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Erika Mann

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Author

The Resume

    (November 9, 1905-August 27, 1969)
    Born in Munich, Germany
    Daughter of novelist Thomas Mann
    Actress, journalist, and author
    Appeared in the film 'Peter Voss' (1932)
    Founded the cabaret Die Pfeffermille (The Peppermill, 1933)
    As a reporter, covered the Spanish Civil War, World War II, and the Nuremburg War Crimes Trial
    Made German-language broadcasts for the BBC during World War II
    Wrote 'School for Barbarians: Education Under the Nazis' (1938), 'Escape to Life' (1939), 'The Other Germany' (co-written with her brother Klaus, 1940), and 'The Last Year of Thomas Mann' (1958)

Why she might be annoying:

    During her first marriage, to actor Gustaf Grundgens, the couple honeymooned at the same hotel Erika had used for trysts with her lesbian lovers.
    She married poet W.H. Auden to get a British passport (1935), with the couple never spending a single night together.
    During one of her WWII propaganda broadcasts, she said every German male should be castrated.

Why she might not be annoying:

    She was denounced by the Nazis after she read an antiwar poem by Victor Hugo at a pacifist rally (1932).
    She successfully sued for libel a Nazi newspaper that called her 'a flatfooted peace hyena' with 'no human physiognamy.'
    After fleeing Nazi Germany for Switzerland, she secretly returned to Munich to retrieve many of her father's papers, including an unfinished novel, from the family home.
    She remained good friends with Auden -- and remained married to him for the rest of her life.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 4 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 14 Votes: 50.0% Annoying