Margarete Schön (born Margarethe Schippang; 7 April 1895 – 26 December 1985) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

stage and film actress whose career spanned nearly fifty years. She is internationally recognized for her role as

Kriemhild Gudrun ( ; ) or Kriemhild ( ; ) is the wife of Sigurd, Sigurd/Siegfried and a major figure in Germanic heroic legend and literature. She is believed to have her origins in Ildico, last wife of Attila the Hun, and two queens of the Merovingia ...

in director

Fritz Lang Friedrich Christian Anton Lang (; December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976), better known as Fritz Lang (), was an Austrian-born film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Germany and later the United States.Obituary ''Variety Obituari ...

's ''

Die Nibelungen ''Die Nibelungen'' ("The Nibelungs") is a two-part German series of Silent film, silent fantasy films created by Austrian director Fritz Lang in 1924, consisting of ''Die Nibelungen: Siegfried'' and ''Die Nibelungen: Kriemhild's Revenge''. Th ...

'' series of two silent fantasy films, ''Die Nibelungen: Siegfried'' and ''Nibelungen: Kriemhild's Revenge''.

Stage career

Born in

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; ) is the Capital city, capital of the Germany, German States of Germany, state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is on the Elbe river. Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archbishopric of Mag ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

as Margarethe Schippang, she received private acting lessons with the theatre actor Hans Calm in

Dessau Dessau is a district of the independent city of Dessau-Roßlau in Saxony-Anhalt at the confluence of the rivers Mulde and Elbe, in the ''States of Germany, Bundesland'' (Federal State) of Saxony-Anhalt. Until 1 July 2007, it was an independent ...

. In 1912 she made her stage debut in

Bad Freienwalde Bad Freienwalde is a spa town in the Märkisch-Oderland district in Brandenburg, in north-eastern Germany. Geography The town is situated on the Alte Oder, an old branch of the Oder River at the northwestern rim of the Oderbruch basin and the st ...

. Shortly thereafter, she received a commitment at the municipal theater of

Bromberg Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its left-bank tributary, the Brda, the strategic location of Bydgoszcz has made it an inland ...

(now,

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz is a city in northern Poland and the largest city in the historical region of Kuyavia. Straddling the confluence of the Vistula River and its bank (geography), left-bank tributary, the Brda (river), Brda, the strategic location of Byd ...

, in present-day Poland). From 1915 to 1918 she was part of the ensemble cast of the Deutsches Theater in

Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, and from 1918 to 1945 she performed at the Staatstheater

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Film career

In 1919, Margarete Schön made her film debut in the

Carl Wilhelm Carl Wilhelm (born 1872 in Vienna; died in London 1936), was a prolific German film director, film producer and screenwriter of the silent film era, at the end of which his career apparently entirely faded away and he vanished into obscurity. ...

-directed ''Du meine Himmelskönigin''. She would spend the next two years in several small roles for directors

Carl Froelich Carl August Hugo Froelich (5 September 1875 – 12 February 1953) was a German film pioneer and film director. He was born and died in Berlin. Biography Apparatus builder and cameraman From 1903 Froelich was a colleague of Oskar Messter, one of ...

, Hanna Henning, Alfred Halm, Walter Schmidthässler and her husband, director Robert Dinesen before earning a starring role in

Urban Gad Peter Urban Bruun Gad (12 February 1879 – 26 December 1947) was a Denmark, Danish film director, stage actor, screenwriter, and author. He directed 40 films between 1910 and 1927. His wife Asta Nielsen starred in 30 of his films, also in his d� ...

's 1922 drama ''Hanneles Himmelfahrt''. It was in the 1924 release of Fritz Lang's two-part fantasy serial ''

'' that she would cement her popularity in Germany and achieve international recognition as an actress. Co-written by Lang's then-wife

Thea von Harbou Thea Gabriele von Harbou (27 December 1888 – 1 July 1954) was a German screenwriter, novelist, film director, and actress. She is remembered as the screenwriter of the science fiction film classic ''Metropolis'' (1927) and for the 192 ...

, the films were based on the epic poem ''

Nibelungenlied The (, or ; or ), translated as ''The Song of the Nibelungs'', is an epic poetry, epic poem written around 1200 in Middle High German. Its anonymous poet was likely from the region of Passau. The is based on an oral tradition of Germanic hero ...

'' written around AD 1200. Schön had a starring role as the vengeful

, opposite actor

Paul Richter Paul Richter (1 April 1895 – 30 December 1961) was an Austrian film actor. He owed his great popularity in German films of the silent era largely to the directors Joe May and Fritz Lang. Biography Richter made his film debut right before W ...

's role as the epic hero

Siegfried Siegfried is a German-language male given name, composed from the Germanic elements ''sig'' "victory" and ''frithu'' "protection, peace". The German name has the Old Norse cognate ''Sigfriðr, Sigfrøðr'', which gives rise to Swedish ''Sigfrid' ...

. Schön made the transition to

sound film A sound film is a Film, motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, bu ...

s with ease and her film career was prolific through the 1930s. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

she appeared in approximately ten films, but generally avoided roles in

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

propaganda films Propaganda Films (stylized as PЯOPAGAИDA FILMS) was a production company founded in Los Angeles in 1986 by American producer Steve Golin, Icelandic producer Sigurjón Sighvatsson, English director Nigel Dick, and American directors David Fi ...

and stayed decidedly apolitical. One exception was an uncredited bit part in

Veit Harlan Veit Harlan (22 September 1899 – 13 April 1964) was a German film director and actor. Harlan reached the high point of his career as a director in the Nazi era; most notably his antisemitic film '' Jud Süß'' (1940) makes him controversial. W ...

's 1945 nationalistic film ''Kolberg''. One of her most popular roles of the era was the character Frau Knauer in the Helmut Weiss-directed comedy ''

Die Feuerzangenbowle ''Die Feuerzangenbowle'' (''The Fire Tongs Bowl'', ''The Punch Bowl'') is a German novel, later adapted into several films, which tells the story of a famous writer going undercover as a pupil at a small town gymnasium after his friends tell him ...

'' in 1944 for Terra-Filmkunst studios. After the Second World War Schön continued in

West German West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...

films as a popular character actress, she also worked extensively as a radio personality. From 1948 to 1950 she worked for

DEFA DEFA (''Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft'') was the state-owned film studio of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) throughout the country's existence. Since 2019, DEFA's film heritage has been made accessible and licensable on the PR ...

(Deutsche Film-Aktiengesellschaft), the state-owned film studio of

East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

. She retired from acting in 1960.

Personal life

Schön was married to Danish director

Robert Dinesen The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' () "fame, glory, honour, praise, reno ...

. In 1968, she was awarded the

Bundesfilmpreis The German Film Award (), also known as Lola after its prize statuette, is the national film award of Germany. It is presented at an annual ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the German film industry. Besides being the most important ...

for many years of outstanding achievements in German film. She died in

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

in 1985, aged 90, and is buried at the

Friedhof Heerstraße The Friedhof Heerstraße cemetery is located at Trakehnerallee 1 (''Trakehner avenue No.1''), district of Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf in Berlin, Germany, to the east of the Olympic Stadium (Berlin), Olympiastadion. It covers an area of 14 ...

cemetery in

Berlin-Westend Westend () is a locality of the Berlin borough Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf in Germany. It emerged in the course of Berlin's 2001 administrative reform on the grounds of the former Charlottenburg borough. Originally a mansion colony, it is today a q ...

.DEFA der Filmsterne
/ref>

Selected filmography

* ''Schirokko'' (1918) * ''Freiheit, Gleichheit, Brüderlichkeit'' (1919) * ''Das Tor der Freiheit'' (1919) * ''Spiele eines Milliardärs'' (1919) * '' The Dancer'' (1919, part 1, 2) - Maria Friesländer * '' The Duty to Live'' (1919) * ''Du meine Himmelskönigin'' (1919) * ''

The Loves of Käthe Keller ''The Loves of Käthe Keller'' (German: ''Die Liebschaften der Kaethe Keller'') is a 1919 German silent drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Irmgard Bern, Paul Hartmann and Reinhold Schünzel. The film's sets were designed by the ...

'' (1919) * ''Der Tempel der Liebe'' (1919) * ''Gewalt gegen Recht'' (1920) * ''Das große Licht'' (1920) * '' The Golden Crown'' (1920) - Prinzessin Elvira * ''

The Women of Gnadenstein ''The Women of Gnadenstein'' () is a 1921 German silent drama film directed by Robert Dinesen and Joe May and starring Erich Kaiser-Titz, Margarete Schön and Grete Diercks. The film was produced in 1920, but was not passed for censorship and sc ...

'' (1920) - Ruth * ''Der gelbe Tod'' (1920, part 2) * '' The Passion of Inge Krafft'' (1921) - Dagmar, Harry Radens Frau * ''

The Sleeping Volcano ''The Sleeping Volcano'' (German: ''Der schlummernde Vulkan'') is a 1922 German silent drama film directed by James Bauer and starring Margit Barnay, Hans Mierendorff and Margarete Schön.Grange p.125 Cast In alphabetical order * Margit Barna ...

'' (1922) * ''Kinder der Zeit'' (1922) * ''Hanneles Himmelfahrt'' (1922) - Johanna, Hanneles Mutter * '' Insulted and Humiliated'' (1922) * ''Firnenrausch'' (1922) * ''

'' (1924) - Kriemhild * ''

Struggle for the Soil ''Struggle for the Soil'' () is a 1925 German silent film directed by Erich Waschneck and starring Gustav Oberg, Ferdinand von Alten, and Oskar Marion. It is based on the classic novel '' From My Farming Days'' by Fritz Reuter. The film's art d ...

'' (1925) - Franz von Wulfshagen * ''

Wallenstein Albrecht Wenzel Eusebius von Wallenstein, Duke of Friedland (; 24 September 1583 – 25 February 1634), also von Waldstein (), was a Bohemian military leader and statesman who fought on the Catholic side during the Thirty Years' War (1618–16 ...

'' (1925, part 1) * '' Our Heavenly Bodies'' (1925) * '' Bismarck'' (1925, part 1) * ''

Lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is split into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

'' (1926) * '' A Day of Roses in August'' (1927) - Helene von Rudow * ''Die Welt ohne Waffen'' (1927) * '' Youthful Indiscretion'' (1929) * '' The Youths'' (1929) * ''

Beware of Loose Women ''Beware of Loose Women'' () is a 1929 German silent film directed by Siegfried Philippi and starring Rudolf Lettinger, André Mattoni, and Margarete Schön.Gerhard Lamprecht. ''Deutsche Stummfilme, Volume 9'' p. 748 The film's art direction wa ...

'' (1929) * ''Der Weg durch die Nacht'' (1929) * '' Hocuspocus'' (1930) - Geschworene * '' The Flute Concert of Sanssouci'' (1930) - Princess Amalie * ''

The Street Song ''The Street Song'' or ''The Streetsweeper'' (German: ''Gassenhauer'') is a 1931 German musical crime film directed by Lupu Pick and starring Ina Albrecht, Ernst Busch and Albert Hoermann. The film was shot at the Grunewald Studios. It is a B ...

'' (1931) - Emma * ''

In the Employ of the Secret Service ''In the Employ of the Secret Service'' () is a 1931 German drama film directed by Gustav Ucicky and starring Brigitte Helm, Willy Fritsch, and Oskar Homolka. It concerns espionage between Germany and Russia during the First World War. It was ...

'' (1931) - Hans hustru * '' Farewell Waltz'' (1934) - Madame Mercier *''

The Green Domino ''The Green Domino'' () is a 1935 French/German drama film directed by Henri Decoin and Herbert Selpin, based on a play by Erich Ebermayer. It was released on DVD in France on 5 April 2007. Synopsis A rich heiress falls in love with an art criti ...

'' (1935) - Frau von Falck * ''Mazurka'' (1935) - (uncredited) * ''

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

'' (1935) - Die Müllerin, Mutter Johannes' * ''Arzt aus Leidenschaft'' (1936) - Frau Felgentreu * ''Moral'' (1936) * '' Girls in White'' (1936) - Maria Petrowna * ''Annemarie. Die Geschichte einer jungen Liebe'' (1936) - Mutter Renken * '' Such Great Foolishness'' (1937) * '' The Woman at the Crossroads'' (1938) - Oberschwester Hermine * ''

The False Step ''The False Step'' or ''The Step off the Path'' () is a 1939 German historical drama film directed by Gustaf Gründgens and starring Marianne Hoppe, Karl Ludwig Diehl and Paul Hartmann. It is an adaptation of Theodor Fontane's 1896 novel ''Eff ...

'' (1939) - Frau von Padden * ''

Men Are That Way ''Men Are That Way'' () is a 1939 German drama film directed by Arthur Maria Rabenalt and starring Hertha Feiler, Hans Söhnker and Hans Olden. The film's sets were designed by the art director Willi Herrmann. It was remade by Rabenalt in Austr ...

'' (1939) - Frau Petersen * ''

Her First Experience ''Her First Experience'' () is a 1939 German romance film directed by Josef von Báky and starring Ilse Werner, Johannes Riemann and Charlott Daudert. The film's sets were designed by the art director Willy Schiller. Location filming took place ...

'' (1939) - Mother Schäfer * ''Annelie'' (1941) * '' The Dismissal'' (1942) - Fürstin Johanna Bismarck * ''Du gehörst zu mir'' (1943) - Mutter Groone * '' Back Then'' (1943) - Gast beim Abendempfang (uncredited) * ''

'' (1944) - Frau Knauer * ''

The Buchholz Family ''The Buchholz Family'' () is a 1944 German drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Henny Porten, Paul Westermeier, and Käthe Dyckhoff. Based on an 1884 novel by Julius Stinde, it is a family chronicle set in late nineteenth century ...

'' (1944) - Frau Reiferstein * ''

Marriage of Affection ''Marriage of Affection'' () is a 1944 German historical drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Henny Porten, Elisabeth Flickenschildt and Käthe Dyckhoff.Bock & Bergfelder p. 518 It was released as a direct sequel to '' The Buchholz F ...

'' (1944) - Frau Reiferstein * ''Kolberg'' (1945) * ''

Blum Affair ''Blum Affair'' () is a 1948 German drama film directed by Erich Engel and starring Hans Christian Blech, Ernst Waldow and Karin Evans. It is based on a real 1926 case in Magdeburg in which a German Jewish industrialist is tried for murder. The ...

'' (1948) - Sophie Konrad * '' The Great Mandarin'' (1949) * '' Quartet of Five'' (1949) * ''

The Blue Swords ''The Blue Swords'' () is a 1949 East German historical drama film directed by Wolfgang Schleif and starring Hans Quest, Ilse Steppat and Alexander Engel. It sold more than 3,299,432 tickets. The film portrays the life of Johann Friedrich Böttger ...

'' (1949) - Frau Zorn * ''Semmelweis - Retter der Mütter'' (1950) * ''Meines Vaters Pferde'' (1954, part 1, 2) - Schwester Berta * ''

Captain Wronski ''Captain Wronski'' () is a 1954 West German spy film directed by Ulrich Erfurth and starring Willy Birgel, Elisabeth Flickenschildt, and Antje Weisgerber. A Polish officer works undercover in 1930s Berlin to discover Nazi Germany's plans aga ...

'' (1954) - Gefängnisbeamtin * ''Herr über Leben und Tod'' (1955) * ''Oberwachtmeister Borck'' (1955) - neugierige Zeugin

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schon, Margarete 1895 births 1985 deaths German stage actresses German film actresses German silent film actresses Actresses from Magdeburg Actresses from Berlin 20th-century German actresses