Hildegard Knef

Infobox Celebrity
name = Hildegard Knef


caption = Hildegard Knef at her last concert (1995-03-05) in Berlin
birth_date = birth date|1925|12|28|mf=y
birth_place = Ulm, Germany
death_date = death date and age |2002|2|01|1925|12|28
death_place = Berlin, Germany
occupation = Film Actress, entertainer, singer, Writer
spouse =
website =
footnotes =

Hildegard Frieda Albertine Knef (December 28, 1925 - February 1, 2002) was a German actress, singer and writer. She was billed in some English language films as Hildegard(e) Neff. Arguably, her most influential roles included that of Susanne Wallner in Wolfgang Staudte's film "Die Mörder sind unter uns" ("The Murderers Are Among Us") (the first film released after the Second World War in East Germany and produced by the Soviet filmmaking enterprise DEFA-Studio für Spielfilme) as well as her role as Marina in "Die Sünderin (The Sinner)" in which she performed the first nude scene in German filmmaking in 1950. The incident in the latter film sparked one of the largest scandals in German filmmaking history and drew the criticism of the Roman Catholic Church. She was the first and only German to have a successful Broadway show ("Silk Stockings" written by Cole Porter). She was sometimes compared to that other great German actress, Marlene Dietrich, in that they both were, or portrayed as, the liberated, self-confident woman. Hildegard Knef was one of the most important actresses of post-war Germany.

In the 1960s and 1970s she enjoyed much success as a singer of German chansons, which she often co-wrote. The song she is mostly remembered for is "Für mich soll's rote Rosen regnen" ("It shall rain red roses for me"). She is also known for her version of the song "Ich hab noch einen Koffer in Berlin" (I`ve got a suitcase left in Berlin...), the title of which is still often cited in articles and in common speech throughout Germany.

She has published several books. Her autobiography "Der geschenkte Gaul - Bericht aus einem Leben" ("The Gift Horse - Report of a Life") from 1970 is a candid, but not sensationalist, recount of her life in Germany during and after World War II. It became the best selling German book after World War II. Her second book "Das Urteil" ("The Verdict") from 1975 was a moderate success. It dealt with her struggle with breast cancer.

She was married three times and had a daughter (born in 1968) with her second husband David Cameron Palastanga.

External links

*de icon http://www.hildegardknef.de (official fan site with an additional English chronology of her life & work)
*PND|118563645
* [http://www.europopmusic.eu/Germany_pages/Knef.html Hildegard Knef on Europopmusic.eu] (English)
*imdb name|id=0460651|name=Hildegard Knef
*musicbrainz artist|id=fef1e787-e631-41a3-b8f2-a834291d8bd1|name=Hildegard Knef
* [http://www.rosenthalusa.com/1288d940/KNEF_Hildegard.htm Portrait on rosenthalusa.com]

Persondata
NAME= Knef, Hildegard Frieda Albertine
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=Neff, Hildegard
SHORT DESCRIPTION= German film actress, entertainer, singer, writer
DATE OF BIRTH= 1925-12-28
PLACE OF BIRTH= Ulm, Germany
DATE OF DEATH= 2002-02-01
PLACE OF DEATH= Berlin, Germany