Vintage original 3.5 x 5.25 in. German postcard depicting the Italian-born German silent film actress, MARCELLA ALBANI. The dark-haired beauty is depicted in a full-length publicity shot wearing a long dress with a large feathered hat and holding a large feathered fan. This postcard was signed in black ink by Marcella Albani in 1926 (see additional details below), the year in which she appeared in three silent films in Germany. Printed by the renowned Ross-Verlag company of Berlin, Germany, this vintage original "country of origin" postcard is unused in very fine+ condition without any tears, stains, or other flaws.

Provenance: Approximately 8 years ago, we purchased a collection of two albums of vintage original German postcards from a rare book dealer at an antiquarian book fair in Pasadena, California (see photos). Approximately half of the postcards were signed by the respective personalities and the ones that were dated by the actors are all dated "1926." We were informed by the dealer that these photographs came from a film collector in Germany who acquired the postcards at the time they were issued and then had them signed by the respective actors when he met them in person. We are now pleased to make these vintage original postcards available to other collectors.

Marcella Albani, born Ida Maranca (December 7, 1899 – May 11, 1959), was an Italian-born actress who appeared in 50 films between 1919 and 1936. Forgotten today, she was an idol of the European cinema in the final years of the 1920’s, making dozens of films in five different countries (Italy, Germany, Austria, France, and Czechoslovakia). Born in 1899, Marcella Albani had been discovered twenty years afterward by writer-director Guido Parish with whom she formed a very successful team. The couple made nearly all their respective films together (mainly tearjerkers and adventure yarns) until 1924 when they parted company. Their first movies were made in Italy until Parish decided to go to Germany. Marcella followed her mentor - who had changed his name to Guido Schamberg - there, and she met with instant success. Very exotic as the elegant Latin lady against a German backdrop, she enraptured German males in flicks such as Frauenschicksal (1923), Das Spiel der Liebe (1924) or The Circus of Life (1926). When she became freelance, she was occasionally chosen by important directors like Joe May, Friedrich Zelnik' or William Dieterle. After the arrival of sound, her popularity declined and she turned to writing. One of her novels, "La Città dell'amore," was even adapted for the big screen by Mario Franchini, her husband. She went on acting until 1936. One thing leading to another, Albani made no fewer than fifty-odd films in only seventeen years. After a final appearance in Luis Trenker, Der Kaiser von Kalifornien (1936), she retired from acting and led a peaceful life at the Ligurian Coast. She was not even sixty when, having fallen into oblivion, she died of a brain tumor.

Ross-Verlag in Berlin was a German publishing house specialized in photographs and photo postcards of artists. The owner of the company was Heinrich Ross (b. 10 August 1870; d. after 1954 as emigrant in the USA).