50 Fun Facts About Fritz Lang

In which city was Fritz Lang born in 1890?

His father was an architect and construction-company manager; Lang briefly studied civil engineering before switching to art.

In what year was Lang's futuristic epic Metropolis released?

It went badly over budget, hurting UFA, and is now the first film ever inscribed on UNESCO's Memory of the World register.

What nickname did the British Film Institute give Lang?

His German films established the psychological conflict, paranoia and moral ambiguity later attributed to film noir.

Which Lang film pioneered the rocket-launch countdown?

The 1929 film also showed a multi-stage rocket and a launch pad with the rocket rolled upright against a tall building.

Which eye did Lang lose the sight of during World War I?

Wounded four times fighting in Russia and Romania, he began writing plays and scenarios during his convalescence.

With what rank was Lang discharged from the Austrian army in 1918?

He then acted briefly in Viennese theatre before Erich Pommer's Decla Film hired him as a writer in Berlin.

How did Lang's first wife, Elisabeth Rosenthal, die in 1920?

The shot came from Lang's wartime Browning revolver; he and Thea von Harbou said she shot herself and a charge of failing to render aid was dropped.

Which writer co-wrote every Lang film from 1920 to 1933 and became his second wife?

She stayed in Germany when he left, and later wrote the story he filmed as his 'Indian Epic' in the late 1950s.

How long did the original two-part Dr. Mabuse the Gambler run?

It was the first of a Mabuse trilogy; Die Nibelungen, two years later, ran five hours.

Which studio did Lang start work at as a director?

He alternated art films such as Der Müde Tod with popular thrillers like Die Spinnen, blending Expressionism with entertainment.

Which was Lang's first sound film?

Independent producer Seymour Nebenzahl hired him to make it for Nero-Film in 1931; Lang regarded it as his magnum opus.

Which actor played the child murderer in M, his first starring role?

Lang allegedly threw him down a flight of stairs so he would look properly battered in the final scene.

Which piece does the killer in M compulsively whistle?

The Grieg leitmotif was borrowed from opera; Lorre could not whistle, so Lang dubbed it himself.

What does the letter chalked onto the killer's coat in M stand for?

A beggar marks his palm, pretends to trip and bumps into him, leaving the mark on the back of his overcoat.

How many days did Lang spend inside a mental institution researching M?

He met several child murderers there, including Peter Kürten, and used real criminals as extras; 25 cast members were arrested during the shoot.

On which real Berlin police official was M's Inspector Karl Lohmann based?

Otto Wernicke played Lohmann and reprised the role in The Testament of Dr. Mabuse.

Which Lang film did the Nazi regime ban in March 1933?

Lang had put Nazi phrases in the villain's mouth; Goebbels said it showed a dedicated group could overthrow any state by violence.

According to Lang, what did Goebbels offer him at their 1933 meeting?

Lang claimed he decided to flee to Paris that very day, though his passport shows he travelled in and out of Germany through 1933.

On what date did Lang leave Berlin for good?

That was four months after his Goebbels meeting; he had divorced von Harbou, who stayed behind, earlier that year.

Lang's only French film, Liliom, was adapted from a play by which writer?

Charles Boyer starred; the same play was later the basis for the musical Carousel.

How many features did Lang make during his 20-year Hollywood career?

He worked at every major studio and occasionally produced independently; he became a US citizen in 1939.

Which star played a man nearly lynched in Lang's first Hollywood film, Fury (1936)?

Lang was not allowed to depict Black victims of lynching or criticise racism, which had been his original intention.

How many Hollywood films with explicitly anti-Nazi themes did Lang make?

Man Hunt, Hangmen Also Die!, Ministry of Fear and Cloak and Dagger; he also helped found the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League.

Which pair starred in Lang's noirs The Woman in the Window and Scarlet Street?

Scarlet Street (1945) is regarded as a central film in the noir canon.

Which 1953 Lang police drama is known for its brutality?

It was added to the National Film Registry in 2011.

Who plays Detective Dave Bannion in The Big Heat?

Producer Jerry Wald had originally wanted Paul Muni, George Raft or Edward G. Robinson for the role.

What does Lee Marvin's gangster throw in Gloria Grahame's face in The Big Heat?

Columbia had wanted Marilyn Monroe for the part but balked at the loan fee Fox demanded, so Grahame was cast.

In which fictional city is The Big Heat set?

William P. McGivern's source serial in The Saturday Evening Post had been set in Philadelphia.

Which producer lured Lang back to West Germany for his 'Indian Epic' in the late 1950s?

The two-part film revived a Thea von Harbou story Lang had developed in the 1920s but Joe May had directed.

What was Lang's final film as director?

He was approaching blindness during the 1960 production; Brauner made further Mabuse sequels without him.

In which 1963 Jean-Luc Godard film did Lang appear as himself?

The Cahiers du cinéma critics, including Truffaut and Rivette, championed his underrated American work.

How did Lang die in 1976?

He was buried at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills; his Walk of Fame star at 1600 Vine Street had been unveiled in 1960.

Who wrote the 1925 novel on which Metropolis is based?

She wrote it as a treatment; H. G. Wells later dismissed the finished film as 'silly'.

Which actress played both Maria and the robot in Metropolis?

It was her feature debut; a full-body plaster cast of her was used to build the rigid robot costume that left her cut and bruised.

How many months did the shooting of Metropolis take?

There were 310 shooting days and 60 nights, and the budget ballooned to 5.3 million Reichsmarks, more than three and a half times the plan.

How many children worked 14 days in cold water for the flood scene in Metropolis?

They came from Berlin's poorest districts, and Lang deliberately kept the pool at a low temperature.

What is the final intertitle of Metropolis?

The line sums up the film's plea for reconciliation between workers and rulers, which critics called naive.

Which music producer released a pop-scored 1984 version of Metropolis?

He paid $200,000 for the rights, outbidding David Bowie, and recruited Freddie Mercury, Bonnie Tyler and Adam Ant for the soundtrack.

In which city was a near-complete print of Lang's original Metropolis cut found in 2008?

The 16 mm safety negative at the Museo del Cine, plus a print from New Zealand, brought the 2010 restoration within five minutes of the original.

Which Star Wars droid was inspired by the Maschinenmensch of Metropolis?

Ralph McQuarrie's design bears a striking resemblance to the golden robot built by Rotwang.

Which Queen video uses clips from Metropolis and ends 'Thanks to Metropolis'?

Freddie Mercury's face is briefly superimposed on the robot's, and he wrote 'Love Kills' for the Moroder release.

Metropolis was the first film inscribed on which UNESCO register?

The 2001 listing came the same year a new reconstruction was shown at the Berlin Film Festival.

What was the profession of Fritz Lang's father, Anton?

He was a partner in Honus and Lang, an important Viennese construction company; Fritz himself briefly studied civil engineering before switching to art.

In which city was Lang studying painting in 1913 when he was arrested as an 'enemy alien'?

He escaped back to Vienna, where he was drafted into the Imperial Austrian Army and later wounded four times.

Which director helped Lang write his first film scenario and introduced him to Thea von Harbou?

May also ended up directing The Indian Tomb from a Harbou-Lang story of the 1920s that Lang finally remade himself in the late 1950s.

How long was Lang's 1924 two-part epic Die Nibelungen?

Metropolis then went so far over budget that it damaged UFA, and Lang's last silents Spies and Woman in the Moon were flops too.

Which independent producer hired Lang to direct M for Nero-Film in 1931?

Lang allegedly threw Peter Lorre down a flight of stairs during the climactic scene to make him look convincingly battered.

Which Austrian actress, star of Spies and Woman in the Moon, had an affair with the married Lang?

Lang was a known philanderer, while Thea von Harbou began her own affair with an Indian journalist 17 years her junior.

In which year did Lang become a naturalised citizen of the United States?

He worked at every major studio over 20 years, sometimes producing independently, and helped found the Hollywood Anti-Nazi League.

Where was Lang buried after his death in 1976?

He had received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star at 1600 Vine Street in 1960 and was championed by Cahiers du cinéma critics such as Truffaut.