Zuckmayer, Carl

Zuckmayer, Carl

(kärl tso͝ok`mīər), 1896–1977, German dramatist. Zuckmayer devoted himself to writing after the success of his comedy Der fröhliche Weinberg [the merry vineyard] (1925). During World War II he lived in the United States. His popular plays include Der Hauptmann von Köpenick (1931; tr. The Captain of Köpenick, 1932), satirizing German militarism, and Des Teufels General (1946; tr. The Devil's General, 1950), portraying the dilemma of an anti-Nazi German army officer. Both have been adapted as films. Zuckmayer's expressionistic style exhibits a controlled sentimentality. His best-known film script is Der blaue Engel [the blue angel] (1930). Zuckmayer's other works include poems, the espionage novel Das kalte Licht [the bold light] (1955, tr. 1958), and two autobiographies (1940, in English; and 1966, tr. 1970).

Zuckmayer, Carl

 

Born Dec. 27, 1896, in Nackenheim; died Jan. 19, 1977, in Zürich. German writer (Federal Republic of Germany).

Zuckmayer studied natural science, philosophy, and literary history at the universities of Frankfurt am Main and Heidelberg between 1918 and 1920. He lived abroad in various places from 1933 to 1946. In 1958 he settled in Switzerland. In addition to amusing and lyric comedies from the life of the people, such as The Happy Vineyard (1925), Zuckmayer wrote the antimilitarist satirical play The Captain of Köpenick (1931) and the drama The Devil’s General (1946), which denounces Nazism from a standpoint of abstract humanism. He also produced lyric poetry, short stories, and memoirs. Many of his works have been made into films. Zuckmayer received a number of literary prizes.

WORKS

Werkausgabe, vols. 1–10. Frankfurt am Main, 1976.

REFERENCES

Fradkin, I. M. “Pod maskoi respektabel’nosti.” Teatr, 1963, no. 7.
Jacobius, A. J. Carl Zuckmayer: Eine Bibliographie 1917–1971. Frankfurt am Main, 1971.

G. V. IAKUSHEVA