27 October 2012

Marianne Hold

In the 1950’s and 1960’s attractive actress Marianne Hold (1933-1994) became the queen of the Heimatfilm - the romantic German film genre set in rural, especially Alpine, areas.

Marianne Hold
German collectors card by Lux.

Marianne Hold
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F 35. Photo: Niczky.

Cinecittà
Marianne Hold was born as Marianne Weiss in Johannisburg, East Prussia, in 1933. In the last days of the Second World War her father got missing. At age 15, she ran away from home because she couldn’t stand her stepfather. She went to Rome where she started working in the kitchen of a Protestant convent and later worked as a cutter at the Cinecittà film studio. She was spotted by director Gabriel Pascal, who offered her a scholarship at the Cinecittà acting school. In 1950 she was offered her first role by mountaineer-turned-director Luis Trenker in Barriera a Settentrione/Mountain Smugglers (1950, Luis Trenker) starring Amedeo Nazzari. This was followed up by a small role in the Italian production Benvenuto, reverendo!/Welcome Reverend (1950, Aldo Fabrizi) and bigger roles in German films like Ave Maria (1953, Alfred Braun) with Zarah Leander.

Marianne Hold
German postcard by ISV, no. H 1. Photo: Sahm.

Marianne Hold
German-Dutch postcard, no. 1259.

Heimatfilms
Soon Marianne Hold became a popular actress in Heimatfilms like Hochzeitsglocken/Marriage Bells (1954, Georg Wildhagen), Wenn die Alpenrosen blüh'n/When the alpine roses blossom (1955, Hans Deppe a.o.) and Heimatland/Homeland (1955, Franz Antel) with Rudolf Prack and Adrian Hoven. Her breakthrough role was a fisher girl in Die Fischerin vom Bodensee/The Fisher-girl from Lake Bodensee (1956, Harald Reinl). She proved her versatility as an actress in the poetic Marianne de ma jeunesse/Marianne, meine Jugendliebe/Marianne of My Youth (1955, Julien Duvivier). She costarred with Gerhard Riedmann in Die Prinzessin von St. Wolfgang/The Princess of Saint Wolfgang (1957, Harald Reinl), Bei der blonden Kathrein/At Blonde Kathrein's (1959, Hans Quest) and Waldrausch/Forest Flush (1962, Paul May). With her discoverer Luis Trenker she made Prigioniero della montagna/Prisoner of the Mountains (1955, Luis Trenker), Von der Liebe besiegt/Conquered by Love (1956, Luis Trenker) and Wetterleuchten um Maria/Lightning Around Maria (1957, Luis Trenker). While filming Die Diamantenhölle am Mekong/Mission to Hell (1964, Gianfranco Parolini) she met Czech born actor Frederick Stafford and married him. Their son, Roderick Stafford, was born in the same year. She then retired from the film business to take care of her son. Her last film was the Karl May adaptation Der Schut/The Shoot (1964, Robert Siodmak) starring Lex Barker. In 1994 Marianne Hold died of a heart attack in her house in Lugano, Switzerland.

Marianne Hold
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F 58. Photo: Theo Huster.

Marianne Hold
German postcard by UFA, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-34. Retail price: 30 Pfg. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Constantin Film.

Sources: Stephanie D'heil (Steffi-line.de), Wikipedia, Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen and IMDb.

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