Grünwald, Alfred

Alfred Grunwald was born in Vienna, Austria, on February 16, 1884. He worked for a theatrical agency before turning to libretto writing. He came to the United States in 1940 after several years' residence in France. During World War II he was employed for a time with the Office of War Information translating American songs for transmission by radio to Germany Alfred Grunwald collaborated with such composers as Franz Lahar and Emmerich Kalman, successfully adding a modern social slant to the traditional operetta formula. A number of Grunwald’s librettos were produced on Broadway. These included Countess Maritza (1926), The Yankee Princess (1922), The Circus Princess (1927), and The Duchess of Chicago (1929). He also wrote a number of comedies, including Dancing Partner (1930), written in collaboration with Alexander Engel and produced on Broadway by David Belasco. Besides writing over 40 operetta librettos, Alfred Grunwald also wrote non-musical plays, short stories, and newspaper articles, and was the theater critic for the Neue Wiener Journal . He was a member of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Alfred Grunwald died in New York on February 24, 1951.

From the guide to the Alfred Grunwald papers, 1907-2004, (The New York Public Library. Billy Rose Theatre Division.)

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