Rare Third Reich Grouping to Female Reichs-Rundfunk & Reichsfilmkammer Member (Actress, Radio Speaker & Theatre Performer)

An exceptional and highly attractive original Third Reich document grouping belonging to Elisabeth Kühn (also appearing as Kühnel), documenting her professional career within the German entertainment and broadcasting industry between the late 1930s and the final months of the Second World War.

The group consists of her Arbeitsbuch, Reichsfilmkammer membership card, Reichsrundfunkkammer membership book, Reichs-Rundfunk employee identification card, monthly broadcaster’s pass, and accompanying official correspondence.

Included in the lot:

• Deutsches Reich Arbeitsbuch
• Reichsfilmkammer – Fachschaft Film membership booklet with photograph
• Reichsrundfunkkammer – Fachschaft Rundfunk membership book with contribution stamps
• Reichs-Rundfunk employee identification card with photograph
• Reichs-Rundfunk Monats-Zeitausweis Nr. 5 (March 1944)
• Official Reichsfilmkammer / Reichskulturkammer correspondence dated 29 November 1944

Career

According to the Arbeitsbuch, Elisabeth Kühn was born on 15 January 1911 in Pilkallen (East Prussia).

Her profession is recorded as:

• Schauspielerin (Actress)
• Hörspielerin (Radio drama actress)
• Filmfachdarstellerin (Film performer)
• Sprecherin (Radio announcer / speaker)

Her documented employment includes several prestigious cultural institutions:

• International concert tour company in Stuttgart (1936)
• Bayerisches Staatsschauspiel, Munich (1938)
• Münchner Künstlertheater under Intendant Otto Kustermann (1940)
• Stadttheater Ingolstadt (1941–1943)

Reichsfilmkammer

Included is her original Reichsfilmkammer (Film Chamber) membership booklet issued on 7 December 1939, complete with photograph, official Reichskulturkammer stamps and signature. The booklet identifies her as a Filmfachdarstellerin, confirming her professional status within Germany’s regulated film industry.

Reichsrundfunkkammer

Also included is her scarce Reichsrundfunkkammer – Fachschaft Rundfunk membership book, issued on 24 June 1939.

The booklet still retains numerous original membership contribution stamps, documenting regular payments during 1938 and 1939, making it a particularly attractive surviving example.

Reichs-Rundfunk Identification

A particularly desirable part of the grouping is the original Reichs-Rundfunk G.m.b.H. employee Ausweis with portrait photograph, identifying Elisabeth Kühn as an employee of Reichssender München.

Also included is her orange Monats-Zeitausweis Nr. 5, issued 24 March 1944, identifying her as:

• Sprecherin (Speaker / Announcer)
• Department: Zeitgeschehen / Eigenprogramm

The reverse still retains its original monthly control stamps extending into 1945, illustrating her continued employment during the closing phase of the war.

Condition

The complete grouping remains in very good original condition with honest age wear consistent with use. Photographs remain clear, signatures are present throughout, and the documents retain numerous official stamps, contribution labels, employment entries, and wartime annotations.

Historical Interest

This is a fascinating and unusually complete personal archive documenting the career of a woman working within several of the Third Reich’s most important cultural organizations. Groupings linking the Reichsfilmkammer, Reichsrundfunk, theatre employment, radio broadcasting, and official identification documents are seldom encountered together and provide remarkable insight into Germany’s wartime entertainment and broadcasting system.

A rare and highly displayable document grouping for collectors of Third Reich paperwork, Reichskulturkammer, Reichsrundfunk, German broadcasting, film history, and theatre memorabilia.