William Dieterle
Encyclopedia
William Dieterle was a German
actor
and film director
, who worked in Hollywood for much of his career. His best known films include The Devil and Daniel Webster
, The Story of Louis Pasteur
and The Hunchback of Notre Dame
. His 1937 film The Life of Emile Zola
won the Academy Award for Best Picture
.
in Berlin
who hired him as an actor for his productions until 1924. He started acting in German films in 1921 to make more money and quickly became a popular character actor. He usually portrayed "country yokels" or simpletons with great gusto and popularity, but he was ambitious to begin a career as a director. In 1921 Dieterle married Charolette Hagenbruch, an actress and later screenwriter with whom he would remain with until his death.
In 1923 Dieterle used his own money to make his first film, Der Mensch am Wege. Based on a Leo Tolstoy
short story, the film co-starred a young Marlene Dietrich
. Years later Dieterle said of the film "we were just four or five very young, enthusiastic, and revolutionary people who wanted to do something different. We brought it out; it didn't make any money, but was shown and it was an interesting experiment." In 1924 Dieterle left Reinhardt's company and formed his own theater company in Berlin, although it was unsuccessful and short lived. He also returned to film acting for several years and appeared in such notable German films as Das Wachsfigurenkabinett (Waxworks
) (1924) and F.W. Murnau's Faust
(1926). In 1927, Dieterle and his wife formed their own production company, Charrha-Film, and Dieterle returned to directing films, such as Sex in Chains
(1928) in which he also played the lead role.
. Dieterle had said "It was a running joke in Berlin...if the phone rang at a restaurant they said it must be Hollywood. Well one night my wife and I were dining out and it really happened." Dieterle was offered a job at First National to make synchronized versions of Hollywood films in German, as the studios were afraid of losing foreign business with the advent of sound films. Instead, when Dieterle, his wife and a group of actors arrived they found that the films had already been synchronized and they were able to completely remake German versions of four Hollywood films, including Lloyd Bacon
's Moby Dick
(in which Dieterle played Ahab). After the four films were completed, Warner Brothers' Vice President of Production Hal B. Wallis
was so impressed that he invited Dieterle stay stay in Hollywood. He became a US citizen in 1937.
He adapted quickly to Hollywood filmmaking with his first film, The Last Flight
(1931). The film depicts four American fighter pilots who roam around Paris after World War I trying to put their lives back together. It starred Richard Barthelmess
and Helen Chandler
and was compared to the writings of F. Scott Fitzgerald
. Although not a success on its first run, it was hailed as a forgotten masterpiece at a 1970 revival screening. His initial Hollywood career was neither successful nor notable, and included such film as the W. C. Fields
musical Her Majesty, Love, Jewel Robbery
, Adorable and Fog Over Frisco
with Bette Davis
.
In 1934, Max Reinhardt
was staging a version of A Midsummer Night's Dream
at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Dieterle convinced Warner Brothers to finance a big budget version of the film with an all-star cast. The resulting film, A Midsummer Night's Dream
, revitalized Dieterle's career as a major Hollywood director. Starring James Cagney
, Olivia de Havilland
, Joe E. Brown and an 11-year-old Mickey Rooney
, the film had very mixed reviews for its "Americanization" of Shakespeare, but was a success on release and considered a classic today. During production, Reinhardt would rehearse the actors and then let Dieterle direct the film.
Dieterle then directed the first of his famous and hugely successful "biography films" with actor Paul Muni
, beginning with The Story of Louis Pasteur
in 1935. The film starred Paul Muni
as the famous scientist who discovered the principles of vaccination and struggled against a skeptical medical community. The film was a success both critically and financially and earned Muni the Oscar for Best Actor
. It also help to establish Warner Brothers as a producer of "prestige pictures" after almost a decade of being known primarily for crime dramas. Unfortunately this lead to several films which Dietrle did not like because "at Warners the moment you had a success they gave you something terrible to keep you from getting a swelled head." These films included the second version of Dashiell Hammett
's The Maltese Falcon
, Satan Met a Lady
with Bette Davis, The Prince and the Pauper
and another bio-pic about Florence Nightingale
, The White Angel
.
Dieterle was then allowed to make another bio-pic with Paul Muni, The Life of Emile Zola
. Based on the life of the French philosopher and novelist Emile Zola
, the film mostly depicts Zola's commitment to the infamous Dreyfus Case of a Jewish French Officer falsely accused of treason by his superiors and sent to prison. The film was an enormous success and writer Frank S. Nugent called it "the finest historical film ever made and the greatest screen biography." It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards
and won for Best Picture
, Best Supporting Actor
for Joseph Schildkraut
(as Dreyfus) and Best Screenplay. Dieterle lost the award for Best Director to Leo McCarey
. It was his only nomination.
Dieterle's next film is perhaps his most infamous, as it would come back to haunt both him and screenwriter John Howard Lawson
later in life. Blockade
stars Henry Fonda
as a dedicated Loyalist fighter and Madeline Carroll
as the reluctant Franco spy who falls in love with him during the Spanish Civil War
. The film was openly anti-fascist and critical of nations that stood by and let fascist dictators commit atrocities. It was mildly controversial upon release, but would become one of the major films cited by Congressional Committees during the Hollywood Witch Hunt
of the 1940s and 1950s. Its 1938 premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theater was abruptly and inexplicably cancelled.
Juarez
was the third biographical picture that Dieterle made with Paul Muni, depicting the life of Mexican politician Benito Juárez
and his conflict with Emperor Maximilian I
. Upon its release, Dieterle was called "the quintessential liberal director of the 30s" and when interviewed in the 1970s Dieterle said "it should be the biggest kind of picture right now- a big modern army worn down by guerrilla fighters. The parallel with Vietnam is so obvious."
Dieterle again found both financial and critical success with The Hunchback of Notre Dame
in 1939. The film starred Charles Laughton
as Quasimodo and a 19-year-old Maureen O'Hara
as Esmeralda. Dieterle then made two more bio-pics, this time both starring Edward G. Robinson
instead of Paul Muni. Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet is about Paul Ehrlich
's discovery of Salvarsan, which made syphilis curable; and A Dispatch From Reuter's, about the man who established the first news agency. These were his last films for Warner brothers.
has written that the bio-pics of the 30s are "ponderous, Germanic works, suffering from staginess and the unrestrained histrionics of Paul Muni", while his later works "reveal a previously submerged talent for the lavish romantic."
The Devil and Daniel Webster
(also known as All That Money Can Buy, 1941) is a gothic fantasy and loose adaptation of the Faust
legend set in 1840s New Hampshire. Starring Walter Huston
and Edward Arnold
as the titular Prince of Darkness and early Congressman who battle over the soul of Jabez Stone after an ill-conceived deal with the devil. Although unsuccessful upon its initial release, it is today a classic with Noirish cinematography by Joe August, Oscar winning score by Bernard Herrman and still impressive special effects. It has recently (and notoriously) been remade by Alec Baldwin.
After another bio-pic about Andrew Johnson
called Tennessee Johnson
starring Van Heflin
and Lionel Barrymore
and a remake of Kismet
(1944) with Ronald Colman
and Marlene Dietrich
, Dieterle made Love Letters
in 1945. The films improbably plot stars Joseph Cotten
as a soldier who writes love letters on behalf of a friend during World War II. Jennifer Jones
stars as the recipient of the letters who falls in love with the writer. Years after the war, Cotten tracks down Jones only to find that she has lost her memory and apparently killed her husband. The film was produced by Jones's then husband David O. Selznick
, who also produced Dieterle's next film.
Portrait of Jennie
(1948) stars Cotten and Jones as a painter and his muse. After meeting in Central Park one day, Cotten paints a portrait of Jones that makes him famous, but is unable to find his muse who he has fallen in love with. The film's budget became overinflated and Selznick was forced to sell Dieterle's contract to Paramount Pictures, where his career never reached the heights of the previous 15 years.
period. Although he was never blacklisted directly, his libertarian film Blockade
(1938) as well as some of the people he worked with were considered suspect. Also, in the 1930s he and his wife had worked to help get people out of Nazi Germany and given aid to many left-wing friends, including Bertolt Brecht
. Of this period, Dieterle said "Although I was never to my knowledge on any blacklist, I must have been on some kind of gray list because I couldn't get any work."
He continued to make American films in the 1950s, including the film noir
The Turning Point
(1952) and Salome
(1953) with Rita Hayworth
. Production for Elephant Walk
with Elizabeth Taylor
was held up for three months when the State Department would not allow Dieterle to travel to Ceylon. He made two more Hollywood films before moving back to Europe: a biopic of Richard Wagner
, Magic Fire (1955) for Republic Pictures
and Omar Khayyam
.
He made some films in Germany and Italy, and a notorious U.S. flop, Quick, Let's Get Married (1964) - also known as The Confession or Seven Different Ways - with Ginger Rogers
before retiring in 1965.
Dieterle is remembered for always wearing a large hat and white gloves on set. This was due to needing to quickly change roles from actor to technician without dirtying his hands during his early career.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
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...
and 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:...
, who worked in Hollywood for much of his career. His best known films include The Devil and Daniel Webster
The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941 film)
The Devil and Daniel Webster is a 1941 fantasy film, adapted by Stephen Vincent Benét and Dan Totheroh from Benét's short story, "The Devil and Daniel Webster". The film's title was changed to All That Money Can Buy to avoid confusion with another film released by RKO that year, The Devil and Miss...
, The Story of Louis Pasteur
The Story of Louis Pasteur
The Story of Louis Pasteur is a 1936 American biographical film. It starred Paul Muni as the renowned scientist. It was written by Toni Pollastre and Sheridan Gibney, and Edward Chodorov , and directed by William Dieterle....
and The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American monochrome film starring Charles Laughton as Quasimodo and Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda. It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Pandro S. Berman...
. His 1937 film The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
won the Academy Award for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
.
Early Life and Career
He was born Wilhelm Dieterle, the youngest child of nine, to Jacob and Berthe (Doerr) Dieterle. As a child, he lived in considerable poverty and earned money by various means including carpentry and as a scrap dealer. He became interested in theater early and would stage productions in the family barn for friends and family. At the age of sixteen he had joined a traveling theater company as a handy-man, scene shifter and apprentice actor. His striking good looks and ambition soon paved the way as a leading romantic actor in theater productions. In 1919, he attracted the attention of Max ReinhardtMax Reinhardt (theatre director)
----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
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...
who hired him as an actor for his productions until 1924. He started acting in German films in 1921 to make more money and quickly became a popular character actor. He usually portrayed "country yokels" or simpletons with great gusto and popularity, but he was ambitious to begin a career as a director. In 1921 Dieterle married Charolette Hagenbruch, an actress and later screenwriter with whom he would remain with until his death.
In 1923 Dieterle used his own money to make his first film, Der Mensch am Wege. Based on a Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy
Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy was a Russian writer who primarily wrote novels and short stories. Later in life, he also wrote plays and essays. His two most famous works, the novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina, are acknowledged as two of the greatest novels of all time and a pinnacle of realist...
short story, the film co-starred a young Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
. Years later Dieterle said of the film "we were just four or five very young, enthusiastic, and revolutionary people who wanted to do something different. We brought it out; it didn't make any money, but was shown and it was an interesting experiment." In 1924 Dieterle left Reinhardt's company and formed his own theater company in Berlin, although it was unsuccessful and short lived. He also returned to film acting for several years and appeared in such notable German films as Das Wachsfigurenkabinett (Waxworks
Waxworks (film)
Waxworks is a 1924 fantasy/horror silent film directed by Paul Leni. The film is about a writer who accepts a job from a waxworks proprietor to write a series of stories about the exhibits of Caliph of Baghdad , Ivan the Terrible and Jack the Ripper in order to boost business.Although...
) (1924) and F.W. Murnau's Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
(1926). In 1927, Dieterle and his wife formed their own production company, Charrha-Film, and Dieterle returned to directing films, such as Sex in Chains
Sex in Chains
Sex in Chains , original German title Geschlecht in Fesseln, is a silent film directed by William Dieterle.-Plot:The film opens with Franz Sommer and his newlywed wife, Helene . They are going through hard times, and Sommer is without steady employment, partly due to his honest-to-a-fault nature...
(1928) in which he also played the lead role.
Hollywood Career: 1930s
In 1930, the political and economic situations in Germany were becoming worse and, like many from the German film industry, Dieterle emigrated to the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Dieterle had said "It was a running joke in Berlin...if the phone rang at a restaurant they said it must be Hollywood. Well one night my wife and I were dining out and it really happened." Dieterle was offered a job at First National to make synchronized versions of Hollywood films in German, as the studios were afraid of losing foreign business with the advent of sound films. Instead, when Dieterle, his wife and a group of actors arrived they found that the films had already been synchronized and they were able to completely remake German versions of four Hollywood films, including Lloyd Bacon
Lloyd Bacon
Lloyd Francis Bacon was a screen, stage, and vaudeville actor and film director.-Life:Bacon was born in San Jose California, the son of actor Frank Bacon, later the co-author and star of the long running Broadway show 'Lightnin' , and Jennie Bacon. He was not related to actor Irving Bacon whom he...
's Moby Dick
Moby Dick (1930 film)
Moby Dick is a 1930 film made by Warner Bros., directed by Lloyd Bacon, and starring John Barrymore and Joan Bennett. The film is a sound remake of the 1926 silent movie, The Sea Beast, starring Barrymore, which uses exactly the same plot as the 1930 version.- Plot :The film tells of a sea...
(in which Dieterle played Ahab). After the four films were completed, Warner Brothers' Vice President of Production Hal B. Wallis
Hal B. Wallis
Hal B. Wallis was an American film producer.-Career:Harold Brent Wallis was born in Chicago in 1898. His family moved in 1922 to Los Angeles, California, where he found work as part of the publicity department at Warner Bros...
was so impressed that he invited Dieterle stay stay in Hollywood. He became a US citizen in 1937.
He adapted quickly to Hollywood filmmaking with his first film, The Last Flight
The Last Flight (film)
The Last Flight is a 1931 ensemble film starring Richard Barthelmess, David Manners, John Mack Brown, and Helen Chandler.-Plot:The film is known as a Lost Generation celebration of alcohol involving three young World War I veterans who opt to drink indefinitely and almost continuously in Paris with...
(1931). The film depicts four American fighter pilots who roam around Paris after World War I trying to put their lives back together. It starred Richard Barthelmess
Richard Barthelmess
Richard Semler "Dick" Barthelmess was an Oscar-nominated silent film star.-Early life:Barthelmess was educated at Hudson River Military Academy at Nyack and Trinity College at Hartford, Connecticut...
and Helen Chandler
Helen Chandler
Helen Chandler was an American film and theater actress.-Career:Born in Charleston, South Carolina, Chandler began her acting career in New York at the age of nine and was on Broadway two years later in 1917...
and was compared to the writings of F. Scott Fitzgerald
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald was an American author of novels and short stories, whose works are the paradigm writings of the Jazz Age, a term he coined himself. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century. Fitzgerald is considered a member of the "Lost...
. Although not a success on its first run, it was hailed as a forgotten masterpiece at a 1970 revival screening. His initial Hollywood career was neither successful nor notable, and included such film as the W. C. Fields
W. C. Fields
William Claude Dukenfield , better known as W. C. Fields, was an American comedian, actor, juggler and writer...
musical Her Majesty, Love, Jewel Robbery
Jewel Robbery
Jewel Robbery is a 1932 comedy film directed by William Dieterle and starring William Powell and Kay Francis. It was based on the play Ekszerrablás a Váci-uccában by Ladislas Fodor and the English adaptation, Jewel Robbery, by Bertram Bloch.-Plot:...
, Adorable and Fog Over Frisco
Fog Over Frisco
Fog Over Frisco is a 1934 American drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Robert N. Lee and Eugene Solow was based on the short story The Five Fragments by George Dyer.-Plot:...
with Bette Davis
Bette Davis
Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
.
In 1934, Max Reinhardt
Max Reinhardt
----Max Reinhardt was an Austrian theater and film director and actor.-Biography:...
was staging a version of A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a play that was written by William Shakespeare. It is believed to have been written between 1590 and 1596. It portrays the events surrounding the marriage of the Duke of Athens, Theseus, and the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta...
at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. Dieterle convinced Warner Brothers to finance a big budget version of the film with an all-star cast. The resulting film, A Midsummer Night's Dream
A Midsummer Night's Dream (1935 film)
A Midsummer Night's Dream is a 1935 film directed by Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle, produced by Henry Blanke and Hal Wallis, and adapted by Charles Kenyon and Mary C. McCall Jr...
, revitalized Dieterle's career as a major Hollywood director. Starring James Cagney
James Cagney
James Francis Cagney, Jr. was an American actor, first on stage, then in film, where he had his greatest impact. Although he won acclaim and major awards for a wide variety of performances, he is best remembered for playing "tough guys." In 1999, the American Film Institute ranked him eighth...
, Olivia de Havilland
Olivia de Havilland
Olivia Mary de Havilland is a British American film and stage actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1946 and 1949. She is the elder sister of actress Joan Fontaine. The sisters are among the last surviving leading ladies from Hollywood of the 1930s.-Early life:Olivia de Havilland...
, Joe E. Brown and an 11-year-old Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
, the film had very mixed reviews for its "Americanization" of Shakespeare, but was a success on release and considered a classic today. During production, Reinhardt would rehearse the actors and then let Dieterle direct the film.
Dieterle then directed the first of his famous and hugely successful "biography films" with actor Paul Muni
Paul Muni
Paul Muni was an Austrian-Hungarian-born American stage and film actor...
, beginning with The Story of Louis Pasteur
The Story of Louis Pasteur
The Story of Louis Pasteur is a 1936 American biographical film. It starred Paul Muni as the renowned scientist. It was written by Toni Pollastre and Sheridan Gibney, and Edward Chodorov , and directed by William Dieterle....
in 1935. The film starred Paul Muni
Paul Muni
Paul Muni was an Austrian-Hungarian-born American stage and film actor...
as the famous scientist who discovered the principles of vaccination and struggled against a skeptical medical community. The film was a success both critically and financially and earned Muni the Oscar for Best Actor
Academy Award for Best Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
. It also help to establish Warner Brothers as a producer of "prestige pictures" after almost a decade of being known primarily for crime dramas. Unfortunately this lead to several films which Dietrle did not like because "at Warners the moment you had a success they gave you something terrible to keep you from getting a swelled head." These films included the second version of Dashiell Hammett
Dashiell Hammett
Samuel Dashiell Hammett was an American author of hard-boiled detective novels and short stories, and political activist. Among the enduring characters he created are Sam Spade , Nick and Nora Charles , and the Continental Op .In addition to the significant influence his novels and stories had on...
's The Maltese Falcon
The Maltese Falcon
The Maltese Falcon is a 1930 detective novel by Dashiell Hammett, originally serialized in the magazine Black Mask. The story has been adapted several times for the cinema...
, Satan Met a Lady
Satan Met a Lady
Satan Met a Lady is a 1936 American detective film directed by William Dieterle and starring Bette Davis.The screenplay by Brown Holmes is a loose adaptation of the 1930 novel The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, which previously was filmed in 1931 under its original title.-Plot:Private...
with Bette Davis, The Prince and the Pauper
The Prince and the Pauper (1937 film)
The Prince and the Pauper is a 1937 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Mark Twain. It starred Errol Flynn, twins Billy and Bobby Mauch in the title roles, and Claude Rains....
and another bio-pic about Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale
Florence Nightingale OM, RRC was a celebrated English nurse, writer and statistician. She came to prominence for her pioneering work in nursing during the Crimean War, where she tended to wounded soldiers. She was dubbed "The Lady with the Lamp" after her habit of making rounds at night...
, The White Angel
The White Angel (1936 film)
The White Angel is a 1936 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Kay Francis, Ian Hunter, Donald Woods and Nigel Bruce...
.
Dieterle was then allowed to make another bio-pic with Paul Muni, The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola
The Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
. Based on the life of the French philosopher and novelist Emile Zola
Émile Zola
Émile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...
, the film mostly depicts Zola's commitment to the infamous Dreyfus Case of a Jewish French Officer falsely accused of treason by his superiors and sent to prison. The film was an enormous success and writer Frank S. Nugent called it "the finest historical film ever made and the greatest screen biography." It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
and won for Best Picture
Academy Award for Best Picture
The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to artists working in the motion picture industry. The Best Picture category is the only category in which every member of the Academy is eligible not only...
, Best Supporting Actor
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
for Joseph Schildkraut
Joseph Schildkraut
Joseph Schildkraut was an Austrian stage and film actor.-Early life:Born in Vienna, Austria, Schildkraut was the son of stage actor Rudolph Schildkraut. The younger Schildkraut moved to the United States in the early 1900s. He appeared in many Broadway productions...
(as Dreyfus) and Best Screenplay. Dieterle lost the award for Best Director to Leo McCarey
Leo McCarey
Thomas Leo McCarey was an American film director, screenwriter and producer. During his lifetime he was involved in nearly 200 movies, especially comedies...
. It was his only nomination.
Dieterle's next film is perhaps his most infamous, as it would come back to haunt both him and screenwriter John Howard Lawson
John Howard Lawson
John Howard Lawson was an American writer. He was head of the Hollywood division of the Communist Party USA. He was also the cell's cultural manager, and answered directly to V.J. Jerome, the Party's New York-based cultural chief...
later in life. Blockade
Blockade (1938 film)
Blockade is a 1938 American drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Madeleine Carroll, Henry Fonda and Leo Carrillo. During the Spanish Civil War a farmer takes up arms to fight for the Republican side.-Cast:* Madeleine Carroll - Norma...
stars Henry Fonda
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda was an American film and stage actor.Fonda made his mark early as a Broadway actor. He also appeared in 1938 in plays performed in White Plains, New York, with Joan Tompkins...
as a dedicated Loyalist fighter and Madeline Carroll
Madeline Carroll
Madeline Carroll is an American actress who was first noticed for her role as Molly Johnson in 2008's Swing Vote. Carroll had many supporting roles in various films Comedy and Drama...
as the reluctant Franco spy who falls in love with him during the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
. The film was openly anti-fascist and critical of nations that stood by and let fascist dictators commit atrocities. It was mildly controversial upon release, but would become one of the major films cited by Congressional Committees during the Hollywood Witch Hunt
McCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
of the 1940s and 1950s. Its 1938 premiere at Grauman's Chinese Theater was abruptly and inexplicably cancelled.
Juarez
Juarez (1939 film)
Juarez is a 1939 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Aeneas MacKenzie, John Huston, and Wolfgang Reinhardt is based on the novel The Phantom Crown by Bertita Harding and the play Juarez and Maximilian by Franz Werfel.-Plot:The film focuses on the conflict...
was the third biographical picture that Dieterle made with Paul Muni, depicting the life of Mexican politician Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez
Benito Juárez born Benito Pablo Juárez García, was a Mexican lawyer and politician of Zapotec origin from Oaxaca who served five terms as president of Mexico: 1858–1861 as interim, 1861–1865, 1865–1867, 1867–1871 and 1871–1872...
and his conflict with Emperor Maximilian I
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
. Upon its release, Dieterle was called "the quintessential liberal director of the 30s" and when interviewed in the 1970s Dieterle said "it should be the biggest kind of picture right now- a big modern army worn down by guerrilla fighters. The parallel with Vietnam is so obvious."
Dieterle again found both financial and critical success with The Hunchback of Notre Dame
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)
The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American monochrome film starring Charles Laughton as Quasimodo and Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda. It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Pandro S. Berman...
in 1939. The film starred Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton
Charles Laughton was an English-American stage and film actor, screenwriter, producer and director.-Early life and career:...
as Quasimodo and a 19-year-old Maureen O'Hara
Maureen O'Hara
Maureen O'Hara is an Irish film actress and singer. The famously red-headed O'Hara has been noted for playing fiercely passionate heroines with a highly sensible attitude. She often worked with director John Ford and longtime friend John Wayne...
as Esmeralda. Dieterle then made two more bio-pics, this time both starring Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson
Edward G. Robinson was a Romanian-born American actor. A popular star during Hollywood's Golden Age, he is best remembered for his roles as gangsters, such as Rico in his star-making film Little Caesar and as Rocco in Key Largo...
instead of Paul Muni. Dr. Ehrlich's Magic Bullet is about Paul Ehrlich
Paul Ehrlich
Paul Ehrlich was a German scientist in the fields of hematology, immunology, and chemotherapy, and Nobel laureate. He is noted for curing syphilis and for his research in autoimmunity, calling it "horror autotoxicus"...
's discovery of Salvarsan, which made syphilis curable; and A Dispatch From Reuter's, about the man who established the first news agency. These were his last films for Warner brothers.
Hollywood Career: 1940s
During the 1940s, Dieterle works were infused with more lush, romantic expression. Many critics see the films of this period as some of his best works, although at the time many felt that his career had "reached it peak in the 30s, afterwards descending into routine, facile melodramas." David ThomsonDavid Thomson
David Thomson may refer to:* David Coupar Thomson , Scottish publisher, founder of D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd* David Thomson, 3rd Baron Thomson of Fleet , Canadian businessman and currently the wealthiest individual in Canada...
has written that the bio-pics of the 30s are "ponderous, Germanic works, suffering from staginess and the unrestrained histrionics of Paul Muni", while his later works "reveal a previously submerged talent for the lavish romantic."
The Devil and Daniel Webster (1941 film)
The Devil and Daniel Webster is a 1941 fantasy film, adapted by Stephen Vincent Benét and Dan Totheroh from Benét's short story, "The Devil and Daniel Webster". The film's title was changed to All That Money Can Buy to avoid confusion with another film released by RKO that year, The Devil and Miss...
(also known as All That Money Can Buy, 1941) is a gothic fantasy and loose adaptation of the Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
legend set in 1840s New Hampshire. Starring Walter Huston
Walter Huston
Walter Thomas Huston was a Canadian-born American actor. He was the father of actor and director John Huston and the grandfather of actress Anjelica Huston and actor Danny Huston.-Life and career:...
and Edward Arnold
Edward Arnold (actor)
Edward Arnold was an American actor. He was born on the Lower East Side of New York City as Gunther Edward Arnold Schneider, the son of German immigrants Carl Schneider and Elizabeth Ohse.-Acting career:...
as the titular Prince of Darkness and early Congressman who battle over the soul of Jabez Stone after an ill-conceived deal with the devil. Although unsuccessful upon its initial release, it is today a classic with Noirish cinematography by Joe August, Oscar winning score by Bernard Herrman and still impressive special effects. It has recently (and notoriously) been remade by Alec Baldwin.
After another bio-pic about Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
called Tennessee Johnson
Tennessee Johnson
Tennessee Johnson is a 1942 American film about Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States. It was directed by William Dieterle and written by Milton Gunzburg, Alvin Meyers, John Balderston, and Wells Root. It starred Van Heflin as Johnson, Lionel Barrymore as his nemesis Thaddeus...
starring Van Heflin
Van Heflin
Emmett Evan "Van" Heflin, Jr. was an American film and theatre actor. He played mostly character parts over the course of his film career, but during the 1940s had a string of roles as a leading man...
and Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore
Lionel Barrymore was an American actor of stage, screen and radio. He won an Academy Award for Best Actor for his performance in A Free Soul...
and a remake of Kismet
Kismet
Kismet may refer to:* Fate or Destiny in Turkish and Hindi-Urdu, a predetermined course of events, from Persian qesmat, from Arabic qisma, lot, from qasama, to divide, allot...
(1944) with Ronald Colman
Ronald Colman
Ronald Charles Colman was an English actor.-Early years:He was born in Richmond, Surrey, England, the second son and fourth child of Charles Colman and his wife Marjory Read Fraser. His siblings included Eric, Edith, and Marjorie. He was educated at boarding school in Littlehampton, where he...
and Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich
Marlene Dietrich was a German-American actress and singer.Dietrich remained popular throughout her long career by continually re-inventing herself, professionally and characteristically. In the Berlin of the 1920s, she acted on the stage and in silent films...
, Dieterle made Love Letters
Love Letters (1945 film)
Love Letters is a 1945 film adapted by Ayn Rand from the novel Pity My Simplicity by Christopher Massie. It was directed by William Dieterle and stars Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ann Richards, Cecil Kellaway, Gladys Cooper and Anita Louise...
in 1945. The films improbably plot stars Joseph Cotten
Joseph Cotten
Joseph Cheshire Cotten was an American actor of stage and film. Cotten achieved prominence on Broadway, starring in the original productions of The Philadelphia Story and Sabrina Fair...
as a soldier who writes love letters on behalf of a friend during World War II. Jennifer Jones
Jennifer Jones
Phylis Lee Isley , better known by her stage name Jennifer Jones, was an American actress. A five-time Academy Award nominee, Jones won the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in The Song of Bernadette .-Early life:Jones was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the daughter of Flora Mae and...
stars as the recipient of the letters who falls in love with the writer. Years after the war, Cotten tracks down Jones only to find that she has lost her memory and apparently killed her husband. The film was produced by Jones's then husband David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick
David O. Selznick was an American film producer. He is best known for having produced Gone with the Wind and Rebecca , both of which earned him an Oscar for Best Picture.-Early years:...
, who also produced Dieterle's next film.
Portrait of Jennie
Portrait of Jennie
Portrait of Jennie is a 1948 fantasy film based on the novella by Robert Nathan. The film was directed by William Dieterle and produced by David O. Selznick. It stars Jennifer Jones and Joseph Cotten.-Plot:...
(1948) stars Cotten and Jones as a painter and his muse. After meeting in Central Park one day, Cotten paints a portrait of Jones that makes him famous, but is unable to find his muse who he has fallen in love with. The film's budget became overinflated and Selznick was forced to sell Dieterle's contract to Paramount Pictures, where his career never reached the heights of the previous 15 years.
Later Career
Dieterle's career declined in the 1950s during the McCarthyismMcCarthyism
McCarthyism is the practice of making accusations of disloyalty, subversion, or treason without proper regard for evidence. The term has its origins in the period in the United States known as the Second Red Scare, lasting roughly from the late 1940s to the late 1950s and characterized by...
period. Although he was never blacklisted directly, his libertarian film Blockade
Blockade (1938 film)
Blockade is a 1938 American drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Madeleine Carroll, Henry Fonda and Leo Carrillo. During the Spanish Civil War a farmer takes up arms to fight for the Republican side.-Cast:* Madeleine Carroll - Norma...
(1938) as well as some of the people he worked with were considered suspect. Also, in the 1930s he and his wife had worked to help get people out of Nazi Germany and given aid to many left-wing friends, including Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht
Bertolt Brecht was a German poet, playwright, and theatre director.An influential theatre practitioner of the 20th century, Brecht made equally significant contributions to dramaturgy and theatrical production, the latter particularly through the seismic impact of the tours undertaken by the...
. Of this period, Dieterle said "Although I was never to my knowledge on any blacklist, I must have been on some kind of gray list because I couldn't get any work."
He continued to make American films in the 1950s, including the film noir
Film noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
The Turning Point
The Turning Point (1952 film)
The Turning Point is a 1952 crime syndicate drama starring Edmond O'Brien. It's based on Horace McCoy's novel "Storm in the City" and inspired by the Kefauver Committee hearings.-Plot:...
(1952) and Salome
Salome (1953 film)
Salome is a Biblical epic film made in Technicolor by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Buddy Adler from a screenplay by Harry Kleiner and Jesse Lasky Jr. The music score was by George Duning, the dance music by Daniele Amfitheatrof and the cinematography by...
(1953) with Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth was an American film actress and dancer who attained fame during the 1940s as one of the era's top stars...
. Production for Elephant Walk
Elephant Walk
Elephant Walk is a 1954 Paramount Pictures film, directed by William Dieterle, and starring Elizabeth Taylor, Dana Andrews, Peter Finch and Abraham Sofaer....
with Elizabeth Taylor
Elizabeth Taylor
Dame Elizabeth Rosemond "Liz" Taylor, DBE was a British-American actress. From her early years as a child star with MGM, she became one of the great screen actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age...
was held up for three months when the State Department would not allow Dieterle to travel to Ceylon. He made two more Hollywood films before moving back to Europe: a biopic of Richard Wagner
Richard Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director, philosopher, music theorist, poet, essayist and writer primarily known for his operas...
, Magic Fire (1955) for Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures
Republic Pictures was an independent film production-distribution corporation with studio facilities, operating from 1934 through 1959, and was best known for specializing in westerns, movie serials and B films emphasizing mystery and action....
and Omar Khayyam
Omar Khayyam (film)
Omar Khayyam is an American movie directed by William Dieterle, filmed in 1956 and released in 1957...
.
He made some films in Germany and Italy, and a notorious U.S. flop, Quick, Let's Get Married (1964) - also known as The Confession or Seven Different Ways - with Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers
Ginger Rogers was an American actress, dancer, and singer who appeared in film, and on stage, radio, and television throughout much of the 20th century....
before retiring in 1965.
Dieterle is remembered for always wearing a large hat and white gloves on set. This was due to needing to quickly change roles from actor to technician without dirtying his hands during his early career.
Filmography
- 1923 : Der Mensch am Wege
- 1927 : Behind The Altar
- 1928 : The Saint and Her Fool
- 1928 : Sex in ChainsSex in ChainsSex in Chains , original German title Geschlecht in Fesseln, is a silent film directed by William Dieterle.-Plot:The film opens with Franz Sommer and his newlywed wife, Helene . They are going through hard times, and Sommer is without steady employment, partly due to his honest-to-a-fault nature...
- 1929 : Durchs Brandenburger Tor. Solang noch Untern Linden
- 1929 : Ich liebe für Dich
- 1929 : Frühlingsrauschen
- 1929 : Das Schweigen im Walde
- 1930 : The Costume Falls
- 1930 : Ludwig der Zweite, König von Bayern
- 1930 : Those Who Dance (German version)
- 1930 : Kismet (German version)
- 1930 : Eine Stunde Glück (German version)
- 1930 : Moby Dick (German version)
- 1931 : The Last FlightThe Last Flight (film)The Last Flight is a 1931 ensemble film starring Richard Barthelmess, David Manners, John Mack Brown, and Helen Chandler.-Plot:The film is known as a Lost Generation celebration of alcohol involving three young World War I veterans who opt to drink indefinitely and almost continuously in Paris with...
- 1931 : Her Majesty, Love
- 1932 : Man Wanted
- 1932 : Jewel RobberyJewel RobberyJewel Robbery is a 1932 comedy film directed by William Dieterle and starring William Powell and Kay Francis. It was based on the play Ekszerrablás a Váci-uccában by Ladislas Fodor and the English adaptation, Jewel Robbery, by Bertram Bloch.-Plot:...
- 1932 : The Crash
- 1932 : Six Hours to Live
- 1932 : Scarlet Dawn
- 1933 : Lawyer ManLawyer ManLawyer Man is a 1933 Warner Bros. drama film directed by William Dieterle. The story is based on the novel by Max Trell and the film stars William Powell and Joan Blondell....
- 1933 : Grand Slam
- 1933 : Adorable
- 1933 : The Devil's in Love
- 1933 : FemaleFemale (film)Female is a 1933 Warner Bros. pre-code film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Ruth Chatterton and George Brent. It is based on the novel of the same name by Donald Henderson Clarke.-Plot:...
- 1933 : From Headquarters
- 1934 : Fog Over FriscoFog Over FriscoFog Over Frisco is a 1934 American drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Robert N. Lee and Eugene Solow was based on the short story The Five Fragments by George Dyer.-Plot:...
- 1934: Fashions of 1934Fashions of 1934-Cast:*William Powell as Sherwood Nash*Bette Davis as Lynn Mason*Frank McHugh as Snap*Reginald Owen as Oscar Baroque*Verree Teasdale as Grand Duchess Alix*Hugh Herbert as Joe Ward*Henry O'Neill as Duryea...
- 1934 : Dr Monica
- 1934 : Madame Du BarryMadame Du Barry (1934 film)Madame DuBarry is a 1934 American historical film directed by William Dieterle and starring Dolores del Rio, Reginald Owen, Victor Jory and Osgood Perkins. The film portrays the life of Madame Du Barry, the last mistress of King Louis XV of France...
- 1934 : The Firebird
- 1934 : The Secret Bride
- 1935 : A Midsummer Night's DreamA Midsummer Night's Dream (1935 film)A Midsummer Night's Dream is a 1935 film directed by Max Reinhardt and William Dieterle, produced by Henry Blanke and Hal Wallis, and adapted by Charles Kenyon and Mary C. McCall Jr...
- 1935 : Dr Socrates
- 1935 : The Story of Louis PasteurThe Story of Louis PasteurThe Story of Louis Pasteur is a 1936 American biographical film. It starred Paul Muni as the renowned scientist. It was written by Toni Pollastre and Sheridan Gibney, and Edward Chodorov , and directed by William Dieterle....
- 1936 : The White AngelThe White Angel (1936 film)The White Angel is a 1936 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Kay Francis, Ian Hunter, Donald Woods and Nigel Bruce...
- 1936 :Satan Met a LadySatan Met a LadySatan Met a Lady is a 1936 American detective film directed by William Dieterle and starring Bette Davis.The screenplay by Brown Holmes is a loose adaptation of the 1930 novel The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett, which previously was filmed in 1931 under its original title.-Plot:Private...
- 1937 : The Great O'Malley
- 1937 : The Prince and the PauperThe Prince and the Pauper (1937 film)The Prince and the Pauper is a 1937 film adaptation of the novel of the same name by Mark Twain. It starred Errol Flynn, twins Billy and Bobby Mauch in the title roles, and Claude Rains....
- 1937 : Another Dawn
- 1937 : The Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile ZolaThe Life of Emile Zola is a 1937 American biographical film about French author Émile Zola. Set in the mid through late 19th century, it depicts his friendship with noted painter Paul Cézanne, and his rise to fame through his prolific writing, with particular focus on his involvement in the Dreyfus...
- 1938 : BlockadeBlockade (1938 film)Blockade is a 1938 American drama film directed by William Dieterle and starring Madeleine Carroll, Henry Fonda and Leo Carrillo. During the Spanish Civil War a farmer takes up arms to fight for the Republican side.-Cast:* Madeleine Carroll - Norma...
- 1939 : JuarezJuarez (1939 film)Juarez is a 1939 American historical drama film directed by William Dieterle. The screenplay by Aeneas MacKenzie, John Huston, and Wolfgang Reinhardt is based on the novel The Phantom Crown by Bertita Harding and the play Juarez and Maximilian by Franz Werfel.-Plot:The film focuses on the conflict...
- 1939 : The Hunchback of Notre DameThe Hunchback of Notre Dame (1939 film)The Hunchback of Notre Dame is a 1939 American monochrome film starring Charles Laughton as Quasimodo and Maureen O'Hara as Esmeralda. It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Pandro S. Berman...
- 1940 : The Magic Bullet
- 1940 : A Dispatch from Reuter's
- 1941 : The Devil and Daniel WebsterThe Devil and Daniel Webster (1941 film)The Devil and Daniel Webster is a 1941 fantasy film, adapted by Stephen Vincent Benét and Dan Totheroh from Benét's short story, "The Devil and Daniel Webster". The film's title was changed to All That Money Can Buy to avoid confusion with another film released by RKO that year, The Devil and Miss...
- 1942 : Syncopation
- 1943 : Tennessee JohnsonTennessee JohnsonTennessee Johnson is a 1942 American film about Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States. It was directed by William Dieterle and written by Milton Gunzburg, Alvin Meyers, John Balderston, and Wells Root. It starred Van Heflin as Johnson, Lionel Barrymore as his nemesis Thaddeus...
- 1944 : KismetKismet (1944 film)Kismet is a 1944 Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film in Technicolor starring Ronald Colman, Marlene Dietrich, Joy Page, and Florence Bates. James Craig played the young Caliph of Baghdad, and Edward Arnold was the treacherous Grand Vizier...
- 1945 : I'll Be Seeing You
- 1945 : Love LettersLove Letters (1945 film)Love Letters is a 1945 film adapted by Ayn Rand from the novel Pity My Simplicity by Christopher Massie. It was directed by William Dieterle and stars Jennifer Jones, Joseph Cotten, Ann Richards, Cecil Kellaway, Gladys Cooper and Anita Louise...
- 1945 : This Love of Ours
- 1946 : The Searching Wind
- 1946 : Duel in the Sun (not credited)
- 1948 : Portrait of JenniePortrait of JenniePortrait of Jennie is a 1948 fantasy film based on the novella by Robert Nathan. The film was directed by William Dieterle and produced by David O. Selznick. It stars Jennifer Jones and Joseph Cotten.-Plot:...
- 1949 : The AccusedThe Accused (1949 film)The Accused is an American film noir directed by William Dieterle and written by Ketti Frings, based on Be Still, My Love, a novel written by June Truesdell...
- 1949 : Rope of SandRope of SandRope of Sand was a 1949 adventure film directed by William Dieterle, produced by Hal B. Wallis, starringBurt Lancaster, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains, Peter Lorre, Corinne Calvet, Sam Jaffe, and John Bromfield.-Plot:...
- 1950 : Paid in Full
- 1950 : Vulcano
- 1950 : September AffairSeptember AffairSeptember Affair is a 1950 film, directed by William Dieterle, starring Joan Fontaine, Joseph Cotten and Jessica Tandy. It was produced by Hal B. Wallis.-Plot:...
- 1950 : Dark CityDark City (1950 film)Dark City is a 1950 film noir. The casting of Charlton Heston—in his first Hollywood film appearance—as a petty hood is unusual in light of his subsequent career. The film also features Jack Webb and Harry Morgan, who both went on to co-star in Dragnet. The musical score was composed by Franz...
- 1951 : Peking ExpressPeking Express (film)Peking Express is a 1951 adventure film made by Paramount Pictures. It is the second remake of Paramount's earlier Shanghai Express , remade as Night Plane from Chungking . It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Hal B. Wallis, from a screenplay by John Meredyth Lucas, based on the...
- 1951 : Red Mountain
- 1952 : Boots MaloneBoots MaloneBoots Malone is a 1952 drama film starring William Holden as a down-on-his-luck sports agent and Johnny Stewart as a rich runaway who wants to become a jockey.-Plot:...
- 1952 : The Turning PointThe Turning Point (1952 film)The Turning Point is a 1952 crime syndicate drama starring Edmond O'Brien. It's based on Horace McCoy's novel "Storm in the City" and inspired by the Kefauver Committee hearings.-Plot:...
- 1953 : SalomeSalome (1953 film)Salome is a Biblical epic film made in Technicolor by Columbia Pictures. It was directed by William Dieterle and produced by Buddy Adler from a screenplay by Harry Kleiner and Jesse Lasky Jr. The music score was by George Duning, the dance music by Daniele Amfitheatrof and the cinematography by...
- 1954 : Elephant WalkElephant WalkElephant Walk is a 1954 Paramount Pictures film, directed by William Dieterle, and starring Elizabeth Taylor, Dana Andrews, Peter Finch and Abraham Sofaer....
- 1955 : Magic FireMagic FireMagic Fire is a biographical film about the life of composer Richard Wagner, released in the United States on March 29, 1956 by Republic Pictures. It had been released in the United Kingdom on July 15, 1955...
- 1956 : Screen Directors Playhouse (TV)
- 1956 : Le Choix de... (TV)
- 1957 : Omar KhayyamOmar Khayyam (film)Omar Khayyam is an American movie directed by William Dieterle, filmed in 1956 and released in 1957...
- 1959 : Il Vendicatore
- 1960 : Die Herrin der Welt - Teil II
- 1960 : Ich fand Julia Harrington
- 1960 : Fastnachtsbeichte
- 1960 : Les Mystères d'Angkor
- 1961 : Die Große Reise (TV)
- 1962 : Gabriel Schillings Flucht (TV)
- 1962 : Das Vergnügen, anständig zu sein (TV)
- 1962 : Antigone (TV)
- 1964 : The Confession
- 1966 : Samba (TV)
External links
- They Shoot Pictures, Don't They?
- Virtual History - Tobacco cards William Dieterle in the Bibliothèque du Film
- William Dieterle in the Deutsche Filminstitut