Marianne Hoppe (26 April 1909 – 23 October 2002) was a German

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perfor ...

and

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmospher ...

actress.

Life and work

Born in

Rostock Rostock (), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (german: link=no, Hanse- und Universitätsstadt Rostock), is the largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the state ...

, Hoppe became a leading lady of stage and films in Germany. She was born into a wealthy landowning family and was initially privately educated on her father's private estate. Later she attended school in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

and in

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in Central Germany between Erfurt in the west and Jena in the east, approximately southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together with the neighbouri ...

, where she began to attend theatre.Obituary: Marianne Hoppe. ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publish ...

'' (London), 29 October 2002. Hoppe first performed at 17 as a member of

's Deutsches Theater under director

Max Reinhardt Max Reinhardt (; born Maximilian Goldmann; 9 September 1873 – 30 October 1943) was an Austrian-born theatre and film director, intendant, and theatrical producer. With his innovative stage productions, he is regarded as one of the most pr ...

. In 1935 she was hired by the controversial German actor and Director of the Prussian State Theatre under the Third Reich, Gustaf Gründgens. They were married from 1936 to 1946, until their divorce. Speaking years after the marriage had ended Hoppe stated, "He was my love, but never my great love, that was work." One of the characters in the film ''

Mephisto Mephisto or Mephistopheles is one of the chief demons of German literary tradition. Mephisto or Mephistopheles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Méphisto'', a 1931 French film * Mephisto (1981 film), ''Mephisto'' (1981 film), a German- ...

'' was reportedly based on her. Hoppe made no secret of her contacts with the Nazi elite in the 1930s/40s, including being invited to dinner by Hitler.Obituary, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'', 2 November 2002. Her role in '' Der Schimmelreiter'' (''The Rider of the White Horse'', 1934) made her famous almost overnight, while her "Aryan" face made her a darling of the Nazi elite. Later Hoppe would label this period of her life as "the black page in my golden book". During her time acting at the home of the Prussian State Theatre, the Schauspielhaus, Hoppe developed her analytical approach to acting, which she stated consisted in her "taking apart every sentence" and giving the use of language a brilliance. This method was to be associated with Hoppe throughout her working life. In 1946 her only child, Benedikt Johann Percy Gründgens, was born. Four years later after her divorce from Gründgens, Hoppe had a great success as ''Blanche Dubois'' in

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thr ...

's ''

A Streetcar Named Desire ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is a play written by Tennessee Williams and first performed on Broadway on December 3, 1947. The play dramatizes the experiences of Blanche DuBois, a former Southern belle who, after encountering a series of per ...

'', and increasingly played avant-garde roles, written by authors such as Heiner Müller (Quartett, 1994) and

Thomas Bernhard Nicolaas Thomas Bernhard (; 9 February 1931 – 12 February 1989) was an Austrian novelist, playwright and poet who explored death, social injustice, and human misery in controversial literature that was deeply pessimistic about modern civiliza ...

, who became her partner in private life as well. She became a favourite of the young and iconoclastic directors

Claus Peymann Claus (sometimes Clas) is both a given name and a German, Danish, and Dutch surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg (1907–1944), a German officer who, along with others, attempted to assassina ...

, Robert Wilson and

Frank Castorf Frank Castorf (born 17 July 1951 in East Berlin) is a German theater director and was the artistic director of the ''Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz'' from 1992 to 2015. His work is often associated with postdramatic theatre. Biography E ...

Death

Hoppe died in

Siegsdorf Siegsdorf is a municipality in the district of Traunstein in Bavaria, Germany. Famous residents Siegsdorf is the home town of ski jumper Markus Eisenbichler and imposter and murderer Christian Gerhartsreiter Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter ...

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

, in 2002 from natural causes, aged 93. "German theater has lost its queen", said

of the

Berliner Ensemble The Berliner Ensemble () is a German theatre company established by actress Helene Weigel and her husband, playwright Bertolt Brecht, in January 1949 in East Berlin. In the time after Brecht's exile, the company first worked at Wolfgang Langho ...

, whose theatre featured Hoppe's last performance, in

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a p ...

's ''Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui,'' in December 1997. In one of her last interviews Hoppe stated, "I have a go at happiness every day. That takes discipline, a virtue every halfway decent actor should have."

Awards

* 1987

Bavarian Film Awards The Bavarian Film Awards (german: Bayerischer Filmpreis) have been awarded annually since 1979 by the state government of Bavaria in Germany for “exceptional achievement in German filmmaking.” Along with the German Film Awards, these are th ...

, Best Actress * 1996 Bavarian Film Awards, Honorary Award

Partial filmography

* '' The Judas of Tyrol'' (1933) - Josefa * '' The Country Schoolmaster'' (1933) - Ursula Diewen * ''

The Rider on the White Horse ''The Rider on the White Horse'' (German: ''Der Schimmelreiter'') is a novella by German writer Theodor Storm. It is his last complete work, first published in 1888, the year of his death. The novella is Storm's best remembered and most widely read ...

'' (1934) - Elke * '' Trouble with Jolanthe'' (1934) - Anna, her daughter * ''Schwarzer Jäger Johanna'' (1934) - Johanna Luerssen * ''Alles hört auf mein Kommando'' (1935) - Hella Bergson * ''

Sergeant Schwenke ''Sergeant Schwenke'' (German: ''Oberwachtmeister Schwenke'') is a 1935 German drama film directed by Carl Froelich and starring Gustav Fröhlich, Marianne Hoppe and Karl Dannemann. It was made at the former National Studios in Berlin's Tempelhof a ...

'' (1935) - Maria Schönborn, saleswoman at Floris flower shop * ''Die Werft zum Grauen Hecht'' (1935) - Käthe Liebenow * ''Anschlag auf Schweda'' (1935) - Regine Kessler * '' When the Cock Crows'' (1936) - Marie * ''

A Woman of No Importance ''A Woman of No Importance'' by Oscar Wilde is "a new and original play of modern life", in four acts, first given on 19 April 1893 at the Haymarket Theatre, London. Like Wilde's other society plays, it satirises English upper-class society. It ...

'' (1936) - Hester * ''

The Ruler ''The Ruler'' (German: ''Der Herrscher'') is a 1937 German drama film directed by Veit Harlan. It was adapted from the play of the same name by Gerhart Hauptmann. Erwin Leiser calls it a propagandistic demonstration of the Führerprinzip of ...

'' (1937) - Inken Peters * ''

Capers ''Capparis spinosa'', the caper bush, also called Flinders rose, is a perennial plant that bears rounded, fleshy leaves and large white to pinkish-white flowers. The plant is best known for the edible flower buds (capers), used as a seasoning ...

'' (1937) - Mabel Atkinson * ''Gabriele: eins, zwei, drei'' (1937) - Gabriele Brodersen * ''

The False Step ''The False Step'' or ''The Step off the Path'' (german: Der Schritt vom Wege) is a 1939 German historical drama film directed by Gustaf Gründgens and starring Marianne Hoppe, Karl Ludwig Diehl and Paul Hartmann. It is an adaptation of Theodor ...

'' (1939) - Effi Briest * '' Congo Express'' (1939) - Renate Brinkmann * '' Goodbye, Franziska'' (1941) - Franziska Tiemann * ''Stimme des Herzens'' (1942) - Felicitas Iversen * ''

Romance in a Minor Key ''Romance in a Minor Key'' (german: Romanze in Moll) is a 1943 German historical drama film directed by Helmut Käutner and starring Marianne Hoppe, Paul Dahlke, and Ferdinand Marian. It was shot at the Johannisthal Studios in Berlin. The fil ...

'' (1943) - Madeleine * '' I Need You'' (1944) - Julia Bach * ''Das Leben geht weiter'' (1945) - Lenore Carius * ''

The Lost Face ''The Lost Face'' (German: ''Das verlorene Gesicht'') is a 1948 German drama film directed by Kurt Hoffmann and starring Marianne Hoppe, Gustav Fröhlich and Richard Häussler. The plot of a woman with two divided personalities caused by a re ...

'' (1948) - Johanna Stegen * ''

Second Hand Destiny ''Second Hand Destiny'' (german: Schicksal aus zweiter Hand) is a 1949 West German drama film directed by Wolfgang Staudte and starring Erich Ponto, Heinz Klevenow and Marianne Hoppe. It is sometimes considered a film noir.Spicer p. 460 At the t ...

'' (1949) - Irene Scholz * ''

Only One Night ''Only One Night'' (german: Nur eine Nacht) is a 1950 West German drama film directed by Fritz Kirchhoff and starring Marianne Hoppe, Hans Söhnker and Willy Maertens.Bock & Bergfelder p. 52 It was shot at the Tempelhof Studios in West Berli ...

'' (1950) - Die Frau * '' The Man of My Life'' (1954) - Helga Dargatter * ''

Thirteen Old Donkeys ''Thirteen Old Donkeys'' (german: 13 kleine Esel und der Sonnenhof) is a 1958 West German comedy film directed by Hans Deppe and starring Hans Albers, Marianne Hoppe and Karin Dor.Bock & Bergfelder p. It was one of the final performances of the ...

'' (1958) - Martha Krapp * ''

The Strange Countess ''The Strange Countess'' (german: Die seltsame Gräfin) is a 1961 West German crime film directed by Josef von Báky and starring Lil Dagover, Joachim Fuchsberger and Marianne Hoppe. It is based on Edgar Wallace's 1925 novel of the same title, ...

'' (1961) - Mary Pinder, née Moron * ''

Treasure of the Silver Lake ''The Treasure of the Silver Lake'' (german: Der Schatz im Silbersee) is a 1962 western film directed by Harald Reinl and starring Lex Barker, Pierre Brice and Karin Dor. It is very loosely based on Karl May's 1891 novel of the same name. It w ...

'' (1962) - Mrs. Butler * ''

Massacre at Marble City ''Massacre at Marble City'' (german: Die Goldsucher von Arkansas, french: Les chercheurs d'or de l'Arkansas, it, Alla conquista dell'Arkansas, released in U.K. as ''Conquerors of Arkansas'') is a 1964 German-French-Italian western film directed ...

'' (1964) - Mrs. Brendel * ''

Ten Little Indians "Ten Little Indians" is a traditional American children's counting out rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 12976. The term "Indians" in this sense refers to Indigenous North American peoples. In 1868, songwriter Septimus Winner adap ...

'' (1965) - Frau Grohmann * ' (1967, TV miniseries) - Madame Brassac * ''

The Wrong Move ''The Wrong Move'' (german: Falsche Bewegung – "False Movement") is a 1975 German road movie directed by Wim Wenders. This was the second part of Wenders' " Road Movie trilogy" which included '' Alice in the Cities'' (1974) and '' Kings of the R ...

'' (1975) - Mutter * ' (1983) - Marianne * ''Francesca'' (1987) * ''Bei Thea'' (1988, TV film) - Thea Ammer * ''Schloß Königswald'' (1988) - Gräfin Hohenlohe * ''Tassilo'' (1991, TV series) - Maximiliane * ''

Death Came As a Friend Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

'' (1991, TV film) - Frau Weinstein (final film role)

References

External links

*
Photographs and literature
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hoppe, Marianne 1909 births 2002 deaths Best Actress German Film Award winners Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts alumni German stage actresses German film actresses Bisexual actresses People from the Grand Duchy of Mecklenburg-Schwerin People from Rostock 20th-century German actresses