MORE THAN LIFE AT STAKE

dir. Janusz Morgenstern, Andrzej Konic, 1967 - 1968

Polish 18-episode spy TV series. The idea for a thriller/spy series came about in 1964, when the director of the Television Theatre asked Janusz Morgenstern to adapt a book by Soviet writer Yuri Dold-Mykhailkov entitled “Baron von Goldstein”. The director agreed to produce the play for the Sensations Theatre on the condition that the main character would be Polish and not Russian. He chose Zbigniew Safjan as the scriptwriter, who in turn invited Andrzej Szypulski to collaborate. The men, under the joint pseudonym Andrzej Zbych, created the story of J-23, a Pole who escapes from a prisoner of war camp in Königsberg and reaches the USSR. It turns out that he bears a striking resemblance to Captain Hans Kloss, who was in Soviet captivity. Kolicki agrees to cooperate and, as an agent with the pseudonym Janek, he impersonates the German officer.

By design, there were to be 6 episodes and the last one was to end... with Kloss' death. Morgenstern directed only the first show, the rest was directed by Andrzej Konic. When, a month before the last show, the announcer announced the end of “More than Life at Stake”, viewers sent desperate letters to the TV station en masse to save Kloss from death. So more parts appeared in the theatrical version, and in 1967 it was decided to make a film version of Kloss' adventures. Janusz Morgenstern returned to work on the series and directed 9 episodes. The same number were made by Andrzej Konic. The series about a Pole, Stanislaw Kolicki, who, putting on a German uniform, impersonates the Abwehr captain Hans Kloss, became a phenomenon and became a permanent fixture in the collective consciousness. The leading role was given to Stanislaw Mikulski. Mikulski had already been known before, for example from Tadeusz Chmielewski's “Ewa wants to sleep” for the role of a sympathetic policeman, so it was known that he looked deadly handsome in uniform. After all, an agent modelled on James Bond not only had to be noble, insanely brave and come out of the worst oppression on the other side, but should also be able to crush women's hearts.

The second actor most associated with “More than Life at Stake” is, of course, Emil Karewicz as Hermann Brunner in the TV series. Karewicz also played Brunner in the theatre version, but there he was shot rather quickly. In the TV series version, he was originally also to play Brunner in 1^st episode. However, he created such a distinctive, strong character that the creators decided to make changes to the script and keep Brunner alive for five episodes.

The remaining roles featured episodically the greatest stars of Polish cinema: Ignacy Gogolewski, Beata Tyszkiewicz, Bronisław Pawlik, Leon Niemczyk, Barbara Horowianka, Barbara Brylska, Ewa Wiśniewska, Edmund Fetting... it would take a long time to list. A total of around 700 actors from all over Poland appeared in the 18 episodes, mainly from the theatrical circles of Łódź, Kraków, Wrocław and Gdańsk.

The series also gained enormous popularity outside Poland. It was screened in Czechoslovakia, Sweden (where its viewing figures were reportedly higher than the Ice Hockey World Championships, which were being broadcasted at the same time), Mexico, Canada and Japan. Interestingly, the series was also very popular in the German Democratic Republic.

The most prominent locations of the “More Than Life at Stake” series in Łódź are:

Schweikert Palace, European Institute, 262/264 Piotrkowska Street

In the Cafe Rose episode, the palace interiors played the German consulate in Istanbul. A ball is being held here, and among the consul's guests are Kloss and Rose Arens (Alina Janowska). Unfortunately for Miss Rose, this is the last ball of her life - during the party it turns out that she has been mysteriously murdered.

Scheibler Palace, Museum of Cinematography, Zwycięstwa Square 1

In the Cafe Rose episode, the interior of the palace played the nightclub at the villa of Rose Arens (Alina Janowska) in Istanbul. Kloss is sent to Istanbul by the Abwehr to detect British spies in the German consulate. When Kloss enters the villa a stately staircase is visible. Again, Kloss appears here after Miss Rose's death, when he comes to search her flat.

The meeting between Christopulis (Edmund Fetting) and Witt (Janusz Bylczyński) and Kloss also takes place in the Moorish lounge. The men play poker here. Christopulis and Witte, having impure business interests on their consciences, try to bribe Kloss by losing high stakes. J-23 realises their intentions and deliberately loses the whole pot. Exotic dancers add the oriental character.

SPATiF, 33/35 Kościuszki Street

In the interiors of this restaurant, popular in film environment, the scene of the ball at the Radom NSDAP Kreisleiter in the episode Strictly Secret was filmed. Here, Kloss meets the engineer Reil (Igor Śmiałowski), his subordinate Puschke (Lech Ordon), and the mysterious prestidigitator, a specialist in occult knowledge, Rioletto (Leon Niemczyk)

EC1, ⅓ Targowa  Street

In the episode Strictly Secret, the Łódź thermal power station has become a German factory producing aircraft engines. Out of the factory comes the prestidigitator Rioletto (Leon Niemczyk), whom Kloss suspects of collaborating with the Gestapo, but is in fact a British agent who is obliged to cooperate with agent J-23.

A scene in which Kazik (Marian Opania), a member of the conspiracy network, tries to draw the plans of the factory was also filmed on the premises of the thermal power plant. In the frames you can see one of the most characteristic elements of the EC1 complex - a fragment of the cooling tower.

Café Honoratka, 2 Moniuszki Street

You can take a look inside the cult Honoratka in the episode Last Chance. In the premises, Captain Ruppert (Ignacy Gogolewski) is to meet a resistance liaison officer, Anna (Ewa Wiśniewska). During their next meeting, the Gestapo prepares an ambush for the woman. Fortunately, Kloss, who is passing by the café, warns Anna of the danger in time. Interestingly, in the series, the café is called Mocca in honour of another café in Łódź, Honoratka's predecessor. It was located in a corner tenement at 34 Piotrkowska St. In the 1940s and 1950s, celebrities such as Stefania Grodzieńska, Edward Dziewoński and Leon Schiller could be seen here.

III Secondary School, 46 Sienkiewicza Street

The school building, or rather the square in front of it, appears in an episode of Colonel Kraft's brilliant plan. For this production, the building has become the headquarters of German intelligence. In a conversation with his superior, Major Horst (Tadeusz Schmidt), Captain Hans Kloss (Stanisław Mikulski) learns that he has been put at the disposal of Colonel Kraft. Horst assures Kloss that this is a kind of honour for him. The captain seems a little taken aback, as he doesn't know what purpose such a move serves or what his assignment will be. He leaves the intelligence headquarters, gets into a rickshaw driven by Tadek (Jan Englert), a member of the conspiracy network, and together they head to its headquarters.

Prince Józef Poniatowski`s Park

The series' shooting crew visited the park twice. Each time it plays a different location. In the Hotel Excelsior episode, J-23 turns into a park in Gdansk, where Kloss goes to meet the mysterious Number 2, while in the Cafe Rose episode, set in Istanbul, we see tennis courts on screen, located within the park. They are played by Christopulis (Edmund Fetting), a salesman, and his partner is played by a real tennis player, the Polish singles and doubles champion, Maria Dowbór-Lewandowska.