Ralph Arthur Roberts (born Robert Arthur Schönherr; 2 October 1884 – 12 March 1940)ROBERTS, Ralph Arthur

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery (United Kingdom), National Lot ...

Film & TV Database, retrieved 4 July 2013.Ralph Arthur Roberts
Filmportal.de, retrieved 4 July 2013 was a German

film actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

who also directed in the theatre and occasionally in film and wrote plays. From 1928 on, he headed the Berlin Theatre in Behrenstraße.

Life and career

He was born in

Meerane Meerane () is a town in the Zwickau district of Saxony, Germany. It lies midway between the towns of Altenburg and Zwickau, west of Chemnitz. As of 31 December 2015, there were 14,851 inhabitants. The population has declined from a peak of over 2 ...

as Robert Arthur Schönherr to Carl Robert Schönherr, a baker, and Berta Elisabeth ( König).Hansjoachim Schönherr
"Roberts, Ralph Arthur (eigentlich Robert Arthur Schönherr)"
'' Neue deutsche Biographie'', Volume 21 ''Pütter – Rohlfs'', ed. Hans Günter Hockerts, Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 2003, pg. 681 He grew up in

Dresden Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label= Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth ...

, where he was already performing as an extra at the '' Albert-Theater'' while still in '' gymnasium'' and then studied acting with Adolf Winds and composition at the

conservatoire A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

. He made his professional début in 1903 at the ''Residenztheater'' in

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, and had temporary engagements at the Trianon Theatre in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

and the ''Schauspielhaus'' in Breslau. In 1907 or earlier, he moved to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, where in 1909 he became a member of the company at the Thalia Theatre. After service as an officer in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Roberts returned to the Thalia, where he directed plays in addition to acting. In 1921 he became head of the ''Komödienhaus'' in Berlin, and in 1928 he opened his own theatre in Behrenstraße, where he premiėred several comic works of his own. Initially he played tragicomic rôles, frequently in operettas; in 1922, he co-starred with Fritzi Massary in the première of

Leo Fall Leopold Fall (2 February 187316 September 1925) was an Austrian Kapellmeister and composer of operettas. Life Born in Olmütz (Olomouc), Leo (or Leopold) Fall was taught by his father Moritz Fall (1848–1922), a bandmaster and composer, who sett ...

's ''

Madame Pompadour Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, Marquise de Pompadour (, ; 29 December 1721 – 15 April 1764), commonly known as Madame de Pompadour, was a member of the French court. She was the official chief mistress of King Louis XV from 1745 to 1751, and rema ...

''. However, after that he concentrated on light comedy on the stage. In addition, he played several supporting rôles in films. Wearing a

monocle A monocle is a type of corrective lens used to correct or enhance the visual perception in only one eye. It consists of a circular lens, generally with a wire ring around the circumference that can be attached to a string or wire. The other ...

was part of his image, and in film he generally played men of substance: directors and industrialists. He is remembered especially for his tendency to portray characters as more or less eccentric, which rose to ironic self-commentary in rôles such as the public prosecutor in '' Der Maulkorb'' (in which according to his relative and biographer Hansjoachim Schönherr he proved himself "one of the best character actors of his generation") and King Charles X of France in '. Roberts also wrote lyrics for songs, which were used for the 1954 film '' On the Reeperbahn at Half Past Midnight'' featuring Hans Albers and Heinz Rühmann. In particular, he wrote both the lyrics and the music for the title waltz, originally for a 1912

revue A revue is a type of multi-act popular theatrical entertainment that combines music, dance, and sketches. The revue has its roots in 19th century popular entertainment and melodrama but grew into a substantial cultural presence of its own dur ...

of his at the Thalia, ''Bunt ist die Welt'', and also prominently featured in the film '' Große Freiheit Nr. 7'' from 1944. He died in Berlin on 12 March 1940, before the première of his last film, ''Wie konntest Du, Veronika!'', from

oyster Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...

poisoning, and was buried at the Protestant Südwestkirchhof in Stahnsdorf.

Filmography

Actor

Direction and scriptwriting

*1934: '' Playing with Fire'' (Director, co-scripted) *1939: ''Meine Tante – Deine Tante'' (Co-scripted, also actor) *1949/50: ''Sie sind nicht mehr'' (Assistant director) *1957/58: ''Das gab's nur einmal'' (Assistant director)

Lyrics and music

*1954: '' Auf der Reeperbahn nachts um halb eins'' (Lyrics, music)

References

External links

*
Ralph Arthur Roberts
at Virtual History {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Ralph Arthur 1884 births 1940 deaths People from Meerane People from the Kingdom of Saxony German male film actors German male silent film actors 20th-century German male actors