HOME INDEX
SILENT MOVIE		 THE GERMAN
SILENT MOVIE		 MAIL English Version

 
Paul Abraham

   

1892 - 1960

 .
.
The operetta and film composer Paul Abraham studied composition from 1913 to 1917 and during this time he already composed his first own pieces. He earned his living with risky bank businesses which led to an imprisonment.
 
After his release he worked as an employee, beside it he conducted at smaller establishments.
 
The breakthrough as a composer came when he became a bandmaster at the Budapest Metropolitan Operetta and when he composed four songs the following year for the operetta "Zenebona".
 
Afterwards he composed "Ich liebe meine Frau" (29), it followed the operettas "Viktoria/Viktoria und ihr Husar"(30), "Die Blume von Hawaii" (31) and "Ball im Savoy" (32).

From 1930 Paul Abraham was also active as a filmcomposer, partly with original compositions, partly with compositions from his operettas.
to his filmcompositions of the 30s belong "Melodie des Herzens" (30), "Die singende Stadt" (30), "Die Privatsekretärin" (31), "Viktoria und ihr Husar" (31), "Zigeuner der Nacht* (32), "Das Blaue vom Himmel" (32) and "Die Blume von Hawaii" (33).
 
With the rise of the National Socialists the career of the Jew Paul Abraham enden in Germany. He first went back to Budapest than he wrote several operettas in Vienna like "Märchen im Grandhotel" (34), " Es geschehen noch Wunder" (35) "Dschainah" (35), "3:1 a szerelem javara" (36), "Julia" (37), "Der weisse Schwan" (38), "Roxy und ihr Wunderteam" (38) and "Wintermelodie" (39) before he had to leave this domain as well.
 
During this time he also wrote some movie scores for "Dactylo se marie" (34), "Temptation" (34), "Tagebuch der Geliebten" (35), "Ball im Savoy" (36), "Hotel Kikelet" (37), "Csaladi potlek" (37), "Roxy und das Wunderteam" (38) and "Rako Sérénade" (40).
 
He emigrated to Paris and in 1940 he went via Cuba to the USA. There he was not able to continue his artistic career and finally he attracted attention by strange behaviours. They diagnosed him with insanity and he came to different centres before he returned to Germany where he was treated at the psychiatry of the Universitätsklinik Hamburg-Eppendorf. Paul Abraham never recovered and he died in 1960 of cancer.
 
The music was spotted again in Germany in the 50s (he became forgotten during his banishment) and it followed several film versions of his operettas like "Die Privatsekretärin" (53), "Die Blume von Hawaii" (53), "Viktoria und ihr Husar" (54) and "Ball im Savoy" (55).


Other movies from Paul Abraham:
Sunshine Susie (31) Ein bisschen Liebe für Dich/Zwei glückliche Herzen (32) Monsieur, Madame et Bibi (32) Due cuori felici (32) Coeurs joyeux (32) Glück über Nacht (32) Yes, Mr. Brown (32) Rakoczy-Marsch (33) Lila akac (34) Antonia, romance hongroise (35) Bretter, die die Welt bedeuten (35) Dschainah, das Mädchen aus dem Tanzhaus (35) Pesti mese (37) Viki (37) Mai lanyok (37) Eksereit ember (38) Die entführte Braut (38) Uri vilag (38) 3:1 a szerelem javara (39) It Happened in Odessa (43) Holilday in Mexico (43)

 
Back