Wera Engels (12 May 1905 – 16 November 1988) was a German actress. After successful leading roles in productions of the well-established German UFA-studios in

Babelsberg Babelsberg () is the largest quarter of Potsdam, the capital city of the German state of Brandenburg. The neighbourhood is named after a small hill on the Havel river. It is the location of Babelsberg Palace and Park, part of the Palaces and Park ...

as well as in France, she was invited to Hollywood. Producers saw her as a cheap alternative to

Greta Garbo Greta Garbo (born Greta Lovisa Gustafsson; 18 September 1905 – 15 April 1990) was a Swedish-American actress and a premier star during Hollywood's Silent film, silent and early Classical Hollywood cinema, golden eras. Regarded as one of the g ...

and

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 . (, ; ...

. She was contracted with

RKO RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, is an American film production and distribution company, historically one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Kei ...

. She and actress

Mary Pickford Gladys Louise Smith (April 8, 1892 – May 29, 1979), known professionally as Mary Pickford, was a Canadian-American film actress and producer. A Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood, pioneer in the American film industry with a Hollywood care ...

reportedly became good friends. In 1935 she returned to Germany, but left soon thereafter. Back in Hollywood, she dated

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, silent screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, ...

for a while but married Russian actor and writer

Ivan Lebedeff Ivan Lebedeff (born Ivan Vasilyevich Lebedev (), 18 June 1894 – 31 March 1953) was a Russian film actor, lecturer and writer. He appeared in 66 films between 1926 and 1953. In 1940, his novel, ''Legion of Dishonor'', was published. Biography ...

. After Lebedeff's death in 1953 of

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of part ...

, she moved back to Europe, where she stayed with several friends in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

and

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before she returned to Germany. She lived the rest of her life with Erna Hoffmann (widow of

Heinrich Hoffmann Heinrich Hoffmann or Hoffman may refer to: Hoffmann *Heinrich Hoffmann (photographer) (1885–1957), German photographer *Heinrich Hoffmann (author) (1809–1894), German psychiatrist and author *Heinrich Hoffmann (sport shooter) (1869–1932), Ger ...

, Hitler's friend and personal

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who uses a camera to make photographs. Duties and types of photograp ...

) in the

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

area.

Filmography

*'' White Slave Traffic'' (1926) *'' Lützow's Wild Hunt'' (1927) * '' Did You Fall in Love Along the Beautiful Rhine?'' (1927) *'' When the Guard Marches'' (1928) *'' Befehl zur Ehe'' (1928) *'' The Streets of London'' (1929) *'' The Copper'' (1930) * ''

The Perfume of the Lady in Black ''The Perfume of the Lady in Black'' () is a 1974 ''giallo'' film directed by Francesco Barilli. The film has no relation to the The Perfume of the Lady in Black (novel), novel of the same name by Gaston Leroux. Plot Silvia Hacherman is a succ ...

'' (1931) *'' Children of Fortune'' (1931) * '' English As It Is Spoken'' (1931) * '' The Ringer'' (1932) *'' Lumpenkavaliere'' (1932) *'' The Great Jasper'' (1933) *''

Fugitive Road ''Fugitive Road'' is a 1934 American comedy drama film directed by Frank R. Strayer and starring Erich von Stroheim, Wera Engels and Leslie Fenton. It is set a border post in Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria following World War I. A variety of dif ...

'' (1934) *'' Sweepstake Annie'' (1935) *'' Together We Live'' (1935) *'' The Great Impersonation'' (1935) *'' Hong Kong Nights'' (1935) * '' Stjenka Rasin'' (1936) *'' Talking About Jacqueline'' (1937)

External links

*
Photos
film.virtual-history.com

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Engels, Wera 1905 births 1988 deaths German film actresses German silent film actresses 20th-century German actresses Actresses from Kiel Place of death missing German expatriate actresses in the United States