Mauritz Stiller
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Mauritz Stiller | |
---|---|
Born | Moshe Stiller 17 July 1883 |
Died | 18 November 1928 Stockholm, Sweden | (aged 45)
Citizenship | Sweden |
Occupation(s) | Film director, screenwriter |
Years active | 1912–1928 |
Mauritz Stiller (born Moshe Stiller, 17 July 1883 – 18 November 1928) was a Finnish film director of
Early life
Moshe Stiller was born on 17 July 1883[citation needed] in Helsinki. His family was of Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, [1] having lived in Russia and Poland before settling in Finland, these countries being ruled by the Russian Empire at that time. After his father's death when he was four, his mother committed suicide. He was raised by family friends. From an early age, Stiller was interested in acting. His talents did not go unnoticed, and soon Stiller was offered the opportunity to practise and display his acting skills in the theatres of Helsinki and Åbo in Finland.
Drafted into the army of
Career
By 1912, Stiller had become involved with Sweden's rapidly developing silent film industry. He began by writing scripts, acting and directing in short films but within a few years gave up acting to devote his time to writing and directing. He was soon directing feature-length productions, and his 1918 work Thomas Graals bästa barn (Thomas Graal's First Child), starring Karin Molander, and with Victor Sjöström in the leading role, received much acclaim.
By 1920, having directed more than 35 films, including Sir Arne's Treasure and Erotikon, Stiller was a leading figure in Swedish filmmaking. He also directed The Blizzard starring a young Einar Hanson and based on the Selma Lagerlöf novel En herrgårdssägen.
Stiller and Garbo
At the
In Hollywood, Mauritz Stiller was assigned to direct The Temptress (1926), Garbo's second film with MGM, but he could not deal with the studio structure. After repeated arguments with MGM executives, he was replaced on the film by Fred Niblo, and his contract with the studio terminated. Stiller immediately was hired by Paramount Pictures, where he made three successful films, but he was let go a second time while directing his fourth film because of his continuing disagreements with studio bosses.
Death and legacy
Stiller returned to Sweden in 1927 and died on 18 November 1928 from pleurisy at the age of 45. He was interred in the Norra begravningsplatsen in Stockholm.[citation needed]
It was long believed that Greta Garbo never married, but a 1932 news item confirmed that she married Mauritz Stiller while in her late teens. She survived him upon his death in 1928. "They were married secretly in Constantinople, in 1924," reported Film Daily, "so she is over in Sweden to claim her share of the Stiller estate."[2]
Stiller's contribution to the motion picture industry was recognised in 1960 with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 1713 Vine Street. Originally his star was listed erroneously as "Maurice Diller" and was not corrected until the late 1980s.[citation needed]
A theatre in
In Kristianstad, a monument was erected in his honour.[when?][citation needed]
In the
Filmography
Year | Film | Credited as | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Director | Writer | Actor | Role | ||
1912 | The Gardener (Trädgårdsmästaren) | Yes | Yes | Passenger | |
1912 | Mor och dotter | Yes | Yes | Yes | Raoul de Saligny |
1912 | I lifvets vår | Yes | von Plæin | ||
1912 | Den tyranniske fästmannen | Yes | Yes | Yes | Elias Pettersson |
1912 | De svarta maskerna | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | Vampyren | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | På livets ödesvägar | Yes | |||
1913 | När larmklockan ljuder | Yes | |||
1913 | När kärleken dödar | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | Mannekängen | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | The Conflicts of Life (Livets konflikter) | Yes | |||
1913 | Brother Against Brother (Gränsfolken) | Yes | |||
1913 | En pojke i livets strid | Yes | |||
1913 | Den okända | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | Den moderna suffragetten | Yes | Yes | ||
1913 | Barnet
|
Yes | |||
1914 | Stormfågeln | Yes | |||
1914 | Skottet
|
Yes | |||
1914 | När svärmor regerar | Yes | Yes | Yes | Elias |
1914 | Kammarjunkaren | Yes | |||
1914 | För sin kärleks skull | Yes | Yes | ||
1914 | Det röda tornet | Yes | Yes | ||
1914 | Bröderna | Yes | Yes | ||
1915 | När konstnärer älska | Yes | |||
1915 | Minlotsen | Yes | |||
1915 | Mästertjuven | Yes | |||
1915 | Madame de Thèbes | Yes | |||
1915 | Playmates (Lekkamraterna) | Yes | Yes | ||
1915 | Hans hustrus förflutna | Yes | |||
1915 | Hans bröllopsnatt | Yes | |||
1915 | Hämnaren | Yes | |||
1915 | Dolken | Yes | |||
1916 | The Wings (Vingarne) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Film director |
1916 | Lyckonålen | Yes | |||
1916 | Kärlek och journalistik | Yes | |||
1916 | Kampen om hans hjärta | Yes | |||
1916 | Balettprimadonnan | Yes | |||
1917 | Thomas Graals bästa film | Yes | |||
1917 | Alexander den store | Yes | |||
1918 | Thomas Graals bästa barn | Yes | |||
1919 | Song of the Scarlet Flower (Laulu tulipunaisesta kukasta)[4] | Yes | Yes | ||
1919 | Sir Arne's Treasure (Herr Arnes pengar) | Yes | Yes | ||
1920 | Fiskebyn | Yes | |||
1920 | Erotikon | Yes | |||
1921 | Johan
|
Yes | Yes | ||
1921 | Guarded Lips (De landsflyktige) | Yes | Yes | ||
1923 | The Blizzard (Gunnar Hedes saga) | Yes | Yes | ||
1924 | The Saga of Gösta Berling (Gösta Berlings saga) | Yes | Yes | ||
1926 | The Temptress | Yes | replaced by Fred Niblo | ||
1927 | The Woman on Trial | Yes | |||
1927 | Hotel Imperial | Yes | |||
1927 | Barbed Wire | Yes | |||
1928 | Street of Sin
|
Yes |
References
- Svenska litteratursällskapet i Finland. urn:NBN:fi:sls-5614-1416928958220.
- ^ Film Daily, Oct. 18, 1932, p. 4.
- ^ "Cinemas". Swedish Film Institute. 11 August 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ Music by Armas Järnefelt, possibly the first original film music by a Nordic composer. See Hannu Salmi (2008) Järnefeltin jalanjäljillä: Laulu tulipunaisesta kukasta (1919) (In the footsteps of Järnefelt : Song of the Scarlet Flower). (In Finnish). Retrieved 24 August 2015.