Alexis Granowsky (russian: Алексе́й Миха́йлович Грано́вский; 1890–1937) was a Russian

theatre director A theatre director or stage director is a professional in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production such as a play, opera, dance, drama, musical theatre performance, etc. by unifying various endeavors a ...

who later became a

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, ...

. Granowsky was born as Abraham Azarkh to a

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

family in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

. After studying in

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

, he went to

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...

where he gained valuable theatre experience working under

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 promi ...

. He served in the

Russian army The Russian Ground Forces (russian: Сухопутные войска �ВSukhoputnyye voyska V}), also known as the Russian Army (, ), are the land forces of the Russian Armed Forces. The primary responsibilities of the Russian Ground Forces ...

during the

First World War 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 fig ...

before in 1919 he set up his own

-orientated theatre in

, which under a new director became

GOSET The Moscow State Jewish (Yiddish) Theatre (Russian: Московский Государственный Еврейский Театр; Yiddish: Moskver melukhnisher yidisher teater), also known by its acronym GOSET (ГОСЕТ), was a Yiddish theat ...

. Granowsky's reputation rose quickly over the following years, as he became one of the most celebrated theatre directors in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...

. In 1925 Granowsky directed his first film, a silent, but concentrated his efforts on his stage work. After the

Russian Revolution The Russian Revolution was a period of political and social revolution that took place in the former Russian Empire which began during the First World War. This period saw Russia abolish its monarchy and adopt a socialist form of government ...

, and the

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...

victory in the

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

, Granowsky continued to live in the country even though he felt himself culturally

Western European Western Europe is the western region of Europe. The region's countries and territories vary depending on context. The concept of "the West" appeared in Europe in juxtaposition to "the East" and originally applied to the ancient Mediterranean ...

. Granowsky was initially feted by the Soviet authorities and was awarded a number of honours but he began to find their cultural policies increasingly restrictive, and emigrated to the

Weimar Republic The German Reich, commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic,, was a historical period of Germany from 9 November 1918 to 23 March 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is also r ...

in the late 1920s. In Germany Granowsky worked on some theatre productions, but increasingly moved into film. He collaborated with a number of other Russian exiles such as Léo Lania who shared his

left-wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in so ...

political views. He directed two German films, before emigrating to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. ...

where he lived for the rest of his life. He produced and directed expensive prestige films ''

The Adventures of King Pausole ''Les Aventures du roi Pausole'' ('The Adventures of King Pausole') is a French novel with erotic themes by Pierre Louÿs, first published in serial form in 1900. The work has been called "a graceful and spicy bit of drollery A drollerie, o ...

'' (1933) and ''

Taras Bulba ''Taras Bulba'' (russian: «Тарас Бульба»; ) is a romanticized historical novella set in the first half of the 17th century, written by Nikolai Gogol (1809-1852). It features elderly Zaporozhian Cossack Taras Bulba and his sons An ...

'' (1936). He had married a wealthy German woman, but they separated before his death.Barton p.25 Despite his lavish lifestyle, Granowsky died comparatively poor.

Selected filmography

Director

* ''

Jewish Happiness Jewish Luck (russian: Еврейское счастье) is a 1925 Soviet black and white silent film directed by Alexis Granowsky. J. Hoberman"THE CROOKED ROAD OF JEWISH LUCK"/ref> Plot Menahem-Mendl, with the goal of making money, opens an i ...

'' (Еврейское счастье; 1925) * '' The Song of Life'' (1931) * ''

The Trunks of Mr. O.F. ''The Trunks of Mr. O.F.'' (German: ''Die Koffer des Herrn O.F.'') is a 1931 German comedy film directed by Alexis Granowsky and starring Alfred Abel, Peter Lorre, and Harald Paulsen. Produced by Tobis Film, it was made at the Johannisthal Stud ...

'' (1931) * ''

'' (1933) * ''

Moscow Nights __NOTOC__ "Moscow Nights" ( rus, Подмосковные вечера, r=Podmoskovnyje večera, ), later covered as "Midnight in Moscow", is a Soviet Russian song. Composition and initial success Composer Vasily Solovyov-Sedoi and poet Mikha ...

'' (1934) * ''

'' (1936)

References

Bibliography

* Barton, Ruth. ''Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film''. University Press of Kentucky, 2010.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Granowsky, Alexis 1890 births 1937 deaths Writers from Moscow People from Moskovsky Uyezd Russian Jews Russian film directors Russian film producers Russian theatre directors Russian military personnel of World War I Russian exiles People who emigrated to escape Bolshevism Emigrants from the Russian Empire to France Emigrants from the Russian Empire to Germany