Wera Engels (12 May 1905 – 16 November 1988) was a German actress. After successful leading roles in productions of the well-established German

UFA Ufa ( ba, Өфө , Öfö; russian: Уфа́, r=Ufá, p=ʊˈfa) is the largest city and capital of Bashkortostan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Belaya and Ufa rivers, in the centre-north of Bashkortostan, on hills forming the ...

-studios in

Babelsberg Babelsberg () is the largest quarter (''Stadtteil'') of Potsdam, the capital city of the German state of Brandenburg. The affluent neighbourhood named after a small hill on the Havel river is famous for Babelsberg Palace and Park, part of the Palac ...

as well as in France, she was invited to Hollywood. Producers saw her as a cheap alternative to

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress. Regarded as one of the greatest screen actresses, she was known for her melancholic, somber persona, her film portrayals of tragedy, ...

and

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

. She was contracted with

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orpheu ...

. She and actress

Mary Pickford Gladys Marie Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American stage and screen actress and producer with a career that spanned five decades. A pioneer in the US film industry, she co-founde ...

reportedly became good friends. In 1935 she returned to Germany, but left soon thereafter. Back in Hollywood, she dated

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

for a while but married Russian actor and writer

Ivan Lebedeff Ivan Lebedeff (born Ivan Vasilyevich Lebedev ( rus, Иван Васильевич Лебедев), 18 June 1894 – 31 March 1953) was a Russian film actor, lecturer and writer. He appeared in 66 films between 1926 and 1953. In 1940, his no ...

. After Lebedeff's death in 1953 of

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of obstru ...

, she moved back to Europe, where she stayed with several friends 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

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

before she returned to Germany. She lived the rest of her life with Erna Hoffmann (widow of

Heinrich Hoffmann Heinrich Hoffmann or Hoffman may refer to: Hoffmann * Heinrich Hoffmann (photographer) (1885–1957), German photographer *Heinrich Hoffmann (author) (1809–1894), German psychiatrist and author * Heinrich Hoffmann (sport shooter) (1869–?), Germ ...

Hitler's Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...

friend and personal

photographer A photographer (the Greek language, Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who makes photographs. Duties and types of photographe ...

) in the

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

area.

Filmography

*'' White Slave Traffic'' (1926) *'' Lützow's Wild Hunt'' (1927) * '' Did You Fall in Love Along the Beautiful Rhine?'' (1927) *''

When the Guard Marches ''When the Guard Marches'' or ''The Girl from The Spree Woods'' (German:''Das Spreewaldmädel'') is a 1928 German silent comedy film directed by Hans Steinhoff and starring Claire Rommer, Fred Solm and Wera Engels.Lamprecht p.449 The film's s ...

'' (1928) *'' Befehl zur Ehe'' (1928) *'' The Streets of London'' (1929) *'' L'anglais tel qu'on le parle'' (1930) *'' The Copper'' (1930) * ''

The Perfume of the Lady in Black ''The Perfume of the Lady in Black'' ( it, Il profumo della signora in nero) is a 1974 giallo-horror film directed by Francesco Barilli. The film had nothing to do with the similarly-titled novel by Gaston Leroux. Plot Silvia ( Mimsy Farmer) is ...

'' (1931) *'' Children of Fortune'' (1931) * '' The Ringer'' (1932) *'' Lumpenkavaliere'' (1932) *''

The Great Jasper ''The Great Jasper'' is a 1933 American Pre-Code Hollywood, pre-Code drama film directed by J. Walter Ruben and written by H.W. Hanemann and Samuel Ornitz. The film stars Richard Dix, Edna May Oliver, Florence Eldridge, Wera Engels and Walter Wa ...

'' (1933) *''

Fugitive Road ''Fugitive Road'' is a 1934 American comedy drama film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Erich von Stroheim, Wera Engels and Leslie Fenton. It is set a border post in Austria following World War I. A variety of different people trying to ...

'' (1934) *'' Sweepstake Annie'' (1935) *''

Together We Live ''Together We Live'' is a 1935 drama film distributed by Columbia Pictures. The film was directed by Willard Mack. The film's events are related to the 1934 West Coast waterfront strike. Two starring actors were dead at the time of release which ...

'' (1935) *'' The Great Impersonation'' (1935) *'' Hong Kong Nights'' (1935) * '' Stjenka Rasin'' (1936) *''

Talking About Jacqueline ''Talking About Jacqueline'' (German: ''Man spricht über Jacqueline'') is a 1937 German drama film directed by Werner Hochbaum and starring Wera Engels, Albrecht Schoenhals and Sabine Peters.Heins p.50 It was shot at the Johannisthal Studios in B ...

'' (1937)

References

External links

*
Photos
film.virtual-history.com

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Engels, Wera 1905 births 1988 deaths German film actresses German silent film actresses 20th-century German actresses Actors from Kiel Place of death missing German expatriate actresses in the United States