Vicki Baum
Encyclopedia
Hedwig Baum was an Austria
n writer. She is known for Menschen im Hotel ("People at a Hotel", 1929), one of her first international successes.
Baum was born in Vienna
into a Jewish family. She began her artistic career as a musician playing the harp
. She studied at the Vienna Conservatory and played in an orchestra
in Germany
for three years. She later worked as a journalist
for the magazine
Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, published by Ullstein-Verlag
in Berlin
. She was married twice: first, from 1914, to Max Prels, an Austrian journalist who introduced her to the Viennese cultural scene; and, from 1916, to Richard Lert
, a conductor
and her best friend since their childhood days. Richard was the brother of stage director Ernst Lert
. During World War I
she worked for a short time as a nurse.
Baum began writing in her teens. Her first book, Frühe Schatten, was published when she was 31. She is most famous for her 1929
novel Menschen im Hotel which was made into an Academy Award
winning film, Grand Hotel
. She emigrated to the United States with her family after being invited to write the screenplay for the film. Her memoir
, It Was All Quite Different, was published posthumously in 1964. She wrote more than 50 novels, and at least ten were adapted as motion pictures in Hollywood. Her post-World War II works were written in English, rather than in German.
Baum visited Bali
in 1935 – and as a conseqeunce she wrote Liebe und Tod auf Bali (A Tale from Bali) which was published in (1937). The book was about a family that was caught in the massacre in Bali in 1906.
Vicki Baum died of leukemia
in Hollywood, California, in 1960.
Vicki Baum is considered one of the first modern bestselling authors, and her books are reputed to be among the first examples of contemporary mainstream
literature
.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n writer. She is known for Menschen im Hotel ("People at a Hotel", 1929), one of her first international successes.
Baum was born in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
into a Jewish family. She began her artistic career as a musician playing the harp
Harp
The harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
. She studied at the Vienna Conservatory and played in an orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
for three years. She later worked as a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
for the magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung, published by Ullstein-Verlag
Ullstein-Verlag
The Ullstein Verlag was founded by Leopold Ullstein in 1877 at Berlin and is one of the largest publishing companies of Germany. It published newspapers like B.Z. and Berliner Morgenpost and books through its subsidiaries Ullstein Buchverlage and Propyläen.The newspaper publishing branch was taken...
in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. She was married twice: first, from 1914, to Max Prels, an Austrian journalist who introduced her to the Viennese cultural scene; and, from 1916, to Richard Lert
Richard Lert
Richard Lert was an American conductor of Austrian birth. Born in Vienna, he was the younger brother of stage director Ernst Lert. After graduating with a music degree from the University of Vienna, he took a conducting post at the Opernhaus Düsseldorf in 1910...
, a conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
and her best friend since their childhood days. Richard was the brother of stage director Ernst Lert
Ernst Lert
Ernst Joseph Maria Lert, originally Ernst Joseph Maria Levy was an Austrian stage director, writer, composer, librettist, and music historian. He was the brother of conductor Richard Lert who was married to writer Vicki Baum.Lert studied music history, piano, and singing at the University of Vienna...
. During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
she worked for a short time as a nurse.
Baum began writing in her teens. Her first book, Frühe Schatten, was published when she was 31. She is most famous for her 1929
1929 in literature
The year 1929 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Candide by Voltaire is declared obscene by the United States Customs and seized in 1930....
novel Menschen im Hotel which was made into an Academy Award
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
winning film, Grand Hotel
Grand Hotel (film)
Grand Hotel is a 1932 American drama film directed by Edmund Goulding. The screenplay by William A. Drake and Béla Balázs is based on the 1930 play of the same title by Drake, who had adapted it from the 1929 novel Menschen im Hotel by Vicki Baum...
. She emigrated to the United States with her family after being invited to write the screenplay for the film. Her memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
, It Was All Quite Different, was published posthumously in 1964. She wrote more than 50 novels, and at least ten were adapted as motion pictures in Hollywood. Her post-World War II works were written in English, rather than in German.
Baum visited Bali
Bali
Bali is an Indonesian island located in the westernmost end of the Lesser Sunda Islands, lying between Java to the west and Lombok to the east...
in 1935 – and as a conseqeunce she wrote Liebe und Tod auf Bali (A Tale from Bali) which was published in (1937). The book was about a family that was caught in the massacre in Bali in 1906.
Vicki Baum died of leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
in Hollywood, California, in 1960.
Vicki Baum is considered one of the first modern bestselling authors, and her books are reputed to be among the first examples of contemporary mainstream
Mainstream
Mainstream is, generally, the common current thought of the majority. However, the mainstream is far from cohesive; rather the concept is often considered a cultural construct....
literature
Literature
Literature is the art of written works, and is not bound to published sources...
.
Works
- 1919 Frühe Schatten (Early Shadow)
- 1920 Der Eingang zur Bühne (The Entrance to the Stage)
- 1921 Die Tänze der Ina Raffay (The Dances of the Ina Raffay)
- 1922 Die anderen Tage (The Other Day) -- novel
- 1923 Die Welt ohne Sünde (The World Without Sin)
- 1924 Ulle der Zwerg (Ulle the Dwarf)
- 1926 Tanzpause (Break Dance)
- 1927 Hell in Frauensee
Feme - 1928 Stud. chem. Helene Willfüer
- 1929 Menschen im Hotel (The Grand Hotel)
- 1930 Zwischenfall in Lohwinkel (Incident in Lohwinkel)
Miniaturen (Miniatures) - 1931 Pariser Platz 13
- 1935 Das große Einmaleins / Rendezvous in Paris (The Great Multiplication / Rendezvous in Paris)
- 1936 Die Karriere der Doris Hart (The Career of Doris Hart)
- 1937 Liebe und Tod auf Bali (Love and Death in Bali)
Hotel Shanghai
Der große Ausverkauf. Amsterdam: Querido 1937 (The Big Sell-Off. Amsterdam: Querido 1937) - 1939 Die große Pause (The Big Break)
- 1941 Es begann an Bord (The Ship and the Shores or It Began On board)
- 1943 Kautschuk / Cahuchu, Strom der Tränen (The Weeping Wood)
Hotel Berlin/ Hier stand ein Hotel (Hotel Berlin/ Here Stands A Hotel) - 1946 Verpfändetes Leben (Mortgage on Life)
- 1947 Schicksalsflug (Fate of Flying)
- 1949 Clarinda
- 1951 Vor Rehen wird gewarnt (Danger for Deer)
- 1953 The Mustard Seed
Kristall im Lehm (Krystal Clay) - 1954 Marion
- 1956 Flut und Flamme (Written on Water)
- 1957 Die goldenen Schuh (Theme for Ballet)
- 1962 Es war alles ganz anders -- memoir
Dicta
- "A woman who is loved always has success".
- "Fame always brings loneliness. Success is as ice cold and lonely as the North PoleNorth PoleThe North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is, subject to the caveats explained below, defined as the point in the northern hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface...
". - "Marriage always demands the greatest understanding of the art of insincerity possible between two human beings".
- "Pity is the deadliest feeling that can be offered to a woman".
- "To be a Jew is a destiny".
- "There are shortcuts to happiness and dancing is one of them".