Geheimreport

The most peculiar and amusing document of the German exile: Zuckmayer's "Secret Report" featuring character portraits of significant artists who remained in Germany during the Nazi era. The playwright Carl Zuckmayer, who emigrated to the USA in 1939, wrote a report for the American intelligence service in 1943/44, consisting of about 150 character portraits of writers, publicists, publishers, actors, directors, and musicians who held prominent positions in the Third Reich. Among those described and evaluated are Hans Albers, Gustaf Gründgens, Heinz Rühmann, and Theo Lingen, as well as Gottfried Benn, Ernst Jünger, Wilhelm Furtwängler, and Peter Suhrkamp. In addition to the reports, the volume includes a detailed commentary in which the editors supplement the biographical details of the individuals, correct some facts, and trace the acquaintances of the portrayed individuals with Zuckmayer. An extensive afterword that provides information about the context of the report and a register of names make this edition a kind of "Who's Who" of the artists who remained in the German Reich.