Willi Forst ~ This card #93 from the Caid cigarette card series. It is a vintage 1930s original. The edges show minor wear but it is still a nice example: VF. The card is about the same size as a British or American cigarette card (over 1¼"x2¼"). Click on my scan to greatly enlarge the image (opens a new browser window).

An Austrian actor-writer-director, Forst was a leading producer of "fluffy musicals" for the German cinema during the Nazi regime. Although his films were mostly harmless, Forst's march to success mirrored the Nazi march to power indicating that he must have embraced National Socialism in order to thrive under Goebbels' state controlled entertainment machine. It should be pointed out that he declined to appear in the anti-Semetic propaganda vehicle Jud Süß (Jew Seuss) in 1940. After World War II he found employment difficult to come by for a number of years but was back on the German film scene by the mid-1950s. Offered here is a genuine vintage cigarette card from Bulgaria Sport Cigarettes, produced in Germany in about 1934 as part of their Goldfilm series. It is a color tinted card with gold background in excellent condition. Forst's body of work is so large that I can list only representative films here.

Filmography as Actor:
Sodom und Gomorrah (1922)
Cafe Elektrik (1927) [Fredl]
Blaue Maus, Die (1928)
Liebfraumilch (1928)
Unfug der Liebe (1928)
Atlantik (1929) [Poldi]
Frau, die jeder liebt, bist du!, Die (1929)
Fräulein Fähnrich (1929)
Gefahren der Brautzeit (1929) [Baron van Geldern]
Katharina Knie (1929)
Lustigen Vagabunden, Die (1929)
Sträfling aus Stambul, Der (1929)
Weißen Rosen von Ravensberg, Die (1929)
Burschenlied aus Heidelberg, Ein (1930)
Herr auf Bestellung, Der (1930)
Lied ist aus, Das (1930) [Ulrich Weidenau]
Peter Voss, der Millionendieb (1930)
Petit officier... Adieu! (1930) (as Willy Forst)
Tango für Dich, Ein (1930)
Zwei Herzen im Dreiviertel-Takt (1930)
Lustigen Weiber von Wien, Die (1931)
Raub der Mona Lisa, Der (1931) [Vicenzo Peruggia]
Blonder Traum, Ein (1932) [Willy II]
Prinz von Arkadien, Der (1932)
Brennendes Geheimnis (1933)
Ihre Durchlaucht, die Verkäuferin (1933)
So ein Mädel vergißt man nicht (1933)
Ich kenn' dich nicht und liebe dich (1934)
So endete eine Liebe (1934)
Königswalzer (1935) [Graf Ferdinand von Tettenbach]
Mazurka (1935) (as Willy Forst) [Extra]
Es leuchten die Sterne (1938) [Himself]
Bel Ami (1939) [George Duroy]
Ich bin Sebastian Ott (1939) [Sebastian Ott/Ludwig Ott]
Operette (1940) [Franz Jauner]
Blick zurück, Ein (1944) [Kurzauftritt]
Leckerbissen (1948)
Wiener Mädeln (1949) [Carl Michael Ziehrer]
Herrliche Zeiten (1950)
Es geschehen noch Wunder (1951) [Bobby Sanders]
Bei Dir war es immer so schön (1954) [Film Director]
Weg in die Vergangenheit (1954) [Clemens]
Drei von der Tankstelle, Die (1955)
Mann vergißt die Liebe, Ein (1955) [Alexander von Barender]

Filmography as Director:
Leise flehen meine Lieder (1933)
Unfinished Symphony (1933)
Maskerade (1934)
Mazurka (1935) (as Willy Forst)
Allotria (1936)
Burgtheater (1936)
Serenade (1937)
Bel Ami (1939)
Ich bin Sebastian Ott (1939)
Operette (1940)
Wiener Blut (1942)
Frauen sind keine Engel (1943)
Wiener Mädeln (1949)
Es geschehen noch Wunder (1951)
Sünderin, Die (1951)
Im weißen Rößl (1952)
Dieses Lied bleibt bei dir (1954)
Chemin du paradis, Le (1956) (as Willy Forst)
Kaiserjäger (1956)
Unentschuldigte Stunde, Die (1957)
Wien, du Stadt meiner Träume (1957)

Filmography as Producer:
Burgtheater (1936)
Operette (1940)
Wiener Blut (1942)
Frauen sind keine Engel (1943)
Hundstage (1944)
Hofrat Geiger, Der (1947)
Frau am Wege, Die (1948)
Stimme Österreichs, Die (1949)
Wiener Mädeln (1949)
Kuckucksei, Das (1950)

Filmography as Writer:
Leise flehen meine Lieder (1933)
Unfinished Symphony (1933)
Maskerade (1934)
Mazurka (1935)
Allotria (1936) (as W. Forst)
Burgtheater (1936)
Kapriolen (1937)
Serenade (1937)
Bel Ami (1939)
Operette (1940)
Wiener Blut (1942)
Wiener Mädeln (1949)
Es geschehen noch Wunder (1951)
Sünderin, Die (1951)
Alle kann ich nicht heiraten (1952)
Dieses Lied bleibt bei dir (1954)
Unentschuldigte Stunde, Die (1957)
Wien, du Stadt meiner Träume (1957)

This lot consists of a genuine German cigarette premium issued between about 1930 and 1937. In general, German cigarette cards and premiums make an interesting and inexpensive addition to any collection. The Nazi government of Germany opposed smoking and eventually put an end to cigarette cards. As a result, the native German card collecting hobby never developed to the extent of that in Britain or the United States. As a result, most German premiums and cards cost only a fraction of what might be expected from their American and British cousins.

Large photos are shown smaller than actual size while small ones are generally enlarged to as much as twice their original size. Almost all photos and cards are scanned through protective sleeves or pages which tends to cut the clarity a bit. Enlarged defects tend to look worse than they actually are.