Mathias Wieman

{{Short description|German actor}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2023}} {{Infobox person | name = Mathias Wieman | image = Ingrid Bergman - 1954.JPG | image_size = 200px | caption = Studio publicity photo of Ingrid Bergman with Mathias Wieman in ''Fear'', 1954 | birth_date = 23 June 1902 | birth_place = [[Osnabrück]], [[German Empire]] | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=yes|1969|12|3|1902|6|23}} | death_place = [[Zurich]], [[Switzerland]] }}

'''Mathias Wieman''' ([[Birth name|née]] '''Carl Heinrich Franz Mathias Wieman'''; 23 June 1902 – 3 December 1969) was a German stage-performer, silent-and-sound motion picture [[actor]].

==Life and career==

===Early life=== Wieman was born in [[Osnabrück]], the only son of Carl Philipp Anton Wieman and his wife Louise. Raised in Osnabrück, [[Wiesbaden]] and [[Berlin]], where he studied four terms of philosophy, history of art and languages, Wieman wanted to actually become an airplane technical designer and flier. He started his acting career on the stage in Berlin under the direction of [[Max Reinhardt]] at the [[Deutsches Theater (Berlin)|Deutsches Theater]]. In the early 1920s, he was a member of the Holtorf-Truppe, a stock theater group that included future director [[Veit Harlan]]. His fellow stage actors included his future wife, [[:de:Erika Meingast|Erika Meingast]], [[Marlene Dietrich]], [[Dora Gerson]] and [[Max Schreck]] (the vampire in ''[[Nosferatu]])''. Later he began working in silent and sound films; he landed supporting roles in ''[[Assassination (1927 film)|Assassination]]'', ''[[Queen Louise (1927 film)|Queen Louise]]'' and ''[[Land Without Women]]''. In 1930, along with [[Leni Riefenstahl]], he appeared in ''[[Storm over Mont Blanc]]'', and in 1932 he played the lead in Riefenstahl's ''[[The Blue Light (1932 film)|The Blue Light]]''.

At the height of his film career, during the decade of the 1930s, Wieman acted in such productions as ''[[Man Without a Name (1932 film)|Man Without a Name]]'', ''[[L'Atlantide (1932 film)|L'Atlantide]]'', ''[[The Countess of Monte Cristo (1932 film)|The Countess of Monte Cristo]]'', ''Fräulein Hoffmanns Erzählungen'', ''[[The Rider on the White Horse (1934 film)|The Rider on the White Horse]]'', ''[[Victoria (1935 film)|Victoria]]'', ''[[Patriots (1937 film)|Patriots]]'', and ''[[Togger (film)|Togger]]''.

In 1936 Wieman produced the [[Frankenburger Würfelspiel]] of the Nazi playwright [[Eberhard Wolfgang Möller]] in association with the [[1936 Summer Olympics]] and the inauguration of the [[Waldbühne|Dietrich-Eckart-Bühne]], and also played the Black Knight.

He also had an international success with his appearance in ''[[The Eternal Mask]]''. The movie was awarded with the American National Board of Review Award for Best Foreign Film in the United States in 1937 ([[National Board of Review Awards 1937]]). The film was also nominated for an award at the [[3rd Venice International Film Festival|Venice Film Festival]]. Also in 1937, Wieman was made [[Staatsschauspieler]], an honorary title bestowed by the German government and the highest honour attainable by an actor in Germany.

===1940s and after===

Wieman was classed as "persona non grata"<ref>[Gedächtnisfeier für Mathias Wieman], Lindtberg: Reden und Aufsätze - Atlantis Verlag - Zürich - 1972. Pages 238-241.</ref> by [[Joseph Goebbels]], this greatly reduced his activity. He acted in the following movies in the 1940s: ''[[Ich klage an]]'', ''[[Her Other Self]]'', ''[[Paracelsus (film)|Paracelsus]]'', ''[[Dreaming (1944 German film)|Dreaming]]'' and ''[[How Do We Tell Our Children?]]''. After the failed [[20 July plot]] to assassinate Adolf Hitler happened in 1944, Mathias and his wife Erika helped the family of Count [[Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg]]. This assistance is detailed by Charlotte von der Schulenburg in the book ''Courageous Hearts: Women and the Anti-Hitler Plot of 1944'' (Dorothee Von Meding, Berghahn Books, 1997).

After World War II he was able to work more intensively in the film business again, normally in support roles. To his fairly well known work belongs ''[[No Greater Love (1952 film)|No Greater Love]]'', ''[[As Long as You're Near Me]]'', ''[[The Last Summer (1954 film)|The Last Summer]]'', ''[[Ripening Youth (1955 film)|Ripening Youth]]'', ''[[The Girl and the Legend]]'', and opposite [[Ingrid Bergman]] in [[Roberto Rossellini]]'s ''[[Fear (1954 film)|Fear]]''. Two of the films Mathias starred in were in competition at the [[Cannes Film Festival]]: In 1952, ''No Greater Love''; and in 1954, ''As Long as You're Near Me''.

Wieman also made many records (LPs) of classic stories where he would narrate the story accompanied by orchestral music. [https://archive.today/20110721134925/http://www.klassikakzente.de/produkte/cds/detail/product/60668/ One example] is ''[[:de:Peter und der Wolf|Peter und der Wolf]]'' with Mathias and the [[Berlin Philharmonic]] in 1950 conducted by [[Fritz Lehmann]] and the [[Orchestre National de France]] in 1962 conducted by [[Lorin Maazel]]. Another example is ''[[:de:Mathias Wiemans kleine Diskothek|Mathias Wiemans kleine Diskothek]]''. In 1992 [[Deutsche Grammophon]] issued a commemorative set of CDs in honour of the 100th anniversary of Wieman's birth: ''[https://archive.today/20110721135032/http://www.klassikakzente.de/produkte/cds/detail/product/84351/ Für Kenner & Kinder].''

===Stage work=== [[File:telegramMathiasdeath.JPG|thumb|Condolence Telegram from German President [[Gustav Heinemann]] on death of Mathias in 1969 ]] [[File:Johannisfriedhof Osnabrück Wieman.jpg|thumb|Wieman grave, Osnabrück]]

On stage, Wieman appeared in a number of productions including, ''[[Goethe's Faust]]'', ''[[Pygmalion (play)]]'' by [[George Bernard Shaw]], the most famous play of Italian playwright [[Luigi Pirandello]], ''[[Six Characters in Search of an Author]]'', and in [[Bertolt Brecht]]'s ''[[In The Jungle of Cities]]'' (''Im Dickicht der Städte'').

His many friends included such diverse people as [[Hanna Reitsch]], [[Lida Baarova]], [[Hans Fallada]], [[Anny Ondra]], and [[Fritz-Dietlof von der Schulenburg]].

===Later life=== After [[World War II]], Wieman moved to [[Switzerland]] with his wife, stage actress [[:de:Erika Meingast|Erika Meingast]], there in 1969 he died of cancer. Mathias and his wife Erika (died in 1972) were cremated and the ashes buried in the [[:de:Bild:Wieman-Grab-wiki.jpg|Wieman family plot]] in the [[:de:Osnabrück#Hasefriedhof und Johannisfriedhof|Johannesfriedhof cemetery]] in Osnabrück.

==Honours== In 1958, his hometown of [[Osnabrück]] awarded him the prestigious [[:de:Möser-Medaille|Justus-Möser-Medaille]] for his achievements in acting on stage and screen. And in 1965, Wieman received the [[Bambi Award]].

==Selected filmography== {{Div col|colwidth=30em}} * ''[[A Free People]]'' (1925) * ''[[Potsdam (film)|Potsdam]]'' (1927) * ''[[Out of the Mist (film)|Out of the Mist]]'' (1927) as Dr. Friedlieb * ''[[Mata Hari (1927 film)|Mata Hari]]'' (1927) as Grigori * ''[[Queen Louise (1927 film)|Queen Louise]]'' (1927) as [[Frederick William III of Prussia|King Frederick William III]] * ''[[Assassination (1927 film)|Assassination]]'' (1927) as Irrsinniger * ''[[The Merry Farmer (1927 film)|The Merry Farmer]]'' (1927) as son Stephan Reuther * ''[[The Runaway Girl]]'' (1928) as Vladimir Pekoff, ein Komponist * ''[[Under the Lantern]]'' (1928) as Hans Grote * ''[[Diary of a Coquette]]'' (1929) as Arzt * ''[[Land Without Women]]'' (1929) as American Physician * ''[[Love's Carnival (1930 film)|Love's Carnival]]'' (1930) as Hans Rudorff - Leutnant * ''[[Storm over Mont Blanc]]'' (1930) as Walter Petersen * ''[[The Golden Anchor]]'' (1932) as Marcus sein Sohn * ''[[The Blue Light (1932 film)|The Blue Light]]'' (1932) as Vigo * ''[[The Countess of Monte Cristo (1932 film)|The Countess of Monte Cristo]]'' (1932) as Stephan Riehl, Journalist * ''[[L'Atlantide (1932 film)|L'Atlantide]]'' (1932) as Ivar Torstenson * ''[[Man Without a Name (1932 film)|Man Without a Name]]'' (1932) as Dr. Alfred Sander * ''[[Anna and Elizabeth]]'' (1933) as Mathias Testa * ''Fräulein Hoffmanns Erzählungen'' (1933) as Benno Karden * ''[[The Love Hotel]]'' (1933) as Klaus Petermann * ''[[The Rider on the White Horse (1934 film)|The Rider on the White Horse]]'' (1934) as Hauke Haien * ''Achtung! Wer kennt diese Frau?'' (1934) as Artur von Bavro * ''[[The Lost Valley]]'' (1934) as René von Eisten * ''[[Little Dorrit (1934 film)|Little Dorrit]]'' (1934) as Arthur Clennam * ''[[Suburban Cabaret]]'' (1935) as Josef Kernthaler, Bauzeichner * ''[[The Eternal Mask]]'' (1935) as Dr. Dumartin * ''[[Victoria (1935 film)|Victoria]]'' (1935) as Johannes * ''[[Togger (film)|Togger]]'' (1937) as Peter Geis, Journalist * ''[[Patriots (1937 film)|Patriots]]'' (1937) as Peter Thomann - genannt Pierre * ''[[Unternehmen Michael]]'' (1937) as Major Zur Linden * ''[[The Titan: Story of Michelangelo|Michelangelo: Life of a Titan]]'' (1938) (voice) * ''[[Anna Favetti]]'' (1938) as Hemmstreet * ''[[The Wedding Trip (1939 film)|The Wedding Trip]]'' (1939) as Dr. Paul Goethals * ''[[Cadets (1939 film)|Cadets]]'' (1939) as Rittmeister von Tzülow * ''[[Ich klage an]]'' (1941) as Dr. Bernhard Lang * ''[[Her Other Self]]'' (1941) as Ingenieur Martin * ''[[Paracelsus (film)|Paracelsus]]'' (1943) as [[Ulrich von Hutten]] * ''[[Don't Talk to Me About Love (film)|Don't Talk to Me About Love]]'' (1943) as Andreas Alwin * ''[[Dreaming (1944 German film)|Dreaming]]'' (1944) as [[Robert Schumann]] * ''[[The Heart Must Be Silent]]'' (1944) as Dr. Paul Holzgruber * ''[[How Do We Tell Our Children?]]'' (1949) as Dr. Thomas Hofer * ''[[When a Woman Loves (film)|When a Woman Loves]]'' (1950) as Felder, Kunsthändler * ''[[Melody of Fate]]'' (1950), as Martin Ehrling * ''[[No Greater Love (1952 film)|No Greater Love]]'' (1952) as [[Alfred Nobel]] * ''[[As Long as You're Near Me]]'' (1953) as Paul, der Autor * ''[[His Royal Highness (1953 film)|His Royal Highness]]'' (1953) as Dr. Raoul Überbein * ''[[A Love Story (1954 film)|A Love Story]]'' (1954) as Fritz v. Fredersdorff, Gutsbesitzer * ''[[The Last Summer (1954 film)|The Last Summer]]'' (1954) as President Carlo Tolemainen * ''[[Fear (1954 film)|Fear]]'' (1954) as Professor Albert Wagner * ''[[Ripening Youth (1955 film)|Ripening Youth]]'' (1955) as Obersdtudiendirektor Dr. Berger * ''[[If All the Guys in the World]]'' (1956) as Karl Baumeister * ''[[The Marriage of Doctor Danwitz]]'' (1956) as Professor Schüddekopf * ''[[The Girl and the Legend]]'' (1957) as [[George II of Great Britain|King Georg II]] * ''Wetterleuchten um Maria'' (1957) as Priest * ''Der Sittlichkeitsverbrecher'' (1963) as Richter * ''{{ill|Erotikon (1963 film)|de|3=Erotikon – Karussell der Leidenschaften|lt=Erotikon}}'' (1963) * ''Geld und Geist'' (1966) as Pfarrer (final film role) {{div col end}}

==Notes== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *{{IMDb name|id=0927436|name=Mathias Wieman}} *[http://meingast.tripod.com/family.html Meingast Family Site with information about Mathias Wieman] *[http://film.virtual-history.com/person.php?personid=1074 Photographs of Mathias Wieman] * [https://web.archive.org/web/20160318100514fw_/http://dieterleitner.de/w2bioglang__start.htm Excellent and detailed web site about Wieman by the late Dieter Svensson] * [[:de:Bild:Wieman-Grab-wiki.jpg|Mathias Wieman and Erika Meingast gravesite in the Osnabrücker Johannesfriedhof]] *[https://archive.org/details/1937-Unternehmen-Michael "Unternehmen Michael" - 1937 World War 1 drama. Full length.] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20100107165816/http://bibliothek.univie.ac.at/sammlungen/objekt_des_monats/004413.html Bust of Mathias Wieman recently discovered at the University of Vienna (in German).] *[http://www.filmsprung.ch/wordpress/?p=6649 Blog (in German) by Thomas Hunziker about "The Eternal Mask" being shown at the 2010 Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival.] *[https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9801E1DA1538EE3ABC4C52DFB3668383629EDE "New York Times" review of "Unternehmen Michael" (The Private's Job). Cursor down to under "At the 86th St. Garden Theatre" for the review. Nugent, Frank S., "Goodbye Broadway," New York Times, 14 May 1938. ] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20110817162617/http://hans-juergen-kallmann.ismaning.de/werke Information about a portrait done of Mathias Wieman by artist Hans Jürgen Kallmann.]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wieman, Mathias}} [[Category:1902 births]] [[Category:1969 deaths]] [[Category:German male film actors]] [[Category:German male silent film actors]] [[Category:German male stage actors]] [[Category:People from the Province of Hanover]] [[Category:People from Osnabrück]] [[Category:20th-century German male actors]] [[Category:Male actors from Lower Saxony]]