German stage and screen actor Paul Heidemann (1884 - 1968) was also a film director and producer. In the silent period, he was famous for his character Teddy and his other comical parts.
![Paul Heidemann as Teddy]()
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin-Wilm., no. 5233. Photo: R. Dührkoop.
Talented Comedian
Paul Heidemann was born in Cologne, Germany in 1884. After an initial career in the tobacco branch, he took acting lessons from the Meiningen based court actor Leopold Teller. In 1906 he debuted in Hanau as Prince Karl-Heinz in the operetta Alt-Heidelberg. In 1909, he joined the theatre of Breslau, where he sang in Bruno Granichstaedten’s operetta Bub oder Mädel. Here Heidemann created his reputation as talented comedian. On the recommendation of composer Jean Gilbert, he moved to Berlin in 1911, where he debuted in Gilbert’s play Die keusche Susanne (The chaste Susanne). Franz Porten discovered Heidemann for the cinema, where he played his first lead in Das Brandmal ihrer Vergangenheit/The stigma of her past (1912). It was followed by films such as Das Teufelsloch/The Devil's Hole (1913, Rudolf Del Zopp), and Vater und Sohn/Father and Son (1914, Afred Halm) with Leopoldine Konstantin. From 1913 to 1915 he also played the character Teddy in countless comical shorts, such as Teddy ist herzkrank/Teddy has a heart condition (1914), Teddys Geburtstagsgeschenk/Teddy's Birthday Present (1915) and Teddy züchtet Notkartoffeln/teddy breeds emergency potatoes (1915). Sometimes he directed these films as well. Between 1919 and 1923 Heidemann had his own production company, Paul Heidemann-Film GmbH in Berlin, where he played the lead in films initially mostly directed by Erich Schönefelder and later on rather by Georg Schubert or by Heidemann himself. A late example is Eine kleine Freundin braucht ein jeder Mann/Every man Needs A little Friend (1927, Paul Heidemann), starring Heidemann but also Julius Falkenstein, Hans Albers, Siegfried Arno and Charlotte Ander.
![Hans Albers, Paul Heidemann]()
With Hans Albers. Austrian Postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 6699. Photo: Lux Film Verleih.
Military Comedies
In the 1920's, Paul Heidemann became an important supporting actor and sometimes leading man in all kinds of films. He often played in comedies, such as Die Bergkatze/The Wildcat (1921, Ernst Lubitsch) with Pola Negri, So sind die Männer/The Little Napoleon (1922, Georg Jacoby) with Harry Liedtke, Der Sprung ins Leben/Leap Into Life (1923, Johannes Guter) with Xenia Desni, Das süsse Mädel/The Sweet Girl (1926, Manfred Noa) with Mary Nolan and Mary Parker, Die dritte Eskadron/The Third Squadron (1926, Carl Wilhelm) with Claire Rommer, Flucht aus der Hölle/Escape from Hell (1928, Georg Asagaroff) with Heidemann, Jean Murat and Agnes Esterhazy, and Flucht vor der Liebe/The flight from love (1930, Hans Behrendt) with Jenny Jugo and Enrico Benfer. Simultaneously Heidemann acted on the Berlin stages, mainly in operettas. When in the early 1930's military comedies were popular, Heidemann acted in various military farces such as Wenn die Soldaten.../When the soldiers... (1931, Luise & Jakob Fleck) with Otto Walburg, Schön ist die Manöverzeit/Manoeuver Time Is Fine (1931, Erich Schönfelder) with Ida Wüst, Die Mutter der Kompanie/The Company's Mother (1931, Franz Seitz senior), Drei von der Kavallerie/Number Three Cavalryman (1932, Carl Boese) with Paul Hörbiger and Fritz Kampers, and Liebe in Uniform/Love in Uniform (1932, Georg Jacoby).
![Paul Heidemann]()
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4181/1, 1929-1930. Photo: Alex Binder, Berlin.
Sidekick
Paul Heidemann also acted in many successful films of the 1930's, often as sidekick of the popular actor Hans Albers. Among the most well-known productions are Ihre Hoheit befielt/Her Grace Commands (1930-1931, Hanns Schwarz) featuring Käthe von Nagy, Der tolle Bomberg/The Mad Bomberg (1932, Georg Asagaroff) with Heidemann in the lead, Ganovenehre/Crook's Honor (1932, Richard Oswald) with Fritz Kampers, Paprika (1932, Carl Boese) with Franciska Gaál, Narren im Schnee/Fools in the snow (1939, Hans Deppe) with Anny Ondra, and Schneider Wibbel/Tailor Wibbel (1939, Viktor de Kowa) with Erich Ponto. During the Second World War, Heidemann worked again as film director. He staged film comedies, such as Mein Mann darf es nicht wissen/My husband must not know (1940) with Mady Rahl, Krach im Vorderhaus (1941) again with Rahl, Weisse Wäsche (1942) with Harald Paulsen, and Floh im Ohr/Flea in Her Ear (1943), even if the films were not huge hits. In the 1950's, he acted both in BRD and DDR films. In East- Germany he played Presskopp in the old Berlin farce Ein Polterabend/A stag night (1955, Curt Bois) and the mayor in Bärenburger Schnurre/Bärenburg Farce (1957, Ralf Kirsten). He also acted in West-German films like Torreani (1951, Gustav Fröhlich), Der keusche Josef/The chaste Joseph (1953, Carl Boese), Rittmeister Wronski/Cavalry Captain Wronski (1954, Ulrich Erfurth), Der Mustergatte/The Model Husband (1956, Erik Ode) and Jede Nacht in einem anderen Bett/Every night in a different bed (1956-1957, Paul Verhoeven). Paul Heidemann died in Berlin in 1968. He was 83.
![Paul Heidemann]()
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 8154/1, 1933-1934.
![Paul Heidemann]()
East-German postcard by VEB-Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 176-59. Photo: Defa-Neufeld. Publicity still for Junges Gemüse/Young Vegetables (1956, Günter Reisch).
Sources: Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Volker Wachter (Defa-sternstunden) (German), Filmportal.de, Wikipedia (German) and IMDb.
German postcard by Verlag Hermann Leiser, Berlin-Wilm., no. 5233. Photo: R. Dührkoop.
Talented Comedian
Paul Heidemann was born in Cologne, Germany in 1884. After an initial career in the tobacco branch, he took acting lessons from the Meiningen based court actor Leopold Teller. In 1906 he debuted in Hanau as Prince Karl-Heinz in the operetta Alt-Heidelberg. In 1909, he joined the theatre of Breslau, where he sang in Bruno Granichstaedten’s operetta Bub oder Mädel. Here Heidemann created his reputation as talented comedian. On the recommendation of composer Jean Gilbert, he moved to Berlin in 1911, where he debuted in Gilbert’s play Die keusche Susanne (The chaste Susanne). Franz Porten discovered Heidemann for the cinema, where he played his first lead in Das Brandmal ihrer Vergangenheit/The stigma of her past (1912). It was followed by films such as Das Teufelsloch/The Devil's Hole (1913, Rudolf Del Zopp), and Vater und Sohn/Father and Son (1914, Afred Halm) with Leopoldine Konstantin. From 1913 to 1915 he also played the character Teddy in countless comical shorts, such as Teddy ist herzkrank/Teddy has a heart condition (1914), Teddys Geburtstagsgeschenk/Teddy's Birthday Present (1915) and Teddy züchtet Notkartoffeln/teddy breeds emergency potatoes (1915). Sometimes he directed these films as well. Between 1919 and 1923 Heidemann had his own production company, Paul Heidemann-Film GmbH in Berlin, where he played the lead in films initially mostly directed by Erich Schönefelder and later on rather by Georg Schubert or by Heidemann himself. A late example is Eine kleine Freundin braucht ein jeder Mann/Every man Needs A little Friend (1927, Paul Heidemann), starring Heidemann but also Julius Falkenstein, Hans Albers, Siegfried Arno and Charlotte Ander.
With Hans Albers. Austrian Postcard by Iris Verlag, no. 6699. Photo: Lux Film Verleih.
Military Comedies
In the 1920's, Paul Heidemann became an important supporting actor and sometimes leading man in all kinds of films. He often played in comedies, such as Die Bergkatze/The Wildcat (1921, Ernst Lubitsch) with Pola Negri, So sind die Männer/The Little Napoleon (1922, Georg Jacoby) with Harry Liedtke, Der Sprung ins Leben/Leap Into Life (1923, Johannes Guter) with Xenia Desni, Das süsse Mädel/The Sweet Girl (1926, Manfred Noa) with Mary Nolan and Mary Parker, Die dritte Eskadron/The Third Squadron (1926, Carl Wilhelm) with Claire Rommer, Flucht aus der Hölle/Escape from Hell (1928, Georg Asagaroff) with Heidemann, Jean Murat and Agnes Esterhazy, and Flucht vor der Liebe/The flight from love (1930, Hans Behrendt) with Jenny Jugo and Enrico Benfer. Simultaneously Heidemann acted on the Berlin stages, mainly in operettas. When in the early 1930's military comedies were popular, Heidemann acted in various military farces such as Wenn die Soldaten.../When the soldiers... (1931, Luise & Jakob Fleck) with Otto Walburg, Schön ist die Manöverzeit/Manoeuver Time Is Fine (1931, Erich Schönfelder) with Ida Wüst, Die Mutter der Kompanie/The Company's Mother (1931, Franz Seitz senior), Drei von der Kavallerie/Number Three Cavalryman (1932, Carl Boese) with Paul Hörbiger and Fritz Kampers, and Liebe in Uniform/Love in Uniform (1932, Georg Jacoby).
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 4181/1, 1929-1930. Photo: Alex Binder, Berlin.
Sidekick
Paul Heidemann also acted in many successful films of the 1930's, often as sidekick of the popular actor Hans Albers. Among the most well-known productions are Ihre Hoheit befielt/Her Grace Commands (1930-1931, Hanns Schwarz) featuring Käthe von Nagy, Der tolle Bomberg/The Mad Bomberg (1932, Georg Asagaroff) with Heidemann in the lead, Ganovenehre/Crook's Honor (1932, Richard Oswald) with Fritz Kampers, Paprika (1932, Carl Boese) with Franciska Gaál, Narren im Schnee/Fools in the snow (1939, Hans Deppe) with Anny Ondra, and Schneider Wibbel/Tailor Wibbel (1939, Viktor de Kowa) with Erich Ponto. During the Second World War, Heidemann worked again as film director. He staged film comedies, such as Mein Mann darf es nicht wissen/My husband must not know (1940) with Mady Rahl, Krach im Vorderhaus (1941) again with Rahl, Weisse Wäsche (1942) with Harald Paulsen, and Floh im Ohr/Flea in Her Ear (1943), even if the films were not huge hits. In the 1950's, he acted both in BRD and DDR films. In East- Germany he played Presskopp in the old Berlin farce Ein Polterabend/A stag night (1955, Curt Bois) and the mayor in Bärenburger Schnurre/Bärenburg Farce (1957, Ralf Kirsten). He also acted in West-German films like Torreani (1951, Gustav Fröhlich), Der keusche Josef/The chaste Joseph (1953, Carl Boese), Rittmeister Wronski/Cavalry Captain Wronski (1954, Ulrich Erfurth), Der Mustergatte/The Model Husband (1956, Erik Ode) and Jede Nacht in einem anderen Bett/Every night in a different bed (1956-1957, Paul Verhoeven). Paul Heidemann died in Berlin in 1968. He was 83.
German postcard by Ross Verlag, no. 8154/1, 1933-1934.
East-German postcard by VEB-Progress Film-Vertrieb, Berlin, no. 176-59. Photo: Defa-Neufeld. Publicity still for Junges Gemüse/Young Vegetables (1956, Günter Reisch).
Sources: Thomas Staedeli (Cyranos), Volker Wachter (Defa-sternstunden) (German), Filmportal.de, Wikipedia (German) and IMDb.