Renate Holm, a German-Austrian film actress and operatic soprano, was born on August 10, 1931, and died on April 21, 2022.
Renate Franke was born in the German capital of Berlin. She stated that she chose to pursue a career as an opera singer when she was twelve years old, after seeing a film adaptation of Puccini’s Madama Butterfly starring Maria Cebotari in the title role.
Her mother had treated her to the movies as a reward for a good report card.
Her parents divorced in 1943. Women and children were evacuated from the bombed-out center of Berlin the same year, and the Frankes were transferred to the Spreewald region, about 90 kilometers (50 miles) east of the city.
She attended the Paul-Gerhardt-Gymnasium, which was six kilometers (four miles) from her Ragow home.
She had gone to a girls’ school in Berlin, and the Lübben gymnasium gave her her first taste of mixed gender education: fifty years later, she was still in touch with two friends, a tenor and a bass, with whom she had formed a school singing trio.
Holm’s popularity grew during the mid-1950s, when he appeared in musical films and heimatfilms. Operetta recordings and radio broadcasts boosted her profile even more.
Hubert Marischka then hired her to work at the Vienna Volksoper in 1957. She had recently been offered the role of Eliza Doolittle in the German premiere of My Fair Lady at Berlin’s Theater des Westens, but she preferred to pursue an opera career.
How Did Renate Holm Die?
In her adopted home of Vienna, the famous singer died on Thursday (April 21) at the age of 90. The Vienna Volksoper made the announcement. Her Cause of death was not revealed.
