Ida Ehre Collection

This small collection contains papers pertaining to the actress and director Ida Ehre. Among the material in this collection are a number of articles, clippings, programs and obituaries that provide information on her life and work. Other papers include some correspondence with Liselotte Sperber and a few photographs.

The bulk of papers in this collection consists of published material that pertains to Ida Ehre's life and especially her management of the Hamburger Kammerspiele. The first three folders in the collection relate to these subjects. Among the second folder are a few programs from performances by the Kammerspiele, in addition to other articles and some newspaper clippings. The first folder of the collection contains a program for the theatrical adaptation of the 1955 film comedy Ladykillers, put on by the theater in 1987 and signed by Ida Ehre and some of the other cast. Additionally, this folder holds some correspondence concerning the program. The second folder primarily holds articles and newspaper clippings on Ida Ehre's role as head of the Kammerspiele, as well as descriptions of her career and how it led to her position. Some of the published material pertains to honors she received or noteworthy events, such as the awarding of the Schiller Prize to her by the city of Mannheim, her fiftieth stage anniversary and the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Kammerspiele. Folder 3 is comprised of obituaries from various German and American newspapers and also holds a condolence letter from Liselotte Sperber to Ida Ehre's daughter Ruth.

Correspondence in this collection is located in folder 4, and almost entirely consists of correspondence between Ida Ehre and her close friend Liselotte (called Lisl or Lisa by Ehre) Sperber. Most of this correspondence dates from the 1980s, although there are a handful of earlier letters, include two that mention 1956-1957 possible visiting arrangements when Sperber's daughter Ann traveled in Germany. Most letters discuss family news, their health, and arrangements for visiting. In 1985 the two friends became "adopted sisters" to each other, since both had lost their biological sisters many years before. A few letters mention honors Ida Ehre received, her published memoirs, and a few of the roles she played during the mid-1980s. One letter from Liselotte Sperber's father, Julius Süss, to Ida Ehre in 1964 is also present.

The final folder in this collection holds photographic material. Much of this is comprised of photocopies of photographs that feature Ida Ehre, mostly from the 1980s. There are also three photograph prints; among these is a photograph of Liselotte Süss and her sister Aenne with Ida Ehre in 1926 and a picture of Ida Ehre and her daughter Ruth in Woodstock, New York. This folder also holds a couple of slides and negatives and a ticket stub from a performance of the Hamburger Kammerspiele in 1985.