Fritz Lang: The Nature of the Beast

Praise, Title Page, Copyright, Dedication

Praise for Fritz Lang: The Nature of the Beast Named a Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times and one of the year's Best Nonfiction Books by Publishers Weekly "As definitive a Lang as we are likely to get: entertaining, appalling,persuasive." — Steven Bach, L. A. Weekly Literary Supplement "A beast Lang certainlywas. . . McGilligan, with ferocious research and a touch of wonder—throughout, he seems to be shaking his head in fascinationspreads Fritz Lang's elements before us: the quasi-diabolist artist, the sadistic perfectionist with his actors, the fervent devotee of truth, the twister of facts, the elegant immoralist, the indefatigableamorist, the disturbingseer into the giant maladies of his epoch. McGilligan's passion and thoroughness make his Lang biography a permanent resource." — Stanley Kauffmann, New York Times Book Review "Stunning. McGilligan's research is exhaustive, his knowledge of the cinema encyclopedic, and his narration lively. This book may well be not only the definitive biography of Lang . . . but a longstanding model for film biographies in general." —Publishers Weekly "A brilliantbiography . . . McGilligan's book will stand as the definitebiography of Fritz Lang for a long time. He has given us the man, his films, and the turbulent cultures and times he lived in. ... By the end, McGilligan has helped us to understand the nature of the man and, despite his faults, which are as epic as his early films, we come to like and admire him." — Mamoun Hassan, The Times Higher Education Supplement "Adroit and revealing . . . McGilligan does an extraordinarily thorough job of separating Lang fact from Lang fable. McGilligan . .. has a great story to tell, and he tells it with verve, originality, and insight." —Kirkus Reviews "McGilligan emphasizes Lang's work, illuminatinghis struggle to produce art under the demands of commerce but scrutinizing the many self-aggrandizing myths Lang nurtured. McGilligan's forthrighttreatment may not have pleased his subject,who loved publicityonly as long as he could control it, but its appeal to the many cineasts who idolize Lang is certain." — Booklist "No detail of Lang's life has been omitted. McGilligan has returned with another exceptional work . . . highly recommended." —Library Journal "By making the great artist and the impossible man seem like the same person and not irresolvable halves, McGilligan's thoroughly researched, sharply written book does his subjectjustice." -The A. V. Club "Well-researched and energetic." —The Spectator "An exemplary researcher, McGilligan has checked and cross-checked his details, scouring archives in America and Europe. He manages to maintain an admirable detachment—cool, sympathetic, understanding though not indulgent, often tolerantly amused. Above all, he consistently recognizes that what now matters most about the man is his art and that some of Lang's seemingly destructive qualities may have come from his single-minded, even fanatical, dedication to the pursuit of elusive perfection." —Los Angeles Times FRITZ LANG The Nature of the Beast Patrick McGilligan University of Minnesota Press Minneapolis London FRITZ LANG Originally published by St. Martin's Griffin Press, New York, in 1997. First Universityof Minnesota Press edition, 2013 Copyright 1997 by Patrick McGilligan All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the priorwritten permission of the publisher. Published by the Universityof Minnesota Press 111 Third Avenue South, Suite 290 Minneapolis, MN 55401-2520 http://www.upress.umn.edu Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data McGilligan, Patrick. Fritz Lang : the nature of the beast / Patrick McGilligan. — First Universityof Minnesota Press edition. Includes bibliographical references and index. Includesfilmography. ISBN 978-0-8166-7655-2 (pb : alk. paper) 1. Lang, Fritz, 1890-1976. 2. Motion picture producers and directorsUnited States—Biography. I. Title. PN1998.3.L36M382013 791.43'0233092-dc23 [B] 2013026027 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper The University of Minnesota is an equal-opportunity educator and employer. 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 My private life has nothing to do with my films. — FRITZ LANG This page intentionally left blank ...