Mann, Erika & Klaus Mann

Description

Deeply Personal Association Copy

With the following prominent full-page inscription by Erika Mann to Lotte Lehmann:
“Der viel—und von mir heiss-geliebten L.L. von ihrer Erika. Kilchberg, Weihnachten 1965 [2x ‘von’ ist ungut, aber schliesslich bin ich KRANK!]”
[”To the much—and from me passionately-loved L.L. from her Erika. Kilchberg, Christmas 1965 [2x the word ‘from’ is not a good thing, but after all I am CRAZY!”]]
“Heiss-geliebten” literally translates as “hotly loved”.

Erika Mann (1905–1969) was a German actor, writer, and daughter of Thomas Mann. She was especially close with her brother, the novelist Klaus Mann (1906–1949), with whom she co-wrote books, including this one. Lotte Lehmann (1888–1976) was a German soprano and widely regarded as one of Europe’s best opera singers.

EXILE: In January 1933, Erika and Klaus founded a cabaret in Munich called Die Pfeffermühle, which was vehemently anti-fascist. The Nazis forced the cabaret closed and the Manns decided to leave Germany. Erika entered a marriage of convenience in 1935 with the gay British poet W.H. Auden and obtained her exit visa. Klaus was stripped of his German citizenship in 1934 and was able to obtain Czech citizenship. In 1937, Erik & Klaus reopened their cabaret in New York.

To opine on a historical figure’s personal relationships is fraught with factual and moral problems. Lotte Lehmann has been described as a “great lesbian prima donna”; others describe her as pansexual or ambisexual. For over 35 years she lived with another woman, Frances Holden. Lehmann always stated that relationship was platonic.

Similarly, Erika’s personal life is complex. Described by others as bohemian, she labeled herself bisexual. In an unpublished letter from Erika to Klaus dated March 27, 1941, she described clandestine trysts as her “mental illness”. Weiss. Pg. 201.Lehmann’s biographer Michael H. Kater states the following on the relationship between Mann and Lehmann:

“After Frances Holden [the woman Lehmann lived with], Thomas Mann’s oldest daughter, Erika, became one of Lehmann’s closest woman friends… She visited frequently in Santa Barbara… and her correspondence with Lehmann was intense.” Kater. pg. 216.

Clearly, Mann and Lehmann were very close friends. We let the words of the inscription speak for themselves, as simply of a deeply personal nature.

Bibliography: Weiss; Kater; Bahr; von der Lühe.