Judi Dench

British actress Judi Dench (1934) is best known for her role of M in the James Bond films. In 1999, she won the Oscar for Best Female Supporting Actress in Shakespeare in Love (1998). Dench appeared in many other films, plays and TV shows for which she received an oeuvre award at the European Film Awards in 2008. That year, she was also awarded a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire, becoming Dame Judi Dench.


British postcard and photo by Robert Workman, Theatrical Photographer. Caption: Dame Judi Dench, Actress.


Chinese postcard by Oriental City Publishing Group Limited. Judi Dench as M in Quantum of Solace (Marc Forster, 2008).

Most Promising Newcomer

Dame Judith Olivia Dench was born in Heworth, York, in 1934. Dench was the daughter of Eleanora Olive (born Jones) and Reginald Arthur Dench of Dorset, a doctor and an amateur actor. She has a younger brother Jeffrey, an actor and an older brother Peter, a doctor. She grew up a Quaker and lived in Tyldesley, Greater Manchester.

When Dench was thirteen she went to The Mount School in York. Her original ambition was to be a designer and she trained as a costume designer. At 23, she made her professional debut as Ophelia in 'Hamlet' in Liverpool in 1957. That same year, she made her debut in the Old Vic.

Although most of Dench's work during this early period was in theatre, she also branched out into film work and won a BAFTA Award as Most Promising Newcomer. In 1968, she drew excellent reviews for her leading role as Sally Bowles in the musical 'Cabaret'. Through the years, she performed with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and at Old Vic Theatre, and played virtually most of Shakespeare's leading ladies.

For her stage work, she won many awards including the 1982 London Critics' Circle Theatre Award for 'A Kind of Alaska' and 'The Importance of Being Earnest', the 1996 Laurence Olivier Theatre Award for 'A Little Night Music' and the 1999 Tony Award for Best Broadway Actress in 'Amy's View'. In 1971, she married British actor Michael Williams, with whom she had a child, actress Tara Cressida 'Finty' Williams.

Dench and Michael Williams starred in many plays and TV shows together, including Bob Larby's sitcom, A Fine Romance (1981-1984). She is a ten-time BAFTA winner including Best Actress in a Comedy Series for A Fine Romance (1981), Best Supporting Actress in A Room with a View (James Ivory, 1985) and A Handful of Dust (1988). She also received an ACE award for her performance in the television series Mr & Mrs Edgehill (1985).


British postcard in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre series, no. 86. Photo: Joe Cocks. Judi Dench as Hermione in 'The Winter's Tale' by William Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon, 1969.


British postcard by Royal National Theatre, no. NT 55. Photo: Mark Douet. Judi Dench in 'The Sea' (1991) by Edward Bond (Lyttelton Theatre, 1991).

The first female M

Judi Dench became best known to the general public for her role of M in the James Bond films, which she played from GoldenEye (Martin Campbell, 1995) with Pierce Brosnan through Skyfall (Sam Mendes, 2012) starring Daniel Craig, where M lost her life after a siege of Skyfall, James Bond's parents' castle.

She was the first woman to portray the character. Judi Dench became known for playing dignified, strong-willed women in positions of authority, who are sometimes opposed or criticised by those under them. She won her first Oscar nomination for Mrs Brown (John Madden, 1996). It was her breakthrough as a film actress. In 1999, she won the Oscar for Best Female Supporting Actress in Shakespeare in Love (John Madden, 1998). It was for a six-minute performance in only four scenes as Queen Elizabeth I.

Following her Oscar win, the producers of the Bond franchise gave her character M a much larger role, central to the film's plot, for the first time in the Bond franchise. While M had typically only been seen in Bond films in bookend scenes at the very beginning and end, this time around the writers made her past actions the primary motive for the film's two main villains.

Her other Oscar-nominated roles are Chocolat (Lasse Hallström, 2000) with Juliette Binoche, Iris (Richard Eyre, 2001) with Kate Winslet, Mrs Henderson Presents (Stephen Frears, 2005) with Bob Hoskins, Notes on a Scandal (Richard Eyre, 2006) with Cate Blanchett, Philomena (Stephen Frears, 2013) with Steve Coogan, and Belfast (Kenneth Branagh, 2021).

In May 2024, Dench announced that she would stop acting as she had gone virtually blind due to the eye disease macular degeneration. In 2022, she played her last film role in the American comedy Spirited (Sean Anders, 2022) starring Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds. In 1997, she became a grandmother at age 62 when her daughter Finty Williams gave birth to a son, Sam Michael Williams. Michael Williams died in 2001 at the age of 66. Since 2010, her partner is David Mills.


British postcard by Royal National Theatre, no. LNM 2. Photo: Michael Le Poer Trench. Judi Dench in 'A Little Night Music' (Olivier Theatre, 1995).


British postcard by Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation. Photo: Judi Dench as M in GoldenEye (Martin Campbell, 1995). In the background, on the screen, Gottfried John as Colonel Ourumov.


Dutch postcard by John v.d. Burg Indoor Media. Image: French poster for Iris (Richard Eyre, 2001) with Judi Dench and Kate Winslet. Caption: A Memoir of Iris Murdoch. Collection: Carla Bosch (Meiter).

Sources: Wikipedia (Dutch and English) and IMDb.

Virna Lisi

The seductive Italian actress Virna Lisi (1936-2014) appeared in more than 100 film and TV productions and is internationally best known as a tempting blue-eyed blonde in Hollywood productions of the 1960s. But she proved to be more than a pretty face. From the late 1970s, she had a career renaissance with three-dimensional character parts in a wide variety of Italian and French films. A triumph was her portrayal of a malevolent Catherine de Medici in La Reine Margot (1994) for which she won both the David di Donatello and the César award.


Italian postcard by Rotalcolor / Rotalfoto, no. 242.


Italian postcard.


Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin. Retail price: 2 Lei.


Italian postcard. Photo: Paramount. Publicity still for Assault on a Queen (Jack Donohue, 1966).

With such a mouth...

Virna Lisi was born Virna Lisa Pieralisi in Ancona, Italy in 1936. Her father had a marble exporting business on the Adriatic coast. Her brother, Ubaldo Pieralisi, later became a talent agent, and her sister Esperia Pieralisi also became an actress.

Virna began her film career as a teenager. She was discovered by two Neapolitan producers, Antonio Ferrigno and Ettore Pesce, in Paris. Her debut was in La corda d'acciaio/The Line of Steel (Carlo Borghesio, 1953-1958). Initially, she did musical films, like E Napoli canta/Napoli Sings (Armando Grottini, 1953) and the successful four-episode film Questa è la vita/Such is Life (Luigi Zampa a.o., 1954), with the popular comedian Totò.

Her looks were more valued than her talent in some of her early films, like in Le diciottenni/Eighteen Year Olds (Mario Mattoli, 1955) with Marisa Allasio, and Lo scapolo/The Bachelor (Antonio Pietrangeli, 1955) with Alberto Sordi.

She played more demanding roles in Il cardinale Lambertini/Cardinal Lambertini (Giorgio Pastina, 1954) opposite Gino Cervi, La Donna del Giorno/The Doll That Took the Town (Francesco Maselli, 1956), the Peplum Romolo e Remo/Duel of the Titans (Sergio Corbucci, 1961) featuring musclemen Steve Reeves and Gordon Scott as the two legendary brothers Romulus and Remus, and Eva/Eve (Joseph Losey, 1962) starring Jeanne Moreau.

In the late 1950s, Lisi played on stage at the Piccolo Teatro di Milano and appeared in 'I giacobini' by Federico Zardi, under the direction of Giorgio Strehler. During the 1960s, she performed in stage comedies and she also participated in some very popular television dramas. On TV she also promoted a toothpaste brand, with a slogan which would become a catchphrase amongst the Italians: "con quella bocca può dire ciò che vuole" (with such a mouth, she can say whatever she wants).


Italian postcard by Rotalcolor / Rotalfoto, Milano, no. N 63.


Italian postcard by Rotalcolor, Milano, no. 660.


Italian postcard by Bromostampa, Milano, no. 148.


Romanian collector card.


Yugoslavian postcard by Cik Razglednica.

Tempting blue-eyed blonde

In France, Virna Lisi played the role that brought her first international attention, in La tulipe noire/The Black Tulip (Christian-Jacque, 1964). As the heroine to Alain Delon’s dashing Swashbuckler, she combined sexiness with dexterity. In the 1960s, Hollywood producers were looking for a successor to Marilyn Monroe and so Lisi then made a dent in Hollywood comedies as a tempting blue-eyed blonde.

She first starred opposite Jack Lemmon in George Axelrod’s satirical How to Murder Your Wife (Richard Quine, 1965). At IMDb, reviewer Mdantonio loves her performance: “What most everyone fails to mention in the comments is the incredible skill of Virna Lisi. She is a natural mixing it up with Lemmon, (Claire) Trevor and the other veterans like she had been making movies for years. I have watched many movies in my day and I must say that Virna Lisi is right at the top, not only in beauty and sexuality but in carrying her role as good as anyone else could have. Ms. Lisi, my hat is off to you.” Lisi also gained attention with the March 1965 cover of Esquire magazine on which she was shaving her face. The following year she appeared in another comedy, Not with My Wife, You Don't! (Norman Panama, 1966) now with Tony Curtis.

She also starred with Frank Sinatra in Assault on a Queen (Jack Donohue, 1966), with Rod Steiger in La Ragazza e il Generale/The Girl and the General (Pasquale Festa Campanile, 1967), and twice with Anthony Quinn, in the war drama La vingt-cinquième heure/The 25th Hour (Henri Verneuil, 1967), and in The Secret of Santa Vittoria (Stanley Kramer, 1969). John Francis Lane in his obituary in The Guardian: "Though she enjoyed her American experiences and appreciated the professionalism she encountered, Lisi soon tired of the 'new Marilyn' image foisted upon her. She accepted becoming a cover girl but refused a lucrative offer to pose for Playboy."

To overcome her typecasting as a sexy, seductive woman, Lisi sought new types of roles and found these in such Italian comedies as Le bambole/Four Kinds of Love (Dino Risi a.o., 1965), Signore & signori/The Birds, the Bees and the Italians (Pietro Germi, 1966) and Le dolci signore/Anyone Can Play (Fausto Saraceni, Luigi Zampa, 1968), and Roma bene (Carlo Lizzani, 1971) with Senta Berger.

At AllMovie, Robert Firsching reviewed Signore & signori: “Pietro Germi's funny anthology combines the standard sex comedy format with some unexpectedly subtle observations about village life. The film centres on three stories exposing the sexual secrets of the Italian town of Treviso. (...) Signore e Signori won the Best Film award at the 1966 Cannes Film Festival.”


Small Romanian collector card. Photo: publicity still for Romolo e Remo/Duel of the Titans (Sergio Corbucci, 1961) with Gordon Scott.


Small Romanian collector card.


Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin, no. 565.


East German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, no. 2.624, 1966. Virna Lisi in Les bonnes causes/Don't Tempt the Devil (Christian-Jaque, 1963).


East-German postcard by VEB Progress Filmvertrieb, Berlin, no. 2481, 1965. Photo: publicity still for La tulipe noire/The Black Tulip (Christian-Jacque, 1964) with Alain Delon and Virna Lisi.


East-German postcard by VEB Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 2869. Retail price: 0,20 MDN.

Career renaissance

In the early 1970s, Virna Lisi decided to focus on her family, her husband Franco Pesci and her son Corrado, born in 1962. In the later 1970s, she had a career renaissance with a series of major Italian films. She played Friedrich Nietzsche’s neurotic sister, Elisabeth, in the controversial Al di là del bene e del male/Beyond Good and Evil (Liliana Cavani, 1977) starring Dominique Sanda.

It was followed by roles in Ernesto (Salvatore Samperi, 1979), La cicala/The Cricket (Alberto Lattuada, 1980), and I ragazzi di via Panisperna/The Boys of the Via Panisperna (Gianni Amelio, 1989) with Andrea Prodan and Mario Adorf. Andrea Prodan’s brother Luca Prodan is the singer of the Argentinean band Sumo which made a song for Lisi. The Brazilian rock band Virna Lisi is even named after her.

Her greatest triumph was the French film La Reine Margot/Queen Margot (Patrice Chéreau, 1994) in which Lisi played a malevolent Catherine de Medici, ordering assaults, poisonings, and instigations to incest. Karl Williams at AllMovie: “The historical novel by Alexandre Dumas was adapted for the screen with this lavish French epic, winner of 5 Césars and a pair of awards at the Cannes Film Festival. Isabelle Adjani stars as Marguerite de Valois, better known as Margot, daughter of scheming Catholic power player Catherine de Medici (Virna Lisi).” For her magnificent portrayal, Lisi won the César and the Best Actress award at Cannes, and also the David di Donatello award, the Italian equivalent of the Oscar.

In the new century, she did many successful dramatic TV productions, including L'onore e il rispetto/Honour and Respect (Salvatore Samperi, 2006) with Gabriel Garko and Giancarlo Giannini. In 2002, Lisi starred in Il più bel giorno della mia vita/The Best Day of My Life (Cristina Comencini, 2002) with Margherita Buy, and she reunited with director Cristina Comencini for her final film, the comedy Latin Lover ().

In 1960, Virna Lisi married architect Franco Pesci, who died in 2013. A year later, Lisi passed away at the age of 78. She was survived by her son Corrado and three grandchildren: Franco, Federico and Riccardo. Italian media quoted Corrado as saying that Lisi had passed away peacefully in her sleep, a month after being diagnosed with an incurable illness.


French postcard by Dark Star. Image: French poster for the 2009 re-issue of Signore & Signori (Pietro Germi, 1966) with Virna Lisi.


Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin, no. 43078.


Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin, no. 561.


French postcard by Ch. Bergeret, Strasbourg.


Romanian postcard by Casa Filmului Acin.


Trailer of La Reine Margot/Queen Margot (Patrice Chéreau, 1994). Source: mearbhrach (YouTube).

Sources: John Francis Lane (The Guardian), Hal Erickson (AllMovie - Page now defunct), Robert Firsching (AllMovie - Page now defunct), Karl Williams (AllMovie - Page now defunct), Gary Brumburgh (IMDb), Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen, Wikipedia and IMDb.

Chariklia Baxevanos

Swiss actress Chariklia Baxevanos (1936) has appeared in more than sixty films since 1952.


West German postcard by Ufa/Film-Foto, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. FK 3776. Photo: Lilo / Hansa Film / Günter Matern. Chariklia Baxevanos in Von allen geliebt / Of All Loved (Paul Verhoeven, 1957).


West German postcard by Rüdel-Verlag, Hamburg-Bergedorf, no. 2173. Photo: Hansa Film / Deutsche Film Hansa / Lilo. Chariklia Baxevanos in Von allen geliebt/Of All Loved (Paul Verhoeven, 1957).

A versatile and promising talent

Chariklia Baxevanos was born in 1936 to Greek parents in Zurich. Her father was the operatic tenor Peter Baxevanos, who later sang at the Volksoper in Vienna, and was a theatre director in Athens.

Chariklia grew up in Vienna, attending the gymnasium ‘Sacré Coeur’. Helene Thimig, Max Reinhardt's widow, convinced her parents of their daughter's talent and invited her to study acting at the Max Reinhardt Seminar in Vienna. She studied for two years at the Max-Reinhardt Seminar and graduated there with distinction in 1953.

She had her first success in the same year with ‘Gigi’ at the Wiesbaden State Theatre. Her ‘Mamsell Nitouche’ at the Munich Kammerspiele was her second major stage success.

Since then, several major theatres engaged the versatile and promising actress. For eight years she played at the Theater in der Josefstadt in Vienna. Among others, she played the title role in Terence Rattigan's ‘The Prince and the Dancer’. She was ‘Leonore’ at the Zurich Schauspielhaus, and played in Henrik Ibsen's ‘Wildente’ (The Wild Duck) and Jean Anouilh's ‘Leocadia’.

On the German stage (latterly at Berlin's Theater am Kurfürstendamm under the direction of her then-husband Christian Wölffer), Chariklia Baxevanos headlined as Eliza Doolittle, Anne Frank, Bernadette of Lourdes, Irma La Douce and Rosalinde in William Shakespeare's 'As You Like It'.


West German postcard by Irma-Verlag, Stuttgart-W. Photo: Arthur Grimm / CCC-Film / Herzog-Film. Sent by mail in 1958.


West German autograph card. Photo: Lothar Winkler, Berlin-Dahlem.

Schlager and holiday films

At the age of 16, Chariklia Baxevanos made her film debut in a small role in in the Austrian comedy Schäm' dich, Brigitte! / Shame on You, Brigitte! (E.W. Emo, 1952), starring Heinz Rühmann, Theo Lingen and Hans Moser. She played the younger sister of Mozart's wife Constanze (Gertrüd Kückelmann) in the biopic Mozart (Karl Hartl, 1955), starring Oskar Werner.

In the 1950s, she was frequently seen in Schlager and holiday films, such as Musikparade / Music Parade (Géza von Cziffra, 1956) with Georg Thomalla and Peter Alexander and Ein Stück vom Himmel / A Piece of Heaven (Rudolf Jugert, 1957) with Toni Sailer. She played the leading role alongside Joachim Fuchsberger in Eva küßt nur Direktoren / Eva Kisses Only Directors (Rudolf Jugert, 1957). In her last outing on the big screen, she provided comic relief, in the Edgar Wallace adaptation of Das Ungeheuer von London-City / The Monster of London City (Edwin Zbonek, 1964) with Hans-Jörg Felmy.

Better known on television, she starred as the eponymous heroine of the short-lived drama series Wilhelmina (Thomas Engel, 1968) with Brigitte Mira. She made guest appearances in several episodes of the Science Fiction series Unterwegs nach Atlantis / On the Way to Atlantis (Thomas Fantl, 1982) in addition to a memorable performance in the all-star, Francis Durbridge inspired Mini Series Verräter / Traitor (Michael Braun, 1967).

As a voice actress, she provided the German dubbing for, among others, Carole Landis, Shirley MacLaine, Madeline Kahn and Virna Lisi. 'Baxi' was married twice. Her first husband was the actor Horst Frank, remembered as one of the great European screen villains of the era. He is the father of their daughter Désirée. They divorced a year later.

She then had a ten-year-long relationship with actor Harald Juhnke. They never married and parted ways in 1971, presumably as a consequence of Juhnke's problems with alcoholism. Her second husband was the stage director, writer and actor Christian Wölffer (1942-2015), co-owner, partner and part of the management team of the Berlin Theater am Kurfürstendamm. Her last film with him was the comedy Zwiebeln und Butterplätzchen / Onions and Butter Biscuits (Christian Woelffer, 1990) with Peer Schmidt and Elisabeth Volkmann.


West German postcard by Rüdel Verlag, Hamburg-Bergedorf, no. 2867. Photo: CCC-Film / Deutsche Film Hansa / Arthur Grimm. Chariklia Baxevanos in Abschied von den Wolken/Rebel Flight to Cuba (Gottfried Reinhardt, 1959).


West German postcard by Ufa-Film-Foto, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. FK 4775. Photo: Arthur Grimm.

Sources: I.S. Mowis (IMDb), Munzinger (German), Wikipedia (English and German) and IMDb.

The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935)

The Lives of a Bengal Lancer is a 1935 American adventure film directed by Henry Hathaway. Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone and Richard Cromwell play three British soldiers on the Northwest Frontier of India, who struggle against the enemy - and themselves. This great adventure epic won an Oscar and was nominated in six other categories, including Best Picture and Best Director - Hathaway's only Best Director Oscar nomination.


British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. 868a. Photo: Paramount. Gary Cooper as Captain McGregor in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. 955. Photo: Paramount. Richard Cromwell in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British postcard in the Picturegoer Series, London, no. 956. Photo: Paramount. Franchot Tone in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).

Courage, camaraderie and competition

The setting and title of The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935) come from the 1930 autobiography of the British soldier Francis Yeats-Brown. It was set in 1905 during the Edwardian era. Paramount purchased the rights to the novel even before it was published. The interesting script from John Balderston, Waldemar Young and Grover Jones, however, was only loosely based on the eponymous autobiography by Major Yeats-Brown.

On the Northwest Frontier of British India, the elite Lancers Corps is part of the great Army machine that protects the British Raj from warring princes and rebellious tribes. The 41st Bengal Lancers, led by the harsh Colonel Tom Stone (Sir Guy Standing), guard against Afridi invaders led by the rebellious Mohammed Khan (Douglas Dumbrille).

After two casualties, the experienced but insubordinate Lieutenant Alan McGregor (Gary Cooper) receives as a replacement, the arrogant and cocky Lieutenant Forsythe (Franchot Tone) and the immature and naive son of Colonel Stone, Lieutenant Donald Stone (Richard Cromwell).

The old, stern Colonel Stone is surprised to learn that his alienated and newly graduated son has joined his troops. To prove that he will not have any privilege in the troop, the reception of Colonel Stone to his son is icy. Lt. McGregor rooms with them, because he's usually in trouble. Forsythe loves singing 'Mother Macree' and pushing McGregor's buttons. McGregor bonds with the young Stone, but soon finds out that Donald is no saint. Eventually, all three become friends.

When Lieutenant Stone is kidnapped by Mohammed Khan, McGregor and Forsythe want to go after him, but Stone forbids it. McGregor and Forsythe disobey the direct order of their commander, disguise themselves as Indian peddlers and go to Khan's fortress to attempt to rescue their friend. We follow the three through varied adventures and hardships. During their trials, they exhibit courage, camaraderie and competition.


British postcard. Photo: Paramount. Gary Cooper as Captain McGregor in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British postcard. Photo: Paramount. Sir Guy Standing as Colonel Stone in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British postcard. Photo: Paramount. Franchot Tone as Lieutenant Forsythe in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British postcard. Photo: Paramount. Richard Cromwell as Lieutenant Stone in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).

Delightful witty and cynical dialogues

Paramount Pictures began to plan The Lives of a Bengal Lancer in 1931 and expected the film to be released that same year. The studio sent cinematographers Ernest B. Schoedsack and Rex Wimpy to India to film location shots such as a tiger hunt. According to a New York Times article (January 1932), Schoedsack returned from India after three months of shooting on this film. He, his wife, brother, a cameraman and several assistants spent six weeks on the northwest frontier where, with the aid of British military authorities, he was able to send "thousands of feet of film back with a fine assortment of interesting stills."

However, most of the location footage deteriorated due to the high temperatures, and the project was delayed. When the film was eventually made in 1934, much of the production took place in the hills surrounding Los Angeles. Paramount hired hundreds of Paiute Native Americans from nearby reservations and Indian (mostly Hindu) fruit and olive pickers from California's Napa and Imperial Valleys to play the Afridi tribesmen in the battle sequences. The studio also hired ranchers from nearby Inyo County, most likely to play British soldiers. The film was eventually released in the US in 1935.

The acting is top-notch, with delightful witty and cynical dialogues. The three protagonists, Gary Cooper, Franchot Tone and Richard Cromwell were well accompanied by a large and fine support cast, including Guy Standing, wonderful old C. Aubrey Smith, Kathleen Burke, Douglas Dumbrille, Monte Blue, J. Carrol Naish, Mischa Auer and Akim Tamiroff. It was shot by cameraman Charles Lang with exteriors from Lone Pine, California, and spectacular settings. The scenes Schoedsack filmed on location in India were also used.

The Lives of a Bengal Lancer met with positive reviews and was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning Assistant Director, with other nominations including Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Picture. The film was a big success at the box office and grossed $1.5 million in worldwide theatrical rentals. The Lives of a Bengal Lancer kicked off a cycle of Imperial adventure tales, including The Charge of the Light Brigade (1936), Another Dawn (1937), Gunga Din (1939), The Four Feathers (1939), and The Real Glory (1939). Gary Cooper starred in both Beau Geste and The Real Glory.

The Lives of a Bengal Lancer has long been overshadowed by Beau Geste and the later and more comic Gunga Din. It holds up very well for a film made in 1935, largely due to the lack of any melodramatic romantic subplots. This is a man's film about men in desperate situations. However, like in Gunga Din and The Birth of a Nation, the story is dated and politically incorrect. The British invaders are the "good guys", while those who are fighting for the freedom of their country are the "bad guys". The Lives of a Bengal Lancer was clearly a product of its times.


Dutch postcard, no. 651. Photo: Paramount. Gary Cooper in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


British Real Photogravure Portrait. Photo: Paramount. Gary Cooper in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).


Vintage card. Richard Cromwell and Kathleen Burke in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).

Sources: Wikipedia (Dutch and English) and IMDb.

Oscar Asche

Australian actor, director, and writer Oscar Asche (1871-1936) was best known for his record-breaking musical 'Chu Chin Chow', which ran for 2238 performances in London (1916-1921) and was filmed twice. He acted in, directed or produced many Shakespeare plays, modern dramas, and successful musicals. Asche also appeared in seven films between 1932 and 1936.


British postcard by Rotary Photo E.C., no. 1236R. Photo: Histed. Oscar Asche as Count Hannibal de Tavannes in the play 'Count Hannibal'. In 1908-1909, Asche wrote the play with F. Norreys Connell. He played the lead himself, also with Lily Brayton, his wife and regular co-actor in the 1900s. The play was based on Stanley Weyman's 1901 eponymous novel and is set against the background of the 1572 St. Bartholomew's Night Massacre, in which 10,000 protestants were murdered.


British postcard in the Philco Series, no. 3044 A. Photos: Bassano and Lizzie Caswall Smith. Lily Brayton and Oscar Asche as Bolingbroke in 'Richard II' by William Shakespeare.

Meeting Henrik Ibsen

Born in Geelong, Victoria, Australia in 1871, John Stange(r) Heiss Oscar Asche was the son of Thomas Asche, a Norwegian graduate of the University of Oslo (at that time the Norwegian capital was still called Christiania) who later became a prosperous hotel-keeper and publican in Melbourne and Sydney. Asche's mother, Thomas Asche's second wife, Harriet Emma, née Trear, was born in England.

Oscar Asche was educated at Laurel Lodge, Dandenong, near Melbourne and then at Melbourne Grammar School, which he left at the age of 16. After a trip to China, he returned to Australia and it was some time before he decided to embrace a career in theatre.

Office life did not satisfy him and, after staying in Fiji, he was sent by his father to Norway to study acting in Bergen. In Christiania, he met Henrik Ibsen, who advised him to study and act in his own language and country.

In London, Oscar Asche was so impressed by a production of 'Henry VIII' starring Ellen Terry and Henry Irving that he saw the play six nights in a row.

He stayed in the British capital to study and correct his strong Australian pronunciation, supporting himself with the £10 a week his father gave him. When Oscar returned to Norway, he was finally able to earn his first pay by performing a recital of William Shakespeare.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. E.C. 7466A. Photo: Foulsham and Banfield. Oscar Asche as Count Hannibal, Lily Brayton as Clotilde, Caleb Porter as Father Pezelay, and Elfrida Clement as Mme. St. Lo, in the play 'Count Hannibal' (1909).

Serious financial problems

On 25 March 1893, Oscar Asche made his first stage appearance, at the Opera Comique Theatre in London, in 'Man and Woman', where he played the role of Roberts.

For eight years, he was part of the F. R. Benson Company, acquiring much of his acting experience. Among the plays he took part in were performances at the summer festivals in Stratford. In the meantime, his father faced serious financial problems and could no longer send him the money from the annuity. So Asche, who occasionally earned small amounts, had to make do with finding places to sleep and eat.

With the company, Asche played over a hundred roles, including that of Brutus and King Claudius. His imposing and dignified appearance and resonant voice were often mentioned in the press of the time.

In 1898, he married a fellow actress Lily Brayton, also a member of the company. The two often appeared together in the same plays. In London, Asche performed at the Lyceum Theatre and the Garrick Theatre. Here, he had the opportunity to tackle his first major part in a modern work, Arthur Wing Pinero's 'Iris', a work he did again on Broadway in 1902.

Back in Britain, Oscar Asche joined Herbert Beerbohm Tree's company for a range of Shakespeare plays. In 1903 he played Benedick in 'Much Ado About Nothing' opposite the Beatrice of Ellen Terry. Other parts were Bolingbroke in 'Richard II', Christopher Sly and Petruchio in 'The Taming of the Shrew', Bottom in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', and Angelo in 'Measure for Measure'.


British postcard by J. Beagles & Co, Ltd., no. 431 X. Photo: Daily Mirror. Oscar Asche in 'Kismet' (1911).

A huge and long-lasting success

In 1904 Oscar Asche became co-manager with Otho Stuart of the Adelphi Theatre on a three-year lease. They performed 'The Prayer of the Sword', 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', 'The Taming of the Shrew', and modern plays such as his own 'Count Hannibal' (1909) which he wrote with F. Norreys Connell. In 1906 he played King Mark in J. Comyns Carr's play 'Tristram and Iseult' at the Adelphi Theatre, with Lily Brayton as Iseult and Matheson Lang as Tristram.

In 1907 Asche and his wife took over the management of His Majesty's Theatre. They produced Laurence Binyon’s 'Attila', with Asche in the title role, and innovative productions of Shakespeare plays, such as 'As You Like It', with Asche as Jacques, and 'Othello', with Asche in the title role. while in 1909-1910 they did a big Australian tour. On Asche's return to London in 1911, Edward Knoblock wrote the play 'Kismet' for him, with the understanding that Asche could revise it. Asche shortened and partly re-wrote it and produced it with much success, playing Hajj. The production ran for two years. He also performed it on his second Australian tour in 1911-1912. Asche also starred in a silent film version, Kismet (Leedham Bantock, 1914).

In 1916 Asche produced 'Chu Chin Chow', with music by Frederic Norton, which was a success that beat the classic 'Charley's Aunt'. 'Chu Chin Chow' also played in New York City in 1917 and Australia in 1920. Asche also directed the hit London production of 'The Maid of the Mountains' for Robert Evett and the George Edwardes Estate. Yet, afterwards, his decline set in. Another musical that opened on Broadway in 1920 under the name 'Mecca' and then in London the following year under the name 'Cairo' was not a huge success. Further stage successes eluded Asche. He lost tens of thousands of pounds betting on greyhounds.

'Chu Chin Chow' was turned into a silent film, Chu Chin Chow (Herbert Wilcox, 1923) starring Betty Blythe, and a sound version, Chu Chin Chow (Walter Forde, 1934) starring Anna May Wong. Asche himself played various supporting parts in British cinema of the 1930s, including the British version of Don Quichotte (G.W. Pabst, 1933), Don Quixote (G.W. Pabst, 1933) opposite Feodor Chaliapin Sr. and George Robey. He also appeared in the British version of the film operetta Zwei Herzen im 3/4 Takt (Géza von Bolváry, 1930), Two Hearts in Waltz Time (Carmine Gallone, Joe May, 1934) and The Private Secretary (Henry Edwards, 1935) starring Edward Everett Horton. He also played the Spirit of Christmas Present in Scrooge (Henry Edwards, 1935) starring Seymour Hicks, and finally in the little gem The Robber Symphony (Friedrich Feher, 1936).

Asche's autobiography, 'Oscar Asche: His Life' (1929), must be read with caution whenever figures are mentioned, according to Wikipedia. He also wrote two novels: 'The Saga of Hans Hansen" (1930) and 'The Joss Sticks of Chung' (1931). His play 'Chu Chin Chow' was published in 1931, and the vocal score of 'Cairo' was published in 1921. In 1933 Asche made his last stage appearance in 'The Beggar’s Bowl' at the Duke of York's Theatre. In his final years, Oscar Asche became obese, poor, argumentative and violent. He and Lily Brayton separated, but, in the end, he returned to her and died at the age of 65 in Bisham, Berkshire, of coronary thrombosis. He was buried in the riverside cemetery there. He had no children.


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. E.C. 1236Q. Photo: Daily Mirror Studios. Oscar Asche in the stage play 'The Two Pins' (1908).


British postcard by Rotary Photo, no. 1811 A. Photo: Johnston & Hoffmann. Lily Brayton and Oscar Asche in 'The Taming of the Shrew' by William Shakespeare.

Sources: Wikipedia (English, French and Italian) and IMDb.

Ross Verlag, Part 23: Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm (1)

EFSP continues the grand Ross Verlag Tribute with four posts on the second series of 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst' (From the Genesis of German cinema). This series, no. 11, treats the German sound film, Der Tonfilm. Again, some of the cards are smaller than postcards, others bigger, and all are in black and white. This series includes star portraits and film scenes, but also pictures of film sets and one of the Ufa studios in Babelsberg. The collector cards date from around 1935 and album no. 11 contains cards with scenes from the popular Operetta films but also of Nazi Propaganda films.

German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', album no. 11, picture no. 4. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Dita Parlo and Willy Fritsch in Melodie des Herzens/Melody of the Heart (Hanns Schwarz, 1929).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 6, group 44. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Gustav Fröhlich and Liane Haid in Die unsterbliche Lump/The Immortal Vagabond (Gustav Ucicky, Joe May, 1930).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 12. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Caption: Karl Hoffmann wraps himself and his buzzing camera in thick clothes.


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 16. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Caption: The Ufa site Neubabelsberg, with a total area of more than 430,000 square meters and 11 big studio halls, is the largest film studio in Europe.


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', album no. 11, picture no. 18. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. The composer with a stopwatch.


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 20. Photo: Super-Film / Ross Verlag. Walter Janssen and Gretl Theimer in Zwei Herzen im Dreiviertel-Takt/Two Hearts in Waltz Time (Géza von Bolváry, 1930).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', album no. 11, picture no. 23. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Käthe von Nagy and Willy Fritsch in Ihre Hoheit befiehlt/Her Grace Commands (Hanns Schwarz, 1931).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 25. Photo: Bayerische Filmges. / Ross Verlag. Richard Tauber in Das Land des Lächelns/The Land of Smiles (Max Reichmann, 1930).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 28. Photo: Badal-Film / Ross Verlag. Louis Graveure in Ein Walzer für dich/A Waltz for You (Georg Zoch, 1934).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 30. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Ida Wüst and Leo Slezak in Freut Euch des Lebens/Enjoy Yourselves (Hans Steinhoff, 1934).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 31. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Jan Kiepura and Brigitte Helm in Die singende Stadt/The Singing City (Carmine Gallone, 1930).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 32. Photo: Cine-Allianz / Ross Verlag. Jan Kiepura and Julius Falkenstein in Das Lied einer Nacht/The Song of Night (Anatole Litvak, 1932).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 34. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Willy Fritsch and Renate Müller in Walzerkrieg/Waltz War (Ludwig Berger, 1933).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 35, group 44. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Willy Fritsch learns the young Queen of England Hanna Waag to waltz in Walzerkrieg/Waltz War (Ludwig Berger, 1933).


German collector card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 36. Photo: Boston-Film / Ross Verlag. Magda Schneider and Willi Forst in Ich kenn' dich nicht und liebe dich/I Don't Know You, But I Love You (Géza von Bolváry, 1934).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', album no. 11, picture no. 39. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Lilian Harvey in Der Kongress tanzt/The Congress Dances (Erik Charell, 1931).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 41. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Brigitte Helm and Paul Wegener in Inge und die Millionen/Inge and the Millions (Erich Engel, 1933).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 42. Photo: Aafa / Ross Verlag. Sepp Rist and Leni Riefenstahl in Stürme über dem Mont Blanc/Storm Over Mont Blanc (Arnold Fanck, 1930).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 43, group 44. Photo: Ufa / Ross Verlag. Leni Riefenstahl and Gustav Diessl in S.O.S. Eisberg/S.O.S. Iceberg (Arnold Fanck, 1933).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 44. Photo: Cine-Allianz / Ross Verlag. Sepp Rist in Der ewige Traum/The Eternal Dream (Arnold Fanck, 1934).


German collectors card in the series 'Vom Werden deutscher Filmkunst - Der Tonfilm', no. 47. Photo: Froelich-Film / Ross Verlag. Ida Wüst and Paul Kemp in Mieter Schulze gegen alle/Tenant Schulze against everyone (Carl Froelich, 1932).

The Ross Verlag Tribute will be continued next week.