Correspondence with Alma Mahler and Franz Werfel, 1934-1964.

Format:

Other

Author/Creator:

Zuckmayer, Carl, 1896-1977

Contributor:

Herdan-Zuckmayer, Alice.

Language:

German

Physical Description:

36 items (59 leaves)

Contained In:

Mahler-Werfel Papers. Folders 1409-1410.

Place of Publication:

1934-1964.

Language Note:

In German.

Biography/History:

Alice Herdan-Zuckmayer (1901-1991) was Carl's wife; they married in 1925. (Alice signs "Liccie," and Carl refers to her as "Jobs." Carl often signs as, and is referred to by his friends as "Zuck.") Alice had a daughter, Michaela, from a previous marriage; and Alice and Carl together had a daughter, Maria Winnetou, who was born in 1926. In that year Carl and Alice bought a house in Henndorf near Salzburg, and from 1934 on they lived there on a permanent basis; upon the Anschluss in 1938 the Zuckmayers fled Austria via Switzerland, and emigrated to the U.S. in 1939. From around 1941 they lived on a farm in Vermont ("The Backwoodsfarm"). After 1946 they lived sometimes in Europe and sometimes in the U.S. and eventually settled in Switzerland. Carl and Alice were close friends of Alma and Franz since at least the 1930s.

Summary:

Zuckmayer often refers to what he is currently writing, and both Carl and Alice respond to Werfel's work (including the film based on The Song of Bernadette and the Broadway production of Jacobowsky and the Colonel). The correspondence generally reflects the friendship between the two couples. Topics that arise include: Zuckmayer's attitude toward his writing at the beginning of the exile period and his observations about the outbreak of war in 1939; descriptions of life in Vermont; Zuckmayer's writing of his essay "Aufruf zum Leben," upon hearing of the death of Stefan Zweig in 1942; and news about Winnetou (the daughter of Carl and Alice). The earliest item of correspondence, in 1934, is a letter to Alma written mostly in the form of a poem. 2 items (including the letter from Werfel) concern Zuckmayers' efforts in 1943 to become reclassified by the U.S. naturalization service as Austrian (rather than German) citizens; Carl Zuckmayer had apparently become an Austrian citizen not long before he left Austria but had only his German passport when they fled. 2 items concern the death of Manon Gropius: 1 is a letter to Werfel filled with reflections, shortly after Zuckmayer heard of the death, a few days after the burial; and 1 is a poem dedicated to Alma, dated spring 1935. Also included is a condolence letter to Alma upon the death of Franz.

Notes:

Includes a carbon copy of 1 letter from Franz Werfel; and 7 items from Alice Herdan-Zuckmayer.