Theo Lingen
publicity photo
Born	Franz Theodor Schmitz June 10, 1903(1903-06-10) Hanover, Germany
Died	November 10, 1978 (aged 75) Vienna, Austria
Occupation	actor, film director, screenwriter
Years active	1929–1978
Spouse(s)	Marianne Zoff (1928–1978)

Theo Lingen (10 June 1903 – 10 November 1978), born Franz Theodor Schmitz, was a German film actor, director and screenwriter. He appeared in over 230 films between 1929 and 1978, and directed 21 films between 1936 and 1960.

Contents 1 Life and career 2 Selected filmography 3 Notes 4 External links

[edit] Life and career

Lingen was born in Hanover, Germany, and grew up there. He attended the Royal Goethe Gymnasium – the predecessor of the Goethe School – in Hanover, but left before taking the Abitur (final exams). His theatrical talent was discovered during rehearsals for a school performance at the Boulevard Theatre in Schauenberg.

Beginning his professional stage career, the young actor adopted as a stage name his middle name together with that of the birthplace of his father, Lingen in the Emsland region of Germany. As "Theo Lingen" he performed in theatres all over Germany, and very quickly developed a reputation as a superb character comedian, a reputation which followed him when he began appearing in films in 1929, often with Hans Moser, since together they made a contrasting pair.

In February 1928, Lingen's daughter, Ursula, was born to Bertold Brecht's then wife Marianne Zoff (1893–1984). Brecht and Zoff divorced in September; Lingen and Zoff married later the same year. Because Zoff was Jewish, which under the Nazi regime usually resulted in a professional ban, Lingen thought about going into exile, but because of his great popularity with the general public he was given a special permit to continue to perform. In 1944 he moved to Vienna, Austria, and in 1945, after the war, he officiated as the temporary mayor of Strobl. During this time he worked as a character actor at the Vienna Burgtheater and appeared frequently onstage in Germany.

Theo Lingen died of cancer in 1978 at the age of 75 in Vienna. The city of Vienna dedicated a grave to him in Vienna's Zentralfriedhof. In Lingen in 2007, a new underpass was named in his honor.^[1]

[edit] Selected filmography

1929: Ins Blaue hinein 1930: Dolly macht Karriere (Dolly Gets Ahead) 1930: The Flute Concert of Sans-Souci 1931: M 1931: Meine Frau, die Hochstaplerin 1931: Die Firma heiratet (The Firm Weds) 1931: Nie wieder Liebe 1932: Das Testament des Cornelius Gulden 1933: The Testament of Dr. Mabuse 1933: Little Man, What Now? 1933: Der Große Bluff (The Big Bluff) 1934: Gern hab' ich die Frau'n geküßt 1934: Der Doppelgänger 1935: The White Horse Inn 1936: Opernring 1936: Ungeküsst soll man nicht schlafen gehn 1937: Zauber der Bohème 1937/1938: The Tiger of Eschnapur 1937/1938: The Indian Tomb 1938: Tanz auf dem Vulkan 1939: Eine Frau für drei 1939: Opernball 1939: Marionette 1940: Herz modern möbliert 1940: Rosen in Tirol 1940: Sieben Jahre Pech 1940/1941: Hauptsache glücklich 1941: L'attore scomparso (author) 1941: Was geschah in dieser Nacht? 1941: Frau Luna 1942: Wiener Blut 1942: Liebeskomödie 1942/1943: Tolle Nacht 1942/1943: Johann 1943/1944: Es fing so harmlos an 1943: Das Lied der Nachtigall 1944/1945: Liebesheirat

1944/1949: Philine 1946: Hazugság nélkül 1947: Wiener Melodien 1947: Hin und her 1950: Jetzt schlägt’s 13 1950: Der Theodor im Fußballtor 1951: Durch Dick und Dünn 1951: Hilfe, ich bin unsichtbar 1952: Schäm dich, Brigitte! 1952: Heidi 1955: Heidi und Peter 1955: Wie werde ich Filmstar? 1955: Die Wirtin zur Goldenen Krone 1956: Meine Tante - Deine Tante 1956: Opernball 1957: Almenrausch und Edelweiss 1957: Die Unschuld vom Lande 1957: Drei Mann auf einem Pferd 1958: Was ihr wollt 1958: Die Sklavenkarawane 1958: Im Prater blüh'n wieder die Bäume 1959: Der Löwe von Babylon 1959: Die Nacht vor der Premiere 1960: Pension Schöller 1967: Die Heiden von Kummerow und ihre lustigen Streiche 1968/1970: Die Lümmel von der ersten Bank (5 parts) 1970: Die Feuerzangenbowle 1971: Tante Trude aus Buxtehude 1971: Die Lümmel von der ersten Bank (part 6) 1971: Wenn mein Schätzchen auf die Pauke haut 1972: Die Lümmel von der ersten Bank (part 7) 1972: Hauptsache Ferien 1972: Immer Ärger mit Hochwürden 1973: Der Monddiamant 1975: Der Geheimnisträger 1978: Zwei Himmlische Töchter 1978: Lady Dracula

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Theo Lingen at the Internet Movie Database
• Theo Lingen at Allmovie
• Theo Lingen at Find a Grave
• Theo Lingen at Virtual History

v • d • e Cinema of Germany Film chronology · German Empire 1895–1918 · Weimar Germany 1919–1933 · Nazi Germany 1933–1945 · East Germany (1945–1990) · (West) Germany 1945–present Actors · Directors · Films A–Z · Cinematographers · Festivals · Producers · Composers · Screenwriters

Persondata
NAME	Lingen, Theo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Schmitz, Franz Theodor
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Actor, Film director, Screenwriter
DATE OF BIRTH	1903-6-10
PLACE OF BIRTH	Hanover, Germany
DATE OF DEATH	1978-11-10
PLACE OF DEATH	Vienna, Austria