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05 May 2020

Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell (1918)

We have another film special with Henny Porten! In the German silent comedy Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell/The Lady, the Devil and the Model (Rudolf Biebrach, 1918), she plays a young mannequin who dreams about an ermine fur coat. The devil (Alfred Abel) gives her a choice: if she fulfills three conditions, she gets the coat. The film script of this Messter production was by Robert Wiene, cinematography by Karl Freund, and sets by Kurt Richter. The film was shot at the Tempelhof studios and released at the Berlin Movie Palace Mozartsaal on 17 January 1919. Rotophot published this small series of four postcards of the film.

Henny Porten in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell
German postcard in the Film Sterne series by Rotophot, no. 570/1. Photo: Messter-Film, Berlin. Henny Porten and Alfred Abel in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell (Rudolf Biebrach, 1918).

Henny Porten in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell
German postcard in the Film Sterne series by Rotophot, no. 570/2. Photo: Messter-Film, Berlin. Henny Porten and Alfred Abel in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell (Rudolf Biebrach, 1918).

The conditions of the Beelzebub


A young mannequin (Henny Porten) has only one dream: to finally get hold of the wonderful ermine fur, which she admires every day in the shop window of the Herpich fur house. Her dreams go so far that one day she imagines that the fine gentleman (Alfred Abel) who bought the good piece of clothing at the fashion show today appears to her as the devil, kidnaps her to hell and gives her a choice: if she fulfills three conditions, she gets the coat. The cheeky woman spontaneously fulfills the conditions of the Beelzebub, but her anger is all the greater when she still doesn't get the coat: the devil put her in!

At that moment she is knocked out of her restless sleep. The mannequin opens the door - and in front of her stands the owner of the fur, who had just made her life hell as a devil. This is where the turbulence really gets going, because by mistaking it, the little mannequin may play a spoiled millionaire for a week, whose wishes are all fulfilled - except for one thing: owning the ermine fur. But she will soon forget that in all the hustle and bustle anyway. Rather, she realises that she is happy with her groom Fritz (Eugen Rex) without wealth. And even without an ermine coat.

Henny Porten in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell
German postcard in the Film Sterne series by Rotophot, no. 570/3. Photo: Messter-Film, Berlin. Henny Porten and Alfred Abel in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell (Rudolf Biebrach, 1918).

Henny Porten in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell
German postcard in the Film Sterne series by Rotophot, no. 570/4. Photo: Messter-Film, Berlin. Henny Porten in Die Dame, der Teufel und die Probiermamsell (Rudolf Biebrach, 1918).

Sources: Filmportal.de (German), Wikipedia (German and English), and IMDb.

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