German singer and actor Peter Kraus (1939) was one of the first artists to bring Rock & Roll to Germany. In the late 1950s, he was known as ‘The German Elvis’ and with his female counterpart, Conny Froboess, he formed the Dream Couple of many European teenagers. The popular teen idol made several Schlagerfilms, but only two of them co-starred 'Die Conny und der Peter' together.
Belgian postcard by S. Best, Antwerpen (licency holder for Belgium for Ufa).
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F-159. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Photo: Bayer.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-206. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-250. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F-159. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Photo: Bayer.
Peter Kraus was born as Peter Siegfried Krausnecker in 1939 in München (Munich), Germany. He was the son of the Austrian-born director and cabaret artist Fred Kraus. Peter spent his youth alternating in Munich, Vienna and Salzburg where his father owned a small theatre.
Peter had already singing and acting lessons during his school years. His first film was the excellent Das fliegende Klassenzimmer/The Flying Classroom (Kurt Hoffmann, 1954) based on the famous children's novel of the same name by Erich Kästner.
In the following years, Peter would play in several other films like Die Freundin meines Mannes/The Girlfriend of My Husband (Axel von Ambesser, 1957), Die Frühreifen/The Prematures (Josef von Baky, 1957) with Heidi Brühl, and Der Pauker/The Crammer (Axel von Ambesser, 1958) starring Heinz Rühmann.
In 1956, Kraus made his first single, a cover version of Little Richard's 'Tutti Frutti'. When the German music industry discovered that Rock & Roll was a big seller even with German lyrics, they marketed him as an Elvis copy. At first, Kraus was indeed heavily influenced by Elvis Presley, but soon he managed to find his own style.
Peter Kraus became – like his colleague Ted Herold – one of Germany's most popular singers and teen idols. His lanky and nonchalant attitude was a big hit with teens. Between 1957 and 1964 he scored 36 hits, including 'Susi Rock' (1957), 'Sugar Baby' (1958) and 'Tiger' (1959). In the first four years after his debut he recorded 36 hits and sold more than 12 million records. During his whole career, 'The German Elvis' would sell over 17 million records.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. AX 4445. Photo: Hafbo. Publicity still for Die Frühreifen/The Precocious (Josef von Báky, 1957).
Dutch postcard, no. 761, with Conny Froboess.
German postcard by Kolibri-Verlag, Minden/Westf, no. 834. Photo: Alfa / Melodie / Gloria-Film / Arthur Grimm. Publicity still for Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythms (John Olden, 1959) with Fred Kraus.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. AX 4489. Photo: Hafbo. Publicity Still for Conny und Peter machen Musik (1960) with Conny Froboess.
Dutch postcard, no. 6357. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Boxing with Helen Shapiro.
German postcard by Kolibri-Verlag G.m.b.H., Minden, Westfalen, no. 582. Photo: Lothar Winkler. Publicity card for Polydor Schalip, that announces the singles 'Sugar Baby/Ich denk' an dich' and 'Come on and Swing/Du passt so gut zu mir'.
Peter Kraus performed his hit songs in several Schlagerfilms. In retrospect, remarkably, he appeared in only two Schlagerfilms with his female counterpart Conny Froboess.
They starred in the big hits Wenn die Conny mit dem Peter/When Conny and Peter Do It Together (Fritz Umgelter, 1958) and Conny und Peter machen Musik/Conny and Peter Make Music (Werner Jacobs, 1960). They were considered the ‘dream couple’ of the German entertainment industry in the late 1950s.
As the 'nice boy from next door', he appeared in many silly teenager comedies, including Alle lieben Peter/Everybody Loves Peter (Wolfgang Becker, 1959) opposite Christine Kaufmann, and Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythm (John Olden, 1959) opposite Margit Saad.
His real father, Fred Kraus played his father in Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythm. In this Schlagerfilm Kraus appeared with Jörg Maria Berg as the The James Brothers.
Under this pseudonym, the duo recorded such German cover versions as 'Wenn' (When, 1958), 'Cowboy Billy' (1959), 'Rote Rosen' (Pretty Blue Eyes, 1960), 'Die jungen Jahre' (Endless Sleep, 1960) and 'Hätt' ich einen Hammer' (If I Had A Hammer, 1964).
German postcard by ISV, no. H 43, ca. 1960. Peter Kraus and Margit Saad in Melodie und Rhythmus (1959).
German postcard by ISV, no. H 48.
German postcard by ISV, no. E 18. Photo: Constantin / Grimm.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-181. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by Terra-Colour, no. F-178.
Peter Kraus changed his music with new trends and toured through Europe and the USA with his schlagers like 'Schwarze Rose Rosemarie' (Black Rose Marie, 1961) and such blues songs as 'Silvermoon' and 'Sweety' (1962). In the cinema, he appeared with Willy Fritsch in Was macht Papa denn in Italien?/But What's Daddy Doing in Italy? (Hans-Dieter Schwarze, 1961), and he co-starred with the former ice-skating champions Marika Kilius and Hans-Jürgen Bäumler in Die Große Kür/The Great Skating Kür (Franz Antel, 1964).
Since then he worked mainly for television. He made many TV musicals and even had his own TV show, Herzlichst Ihr Peter Kraus, but he also worked as a record producer, scriptwriter and TV director. After 26 years he finally made a third film with Conny, now Cornelia Froboess, the crime drama Der Sommer des Samurai/The Summer of the Samurai (Hans-Christoph Blumenberg, 1985).
Since then Peter Kraus has kept on touring and making such records as 'Rock ’n Roll is Back' (2004). That year he also published the biography 'Keine Zeit zum Altwerden – I love Rock'n Roll' (No Time To Become Old), written with Erich J. Lejeune. In 1990 he had already produced the memoirs 'Wop-baba-lu-ba – mein ver-rocktes Leben'.
In the cinema, he was last seen in a small part in the comedy West End (Markus Mischkowski, Kai-Maria Steinkühler, 2001). He received an Amadeus Austrian Music Award (2004) and an ECHO Award (2006) for his lifetime achievements. He is also a successful painter, whose work has been exhibited in Switzerland.
In 1969 Peter Kraus married Ingrid Nieuweboer, a former model. She brought her daughter Gaby into the marriage, whom Kraus adopted later on. In 1973 their son Mike (Michael) was born. Gaby died in her late thirties from breast cancer. Peter and Ingrid Kraus live in Tessin at Lake Lugano in Switzerland. In June 2024, the then 85-year-old Kraus sang at the Danube Island Festival in Vienna.
Dutch postcard by Gebr. Spanjersberg N.V., Rotterdam, no. 5243. Photo: Corny Collins and Peter Kraus in Immer die Radfahrer/Always the Cyclists (Hans Deppe, 1958).
Dutch postcard by Gebr. Spanjersberg N.V., Rotterdam, no. 1312. Photo: Ufa. Sabine Sinjen and Peter Kraus in Kein Engel ist so rein/No angel is so pure (Wolfgang Becker, 1960).
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-354. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard with autograph.
Conny Froboess and Peter Kraus sing 'Sag' Mir Was Du Denkst' in Conny und Peter machen Musik/Conny and Peter Make Music (1960). Source: Fritz 5140 (YouTube).
Sources: PeterKraus.de (German), Stephanie D'heil (Steffi-line - German), Marisa Brown
(AllMusic), IMDb and Wikipedia.
This post was last updated on 15 January 2025.
Belgian postcard by S. Best, Antwerpen (licency holder for Belgium for Ufa).
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F-159. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Photo: Bayer.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-206. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-250. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by WS-Druck, Wanne-Eickel, no. F-159. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Photo: Bayer.
First Rock & Roll Teen Star
Peter Kraus was born as Peter Siegfried Krausnecker in 1939 in München (Munich), Germany. He was the son of the Austrian-born director and cabaret artist Fred Kraus. Peter spent his youth alternating in Munich, Vienna and Salzburg where his father owned a small theatre.
Peter had already singing and acting lessons during his school years. His first film was the excellent Das fliegende Klassenzimmer/The Flying Classroom (Kurt Hoffmann, 1954) based on the famous children's novel of the same name by Erich Kästner.
In the following years, Peter would play in several other films like Die Freundin meines Mannes/The Girlfriend of My Husband (Axel von Ambesser, 1957), Die Frühreifen/The Prematures (Josef von Baky, 1957) with Heidi Brühl, and Der Pauker/The Crammer (Axel von Ambesser, 1958) starring Heinz Rühmann.
In 1956, Kraus made his first single, a cover version of Little Richard's 'Tutti Frutti'. When the German music industry discovered that Rock & Roll was a big seller even with German lyrics, they marketed him as an Elvis copy. At first, Kraus was indeed heavily influenced by Elvis Presley, but soon he managed to find his own style.
Peter Kraus became – like his colleague Ted Herold – one of Germany's most popular singers and teen idols. His lanky and nonchalant attitude was a big hit with teens. Between 1957 and 1964 he scored 36 hits, including 'Susi Rock' (1957), 'Sugar Baby' (1958) and 'Tiger' (1959). In the first four years after his debut he recorded 36 hits and sold more than 12 million records. During his whole career, 'The German Elvis' would sell over 17 million records.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. AX 4445. Photo: Hafbo. Publicity still for Die Frühreifen/The Precocious (Josef von Báky, 1957).
Dutch postcard, no. 761, with Conny Froboess.
German postcard by Kolibri-Verlag, Minden/Westf, no. 834. Photo: Alfa / Melodie / Gloria-Film / Arthur Grimm. Publicity still for Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythms (John Olden, 1959) with Fred Kraus.
Dutch postcard by Uitg. Takken, Utrecht, no. AX 4489. Photo: Hafbo. Publicity Still for Conny und Peter machen Musik (1960) with Conny Froboess.
Dutch postcard, no. 6357. Sent by mail in the Netherlands in 1965. Boxing with Helen Shapiro.
German postcard by Kolibri-Verlag G.m.b.H., Minden, Westfalen, no. 582. Photo: Lothar Winkler. Publicity card for Polydor Schalip, that announces the singles 'Sugar Baby/Ich denk' an dich' and 'Come on and Swing/Du passt so gut zu mir'.
The 'nice boy from next door'
Peter Kraus performed his hit songs in several Schlagerfilms. In retrospect, remarkably, he appeared in only two Schlagerfilms with his female counterpart Conny Froboess.
They starred in the big hits Wenn die Conny mit dem Peter/When Conny and Peter Do It Together (Fritz Umgelter, 1958) and Conny und Peter machen Musik/Conny and Peter Make Music (Werner Jacobs, 1960). They were considered the ‘dream couple’ of the German entertainment industry in the late 1950s.
As the 'nice boy from next door', he appeared in many silly teenager comedies, including Alle lieben Peter/Everybody Loves Peter (Wolfgang Becker, 1959) opposite Christine Kaufmann, and Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythm (John Olden, 1959) opposite Margit Saad.
His real father, Fred Kraus played his father in Melodie und Rhythmus/Melody and Rhythm. In this Schlagerfilm Kraus appeared with Jörg Maria Berg as the The James Brothers.
Under this pseudonym, the duo recorded such German cover versions as 'Wenn' (When, 1958), 'Cowboy Billy' (1959), 'Rote Rosen' (Pretty Blue Eyes, 1960), 'Die jungen Jahre' (Endless Sleep, 1960) and 'Hätt' ich einen Hammer' (If I Had A Hammer, 1964).
German postcard by ISV, no. H 43, ca. 1960. Peter Kraus and Margit Saad in Melodie und Rhythmus (1959).
German postcard by ISV, no. H 48.
German postcard by ISV, no. E 18. Photo: Constantin / Grimm.
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-181. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard by Terra-Colour, no. F-178.
New trends
Peter Kraus changed his music with new trends and toured through Europe and the USA with his schlagers like 'Schwarze Rose Rosemarie' (Black Rose Marie, 1961) and such blues songs as 'Silvermoon' and 'Sweety' (1962). In the cinema, he appeared with Willy Fritsch in Was macht Papa denn in Italien?/But What's Daddy Doing in Italy? (Hans-Dieter Schwarze, 1961), and he co-starred with the former ice-skating champions Marika Kilius and Hans-Jürgen Bäumler in Die Große Kür/The Great Skating Kür (Franz Antel, 1964).
Since then he worked mainly for television. He made many TV musicals and even had his own TV show, Herzlichst Ihr Peter Kraus, but he also worked as a record producer, scriptwriter and TV director. After 26 years he finally made a third film with Conny, now Cornelia Froboess, the crime drama Der Sommer des Samurai/The Summer of the Samurai (Hans-Christoph Blumenberg, 1985).
Since then Peter Kraus has kept on touring and making such records as 'Rock ’n Roll is Back' (2004). That year he also published the biography 'Keine Zeit zum Altwerden – I love Rock'n Roll' (No Time To Become Old), written with Erich J. Lejeune. In 1990 he had already produced the memoirs 'Wop-baba-lu-ba – mein ver-rocktes Leben'.
In the cinema, he was last seen in a small part in the comedy West End (Markus Mischkowski, Kai-Maria Steinkühler, 2001). He received an Amadeus Austrian Music Award (2004) and an ECHO Award (2006) for his lifetime achievements. He is also a successful painter, whose work has been exhibited in Switzerland.
In 1969 Peter Kraus married Ingrid Nieuweboer, a former model. She brought her daughter Gaby into the marriage, whom Kraus adopted later on. In 1973 their son Mike (Michael) was born. Gaby died in her late thirties from breast cancer. Peter and Ingrid Kraus live in Tessin at Lake Lugano in Switzerland. In June 2024, the then 85-year-old Kraus sang at the Danube Island Festival in Vienna.
Dutch postcard by Gebr. Spanjersberg N.V., Rotterdam, no. 5243. Photo: Corny Collins and Peter Kraus in Immer die Radfahrer/Always the Cyclists (Hans Deppe, 1958).
Dutch postcard by Gebr. Spanjersberg N.V., Rotterdam, no. 1312. Photo: Ufa. Sabine Sinjen and Peter Kraus in Kein Engel ist so rein/No angel is so pure (Wolfgang Becker, 1960).
German postcard by Ufa, Berlin-Tempelhof, no. CK-354. Photo: Arthur Grimm / Ufa.
German postcard with autograph.
Conny Froboess and Peter Kraus sing 'Sag' Mir Was Du Denkst' in Conny und Peter machen Musik/Conny and Peter Make Music (1960). Source: Fritz 5140 (YouTube).
Sources: PeterKraus.de (German), Stephanie D'heil (Steffi-line - German), Marisa Brown
(AllMusic), IMDb and Wikipedia.
This post was last updated on 15 January 2025.
6 comments:
Hello and Happy PFF! This was so much fun! Being American, we never get to see what other countries were doing very much! It's fun to see that we all had the 50s love stories and rock and roll was a major part of teenagers every where!
Hugs- Tete
I follow your blog every Friday, and I really enjoy reading your posts. Thanks for playing along on PFF!
It looks as though music has kept him young judging from the last medley clip. Nice to see old rockers are still going.
BTW in reply to your question about the red letter postcards. I have never been able to find anything about them except they were published in England, and may have been given away in a magazine.
Nice to see that the cute publicity pairings and silly movies aren't just an American invention.
Once again, memories come flooding back! He is remarkably well-dressed throughout his career, by the looks of it. And good to see that he's still going strong.
I was taken with Eva May - what a sad short life she had.
Post a Comment