AGNES ESTERHAZY : HUNGARIAN SILENT FILM ACTRESS : ROSS VERLAG : RPPC 1925

This vintage real photo postcard features Hungarian film actress Agnes Esterhazy (1891-1956). She is quite pretty and is dressed in flapper fashion. Esterhazy predominately appeared in Austrian and German films. In total, her IMDb filmography includes 32 films between 1918 and 1943. Her parents were a Count and Countess. She married actor Fritz Schulz in 1910. He was 14 years old and she was 19 years of age. I am sure there is an interesting story there and a lot of material for armchair psychologists to hypothesize about. After World War I, the pair lived in Budapest and Agnes began acting lessons. She made her film debut in 1918 and many more roles followed. During her career she acted alongside Harry Liedtke, Hanni Weisse, Asta Nielsen and Greta Garbo. Agnes mostly played supporting roles but she also played some leading roles. Esterhazy’s career virtually ended with the arrival of sound films. After her retirement from film, she she acted at various theaters, many of which were in Ostrava (Czech Republic). Esterhazy’s husband (Fritz Schulz) was arrested by the Nazis and held in a Vienna prison. His crime was that he was Jewish. Esterhazy was able to get him released in the Spring of 1938. This portrait postcard was published by Ross Verlag (Berlin). The postcard is part of a series (no.776/6). Esterhazy’s photograph was taken by celebrity photographer, Alex Binder (Berlin). The card is posted and has a stamp that was issued by Yugoslavia in 1921. The message on the postcard is dated 1925.  (SOLD)

PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG AND PRETTY FASHIONISTA IN NEUDEK, GERMANY (CARTE DE VISITE)

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This carte de visite photograph features a beautiful young girl dressed in the best of fashion. Her clothing indicates that she is from a family of means. She is wearing a stunning dress, a wonderful hat, and is carrying a parasol. She is wearing jewelry (bracelet, earrings) and appears in a manner that is very adult-like. This image reminds me of current day practices by little girl beauty pageants. The contestants, like the young girl above, are portrayed as miniature adults. This cdv portrait produced by photographer Franz Kostler who operated a studio in the town of Neudek. Today, Neudek is called Nejdek and is located in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. The name “Neudek” is of German origin and it is my guess that at the time that this photograph was taken, the town was part of Germany.

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A EUROPEAN SOLDIER AND HIS BRIDE

A soldier and his bride pose for their wedding portrait at the studio of Balde, located in either Salzburg, Wildbad, Gastein, Znaim or Retz. These cities are located in different countries; Austria, Germany and Czech Republic. The studio was formerly known as Wagner & Leeb. The soldier in this photograph has been identified as German by the former owner of the image, but the accuracy of this identification is uncertain. The bride is holding flowers and dressed in a bridal dress. The groom is in his dress uniform. Note that his helmet is on the table beside him. The cabinet card gallery must depend on its helpful and informed unpaid research department (composed of visitors to the site) to identify the groom’s army affiliation and rank.