Saladin Schmitt

Born in Bingen am Rhein, Schmitt came from a family of wine merchants and mill owners who had lived on the lower Nahe for several generations.

In 1905, he received his doctorate from the Bonn Germanist and theatre scholar Berthold Litzmann with a thesis on Friedrich Hebbel.

[2] In the 1906/1907 season, Schmitt worked as a dramaturge at the Stadttheater am Brausenwerth [de], after which he wrote mainly for the feuilleton of the Kölner Tageblatt.

Schmitt was replaced as artistic director in 1949 when he tried to reinstate his former chief dramaturge Walter Thomas, who was considered controversial because of a National Socialist past; his removal was even demanded by a demonstration in front of the Rathaus Bochum [de].

[6] Schmitt's homosexuality is first documented in his letters to Ernst Bertram, whom he met during their time studying together in Bonn.