Michał Waszyński (29 September 1904 – 20 February 1965) was first a

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, then in

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, and later (as Michael Waszynski) a producer of major American films, mainly in

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. Known for his elegance and impeccable manners, he was known by his acquaintances as "the prince". Waszyński was born as Mosze Waks into a Polish

Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...

ish family in 1904 in

Kowel Kovel (, ; ; ) is a city in Volyn Oblast, northwestern Ukraine. It serves as the administrative center of Kovel Raion within the oblast. Population: Kovel gives its name to one of the oldest runic inscriptions which were lost during World War II ...

, a small town in

Volhynia Volhynia or Volynia ( ; see #Names and etymology, below) is a historic region in Central and Eastern Europe, between southeastern Poland, southwestern Belarus, and northwestern Ukraine. The borders of the region are not clearly defined, but in ...

(now in

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

), which at the time was part of

Imperial Russia Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor/empress, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * ...

. As

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 ...

occupied this part of Europe during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he moved first to

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

and later to

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 ...

. As a young man he worked as an assistant director under the legendary German director F.W. Murnau. Upon his return to Poland he changed his name to Michał Waszyński and converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

. In the 1930s Waszyński became the most prolific film director in Poland, directing 37 of the 147 films made in Poland in that decade, or one out of four. Along with popular films in Polish produced for a wide local audience, he directed an important film in Yiddish '' The Dybbuk'', today a monument of the rich cultural life of East European Jewry before

the Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

. At the beginning of

World War II 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 ...

Waszyński escaped from

, which was being bombed by German planes, to

Białystok Białystok is the largest city in northeastern Poland and the capital of the Podlaskie Voivodeship. It is the List of cities and towns in Poland, tenth-largest city in Poland, second in terms of population density, and thirteenth in area. Biał ...

. That city was taken in mid-September 1939 by the Germans, but within weeks, as a result of the

Molotov–Ribbentrop pact The Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact, officially the Treaty of Non-Aggression between Germany and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, and also known as the Hitler–Stalin Pact and the Nazi–Soviet Pact, was a non-aggression pact between Nazi Ge ...

, the city was given to the Soviet Union and occupied by its army. Waszyński began a new career as a theater director, first in

and later in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

. In the summer of 1941, after Germany invaded the Soviet Union, Waszyński joined the newly formed

Polish Army The Land Forces () are the Army, land forces of the Polish Armed Forces. They currently contain some 110,000 active personnel and form many components of the European Union and NATO deployments around the world. Poland's recorded military histor ...

of general

Władysław Anders Władysław Albert Anders (11 August 1892 – 12 May 1970) was a Polish military officer and politician, and prominent member of the Polish government-in-exile in London. Born in Krośniewice-Błonie, then part of the Russian Empire, he serv ...

(loyal to the

Polish government in Exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile A government-in-exile (GiE) is a political group that claims to be the legitimate government of a sovere ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

) and subsequently was relocated to

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

(

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

), and later as a soldier of the 2nd Corps of the Polish Army to

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and

. As a member of the army film unit, he filmed the

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome, was a series of four military assaults by the Allies of World War II, Allies against Nazi Germany, German forces in Kingdom of Italy, Italy during the Italian Campaign (World War ...

, where the Polish Army suffered great losses, but helped to win the day. After World War II, he stayed in Italy, where he directed a Polish-language feature film about the Battle of Monte Cassino, and then three Italian films. Later in his career, Waszyński worked as a producer for the major American studios in Italy and (primarily) Spain, credited as ''Michael Waszynski''. His credits include ''

The Quiet American ''The Quiet American'' is a 1955 novel by English author Graham Greene. Narrated in the first person by journalist Thomas Fowler, the novel depicts the breakdown of French colonialism in Vietnam and early American involvement in the Vietnam ...

'' (1958) (associate producer), ''

El Cid Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar ( – 10 July 1099) was a Castilian knight and ruler in medieval Spain. Fighting both with Christian and Muslim armies during his lifetime, he earned the Arabic honorific ("the Lord" or "the Master"), which would evolve i ...

'' (1961), and ''

The Fall of the Roman Empire (film) ''The Fall of the Roman Empire'' is a 1964 American epic historical drama film directed by Anthony Mann and produced by Samuel Bronston, with a screenplay by Ben Barzman, Basilio Franchina and Philip Yordan. The film stars Sophia Loren, Ste ...

'' (1964) (executive producer and associate producer). He died of a heart attack on 20 February 1965 in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

and was buried in a ceremonious Roman Catholic funeral in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Filmography

* ''

William Tell William Tell (, ; ; ; ) is a legendary folk hero of Switzerland. He is known for shooting an apple off his son's head. According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albrecht Gessler, ...

'' (1949) * '' La Grande strada'' (1948) Polish film produced in Italy, (1946, Italian version completed in 1948, with the collaboration of Vittorio Cottafavi); with Jadwiga Andrzejewska * '' Fire Over the Sea'' (1947) * '' The Unknown Man of San Marino'' (1946) *'' Wielka droga'' (1946) *''

Monte Cassino The Abbey of Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a Catholic Church, Catholic, Benedictines, Benedictine monastery on a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Valle Latina, Latin Valley. Located on the site of the ancient ...

'' (1944) *'' Mp. Adama i Ewy'' (1944) *'' Dzieci'' (1943) *'' Pobyt generala Wl. Sikorskiego na Srodkowym Wschodzie'' (1943) *'' Polska parada'' (1943) *'' Kronika wojenna nr 1'' (1942) *'' Marsz do wolnosci'' (1942) *'' Od pobudki do capstrzyku'' (1942) *'' The Three Hearts'' (1939) *'' U kresu drogi'' (1939) *'' The Vagabonds'' (1939) * Serce matki (1938) *

Gehenna Gehenna ( ; ) or Gehinnom ( or ) is a Biblical toponym that has acquired various theological connotations, including as a place of divine punishment, in Jewish eschatology. The place is first mentioned in the Hebrew Bible as part of the border ...

(1938) * Profesor Wilczur (1938) * Ostatnia brygada (1938) * Druga młodość (1938) * Kobiety nad przepaścią (1938) * Rena (1938) *'' The Dybbuk''(1937) * Znachor (1937) * Papa się żeni (1936) * Bohaterowie Sybiru (1936) * Dodek na froncie (1936) * 30 karatów szczęścia (1936) *

Będzie lepiej ''Będzie lepiej'' (English: ''It will get better'') is a 1936 Polish musical comedy directed by Michał Waszyński. It features characters Szczepko and Tońko (played by Kazimierz Wajda and Henryk Vogelfänger, respectively), who were know ...

(1936) * Bolek i Lolek (1936) * Nie miała baba kłopotu (1935) * Panienka z poste restante (1935) * Wacuś (1935) * Jaśnie pan szofer (1935) *

ABC miłości ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

(1935) * Antek policmajster (1935) * Czarna perła (1934) * Kocha, lubi, szanuje (1934) *

Pieśniarz Warszawy ''Pieśniarz Warszawy'' is a 1934 Polish film directed by Michał Waszyński Michał Waszyński (29 September 1904 – 20 February 1965) was first a film director in Poland, then in Italy, and later (as Michael Waszynski) a film produc ...

(1934) * Parada rezerwistów (1934) * Co mój mąż robi w nocy (1934) * Zabawka (1933) * Prokurator Alicja Horn (1933) * Dvanáct kresel (1933) * Jego ekscelencja subiekt (1933) * Sto metrów miłości (1932) * Głos pustyni (1932) * Bezimienni bohaterowie (1932) * Uwiedziona (1931) *

Niebezpieczny romans ''Niebezpieczny romans'' is a 1930 Polish film directed by Michał Waszyński. Cast * Bogusław Samborski ... Hieronim Spiewankiewicz * Helena Stepowska ... Mrs. Spiewankiewiczowa * Józef Orski ... Hieronim's Son * Betty Amann ... Ada * ...

(1930) * Kult ciała (1930) * Pod banderą miłości (1929) * ''

Jealousy Jealousy generally refers to the thoughts or feelings of Emotional insecurity, insecurity, fear, and concern over a relative lack of possessions or safety. Jealousy can consist of one or more emotions such as anger, resentment, inadequacy, he ...

'' (1922)

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Waszynski, Michal 1904 births 1965 deaths Polish film directors Polish gay men LGBTQ Roman Catholics Converts to Roman Catholicism from Judaism Polish people of Jewish descent Gay Jews Volhynian Jews Polish expatriates in Italy People from Kovel People from Volhynian Governorate Polish military personnel of World War II 20th-century Polish LGBTQ people