Eva Maria Mandl (29 May 1902 – 10 September 1924), known professionally as Eva May, was an

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n actress. She was the daughter of the film director

Joe May Joe May (born Joseph Otto Mandl; 7 November 1880 – 29 April 1954) was an Austrian film director and film producer and one of the pioneers of German cinema. Biography After studying in Berlin and a variety of odd jobs, he began his career as ...

and his wife

Mia May Mia May (born Hermine Pfleger; 2 June 1884 – 28 November 1980) was an Austrian actress. She was married to the Austrian film producer and director Joe May and appeared in 44 films between 1912 and 1924. Her daughter was the actress Eva M ...

. In 1924, she committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

by gunshot.

Biography

Eva Maria Mandl was born on 29 May 1902, the daughter of Austrian actress

and the Austrian-Jewish film director

. Her parents had married seven weeks prior to her birth. She took the name of Eva May and made her film debut in ''

Die geheimnisvolle Villa ''Die geheimnisvolle Villa'' (lit. 'The Secret-Filled Villa') is a 1914 silent German detective film directed by Joe May and starring Ernst Reicher. It is the first in the series starring the fictional gentleman detective Stuart Webbs, model ...

'' (1914), which was directed by her father. From 1918 onwards she worked for the Ring-Film GmbH, managed by Manfred Liebenau, who was working as a director under the nom de plume Erik Lund. The two married when May was 16 years old. During this time, May appeared in films such as ''Erträumtes'' (1918), ''

Sadja ''Sadja'' is a 1918 German silent film directed by Adolf Gärtner and Erik Lund and starring Eva May and Hans Albers.Bock & Bergfelder p.8 Cast * Hans Albers as Älterer Gelehrter * Helene Lanère * Eva May as Sadja * Heinz Stieda The H. ...

'' (1918), and '' The Bride of the Incapacitated'' (1919). Lund and May soon created their own Eva May serial, in which May wrote the scripts for. In the 1920s, May worked with her father in films such as ''

The Legend of Holy Simplicity ''The Legend of Holy Simplicity'' (german: Die Legende von der heiligen Simplicia) is a 1920 German silent drama film directed by Joe May and starring Eva May, Alfred Gerasch and Wilhelm Diegelmann.Bock & Bergfelder p. 181 The art director ...

'' (1920) and ''Junge Mama'' (1921). Privately, May was regarded as difficult to work with, and often quarrelled with her father. She worked with other directors like

Karl Grune Karl Grune (22 January 1890 – 2 October 1962) was an Austrian film director and writer who made many silent films in the 1920s. Grune was born into a Jewish familySiegbert Salomon Prawer, ''Between Two Worlds: The Jewish Presence in German ...

in The Count of Charolais (1922) and

Max Mack Max Mack (1884–1973) was a German screenwriter, film producer and director during the silent era. He is particularly known for his 1913 film '' The Other''. He directed, and co-starred in, an early film adaptation of ''Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'' ...

Die Fledermaus ' (, ''The Flittermouse'' or ''The Bat'', sometimes called ''The Revenge of the Bat'') is an operetta composed by Johann Strauss II to a German libretto by Karl Haffner and Richard Genée, which premiered in 1874. Background The original li ...

(1923) opposite Lya de Putti. She starred alongside

Alfred Abel Alfred Peter Abel (12 March 1879 – 12 December 1937) was a German film actor, director, and producer. He appeared in more than 140 silent and sound films between 1913 and 1938. His best-known performance was as Joh Fredersen in Fritz Lang' ...

in ''Scheine des Todes'' (1923), which was directed by her second husband, Lothar Mendes. The most successful films she starred in were '' Paganini'' (1923) with

Conrad Veidt Hans Walter Conrad Veidt (; 22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German film actor who attracted early attention for his roles in the films '' Different from the Others'' (1919), ''The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari'' (1920), and '' The Man Who Laug ...

, and '' Old Heidelberg'' (1923) with Paul Hartmann. Her final film was '' Der geheime Agent'' (1924). May married for a third time to

Manfred Noa Manfred Noa (22 March 1893 – 5 December 1930) was a German film director. Noa was described by Vilma Bánky, who he directed twice, as her "favourite director". Noa's 1924 film '' Helena'' has been called his "masterpiece" although it was so exp ...

, but they divorced shortly after. After Fritz Mandl refused to marry her, Eva May committed suicide. The year prior, May had attempted to commit suicide by slashing her wrists after Rudolf Sieber broke off their engagement and married

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 . (, ; ...

instead.

Selected filmography

* ''

'' (1914) * ''

'' (1918) * '' The Enchanted Princess'' (1919) * '' State Attorney Jordan'' (1919) * ''

Irrlicht Irrlicht may refer to: * Irrlicht, the German name for will-o'-the-wisp, the ghostly light sometimes seen at night over bogs and swamps * "Irrlicht", the ninth song in the '' Winterreise'' cycle by Franz Schubert * ''Irrlicht'' (album), by Klau ...

'' (1919) * ''

The Fairy of Saint Ménard ''The Fairy of Saint Ménard'' (German:''Die Fee von Saint Ménard'') is a 1919 German silent film directed by Erik Lund.Bock & Bergfelder p.74 The film's art direction was by Siegfried Wroblewsky. Cast In alphabetical order * Margot Hermer ...

'' (1919) * '' Black Pearls'' (1919) * '' The Foolish Heart'' (1919) * ''

The Commandment of Love ''The Commandment of Love'' (German: ''Das Gebot der Liebe'') is a 1919 German silent film.Bock & Bergfelder p.74 Cast In alphabetical order * Herbert Apel * Ernst Behmer as Oskar Price * Olga Engl * Rita Georg * Rose Lichtenstein * Eva May ...

'' (1919) * '' The Bride of the Incapacitated'' (1919) * ''

In the Whirl of Life ''In the Whirl of Life'' (German: ''Im Wirbel des Lebens'') is a 1920 German silent film directed by Erik Lund.Bock & Bergfelder p.74 The film's sets were designed by the art directors Siegfried Wroblewsky. Cast In alphabetical order * Georg ...

'' (1920) * ''

'' (1920) * ''Der Henker von Sankt Marien'' (1920) * ''Junge Mama'' (1921) * '' The Amazon'' (1921) * '' Der Graf von Charolais'' (1922) * '' The Earl of Essex'' (1922) * ''

His Excellency from Madagascar ''His Excellency from Madagascar'' (german: Seine Exzellenz von Madagaskar) is a 1922 German silent thriller film directed by Georg Jacoby and starring Paul Otto, Eva May, and Georg Alexander. It was released in two parts ''Das Mädchen aus de ...

'' (1922) * '' Paganini'' (1923) * '' Old Heidelberg'' (1923) * ''

'' (1923) * '' Der geheime Agent'' (1924)

Bibliography

* Barton, Ruth. ''Hedy Lamarr: The Most Beautiful Woman in Film''. University Press of Kentucky, 2010. * Bergfelder, Tim & Bock, Hans-Michael. ''The Concise Cinegraph: Encyclopedia of German. Berghahn Books, 2009.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:May, Eva 1902 births 1924 deaths Austrian film actresses Austrian silent film actresses Austrian Jews Actresses from Vienna 20th-century Austrian actresses 1924 suicides Suicides by firearm in Austria