Veit Harlan
Encyclopedia
Veit Harlan was a German
film director
and actor
.
, he first appeared on the stage in 1915 and, after World War I
, worked in the Berlin stage. In 1922 he married Jewish actress and cabaret singer Dora Gerson
; the couple divorced in 1924. Gerson later died at Auschwitz with her family. In 1929, he married Hilde Körber
, having three children with her before divorcing her for political reasons related to the influence of National Socialism
. Afterwards, he married the Swedish
actress Kristina Söderbaum
, for whom he wrote several tragic roles, further increasing her popularity.
had appointed Harlan as one of his leading propaganda directors. His most notorious film was Jud Süß
(1940), which was made for anti-Semitic propaganda purposes in Germany and Austria. In 1943 it received UFA
's highest awards. Karsten Witte, the film critic, provided a fitting appellation for Harlan calling him "the baroque fascist". Harlan made the Reich's loudest, most colorful and expensive films.
. But he successfully defended himself by arguing that the Nazis controlled his work and that he should not be held personally responsible for its content.
In 1951, Harlan sued Hamburg
politician Erich Lüth for publicly calling for a boycott of one of Harlan's post-World War II films. Harlan was granted an injunction against Lüth in the lower courts which was then lifted by the Federal Constitutional Court
for violating Lüth's freedom of expression. It was a landmark decision because it clarified the importance of the constitutional civil rights in disputes between individuals.
Veit Harlan made a total of nine films between 1950 and 1958, dying in 1965 while on vacation in Capri
.
In 1958, Veit Harlan's niece, Christiane Susanne Harlan
, married filmmaker Stanley Kubrick
, who was Jewish. She is credited by her stage name "Susanne Christian" in Kubrick's Paths of Glory
(1957). They remained married until Stanley Kubrick's death in 1999.
Susanne Körber, one of his daughters from his second wife Hilde Körber, converted to Judaism
and married the son of Holocaust victims. She committed suicide in 1989.
In 2001, Horst Konigstein made a film titled Jud Suss - Ein Film als Verbrechen? (Jud Suss - A Film As a Crime?).
The 2008 documentary Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Süss by Felix Moeller explores Harlan's motivations and the post-war reaction of his large family to his notoriety.
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
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:...
and actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
.
Life and career
Harlan was born in Berlin. After studying under Max ReinhardtMax Reinhardt
----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
, he first appeared on the stage in 1915 and, after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, worked in the Berlin stage. In 1922 he married Jewish actress and cabaret singer Dora Gerson
Dora Gerson
Dora Gerson was a Jewish German cabaret singer and motion picture actress of the silent film era who was murdered with her family at Auschwitz concentration camp.- Life and work :...
; the couple divorced in 1924. Gerson later died at Auschwitz with her family. In 1929, he married Hilde Körber
Hilde Körber
Hilde Körber was a German film actress. She appeared in 53 films between 1930 and 1964.She was born in Vienna, Austria and died in Berlin, Germany.-Selected filmography:* The Great King * Morituri...
, having three children with her before divorcing her for political reasons related to the influence of National Socialism
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. Afterwards, he married the Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
actress Kristina Söderbaum
Kristina Söderbaum
Kristina Söderbaum was a Swedish-born German film actress, producer and photographer.Her father, Professor Henrik Gustaf Söderbaum , was the permanent secretary of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences....
, for whom he wrote several tragic roles, further increasing her popularity.
Nazi era
David Thomson asserts that Harlan, having just started directing in 1935, was only able to attract Goebbels' attention because so much directorial talent had emigrated from Germany after the Nazi takeover. By 1937, Joseph GoebbelsJoseph Goebbels
Paul Joseph Goebbels was a German politician and Reich Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945. As one of Adolf Hitler's closest associates and most devout followers, he was known for his zealous oratory and anti-Semitism...
had appointed Harlan as one of his leading propaganda directors. His most notorious film was Jud Süß
Jud Süß (1940 film)
Jud Süß is an antisemitic propaganda film produced in 1940 by Terra Filmkunst at the behest of Joseph Goebbels. The movie was directed by Veit Harlan, who wrote the screenplay with Eberhard Wolfgang Möller and Ludwig Metzger, and starred Ferdinand Marian and Harlan's wife Kristina Söderbaum.The...
(1940), which was made for anti-Semitic propaganda purposes in Germany and Austria. In 1943 it received UFA
Universum Film AG
Universum Film AG, better known as UFA or Ufa, is a film company that was the principal film studio in Germany, home of the German film industry during the Weimar Republic and through World War II, and a major force in world cinema from 1917 to 1945...
's highest awards. Karsten Witte, the film critic, provided a fitting appellation for Harlan calling him "the baroque fascist". Harlan made the Reich's loudest, most colorful and expensive films.
Postwar
After the war Harlan was charged with participating in the anti-Semitic movement and aiding the NazisNazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
. But he successfully defended himself by arguing that the Nazis controlled his work and that he should not be held personally responsible for its content.
In 1951, Harlan sued Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
politician Erich Lüth for publicly calling for a boycott of one of Harlan's post-World War II films. Harlan was granted an injunction against Lüth in the lower courts which was then lifted by the Federal Constitutional Court
Federal Constitutional Court of Germany
The Federal Constitutional Court is a special court established by the Grundgesetz, the German basic law...
for violating Lüth's freedom of expression. It was a landmark decision because it clarified the importance of the constitutional civil rights in disputes between individuals.
Veit Harlan made a total of nine films between 1950 and 1958, dying in 1965 while on vacation in Capri
Capri
Capri is an Italian island in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrentine Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples, in the Campania region of Southern Italy...
.
In 1958, Veit Harlan's niece, Christiane Susanne Harlan
Christiane Kubrick
Christiane Kubrick is a German actress, dancer, painter and singer. She was born into a theatrical family, and was the wife of filmmaker Stanley Kubrick from 1958 until his death in 1999.-Biography:...
, married filmmaker Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick
Stanley Kubrick was an American film director, writer, producer, and photographer who lived in England during most of the last four decades of his career...
, who was Jewish. She is credited by her stage name "Susanne Christian" in Kubrick's Paths of Glory
Paths of Glory
Paths of Glory is a 1957 American anti-war film by Stanley Kubrick based on the novel of the same name by Humphrey Cobb. Set during World War I, the film stars Kirk Douglas as Colonel Dax, the commanding officer of French soldiers who refused to continue a suicidal attack...
(1957). They remained married until Stanley Kubrick's death in 1999.
Susanne Körber, one of his daughters from his second wife Hilde Körber, converted to Judaism
Conversion to Judaism
Conversion to Judaism is a formal act undertaken by a non-Jewish person who wishes to be recognised as a full member of the Jewish community. A Jewish conversion is both a religious act and an expression of association with the Jewish people...
and married the son of Holocaust victims. She committed suicide in 1989.
In 2001, Horst Konigstein made a film titled Jud Suss - Ein Film als Verbrechen? (Jud Suss - A Film As a Crime?).
The 2008 documentary Harlan: In the Shadow of Jew Süss by Felix Moeller explores Harlan's motivations and the post-war reaction of his large family to his notoriety.
Filmography
- Krach im Hinterhaus (1934)
- Kreutzersonate (1937)
- Der HerrscherDer HerrscherDer Herrscher is a 1937 German film directed by Veit Harlan. It was a propagandist demonstration of the Führerprinzip of Nazi Germany.-Plot:...
(1937) - Jugend (1938)
- Verwehte Spuren (1938)
- Das unsterbliche HerzThe Immortal HeartThe Immortal Heart is a 1939 German drama film directed by Veit Harlan and starring Heinrich George.It was based on Walter Harlan's play The Nuremberg Egg.Cinzia Romani, Tainted Goddesses: Female Film Stars of the Third Reich p86 ISBN 0-9627613-1-1-Cast:* Heinrich George - Peter Henlein* Kristina...
(1939) - Die Reise nach TilsitDie Reise nach TilsitDie Reise nach Tilsit is a German 1939 film directed by Veit Harlan. It is a sound remake of the silent film Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, which was based on Hermann Sudermann's short story "Die Reise nach Tilsit"; Harlan maintained it was a true film, whereas Sunrise was only a poem, and it...
(1939) - Jud SüßJud Süß (1940 film)Jud Süß is an antisemitic propaganda film produced in 1940 by Terra Filmkunst at the behest of Joseph Goebbels. The movie was directed by Veit Harlan, who wrote the screenplay with Eberhard Wolfgang Möller and Ludwig Metzger, and starred Ferdinand Marian and Harlan's wife Kristina Söderbaum.The...
(1940) - Der große KönigThe Great KingThe Great King is a 1942 German drama film directed by Veit Harlan and starring Otto Gebühr. It depicts the life of Frederick the Great, who ruled Prussia from 1740 to 1786...
(1941) - Die goldene StadtDie goldene StadtDie goldene Stadt , is a 1941 German film directed by Veit Harlan, starring Kristina Söderbaum, who won the Volpi Cup for Best Actress, and in Agfacolor.-Plot:...
(1942) - ImmenseeImmensee (film)Immensee is a 1943 German film directed by Veit Harlan. It is loosely based on a story by Theodor Storm.-Synopsis:Elizabeth marries a wealthy landowner to forget her unrequited love and grows to love him...
(1943) - OpfergangOpfergangOpfergang is a 1944 German film directed by Veit Harlan. It is based on Rudolf G. Binding's work of the same title, with alterations for propaganda purposes.-Synopsis:...
(1944) - KolbergKolberg (film)Kolberg is a 1945 German propaganda film directed by Veit Harlan and Wolfgang Liebeneiner. It opened on January 30, 1945 simultaneously in Berlin and to the crew of the naval base at La Rochelle. It was also screened in the Reich chancellery after the broadcast of Hitler's last radio address on...
(1944/1945) - Unsterbliche Geliebte (1950)
- Hanna Amon (1951)
- Die blaue Stunde (1952)
- Sterne über Colombo (1953)
- Verrat an Deutschland (Der Fall Dr. Sorge) (1954)
- Anders als du und ich aka Das dritte Geschlecht (1957)
See also
- List of films made in the Third Reich
- Nazism and cinema