The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-06-27
LITERARY PERSONALITIES
ERNST Won WOLZOGEN.

Since the publication of the translation
Of "Florian Mayr" readers have asked
WHO is Wolzogen7' To go back IA few
generations. his grandfather was the
teacher and guardian of Schlllers chill
drrn and a friend Of Goethe. lie and his
son were figures in the classic period OF
Wcimar and Jena. Wolzogen acknoWl-
edges much Of his humor as an inheritance
from his English mother.
So far as WoZogen and his accomplish
ments are concerned. We can do no better
than quote Masks and Ministries of New
Germany" by the gifted Pcrcival Pollard
those untmcly death deprived US Of one
Of the first American critics to perceive
the Importance OF modern Continental
literature:
For sheer versatility no artist OF mod
ern times has surpassed Won Wolzogen.
Stories, novels, plays gay and plays tragic
have poured from him in an ncessant
stream. lie has been actor manager pott
composer, novelist, militant minstrel and
many other things. In the Ieberbrettl
period IT was he who literally fulilled Inc
old troubadour smile. chanting hims-lI,
To his own music, upon his own instru-
ment, In theatre OF which he was man
ager, songs which he had written himself.
The centuries had reversed the figures a
little. that was all of old the ragged
minstrel the thing OF shreds and patches,
sang in the marble halls OF barons III TINS
Ueberbrettr day of ours was Baron Won
Wolzogen singing to such ragtag ana Don
tail as might compose music NAN audi
ence.
"He has written stories OF literary life
and Of civil life there Is hardly any de-
partment Of literary activity In which he
has not achieved considerable work.
"Wolzogen is "A member of one OF the
oldest families In Germany. much to the
fore in the history of Teutonic culture
lie lived in Welmar Berlin and Munich,
and In the latter town the idea OF the
U'eberbrettl' took him. But he was never
content TO play second fiddle or remain
subordinately member Of the ueber'
brettI brotherhood and he branched away
from Il In many directions OF his own
What he attempted In the Darmstad
plays. for instance. was somewhat diner
ent from the music hall notion or the
other minstrels. Into comic opera. too, IN
branched, and there was hardly any form
of art which he did not try, as author
| composer and actual manager, to apply
to the public entertainment OF the people
| There was hardly ever new movement
| OF any sort In the line OF light theatrical
| fare welded to real art without Won Woi
| zogen being In the fore.
Ills undylng youthfulness as enter
| tancr was shown again as lately as IN
| summer of 1909. when he wrote specially
| for the open air theatre In Wiesbaden hi
play Die Maibraut.' That In many way
was his triumphant point Of achievement
| in applying his art to the needs OF the i'm
mediate. II was Wolzogen who first II
! Europe adapted his art to the new con
| dltions OF the natural background an'
lights. He wrote his Die Maihrau'
directly for the needs of the open al
theatre In the Ncrothal, "A sheltered park
like bit of natural rock and greenery jus
outside Wesbaden. lie applied his Graf
| directly to making the art of the theatr
| pliab bic TO the new conditions"
| WoIzogen visited America in 1910. Mucl
| Of what he wrote pertains to the imme
date period in which It was created bu
| "FlorIan Mayr' (B. w. Huebsch. Ne,
York; will survive such books AZ the on
| I'm which he holds up to ridicue the ''ne'
woman" Of twenty years ago.