By Taylor Neumann, ReMIND Magazine
Actress Marlene Dietrich, with her dark eyes, perfect bone structure and blond curls, was the epitome of beauty in the early 1930s. She used her mysterious allure to defy gender roles, charm audiences and eventually become an essential part of the wartime efforts.
Dietrich was born in Germany in 1901 and originally wanted to be a violinist before taking up theater and dance, eventually debuting onstage as a chorus girl before her first film, The Little Napoleon, in 1923. Dietrich continued to appear in German films until her collaboration with director Josef von Sternberg, The Blue Angel, premiered in 1930. The film was a worldwide success.
Dietrich’s first film in the United States was Morocco, again pairing her with von Sternberg. The film featured Dietrich as cabaret singer Amy Jolly, who kisses a woman, dresses like a man, and blends masculine and feminine characteristics. The movie was a giant hit, and Dietrich became an object of desire for men and women. About her controversial fashion sense, she famously said, “I dress for the image. Not for myself, not for the public, not for fashion, not for men.”
In 1933, Dietrich became the highest-paid actress at Paramount. She collaborated with von Sternberg in 1935 on their sixth and final film together, the box-office disaster The Devil Is a Woman, before again proving herself a powerhouse in Desire. Unfortunately, a series of flops followed, which led Paramount to buy out the remainder of her contract.
It was around this time, as World War II began, that Dietrich received American citizenship and became heavily involved with spreading anti-Nazi sentiment. She reportedly sold more war bonds than any other celebrity and went on long USO trips wherever troops were deployed. She participated in musical propaganda meant to wear down enemy troops and donated her entire salary from the film Knight Without Armor to help refugees. For her work during the war, Dietrich was awarded the Medal of Freedom. She said of all of her achievements, this was her greatest accomplishment.
“I was brought up to do my duty — duty to school, duty to everybody, duty to the world, to the principles you stand for. … And not to pay too much attention to yourself. We were taught that we were not important. We were taught that you were nobody, and that you just better work hard and make good because your troubles are not important,” Dietrich said during an interview in 1971. “I must say it helped me very much all during my life. Because if you pay too much attention to yourself, I don’t think you can help many people.”
From the ’50s through the ’70s, Dietrich spent her time in the theater, collaborating with composer Burt Bacharach. She often appeared in a top hat and tuxedo, harkening back to her provocative movie beginnings. Dietrich toured the world until her health declined, and she withdrew to an apartment in Paris, where she died in 1992 at the age of 90.
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