Tala Birell (born Natalie Bierle; 10 September 1907 – 17 February 1958) was a

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

n-bornThe reference book ''Dictionary of Pseudonyms: 13,000 Assumed Names and Their Origins'' identifies Birell as a Polish-Austrian actress.A feature about Birell that was published in the ''Oakland Tribune'' on April 14, 1935, quotes her as saying "I am Viennese—with a dash of Polish." stage and film actress.

Early years

Birell was born Natalie Bierle on 10 September 1907, the daughter of Bavarian businessman Karl Bierle and Stefanie von Schaydakowska, who came from Austro-Hungarian Galicia.

Career

Birell had stage and screen experience 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. ...

. She doubled for

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 . (, ; ...

in German films. The ''

Oakland Tribune The ''Oakland Tribune'' was a daily newspaper published in Oakland, California, and a predecessor of the '' East Bay Times''. It was published by the Bay Area News Group (BANG), a subsidiary of MediaNews Group. Founded in 1874, the ''Tribune'' ...

'' reported that Birell "made her debut in a hit in a Berlin production of '' Madame Pompadour''." She came to England in 1930 to appear in E. A. Dupont's '' Menschen im Käfig'', the German language version of '' Cape Forlorn'', and later went to America to play in the German version of '' The Boudoir Diplomat''. Star of the stage in Europe, she became popular in American films, including a small role in ''

Bringing Up Baby ''Bringing Up Baby'' is a 1938 American screwball comedy film directed by Howard Hawks, and starring Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. It was released by RKO Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures. The film tells the story of a paleontologist in a numb ...

'' (1938). In 1940 she appeared onstage in ''My Dear Children'' at the Belasco Theatre in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. She also appeared on Broadway in ''Order Please'' (1934). One of her final on-camera appearances was on the popular 1953 US

anthology drama An anthology series is a written series, radio program, radio, television show, television, film series, film, or video game series that presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, Season (television) ...

television series ''

Orient Express The ''Orient Express'' was a long-distance passenger luxury train service created in 1883 by the Belgian company ''Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits'' (CIWL) that operated until 2009. The train traveled the length of continental Europe, w ...

'' in the episode titled ''The Red Sash''. She is buried in the Bavarian village Marquartstein in a family tomb.

Filmography

*'' Man spielt nicht mit der Liebe'' (1926) .... Bit Role (as Thala Birell) *''Ich habe im Mai von der Liebe geträumt'' (1927) * '' The Deed of Andreas Harmer'' (1930) .... Othmars Valentin's Gattin *'' Menschen im Käfig'' (1930) .... Eileen Kell *'' Liebe auf Befehl'' (1931) .... Marie-Anne *'' My Cousin from Warsaw'' (1931) .... Lucienne *'' Doomed Battalion'' (1932) .... Maria Di Mai *'' Nagana'' (1933) .... Countess Sandra Lubeska *''

Let's Fall in Love "Let's Fall in Love" is a song written by Harold Arlen (music) and Ted Koehler (lyrics) for the film ''Let's Fall in Love (film), Let's Fall in Love'' and published in 1933. In the film, it is heard during the opening credits and later sung by ...

'' (1933) .... Rose Forsell *'' The Captain Hates the Sea'' (1934) .... Gerta Klargi *'' Let's Live Tonight'' (1935) .... Countess Margot de Legere *'' Air Hawks'' (1935) .... Renee Dupont *''

Spring Tonic ''Spring Tonic'' is a 1935 American comedy film adapted from the 1927 play ''The Man-Eating Tiger'' by Ben Hecht and Rose Caylor. It was directed by Clyde Bruckman and stars Lew Ayres, Claire Trevor, Walter Woolf King, Jack Haley, ZaSu Pitts and ...

'' (1935) .... Lola *''

Crime and Punishment ''Crime and Punishment'' is a novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. It was first published in the literary journal '' The Russian Messenger'' in twelve monthly installments during 1866.

'' (1935) .... Antonya Raskolnikov *'' The Lone Wolf Returns'' (1935) .... Liane Mallison *'' White Legion'' (1936) .... Dr. Sterne *'' She's Dangerous'' (1937) .... Stephanie Duval *'' As Good as Married'' (1937) .... Princess Cherry Bouladoff *''

'' (1938) .... Mrs. Lehman *'' Invisible Enemy'' (1938) .... Sandra Kamarov *'' Josette'' (1938) .... Mlle. Josette *'' Seven Miles from Alcatraz'' (1942) .... Baroness *'' One Dangerous Night'' (1943) .... Sonia Budenny *''

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

'' (1943) .... Blonde *'' Isle of Forgotten Sins'' (1943) .... Christine *'' Women in Bondage'' (1943) .... Ruth Bracken *'' The Song of Bernadette'' (1943) .... Madame Leontine Bruat (uncredited) *'' The Purple Heart'' (1944) .... Johanna Hartwig *'' The Monster Maker'' (1944) .... Maxine *'' Make Your Own Bed'' (1944) .... Miss Marie Gruber *'' Till We Meet Again'' (1944) .... Mme. Bouchard (uncredited) *'' Mrs. Parkington'' (1944) .... Lady Nora Ebbsworth *'' Jungle Queen'' (1945, Serial) .... Dr. Elise Bork *'' The Power of the Whistler'' (1945) .... Constantina Ivaneska *'' The Frozen Ghost'' (1945) .... Valerie Monet *'' Girls of the Big House'' (1945) .... Alma, confined murderess *'' Dangerous Millions'' (1946) .... Sonia Bardos *'' Philo Vance's Gamble'' (1947) .... Tina Cromwell *'' Philo Vance's Secret Mission'' (1947) .... Mrs. Elizabeth Phillips *'' Song of Love'' (1947) .... Princess Valerie Hohenfels *'' Women in the Night'' (1948) .... Yvette Aubert *'' Homicide for Three'' (1948) .... Rita Brown *''

Flash Gordon Flash Gordon is the protagonist of a space adventure comic strip created and originally drawn by Alex Raymond. First published January 7, 1934, the strip was inspired by, and created to compete with, the already established ''Buck Rogers'' ...

'' (1955, TV series) .... Queen of Cygini (final appearance)

Notes

References

External links

* *
Photographs and literature on Tala Birell
{{DEFAULTSORT:Birell, Tala American film actresses Romanian emigrants to the United States Actresses from Vienna 1907 births 1958 deaths 20th-century American actresses