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Alles was ich will - ist Alles
An autobiography of Marion Mill Preminger.
307 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1957
18 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 11, 2019
A marvelous book. Wife of Otto, of course. But did she have a life worth telling about? You bet.
September 3, 2025
Maybe the loveliest, bittersweetest autobiography I've ever read
First of all, these are the astrological signs of the important characters in this book- maybe you could have guessed it:
Marion Mill Preminger ... 3 August 1913 - Leo
Otto Preminger ... 5 December 1905 - Sagittarius
Marion's Father ... 17 September - Virgo
The first half of the book describes Marion's Childhood in Hungary, and then her Youth in Vienna.
These parts are the loveliest in the book. Little vignettes from a lost world, a lost paradise. These anecdotes of her family are lively, tender, and heartbreaking at the same time.
The second half describes her time between Hollywood and Paris.
Even though this is the most glamorous part, it lacks the profound tenderness of her childhood memories. One can see the extraordinarily chic salon, and yet these images feel like they are painted with fewer details. The last chapters describe her time at the side of Albert Schweitzer in Africa.
The anecdotes of 'River's End', the magical place of her childhood, will never leave me.
And: I would have wanted to have a father like Marion did. Andreas.
Some of my favorite quotes from her father(I am translating these from german):
" 'Never forget, Marion', my father instilled in me, 'that you are not a farm horse, but a racing horse. You should live in a stable of crystals and drink from a golden bucket.' " (p.57)
"He had no illusions about humanity, but he had a very compassionate heart. He said, for example, that God, in his infinite kindness, thought us more intelligent than we actually are. 'After Adam had eaten the apple, God realized that we weren't, but by then it was too late, even for God, to undo us." (p.58)
"Why did Janka wait hour by hour, even whole nights on her chair in front of father's room, until he came back from some soirée and hardly acknowledged her in her dark corner in the hall?
' Out of love", Papa said.
'But what is love?'
'A Secret, you will understand one day. But even when you don't understand the love, one must always respect it."
(p.67)
Also, I think this book helped me to understand the (aristocratic) Hungarian mindset.
Some more quotes on that:
"Until then, people said from our male relatives that they loved wine like their horses, their horses like their women, and women more than our dear Lord." (p.80).
"For a Hungarian, it is abnormal to eat alone, to drink alone, to sleep alone, or to cry alone." (p.109)
And here is some life advice from Marion Mill Preminger, who tasted life as much as she could:
"Oscar Wilde once said: 'Every advice is bad and good advice is deadly.' Since I was used to making my own decisions all my life, I stayed with it. My mistake was that I also always said what I thought. If you want to remain misunderstood your whole life, then just always say exactly what you are thinking..." (p. 184)
First of all, these are the astrological signs of the important characters in this book- maybe you could have guessed it:
Marion Mill Preminger ... 3 August 1913 - Leo
Otto Preminger ... 5 December 1905 - Sagittarius
Marion's Father ... 17 September - Virgo
The first half of the book describes Marion's Childhood in Hungary, and then her Youth in Vienna.
These parts are the loveliest in the book. Little vignettes from a lost world, a lost paradise. These anecdotes of her family are lively, tender, and heartbreaking at the same time.
The second half describes her time between Hollywood and Paris.
Even though this is the most glamorous part, it lacks the profound tenderness of her childhood memories. One can see the extraordinarily chic salon, and yet these images feel like they are painted with fewer details. The last chapters describe her time at the side of Albert Schweitzer in Africa.
The anecdotes of 'River's End', the magical place of her childhood, will never leave me.
And: I would have wanted to have a father like Marion did. Andreas.
Some of my favorite quotes from her father(I am translating these from german):
" 'Never forget, Marion', my father instilled in me, 'that you are not a farm horse, but a racing horse. You should live in a stable of crystals and drink from a golden bucket.' " (p.57)
"He had no illusions about humanity, but he had a very compassionate heart. He said, for example, that God, in his infinite kindness, thought us more intelligent than we actually are. 'After Adam had eaten the apple, God realized that we weren't, but by then it was too late, even for God, to undo us." (p.58)
"Why did Janka wait hour by hour, even whole nights on her chair in front of father's room, until he came back from some soirée and hardly acknowledged her in her dark corner in the hall?
' Out of love", Papa said.
'But what is love?'
'A Secret, you will understand one day. But even when you don't understand the love, one must always respect it."
(p.67)
Also, I think this book helped me to understand the (aristocratic) Hungarian mindset.
Some more quotes on that:
"Until then, people said from our male relatives that they loved wine like their horses, their horses like their women, and women more than our dear Lord." (p.80).
"For a Hungarian, it is abnormal to eat alone, to drink alone, to sleep alone, or to cry alone." (p.109)
And here is some life advice from Marion Mill Preminger, who tasted life as much as she could:
"Oscar Wilde once said: 'Every advice is bad and good advice is deadly.' Since I was used to making my own decisions all my life, I stayed with it. My mistake was that I also always said what I thought. If you want to remain misunderstood your whole life, then just always say exactly what you are thinking..." (p. 184)
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews