Marlene was known in school for her "bedroom eyes" and her first affairs were at this stage in her life - a professor at the school was terminated.
Marlene enjoyed music and attended concerts. She was adept at playing the violin and piano. By the time she was in her mid-teens, Marlene had discovered the stage. Acting was to be her vocation. In 1921, Marlene applied for an acting school run by Max Reinhardt. She was accepted. She appeared in several stage productions, but never had more than a couple of spoken lines. In short, she wasn't setting the stage world on fire.
She attempted films for the first time in 1922 Her first film was So sind die Männer (The Little Napoleon) (1923) which was followed by Tragödie der Liebe (Love Tragedy) (1923). On this last project, she met Rudolf Sieber and married him in 1924. The union lasted until his death in 1976 although they didn't live together the whole time.
The remainder of her early film career was generally filled with bit roles. After being seen in the German production of Der blaue Engel (The Blue Angel) (1930) in 1930, Marlene was given a crack at Hollywood. Her first US film was Morocco (1930) with Gary Cooper, which was followed by Dishonored (1931). This latter movie had her cast as a street walker who is appointed a spy. The film was rather boring but was a success because of Marlene's presence. In 1932, Marlene filmed Shanghai Express (1932) which proved to be immensely popular, grossing $3 million. Once again, she was cast as a prostitute. The next film was Blonde Venus (1932) which turned out to be a horrible production. Her co-star was Cary Grant and once again she was cast as a prostitute.
During this period Dietrich had been typecast as a woman of low morals and she wanted different parts. Her chance came in 1939 in Destry Rides Again (1939) when she was cast as "Frenchy", a Western saloon hostess. This began a new direction for Marlene since it shed the previous typecasting. All through the 1940s, she appeared in well-produced, well-directed films such as Manpower (1942), The Spoilers (1942), The Lady Is Willing (1942) and Pittsburgh (1942).
Afterwards the roles came less frequently, perhaps one to two films every year. In 1945, Marlene didn't appear in any. She only made seven productions in the 1950's. Her last role of any substance was Judgment at Nuremberg (1961). Despite the lack of theatrical roles, Marlene still made appearances on the stage. However, by 1979, she was a shell of her former self. After breaking her leg in one performance, she never made a go of it in show business again.
Spending the last 12 years of her life bed-ridden, Marlene died on May 6, 1992 in Paris, France of kidney failure at the age of 90.
Assez
Marlene Dietrich Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lève-toi, va-t'en!
Pars!
Le lit n'est pas trop grand
Pour moi
Qui suis lasse de t'aimer
T'aimer
Oui, tu m'ennuies avec tes grands mots d'adieu
L'or me dégoûte et je déteste la cour
Rien ne me plaît, rien que l'amour
Pars gentiment sans gémir sur tes malheurs
Pars, tu auras bientôt calmé ta douleur
Je ris de tous ces sentiments dont mon cœur est lassé
Assez!
Allons!
Lève-toi, va-t'en!
Pars!
Le lit n'est pas trop grand
Pour moi
Qui suis lasse de t'aimer
T'aimer
Oui, tu m'ennuies avec tes grands mots d'adieu
Moi, j'ai horreur de tous ces discours, mon vieux
L'or me dégoûte et je déteste la cour
Rien ne me plaît, rien que l'amour
Pars!
Je ris de tous ces sentiments dont mon cœur est lassé
Assez!
Assez!
The song "Assez" by Marlene Dietrich is all about a woman who has fallen out of love with her partner and is urging him to leave. The opening lines "Allons! Lève-toi, va-t'en! Pars!" translate to "Come on! Get up, go away, leave!" and set the tone for the rest of the song. She admits that the bed is not too big for her despite its emptiness without him and she is tired of loving him. She finds his grand words of goodbye boring and hates those types of conversations. She continues on to say that she despises wealth and politics, and the only thing that makes her happy is love. She encourages him to leave and not to complain about his grievances because she will laugh at him for her heart is tired of all the emotions that come with the relationship.
The emotions that Marlene conveys through her voice make the song powerful. The delivery of her words sounds almost spiteful, yet also sad. The lyrics of the song suggest the woman once had feelings for the man, but they have waned. The refrain "Assez!" which means "Enough!" in English, is repeated throughout the song, emphasizing her desire to end the relationship. The repetition also highlights the woman's impatience and her wish to move on from her partner.
Line by Line Meaning
Allons!
Let's go!
Lève-toi, va-t'en!
Get up, go away!
Pars!
Leave!
Le lit n'est pas trop grand
The bed is not too big
Pour moi qui suis lasse de t'aimer
For me, who is tired of loving you
T'aimer
Loving you
Oui, tu m'ennuies avec tes grands mots d'adieu
Yes, you bore me with your grand farewell words
Moi, j'ai horreur de tous ces discours, mon vieux
I hate all those speeches, my old friend
L'or me dégoûte et je déteste la cour
Gold disgusts me and I hate the court
Rien ne me plaît, rien que l'amour
Nothing pleases me except love
Pars gentiment sans gémir sur tes malheurs
Leave gently without complaining about your misfortunes
Pars, tu auras bientôt calmé ta douleur
Leave, you will soon have calmed your pain
Je ris de tous ces sentiments dont mon cœur est lassé
I laugh at all these feelings that my heart is tired of
Assez!
Enough!
Writer(s): Stern, Walberg, Tranchant
Contributed by Dylan F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
KRISPYKWENT29
I tend to like her more 'obscure' recordings rather than her more well know numbers and I love the avant guarde 'Ultra - Jazziness' section plus the song lends itself to her vocal range.
Micaï. Claude.
Grande Dame !
Kym Heilliette-Laflamme
Je t'aime marlene : tu m'ennuis avec tes grands mots d'adieux. Magnifique femme fatal la marlene
michele beart
Merci
LilyMarleneDietrich
@marguitar1 Yes, you said it! And I say it too: she is so cute! Thank you ;-)
Don Won
She is cute cute cute and oh yes did I say cute!!!
Inky261
She had too many guys in her life. Bad attitude