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Ossi Oswalda

Picture Ossi Oswalda
Foto: Alexander Binder (1888-1929)

1898 - 1947

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The actress Ossi Oswalda was born as Oswalda Stäglich in Niederschönhausen.

After dancing lessons as a prima ballerina she came to the Berliner theater as a choir dancer. There she was spotted by Hanns Kräly who recommended her to Ernst Lubitsch.

Between 1916 and 1919 she normally worked for Ernst Lubitsch, but there were also other directors who knew how to put on her talent.
At the beginning of her career she appeared in movies like "Schuhpalast Pinkus" (16), "Leutnant auf Befehl" (16), "Ossi's Tagebuch" (17), "Wenn vier dasselbe tun" (17), "Das Mädel vom Ballett" (18) and "Die Austernprinzessin" (19).

With her arrogant and amusing appearance she became a darling of the public and she was soon called the German Mary Pickford.

She founded her own film company in 1921 and realised the movies "Amor am Steuer" (21), "Das Mädel mit der Maske" (22), "Der blinde Passagier" (22), "Das Milliardensouper" (23) and "Colibri" (24).
In 1925 she signed a contract with the Ufa and played in movies like "Das Mädchen mit der Protektion" (25), "Die Fahrt ins Abenteuer" (26), "Die Kleine vom Varieté" (26), "Das Mädel auf der Schaukel" (26) and "Eine tolle Nacht" (26).

The rise of the sound film meant the end of her film career. After many years she appeared again on stages for the first time, among others in "Der Graf von Luxemburg". In sound movies she only appeared two times, in the movies "Der keusche Josef" (30) and "Der Stern von Valencia" (33).

After the political situation in Germany changed, she moved to Prague with her partner Julius Aussenburg.
She lived there from 1933 to 1938 under the name Oswalda Kocziánová, mostly in the Hotel Alcron and occasionally in a villa in Marienbad. Her last cinematical activity also came in Prague into being, but not as an actress but as a screenwriter together with Josef Mach for “Ctrnacty u stolu” (43) with Karel Höger in the leading role.

When the “Benes Decree” was implemented in Czechoslovakia, around 2.9 million people were declared enemies of the state by 1946/47 because of their German affiliation and some of them were expropriated. Ossi Oswalda was also affected by this measure. This explains why the forgotten former silent film star died completely impoverished in a lung sanatorium in Zamberk (Senftenberg).

Thanks go to Mr. Frank, who researched Ossi Oswalda's last years. He found the death certificate, which attests her death on March 7, 1947 in the Albertinum in Zamberk (Senftenberg) by the attending physician Dr. Milan Ungr.

Other movies with Ossi Oswalda:
Der Hilferuf (16) Der Tod auf Zeche Silva (16) Der G.m.b.H.-Tenor (16) Prinz Sami (17) Dem Licht entgegen (18) Der Rodelkavalier (18) Ich möchte kein Mann sein (18) Das Schwabemädle (18) Meine Frau, die Filmschauspielerin (18) Das Mädchen aus dem Wilden Westen (19) Das Millionenmädel (19) Die Puppe (19) Hundemamachen (19) Die Wohnungsnot (19) Kakadu und Kiebitz (20) Putschliesel (20) Ein Weihnachtsfilm für Grosse (24) Niniche (24) Blitzzug der Liebe (25) Herrn Filip Colins Abenteuer (25) Gräfin Plättmamsell (26) Schatz, mach' Kasse (26) Eine tolle Nacht (26) Florette e Patapon (27) Es zogen drei Burschen (27) Wochenendbraut (27) Eddy Polo mit Pferd und Lasso (28) Die Vierte von rechts (28) Das Haus ohne Männer (28) Sir or Madam - Ossi hat die Hosen an (28) Der Dieb im Schlafcoupée (29)

 
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