Gustav A. "Geza" Silberer (1 December 1876 – 5? 8? April 1938) was an Austrian journalist and author of Jewish extraction born in Werschetz who wrote in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

under the pseudonym Sil-Vara.

Biography

Gustav Silberer (aka G. Sil-Vara) was a journalist for ''

Neue Freie Presse ''Neue Freie Presse'' ("New Free Press") was a Viennese newspaper founded by Adolf Werthner together with the journalists Max Friedländer and Michael Etienne on 1 September 1864 after the staff had split from the newspaper ''Die Presse''. It ex ...

'' and a colleague of

Theodor Herzl Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern p ...

, who was impressed by his work and provided him with encouragement early on in his career.

Literary career

In 1912, while living in London, he and Charles H. Fisher adapted ''

The Playboy of the Western World ''The Playboy of the Western World'' is a three-act play written by Irish playwright John Millington Synge and first performed at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, on 26 January 1907. It is set in Michael James Flaherty's public house in County Mayo (o ...

'' as ''Der Held des Westerlands'' and had it published by Georg Müller and performed at

Max Reinhardt Max Reinhardt (; born Maximilian Goldmann; 9 September 1873 – 30 October 1943) was an Austrian-born Theatre director, theatre and film director, theater manager, intendant, and theatrical producer. With his innovative stage productions, he i ...

's Kammerspiele, Berlin, at the Neue Wiener Bühne in Vienna and at the Stadttheater in

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state distr ...

. A contemporary review of ''Englische Staatsmänner'' states that it was clear he had spent time in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and had close relations with the political figures he describes. The

Vossische Zeitung The (''Voss's Newspaper'') was a nationally-known Berlin newspaper that represented the interests of the liberal middle class. It was also generally regarded as Germany's national newspaper of record. In the Berlin press it held a special role d ...

"Aunt Voss" observes that readers would agreeably surprised to find Asquith, Curzon, Viscount Grey and Churchill treated "not as enemies but as men". His play ''Ein Tag: Lustspiel in Drei Akten'', adapted by theatre director

Philip Moeller Philip Moeller (26 August 1880 – 26 April 1958) was an American stage producer and director, playwright and screenwriter, born in New York where he helped found the short-lived Washington Square Players and then with Lawrence Langner and Hel ...

as ''Caprice'', had a successful run in 1929 at New York's

Theatre Guild The Theatre Guild is a theatrical society founded in New York City in 1918 by Lawrence Langner, Philip Moeller, Helen Westley and Theresa Helburn. Langner's wife, Armina Marshall, then served as a co-director. It evolved out of the work of the W ...

, then elsewhere. His play ''Mädchenjahre einer Königin'' about the young

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

was the basis of several movies of the same name in 1936 and 1954 Several of his books are still in print: ''Ein Wiener Landsturmmann'' () and ''Ein Tag: Lustspiel in Drei Akten'' ()

Published works

*''Londoner Spaziergänge'' 1914 *''Ein Wiener Landsturmmann: Kriegstagebuchaufzeichnungen Aus Galizien'' 1915 *''Englische Staatsmänner'' (1916) biographies of Asquith, Balfour, Chamberlain, Churchill, Curzon, Bonar Law, Kitchener, Lloyd-George, Rosebery, Parnell and others. *''Die Gitana. Szenen aus dem spanischen Leben um 1830'' 1916 illustrated by Erhard Amadeus *''Briefe aus der Gefangenschaft'' 1917 *''Es geht weiter: Eine Nacht und ein Epilog'' 1919 *''Warum kommt der Friede nicht zustande'' 1932

Plays

*''Der Held der westlichen Welt'' or ''Der Held des Westerlands'' adaptation (with Charles H. Fisher) of

J. M. Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

's ''

'' 1912 *''Ein Tag: Lustspiel in drei Akten'' 1914 *''Mädchenjahre einer Königin. Komödie in acht Bildern'' 1933

Awards and commemoration

Silvaraweg, a street in

Döbling Döbling () is the 19th District A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, seve ...

, Vienna was named for him in 1966.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silberer, Geza 1876 births 1938 deaths Austrian journalists Austrian biographers Male biographers 19th-century Austrian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Austrian dramatists and playwrights Austrian male dramatists and playwrights