Marlene Dietrich

Marlene Dietrich

Birthday: 1901-12-27

Place of Birth: Berlin, Germany

Biography: Marlene Dietrich (1901–1992) was a German-American actress and singer, widely regarded as one of the most iconic figures of classic Hollywood. She rose to fame in the 1930s with films like The Blue Angel, Shanghai Express, and Destry Rides Again, captivating audiences with her sultry voice, striking beauty, and androgynous style. Known for her ability to reinvent herself, Dietrich transitioned from film star to a celebrated cabaret performer, touring internationally for decades. Beyond her career, Dietrich was known for her progressive views and unconventional lifestyle. She openly defied gender norms, often wearing men's clothing both on and off-screen, which contributed to her enigmatic persona. Her personal life has long been the subject of speculation, particularly regarding her sexuality. While she was married to Rudolf Sieber, she was rumored to have had relationships with both men and women, including actresses Claudette Colbert and Mercedes de Acosta. Some sources suggest she was part of Hollywood’s so-called “sewing circle,” a network of women engaged in same-sex relationships. However, Dietrich never publicly confirmed these rumors, maintaining an air of mystery that only added to her legendary status. Her legacy continues to inspire discussions on gender, sexuality, and Hollywood’s golden age.

Movies

Shanghai Express
Shanghai Express

A beautiful temptress re-kindles an old romance while trying to escape her past during a tension-pac...

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Touch of Evil
Touch of Evil

When a car bomb explodes on the American side of the U.S./Mexico border, Mexican drug enforcement ag...

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Judgment at Nuremberg
Judgment at Nuremberg

In 1947, four German judges who served on the bench during the Nazi regime face a military tribunal ...

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Stage Fright
Stage Fright

A struggling actress tries to help a friend prove his innocence when he's accused of murdering the h...

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Around the World in 80 Days
Around the World in 80 Days

Based on the famous book by Jules Verne the movie follows Phileas Fogg on his journey around the wor...

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Paris When It Sizzles
Paris When It Sizzles

Hollywood producer Alexander Meyerheimer has hired drunken writer Richard Benson to write his latest...

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Jigsaw
Jigsaw

New York Assistant District Attorney Howard Malloy launches an investigation into a series of murder...

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Manpower
Manpower

Hank McHenry and Johnny Marshall work as power company linesmen. Hank is injured in an accident and ...

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Manon Lescaut
Manon Lescaut

A French adventurer fights to save a woman in the life of prostitution....

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The Scarlet Empress
The Scarlet Empress

During the 18th century, German noblewoman Sophia Frederica, who would later become Catherine the Gr...

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Just a Gigolo
Just a Gigolo

After World War I, a war hero returns to Berlin to find that there's no place for him--he has no ski...

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Follow the Boys
Follow the Boys

During World War II, all the studios put out "all-star" vehicles which featured virtually every star...

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Blonde Venus
Blonde Venus

In an effort to be able to afford expensive treatment for her gravely ill American husband, a retire...

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Seven Sinners
Seven Sinners

Banished from various U.S. protectorates in the Pacific, a saloon entertainer uses her femme-fatale ...

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Rancho Notorious
Rancho Notorious

A man in search of revenge infiltrates a ranch, hidden in an inhospitable region, where its owner, A...

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Marlene
Marlene

Retrospective on the career of enigmatic screen diva Marlene Dietrich....

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Morocco
Morocco

Mogador, Morocco. Late 1920s. A complex romance develops between a womanizing Legionnaire and a disi...

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The Devil Is a Woman
The Devil Is a Woman

In the carnival in Spain in the beginning of the Twentieth Century, the exiled republican Antonio Ga...

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Witness for the Prosecution
Witness for the Prosecution

An ailing barrister agrees to defend a man in a sensational murder trial where the unconvincing test...

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The Flame of New Orleans
The Flame of New Orleans

In old New Orleans, a beautiful adventuress juggles the attentions of a rich banker and a dashing se...

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Kismet
Kismet

Hafiz, a rascally beggar on the periphery of the court of Baghdad, schemes to marry his daughter to ...

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The Spoilers
The Spoilers

When honest ship captain Roy Glennister gets swindled out of his mine claim, he turns to saloon sing...

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Destry Rides Again
Destry Rides Again

Tom Destry, son of a legendary frontier peacekeeper, doesn’t believe in gunplay. Thus he becomes the...

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No Highway in the Sky
No Highway in the Sky

James Stewart plays aeronautical engineer Theodore Honey, the quintessential absent-minded professor...

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Becoming Cary Grant
Becoming Cary Grant

For the first time one of Hollywood's greatest stars tells his own story, in his own words. From a c...

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A Foreign Affair
A Foreign Affair

In occupied Berlin, a US Army Captain is torn between an ex-Nazi cafe singer and the US Congresswoma...

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Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh

Charles 'Pittsburgh' Markham rides roughshod over his friends, his lovers, and his ideals in his tre...

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Normandie ne partira pas ce soir
Normandie ne partira pas ce soir

It was the world's largest, most beautiful and fastest cruise ship. Built in Saint Nazaire in 1932, ...

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Angel
Angel

While vacationing without her busy British diplomat husband, a married woman falls for another man....

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The Lady Is Willing
The Lady Is Willing

Bold, eccentric Broadway performer Elizabeth Madden befuddles her handlers by coming home with a bab...

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Triumph Over Violence
Triumph Over Violence

Romm pulls out all the stops in its selection of documentary material to draw the viewer not only in...

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Dishonored
Dishonored

The Austrian Secret Service sends its most seductive agent to spy on the Russians....

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Desire
Desire

Madeleine steals a string of pearls in Paris and uses American engineer Tom, who is driving on his v...

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The Song of Songs
The Song of Songs

After her father dies, Lily moves to the city to live with her strict aunt. During the day Lily work...

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Knight Without Armour
Knight Without Armour

British agent working in Russia is forced to remain longer than planned once the revolution begins. ...

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Martin Roumagnac
Martin Roumagnac

The local building-contractor Martin Roumagnac is fascinated by the fashionable Blanche Ferrand. To ...

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Golden Earrings
Golden Earrings

A British colonel escapes from the Gestapo to the Black Forest and poses as a Gypsy's mate....

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The Woman One Longs For
The Woman One Longs For

After a chance meeting at a train station, Henry and Stascha, unhappy with their circumstances, are ...

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The Garden of Allah
The Garden of Allah

The star-crossed desert romance of a cloistered woman and a renegade monk....

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The Monte Carlo Story
The Monte Carlo Story

Stylish, sophisticated and absolutely broke, Dino and Maria pursue a romance until they realize neit...

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I Wish You Love
I Wish You Love

Taped on two nights in a London theatre, I Wish You Love is a live concert with Marlene Dietrich per...

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Marlene Dietrich, “The Blue Angel” Screen Test
Marlene Dietrich, “The Blue Angel” Screen Test

Marlene Dietrich's screen tests for the classic 1930 German film The Blue Angel directed by Josef vo...

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Cafe Electric
Cafe Electric

The daughter of a wealthy industrialist falls for a pickpocket....

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I Kiss Your Hand, Madame
I Kiss Your Hand, Madame

Laurence Gerard has just divorced. While leading fat lover Talandier by the nose, She meets the coun...

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The Ship of Lost Men
The Ship of Lost Men

A young doctor gets stuck on a ship after treating an injured first mate. Later, he rescues a woman ...

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Checking Out: Grand Hotel
Checking Out: Grand Hotel

Until 1932's Grand Hotel, never had there existed an all-star ensemble cast on film. Conceived by MG...

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A Modern Dubarry
A Modern Dubarry

...

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Going Hollywood: The '30s
Going Hollywood: The '30s

Robert Preston hosts this documentary that shows what people of the 1930s were watching as they were...

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Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored
Classic Movie Bloopers: Uncensored

Uncensored. Laugh along with Hollywood's brightest stars in this hilarious compilation of bloopers f...

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Hitchcock and 'Stage Fright'
Hitchcock and 'Stage Fright'

Documentary about film....

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The Great Yiddish Love
The Great Yiddish Love

Set in Berlin and New York's Lower East Side, The Great Yiddish Love stars the self-exiled Marlene D...

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Coisa Mais Linda - Histórias e Casos da Bossa Nova
Coisa Mais Linda - Histórias e Casos da Bossa Nova

Documentary about the birth of bossa-nova, in Brazil, and the major stars of this musical style....

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Black Fox: The Rise and Fall of Adolf Hitler
Black Fox: The Rise and Fall of Adolf Hitler

The rise and fall of Nazi Germany in part through the use of classical allegory....

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Bodies and Spaces, Fabric and Light
Bodies and Spaces, Fabric and Light

This visual essay focuses on the visual style and composition of the Hollywood films made together b...

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The Fashion Side of Hollywood
The Fashion Side of Hollywood

Compilation of lighting and costume tests from various films, most notably Sternberg's "The Devil Is...

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Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song
Marlene Dietrich: Her Own Song

The films, affairs and struggles of the iconic star of The Blue Angel as told by Rosemary Clooney, R...

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That's Entertainment! III
That's Entertainment! III

Some of MGM'S musical stars review the studios history of musicals. From The Hollywood Revue of 1929...

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No Angel: A Life of Marlene Dietrich
No Angel: A Life of Marlene Dietrich

Biography of Marlene Dietrich using interviews, film clips and rare footage of the actress, includin...

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His Greatest Bluff
His Greatest Bluff

His Greatest Bluff is a German silent comedy film. Today, the film is best known for the early role ...

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Dangers of the Engagement
Dangers of the Engagement

A man unknowingly falls madly in love with the fiancé of a close friend who has twice saved his life...

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Show-Business at War
Show-Business at War

A multi-studio effort to show the newsreel audience the progress of the Hollywood war effort....

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The Imaginary Baron
The Imaginary Baron

The film follows the comic (mis)adventures of a poor street musician, who is roped into posing as an...

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Leap Into Life
Leap Into Life

A young intellectual falls in love with a circus performer and decides to cultivate her into a lady ...

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Man by the Roadside
Man by the Roadside

A shoemaker and his wife become the parents of a little girl, but they cannot find anyone willing to...

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Complicated Women
Complicated Women

Looks at the stereotype-breaking films of the period from 1929, when movies entered the sound era, u...

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The Countess of Paris
The Countess of Paris

...

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The Tragedy of Love
The Tragedy of Love

The husband of Countess Manon Moreau is found murdered. André Rabatin, who belongs to the same club ...

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Heads Up, Charley
Heads Up, Charley

Heads Up, Charley is a 1927 German silent comedy film directed by Willi Wolff and starring Ellen Ric...

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Memo for Joe
Memo for Joe

Documentary short film extolling the virtues of the American Community Chest charity program and its...

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The Film Parade
The Film Parade

Pioneer filmmaker J. Stuart Blackton was intrigued by the idea of a film about the history of the mo...

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Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema
Why Be Good?: Sexuality & Censorship in Early Cinema

Before the G, PG and R ratings system there was the Production Code, and before that there was, well...

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The Blue Angel
The Blue Angel

Prim professor Immanuel Rath finds some of his students ogling racy photos of cabaret performer Lola...

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Im Schatten des Glücks
Im Schatten des Glücks

This silent German drama contained the screen debut of the legendary Marlene Dietrich in a small rol...

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Her Dancing Partner
Her Dancing Partner

...

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Art of Love
Art of Love

...

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100 Years of the UFA
100 Years of the UFA

The intricate history of UFA, a film production company founded in 1917 that has survived the Weimar...

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Nylon Blues: A History of the Nylon Stocking
Nylon Blues: A History of the Nylon Stocking

Events of strange and serious nature mark the invention and the manufacture of the nylon stockings. ...

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Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff
Cameraman: The Life and Work of Jack Cardiff

In 2001 Jack Cardiff (1914-2009) became the first director of photography in the history of the Acad...

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The Meeting of Two Queens
The Meeting of Two Queens

Cecilia Barriga’s culty video montage tells the story of two queens who fall in love, unwittingly pl...

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Breakdowns of 1942
Breakdowns of 1942

Flubs and bloopers that occurred on the set of some of the major Warner Bros. pictures of 1942....

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Maria Callas: The Final Act
Maria Callas: The Final Act

In this new film from Arena, a cast of musical experts and admirers uncover the truth about the Mari...

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Beautiful Like a Poem
Beautiful Like a Poem

I have a lot of interest and respect for classic cinema. I tried to make a film with at least 20 por...

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Erich Maria Remarque und Marlene Dietrich - Flucht in die Liebe
Erich Maria Remarque und Marlene Dietrich - Flucht in die Liebe

...

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Rediscovering John Gilbert
Rediscovering John Gilbert

This documentary features an on-camera interview with John Gilbert's daughter and biographer, Leatri...

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