Paul Henreid

Actor

About

Also Known As

Paul Von Henreid, Paul Von Wasel-Waldingau, Paul George Julius Von Hernreid Ritter, Paul Von Hernried

Birth Place

Trieste,

Born

January 10, 1908

Died

March 29, 1992

Cause of Death

Pneumonia After A Stroke

Biography

Suave, romantic leading man who, in the 1940s and 50s, represented the epitome of continental charm. Henreid is best remembered as Ingrid Bergman's husband, the stoic Resistance leader Victor Laszlo, in "Casablanca" (1943) and for his classic bit of romantic business in "Now Voyager" (1942) in which he lit two cigarettes at the same time and handed one to Bette Davis. The scion of an ari...

Filmography

Blues for Lovers (1966)

Director

Dead Ringer (1964)

Director

Girls on the Loose (1958)

Director

Live Fast, Die Young (1958)

Director

A Woman's Devotion (1956)

Director

For Men Only (1952)

Director

Photos & Videos

View All

Casablanca (1942) -- (Movie Clip) You Are A Subject Of The German Reich

Deception (1946) -- (Movie Clip) I Infer a Husband

Family & Companions

Lisl Henreid

Wife

Married in 1936 until his death.

Bibliography

"Ladies Man"

Paul Henreid and Julius Fast (1984)

Notes

He was awarded the Austrian Cross of Honor, 1st class for Science and Arts.

Received the American Classic Screen Award from the National Film Society (1980).

Biography

The scion of an aristocratic Austrian family, Henreid first worked as a designer and translator at a Vienna publishing firm until he was discovered in an acting school performance by Otto Preminger, who was then Max Reinhardt's managing director. Henreid became a leading man with Reinhardt's theater company and appeared in two Austrian films in the early 1930s before he moved to England because of his anti-Nazi sentiments. There he starred on the London stage and in films, ironically being cast as a Nazi officer in "Madman of Europe" and as a Gestapo agent in Carol Reed's "Night Train" (both 1940). Moving to the US in 1940, he was again cast as a German in the Broadway production "Flight to the West."

Signing with RKO Radio Pictures in 1941, Henreid played his first heroic role as a Free French R.A.F. pilot in his Hollywood debut, "Joan of Paris" (1941). It was the first of many films in which he would dramatize the wartime plight of sympathetic Europeans.

In the 50s Henreid starred in mediocre swashbucklers such as "Last of the Buccaneers" (1950) and "Thief of Damascus" (1952), and melodramas like "So Young, So Bad" (1950) and "Stolen Face" (1952). With his career as a romantic lead petering out he switched to producing and directing, especially on TV, where he directed numerous episodes of "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," "The Schlitz Playhouse," "G.E. Theater," "Maverick" and "Bracken's World." In 1964, Henreid reteamed with his "Now, Voyager" and "Deception" (1946) co-star Bette Davis, directing her in the dual roles of homicidal twin sisters in the campy suspense melodrama "Dead Ringers."

Filmography

Life Events

1931

Worked as a designer and translator for a publishing company in Vienna

1933

Discovered by Otto Preminger (Max Reinhardt's managing director) who introduced him to Reinhardt

1934

Was officially listed by Germany as a "minorities sympathizer" and an "enemy of the Third Reich" after he turned down a film contract with Germany's UFA film studio

1934

Screen acting debut in "Hohe Schule"

1935

Moved to England

1937

British screen debut in bit part in "Victoria the Great"

1938

Wife's family fled Vienna

1939

British film acting debut, "Goodbye, Mr. Chips"

1940

Moved to US

1940

Repeated his role in "Victoria Regina" on radio opposite Helen Hayes before making his US stage debut

1940

Broadway debut in "Flight to the West"

1941

Signed by RKO Radio Pictures

1942

US screen debut in "Joan of Paris"

1947

Founded Banner Films (with Jack Chertok)

1948

Produced first film (also starred), "Hollow Triumph"

1951

Film directing debut with "For Men Only/The Tall Lie"

1953

TV acting debut, "The Jewel" on "Ford Theater"

1972

Starred in Broadway production and US tour of "Don Juan in Hell"

1977

Final screen performance in John Boorman's "Exorcist II: The Heretic"

1992

"Casablanca" re-released on April 10, its 50th anniversary one week after Henreid's death

Photo Collections

Now, Voyager - Behind-the-Scenes Photo

Here is a photo taken during production of Now, Voyager (1942), starring Bette Davis and Paul Henreid.

Stolen Face - Movie Poster

The Spanish Main - Movie Posters

Now, Voyager - Publicity Stills

Here are a few photos taken to publicize Warner Bros' Now, Voyager (1942), starring Bette Davis and Paul Henreid. Publicity stills were specially-posed photos, usually taken off the set, for purposes of publicity or reference for promotional artwork.

Now, Voyager - Movie Poster

Here is the American 1-Sheet movie poster of Now, Voyager (1942), starring Bette Davis and Paul Henreid. One-sheets measured 27x41 inches, and were the poster style most commonly used in theaters.

Girls on the Loose - Movie Posters

Here are a few movie posters from Universal Pictures' Girls on the Loose (1958), starring starring Mara Corady and Abby Dalton, and directed by Paul Henreid.