Max Hansen and his risky song

Photographer: Per-Olow - Collector's card, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20403978

Max Hansen (1897-1961)

He was one of the top comedians of the Weimar era. He played in forty films and was one of the founders of the famous Kabarett der Komiker (KadeKo) in Berlin, with Paul Morgan and Kurt Robitschek. 

One of the films he played in was "The cabinet of Dr.Larifari", a screwball  comedy from 1930. 

Hansen was born in Mannheim and made his career in Vienna and Berlin, before moving to Denmark (his mother’s country) in 1933. Hansen is credited with having discovered the Swedish singer and actress Zarah Leander who was later to be a favourite of the Nazi establishment. He was married to Lizzi Waldmüller, a well-known Austrian actress.

In 1932, Hansen implied that Adolf Hitler was a homosexual in his song "War'n Sie schon mal in mich verliebt?" ("Weren’t you once in love with me?"), which caused the bitter hate of the Nazis. That alone would have been reason enough for him to leave the country as soon as Hitler came to power. But besides, his father was a Jew.

Here, an English  translation of the polemical song :

Hitler and Siggi Cohn

Have known each other for years

One day they went out

for a drink to the Hofbräuhaus

But by the fifth glass

Hitler’s eyes got quite damp

He embraced Siggi Cohn and spluttered out:

“Weren’t you once in love with me

That’s the most beautiful thing

Have you never dreamed of me

Well  you’ve not missed much

I’m not big, I’m not small

I’m just Munich-sized

I’m not stupid, I’m not smart

But I do love filth

You can take the risk of being my friend

Because, – between you and me –

I’ve nothing left to lose

Now : who was this Siggi Cohn? A politician ? A journalist ? But, Cohn ? That sounds too jewish for anyone even imagining him having an affair with the Führer. Although, Mussolini did have a Jewish girlfriend, so, who knows ?