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Austrian, German and Swiss Film People in Hollywood
 

What is a “German” Connection to Hollywood?

For our purposes, “German” does not necessarily refer only to Germany (Deutschland). The word “German” in the German-Hollywood Connection means coming from the German-speaking cultures of Austria, Germany and German-Switzerland – that is, Germanic. A great many of these people were also Jewish, and many of them (but not all) came to Hollywood after the Nazis came to power in the 1930s. Also included are film people who are non-Germanic but who worked in and/or were influenced by German-language cinema and what can be called loosely “the German school” (e.g., Curtiz, Hitchcock, Louise Brooks). But it is important to point out that many famous “German” Hollywood people are or were in truth Austrian or Swiss. Most people know that Arnold Schwarzenegger is Austrian, but few are aware that Hollywood figures Hedy Lamarr, Otto Preminger, Billy Wilder and director Fred Zinnemann were born in Austria. German-Swiss film people include director William Wyler and actors Maximilian Schell (born in Austria, raised in Switzerland) and Bruno Ganz.

Our definition of Hollywood is equally broad. Since there really is no specific “Hollywood”—it is really more a concept than a place—it is only logical to interpret the term to include English-language films made in the US, Great Britain, Australia, and other places. Technically, a film such as The Third Man is not a “Hollywood” film, but this British production filmed in Vienna had American stars, and there are actually two versions—US and UK—that have their own unique differences. Thus, it becomes too complicated and really unnecessary to try to make such distinctions for the German-Hollywood Connection.

M O R E > Introduction: The German-Hollywood Connection

NOTE: For reasons of space, our index is only a partial one. Rudolf Ulrich's 1993 book, Österreicher in Hollywood (“Austrians in Hollywood”), contains bios for some 240 people! — And that doesn't even count the Germans or Swiss. Plus, in his latest edition Ulrich has added even more Austrians! Much of the information for the Austrian film people listed here comes from Ulrich's book (2004 edition), with his kind permission.

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