Lya Mara was born Aleksandra Gudowicz in a Polish family in
Riga,
Governorate of Livonia. As a young girl she wanted to become a chemist, as then famous
Maria Skłodowska-Curie. In 1913, just before
World War I, Lya Mara moved with her family to
Warsaw, as
Poland and
Latvia were part of the
Russian Empire. There, she began her career as a dancer. In Warsaw, Lya Mara played her first small part in a short fiction silent film under a characteristically simplified title
We want husband (1916, as Mia Mara) and soon after in another film
Bestia (
The Beast, premiere on 5 January 1917) directed by a Polish director of older generation Alexander Hertz. Another Polish actress,
Pola Negri, who later made an extraordinary career in Germany and in America, was the star of this film. Soon after that film, Negri left for Berlin and Lya Mara followed her steps. This occurred during
World War I and after Poland was occupied in 1915 by the Germans, it became a part of the
German Empire. Lya Mara's first film in Germany was
Halkas Gelöbnis (1918) directed by an Austrian director Alfred Halm, who also scripted her another film
Jadwiga. Both films were produced by young and energetic director-producer
Frederic Zelnik. Lya Mara married him in 1918. Zelnik promoted Mara to a major star in Germany as she played mainly in films he directed and produced. In 1920, Zelnik's film production company was named Zelnik-Mara-Film GmbH. Mara played important parts such as
Charlotte Corday,
Anna Karenina (1919) and
Manon, attracting audiences with her charm and youthful appeal. Mara and Zelnik became real celebrities, receiving at their home many known artists. Her popularity was further cemented by hundreds of her photographs issued as postcards, chocolate and cigarettes
trade cards. A serious car accident at the end of the 1920s interrupted her career. Mara could not adapt her acting to the new artistic conditions after the introduction of sound in cinema in 1929, while Zelnik became the first director in Germany who
postsynchronized foreign films. Lya Mara's only film from the sound era is
Everyone Asks for Erika (1931) directed by her husband. When
Hitler took power in Germany (1933), Lya Mara left with Zelnik for London.
Frederic Zelnik died in London on 29 November 1950. Mara spent the last years of her life in
Switzerland and died there on 1 March 1960. ==Filmography==