Bruno Kastner (1926) Orig German Silent Film and 50 similar items

Vintage original 3.5 x 5.25 in. German postcard depicting the handsome German silent film actor, screenwriter, and producer , BRUNO KASTNER. He is depicted in a close publicity shot in profile wearing a tuxedo with a black top hat. This postcard was signed in black ink by Bruno Kastner in, we believe, 1926 (see additional details below), the year in which he appeared in six silent films in Germany. Printed by the renowned Ross-Verlag company of Berlin, Germany, this vintage original "country of origin" postcard is unused in very fine condition with a small diagonal mark (not a crease) on each corner from where it was inserted into the albums that are referenced below. There are no tears, stains, or other flaws. Provenance: Approximately 8 years ago, we purchased a collection of two albums of vintage original German postcards from a rare book dealer at an antiquarian book fair in Pasadena, California (see photos). Approximately half of the postcards were signed by the respective personalities and the ones that were dated by the actors are all dated "1926." We were informed by the dealer that these photographs came from a film collector in Germany who acquired the postcards at the time they were issued and then had them signed by the respective actors when he met them in person. We are now pleased to make these vintage original postcards available to other collectors. Bruno Kastner (January 1890 – June 3, 1932) was a German stage and film actor, screenwriter, and film producer whose career was most prominent in the 1910’s and 1920’s during the silent film era. He was one of the most popular leading men in German films during his career's peak in the 1920’s. During World War I, Kastner avoided military service, assessed as unfit for service due to his prior injury while serving before the war's outbreak. Discovered by Danish film actress Asta Nielsen, he made his film debut opposite her in the 1914 Urban Gad-directed comedy short, Engelein (Little Angel), with Fred Immler and Hanns Kräly. He followed the success of this film with the sequel, Engeleins Hochzeit (Little Angel's Wedding) in 1916. In the interim, Kastner quickly became a matinee idol in Germany, especially popular with female fans. The German press commented on Kastner's rise to stardom and how vexed postmen were at having to transport love letters from fans to Kastner in laundry baskets. Kastner cemented his romantic image by appearing as the ardent suitor to popular actress Dorrit Weixler in a number of films of the era. Male filmgoers were less fond of Kastner's image of a handsome dandy and gave him the nickname "Kleiderbügel" ("coat hanger") - a reference to his slim build and fashionable wardrobe. Although he didn't carry much clout with many male filmgoers, his popularity with female fans grew momentum. In 1921, Kastner was voted "The Best German Actor" in a magazine poll and he began appearing that year in a film serial called Der Silberkönig (The Silver King) opposite leading lady Ossi Oswalda. The following year, he founded his own film company. Other popular films of the era included roles in Fritz Lang's Hilde Warren und der Tod (1917), Erik Lund's Das Herz des Casanova (1919) and Georg Jacoby's Das Paradies im Schnee (1924). Kastner wrote the screenplays for four films that he would produce and star in: Nur ein Diener, Das Herz des Casanova, Der letzte Sonnensohn and Der Weltmeister, all directed by Erik Lund and released in 1919. Kastner's career was almost cut short in 1924 when he was involved in a serious motorcycle accident in Lugano, Switzerland, which left him with permanent pain. He never fully recovered, but after a year of rest and recuperation, he returned to the screen in 1925. By the late 1920’s, his career began to falter. No longer able to play the young, seductive bon vivant type which had made him famous, his roles in films grew smaller, although he still had a measure of success in such films as Karl Grune's 1926 drama, Die Brüder Schellenberg, with Conrad Veidt, Lil Dagover, and Liane Haid, and the Jacob Fleck and Luise Fleck-directed Der Orlow, with Iván Petrovich and Hans Junkermann in 1927. The onset of sound films proved disastrous to Kastner's career in 1930 upon the release of his first talkie titled Das Land des Lächelns (The Land of Smiles), when filmgoers discovered that he stammered. He would only make one more film, 1930's unsuccessful Tingel-Tangel. After failing to garner any more film roles because of his speech impediment, he tried to revive his career by touring German theatres and permitting female members of the audience to get onstage and have their photograph taken with their past idol. Kastner suffered from depression after his rapid career decline and, after two years of struggling to regain his public popularity, he rented a hotel room in Bad Kreuznach and committed suicide by hanging himself in June 1932. He was 42. Ross-Verlag in Berlin was a German publishing house specialized in photographs and photo postcards of artists. The owner of the company was Heinrich Ross (b. 10 August 1870; d. after 1954 as emigrant in the USA).