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Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Known Credits

73

Gender

Female

Birthday

1903-04-25

Day of Death

1996-08-14 (93 years old)

Place of Birth

Frankfurt am Main, Germany

Also Known As

Камилла Хорн

Camilla Martha Horn

Camilla Horn

Biography

The daughter of a railroad official, Camilla Horn was educated in Germany and Switzerland. She initially trained as a dressmaker and received her first job experience in a fashion salon in Erfurt. This was merely a stepping stone for a performing career which began with dance lessons in Berlin and subsequent acting studies under Lucie Höflich. The lithe, blond and strikingly beautiful Camilla soon appeared in cabaret revues staged by Rudolf Nelson. By 1926, she was employed as an extra at Ufa, where she was spotted by the director F.W. Murnau, who found in her the ideal representation of Gretchen for his seminal production of Fausto (1926) . The role catapulted Camilla to instant stardom. Within a year, she was signed by United Artists in Hollywood, befriending Charles Chaplin and, more importantly, studio chairman Joseph M. Schenck. The friendship with Schenck may, or may not, have led to an affair -- depending on which story one is to believe -- but it did result in two high profile starring roles opposite John Barrymore in the torrid melodramas Tempestad (1928) and Amor eterno (1929), both produced by Schenck. Neither film was a commercial success. With the coming of sound, Camilla returned to Europe, briefly appearing on stage in London and Paris, before resuming her screen career in Germany. As the 1930's went on, she rarely turned down a role, playing anything from baronesses and fashion models, to vamps and 'fallen women'. The quality of her films was variable, but there were several noteworthy standouts, such as Hans in allen Gassen (1930) (opposite Hans Albers), Fiesta en palacio (1934) and Payasos (1938) (as a circus artiste, again with Albers). During this tumultuous decade, Camilla conducted a lengthy affair with the singer Louis Graveure, fifteen years her senior. This came to an end in 1938, when Graveure was suspected of espionage by the Gestapo and fled to England, via the Cote d'Azure. After her luxury villa in Berlin was ransacked in search for non-existent clues, Camilla's outspoken criticism of the Nazi regime reached a point where it got her into serious trouble. She saw out the first half of her career with a trio of long forgotten films made in Italy. Having failed in an attempt to flee to Switzerland, she kept a low profile and even tried her hand at farming. After the war, she had a stint as an interpreter for the occupying U.S. forces in Germany. Camilla made a successful return to the stage in a 1948 Frankfurt production of Jean Cocteau's "L'Aigle a Deux Tetes" (aka 'The Eagle Has Two Heads'). She spent the latter half of her acting career playing grand dames, matriarchs and worldly ladies with colourful backgrounds, in both films and on television. In 1974, she was awarded the 'Filmband in Gold' (also known as 'Lola') for lifetime achievement in the German film industry. In her 1985 autobiography, "Verliebt in die Liebe" ('In Love with Love'), she happily recounted her marriages and liaisons.

Known For

Acting

Faust

1926

Faust

as

Gretchen Marguerite

Polterabend

1940

Polterabend

as

Lissi

Tempest

1928

Tempest

as

Princess Tamara

Eternal Love

1929

Eternal Love

as

Ciglia

A Waltz for You

1934

A Waltz for You

as

Fürstin Stefanie

Königin der Arena

1952

Königin der Arena

as

Diana Bianca, Dompteuse

Der Doppelgänger

1934

Der Doppelgänger

as

Jenny Miller

Fahrendes Volk

1938

Fahrendes Volk

as

Pepita, Kunstreiterin

Friedemann Bach

1941

Friedemann Bach

as

Mariella Fiorini

Schloß Königswald

1988

Schloß Königswald

as

Fürstin Großmutter

Rote Orchideen

1938

Rote Orchideen

as

Gräfin Ogolenska

Appointment in Beirut

1968

Appointment in Beirut

as

Evelyn Brown

If I Were King

1934

If I Were King

as

Inge Winkler

The Cheeky Devil

1932

The Cheeky Devil

as

Alice Ménard

Die keusche Geliebte

1940

Die keusche Geliebte

as

Renée Lemonier

White Slaves

1937

White Slaves

as

Manja - seine Tochter

Die letzte Runde

1940

Die letzte Runde

as

Lilly

He's at It Again

1970

He's at It Again

as

Paula

Immer bei Vollmond

1970

Immer bei Vollmond

as

Wegelin's Mother

Broken Love

1942

Broken Love

as

Corinna Dellys, l'amante di Alberto

Mein Herz gehört Dir...

1930

Mein Herz gehört Dir...

as

Diane D'Artois

Seine beste Rolle

1944

Seine beste Rolle

as

Elise Sander

The Great Passion

1930

The Great Passion

as

Eva von Loe

Hans in Every Street

1930

Hans in Every Street

as

Elisabeth, the Bride

Herz ohne Heimat

1940

Herz ohne Heimat

as

Dina Horster

Sein letztes Modell

1937

Sein letztes Modell

as

Maria Várady

Roman eines Arztes

1939

Roman eines Arztes

as

Käthe Üding - seine Frau

The Red Rider

1935

The Red Rider

as

Hasia Nowrowska

Gesucht wird Majora

1949

Gesucht wird Majora

as

Gritt Faller

Zentrale Rio

1939

Zentrale Rio

as

Diane Mercier

Vati macht Dummheiten

1953

Vati macht Dummheiten

as

Baronin von Baran

Intimitäten

1948

Intimitäten

as

Helene

Crooks in Tails

1937

Crooks in Tails

as

Vera Dalmatoff

Racoczy-Marsch

1933

Racoczy-Marsch

as

Vilma

Der Unsichtbare

1987

Der Unsichtbare

as

Olga Benjamin

Fundvogel

1930

Fundvogel

as

Andrea

Spiders

1989

Spiders

as

The Love Nest

1933

The Love Nest

as

Fifi

Tartuffe

1926

Tartuffe

as

(uncredited)

The Bordellos of Algiers

1927

The Bordellos of Algiers

as

Adrienne Brisson

Three Around Edith

1929

Three Around Edith

as

Lady Edith Trent

Matinee Idol

1933

Matinee Idol

as

Sonia Vance

Frankies Braut

1982

Frankies Braut

as

Frau von Kieblitz

Los 5 Faust de F. W. Murnau

2002

Los 5 Faust de F. W. Murnau

as

Herself / Gretchen (archive footage)

Ich sehne mich nach dir

1934

Ich sehne mich nach dir

as

Ivonne Brandt

Eva and the Grasshopper

1927

Eva and the Grasshopper

as

Camille de Saxe

Die Erbin

1958

Die Erbin

as

Elizabeth Almond

Moral und Liebe

1933

Moral und Liebe

as

Vera

Die Königsloge

1929

Die Königsloge

as

Alice Doren

Der fröhliche Weinberg

1927

Der fröhliche Weinberg

as

Clärchen Gunderloch

Sunday of Life

1931

Sunday of Life

as

Ellen Hobart

The Night Without Pause

1931

The Night Without Pause

as

Letta Larbo

Morals at Midnight

1930

Morals at Midnight

as

Nelly Wendt

Gestern gelesen

Gestern gelesen

as

Frau von Marwitz

The Black Forest Clinic

The Black Forest Clinic

as

Dr. Rens′ Mutter

Dreizehn Briefe

Dreizehn Briefe

as

Frau Neumann

Production

Crew

Tartuffe

1926

Tartuffe

as

Directing