Count Alexander " Sascha" Joseph von Kolowrat-Krakowsky (29 January 1886 – 4 December 1927) was an

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ** Austria-Hungary ** Austria ...

film producer of

Bohemian Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, originally practised by 19th–20th century European and American artists and writers. * Bohemian style, a ...

Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...

descent from the House of Kolowrat. A pioneer of Austrian cinema, he founded the first major film studio ''

Sascha-Film Sascha-Film, in full Sascha-Filmindustrie AG and from 1933 Tobis-Sascha-Filmindustrie AG, was the largest Austrian film production company of the silent film and early sound film period. History The business was established in 1910 by Alexander ...

'' in

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

Life

Leopold Kolowrat with children 1903 Pietzner

He was born in what is now Glen Ridge,

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

,filmreference.com
/ref> which was then part of the now-neighboring town of Bloomfield. He was the son of Count (1852–1910) and his wife Nadine Freiin von Huppmann-Valbella (1858–1942), the daughter of a successful cigarette manufacturer from

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

. He had three siblings: Bertha, Friedrich and Heinrich. The reason "Sascha" Kolowrat-Krakowsky was born in the US is described in a letter of March 30, 1984, from his nephew Count

Colloredo-Mansfeld The House of Colloredo-Mansfeld () is an originally Italian noble family of which a branch came to Austria in the late 16th century. There they were raised to barons in 1588, imperial counts in 1727 and imperial princes (in primogeniture) in 176 ...

to the Austrian film scholar Walter Fritz: After Count Leopold Kolowrat had been granted a reprieve by Emperor

Franz Joseph I of Austria Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I ( ; ; 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the ruler of the Grand title of the emperor of Austria, other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 1848 until his death ...

, the family returned to

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

. Sascha Kolowrat studied at the

Catholic University of Leuven University of Leuven or University of Louvain (; ) may refer to: * Old University of Leuven (1425–1797) * State University of Leuven (1817–1835) * Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968) * Katholieke Universiteit Leuven or KU Leuven (1968 ...

(present-day ''

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven KU Leuven (Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is a Catholic research university in the city of Leuven, Belgium. Founded in 1425, it is the oldest university in Belgium and the oldest university in the Low Countries. In addition to its main camp ...

'') in

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

where he became a member of the German Catholic fraternity ''

Katholische Academische Verbindung Lovania Leuven Katholische Academische Verbindung (K.A.V.) Lovania Leuven is a Catholic academic fraternity, founded in 1896 at the Catholic University of Leuven (1834–1968), Catholic University of Louvain in Leuven, Belgium. It is a German Studentenverbindun ...

''. He served in the army and was able to speak many European languages. After he had met

Charles Pathé Charles Morand Pathé (; 26 December 1863 – 25 December 1957) was a pioneer of the French film and recording industries. As the founder of Pathé, Pathé Frères, its roots lie in 1896 Paris, France, when Pathé and his brothers pioneered ...

in Paris in 1909, he got into

cinematography Cinematography () is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens (optics), lens to focus reflected light from objects into a real image that is transferred to some image sen ...

, besides his interests in motorcycle and car racing, aviation and ballooning. In 1909, he privately filmed a car racing at the

Semmering Pass Semmering () is a mountain pass in the Eastern Northern Limestone Alps connecting Lower Austria and Styria, between which it forms a natural border. Location Semmering Pass is located west of Sonnwendstein and Hirschenkogel and east of the ...

. After the death of his father in 1910 and the inheritance of his estates in

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

, Alexander Kolowrat founded the

factory and a film laboratory at his castle Groß Meierhöfen (today ''Velké Dvorce'') in Pfraumberg (''Přimda''). In 1912, he moved to

and founded the ''Sascha-Filmfabrik'' on Pappenheimgasse 2/Treustraße in

Brigittenau Brigittenau () is the 20th districts of Vienna, district of Vienna (). It is located north of the central districts, north of Leopoldstadt on the same island area between the Danube and the Danube Canal. Brigittenau is a heavily populated urban a ...

. One of his first productions with Sascha-Film was the documentary ''Die Gewinnung des Erzes am steirischen Erzberg in Eisenerz'' ("The Ore Mining in the Styrian

Erzberg The Ennstal Alps (German ''Ennstaler Alpen''), the Alps of the Enns valley, are a mountain range of the Northern Limestone Alps System. They are located primarily in the Austrian state of Styria, and also into the state of Upper Austria. The most ...

Eisenerz Eisenerz (; "Iron ore") is a market place and old mining town in the Austrian state of Styria, . N.W. of Graz by rail. Pop. (2001) 6,400. It is situated in the deep Erzbach (Enns), Erzbach Valley, dominated on the east by the :de:Pfaffenstein (H ...

"). In 1915, he took over the film branch of the ''

k.u.k. The phrase Imperial and Royal (, ) refers to the court/government of the Habsburgs in a broader historical perspective. Some modern authors restrict its use to the Dual Monarchy of Austria-Hungary from 1867 to 1918. During that period, it ind ...

Kriegspressequartier'' (War Media Quarters) in Vienna and also produced several propaganda movies during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Kolowrat-Krakowsky worked with many actors, e.g. the then-obscure

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however, Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

and

Willi Forst Willi Forst, born Wilhelm Anton Frohs (7 April 1903 – 11 August 1980) was an Austrian actor, screenwriter, film director, film producer and singer. As a debonair actor he was a darling of the German language, German-speaking film audiences, as ...

, who both performed in the 1927 silent film ''

Café Elektric ''Café Elektric'' (1927) is an Austrian film directed by Gustav Ucicky. Plot Erni ( Marlene Dietrich), the daughter of a wealthy industrialist Göttlinger (Fritz Alberti) falls for a pickpocket Fredl ( Willi Forst), but Fredl prefers Hansi ...

'' directed by

Gustav Ucicky Gustav Ucicky (6 July 1899 – 27 April 1961) was an Austrians, Austrian film director, screenwriter, and cinematographer. He was one of the more successful directors in Austria and Germany from the 1930s through to the early 1960s. His work cov ...

. He did important pioneering work in all film genres of the time. The high points of his artistic work were the productions of monumental silent movies like ''

Sodom and Gomorrah In the Abrahamic religions, Sodom and Gomorrah () were two cities destroyed by God for their wickedness. Sodom and Gomorrah are repeatedly invoked throughout the Hebrew Bible, Deuterocanonical texts, and the New Testament as symbols of sin, di ...

'' (1922) or ''

Die Sklavenkönigin ''The Moon of Israel'' (, or "The Queen of the Slaves") is a 1924 Austrian epic film. It was directed by Mihaly Kertész (later Michael Curtiz). The script was written by Ladislaus Vajda, based on H. Rider Haggard's 1918 novel '' Moon of Israe ...

'' (1924), both directed by

Michael Curtiz Michael Curtiz (; born Manó Kaminer; from 1905 Mihály Kertész; ; December 24, 1886 April 10, 1962) was a Hungarian-American film director, recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history. He directed classic films from the silen ...

, on the ''Laaer Berg'' in Vienna-

Favoriten Favoriten (; ), the 10th district of Vienna, Austria (), is located south of the central districts. It is south of Innere Stadt, Wieden and Margareten. Favoriten is a heavily populated urban area with many residential buildings, but also la ...

. In 1916, he erected Austria's first huge studio in Vienna-

Sievering Sievering is a suburb of Vienna and part of Döbling, the 19th district of Vienna. Sievering was created in 1892 out of the two erstwhile independent suburbs Untersievering and Obersievering. These still exist as Katastralgemeinden. For many y ...

. Together with his Sascha-Film company, he was the owner of several cinemas. He personally loved to attend the Münstedt Cinema in the

Prater The Prater is a 6 km² public park in Vienna's 2nd district, Leopoldstadt. The name "Prater" is often used to refer to the Wurstelprater, an amusement park within the area. History Royal hunting ground The Prater was first documented in ...

park, as well as the Burgkino and the Opernkino. In the Vienna Prater, west of the

Rotunde The Rotunde () in Vienna's Leopoldstadt district was a building erected for the 1873 Vienna World's Fair (). The building was a partially covered circular wrought iron construction, tall, with a diameter of . While the Rotunda stood, its dome w ...

, he erected "Old London" in 1920 for film shots, similar to the "

Venice in Vienna The Prater is a 6 km² public park in Vienna's 2nd Districts of Vienna, district, Leopoldstadt. The name "Prater" is often used to refer to the Wurstelprater, an amusement park within the area. History Royal hunting ground The Prater was ...

" theme park nearby, but smaller. The count owned a large city palace on

Wenceslas Square Wenceslas Square (Czech language, Czech: , colloquially ''Václavák'' ; German language, German: ''Wenzelsplatz'') is one of the main city squares and the centre of the business and cultural communities in the New Town, Prague, New Town of Pr ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. An enthusiastic mobilist he financed the development of a lightweight sports car ("''Sascha-Wagen''") designed by the

Austro-Daimler Austro-Daimler was an Austrian car manufacturer from 1899 until 1934. It was a subsidiary of the Germany, German ''Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft'' (DMG) until 1909. History In 1890, Eduard Bierenz was appointed as Austrian retailer. The company so ...

engineer

Ferdinand Porsche Ferdinand Porsche (3 September 1875 – 30 January 1951) was a German automotive engineering, automotive engineer and founder of the Porsche, Porsche AG. He is best known for creating the first Petrol engine, gasoline–Electric motor, el ...

, which ran at the 1922

Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo, Sicily, Palermo. Founded in 1906 Targa Florio, 1906, it was the oldest sports car ra ...

with

Alfred Neubauer Alfred Neubauer (29 March 1891 – 22 August 1980) was the racing manager of the Mercedes-Benz Grand Prix team from 1926 to 1955. Biography Neubauer's father, Karl Neubauer, was a furniture-maker in Neutitschein (), which then was part of the ...

at the wheel. Kolowrat died of cancer in 1927 in Vienna, aged 41. He would be referenced in the hit

Dietrich Dietrich () is an ancient German name meaning "ruler of the people", but also "keeper of the keys" or "lockpick" (either the tool or the profession). Given name * Dietrich, Count of Oldenburg (c. 1398–1440) * Thierry of Alsace (; 1099–1168), ...

von Sternberg Von Sternberg may refer to: * Josef von Sternberg (1894–1969), American film director * Kaspar Maria von Sternberg (1761–1838), Bohemian theologian and botanist * Ungern-Sternberg The Ungern-Sternberg family or von Ungern-Sternberg is an ol ...

film collaboration ''

Dishonored ''Dishonored'' is a 2012 action-adventure game developed by Arkane Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks. Set in the fictional, plague-ridden industrial city of Dunwall, ''Dishonored'' follows the story of Corvo Attano, bodyguard to th ...

'' (1931), in which Marlene Dietrich plays a spy whose civilian name is Marie Kolowrat.

Filmography

* ''Die Gewinnung des Eisens am steirischen Erzberg in Eisenerz'' (1912) * ''Der Millionenonkel'' (directed by

Hubert Marischka Hubert Marischka (27 August 1882 – 4 December 1959), brother of Ernst Marischka, was an Austrian operetta tenor, actor, film director and screenwriter. Career Marischka was born in Brunn am Gebirge, the son of Jiří (or Johann) Marisch ...

, 1913) * ''Wien im Krieg'' (propaganda film, 1916) * '' Martyr of His Heart'' (1918) * ''

The Other I ''The Other I'' is a studio album by English duo 2:54. It was released in November 2014 under Bella Union Bella Union is a British independent record label founded in 1997 by Simon Raymonde and Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins. It is now r ...

'' (1918) * ''Eine versunkene Welt'' (1920) * '' Gypsy Love'' (1922) * ''

Sodom und Gomorrha ''Sodom und Gomorrha: Die Legende von Sünde und Strafe'' ("Sodom and Gomorrah: The Legend of Sin and Punishment"; released in English as ''Sodom and Gomorrah'' or ''Queen of Sin and the Spectacle of Sodom and Gomorrha'') is an Austrian silent ...

'' (directed by

, 1922) * ''

Young Medardus ''Young Medardus'' (German: ''Der junge Medardus'') is a 1923 Austrian silent historical drama film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Victor Varconi, Egon von Jordan and Agnes Esterhazy.Von Dassanowsky p.21 Based on a play with the same ...

'' (directed by Michael Curtiz, 1923) * '' Children of the Revolution'' (1923) * '' Miss Madame'' (1923) * ''

'' (directed by Michael Curtiz, 1924) * ''

Das Spielzeug von Paris ''Das Spielzeug von Paris'' (English title ''Red Heels'') is an Austrian silent film released in 1925, and directed by Michael Curtiz. It was the first film to feature French actress Lili Damita in the leading role. Plot A young British Bohemi ...

'' (directed by Michael Curtiz, 1925) * ''

Salammbô ''Salammbô'' is an 1862 historical novel by Gustave Flaubert. It is set in Carthage immediately before and during the Mercenary Revolt (241–237 BCE). Flaubert's principal source was Book I of the '' Histories'', written by the Greek hist ...

'' (co-production with Gaumont, 1925) * ''

'' (directed by

, 1927)

Literature

* Fritz, W., & Zahradnik, M. (eds.), 1992: ''Erinnerungen an S. Kolowrat'' (''Schriftenreihe des Österreichischen Filmarchivs 31'') * Hübl, I. M. & S. K., 1950: ''Ein Beitrag zur Geschichte der österreichischen Kinematographie''

References

External links

* *
Eintrag in aeiou.at

Graf Bobby als Couleurstudent, in Academia (ÖCV) 2/2006
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kolowrat, Alexander Austrian film producers Counts of Austria Habsburg Bohemian nobility Austrian people of Czech descent Expatriates from Austria-Hungary in the United States 1886 births 1927 deaths Catholic University of Leuven alumni Kolowrat family