Fritz Diez German theater and film actor, theater director. Date of Birth: 27.02.1901 Country: Germany

1. Biography of Fritz Ditts
2. Early Life and Career
3. Life in Switzerland
4. World War II and Return to Germany
5. Later Years and Legacy

Biography of Fritz Ditts

Fritz Ditts was a German actor of theatre and film, as well as a theatre director. He gained widespread recognition among Soviet and Russian audiences for his portrayal of Adolf Hitler.

Early Life and Career

Fritz Ditts was born in Meiningen, Germany. He initially trained as an electrician before attending the Higher School of Theatre Arts from 1920 to 1922. In 1922, he made his stage debut at the Meiningen Theatre in Friedrich Schiller's "William Tell". From 1924, he performed in various theatres in Eisenach, Hanau, Flensburg, and other cities. In 1932, Ditts joined the Communist Party of Germany (KPG). However, following the Reichstag fire and the election in 1933, he was immediately dismissed from his job as a communist and was forced to leave Germany in 1935.

Life in Switzerland

From 1935 to 1946, Fritz Ditts lived in Switzerland and performed at the St. Gallen City Theatre. He played various roles, including Petruchio in William Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew", Peer Gynt in Henrik Ibsen's play, and Karl Moor in Friedrich Schiller's "The Robbers". During this time, he also began his career as a director, staging plays such as Molière's "The Miser", Schiller's "Mary Stuart", Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream", and Carl Zuckmayer's "Katharina Knie".

World War II and Return to Germany

During World War II, Fritz Ditts, along with his wife, actress Marta Beshort-Ditts, and Walter Pollachek, formed a local committee for the "Free Germany" movement. After the war ended in 1946, Ditts returned to his hometown of Meiningen, which was located in East Germany at the time. From 1946 to 1954, he served as the chief director and artistic director of the Meiningen Theatre. In 1954, he became the chief artistic director of the Halle Theatre, where he directed Bertolt Brecht's play "Mother Courage and Her Children", among others.

Later Years and Legacy

From 1958 to 1962, Fritz Ditts worked as an actor at the State Theatre in Dresden. He then moved to East Berlin in 1962 and performed at the German Theatre, Volksbühne, and Maxim Gorky Theatre. Ditts gained significant recognition in the Soviet Union for his portrayal of Adolf Hitler. He played the role in two films released in 1967, including "Frozen Lightning", which was shown in Soviet cinemas. He was also offered the role of Hitler in the Soviet film series "Liberation". However, Ditts declined the role, as he did not want to be known solely for playing Hitler. With the intervention of Erich Honecker, he was eventually convinced to accept the role.

Fritz Ditts continued to act in films and television shows, including the television series "Seventeen Moments of Spring" and "Soldiers of Freedom". He was intended to appear in Yuri Ozerov's planned film "The Battle for Moscow". Unfortunately, Ditts passed away in 1979, and the role of Hitler in the film was played by another German actor, Achim Petri. Overall, Fritz Ditts left a significant impact on German and Soviet cinema through his versatile acting career and his portrayal of Adolf Hitler.