Annemarie Seidel (van Hoboken)

born 1895; died 1959

Documents associated with this person:

German actress, younger sister of the poet and novelist Ina Seidel, wife of Anthony van Hoboken 1922-32.

Annemarie Seidel grew up in Munich and built her acting career at the beginning of the Weimar Republic. It was at this time that she met Carl Zuckmayer, with whom she had an affair during 1921/22. Her life threatened by illness, she had to leave Zuckmayer's damp basement apartment at Matthäikirchstraße 4 in Berlin. Her rescuer in this predicament was the Dutch millionaire Anthony van Hoboken. Hoboken became Seidel's first husband, the marriage lasting from 1922 to 1932. Hoboken married Eva Hommel (Eva Boy) in the following year, while Seidel married Peter Suhrkamp in 1935.

She retained her friendship with Zuckmayer for many years; the correspondence between them continued to 1950 and was eventually published. The marriage with Suhrkamp suffered in later years from Seidel's alcoholism. Suhrkamp died only a few months before his wife.

Annemarie Seidel and the Schenker circle

Correspondence from Anthony van Hoboken gave frequent reports of the traveling that his wife and he did, with glimpses of their ‒ to Schenker ‒ extravagant life style. The two couples visited each others' homes in Vienna; for example, in April 1927 the Hobokens came to the Schenker's for afternoon coffee on the 9th (OJ 3/4, p. 3055), and the Schenker's went to the Hobokens for a musical evening of the 28th ‒ though Mrs. Hoboken was lacking, it gives a sense of the Hobokens' home life: At 9 o'clock, to Hoboken (we stay there until 3:45!): present are the mother-in-law with one of her granddaughters, the Deutsches, Hammer, and Vrieslander. The Tautenhayn ensemble plays! Not until 11 o'clock does Hoboken tell me that his wife is lying in the hospital, however the matter is not serious. The evening passed extremely well; the complete naturalness in the social gathering, and in our relationship to the musicians; the rooms; the beautiful, sumptuous meal and its presentation (for which we offered the chef a toast, with applause): these made an exceptional impression on us all. (OJ 3/4, p. 3060)

On January 25, 1928, the Schenkers attended a performance on Gantillon's play Maya, in which Seidel played the leading role, and Schenker commented on her acting in his diary (OJ 4/1, p. 3168).

Correspondence

One note is known to survive from Annemarie to Jeanette Schenker (OJ 11/54, [11], January 20, 1927), and this resulted in a visit recorded in Schenker's diary: "Mrs. van Hoboken from 5 to 7:30 for afternoon snack" (OJ 3/4, p. 3029). One double letter survives, Heinrich to Anthony, Jeanette to Annemarie (OJ 89/1, [9], Dec 27, 1927).

Source:

  • Wikipedia (German)

Contributors:

  • Marko Deisinger with Ian Bent

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Correspondence

Diaries