Bidspirit auction | An important personal letter by

An important personal letter by one of the greatest Jewish theater figures of the twentieth century, Max Reinhardt - written after he was forced to leave Europe due to Nazi persecution - A personal letter by one of the greatest Jewish theater figures of the first half of the twentieth century, Max Reinhardt, addressed to his German business partner, Mr. Kommer. In this candid letter, written by Reinhardt from his residence in California after fleeing Europe, he elaborates on his feelings after being unable to perform in European countries due to the war, the betrayal by his fellow actors in the German theater, the loss of all his property - including important theater-related collectibles he had owned - and his hope that Jewish theater would one day flourish again.  The letter was sent to Germany from his residence in New York on May 5, 1942. (Signed in print only, no handwritten signature). The recipient had been Reinhardt’s business partner during the years in which he performed in Germany, and with the outbreak of the war he severed ties with him due to his Jewish origin, and even denounced him in personal letters he sent and in publications within the German cultural sphere. “I saw in you not only my friend but also my representative, ” Reinhardt writes at the opening, expressing his displeasure with a previous letter sent to him by Mr. Kommer in which he personally attacked him. From the content of the lengthy letter (23 pages typed on a typewriter), it emerges that the two had been close friends and collaborators in the field of theater before the war, and that after its outbreak Kommer turned his back on him and did not assist him when he was forced to leave Europe due to Nazi persecution. Within his words, Reinhardt expresses his sorrow over the property that was taken from him: “This was not merely the theft of material assets; it was a shameless theft of my intellectual property, which was at the same time publicly condemned, marked, and systematically destroyed...”, and notes that among the confiscated property were rare English editions of Shakespeare that he had purchased in London, along with many personal items that were transferred into Nazi hands: “From the theater library, all the English editions of Shakespeare that I purchased in London are missing, as well as the works of other English, French, Italian, and German playwrights. My personal belongings include suits, shoes, carpets, chandeliers, mirrors, perfume bottles, toiletries, and items from the bedroom, dressing room, and bathroom. As well as countless private items from my home salon, gifts from Spiegel, Beer, Hoffmann, Shi, etc., such as old folders, calendars, barometers, etc., the only heirloom I possessed, my grandfather’s old Biedermeier clock, which chimed through many Orthodox fasts and prayers until the age of ninety-eight, and many other things that even the most avid coveter would consider the most personal of ‘personal belongings.’ These items, thanks to the regrettable generosity of Princess Helene Thimig, became the personal possessions of some Nazi...”. Reinhardt, hurt by the attitude of his German friend and former partner, expresses his feelings in his letter to him: “Dear Mr. Kommer! As my friend, as my representative, you could not have silently accepted this unjust murder. Surely something could have been done about it at the time; every effort should have been made, and I was certainly aware of that. The only direct word I heard from you on this matter in recent years was sent to me in a telegram in response to my telephone conversation, referring to your lawyers (Grünbaum and whatever his name may be). ... What I did hear from you indirectly were utterly disparaging remarks, which you conveyed in recent years to everyone who, fortunately, supported me and my family...”. Further on, he expresses his sorrow over the loss of his status in the European theater world as a result of being Jewish: “Vienna, Paris, London, Stockholm, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, and many other cities, including New York, were open to me. It was not only economic security; it was an equally essential artistic security. It has disappeared. It is wonderful to live here on the Pacific, a thousand times better than in New York. But I grew up on the fourth gallery of the Burgtheater. I can hardly breathe without the true unreality of the theater, and the improbable reality of our time has made it even more difficult for me for seven years already.”  He also addresses the betrayal of his German partners in the theater world: “I can only state that many whom I discovered and nurtured in my circles still hold leading positions in today’s hostile Germany and even manage the foremost theaters in Berlin and Vienna. Artistically, their origin is foreign one hundred percent, down to every tone and movement—a fact they deny, yet can no longer shed... We recognized the same falsehood, the same corruption,