by Karl Brown (cinematographer), Karl Brown. The film stars Sally Eilers, Donald Woods (actor), Donald Woods, Eduardo Ciannelli, Victor Kilia ...

'', directed by Lew Landers (1941, based on the story ''Southern Cross'') *''

Desires Desires are states of mind that are expressed by terms like "wanting", " wishing", "longing" or "craving". A great variety of features is commonly associated with desires. They are seen as propositional attitudes towards conceivable states of aff ...

'', directed by Rolf Hansen (1952, based on the play ''Das letzte Rezept'')

References

Bibliography

* Bergfelder, Tim. ''International Adventures: German Popular Cinema and European Co-Productions in the 1960s''. Berghahn Books, 2005.

External links

* 1903 births 1952 deaths Jewish emigrants from Austria to the United States after the Anschluss Austrian male writers Writers from Budapest {{Austria-writer-stub