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Fritz Lang

Lang in the 1950s
Born December 5, 1890(1890-12-05)
Vienna, Austria-Hungary
Died August 2, 1976 (aged 85)
Beverly Hills, CA, United States
Spouse(s) Lisa Rosenthal (?1919 - 1921)
Thea von Harbou (August 26, 1922 - April 26, 1933)
Lily Latté (1971 - 1976)

Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang (December 5, 1890 – August 2, 1976) was an Austrian-German-American film director, screenwriter and occasional film producer[1][2]. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. Events 338 BC - A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Thea Gabriele von Harbou ( December 27, 1888  &ndash July 1, 1954) was a German actress and author of Prussian aristocratic Events 1071 - Battle of Manzikert: The Seljuk Turks defeat the Byzantine Army at Manzikert. Year 1922 ( MCMXXII) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1933 ( MCMXXXIII) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Events 338 BC - A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film. Screenwriters or scenarists are Scriptwriters who write the Screenplays from which Films and Television programs are made A film producer is a person who creates the conditions for making movies. One of the best known émigrés from Germany's school of Expressionism, he was dubbed the "Master of Darkness" by the BFI. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. German Expressionism is the term used to refer to a number of related creative movements which emerged in Germany before the first world war which reached a peak in Berlin The British Film Institute ( BFI) is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to encourage the development of the arts of film television [3] His most famous films are the groundbreaking Metropolis (the world's most expensive silent film at the time of its release) and M, made before he moved to the United States. Metropolis is a silent Science fiction film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and Thea von Harbou. M is a 1931 German drama - thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Contents

Early life

Friedrich Lang was born in Vienna, in what was then Austria-Hungary, to Anton Lang (August 1, 1860–1940), an architect and construction company manager, and Pauline "Paula" Schlesinger (July 26, 1864–1920) on December 5, 1890. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. Events 30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Year 1860 ( MDCCLX) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year starting Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 657 - Battle of Siffin. 811 - Battle of Pliska; Byzantine Emperor Nicephorus Year 1864 ( MDCCCLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year Year 1920 ( MCMXX) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display 1920 of the Gregorian calendar He was the second of two sons (his brother Adolf was nearly seven years older). Both his father and his mother were practicing Roman Catholics, although his mother was raised Jewish from birth and converted to Catholicism when Fritz was ten. PLEASE TAKE NOTE************ [4] Lang himself was baptized at the Schottenkirche in Vienna. The Schottenstift (full name Benediktinerabtei unserer Lieben Frau zu den Schotten lit Benedictine Abbey of Our Dear Lady to the Scots) is a Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria.

After finishing high school, Lang briefly attended the Technical University of Vienna, where he studied civil engineering and eventually switched to art. Vienna University of Technology is one of the major universities in Vienna, the capital of Austria. In 1910 he left Vienna to see the world, traveling throughout Europe and Africa and later Asia and the Pacific area. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth 's Oceanic divisions In 1913, he studied painting in Paris, France. Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The next year, he returned home to Vienna at the outbreak of the First World War. Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In January of 1914, he was drafted into service in the Austrian army and fought in Russia and Romania during World War I, where he was wounded three times. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Romania ( dated: Rumania, Roumania World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All

Early film work

While recovering from his injuries and shell shock in 1916, he wrote some scenarios and ideas for films. He was discharged from the army with the rank of lieutenant in 1918 and did some acting in the Viennese theater circuit for a short time before being hired as a writer at Decla, Erich Pommer's Berlin-based production company. Erich Pommer ( July 20, 1889 &ndash May 8, 1966) was one of the most influential producers of the Silent film era having been one Berlin is the capital city and one of sixteen states of Germany.

His writing stint was brief, as Lang soon started to work as a director at the German film studio Ufa, and later Nero-Film, just as the Expressionist movement was building. Universum Film AG, better known as Ufa or UFA, was the principal film studio in Germany, home of the German film industry during the Weimar Republic German Expressionism is the term used to refer to a number of related creative movements which emerged in Germany before the first world war which reached a peak in Berlin In this first phase of his career, Lang alternated between art films such as Der Müde Tod (Destiny, literally "Tired Death") and populist thrillers such as Die Spinnen (Spiders), combining popular genres with Expressionist techniques to create an unprecedented synthesis of popular entertainment with art cinema. An Art film (also called an “art cinema” “art movie” or in the U German Expressionism is the term used to refer to a number of related creative movements which emerged in Germany before the first world war which reached a peak in Berlin An Art film (also called an “art cinema” “art movie” or in the U In 1920, he met his future wife, the writer and actress Thea von Harbou. Thea Gabriele von Harbou ( December 27, 1888  &ndash July 1, 1954) was a German actress and author of Prussian aristocratic She and Lang co-wrote the scripts for 1922's Dr. Mabuse, der Spieler (Dr. Dr Mabuse the Gambler ( Dr Mabuse der Spieler) is the first film in the Mabuse series about the character Doctor Mabuse from the novels of Norbert Mabuse the Gambler), which ran for four hours in two parts in the original version and was the first in the Dr. Mabuse trilogy, 1924's Die Nibelungen, the famed 1927 masterpiece Metropolis, and the 1931 classic, M, his first "talking" picture. Doctor Mabuse is a Fictional character created by Norbert Jacques made famous by the three films Austrian director Fritz Lang made about him over a period Die Nibelungen is a Duology of silent Fantasy films created by Austrian director Fritz Lang in 1924: Metropolis is a silent Science fiction film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and Thea von Harbou. M is a 1931 German drama - thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image as opposed to a Silent film.

Although some consider Lang's work to be simple melodrama, he produced a coherent oeuvre that helped to establish the characteristics of film noir, with its recurring themes of psychological conflict, paranoia, fate and moral ambiguity. Melodrama refers to theatre in which music is used to increase the spectator's emotional response or to suggest character types In Fine art, a work of art (or artwork or work) is a creation such as a Song, Book, Film, Video game, Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation His work influenced filmmakers as disparate as Jacques Rivette and William Friedkin. Jacques Rivette (born March 1, 1928) is a French Film director. William Friedkin (born August 29 1935 in Chicago, Illinois) is an Academy Award-winning American movie and television director In 1931, between Metropolis and Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse, Lang directed what many film scholars consider to be his masterpiece: M, a disturbing story of a child murderer (Peter Lorre in his first starring role) who is hunted down and brought to rough justice by Berlin's criminal underworld. Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Metropolis is a silent Science fiction film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and Thea von Harbou. The Testament of Dr Mabuse ( Das Testament des Dr Mabuse) is a 1933 movie by director Fritz Lang, a sequel to two of his previous works M is a 1931 German drama - thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou Peter Lorre ( June 26 1904 &ndash March 23 1964) born László Löwenstein, was a Hungarian - Austrian M remains a powerful work; it was remade in 1951 by Joseph Losey, but this version had little impact on audiences, and has become harder to see than the original film. M is a 1951 Remake of Fritz Lang 's film of the same name, shifting the action from Berlin to Los Angeles The year 1951 in film involved some significant events Events Sweden - May Britt is scouted by Italian Joseph Losey ( January 14, 1909 in La Crosse Wisconsin – June 22, 1984 in

Lang epitomized the stereotype of the tyrannical German film director such as Erich von Stroheim and Otto Preminger; he was known for being hard to work with. Erich von Stroheim ( September 22, 1885 &ndash May 12, 1957) was an Austrian star of the silent film age lauded for his directorial Otto Ludwig Preminger ( December 5[[ 906]]&ndash April 23[[ 986]] was an Austrian born Film director who moved from the theatre to Hollywood During the climactic final scene in M, he allegedly threw Peter Lorre down a flight of stairs in order to give more authenticity to Lorre's battered look. M is a 1931 German drama - thriller directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou He even wore a monocle that added to the stereotype.

Goebbels offer and emigration

Many of the rumours about Lang's life and career are hard to verify, including perhaps the most famous of all. The rumour has it that Joseph Goebbels called Lang to his offices for a meeting in which he gave Lang two pieces of news: the first was that his most recent film, Das Testament des Dr. Mabuse (The Testament of Dr. Paul Joseph Goebbels (German pronunciation ˈɡœbəls English generally ˈɡɝbəlz (29 October 1897 1 May 1945 was a German politician and Reich Minister of Public The Testament of Dr Mabuse ( Das Testament des Dr Mabuse) is a 1933 movie by director Fritz Lang, a sequel to two of his previous works Mabuse, 1933) was being banned as an incitement to public disorder. The second was that he was nevertheless so impressed by Lang's abilities as a filmmaker, he was offering Lang a position as the head of German film studio UFA. Universum Film AG, better known as Ufa or UFA, was the principal film studio in Germany, home of the German film industry during the Weimar Republic Lang had been, unbeknownst to Goebbels, already planning to leave Germany for Paris, but the meeting with Goebbels ran so long that the banks were closed by the time it finished, and Lang fled that night without his money, not to return until after the war.

The problem is that many portions of the story cannot be checked, and of those that can, most are contradicted by the evidence: Lang actually left Germany with most of his money, unlike most refugees, and made several return trips later in the same year. There were of course no witnesses to the meeting besides Goebbels and Lang, but Goebbels's appointment books, when they refer to the meeting, mention only the banning of Testament. No evidence has been discovered in any of Goebbels's writings to affirm the suggestion that he was planning to offer Lang any position. Jean-Luc Godard's film Contempt (1963), in which Lang appeared as himself, presents a bare outline of the story as fact. Jean-Luc Godard (French ʒɑ̃lyk gɔˈdaʀ (born on December 3 1930 is a French and Swiss Filmmaker and one of the founding members of the Nouvelle Vague Contempt ( Le Mépris) is a film directed by Jean-Luc Godard, based on the Italian novel Il disprezzo ( by Alberto Moravia.

Whatever the truth of this story, it is known that Lang did in fact leave Germany in 1934 and moved to Paris, where he filmed a version of Ferenc Molnar's Liliom, starring Charles Boyer. Year 1934 ( MCMXXXIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display full 1934 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Ferenc Molnár (originally Ferenc Neumann 12 January 1878 in Budapest &mdash 1 April 1952 in New York City Liliom is a 1909 play by Ferenc Molnár. it was very famous in its own right during the early to mid-twentieth century but is best known today as the basis for the Charles Boyer (28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978 was a four-time Academy Award -nominated French Actor who starred in a number of classic Hollywood This was Lang's only film in French (not counting the French version of Testament. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people The Testament of Dr Mabuse ( Das Testament des Dr Mabuse) is a 1933 movie by director Fritz Lang, a sequel to two of his previous works ) He then went to the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Lang's wife Thea von Harbou, who had started to sympathize with the Nazis in the early 1930s and joined the Nazi party (the NSDAP) in 1932, stayed behind. Thea Gabriele von Harbou ( December 27, 1888  &ndash July 1, 1954) was a German actress and author of Prussian aristocratic The, officially National Socialist German Workers' Party, ( abbreviated NSDAP) was a Political party in Germany between 1919 and 1945 Year 1932 ( MCMXXXII) was a Leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. The two were divorced in 1933.

Life in America

Upon his arrival in Hollywood, Lang joined the MGM studio and directed the impressive crime drama Fury. Fury is a Drama film which tells the story of an innocent man who narrowly escapes being lynched and the revenge he seeks He became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1939. Naturalization is the acquisition of Citizenship or Nationality by somebody who was not a citizen or national of that country when he or she was born Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Lang made twenty-one features in the next twenty-one years, working in a variety of genres at every major studio in Hollywood, occasionally producing his films as an independent. These films, often compared unfavourably by contemporary critics to Lang's earlier works, have since been reevaluated as being integral to the emergence and evolution of American genre cinema, film noir in particular. Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation One of his most famous film noirs is the police drama The Big Heat (1953), noted for its uncompromising brutality, especially for a scene in which Lee Marvin throws scalding coffee on Gloria Grahame's face. The Big Heat is a 1953 Film noir directed by Fritz Lang, starring Glenn Ford, Gloria Grahame and Lee Marvin. Year 1953 ( MCMLIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Lee Marvin ( February 19, 1924 &ndash August 29, 1987) was an American Film actor Gloria Grahame ( November 28, 1923 – October 5, 1981) was an Academy Award -winning American Film During this period, his visual style simplified (owing in part to the constraints of the Hollywood studio system) and his worldview became increasingly pessimistic, culminating in the cold, geometric style of his last American films, While the City Sleeps (1956) and Beyond a Reasonable Doubt (1957). While the City Sleeps is a 1956 Film noir directed by Fritz Lang. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt is a 1956 Film noir directed by Fritz Lang and written by Douglas Morrow. Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar)

Late work and death

During the 1950s, Lang found it harder to find congenial production conditions in Hollywood and his advancing age left him less inclined to grapple with American backers. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive The German producer, Artur Brauner, was expressing interest in remaking not only The Indian Tomb (a story that Lang had developed in the twenties that was ultimately taken from him by studio heads and directed instead by Joe May) but also Lang's earlier Doctor Mabuse pictures. The Indian Tomb ( 1921) was a two-part German Silent film adaptation of a novel by Thea von Harbou directed by Joe May. Joe May ( November 7, 1880 in Vienna - April 29, 1954 in Hollywood) born Julius Otto Mandl, was a Film Doctor Mabuse is a Fictional character created by Norbert Jacques made famous by the three films Austrian director Fritz Lang made about him over a period Fearing that Brauner would proceed with or without his assent, Lang abandoned his plans for retirement and returned to Germany in order to make his Indian Epic, which is regarded as a masterpiece by a number of film scholars today. Following the production, Brauner was ready to proceed with his remake of Das Testament des Doctor Mabuse when Lang approached him with the idea of adding another original film to the series. The result was The Thousand Eyes of Dr. Mabuse, made in a hurry and with a relatively small budget. The Thousand Eyes of Dr Mabuse ( Die tausend Augen des Dr Mabuse) is a 1960 film made in West Germany It can be viewed as the marriage between the director's early experiences with expressionist techniques in Germany as well as the spartan style already visible in his late American work. Lang was approaching blindness during the production, making it his final project.

Returning to the United States in retirement, he continued collecting research material and drafting screenplays, though he never made another film. While his career had ended without fanfare, his American and later German works were championed by the critics of the Cahiers du Cinema (one of whom, Jean-Luc Godard, later cast Lang in Contempt), in addition to considerable critical adulation in the US from critics such as Peter Bogdanovich. Jean-Luc Godard (French ʒɑ̃lyk gɔˈdaʀ (born on December 3 1930 is a French and Swiss Filmmaker and one of the founding members of the Nouvelle Vague Contempt ( Le Mépris) is a film directed by Jean-Luc Godard, based on the Italian novel Il disprezzo ( by Alberto Moravia. Peter Bogdanovich ( Serbian Cyrillic: Петар Богдановић Latin: Petar Bogdanović (born July 30, 1939, is an American

He died in 1976 and was interred in the Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles. Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery is part of the Forest Lawn chain of Southern California cemeteries Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West

Filmography

Cultural References

Lang is a supporting character in the animated movie Fullmetal Alchemist the Movie: Conqueror of Shamballa. is a 2005 Japanese animated film directed by Seiji Mizushima and written by Sho Aikawa and acts as a continuation of the Fullmetal Alchemist In the movie, he first introduces himself as "Mabuse," but later reveals that Mabuse is actually a character in his film Dr. Mabuse the Gambler, and that his real name is Fritz Lang. Dr Mabuse the Gambler ( Dr Mabuse der Spieler) is the first film in the Mabuse series about the character Doctor Mabuse from the novels of Norbert He resembles the Homunculus Pride. The concept of a homunculus ( Latin for "little man" plural "homunculi" the diminutive of homo, "man" is often used to illustrate

See also

References

  1. ^ [1] Fritz Lang Biography
  2. ^ [2] "Fritz Lang was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1890. The following list is a selection of famous Austrians. For full lists of all famous Austrians please view the sublists Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize moral ambiguity and sexual motivation German Expressionism is the term used to refer to a number of related creative movements which emerged in Germany before the first world war which reached a peak in Berlin . . . . . In early 1918, he was sent home shell-shocked and acted briefly in Viennese theater before accepting a job as a writer at Erich Pommer's production company in Berlin. "
  3. ^ BFI | Features | Fritz Lang | Master of Darkness
  4. ^ The religion of director Fritz Lang

Further reading

External links

Persondata
NAME Lang, Fritz
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lang, Friedrich Anton Christian
SHORT DESCRIPTION Austrian-American Director, screenwriter, actor, and producer
DATE OF BIRTH December 5, 1890(1890-12-05)
PLACE OF BIRTH Vienna, Austria-Hungary
DATE OF DEATH August 2, 1976
PLACE OF DEATH Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
A film director, or filmmaker, is a person who directs the making of a Film. Screenwriters or scenarists are Scriptwriters who write the Screenplays from which Films and Television programs are made An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works A film producer is a person who creates the conditions for making movies. Events 63 BC - Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations. Year 1890 ( MDCCCXC) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Vienna ( in Wien; see also other names) is the Capital of Austria, and is also one of the nine States of Austria. Events 338 BC - A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the Year 1976 ( MCMLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
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