Marta Eggerth Movies

The German Land des Lachelns was released abroad as Land of Smiles. Based on an operetta by Franz Lehar, the film serves as a showcase for the splendid vocal talents of Martha Eggerth and Jan Kiepura (whose last movie this was). Eggerth plays a Viennese opera diva who falls in love with a Siamese prince, played by Kiepura. Both are slated for marriages of convenience, but that doesn't stop them from pursuing their romance. The King and I it's not, but it's still enjoyable. Comedy relief is provided by Ludwig Schmitz as the Harpo Marx-like servant to Prince Kiepura. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The Italian-American Her Wonderful Lie is based on the novel Latin Quarter by Murger. This literary work is better known as the source for the Puccini opera La Boheme, and indeed, Her Wonderful Life is a modernized adaptation of the Puccini classic, with a few songs from other operas thrown in for good measure. Marta Eggerth and Jan Kiepura sing and act the leading roles of the tragic seamstress and her headstrong starving-artist lover. Featured in the cast are such familiar American faces as Janis Paige, Douglass Dumbrille, Sterling Holloway and Isobel Elsom, not to mention dancer-choreographer Marc Platt. On the strength of its multinational cast, Her Wonderful Lie was distributed stateside by Columbia Pictures. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

For Me and My Gal, a leisurely period musical, represents the first on-screen dancing of MGM's new star Gene Kelly. Judy Garland plays a member of a vaudeville troupe consisting of herself, George Murphy, Ben Blue and Lucille Norman. She leaves the act to join up with Kelly, who promises to propel her to the big time. Two unsuccessful years later, Garland and Kelly are still struggling in the small time, while Murphy and his bunch are headliners. Kelly nearly throws Garland over for singer Marta Eggerth, but Judy remains loyal--at least until Kelly deliberately breaks his hand to avoid serving in World War I. Having lost her brother Richard Quine to the war, Garland denounces Kelly as a coward and walks out. Kelly redeems himself by joining an overseas entertainment troupe, saving several lives when he finds himself under attack on the front. Judy and Gene are at last reunited in Paris. A major break for both Gene Kelly and Judy Garland (who proved once and for all in this film that she was no longer just a "juvenile"), For Me and My Gal was based on a story by Howard Emmett Rogers. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The "Castle in Flanders" of the title is where six aristocratic British officers are billeted during WWI. To pass the time, they play a scratchy old record on a ramshackle gramophone, eventually falling in love with the female voice heard on the recording. Meanwhile, the selfsame girl, a Parisian revue artiste named Gloria Delamare (Marta Eggarth) must fend off the attentions of her many ardent suitors. When she finally falls in love, it is of course with one of those six British officers, a man who has gone broke and is now a "suitable" beau for the low-born Gloria. The lucky swain is played by Paul Hartmann, one of Germany's most popular leading men of the 1930s. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Jan Kiepura and Marta Eggerth, a pair of gifted opera singers who were also husband and wife, were at the height of their fame in 1936 when they starred in this Viennese screen musical. Denise (Eggerth) is an aspiring singer whose audition for a production of La Bohème strongly impresses Rene (Kiepura), another performer hoping to land a role in the opera. Denise wins the leading role of Mimi, and Rene wins the heart of Denise as well as a part as her love interest, but their good fortune is soon shrouded in tragedy when Denise discovers that, much like her character, she has contracted a fatal disease which may prevent her from making her triumphant debut. Zauber der Boheme (aka The Charm of La Boheme) was designed to incorporate the music of Puccini's opera into a contemporary setting as a vehicle for Kiepura and Eggerth; this project marked their return to the European screen after a stay in Hollywood failed to make them into American matinee idols in the manner of Jeanette MacDonald and Nelson Eddy. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Die Csardasfurstin (Czardas Princess) was adapted from the Emmerich Kalmann operetta of the same name. Marta Eggerth essays the title role, a regal-looking lass named Sylva Varescu. Not technically a princess, Sylva is a music-hall singer whose beauty attracts the attention of handsome prince Weylersheim (Hans Soehnker) and playboy Count Boni Kansianu (Paul Kemp). Weylersheim is anxious to wed Sylva, but he is already engaged to a young countess (Ida Wuest). This last-named character provides a handy plot solution when she falls for the Count, leaving Weylersheim free to marry our heroine. Because of the Third Reich's "racial purity" policy, the Jewish Emmerich Kalman was unmentioned in the UFA press release for Die Csardasfurstin. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Mein Herz Ruft Dir is a tailor-made vehicle for Polish singing sensation Jan Kiepura. The star is cast as the lead tenor in a travelling operatic troupe, who while taking a boat to Monte Carlo falls in love with pretty stowaway Martha Eggerth. When the troupe's Monte Carlo engagement is cancelled, Kiepura tries to use his splendid singing voice to find a wealthy patron for himself and his co-workers. Nothing seems to work until he stages an impromptu street performance of Tosca, drawing a huge crowd away from an indoor performance of the same opera. Oh yes -- he also ends up marrying Marta Eggerth, who like everyone else in the film plays second fiddle to Mr. Kiepura. Director Carmine Gallone filmed Mein Herz Ruft Dir three times: this German version, the French Mon Coeur D'Appelle and the English-language My Heart is Calling. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Max Hansen stars as the title character in Der Frauendiplomat (The Ladies' Diplomat). The hero is an Austrian duke with a roving eye who treats the various embassies of Europe as his own personal dating services. His galavanting days come to an end when he meets Marthe Eggerth, with whom he genuinely falls in love -- and who, of course, wants nothing to do with him. Famed Austrian opera singer Leo Slezak (father of Walter Slezak) makes his screen debut herein. Der Frauendiplomat was the first Paramount picture produced exclusively for the domestic German audience. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

The German film industry seemed to have cornered the market in early-talkie military comedies, if Trara um Liebe (Trumpet Call of Love) and its ilk are any indication. The story concerns a young man who pretends to be someone else for the love of the heroine. What he doesn't know, but we do, is that the girl is likewise pretending to be someone she's not. All of this is set against an army setting, with plenty of regimental songs and close-order-drill dances. Felix Bressart, later a regular in the Hollywood films of Ernst Lubitsch, provides comedy relief. Trara um Liebe is a remake of the silent comedy Liebe und Trompetblasen (Love and the Trumpet Call). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi