Joseph Schildkraut (22 March 1896 – 21 January 1964) was an Austrian-American actor. He won an
Oscar
Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to:
People and fictional and mythical characters
* Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar
* Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...
for his performance as
Captain Alfred Dreyfus in the film ''
The Life of Emile Zola'' (1937). He was nominated for a
Golden Globe
The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...
for his performance as
Otto Frank in the film ''
The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) and a
Primetime Emmy for his performance as Rabbi Gottlieb in a 1962 episode of the television series ''
Sam Benedict''.
Early life
Schildkraut was born in Vienna, Austria, the son of Erna (née Weinstein) and stage (and later motion picture) actor
Rudolph Schildkraut.
His family was Jewish.
In 1910, he accompanied his father on his tour to the U.S. and returned to Europe in 1913. He began stage training with
Max Reinhardt
Max Reinhardt (; born Maximilian Goldmann; 9 September 1873 – 30 October 1943) was an Austrian-born Theatre director, theatre and film director, theater manager, intendant, and theatrical producer. With his radically innovative and avant-gard ...
in Berlin shortly afterward, began his career on the stages of Germany and Austria, then made the transition to film. Schildkraut moved to the U.S. in 1920 and appeared in many Broadway productions. Among the plays in which he starred was a notable production of ''
Peer Gynt
''Peer Gynt'' (, ) is a five-Act (drama), act play in verse written in 1867 by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen. It is one of Ibsen's best known and most widely performed plays.
''Peer Gynt'' chronicles the journey of its title character fr ...
''.
Career

In 1921, Schildkraut played the title role in the first American stage production of
Ferenc Molnár's ''
Liliom'', the play that eventually became the basis for
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their musical ...
's ''
Carousel
A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (International English), or galloper (British English) is a type of amusement ride consisting of a rotating circular platform with seats for riders. The seats are tradit ...
''. He then began working in
silent movies, but he returned to the stage occasionally. He had early success in film as the Chevalier de Vaudrey in
D.W. Griffith's ''
Orphans of the Storm'' with
Lillian Gish
Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893 – February 27, 1993) was an American actress best known for her work in movies of the silent era. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was dubbed the "F ...
. Later, he was featured in
Cecil B. DeMille
Cecil Blount DeMille (; August 12, 1881January 21, 1959) was an American filmmaker and actor. Between 1914 and 1958, he made 70 features, both silent and sound films. He is acknowledged as a founding father of American cinema and the most co ...
's epic 1927 film ''
The King of Kings'' as
Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of sil ...
. Schildraut's father Rudolf also appeared in the film.
Joseph Schildkraut also played a Viennese-accented, non-singing
Gaylord Ravenal
Gaylord Ravenal is the leading male character in Edna Ferber's 1926 novel ''Show Boat'', in the Jerome Kern-Oscar Hammerstein II musical of the same name based on the novel, and in the films and other adaptations of the story. He is a handsome, ...
in the
1929 part-talkie film version of Edna Ferber's ''Show Boat''.
The character as written in the 1929 film was much closer to Ferber's original than to the depiction of him in
the classic Kern and Hammerstein musical play based on the novel as well as the 1936 and 1951 film versions of the musical, but the 1929 film was not a critical or box-office success.
Schildkraut received an
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor
The Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 9th Academy Awards to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in ...
for his role as
Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus (9 October 1859 – 12 July 1935) was a French Army officer best known for his central role in the Dreyfus affair. In 1894, Dreyfus fell victim to a judicial conspiracy that eventually sparked a major political crisis in the Fre ...
in ''
The Life of Emile Zola'' (1937).
[ Additional accolades came for playing the ambitious duc d'Orléans in the historical epic '']Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...
'' (1938), and he gave a notable performance as the villainous Nicolas Fouquet
Nicolas Fouquet, marquis de Belle-Île, vicomte de Melun et Vaux (; 27 January 1615 – 23 March 1680) was the Superintendent of Finances in France from 1653 until 1661 under King Louis XIV. He had a glittering career, and acquired enormous weal ...
in '' The Man in the Iron Mask'' (1939).
Schildkraut is perhaps best remembered today for playing the role of Otto Frank in both the original stage production and film version of '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959).[ Noticeably, he plays the villain in ]Ernst Lubitsch
Ernst Lubitsch (; ; January 29, 1892November 30, 1947) was a German-born American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His urbane comedies of manners gave him the reputation of being Hollywood's most elegant and sophisticated director; a ...
's '' The Shop Around the Corner'' (1940). He was also an active character actor
A character actor is an actor known for playing unusual, eccentric, or interesting character (arts), characters in supporting roles, rather than leading ones.28 April 2013, The New York Acting SchoolTen Best Character Actors of All Time Retrie ...
and appeared in guest roles on several early television shows, including the ''Hallmark Hall of Fame
''Hallmark Hall of Fame'', originally called ''Hallmark Television Playhouse'', is an anthology program on American television, sponsored by Hallmark Cards, a Kansas City, Missouri, Kansas Citybased greeting card company. It is the longest-ru ...
'', in which he played Claudius in the 1953 television production of ''Hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...
'', with Maurice Evans in the title role. Schildkraut also hosted and starred in '' Joseph Schildkraut Presents'', a short-lived series on the DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network (also the DuMont Network, DuMont Television, DuMont/Du Mont, or (incorrectly) Dumont ) was one of America's pioneer commercial television networks, rivaling NBC and CBS for the distinction of being first overall in ...
from October 1953 to January 1954.
In 1961, during the third season of ''The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...
'', he made his first appearance on " Deaths-Head Revisited". He later played an elderly man in " The Trade-Ins" in season 3, episode 31 of the same show. In 1963, he was nominated for a Best Actor Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
for his performance in a guest-starring role on '' Sam Benedict''.
Personal life
Schildkraut was married three times. His first marriage was to actress Elise Bartlett in 1923; they divorced in 1931. He was married to Mary McKay from 1932 until her death on February 17, 1962. In 1956, he was involved with Patricia Bosworth, who recalls that he was known informally as "Pepi." In 1963, Schildkraut married Leonora Rogers, who survived him.
For his contributions to the motion picture industry, Schildkraut has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a landmark which consists of 2,813 five-pointed terrazzo-and-brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in the Hollywood, Los Angeles, Hollywood dist ...
at 6780 Hollywood Boulevard. He is interred in the Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Hollywood Forever Cemetery is a full-service cemetery, funeral home, crematorium, crematory, and cultural events center which regularly hosts community events such as live music and summer movie screenings. It is one of the oldest cemeteries ...
.
Death
Schildkraut died at his home in New York City of a heart attack. His father had died at the age of 68, also of a heart attack.
Filmography
* ''Dämon und Mensch'' (1915)
* ''Das Wiegenlied'' (1916)
* ''Für den Ruhm des Geliebten'' (1916) as Musiker Rolf
* ''Seine Durchlaucht der Landstreicher'' (1919)
* ''Die schwarze Fahne'' (1919)
* ''Der Roman der Komtesse Ruth'' (1920)
* ''Theodor Herzl
Theodor Herzl (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist and lawyer who was the father of Types of Zionism, modern political Zionism. Herzl formed the World Zionist Organization, Zionist Organizat ...
'' (1921) as Das leidende Israel
* '' Orphans of the Storm'' (1921) as Chevalier de Vaudrey
* '' The Song of Love'' (1923) as Raymon Valverde
* '' The Road to Yesterday'' (1925) as Kenneth Paulton
* '' Shipwrecked'' (1926) as Larry O'Neil
* '' Meet the Prince'' (1926) as Prince Nicholas
* '' Young April'' (1926) as Prince Caryl
* '' The King of Kings'' (1927) as Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of sil ...
* '' The Heart Thief'' (1927) as Paul Kurt
* '' His Dog'' (1927) as Peter Olsen
* '' The Forbidden Woman'' (1927) as Jean La Coste
* '' The Blue Danube'' (1928) as Ludwig
* '' Tenth Avenue'' (1928) as Joe Ross
* ''Show Boat
''Show Boat'' is a musical theatre, musical with music by Jerome Kern and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. It is based on Edna Ferber's best-selling 1926 Show Boat (novel), novel of the same name. The musical follows the lives of the per ...
'' (1929) as Gaylord Ravenal
* '' The Mississippi Gambler'' (1929) as Jack Morgan
* '' Night Ride'' (1930) as Joe Rooker
* '' Cock o' the Walk'' (1930) as Carlos Lopez
* ''Carnival
Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras.
Carnival typi ...
'' (1931) as Count Andreas Scipio
* '' The Blue Danube'' (1932) as Sandor
* '' Viva Villa!'' (1934) as Gen. Pascal
* '' Sisters Under the Skin'' (1934) as Zukowski
* ''Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII Thea Philopator (; The name Cleopatra is pronounced , or sometimes in both British and American English, see and respectively. Her name was pronounced in the Greek dialect of Egypt (see Koine Greek phonology). She was ...
'' (1934) as Herod
* ''The Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...
'' (1935) as Conrad - Marquis of Montferrat
* '' The Garden of Allah'' (1936) as Batouch
* ''Slave Ship
Slave ships were large cargo ships specially built or converted from the 17th to the 19th century for transporting Slavery, slaves. Such ships were also known as "Guineamen" because the trade involved human trafficking to and from the Guinea ( ...
'' (1937) as Danelo
* '' Souls at Sea'' (1937) as Gaston de Bastonet
* '' The Life of Emile Zola'' (1937) as Capt. Alfred Dreyfus
Alfred Dreyfus (9 October 1859 – 12 July 1935) was a French Army officer best known for his central role in the Dreyfus affair. In 1894, Dreyfus fell victim to a judicial conspiracy that eventually sparked a major political crisis in the Fre ...
* ''Lancer Spy
''Lancer Spy'' is a 1937 American thriller film directed by Gregory Ratoff and starring Dolores Del Rio and George Sanders. Its plot concerns an Englishman who impersonates a German officer and a female German spy who falls in love with him.
Pl ...
'' (1937) as Prince Ferdi Zu Schwarzwald
* '' Lady Behave!'' (1937) as Michael Andrews
* '' The Baroness and the Butler'' (1938) as Baron Georg Marissey
* ''Marie Antoinette
Marie Antoinette (; ; Maria Antonia Josefa Johanna; 2 November 1755 – 16 October 1793) was the last List of French royal consorts, queen of France before the French Revolution and the establishment of the French First Republic. She was the ...
'' (1938) as duc d’Orleans
* ''Suez
Suez (, , , ) is a Port#Seaport, seaport city with a population of about 800,000 in north-eastern Egypt, located on the north coast of the Gulf of Suez on the Red Sea, near the southern terminus of the Suez Canal. It is the capital and largest c ...
'' (1938) as Vicomte Rene De Latour
* '' Idiot's Delight'' (1939) as Captain Kirvline
* ''The Three Musketeers
''The Three Musketeers'' () is a French historical adventure novel written and published in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is the first of the author's three d'Artagnan Romances. As with some of his other works, he wrote it in col ...
'' (1939) as King Louis XIII
Louis XIII (; sometimes called the Just; 27 September 1601 – 14 May 1643) was King of France from 1610 until his death in 1643 and King of Navarre (as Louis II) from 1610 to 1620, when the crown of Navarre was merged with the French crown.
...
* '' The Man in the Iron Mask'' (1939) as Fouquet
* '' Mr. Moto Takes a Vacation'' (1939) as Hendrik Manderson
* '' Lady of the Tropics'' (1939) as Pierre Delaroch
* '' The Rains Came'' (1939) as Mr. Bannerjee
* '' Pack Up Your Troubles'' (1939) as Hugo Ludwig
* '' Phantom Raiders'' (1940) as Al Taurez
* '' Rangers of Fortune'' (1940) as Col. Lewis Rebstock
* '' The Shop Around the Corner'' (1940) as Ferencz Vadas
* '' Meet the Wildcat'' (1940) as Leon Dumeray
* '' The Parson of Panamint'' (1941) as Bob Deming
* '' The Tell-Tale Heart'' (1941, short) as Young Man
* '' Flame of Barbary Coast'' (1945) as Tito Morell
* '' The Cheaters'' (1945) as Anthony 'Mr. M.' Marchand
* '' Monsieur Beaucaire'' (1946) as Don Francisco
* '' Plainsman and the Lady'' (1946) as Peter Marquette
* '' Northwest Outpost'' (1947) as Count Igor Savin
* '' Old Los Angeles'' (1948) as Luis Savarin
* '' The Gallant Legion'' (1948) as Sen. Clarke Faulkner
* ''Hamlet'' (1953, TV) as King Claudius
King Claudius is a fictional character and the main antagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Hamlet''. He is the brother to King Hamlet, second husband to Gertrude and uncle and later stepfather to Prince Hamlet. He obtained the throne of ...
* '' The Diary of Anne Frank'' (1959) as Otto Frank
* '' The Big Bankroll'' (1961) as Abraham Rothstein
* '' Dr. Kildare (TV series)'', Episode: The Stepping Stone as Max Keller
* ''The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...
'', Episode: '' Deaths-Head Revisited'' (1961, TV) as Alfred Becker
* ''The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...
'', Episode: '' The Trade-Ins'' (1962, TV) as John Holt
* ''The Greatest Story Ever Told
''The Greatest Story Ever Told'' is a 1965 American epic film, epic List of religious films, religious film that retells the Biblical account of Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, from the Nativity of Jesus, Nativity through to the Ascension of J ...
'' (1965) as Nicodemus
Nicodemus (; ; ; ; ) is a New Testament figure venerated as a saint in a number of Christian traditions. He is depicted as a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin who is drawn to hear Jesus's teachings. Like Lazarus of Bethany, Lazarus, Nicode ...
(posthumous release)
See also
* List of German-speaking Academy Award winners and nominees
This is a list of Academy Award winners and nominees from Germany.
Acting categories
Actor in a Leading Role
Actor in a Supporting Role
Actress in a Leading Role
Actress in a Supporting Role
Best Art Direction
Best Cinematography
Be ...
* List of actors with Academy Award nominations
References
Further reading
* Joseph Schildkraut, ''My Father and I'', as told to Leo Lania, New York 1959.
External links
*
*
Photographs and literature
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Schildkraut, Joseph
1896 births
1964 deaths
Austrian expatriate male actors in the United States
Austrian male film actors
Austrian male silent film actors
Austrian male stage actors
Austrian male television actors
Austrian people of Jewish descent
Best Supporting Actor Academy Award winners
Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery
Male actors from Vienna
20th-century Austrian male actors
Jewish Austrian male actors
Austrian emigrants to the United States