CV
Conrad Veidt
Actor
Born January 22, 1893Died April 3, 1943 (50 years)
Hans Walter Conrad Veidt (22 January 1893 – 3 April 1943) was a German actor best remembered for his roles in films such as Different from the Others (1919), The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), and The Man Who Laughs (1928). After a successful career in German silent film, where he was one of the best-paid stars of Ufa, he was forced to leave Germany in 1933 with his new Jewish wife after the Nazis came to power. They settled in Britain, where he participated in a number of films, including The Thief of Bagdad (1940), before emigrating to the United States around 1941, which lead to him having a supporting role in Casablanca (1942).
From 1916 until his death, Veidt appeared in more than 100 films. One of his earliest performances was as the murderous somnambulist Cesare in director Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), a classic of German Expressionist cinema, with Werner Krauss and Lil Dagover. His starring role in The Man Who Laughs (1928), as a disfigured circus performer whose face is cut into a permanent grin, provided the (visual) inspiration for the Batman villain the Joker, created in 1940 by Bill Finger. Veidt also starred in other silent horror films such as The Hands of Orlac (1924), another film directed by Robert Wiene, The Student of Prague (1926) and Waxworks (1924) where he played Ivan the Terrible.
Veidt also appeared in Magnus Hirschfeld's film Anders als die Andern (Different from the Others, 1919), one of the first films to sympathetically portray homosexuality, although the characters in it do not end up happily. He had a leading role in Germany's first talking picture, Das Land ohne Frauen (Land Without Women, 1929).
He moved to Hollywood in the late 1920s and made a few films, but the advent of talking pictures and his difficulty with speaking English led him to return to Germany. During this period he lent his expertise to tutoring aspiring performers, one of whom was the later American character actress Lisa Golm.
From 1916 until his death, Veidt appeared in more than 100 films. One of his earliest performances was as the murderous somnambulist Cesare in director Robert Wiene's The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920), a classic of German Expressionist cinema, with Werner Krauss and Lil Dagover. His starring role in The Man Who Laughs (1928), as a disfigured circus performer whose face is cut into a permanent grin, provided the (visual) inspiration for the Batman villain the Joker, created in 1940 by Bill Finger. Veidt also starred in other silent horror films such as The Hands of Orlac (1924), another film directed by Robert Wiene, The Student of Prague (1926) and Waxworks (1924) where he played Ivan the Terrible.
Veidt also appeared in Magnus Hirschfeld's film Anders als die Andern (Different from the Others, 1919), one of the first films to sympathetically portray homosexuality, although the characters in it do not end up happily. He had a leading role in Germany's first talking picture, Das Land ohne Frauen (Land Without Women, 1929).
He moved to Hollywood in the late 1920s and made a few films, but the advent of talking pictures and his difficulty with speaking English led him to return to Germany. During this period he lent his expertise to tutoring aspiring performers, one of whom was the later American character actress Lisa Golm.
Known For
Filmography
| 2014 | Caligari - Wie der Horror ins Kino kam · as Cesare |
| 2011 | Vito · as Paul Körner |
| 2004 | Die Geschichte des erotischen Films · as Cast |
| 2002 | |
| 1998 | Universal Horror · as (archive Footage) |
| 1943 | Above Suspicion · as Hassert Seidel |
| 1942 | Casablanca · as Major Heinrich Strasser |
| 1942 | Nazi Agent · as Otto Becker / Baron Hugo Von Detner |
| 1942 | All Through the Night · as Franz Ebbing |
| 1941 | The Men in Her Life · as Stanislas Rosing |
| 1941 | Whistling in the Dark · as Joseph Jones |
| 1941 | A Woman's Face · as Torsten Barring |
| 1940 | The Thief of Bagdad · as Jaffar |
| 1940 | Blackout · as Capt. Andersen |
| 1940 | Escape · as General Kurt Von Kolb |
| 1939 | |
| 1938 | The Devil Is an Empress · as Le Baron De Kempelen |
| 1938 | Tempête sur l'Asie · as Erich Keith |
| 1937 | Under the Red Robe · as Gil De Berault |
| 1937 | Dark Journey · as Baron Karl Von Marwitz |
| 1935 | King of the Damned · as Convict 83 |
| 1935 | The Passing of the Third Floor Back · as The Stranger |
| 1934 | Power · as Josef 'jew Süss' Oppenheimer |
| 1933 | I Was a Spy · as Commandant Oberaertz |
| 1933 | The Wandering Jew · as Matathias / The Unknown Knight / Dr Matteos Battadios |
| 1933 | F. P. 1 Doesn't Answer · as Maj. Ellissen |
| 1933 | Ich und die Kaiserin · as Marquis De Pontignac |
| 1932 | Rome Express · as Zurta |
| 1932 | Rasputin, Demon with Women · as Grigori Rasputin |
| 1931 | Congress Dances · as Fürst Metternich |
| 1931 | Die andere Seite · as Hauptmann Stanhope |
| 1931 | Der Mann, der den Mord beging · as Oberst Marquis De Sévigné |
| 1929 | The Last Performance · as Erik The Great |
| 1928 | The Man Who Laughs · as Gwynplaine / Lord Clancharlie |
| 1927 | |
| 1927 | Napoleon · as Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis De Sade |
| 1927 | The Beloved Rogue · as King Louis Xi |
| 1926 | The Student of Prague · as Balduin, Student |
| 1926 | The Violinist of Florence · as Renées Vater |
| 1925 | Ingmarsarvet · as Hellgum |
| 1924 | Husbands or Lovers · as Der Liebhaber, Ein Dichter |
| 1924 | Waxworks · as Ivan The Terrible |
| 1924 | The Hands of Orlac · as Paul Orlac |
| 1922 | Lucrezia Borgia · as Cesare Borgia |
| 1921 | Mysteries of India, Part II: Above All Law · as Ayan, Majarajah Of Eschnapur |
| 1921 | Mysteries of India, Part I: Truth · as Ayan, Majarajah Of Eschnapur |
| 1921 | Journey into the Night · as Der Maler |
| 1920 | Desire · as Ivan |
| 1920 | The Head of Janus · as Dr. Warren |
| 1920 | Evening - Night - Morning · as Brilburn - Maud's Brother |
| 1920 | Moriturus · as Wilmos, Sanatorium Director |
| 1920 | The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari · as Cesare |
| 1919 | Satanas · as Lucifer |
| 1919 | Eerie Tales · as Der Tod / Various Other Roles |
| 1919 | Different from the Others · as Paul Körner |
| 1919 | Opium · as Dr. Richard Armstrong Jr. |
| 1919 | Nocturno der Liebe · as Frederic Chopin |
| 1917 | Furcht · as Indian Priest |
| 1917 |