German character actress and cabaret artiste, trained in Berlin. Early in her career, she often acted alongside Conrad Veidt. Celebrated on stage and in musical revues during the 1920's. In films from 1923. Immensely popular, she was considered a quintessential 'Berliner'. She was the main rival to Marlene Dietrich for the coveted role in
Der blaue Engel (1930). However, due to her being Jewish, she was forced to flee from Germany after the Nazi take-over in 1933. She went to England via Czechoslovakia, where she appeared in Hitchcock's
The 39 Steps (1935) and subsequently acted mainly on stage in Britain until her post-war return to Germany. Made several more film appearances in the 50's and 60's and was named 'Staatsschauspieler' (State Actor) in 1963.
