Baum, Vicki

Baum, Vicki

▪ American author
original name  Hedwig Baum  
born Jan. 24, 1888, Vienna, Austria-Hungary [now in Austria]
died Aug. 29, 1960, Hollywood, Calif., U.S.

      Austrian-born American novelist whose Menschen im Hotel (1929; “People at the Hotel”; Eng. trans. Grand Hotel) became a best-seller and was adapted as a successful play (1930), an Academy Award-winning film (1932), a film musical (1945; renamed Weekend at the Waldorf), and a Broadway stage musical (1989).

      Baum studied music at the Vienna Conservatory but in her teens turned to writing. After a failed marriage and failed finances, she moved to Darmstadt and then to Berlin, where she became employed at the magazine Berliner Illustrierte Zeitung. She had already finished Menschen im Hotel, and it first appeared serially in the magazine. It achieved immediate success in Germany and became one of the most popular examples of the “group” novel, in which a variety of people are thrown together and work out their interrelated destinies. She rewrote it as a play, which Max Reinhardt presented and which, in translation as Grand Hotel, appeared on Broadway. After her New York success, she moved to the United States, becoming a screenwriter in Hollywood in 1932. In 1938 she became an American citizen.

      Baum also wrote the novels Men Never Know (1935), Shanghai '37 (1939), Grand Opera (1942), Hotel Berlin '43 (1944), Mortgage on Life (1946), Danger from Deer (1951), The Mustard Seed (1953), Written on Water (1956), and Theme for Ballet (1958).

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • BAUM, VICKI — (1888–1960), novelist. Born in Vienna, Vicki Baum began her career as a professional harpist but her success as a short story writer led her to leave music. In 1921 she became an editor in the Berlin publishing house of Ullstein. Of her 25 novels …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Baum, Vicki — (1888 1960)    American author. Born in Vienna, she attended a music school and appeared as a harpist at the age of 11. She played in various orchestras in Vienna. In 1916 she married the conductor Richard Lert and gave up her musical career. Her …   Dictionary of Jewish Biography

  • Vicki Baum — Placa memorial en Grunewald, pedanía de Charlottenburg Wilmersdorf. Vicki Baum (Viena, 24 de enero de 1888 Hollywood, 29 de agosto de 1960), escritora austríaca. Estudió música en Viena. Sin embargo es conocida como escritora, labor que comenz …   Wikipedia Español

  • Vicki Baum — Pour les articles homonymes, voir Baum. Vicki Baum (née le 24 janvier 1888 à Vienne et décédée le 29 août 1960 était une romancière américano autrichienne. Biographie Ses parents la destinaient à la musique. Dès l âge de cinq… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Vicki Baum — (auch Vicky Baum, eigentlich Hedwig Baum; * 24. Januar 1888 in Wien; † 29. August 1960 in Hollywood) war eine österreichische Musikerin (Harfenistin) und eine der erfolgreichsten Schriftstellerinnen der Weimarer Republik. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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  • Baum — is a German surname meaning tree and may refer to:* Antoine Baum (Antoine Baumé), (1728 1804), French chemist * Bernie Baum, American song writer * Eric Baum, American computer scientist and artificial intelligence researcher * Edgar Schofield… …   Wikipedia

  • Vicky Baum — Vicki Baum (* 24. Januar 1888 in Wien; † 29. August 1960 in Hollywood, Los Angeles; eigentlich Hedwig Baum) war eine österreichische Musikerin (Harfenistin) und Schriftstellerin. Inhaltsverzeichnis 1 Leben 2 Werke …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Vicki Baum — Hedwig (Vicki) Baum (January 24, 1888 ndash; August 29, 1960) was an Austrian writer. She is known for Menschen im Hotel ( People at a Hotel , 1929), one of her first international successes. Baum was born in Vienna into a Jewish family. She… …   Wikipedia

  • Baum — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Patronymie Pour consulter un article plus général, voir : Nom de famille germanique. Boris Baum (1987 ) est un acteur français. Gerhart Baum (1932 )… …   Wikipédia en Français

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