Lili Marleen (film) Lili Marleen (film) Lili Marleen is a 1981 West German drama film directed by Rainer Werner Fassbinder and starring Hanna Schygulla. The screenplay was produced using the autobiographical novel "Der Himmel hat viele Farben" ("The Heavens Have Many Colors") by Lale Andersen. However, according to Lale Andersen's last husband, Arthur Beul, the film's plot bore little relation to her real life. The film is set during the Third Reich and is about the forbidden love between the German singer Willie (Hanna Schygulla) and the Swiss Jewish composer Robert Mendelssohn (a character based on Rolf Liebermann), who actively seeks to help
José Ferrer sentimental elements of the play that the director considered to be corny and in bad taste. The production became one of the hits of the 1946/47 Broadway season, winning Ferrer the first Best Actor Tony Award for his depiction of the long-nosed poet/swordsman. Ferrer directed, but did not appear in, "As We Forgive Our Debtors" (1947), which ran 5 performances. There was another short run for "Volpone" (1947) which Ferrer adapted and played the title role. Ferrer made his film debut in the Technicolor epic "Joan of Arc" (1948) as the weak-willed Dauphin opposite Ingrid Bergman as Joan. Ferrer's performance