German director, a former actor with
Max Reinhardt's theatrical company. In Hollywood from 1926-33 under contract to Paramount. Married silent star
Dorothy Mackaill. Moved to Britain in 1934 and worked for Gaumont and at
Alexander Korda's Denham Studios, where he turned out his best-known film,
The Man Who Could Work Miracles (1936). Subsequently returned to Hollywood as a freelance director in the early 1940s. Retired in 1946.