Adolf Edmund George de Herz, commonly shortened to A. de Herz, also
rendered as Hertz and HerÈ› (December 15, 1887 â€" March 9, 1936), was
a Romanian playwright and literary journalist, also active as a poet,
short story author, and stage actor. He was the scion of an
upper-class assimilated Jewish family, with its roots in
Austria-Hungary. His grandfather, Adolf Sr, was a controversial banker
and venture capitalist, while his father, Edgar von Herz, was noted as
a translator of Romanian literature. Adolf had a privileged childhood
and debuted as a poet while still in high school, producing the lyrics
to a hit romance. In his early work for the stage, Herz was a
traditionalist inspired by Alexandru Davila and the Sămănătorul
school, but later veered toward neoclassical literature and
aestheticism. His "salon comedies", staged by the National Theater
Bucharest, borrowed from various authors, including Roberto Bracco,
Henri Lavedan, and Haralamb Lecca, peaking in popularity in 1913, with
Păianjenul ("The Spider"). By the start of World War I, Herz was also
a writer of revues.Controversy followed Herz during the early 1910s,
when his writing raised suspicions of plagiarism. A vaster controversy
came with Romania's participation in the war, when Herz became noted
as a supporter of the Central Powers. He remained in German-occupied
territory, putting out the daily paper Scena, which became a leading
voice of Romanian "Germanophilia", but was also a pioneering
contribution to cultural journalism. He was arrested by returning
loyalists during late 1918, and sent to Văcărești prison, but was
finally acquitted in March 1919. The controversy nevertheless
survived, also leading to authorship disputes with a former friend,
Ioan Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești, and provoking the enmity of
writers Liviu Rebreanu and George Ranetti.The financially insecure
Herz continued to publish plays and translations, embarking on a
lasting collaboration with Constantin Tănase, and writing a revue for
Josephine Baker. Starring in his own plays, he also served for a while
as editor of a cultural supplement, Adevărul Literar și Artistic,
then briefly as head of Dimineața daily and as interviewer for the
Radio Company. Eventually, he accepted appointment as chair of the
National Theater Craiova in 1930. Toppled by intrigues in 1935, he
died the following year, after an illness of the lungs.Born in
Bucharest, capital of the Romanian Kingdom, his parents were Edgar von
Herz (or Edgard de Hertz) and his wife Maria (née Kereszteyi). On his
paternal side, he belonged to Austrian nobility, and had links with
the Duchy of Bukovina: his grandfather, Baron Adolf von Herz, was
president of the imperial railway connecting Lemberg to Iași; he
married a Maria Moreau. The Baron, a man of Austrian Jewish
extraction, was living in Vienna in 1850, when he patented his design
for a sugar refinery. Attested as having relocated to the Free City of
Frankfurt by 1858, he helped built the Lembergâ€"IaÈ™i railway with
support from Thomas Brassey, but only after relocating again, to
Bucharest. His investment portfolio included, in 1865, a "Bank of
Romania", which was the first modern credit institution of the United
Principalities. After this was closed following political disputes,
the Baron remained active as the representative of North British and
Mercantile Insurance, and also involved himself in projects for
setting up agricultural banks. He later reestablished the larger bank
and became its general manager, investing heavily in the State Tobacco
Monopoly, before ultimately resigning in 1876. By then, his alleged
bribery of Finance Minister Petre Mavrogheni had become a public
scandal. He died in August 1881, at Bad Gastein.
rendered as Hertz and HerÈ› (December 15, 1887 â€" March 9, 1936), was
a Romanian playwright and literary journalist, also active as a poet,
short story author, and stage actor. He was the scion of an
upper-class assimilated Jewish family, with its roots in
Austria-Hungary. His grandfather, Adolf Sr, was a controversial banker
and venture capitalist, while his father, Edgar von Herz, was noted as
a translator of Romanian literature. Adolf had a privileged childhood
and debuted as a poet while still in high school, producing the lyrics
to a hit romance. In his early work for the stage, Herz was a
traditionalist inspired by Alexandru Davila and the Sămănătorul
school, but later veered toward neoclassical literature and
aestheticism. His "salon comedies", staged by the National Theater
Bucharest, borrowed from various authors, including Roberto Bracco,
Henri Lavedan, and Haralamb Lecca, peaking in popularity in 1913, with
Păianjenul ("The Spider"). By the start of World War I, Herz was also
a writer of revues.Controversy followed Herz during the early 1910s,
when his writing raised suspicions of plagiarism. A vaster controversy
came with Romania's participation in the war, when Herz became noted
as a supporter of the Central Powers. He remained in German-occupied
territory, putting out the daily paper Scena, which became a leading
voice of Romanian "Germanophilia", but was also a pioneering
contribution to cultural journalism. He was arrested by returning
loyalists during late 1918, and sent to Văcărești prison, but was
finally acquitted in March 1919. The controversy nevertheless
survived, also leading to authorship disputes with a former friend,
Ioan Alexandru Brătescu-Voinești, and provoking the enmity of
writers Liviu Rebreanu and George Ranetti.The financially insecure
Herz continued to publish plays and translations, embarking on a
lasting collaboration with Constantin Tănase, and writing a revue for
Josephine Baker. Starring in his own plays, he also served for a while
as editor of a cultural supplement, Adevărul Literar și Artistic,
then briefly as head of Dimineața daily and as interviewer for the
Radio Company. Eventually, he accepted appointment as chair of the
National Theater Craiova in 1930. Toppled by intrigues in 1935, he
died the following year, after an illness of the lungs.Born in
Bucharest, capital of the Romanian Kingdom, his parents were Edgar von
Herz (or Edgard de Hertz) and his wife Maria (née Kereszteyi). On his
paternal side, he belonged to Austrian nobility, and had links with
the Duchy of Bukovina: his grandfather, Baron Adolf von Herz, was
president of the imperial railway connecting Lemberg to Iași; he
married a Maria Moreau. The Baron, a man of Austrian Jewish
extraction, was living in Vienna in 1850, when he patented his design
for a sugar refinery. Attested as having relocated to the Free City of
Frankfurt by 1858, he helped built the Lembergâ€"IaÈ™i railway with
support from Thomas Brassey, but only after relocating again, to
Bucharest. His investment portfolio included, in 1865, a "Bank of
Romania", which was the first modern credit institution of the United
Principalities. After this was closed following political disputes,
the Baron remained active as the representative of North British and
Mercantile Insurance, and also involved himself in projects for
setting up agricultural banks. He later reestablished the larger bank
and became its general manager, investing heavily in the State Tobacco
Monopoly, before ultimately resigning in 1876. By then, his alleged
bribery of Finance Minister Petre Mavrogheni had become a public
scandal. He died in August 1881, at Bad Gastein.
Share this
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
SUBSCRIBE OUR NEWSLETTER
Join us for free and get valuable content delivered right through your inbox.