¹ Barta, Tony, “Film Nazis: The Great Escape,” in Screening the Past: Film and the Representation of History, ed. Barta, Tony (Westport, CO, 1998), 133–39Google Scholar; Birdwell, Michael E., Celluloid Soldiers: Warner Bros.'s Campaign against Nazism (New York/London, 1999), 35Google Scholar; Doherty, Thomas, Hollywood's Censor: Joseph I. Breen & the Production Code Administration (New York, 2007), 213–16Google Scholar; Koppes, Clayton R. and Black, Gregory D., Hollywood Goes to War: How Politics, Profits and Propaganda Shaped World War II Movies (Berkeley/Los Angeles, 1987), 1–47Google Scholar.

² Bernhard Vorhaus's Three Faces West (1940, Republic Pictures) is one of the few films made between 1933 and 1945 that shows immigrants of Hitler's Europe attempting to integrate into American society. The film opens with a radio program in which displaced European doctors are trying to find positions in the United States that American doctors have not filled.

³ The film can be viewed at the University of California-Los Angeles film library, and a DVD of the film can be purchased at: http://www.lipizzan.org/store.html.

⁴ “Synopsis for Mr. Marx from Anna J. Pongs,” 30 May 1934. “F-509 FLORIAN,” Turner/MGM Collections, Margaret Herrick Library. Reviews of the book first appeared in American newspapers in October and November 1934. The Book Review Digest 30 (1934)Google Scholar: 825.

⁵ Mattl, Siegfried and Schwarz, Werner Michael, “Felix Salten. Annäherung an eine Biographie,” in Felix Salten. Schriftsteller—Journalist—Exilant, ed. Mattl, Siegfried and Schwarz, Werner Michael (Vienna, 2006)Google Scholar, esp. 65–66.

⁶ New York Times, 17 October 1934, 21.

⁷ N.N., New York Times, 21 October 1934, BR 19.

⁸ Bordman, Gerald, “Viennese Operetta and the American Retreat, 1907–1914,” in American Musical Theater: A Chronicle, ed. Bordman, Gerald (Oxford, 1978, 2001), 269–341Google Scholar; and Horak, Jan-Christopher, “Spring Parade (1940): Imperial Austria Lives Again (at Universal),” Modern Austrian Literature 32, no. 4 (1990): 82Google Scholar.

⁹ My interest lies not with Hollywood's falsification of Austrian history, but rather in examining the symbolic functions Austrians perform on Hollywood's screen.

¹⁰ Two examples include Erich von Stroheim's Merry-Go-Round (1923, direction completed by Rupert Julian after the studio fired Stroheim), in which a young woman who works at the Prater is reunited with her officer beau after World War I, and Jacques Feyder's Daybreak (1931), in which an officer and young music-teacher-turned-kept-woman seek a new life together in the United States.

¹¹ Kracauer, Siegfried, From Caligari to Hitler (Princeton, 1947, 2004), 141Google Scholar.

¹² Schatz, Thomas, The Genius of the System (New York, 1988, 1996), 119Google Scholar. In describing MGM's Grand Hotel, the author comments, “[b]ut as with so many Metro pictures, its surface gloss and seemingly escapist fare belied deeper concerns” (119). The same could be said of Florian.

¹³ Despite superficial similarities, screen versions of Austria varied significantly across cultures and over time. See Horak, Jan-Christopher, “‘We Love the Viennese’: Willi Forst nach Hollywood-Art,” in Willi Forst: Ein Filmstil aus Wien, ed. Loaker, Armin (Vienna, 2003), 440–77Google Scholar. The film historian argues such a point in his insightful comparison of Willi Forst's Maskarade (1934) and MGM's remake Escapade (1935). The American version reproduces the Austrian film almost scene for scene, but Horak nonetheless pinpoints fundamental aesthetic differences. Reception of images of Austria in films also varied across cultures. For an example, see Wingfield, Nancy M., “The Politics of Sound: ‘Talkies’ and Anti-German Demonstrations in Prague,” in her Flag Wars and Stone Saints: How the Bohemian Lands Became Czech (Cambridge, MA, and London, 2007), 199–230Google Scholar.

¹⁴ Compare Neil Brant, “First Temporary Complete Treatment,” 28 March 1928 (Box 713-f. 319) with his “Third Temporary Complete Treatment,” 12 June 1928 (Box 713-f. 321), or “Adaptation by Francis Marion,” 24 April 1930 (Box 713-f. 323) and “Temporary Complete Screenplay by Samuel Ornitz and Lester Cohen,” 11 October 1930, (Box 713-f. 331), Turner/MGM Script Collection, Margaret Herrick Library.

¹⁵ Hake, Sabine, Popular Cinema in the Third Reich (Austin, 2001), 150Google Scholar.

¹⁶ Ibid., 156.

¹⁷ See Horak, 's “Spring Parade (1940): Imperial Austria Lives Again (at Universal),” Modern Austrian Literature 32, no. 4 (1990): 74–86Google Scholar; and my “Österreichische Geschichte(n) aus Hollywood—1938–1948,” Österreich in Geschichte und Literatur (mit Geographie) 51, no. 3 (2007): 130–39Google Scholar.

¹⁸ Embacher, Helga, “The Great Waltz,” in Produziertes Land. Österreichbilder im internationalen Kino, 12/02 (2004): 26–29Google Scholar. See also Riemer, Willy, “Composers, Celebrities and Cultural Memory: Walter Reisch's Musical Biopics,” in Walter Reisch. Film schreiben, ed. Krenn, Günter (Vienna, 2004), 321Google Scholar.

¹⁹ The soprano was born Marie Jedličková in Brno on 6 October 1887.

²⁰ This included Walter Reisch, who received no credits for his early work on the story; the screenplay writer Geza Herczeg, married to an Austrian actress; the composer Franz Waxman; the cinematographer Karl Freund; the credited technical advisors Felix Bernstein and William von Wymetal; and George Richlavie, a technical advisor who received no credit for his work. See Ulrich, Rudolf, Österreicher in Hollywood. (Vienna; 2004)Google Scholar and Horak, Jan-Christopher, Fluchtpunkt Hollywood (Muenster, 1984)Google Scholar.

²¹ Horak, “Spring Parade,” 74.

²² Winfield Sheehan, “Florian Change,” D. 3 October 1938. MGM Collection, University of Southern California, USC Cinematic Arts Library.

²³ Ibid.

²⁴ Ibid., C.

²⁵ Wyman, David S., Paper Walls: America and the Refugee Crisis 1938–1940 (Massachusetts, 1968), 3Google Scholar. Here Wyman writes, “[t]hree major factors in American life in the late 1930s tended to generate public resistance to immigration of refugees: unemployment, nativistic nationalism, and anti-Semitism.”

²⁶ Sheehan, “Florian Change,” A.

²⁷ Ibid.

²⁸ Ibid.

²⁹ Koppes and Black, Hollywood Goes to War, 34. See also Segrave, Kerry, American Films Abroad: Hollywood's Domination of the World's Screens (Jefferson, NC; London, 1997): 104–05Google Scholar; and Hake's chapter, “The Foreign and the Familiar: On German-American Film Relations 1933–1940,” 128–48.

³⁰ According to Barbara Hall, Research Archivist at the Margaret Herrick Library, Nicholas Gyory worked as translator of scripts and stories at MGM. E-mail, 4 August 2010.

³¹ Nicholas Gyory, “Florian,” To Winfield Sheehan, 14 September 1938, 1. MGM Collection, University of Southern California, USC Cinematic Arts Library.

³² Ibid.

³³ Zernatto, Guido, Die Wahrheit über Österreich (New York, 1939), 9Google Scholar.

³⁴ Ibid.

³⁵ Gyory, 2. Compare with Zernatto, 37.

³⁶ Ibid.

³⁷ Ibid. 3. Compare with Zernatto, 40–41.

³⁸ Ibid. 2. Compare with Zernatto, 38.

³⁹ Ibid. Compare with Zernatto, 15–16.

⁴⁰ Ibid. 4.

⁴¹ The lack of an Umlaut in Glucksburg is another example of Hollywood adjusting for an American audience.

⁴² Here is just one example of an incorrect usage of “Austrian,” which included all residents of Cisleithania. Moreover, although Islam was a recognized religion in Bosnia-Herzegovina after the annexation in 1908, it was not a recognized ethnic group.

⁴³ Austria and Germany were of course allied in World War I, and Austria was not a victim in World War I, nor was its declaration of war inevitable. See Graydon A. Tunstall Jr.'s chapter “Austria-Hungary,” in The Origins of World War I, ed. Hamilton, Richard. F. and Herwig, Holger H. (Cambridge, UK, 2003), 112–49Google Scholar.

⁴⁴ Moore, Michaela Hoenicke, Know Your Enemy: The American Debate on Nazism, 1933–1945 (Cambridge, 2010), 41–77Google Scholar.

⁴⁵ Gerhard Botz, Gewalt in der Politik (Munich, 1976), 35–36. Here, Botz relates the unsuccessful attempts of the Communists to take over the reins in Austria. Two incidents appear reminiscent of scenes portrayed in Florian. On 11 November 1918, the Rote Garde, fearing a monarchist putsch, had planned to occupy Schönbrunn and take Emperor Karl captive. The Socialist politician Julius Deutsch was able to talk them out of it. However, on the next day when the Republic was proclaimed, the Rote Garde could not be dissuaded from action. Working together with the Communists, they set out to take over Parliament. Botz summarizes: “The shooting in front of the Parliament and the ensuing panic had claimed five to 10 seriously and 32 lightly injured. Among the injured were many women and young people up to the age of 12 years. Three people had been wounded. […] The rest suffered broken bones, contusions, and other injuries when they fell or they were trampled. In this manner, two people, a man and a young boy, were killed” (35–36). Despite the loss of life in the wake of the monumental changes in postwar Austria, the Habsburgs appeared to suffer less bodily harm than did the general population.

⁴⁶ Healy, Maureen, Vienna and the Fall of the Habsburg Empire: Total War and Everyday Life in World War I (Cambridge, 2004)Google Scholar.

⁴⁷ Boyer, John, “Silent War and Bitter Peace: The Revolution of 1918 in Austria,” Austrian History Yearbook 34 (2003): 1–56CrossRefGoogle Scholar. See page 12 where Boyer states, “The revolution was in fact two revolutions—a high political revolution, wrought by and against ex-imperial elites […] and a cascading series of popular upheavals reflecting actually existing social conditions in the city.”

⁴⁸ Robinson, Harlow, Russians in Hollywood: Hollywood's Russians (Lebanon, NH, 2007), 21–24Google Scholar.

⁴⁹ Lipizza was no longer a part of Austria after 1918; nor is it near enough to Vienna to have made the quick trip implied in the film. Yet, the visit plays an important function. Not only do Anton and Dr. Hofer find out that Diana thinks Anton is dead, but the brutality of the new regime and the loss it has brought about are also underscored. Moreover, Anton realizes a dream is dead and he must move on.

⁵⁰ Certainly adapting to the United States was not as easy as Hofer suggests. For example, Wolman, Ruth E., Crossing Over: An Oral History of Refugees from Hitler's Reich (New York, 1996)Google Scholar.

⁵¹ Kennedy, David M., Freedom From Fear: The American People in the Depression and War, 1929–1945 (New York/Oxford, 1999), 410Google Scholar.

⁵² Ibid., 417.

⁵³ “Temporary Complete Screenplay by Geza Herczeg,” 9, 1 September 1938. (F-510 FLORIAN), Turner/MGM Script Collection, Margaret Herrick Library.

⁵⁴ Wyman, Paper Walls, 5.

⁵⁵ “Radio Script,” Exhibitor's Service Sheet. Florian, 1. MGM Collection, University of Southern California, USC Cinematic Arts Library.

⁵⁶ Ibid.

⁵⁷ Ibid.

⁵⁸ Although this may seem like a publicity stunt, The New York Times reported on it. The New York Times, “American and Wife Seized by the Germans,” 7 May 1939, 32; “Reich Frees Camera Men,” 25 May 1939, 6; and “Tells of Nazi Prison. Rosson, Hollywood Cameraman Relates ‘Toughest’ Experience,” 26 June 1939, 3. The articles note that Rosson and his wife were arrested “on the charge of photographing military fortifications,” which is flatly denied. The 6 May article states, “Richard Rosson, Hollywood motion picture photographer, was arrested in Austria by German secret police while photographing livestock scenes—not fortifications—his employer Winfield Sheehan, producer, said today.” The 26 June article notes, “The cameraman asserted he and his wife were jailed without explanation.”

⁵⁹ “Cameraman Who Filmed Scenes of Lippizan Horses in Austria Held Prisoner for Month by Germans,” Exhibitors Service Sheet. Florian, 3.

⁶⁰ Ibid.

⁶¹ “Celebrated Lippizan Steeds Presented to Maria Jeritza Appear in ‘Florian’,” Exhibitor's Service Sheet. Florian, 4.

⁶² The film, too, implied that the Riding School was headed for extinction as a consequence of the demise of the monarchy. The sequences in the ramshackle stalls in Lipizza and the dilapidated Riding School arena imply that the institution will disappear with the monarchy. A sign dating the auction of “(FORMER IMPERIAL) GENUINE LIPPIZAN HORSES” to 17 January 1919 also suggests that all the royal stallions are being sold.

⁶³ “Spanish Riding School 1735–1935,” translated from the German for Mr. Sheehan. 22 June 1939, 9. MGM Collection, University of Southern California, USC Cinematic Arts Library.

⁶⁴ Franz Waxman, the film's composer, was born Wachsmann, on 24 December 1906 in Königshütte. Horak, Fluchtpunkt Hollywood, 159.

⁶⁵ “Making a Musical Score Take Place of Dialogue,” Exhibitor's Service Sheet. Florian, 6.

⁶⁶ The many suggestions included the contest “What did the lovely Duchess say to the Stable Boy?” where the “most romantic remarks attributed to Helen Gilbert who plays the Duchess” would be awarded prizes. Exhibitor's Service Sheet. Florian, 16.

⁶⁷ Information from Barbara Hall, Research Archivist, Margaret Herrick Library. E-mail, 4 August 2010. See also Glancy, H. Mark, “MGM Film Grosses, 1924–1948: The Eddie Mannix Ledger,” Historical Journal of Film, Radio, and Television 12, no. 2 (1992): 127–43CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

⁶⁸ Bosley Crowther, “‘Florian,’ a Tale of a Noble Horse in Old Vienna,” New York Times, 6 June 1940, 33.