Joseph Delmont
Encyclopedia
Joseph Delmont, was an Austria
n film director
of some 200 films, largely shorts, in which he was noted for his innovative use of beasts of prey. He was also a cameraman, actor and screenplay writer. During later life he was active as an author
.
After visiting several shows of the new medium of film and becoming interested in it, Delmont started to make his own films in 1903 for the film production company Vitagraph. These were short Westerns, one-act movies or one-reelers lasting only few minutes. In 1905 he made his first two-act movie.
During 1910 he returned to Vienna
where among other things he worked for the Österreichisch-Ungarische Kinoindustrie (later Wiener-Kunstfilm) as a cameraman, and was thus cameraman, and also technical director and director of scenery, on the oldest Austrian drama film to survive entire: Der Müller und sein Kind
of 1911. Soon afterwards however he went to Germany. In Berlin
, in among other places the Rex-Ateliers, he directed, sometimes together with Harry Piel
as co-director, and Fred Sauer, Curt Bois and Ilse Bois as actors, a series of adventurous, action-packed, dramatic fantasy films. The sensational part of these films was the, for the time, extraordinary film footage of beasts of prey, for which his films were well-known.
For making his movies Delmont travelled in Panama
, Portugal
, England
, France
, Spain
and the Netherlands
.
In 1925 he ended his film career: his last film project was to direct Der Millionenraub im Rivieraexpreß that year. Instead he devoted himself principally to authorship, with which he had dabbled since 1892. By the time of his death in 1935 he had written several novels and short stories, and many newspaper articles. Besides detective stories and non-fiction work about his experiences with animals, he also wrote adventure and crime novels. With "Der Ritt auf dem Funken" (1928) he published a futuristic science fiction
novel about the possibility in the near future of travelling with vehicles on electric currents.
Delmont died in 1935 in Bad Pystian, now Piešťany
, Slovakia
.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n film director
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
of some 200 films, largely shorts, in which he was noted for his innovative use of beasts of prey. He was also a cameraman, actor and screenplay writer. During later life he was active as an author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
.
Life
Delmont was born in 1873 as one of 16 children of Moses (later Maximilian) Pollak and Resi (or Rösi, later Theresia) née Fuchs, in Loywein, Lower Austria (Austria). He grew up as a performer, latterly a trapeze artist, in a travelling circus. After a training as a metal worker, he re-joined the circus as an animal trainer and lion tamer, in which capacity he travelled the world. In 1901 he visited the United States, and stayed there in order to work as director of an animal business.After visiting several shows of the new medium of film and becoming interested in it, Delmont started to make his own films in 1903 for the film production company Vitagraph. These were short Westerns, one-act movies or one-reelers lasting only few minutes. In 1905 he made his first two-act movie.
During 1910 he returned to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
where among other things he worked for the Österreichisch-Ungarische Kinoindustrie (later Wiener-Kunstfilm) as a cameraman, and was thus cameraman, and also technical director and director of scenery, on the oldest Austrian drama film to survive entire: Der Müller und sein Kind
Der Müller und sein Kind
Der Müller und sein Kind, a silent film made in 1911, is the oldest Austrian drama film to survive in its entirety. It was produced by the Österreichisch-Ungarische Kinoindustrie, which later in 1911 changed its name to become the Wiener Kunstfilm-Industrie...
of 1911. Soon afterwards however he went to Germany. In Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, in among other places the Rex-Ateliers, he directed, sometimes together with Harry Piel
Harry Piel
Born Hubert August Piel, Harry Piel in Munich, Germany was a prolific German actor, film director, screenwriter and film producer who was involved in over 150 films....
as co-director, and Fred Sauer, Curt Bois and Ilse Bois as actors, a series of adventurous, action-packed, dramatic fantasy films. The sensational part of these films was the, for the time, extraordinary film footage of beasts of prey, for which his films were well-known.
For making his movies Delmont travelled in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
In 1925 he ended his film career: his last film project was to direct Der Millionenraub im Rivieraexpreß that year. Instead he devoted himself principally to authorship, with which he had dabbled since 1892. By the time of his death in 1935 he had written several novels and short stories, and many newspaper articles. Besides detective stories and non-fiction work about his experiences with animals, he also wrote adventure and crime novels. With "Der Ritt auf dem Funken" (1928) he published a futuristic science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novel about the possibility in the near future of travelling with vehicles on electric currents.
Delmont died in 1935 in Bad Pystian, now Piešťany
Pieštany
Piešťany is a town in Slovakia. It is located in the western part of the country within the Trnava Region and is the seat of its own district. It is the biggest and best known spa town in Slovakia and has around 30,000 inhabitants.-History:...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
Filmography
The following is a selected list of films, both short and long, directed by Delmont. In many he also wrote the screenplay or appeared as an actor.- Der Müller und sein Kind (I), 1910 (Germany; screenplay only)
- Der Müller und sein KindDer Müller und sein KindDer Müller und sein Kind, a silent film made in 1911, is the oldest Austrian drama film to survive in its entirety. It was produced by the Österreichisch-Ungarische Kinoindustrie, which later in 1911 changed its name to become the Wiener Kunstfilm-Industrie...
(II), 1911 (Austria; camera and technical direction) - Der Streikbrecher, 1911 (Germany)
- Mutter und Sohn, 1911 (Germany)
- Verirrte Seelen, 1911 (Germany)
- Das sechste Gebot, 1912 (Germany)
- Der Fremde, 1912 (Germany)
- Die Puppe, 1912 (Germany)
- Schuld und Sühne, 1912 (Germany; screenplay)
- Der wilde Jäger, 1912 (Germany; screenplay)
- Dichterlos, 1912 (Germany)
- Das Sterben im Walde, 1912 (Germany; screenplay, actor)
- Das Recht aufs Dasein, 1913 (Germany; crime film; actor with, among others, Ilse Bois; 880 metres)
- Der letzte Akkord, 1913 (Germany; screenplay)
- Das rote Pulver, 1913 (Germany; screenplay)
- Das Tagebuch eines Toten, 1913 (Germany)
- Auf einsamer Insel, 1913 (Germany; screenplay, actor)
- Der geheimnisvolle Klub, 1913 (Germany; actor with, among others, Ilse Bois, Fred Sauer; 851 metres)
- Der Desperado von Panama, 1914 (Germany; actor)
- Ein Erbe wird gesucht, 1915 (Germany)
- Ein ungeschriebenes Blatt, 1915 (Germany; screenplay)
- Der Silbertunnel, 1915 (Germany)
- Titanenkampf, 1916 (Germany; screenplay)
- Theophrastus Paracelsus, 1916 (Germany; screenplay)
- Die Töchter des Eichmeisters, 1916 (Germany; screenplay)
- Das Geheimnis des Waldes, 1917 (Austria 1917; co-director with Hans Otto Löwenstein, screenplay)
- Der Bastard, 1919 (Germany; screenplay)
- Margot de Plaisance, 1919 (Germany; screenplay)
- Der Kampf der Geschlechter, 1919 (Germany; screenplay)
- Die Geächteten, 1919 (Germany; screenplay)
- Die Insel der Gezeichneten, 1920 (Germany)
- Madame Recamier / Des Großen Talma letzte Liebe, 1920 (Germany)
- Der König der Manege, 1921 (Germany; co-author of screenplay, Schauspiel)
- Die eiserne Faust, 1921 (Germany)
- Julot, der Apache, 1921 (Germany; screenplay)
- Der Mann aus Stahl, 1922 (Germany)
- Der Sieg des Maharadscha, 1923 (Germany)
- Marco unter Gauklern und Bestien, 1923 (Germany)
- Mater Dolorosa, 1924 (Germany)
- Um eine Million, 1924 (Germany; co-director, screenplay)
- Der Millionenraub im Rivieraexpreß, 1925-27 (Germany/France 1925-1927)
Literary works
The German National Library knows of 15 novels and 11 other works by Joseph Delmont, of which the following are a selection:- Wilde Tiere im Film: Erlebnisse aus meinen Filmaufnahmen in aller Welt. Dieck, Stuttgart 1925 (non-fictional account of his experiences with animals; went through 14 editions)
- Die Stadt unter dem Meere. Leipzig 1925 (novel)
- In Ketten. Fr. Wilh. Grunow, Leipzig 1926 (reprinted several times in the following years under the title Juden in Ketten)
- Von lustigen Tieren und dummen Menschen: Eine Melange. Neue Berliner Verlags-GmbH, Berlin 1927
- Abenteuer mit wilden Tieren: Erlebnisse e. Raubtierfängers Enßlin & Laiblin, Reutlingen 1927 (part of the collection "Aus weiter Welt")
- Der Gefangene der Wüste Neufeld & Henius, Berlin 1927
- Die Sieben Häuser: Wanderfahrten e. Lausbuben. Grethlein & Co., Leipzig 1927
- Der Ritt auf dem Funken: Phantastischer Zukunftsroman. O. Janke, Berlin 1928
- Der Casanova von Bautzen. Leipzig 1931; new edition Lusatia-Verlag, Bautzen 2005
- Die Abenteuer des Johnny Kilburn. F. W. Grunow, Leipzig 1934