Born in
Vienna on 9 June 1927, Haas grew up at
Schloss Schönbrunn, where her mother was a
restaurateur. Her father, a teacher, died when she was 5 years old. She first trained for three years at a fashion school during World War II, but after the war studied acting at the Konservatorium für darstellende Kunst (Conservatory for Performing Arts) and also privately with
Julia Janssen, an actress at the
Burgtheater. Haas made her stage debut in
Linz in 1946 and performed in Vienna at the
Bürgertheater, the Stadttheater municipal theater, and the
Raimund Theater. She appeared in plays and singspiels, both classical and contemporary. She also performed in Germany at the
Titania-Palast theater in Berlin and the
Deutsche Theater in Munich. She first appeared at the Burgtheater in 1948, and later performed at the Renaissance-Theater in Vienna. Haas was soon drawn to the big screen. She achieved fame and recognition with her first film, discovered by
Willi Forst, the
cult classic Der Hofrat Geiger (
1947), in which she played Mariandl alongside
Maria Andergast,
Hans Moser, and
Paul Hörbiger. Following its success, she received many offers to play Viennese girls, appearing alongside
Franz Antel,
Johannes Heesters, and
Curd Jürgens. She appeared in
Kleiner Schwindel am Wolfgangsee,
Gruß und Kuß aus der Wachau, in
Hallo, Dienstmann with Moser and Hörbiger in 1952, in
Der Zigeunerbaron with
Gerhard Riedmann in 1954, in
Wenn der Vater mit dem Sohne with
Heinz Rühmann in 1955, and in
Immer die Radfahrer with
Heinz Erhardt and
Hans-Joachim Kulenkampff in 1958. She also appeared in films directed by her husband
Erwin Strahl, such as
Keine Angst Liebling, ich paß schon auf. Her second signature role was Josepha Vogelhuber in the 1960 film
The White Horse Inn (
Im weißen Rößl) alongside
Peter Alexander. She also made recordings as a singer, including
Im Weißen Rössl and
Wiener Lieder. Haas said in interviews that Moser was like a father to her. He was her partner again in the sequels to her first film,
Mariandl (
1961) and
Mariandls Heimkehr, in which she now played the role of Mariandl's mother. She received international offers but rarely appeared in international films. After 70 films, mainly comedies and musicals, she stopped making films around 1970 as the
Heimatfilm genre declined. Thereafter, she focused again on stage work, often directed by her husband, and also appeared on television. In 2016, she appeared in
Ken Ludwig's comedy
Otello darf nicht platzen at the Gloria Theater in Vienna, alongside . She appeared in 2020 in Catalina Molina's television film
Das Glück ist ein Vogerl.
Personal life Haas was married to actor and director
Erwin Strahl from 1966 until his death in 2011; they performed together on stage and in films. They lived in Vienna's
Hietzing district. Their son became an actor and director. In 2018, she published a memoir, ''Jetzt sag ich's'' (Now I tell you), which included accounts of meetings with Hollywood stars such as
Errol Flynn and memories of working with her husband, covering both successes and disappointments. Haas died in Vienna on 23 April 2025, at the age of 97. == Filmography ==