1890 5th December
Birth of Friedrich Christian Anton Fritz Lang
Birth of Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang.
Cinema history · permanent subject timeline
Fritz Lang
Austrian-born director central to German and later American cinema. This page combines historical context with 23 matching records drawn directly from the World History Database cinema archive.
Historical context
Fritz Lang: overview and significance
What happened?
Fritz Lang established his reputation in German silent and early sound cinema before continuing his directing career in the United States.
Why was it important?
Lang's work links expressionist visual traditions, technological modernity, crime cinema and film noir, making his career important across national film histories.
World History Database records
Fritz Lang timeline
The records below are selected from the 2,036-record Cinema History archive and rendered as static HTML in chronological order.
1890
1919
1919
Die Frau mit den Orchideen
Directs the silent film Die Frau mit den Orchideen.
1921
1921 6th October
Destiny
Directs Der mude Tod, released in English as Destiny.
1921
The Indian Tomb
Writes the screenplay for Das indische Grabmal, directed by Joe May.
1922
1922 27th April
Dr Mabuse the Gambler
Premiere of Dr Mabuse, der Spieler in Berlin.
1924
1924
Die Nibelungen
Directs the two-part silent epic Die Nibelungen.
1927
1927 10th January
Metropolis
Metropolis premieres in Berlin.
1928
1928 22nd March
Spies
Directs Spione, released in English as Spies.
1929
1929 15th October
Woman in the Moon
Directs Frau im Mond, an influential German science fiction film.
1931
1931 11th May
M
Directs M, his first sound film.
1933
1933 29th March
The Testament of Dr Mabuse
The Nazi regime bans The Testament of Dr Mabuse after its release is blocked.
1933
Emigration
Leaves Germany after conflict with the Nazi film authorities.
1936
1936 5th June
Fury
Directs Fury, his first American feature film.
1939
1939
Naturalization
Becomes a United States citizen after leaving Germany.
1941
1941 21st February
Western Union
Directs the western film Western Union.
1944
1944 3rd November
The Woman in the Window
Directs The Woman in the Window.
1944 31st December
Ministry of Fear
Directs Ministry of Fear.
1952
1952 16th June
Clash by Night
Directs Clash by Night.
1953
1953 28th March
The Blue Gardenia
Directs The Blue Gardenia.
1955
1955 24th June
Moonfleet
Directs Moonfleet.
1956
1956 5th September
Beyond a Reasonable Doubt
Directs Beyond a Reasonable Doubt.
1960
1960 14th September
The Thousand Eyes of Dr Mabuse
Directs Die tausend Augen des Dr Mabuse, his final film.
1976
1976 2nd August
Death of Fritz Lang
Death of Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang.
Editorial provenance
Sources and editorial review
Compiled and edited by World History Database.
Historical context is editorial material; the chronology is generated from World History Database cinema records.
Last reviewed: September 2026.
British Film Institute · Library of Congress · Academy Awards
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