Szőke Szakáll

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Szőke Szakáll , actually Jenő (Eugen) Gerő , (born February 2, 1883 in Budapest , Austria-Hungary ; † February 12, 1955 in Hollywood , USA ) was a Hungarian actor and author who initially worked primarily in Austria in theater and film worked. Before National Socialism he fled to the USA and appeared in numerous Hollywood films under the stage name SZ Sakall . The role of the waiter Carl in Casablanca (1942) made him world famous .

Life

During his schooldays, Jenő Gerő wrote skits and lyrics for a variety theater as a pseudonym under his nickname “Szőke Szakáll”, which means “blond beard” . Later he was a bank clerk and served in the Kuk Army during World War I. In 1916 he made his film debut in the Hungarian film Az újszülött apa by Eugen Illés and appeared in three other Hungarian short films by the end of the war. After the war, Szakall worked as a writer and performer on Budapest theaters. He moved the early 1920s to Vienna, where he in cabaret Leopoldi Wiesenthal from Hermann Leopoldi occurred. A few years later he played in Berlin at the Nelson Theater , the Großer Schauspielhaus and the Metropol Theater . He was successful there as a comedian and writer of short pieces and opened the “Boulevard Theater” with the composer Otto Stransky . In 1926, Szakall came as co-author of the Reinhold Schünzel comedy Hallo Caesar! again in contact with the film. From then on he was a very busy actor in German and Austrian entertainment films.

His successful films in Germany during the Weimar Republic included Géza von Bolváry's Two Hearts in 3/4 Time (1930), Joe May's Her Majesty Love (1930), Hans Steinhoff's Die Faschingsfee (1931) and Richard Oswald's Countess Mariza (1932). In 1933 Szakall returned to Vienna, since as a Jew he was no longer allowed to play any roles in Germany after Hitler came to power. In Vienna he appeared at the Ronacher Theater and the State Opera and was active as a radio speaker. He also worked in Viennese and Budapest film productions until 1936 and was one of the most important exponents of Viennese comedian films along with Hans Moser . However, his humor was fundamentally different from that of Hans Moser. While he found his unique humor in his often difficult to understand, primitive expression and his facial expressions and gestures, Szöke Szakall shone with an intellectually biting to sadistic-aggressive humor. In 1933 he stayed in Zurich.

Friedrich Zelnik brought Szakall to London in 1937 for the film production The Lilac Domino . In 1939 he fled from the National Socialists to the USA and shortened his name to "SZ Sakall". He was not supposed to return to Austria. His first Hollywood film was Joe Pasternak's It's a Date (1940). With his distinctive round face, his concise accent and twisted sentence structure, he appeared in numerous comical supporting roles at Warner Brothers , often as an endearing and avaricious European or as a confused shopkeeper. He mostly starred in screwball comedies like Mary and the Millionaire , The Strange Taming of the Gangster Bride Sugarpuss, and Customized Christmas . Studio boss Jack L. Warner gave him the nickname Cuddles , which he did not like because of his plump and amiable appearance , under which he was even occasionally featured in the credits as SZ "Cuddles" Sakall . Under the direction of his Hungarian compatriot Michael Curtiz , he played the role of head waiter Carl in Casablanca (1942), which made him famous worldwide.

Szakall was involved in the troop support of US soldiers in World War II . He had his last film appearance in 1954 as a host in Richard Thorpe's Alt-Heidelberg film adaptation. In the same year, Szakall's memoir appeared under the title The Story of Cuddles. My Life under the Emperor Francis Joseph, Adolf Hitler, and the Warner Brothers .

Szakall was married twice. His first wife Giza Grossner died in 1918 and two years later he married Anne Kardos. A large part of his family, including his three sisters, were murdered by the German National Socialists in the concentration camp.

Filmography (selection)

Remarks

  1. ↑ According to the commercial register, his maiden name is Eugen Gerö. The entry for the company "Boulevard Theater- und Restaurationsbetriebe GmbH" (HRB 41049) contains the following sentence: Actor and writer Eugen Gerö, called Szöke Szakall, has been appointed as a further managing director. Entry in the commercial register of Berlin on August 22, 1928. On the registration papers in the holdings of the Vienna City and State Library, series 2.5.1.4.K11 - Prominent collection 19th century - 20th century, archive signature 2.5.1.4.K11.Szakall Szoeke. 2.2.1883, Jenö and Eugen Gerö, the Hungarian and the German name variant, are registered.

literature

  • Kay Less : 'In life, more is taken from you than given ...'. Lexicon of filmmakers who emigrated from Germany and Austria between 1933 and 1945. A general overview. P. 493 ff., ACABUS-Verlag, Hamburg 2011, ISBN 978-3-86282-049-8

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hans Staub: 1933, reception at Zurich main station, photo report. Retrieved October 30, 2019 .
  2. ^ SZ Sakall at Allmovie
personal data
SURNAME Szakall, Szöke
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Szakáll, Szőke; Gerő. Jenő (real name); Sakall, SZ
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hungarian theater and film actor and author
DATE OF BIRTH February 2, 1883
PLACE OF BIRTH Budapest , Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH February 12, 1955
Place of death Hollywood , USA