Hubbry Logo
Gustav RickeltGustav RickeltMain
Open search
Gustav Rickelt
Community hub
Gustav Rickelt
logo
8 pages, 0 posts
0 subscribers
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Be the first to start a discussion here.
Gustav Rickelt
Gustav Rickelt
Gustav Rickelt
View on Wikipedia
from Wikipedia

Gustav Rickelt (1862–1946) was a German stage and film actor.[1]

Key Information

Selected filmography

[edit]

References

[edit]

Bibliography

[edit]
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

Gustav Rickelt

View on Grokipedia
from Grokipedia
Gustav Rickelt (21 June 1862 – 26 June 1946) was a German stage and film actor, director, and president of the Genossenschaft Deutscher Bühnen-Angehöriger (association of German stage performers) from 1914 to 1927. Born on 21 June 1862 in Dortmund, Kingdom of Prussia, Rickelt initially pursued commercial training before dedicating himself to acting. He began his stage career in 1882, with engagements in various German cities, Budapest, and a period in the United States (1891–1895) where he acted and directed at venues including the Thalia Theater in New York. After returning to Germany, he performed on Berlin stages for many years. He entered film in 1923, appearing in supporting roles—often as authority figures, doctors, or elderly characters—during the late silent era and early sound period of German cinema. Notable films include Bobby, der Benzinjunge (1929), Altes Lied (1930), Täter gesucht (1931), and Onkel Bräsig (1936). Rickelt died on 26 June 1946 in Wessobrunn, Germany.

Early life

Birth and family background

Gustav Rickelt was born on 21 June 1862 in Dortmund, Kingdom of Prussia (now Germany). No detailed information about his parents, siblings, or family profession is documented in available biographical sources.

Acting training and stage debut

Gustav Rickelt initially began an apprenticeship as a commercial clerk, but he decided during this training to pursue his true vocation as an actor instead. From 1882 onward, he gathered his first theater experiences, performing in Hanau, Heidelberg, and Posen during this initial phase of his career. These early engagements in regional theaters marked his stage debut and the practical start of his acting profession, without any documented formal training at a drama school. His early career progressed with further engagements in larger cities, including Budapest, Berlin, and Munich.

Theater career

Early theater engagements

Gustav Rickelt began his professional acting career in 1882 with an engagement at the theater in Hanau, having abandoned an initial apprenticeship in business to pursue the stage. Following this first position, he accumulated experience through a series of engagements at various provincial theaters in Germany, building his skills in a range of venues outside major centers. His early trajectory included a move to the Hoftheater in Munich in 1889, marking a progression to more established institutions. In 1891, Rickelt relocated to the United States, where he joined the Thalia Theater in New York and participated in American tours, extending his early career internationally. From 1893 to 1895 he served as both actor and director in Cincinnati, gaining additional responsibility in theater operations. After returning to Germany, he held an engagement in Hannover, before advancing to major Berlin theaters starting in 1896.

Major Berlin theaters and roles

Gustav Rickelt established himself as a respected character actor in Berlin following his return from the United States around 1895, appearing on multiple major stages in the city for many years. He held engagements at the Residenztheater from 1897 to 1901 and at the Schillertheater in 1901. His work encompassed classical and modern repertoire, where he specialized in supporting character parts such as patriarchal figures, dignitaries, and humorous or eccentric types, drawing on his distinctive stocky build and round face to bring depth to these roles. Among his notable interpretations was Rentier Krüger in Gerhart Hauptmann's Der Biberpelz. These roles highlighted his reliability in ensemble productions at Berlin's prominent houses during the late imperial and early Weimar periods, prior to his increasing involvement in film starting in 1923. His Berlin theater activity also coincided with his leadership as president of the Genossenschaft Deutscher Bühnen-Angehöriger from 1914 to 1927, a position in which he founded the Künstlerkolonie in Berlin and reflected his standing within the German stage community.

Film career

Entry into silent films (1923–1929)

Gustav Rickelt entered the film industry in 1923 with a role in the silent film Erdgeist, directed by Leopold Jessner. This marked his transition to cinema while he continued his long-established theater career in Berlin. Over the following years, Rickelt appeared in several silent films, typically in supporting or character roles. His credits include Die Wiskottens (1926), Wochenendzauber (1927), Sensations-Prozeß (1927/1928), Lemkes sel. Witwe (1928), Die seltsame Nacht der Helga Wangen (1928), Großstadtjugend (1928), Bobby, der Benzinjunge (1929), and Narkose (1929). Rickelt's silent era credits total approximately 9 films, primarily in supporting capacities. He remained active in films through the end of the silent period in 1929, bridging his extensive stage experience with the evolving medium of cinema.

Sound films and Nazi-era work (1930–1945)

Gustav Rickelt transitioned to sound films in 1930, appearing in supporting roles in several early German talkies. His credits that year included Das alte Lied, Flachsmann als Erzieher, Väter und Söhne, and Das Schicksal der Renate Langen, where he typically portrayed authority figures such as officials or educators. In 1931 he featured in Täter gesucht as a doctor and in 1931/1932 in Ein süßes Geheimnis, followed by a role in An heiligen Wassern in 1932. Rickelt's film work in the early 1930s reflected his established profile as a reliable character actor from the stage, with roles that drew on his experience playing professional or senior figures. His final documented film appearance came in 1936 with Onkel Bräsig, where he played the teacher. He accumulated approximately eight sound film credits between 1930 and 1936, after which no further film roles are recorded. During the Nazi era from 1933 to 1945, Rickelt's involvement in film production remained minimal, confined to the single 1936 credit and absent entirely after that year. No evidence exists of participation in major propaganda productions or any documented political affiliation within the film industry under the Third Reich. His later career focused primarily on theater rather than cinema.

Personal life

Marriage and family

Gustav Rickelt was married to Julie, who brought her daughter Lucia from a previous marriage. Together they traveled to the United States in 1891, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1900. He later had a daughter, Ruth Lippstreu-Rickelt (born 1902), from a relationship with Margarethe Lippstreu. Ruth married writer Frank Arnau in 1924. From a relationship with actress Maria Baumann (also referred to as Marie Baumann), he had two sons: Niels Rickelt (1912–2005) and Martin Rickelt (1915–2004). Martin became an actor, appearing in numerous films and television roles, including a long-term part as "Onkel Franz" in the series Lindenstraße. Additional details on other family members or later life are limited in available sources.

Death and legacy

Later years and death

Gustav Rickelt retired from acting following his last known film role in Onkel Bräsig (1936), with no further credits or documented stage appearances recorded thereafter. He spent his later years in retirement. In 1943 his apartment in Berlin was bombed out, leading him to relocate to a friend's estate in Silesia; in 1945 he fled Silesia due to the approaching front. He died on June 26, 1946, in Wessobrunn, Germany (in the Klosterkrankenhaus Wessobrunn), at the age of 84.

Posthumous recognition

Gustav Rickelt's legacy as a prolific supporting actor in German theater and film has seen limited posthumous recognition. The primary commemoration is the naming of Gustav-Rickelt-Weg, a footpath in Berlin's Künstlerkolonie artists' settlement. This pathway, running parallel to Steinrückweg from Südwestkorso to Kreuznacher Straße, was officially designated on November 22, 1999, in memory of Rickelt's contributions as a co-founder of the colony as president of the Genossenschaft Deutscher Bühnen-Angehöriger (GDBA) from 1914 to 1927. The initiative originated with his son Martin Rickelt, who also performed the ceremonial unveiling of the street signs. Beyond this local tribute, Rickelt receives only occasional passing mentions in resources on German silent and early sound cinema, typically in cast listings for period films, with no evidence of major awards, national memorials, archival restorations, or dedicated retrospectives.
Add your contribution
Related Hubs
User Avatar
No comments yet.